After some amount of scope-creep the 1.1.0 update is here! The TL;DR changelog:

• Updated collision engine to 3D physics
• Removed need for explicit normal maps for map data
• Fixed player sprite placement during certain camera switching scenarios
• Fixed itch.io launcher trying to run the VC Redist installer instead of the game (thanks Trevbot911!)
• Updated slope indicator when putting
• Improved animation during hole transition
• More balls
• Allow setting custom post process effects
• Announcer voice is now on their own mixer channel
• Fixed NaN bug which could cause the ball to have a huge distance
• Updated mod kit to new hole format
• Client version is now checked by server

In Detail:

The original intent of this update was to replace the existing collision detection with something a bit more complex, in order to make more interesting courses. In the first version of the game the terrain was a single flat plane which allowed for very simple collision detection: if the ball was below zero on the Y axis then it must have collided. That's it. Collision normals could easily be inferred, as they would always be pointing straight up. However this made the existing course a bit boring, and creating custom models with all the curves and bumps of a real course wouldn't work with it. This update replaces the existing collision detection with one provided by the Bullet Physics library. It doesn't use a 'life-like' physics calculation, but it is now able to read relatively complex triangle meshes which can be used for the terrain. It also has the added bonus that creating courses for the game no longer require explicit normal maps - the normal data can be read from the mesh.

However, this does mean that the fundamental format of the course data has changed, which means the mod-kit has had to be updated. Technical information as to why this is is contained within the mod-kit 1.1.x download, so I won't cover it here, but it does mean existing versions of the game will not work with the new update. The game now checks which version of a client is joining the host, and will display an error if versions are incompatible. The version number of the client is also displayed on the lower left corner of the menu screen.

I've also taken the opportunity to add a bit more polish here and there. The most noticable difference will probably be the new transition between the holes, which hopefully makes for a more fluid and interesting animation. The slope guide on the green has also been updated when putting, partially to help with players who are colour-blind, but also to be more explicit about the topology of the course geometry.

Another new detail is to be able to add your own custom post-process effects. A previously unmentioned feature (because, uh, I actually forgot 😅) was the ability to activate post-process effects on the game, rendering the output as if it were on a CRT monitor, or in black and white for example. Post processes can be found in the advanced options menu, either by clicking on the 'Advanced' button in the in-game menu, or by pressing F1. In the new console window which appears there is a tab labelled 'Advanced' which includes all the post process options. For those of you who dabble in GLSL there is a new option to load your own fragment shaders from a text file. The shader layout details can be found in the mod-kit download.

As well as all these new features there are a collection of bug fixes - although of course one or two may have slipped through. Please do leave any feedback you have either in the comments section or on the GitHub page. The version of Visual Studio used to build the game has also been updated. When running the new version of VGA Golf you may get a VC runtime error - this can be fixed by running the updated vc_redist.x64.exe installer found in the vc_redist folder of the download. Alternatively the latest version can be downloaded from Microsoft.

I have at least one more update planned (plus any bug fix releases) which should hopefully include a driving range for practice as well as at least one new course. I'd also like to implement an API for adding custom characters, along the same lines as adding custom balls, which will be added to the mod-kit. However there is currently no timescale planned for when it may be released... in other words, it's done when it's done 😉 For progress and updates make sure to follow me on itch or @trederiagames on Twitter.

Thanks for playing, and happy golfing!