With the Aexia VR Roleplay Game Jam in full swing, we’ve been focused on polishing up the alpha build they used for a proper beta release. That way, we can play all the fun roleplays they create. Well, there’s no more waiting; it’s here!
If you missed the previous patch notes, you can read them here.
What’s New
This update reworks many aspects of the game, from portals to menus to audio. We’ll do our best to document everything here, but you’ll need to hop in and check it all out for some of it.
New Main Menu
“When you stare into the void, the void stares back… so we got rid of the void, and now the Aexia GM stares at you instead!”.
The main menu has been completely redone, with new navigation and environment. Stand atop an ancient platform and look towards the mountains. The Aexia GM looms above, mind-bogglingly massive.
The main menu has been completely replaced
You can now log in, join sessions, and manage your stages all in one place
Sort premade stages by tag and edit a clone of the stage with a button click
Select my stages to view and edit Stages that you’ve created
The main menu now has an environment
You can now move within the main menu
The Aexia GM hovers over a mountain range, all-seeing and all-knowing.
Added ambient music to the main menu
New GM Tools
“We added so many props that navigating the GM Tools was causing instability, which isn’t the worst problem to have but it needed a solution”.
Playtesting found that the old GM Tools menus weren’t working. They were unstable and confusing for new players. We’ve completely reworked them into new, sleek menus designed to accommodate future additions.
New GM Tools design
The radial menu and submenus have been replaced with a single rectangular menu with tabs and subtabs
Filter props, fx, and textures by themes and tags to search through the list faster
Player settings and context menus have also been moved onto the GM Tools menu
Grab the GM tools menu and position it wherever you want in your space
New Voice Communications
“Communication is vital to roleplay and these tools should help fascilitate”.
We’ve added private and flexible voice channels. Communication is vital to roleplay, and these tools are designed to help facilitate private communication amongst roleplayers, both in and out of character.
Players and GMs can call each other to speak privately when they need to
Players can choose to accept or reject calls from other players
Users in a call can only speak to and hear each other
Add any number of users from a list into a call
GM announcements take precedence and are received across all active voice channels
There is now a mute button
You can now select your input device in-game
New Portals
“You can never have enough archways”.
A completely new portal system with increased customizability has been implemented.
Choose from various portal appearances, from dramatic arches to wooden doorframes
Choose the destination of a portal by connecting it to another portal
Create one-way portals by placing two portals and setting one of them as the other’s destination
Create two-way portals by placing two portals and setting them as each other's destinations
Chain portals together, each leading to a different portal than they came from
Other Additions
Dozens of new props
Two new themes - Christmas and Pirates
Doors with colliders!
More light sources!
New default stage templates
Added a loading screen when loading a Stage
What’s changed
An exciting introductory paragraph that gets into more detail on changes. How do these changes better position Aexia to provide memorable experiences for GMs and players?
The GM is now a selectable role
“Not all builders are GMs and not all GMs are builders”.
Rather than automatically choosing the Stage publisher as the GM, There’s now a menu at the center of the Green Room that allows any player to become the GM. This change is a logical step in the direction of an Aexia where players share stages that anyone can use and collaborate on stage creation.
In the green room, the first player to select “possess GM” on the menu in the middle of the stage will become the GM
If you change your mind, you can use the same menu to release possession of the GM
Other Changes
Removed pesky default wall semitransparent blue walls in favour of improved framerate
The Green Room now reflects the new Main Menu in appearance
Floors without textures are now invisible
When the GM grabs props, players now see them move in real time
Added nameplates for player names
Bugfixes
Fixed grabbable props not attaching to the correct player's hand when grabbed
Fixed grabbable props changing size when grabbed
The game no longer freezes temporarily when loading a stage
Fixed crashing on opening the props menu in multiplayer
Many additional multiplayer stability improvements
Known Issues
The first time you call someone using the comms system, the audio isolation won’t work correctly, and nobody will be able to hear you when you leave the call
Fix this by getting everyone into a call at once and then ending the call. Afterwards, the comms system will behave as intended and the bug won’t repeat
Players’ movement and turn speed settings do not apply in the green room but will apply once in a game.
The timer isn’t working
The face camera doesn’t always display correctly on PCVR
Users sometimes get stuck in the loading screen. The workaround is restarting Aexia entirely.
Moving your playspace too high on PCVR can result in you getting forced out of the Stage
Extending your controllers too far in front of you can result in your head trying to follow and clipping into your view