Howdy Golfers! I hope this post finds you well.

Another month has rolled around again, so here we are with fresh look at what's coming in the next update to Super Video Golf.

Cosmetics

First up some cosmetic changes are in order - currently only balls feature shiny materials, but soon no longer so! I've added a second material slot to headwear items which will apply a shiny material in the same way as ball models do right now. This one is for all you Workshop modders beavering away on custom content - hopefully this will provide new opportunities for inspiration for your creations!

The workshop tools have also been updated to reflect (groan) this new feature.

Menus

The update brings some changes to the UI - thanks to a suggestion on the discussions I've added the option to toggle the larger size power meter if you prefer. Hitherto it has only been enabled by default in Big Picture mode or on the Steam Deck. Once 1.18 arrives you'll be able to toggle it as you please, including being able to set it to small when playing on the Deck.

In Career Mode I've added a Nemesis icon to the score board. This appears if one of your CPU rivals is tied with you or one point away from you in the League at your current standing. That way you can see who you biggest competition is mid-round 😁

With the new Timeline feature of Steam now available in beta, I've taken the opportunity to update the Steam SDK version used by Super Video Golf so that the next release will be fully integrated with the Timeline. By which I mean important events such as holing out, scoring a hole in one or moving to the next hole are all indicated on the Timeline with custom event icons. This makes it quick and easy to see where that super-shot was last game so you can clip it and share it with your friends.

Game Play Features

There are a couple of new game play features coming in the next update too. In Career Mode you'll be able to take one Mulligan (a do-over) per hole - just in case you don't get that all import shot right first time! I've also refined the performance of the clubs. Foremost they no longer loft a ridiculous height when driving, preferring a lower, more realistic arc. The range indicator on the minimap has now also been tightened up so at shorter ranges it's much more accurate when paired with the range marks on the power bar. For anyone used to the game's existing controls these changes might feel a little odd at first - but it only takes a couple of rounds to get to grips with and you'll soon be finding yourself hitting the ball with pinpoint accuracy 😁

I've also added the ability to take punch shots with irons, which are much lower and shorter than regular shots, but dramatically increases the overall range of types of shot which can be made, especially when you're still using the lower-spec clubsets. You can also make flop shots with wedges, which loft the ball very high for a much shorter overall distance, but will reduce the bounce and spin when the ball lands. Much fun has been had in testing by trying to lob the ball from the fringe into the hole 😅

(Edit: I've just noticed this looks like a scary clown face... this may change 🤦‍♀️)

Performance Updates

Under the hood I've worked on the game engine itself to improve overall performance. Specifically I've multi-threaded systems where possible to improve the pre-render queues, by processing particle systems, frustum culling and depth sorting in parallel. Skeletal animation systems are also now multi-threaded for better performance on holes with a lot of spectators. These performance gains are particularly welcome on the Steam Deck.

Speaking of the Deck, after much confusion about just what needed setting in the depths of the Steam back-end (and some conversation which some friendly Valve devs) the Steam Deck now uses the native build of the game instead of Proton. You may have to disable any 'force compatibility' settings you have, however this should just update automatically, and is already live on the 1.17 version of Super Video Golf.

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There are a couple more features in the works although they're not quite baked yet, however, so I'll post about them as soon as there's something to share. If you're curious, or want to offer some feedback on the upcoming update, please do! The beta is currently public and can be switched to via the game's properties in Steam, under the Beta tab. Please note that there will very likely be bugs, and features such as the leaderboards are disabled while in beta. If you do have any comments, please share them over on the discussions or hop into the group chat (or just drop by to say hello! We're a friendly bunch 😁).

Thanks as always go to my lovely community who are so good at not just helping me but also helping each other, as well as providing creative content via the Workshop, Screenshots or Discussions - the game wouldn't be what it is without you! That's it for this update though, I hope to see you out on the fairway!

Happy Golfing! 🏌️‍♀️⛳🏆