Star Citizen Live Gamedev: Arena Commander 3.20

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

Experimental modes are limited time modes that rotate through a patch cycle. So out here on PTU right now, we have almost all experimental modes available, but in live, it'll be one at a time. But those modes are used to prove out features, gather feedback, or just have fun with something. Like if we have a wacky idea, which obviously won't work in the PU, we can't just switch your weapon out in the PU, right? But we can do that in Arena Commander. We can have a bit of fun with it.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

But no, this patch was primarily meant to be a bunch of refactors. There wasn't meant to be so much content in it. We got some more time, we managed to get a bunch more stuff in there. Gun Rush is the one that we were most passionate about to get in because we thought it would be pretty fun and successful, and PTU has kind of proven that. I don't think there's been a time I've went in PTU and there hasn't been a lobby of Gun Rush going on.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

The scoreboard's been in for a while, but we fixed a lot. There was a lot of problems, and we've added a bunch of quality of life improvements and whatnot, so now you can see the game mode that you're in, see your squad mates. If we were with squad mates, they'd highlight a different color. Most notably is our new UI at the top of the screen. We just call it the top HUD, but I guess you could call it objective UI, where we've got your score, your opponent's score.

SBo: It randomizes the armor. So you're not any team in this mode. It's a free-for-all.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

Not just the armor, but the weapon skins as well. So as it changes weapons, you get various different skins. I don't know if there's any rarity to the skins, but I always like getting the Executive Edition, you know, the gold.

SBo: No, I don't think so. I think it's just randomized completely.

Jared Huckaby · Host, Community

But what about the weird kind of off-the-wall stuff? Are those the kind of things that are rife for experimental modes?

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

Absolutely. With Arena Commander, we can take more... I guess liberties is the word with the engine. It's a simulation, right? A simulation within the simulation. We can put stuff in there that's just for fun, right? We can focus on the fun. So if that silliness is fun, why not? If it's not fun, maybe not.

Jared Huckaby · Host, Community

So imagine you had to spec out a game mode with the foam dart weapons now. What are your first instincts? Should we keep zero damage? Where does the gameplay come from with zero damage?

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

Or I'm thinking even more out of the box, like maybe you've got an EVA race where you've got the dart gun and you shoot it and it has increased push. So it pushes your opponents off to the side. Maybe you're trying to get through some freight boxes or whatever it may be, and you push them and they go out of bounds or something like that.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

I am personally really into the immersion of games. I don't know if I'm better with the dual sticks, but it feels better. And it looks cool as well. The cool factor is something you must consider.

Jared Huckaby · Host, Community

Are you suggesting that you play with dual sticks because it feels cool?

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

It definitely does feel cool and it might play a factor.

SBo: That is a valid reason. I mean, I think you can have a higher skill ceiling when you get good at dual sticks as well.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

I was on the fence about it to begin with because that's a lot of movement. But when you're the person playing or even just watching, it's really immersive. It's very intuitive how it works. And personally, I need it for racing, because generally you're not looking where you're going in racing. You're looking to the side, like this, moving.

Jared Huckaby · Host, Community

So because there's the three of us in close proximity, if I get too close, will the Tobii track me instead of you?

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

That's because you're blocking my eyes. As long as you don't block my eyes, I think it's fine. That's a feature I really like, the eye tracking. So right now I'm not moving my head. This is all my eyes doing it. So I'll look to the left, look to the right. That's just my eyes that are moving. I'm a big fan of that.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

It's actually called Tank Royale in the game. We didn't want it to be in lore.

Jared Huckaby · Host, Community

You chickened out?

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

We didn't. I want to be clear on that. It was a decision. No, I know the origin, but only after we did the ISC on it, because people sent it.

SBo: Yeah, we didn't know the reason for that naming convention until after that.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

Yes, for almost every mode. I think you can for Tank Royale if you own the tank. So we've got this concept of communal vehicles now. And communal vehicles are free vehicles for the game mode, which you can't use anywhere else. You get given them without any cost, no REC, no UEC money or anything like that. And they're non-customizable. But you can always rent the item using the Arena Commander currency, REC, or purchase it from the pledge store, and you'll get your customization.

SBo: That is an issue that has been fixed but isn't in the PTU yet.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

Unfortunately, we rolled the lightest gravity map. So on this, you need to be a little bit more mindful of your acceleration and whatnot. But also, there is a bug right now in that you can pull a wheelie with a tank.

SBo: Yeah, currently you can do a lot of styling.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

It was fixed last night, but we are on that mode where Sam is now pulling wheelies.

Jared Huckaby · Host, Community

That's not to say that there can't be a mode where you're on an incredibly low G. But that's not what that's supposed to be.

SBo: It's a lot more floaty than it is meant to be at the moment.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

Don't get us wrong, it is meant to be a little bit floaty. Like being Yela, that's 0.2 gravity, which is really low, so you do have to manage your speeds going over these hills.

SBo: Not at the moment.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

You can enter the remote turret from the driver's seat, but the multi-crew aspect...

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

Yeah, but that's what that is. That's switching the seats of the vehicle. There's two different seats for the driver.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

Not for 3.20. In the future, we might do. Because, obviously, the tank has three seats, actually. It's got your remote machine gun and... well, the turret.

SBo: We did look into making it so that you could have multiple people in the tank. The thing that came up was basically that the second person only got to use the piddly laser gun, so it wasn't really worth them being in it.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

It would, and we had long debates about it. This is Daymar. This is actually a location on Daymar. Other than putting the monolith in, we haven't changed things about it. The rocks are there, and it might seem like obvious feedback, but getting some tanks down here, you see how hard it can be to fight on some terrain, and this is not the worst of it. There's far worse biomes, I suppose. So it goes into those updates thanks to the game mode.

Jared Huckaby · Host, Community

I'm not going to say yes or no to that. I will say that I'm not aware of any plans for that. Given how important that source material is to almost everybody that works here, it's not an unsafe bet. But there's no plans at the moment.

SBo: Typically, if something gets made for the PU and people want it in AC, we can probably put it in AC.

Jared Huckaby · Host, Community

I'm going to go ahead and jump on this one here and say that we have an entire team dedicated to processing, but two, really, teams dedicated to processing and ingesting this feedback. We have the Player Experience team and, of course, our community team. And a big chunk of what they do is to correlate that kind of data, and to process it, and to verify it, because it's not always super accurate. To verify its accuracy, and then to get that into the proper hands: people like Duncan, people like Sam, if it's Arena Commander related, PU designers and stuff like that, and even Squadron designers, if it's something that might affect or benefit that. So to the amount, it's not like I can put a number or a percentage on it, but I can tell you there are literally two teams, two complete teams that both have worldwide presences, dedicated to gathering and collecting and processing that information.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

I think I can probably speak for everyone. Those teams are incredible. I'm in the vehicle balance syncs and discussions being had, all the considerations being had before any change makes it. It's awesome to see.

Jared Huckaby · Host, Community

And we have a number of internal resources. People that work here are very involved in this stuff, like Yogi Klatt and Salty Mike, folks who have worked here for years and been on the payroll.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

They absolutely can. So alongside the front end is a reworked lobby system which lets you play with all your friends. Before, we were limited to, what was it, four?

SBo: Yeah, I think it was four. But now it's based on the game mode. So basically in any team modes, you can fill up an entire team with your squad in your lobby, essentially. And then for free-for-all, you can take up the entire space of the game. So in the 16-player mode, you can pair up with 16 people and it'll just shove you all into that one game.

Duncan Bunting · Lead Gameplay Programmer, Arena Commander Feature Team

You will acquire a Spectrum badge. A pop-up will come up on your screen. I don't recall if it comes up as soon as you reach 25 minutes or you finish the game after reaching 25 minutes. But that's our goal: you're above average, you get some kind of reward. And that's us testing the ground with rewards in Arena Commander.