Initially I wanted to publish another version (0.06) this month but unexpectedly, a game-breaking bug occurred that delayed the version. Until I figured out what was wrong, I started working on features for the next version, such as a main menu with racetrack picker and different maps.

Instead, have a little postmortem!

I learned a lot doing this project and can’t wait to share that with you.

Feasibility

As I worked on this prototype I evaluated the following requirements for feasibility, to find out what is within my grasp as solo indie developer. 

The great news is: most of these planned features seem viable. Here is a list!

• Online Functionality & Multiplayer 
• Different Racing Modes: Circuit Race, A-B Race, Pursuit, Sandbox
• Racetrack Editor
• Immersion: Climate, Weather,  Day & Night circles, a certain realism

One big feature that might not make it:

• Vehicle Editor, due to Unreal’s cumbersome vehicle implementation. I will continue to find a viable solution, but might settle with Vehicle Customization instead.

In the following I want to go into detail what went well, wrong, or could have been done better.

Things that slowed me down

• Screenshots and videos need to be taken much easier from within the editor!
• I spent a lot of time figuring out how to do things right in Unreal. Still am new to the tech after all!
• I still need a lot of time to learn about shaders before being able to do what I want, particularly with terrain
• I spent extra time on sound design for vehicles. It was worth it, but was it really necessary?

Things that sped me up

• 3D asset creation is easy and insanely fast due to the simple low-poly style
• Unreal Engine’s features are so extensive that I can quickly add components that roughly complete the project’s vision, although these still need adjustments or customization

Things that I need to work on

• There is no proper QA-methodology in place, except for thorough manual testing and debugging. Some time needs to be spent to figure out how Automated Testing works in UE
• Work on an in-game console for playtesting purposes

Things I like about the prototype

• Art Direction: I really love the aesthetic of the prototype! It should be kept that way in the future
• Sound Design: I spent a bit of extra time to create realistic vehicle sounds, but it adds to the immersion
• Unreal Engine continues to prove to be a handy and good fit for the project goals. Overall tech stack choice is satisfactory so far!
• I personally love the first person driver view

Things I do not like about the prototype

• The HUD is still a little wonky/cluttered. I want a better speed indicator and a slimmer overall design
• While the current vehicle sound design is nice, it can still be improved further
• Wheel particles should be emitted when the wheel direction deviates from travel direction

Outlook

Great things are to come! An excerpt of features that I am considering to add:

• Climate & Weather
• Day & Night circles
• Vehicle damage and dirtiness
• Police Chase mode
• Local coop Multiplayer with 1-4 players
• Online Leaderboard

We are already heading to the next version in light speed and I cannot wait to share it with you!

Thanks for reading.

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