Renown News

[p]Hey folks.[/p][p][/p][p]As always, thanks for checking out the latest news in the Renown World. [/p][p]We’re on the edge of a fairly substantial patch atm. [/p][p]We’ll have direct feature spotlights coming real soon. [/p][p]For now, we’ve got a shorter and sharper update with more of the “on the ground” situation in Renown. [/p][p][/p][p]First off, I’m very excited to reintroduce Moxie:[/p][p][/p][p]Hello everyone! I'm Moxie, the new Lead Programmer of Renown. I already have a long history with both Renown and RDBK Studios, and I’m incredibly excited to help shape this game into the best version it can be. [/p][p]In my career, I’ve worked at seven different studios, with more than five years of professional game development experience exclusively in Unreal Engine, using both Blueprints and C++. Nothing makes me happier than being here with all of you, building the world of Renown together.[/p][p]Since stepping into the Lead Programmer role, a lot has already taken place. From new animations and a complete overhaul of sieging, to the introduction of the trebuchet and extensive improvements to the combat experience. There’s just plenty I’d like to cover.[/p][p]For now, a brief note on combat. It’s received major visual updates to animations, sound effects, and visual effects to improve clarity and feel. [/p][p]We’ve also squashed a number of bugs, including issues with hit registration (phasing), stagger inconsistencies, and various visual glitches.[/p][p]We’ll be doing a full breakdown and briefing on combat changes in detail, hopefully next week.[/p][p]Oh, and for all the archers out there.. bows are being completely redone very, very soon. They’ll finally be a truly viable option.[/p][p]We’ll be sharing much more detail when we’re ready to reveal everything that’s new in the combat system. [/p][p]But you can count on this next update to deliver: Critical bug fixing, smoother and more accessible combat for newcomers without lowering the skill ceiling, and most importantly, Clarity. [/p][p]Before I wrap up, I also wanted to mention that multiple traps and the ferryman are confirmed to be in the game by next month![/p][p]Thanks for reading, and thank you all for your continued passion and support. We’re just getting started, and I can’t wait to show you what’s next for Renown.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Given our Lead Artist, KZ, normally has more of a show-don’t-tell mentality, he’s done a quick explainer for what he’s been busily up to:[/p][p][/p][p]Kz here![/p][p]I’ve been deep in the combat and visuals lately, really trying to make everything feel responsive and satisfying. The goal is for every action in combat to be clearly signalled—whether visually through animations and VFX, or through audio cues. [/p][p]I think this will really enhance the overall combat experience, especially when it comes to landing hits and feeling truly immersed, instead of that older “gliding with a lightsabre” vibe. [/p][p]I’ve also been working on sounds, aiming to make everything feel more distinct and realistic. The idea is to tighten up the combat while still clearly communicating important gameplay information. [/p][p]We want knights to feel like knights, not silent thieves sneaking up on you. (Also, RIP to the first helmet I forged at home - it took one for the team). [/p][p][/p][p]As mentioned in the last few dev blogs, I’ve been adding more content and events—things like sewers, mines, and carriage encounters. Just more ways for players to engage with the world and have fun.[/p][p]Lastly, I’ve been working on a lighting overhaul. I’m pushing it closer to realism while keeping performance in mind. This isn’t just for visuals; it’s also part of prepping for the upcoming day and night cycle. [/p][p]Old:[/p][p][/p][p]New WIP:[/p][p][/p][p]That’ll bring back meaningful uses for torches and night raids. It’s a huge task since every time of day needs to look great and play well, no pitch-black nights, please. [/p][p]The day/night system will definitely add more structure to players’ in-game arcs and open up some really cool opportunities for creative plays.[/p][p]Thanks again for checking out the latest news in the Renown Development World. [/p][p]We'll be back soon with some exciting news regarding upcoming updates to the game![/p][p][/p]

[p]Hello everybody.[/p][p]We’ve got a ton in the works for the next patch, and all of this is gearing up for a larger content update in the near future.[/p][p]Till then we figured we should show off the behind the scenes, for what’s going on in the Renown Development world, at the moment.[/p][p] [/p][p]Introduction to one of our Mystery Programmers – It was Phanzor the whole time![/p][p]We are delighted to introduce one of our programmers, Phanzor, who recently transitioned from a long-standing role as a Discord moderator to a full-time developer on the project. Below is a brief message from Phanzor:[/p][p]“Hello all[/p][p]I’m Phanzor and I’ve recently been fully onboarded to the project after being a long-time moderator here on the discord.[/p][p]I am currently working on the siege system. This has involved reworking projectiles to increase their impact with players. We’ve done this to improve the feeling of being involved in a siege. It also lets us make them more modular, allowing us to implement newer variants (i.e. flaming boulders). This opens up the entire system for easy development for some cool ideas, such as; Anti-Personal Catapult shots, Cheap Tracing/Guiding shots, and maybe even an airborne human option at some point.[/p][p]This also comes with fixing up and adding in the trebuchet. We’re also making it so raid sounds are heard from farther away. Previously the impact and feel from being under attack was underwhelming. It also missed out on a key Survival Raiding troupe, of being able to hear a raid from a long distance and act as a 3rd party.[/p][p]Recently also I finished up the new wipe system making it more reliable and introducing a scheduler to ensure servers wipe at the correct times and advance the date correctly afterwards.”[/p][p] [/p][p]We’re super excited to have Phanzor full time working on the team. While there is still a lot of sharpening and fixing still to be done, we’re really excited for the future of the game. Next time we’ll hear from Moxie a long-time programmer on our team and our other “Mystery Programmer” mentioned last week.[/p][p] [/p][p]KZ has mainly been hard at work with Combat Feedback and improving the direct feel of the combat system. We’ll have a whole dev blog dedicated to just the Combat system and its changes coming in the next week or so. Till then KZ has also been modelling and animating some cool new features.
[/p][p]The Carraige and Caravan System

[/p][p][/p][p]The first of these are the new traveling event in game. These are the Merchant Caravans and the Royal Carriages.[/p][p]To begin with, these will be AI controlled Carriages which travel around the map. If players find them, and can do enough damage, the Carriage will be stopped and lootable.

[/p][p]They’ll have a basic foot escort of Mercenaries for the Merchants, and Knights for the Nobles. This should add some excitement to the mix and gives us system to scale with the value being carried.[/p][p]In the future KZ has mentioned he’d like to have the AI escorts riding on the carriage. For example, the back of both the noble and merchant vehicles has a step for riding along, or places at the front to ride “Crossbow”. This should also add a level of dynamic fun given the carriages could move a lot faster this way.[/p][p]Further beyond this, we’d love for players to be able to create and ride along in their own carriages or caravans. KZ already had a video from a WIP riding system, but it’ll need a fair bit of love before it’s in game ready. However, this is stil a tangible step toward to the mighty medieval wagon fort![/p][p] [/p][p]The Ferrymen – A new fast travel system

[/p][p]The other area KZ has been working on, is the design and implementation of our new fast travel system “The Ferrymen”.[/p][p]In this case we’re still looking to redo the entire vehicle system in game when we add in horse and cavalry. Till then we’ve got a fairly large map, and not a ton of ability for players to move around.[/p][p]The quick solution for this in the meantime, is a simple network of Fast Travel points separated around the coast of the map.[/p][p]The main idea being this should help with greater player interaction over the map, and better Quality of Life for any longer journeys the player regularly takes.[/p][p]We’ll be starting with it fairly unrestricted, but we’ll be looking at options to add fees or other balance gates if it’s causing less fun than it’s helping to make.[/p][p]This of course hints at a greater system of player rideable, and then controllable boats and other watercraft, after the aforementioned Vehicle system can be overhauled. River logistics was a huge part of the medieval world, and who doesn’t love a good sea battle at the end of the day.[/p][p][/p][p]Stay tuned for next week's "Fresh of the Forge" update. We'll be covering Combat changes and various other exciting bits planned for the next patch. [/p]

[p]Hello Everyone

We hope you have all had a great week!
There has been a heap of changes and advancements here at RDBK.
There is a lot to get through, so let's crack straight into it. [/p][p]Connection Issues, Fatal Errors
First, to address the progress made on the connection issues and crashes, we have since on-boarded the amazing folks at Code Wizards to help solve these issues, as they are far more knowledgeable in EAC than we are. [/p][p]Once this is pushed to live servers, all we ask is for anyone still experiencing the issues to please grab these new logs and make a ticket here in the discord. This should directly be able to tell us a lot more information on the cause of the issue so we can get that fixed and behind us. [/p][p][/p][p]Combat
Its become incredibly clear to us that the current combat is our number one issue, its almost entirely collectively agreed that this is not it, and we have come to agree. There are many reasons for this. Firstly, the phasing and desync issues have been uncovered to be a problem systemic to the current implementation. [/p][p]The skill ceiling and barrier of entry for new players is also incredibly high. Any game with full-loot and raiding is a hardcore game. Combining that with our current combat might have just pushed that a little too far for the majority of players.[/p][p]So now to discuss what we have decided to do;
As mentioned, the current code of the combat is causing most of our issues. We could either spend 2 months trying to pull it apart and put it back together again, or we could spend the same time designing a new, simpler system that is more in line with what our player base wants. [/p][p]However, there will still be changes to the current combat over this time. We will be using our current combat as a test bed to play around with different mechanics and find what works best for Renown. [/p][p]Ultimately, we are hoping to create a system that still allows skill expression but is not be overly oppressive for new melee combat players. This way, at least they’ll be able to understand what's going on and feel as if they have a chance to enjoy the combat before being killed. [/p][p]Combat Feedback[/p][p]Combat feedback has also been a massive issue. Parrying and hitting players had little to no impact; at times, you might not even know a hit has been landed. We are working on implementing hit reaction animations, blood effects, camera shake, and parry sparks; these all in conjunction should create a much more punchier and immersive combat experience. [/p][p][/p][p]Optimization & Performance[/p][p]The next major point of development work is, of course, Optimisation and Performance, both on the client and the server. In terms of client performance, we have identified two major systems that will help a lot in this regard. One being World Partition and the other being Skeletal Mesh Merging. These two systems should greatly improve client performance, allowing more players to be in one place at the same time and considerably lowering the cost of the map. [/p][p]Regarding server performance and the weekly wipe requirement, we identified the current save system as the main issue. [/p][p]With targeted improvements and rewrites, we believe we can achieve biweekly and eventually monthly wipes. [/p][p]Optimisation and Performance is constantly a major focus of ours; we are always looking for any area we can squeeze performance out of. [/p][p]
Bows & Thrown[/p][p]Renown was always meant to be a fast-paced game, but our bows and thrown feel slow and clunky. This was never intended, and over time, they were changed and shifted so many times that they now just feel horrible to use. We have opted to create a much simpler, faster system for bows and thrown, something that feels snappier and more inline with the game we are trying to create. [/p][p]On top of just how they feel to use, we want bows and thrown to have a much more important place in the progression and PvP interactions of Renown. These should be weapons that most people use in the early game and only really become more obsolete as people are entering into full plate. We are also planning on adding the ability to throw all weapons and items that can be held. [/p][p]Large Content Updates & Smaller Patches[/p][p]Over the course of the development of Renown, we have had an issue with content and changes being pushed before they were adequately tested and confirmed to be working. \\[/p][p]We want to make sure that going forward, when we do large content updates, these are in a more polished state and are ready to be used in-game. [/p][p]We have finally been able to work on implementing development streams. This is a system that allows development work to be broken off into branches, allowing larger systems to be worked on in isolation, only being pushed to the main branch once they are ready. [/p][p]This will allow us to push smaller patches that address bugs and exploits as they arise rather than having to work around larger updates. This goes hand in hand with our player count. Renown relies on having a server of players for people to enjoy, it would make more sense to have larger updates that bring back a bunch of people all at once than lots of smaller ones. [/p][p][/p][p]Expanding the Development Team[/p][p]We are aware there are some concerns in the community on our current player count and our ability to continue development. Again, we just want to reiterate that the team has never been in a better position to push forward and build Renown into what it needs to be.[/p][p]We will help quell those concerns through continued updates and improvements. One of those ways we are working towards that goal is by expanding our team. Since release, we have on-boarded 2 new programmers, and are in discussion with two more who will be specifically brought on for the new combat systems. [/p][p]Additionally, we are now working with Prismatic Studios, a Gold Service Provider of Epic Games. They have been assisting on any high level issues we experience. [/p][p]Finally, we wanted to let everyone know MR.Z is no longer working on Renown due to creative differences. Game development is not an easy business, and it's very common for people to have differing views. [/p][p]It's understandable for people to worry that this will negatively impact the speed at which we can develop. The new programmers have been getting a handle on the project a lot faster than we could have imagined, and we are back into full swing already. [/p][p]Due to the above changes, we are now able to start working in C++, which will allow us to create systems that, at a base operate 10-30% faster and more efficiently than Unreal Blueprints. It will take time to move all our major systems over to C++, but at least now we can make a start. [/p][p][/p][p]Geforce Now
We had a lot of people reach out to me asking about Geforce Now. We went away and worked with Nvidia to get Renown up and running on that system. It should now all be operating correctly. If you experience any issues, please create a ticket and we’ll reach out to Nvidia to get that fixed up. [/p][p][/p][p]Patch 3.1.6[/p][p]3.1.6 is following suit with our earlier comments in keeping it a smaller patch, addressing some particular issues while we save the bulk of our work until it's ready for a large content update. [/p][p]The main problems being addressed in this patch are the catapult exploit fix and a new system for fixing the research disappearing bug as well as some balance changes to the treasure system. [/p][p]
We want to thank you all for sticking with us! I'm so excited to show off what we are cooking up.
Keep an eye out for the next “The Road Ahead” update, where we discuss some of these future systems in some more depth. [/p][p]Patch Notes[/p][p][/p][p]Features[/p]

• [p]Added Research Menu Refresh Button (temporary research disappearing fix) [/p]

[p][/p][p]Balance[/p]

• [p]Treasure drop rate decreased heavily[/p]
• [p]Treasure sell price increased[/p]
• [p]Smithy Hammers and Tailor Kits drop rates increased[/p]
• [p]Balanced External Costs (Increased) and Health (Increased)[/p]

[p][/p][p]Exploits[/p]

• [p]Fixed Catapult Raiding Exploit[/p]

[p][/p][p]Servers/Community Hosting[/p]

• [p]Server Browser UI Improvements[/p]
• [p]Fixed LastWipeTime Incorrect Value[/p]
• [p]Added Config bUseOfficialWipeSchedule[/p]
• [p]Added Config WipeSchedulerInterval[/p]
• [p]Added Time Until Wipe Info element[/p]
• [p]Fixed Issue for Wipe Date info element[/p]
• [p]Reduced Wilderness Respawn Cooldown to 3s was 30s[/p]

[p][/p][p]General Fixes[/p]

• [p]Fixed auto attacking on exiting Catapult[/p]
• [p]Fixed Claymore blood mask[/p]
• [p]Fixed Blacksmith Bench floating slightly [/p]

[p][/p]

[p]Volker here![/p][p][/p][p]This is something the team wanted to start doing to kind of show appreciation for the awesome community we have and show off some of the things that stick out to us in the community as well as give an insight to the appreciation for the stuff all of you do. We love every piece of creativity the community shows us, whether it be art, a screenshot of them with their friends, or even just some video of them screaming in the mic killing someone in game. While the team's heads are down coding and doing all the tedious developer stuff, I've been sifting through the community looking at the awesome things you all have made. So here we go, enjoy the first of many Community Updates! [/p][p] [/p][h2]Connection Failed[/h2][h2][/h2][p]A lot of users have been experiencing connection failures on our launch and in light of the situation one of our community members in the discord Rose made this great piece below to remind us of our mistake (sorry Rose we will do better we promise)[/p][p][/p][h2]Epic Clan Photos[/h2][p][/p][p][/p][p]The epic screenshots above come from our community members GalaxyGG32, and alariclothbrok. We love seeing all the different group photos with your friends so keep them coming. Fun fact: the studio name RDBK actually comes from a Rust Clan we were in years ago RDBK (Redback) before starting Renown. [/p][p][/p][h2]Player base or POI? [/h2][p][/p][p][/p][p]This awesome base that was posted by our community member Dime, was all built on 1x (yes that makes it extra impressive) There are so many epic bases to show but I thought this one would be an awesome one to share. We love seeing the massive builds people make that feel as if they could almost be POI's or apart of the world. We're also planning on getting a build server up eventually so you architectural geniuses of Renown can have a playground to build in hopefully soon. [/p][h2]Renown the movie?[/h2][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p]We'll be finishing off this Community Update with a video from our community member Spanks! There were so many different videos I could have shown that we absolutely loved and I will probably even show in future Community Updates, but this one stuck out to us because of the creativity and overall silliness.

Lastly, a huge thanks to all of you in our community showing your awesome creativity and overall passion for Renown, it means the world to us.[/p]

[p]Welcome to Octobers 1st The Road Ahead - Plans and Discussions [/p][p]This is where we talk through our ideas, discussions and planned work. This could be right around the corner or a little further down the line. [/p][p][/p][p]Balance [/p][p]Once the treasure system and new server events are implemented, balance will be the word of the month. I'm sure things may feel too easy or too hard while these systems are finding their place in the progression of the game. Just know we will be making tweaks, some good and some bad, until we hit the right spot. We want treasure to be a meaningful aspect of teching up while also not being so important that an ambush on a treasure run means the end of your wipe. We have also been finding that 3x seems a little over tuned, we are going to be trying 2x instead to see if that feels a little better. [/p][p]
Traps [/p][p]A big one being discussed internally is our first iteration of defensive traps. These could come in the form of Bear traps, Caltrops, Tripwires, Crossbow Turrets, Oil Pots, False Floors and of course pressure plates with swinging weapons. A great option for extra base defense against unwanted intruders, both those that have raided in or those who have snuck in. Nothing screams get out like a face full of hot oil. To keep things simple, we will start with a select few, making sure they function as intended and then expand our options over time. [/p][p][/p][p]Mission Systems[/p][p]At the end of the day Renowns progression boils down to one thing, collect gold and research new items, craft said items with components and resources and bobs your uncle. We have always intended it to be a simple, easy to understand system, one which we can add to over time. The mission system is one of the first steps in the direction of adding options to our players choice of progression. Players will be able to accept these from mission givers dotted around the map, each providing a task and reward, usually in the form of gold, components or treasure. Once balanced correctly this should be a valid option and change of pace for players tired of farming the same pois over and over without a loss in efficiency. The expansion options of a system like this is endless, such as reputation unlocks allowing an almost nomadic play style operating through purchases from traders, or functionality for player created missions to allow others to become mercenaries or farmers. The options are endless and we are excited to explore where we could take it. [/p][p][/p][p]The New Player Experience (Combat)
A problem im sure all our players are aware of and that is our new players experience and especially those regarding combat. Renowns combat is incredibly hard to grasp for someone without any experience in this genre, and to compound that issue we are a full loot game with quite a fast TTK. New players rarely get to experience the combat at any meaningful length before they are killed, usually to something they can't understand. Those issues combined with our massive variance of weapons and attack speeds as well as the bugs such as desync and phasing creates a not so great experience for a first timer to say the least. Our team is open to any option that works for our community, and are currently exploring different methods to hopefully assist in the onboarding of new players and allowing a more meaningful, enjoyable combat experience for everyone. We don't have the answers just yet but we wanted to let everyone know we are working on the issue. [/p][p][/p][p]Player Count Concerns [/p][p]We have been seeing some valid concerns about the lowering of player counts and I just wanted to quickly address these. We have had issues and bugs plaguing the player base since the EA launch of Renown, which has had a clear effect on the current player population, these are mostly performance concerns and EAC connection issues. Both of these points are our number one priority right now and we are already working on some large performance improvements and the EAC issues should also be squared away soon as well. For those worried about the continued development of Renown, I'd like to quell those worries, our team believes in the vision of Renown and what it can become in the future, the team has been working on Renown for the better part of 5 years and we aren't going to be stopping any time soon. EA Release has given us the ability to increase the speed at which we are able to develop and iterate on the game and we haven't been as excited as we are now to smash out the work. If the current state of Renown is not to your liking there's no problem with taking a step away and returning when we have made those leaps and bounds in the right direction. [/p][p]Thats all from us for now, have a great day! [/p][p]
[/p]