Beta Homestead [Windows|Steam]

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
So, small update on update progress.
I an effort to optimise the game as much as possible, the ancient decaying corpse of the crop system has been entirely reworked.
This new system has ups and downs though.
Pros being, it takes far less space to save to the disk, and uses way less memory when loaded.
Con being, it takes a good 5-10 seconds to save and load a save file now.
I'm hoping that's not too long for anyone who plays. It is loading a large amount of data, so I'm glad it only takes that long to save and load.

Other than that, the update is on track, and should be out before next month!
 
With the size of hard drives these days, I think loading speed is probably more desirable than disk space taken up, unless the differences are huge...how big were the files before and now?
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
The files were about 20 megs each before. I've got them down to 600 kb now, and I've found a way to make them load much faster.
The reason it takes so long is I'm loading a massive amount of data at once into memory.
I'm switching to a chunking system that will only load relevant data and should be much faster!
Found a way to save and load the data that works much faster. So chunking was not needed.
The game also iterates through this system at light speed, so sleeping in game is instant.
It used to take a few seconds to process the sleep command because it goes through all of the crops to see which ones to grow and kill and whatnot. Since it was stored in a map, this was sloooooow.
Now it's super snappy. I got my new "data blobs" system working, so no more icky maps!
 
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Xer0botXer0

Senpai
Im going to share your link to a few thousand people. We're discussing a new game coming out called My time at Portia on a stardew Valley community group. And thought of Homestead, think they should keep an eye out for it.

Hope that's alright with you, as far as I know it's a hobby project and you may never finish it, but people can still have a look and perhaps bare it in mind for the future.
 
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Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Oh, I have no problems with that! Thanks! :D
I have plans on actually finishing it this year. I'm finally cracking down on development. I have a roadmap and I'm sticking to it.

Also, the new engine should be released in the next few days. It's just core gameplay mechanics, but I have a very strict deadline for new features and am working hard to get them right from now on.
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
The new engine is unleashed upon the world in this new Demo of Homestead!
Please do note some things though!
This only has the fully completed and working features from Legacy Build, so no building, mining, fishing is available yet.
These things are being worked on and will be reintroduced at a later date.

The game is currently undergoing a scope change internally, so some things are being changed as we get closer to release.
This isn't representative of the final release AT ALL!

Also, in my excitement to finally upload I forgot to add one thing to the tutorial.
You can open and close the inventory/pause screen with E.
Custom controls aren't available yet, sorry about that. Due to the new multi system release it is taking longer to implement than I would like.
Hotloading via the in game menu also isn't in yet, though it should be soon.

This release is just to let you all see that the game is still alive and well. Dip your toes into Homestead with it, and mess around on a farm.

My website has had some hefty bandwidth restrictions placed on it, so please head over to either itch.io or GameJolt to download!
ITCH.IO
GAMEJOLT

PLEASE REPORT ANY BUGS AT ITCH: https://lukanspellweaver.itch.io/homestead/community
 
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Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Hello, Homesteadians!
Below is a list of changes made in the 1.0.1 release of TurnipEngine Homestead.

Bugs Fixed in TurnipEngine 1.0.1:
-Female collision mask was full sprite
-Sheep ignored you trying to shear them
-Newsfeed compiling error causing crashes
-Livestock dying even though they were fed
-Strange bug making crops unwaterable
-Bug making crops plant across entire overworld, making the game softlock on load
-Underlying Engine optimisations
-Removed Turnipbrine

Additions:
-Post Office & Monthly Gifts
-Bell: a new tool for moving livestock in and out of the barn. Stand in the field and ring it for livestock to migrate in/out of the barn.

For the rest of this month I am going to be focusing on mini game additions, namely fishing.
I will be releasing prototype builds to see how you all like them before they get added to the game.

A note to those trying to load in saves that got borked in the last release:
The saves will load and any crop issues that were being had should self correct after an in game day or two.(it may take until it rains again to fix dried crops)
I recommend starting a new save altogether though, as livestock that perished will not be revived.

Visit the Post Office in town for a gift from me, 500 Gold!(ONCE PER SAVE FILE)

GAMEJOLT
ITCH

Happy farming!
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Hello Homesteadians...
I have some sad news, Homestead is being shelved.
After years of hectic development, and some personal reflection, I have decided to stop development on the game.
Many considerations went into this, and I will use what I learned making it going forward.
The mechanics in it may be tossed into future projects, but the chance of it being finished are very slim.

I apoligise for this sudden murder of the project, but it just isn't going where I or Ninety wanted.
I greatly appreciate all of the support I've gotten over the years, Homestead only made it this far because of that!

So, I sadly say, goodbye Homesteadians.
 
Hello Homesteadians...
I have some sad news, Homestead is being shelved.
After years of hectic development, and some personal reflection, I have decided to stop development on the game.
Many considerations went into this, and I will use what I learned making it going forward.
The mechanics in it may be tossed into future projects, but the chance of it being finished are very slim.

I apoligise for this sudden murder of the project, but it just isn't going where I or Ninety wanted.
I greatly appreciate all of the support I've gotten over the years, Homestead only made it this far because of that!

So, I sadly say, goodbye Homesteadians.
This is sad indeed, I anticipated the release of this game for many years, actually ever since seeing the initial build of the game.

It is unfortunate and I would convince you to carry on, but I know you have made up your mind.

Anyway, good luck, and hopefully we can see a fully fledged HomeStead in the future!

Looking at HomeStead, I know that whatever next project you work on will be even better, looking forward to it Lukan.
 

HayManMarc

Member
Oh, that is most unfortunate! :( I'm sorry for your loss, @Lukan , as shelving this project must be a tough decision and situation after having been going for almost 2 years.

Anywho, best of luck to your next adventure! Looking forward to seeing that TurnipMon from you soon, maybe! :D
 
Don't feel bad about it. As long as you learned from it and enjoyed your time making it, there's no harm in shelving it, especially if you have another project you'd rather work on. And it's not like games rot, anyway - you could come back to Homestead five years from now if you wanted and continue working like you never stopped.

Good luck to you and Ninety on your next projects.
 

JackTurbo

Member
Good luck on your next projects guys.

I've recently put my big project on hiatus (after a bit over a year working on it) in favour of a smaller scope project, so know to a degree how this feels. I'm sure you guys have weighed up the situation and are doing what is right for you both.

Again, all the best in your next projects, I look forward to seeing what they may be in the future.
 
M

milch

Guest
oh man sorry to hear this... but dont worry, you didnt waste your 3 years, you learned so much from this that will make your next project super amazing!
 
M

MadZenno

Guest
Hello Homesteadians...
I have some sad news, Homestead is being shelved.
After years of hectic development, and some personal reflection, I have decided to stop development on the game.
Many considerations went into this, and I will use what I learned making it going forward.
The mechanics in it may be tossed into future projects, but the chance of it being finished are very slim.

I apoligise for this sudden murder of the project, but it just isn't going where I or Ninety wanted.
I greatly appreciate all of the support I've gotten over the years, Homestead only made it this far because of that!

So, I sadly say, goodbye Homesteadians.
Sad news indeed, I was keeping on eye on this project.

What will happen to the game itself? will it be deleted? Open source? someone can take it over?
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
So, here's what's happening with the game.
The TurnipEngine version is not being open sourced. The possibility of the game being revived in a few years time makes me wary of just posting all of the code.
I might make some small updates for bugs and to clean up the messy bits of gameplay like livestock.
NO NEW FEATURES will be added to the TurnipEngine. Unless it is a simple thing that makes things easier. No new animals, but like... idk, I can throw in a few more crop plots?

I love this project, and I can say for sure I may use a large chunk of the TurnipEngine in a project I have ideas for.

So tl;dr: No it's not being deleted, no it's not being open-sourced, and no someone else can't take it over.
I know that sounds like I'm being a douche, but that's the way it is. Keep an eye out for new stuff by me and Ninety too.
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Okay, an update!
The game is... Unshelved-ish.
I am still using the assets from Ninety, but I'm not asking him for more.
I don't want to have him pumping all of his valuable time into this, I can absolutely use what I have for the full game.
I have been working on my own pixel art, and can match the style for small things I want to add, so some new stuff is being added!

I have a bad track record with keeping things organised, and HS is no exception.
Until late last year I was using the same unoptimised GMS1.3 code that I made for the WHAM.

I have been working, as anybody in the Discord knows, on some massive updates for Homestead, but before those updates can be released I need to fix bugs and finish features.
So, next week on Friday (May 18th, my birthday), I am giving Homesteadians the gift of a feature+bugfix update.

Bugs fixed include:
Crop regrowth making infinite crops
collision issues

Features include:
Haha, I'm not telling.

Sorry for being an incredible flake through the development... IDK what's wrong with me, but I can't let HS rot into nothing, this is the year of Homestead!
Viva la Turnips!

EDIT:
Small notice though, macOS development is going to be halted, as an apple dev license is insane.
Windows/Ubuntu/Android are going full steam ahead, with other platforms being considered for the future.
 
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Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak

Hello Homesteadians!
Guess what? We're going early-access on Steam!

"Early Access? The game's 4 years old!"
Yes, this is true, but development has ramped up and it's going to be finished in 2019.
The funds and feedback from the early access program will help me to develop the game into what you and I both want!

"Okay, but when?"
The Early Access launch is expected to take place early to mid December, with monthly content updates minimum.

Thank 4 reading, have a good day! :D
 
Have you made a Steam store page, yet? You can do that even before going EA, right? Might help get EA buyers on launch day, which is important. Good luck!
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Hello Homesteadians!

I am not dead and neither is Homestead!
I know this project has had ups and downs in activity over the years, but if you're a member of the Unofficial GMC Discord then you know I work on it almost every day!
I am ramping up for the closed release on Steam.
This means I am going to be allowing a select few people access to the game before it fully launches to help bug test and give feedback.

Here's a few ways to get in on the closed test!
1. Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ihugdaleks nd watch for me to be posting codes for the game!
2. Become a patron on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/LukanSpellweaver The $5 tier gets you full access to the full game and the upcoming testing!

Both the Free and Paid keys given will be for full access, meaning they stay good after the testing
In addition to getting the game early, if you become a patron of any tier you get access to the dedicated Discord for development, so you can yell at me for being lazy!

And since I know asking for you to wait or give me money is kind of a dick move out of the blue like this, here's a Demo Build based of of the most current version I have right now:
https://gamejolt.com/games/Homestead/36317

I think that's all for now, I'll try to keep y'all in the loop.
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
I should mention, I think that demo currently live on GameJolt is a nightly build, so it may be janky.
I am working on making it nicer.
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Honk honk Homesteadians, DEMO UPDATE!
Download: https://lukan.dev/downloads/Homestead-N-19.4.27a-DEMO.zip
FULL NOTES: https://spellweavergames.com/HOMEAPIv4/UPDATES/4.27.19/notes.txt
Pardon me for using two websites, I'm still migrating to the newer lukan.dev and HS relies on a bit of stuff from the old site still.

This update is a Nightly Build, meaning it's not a fully polished update.
I'm trying to push one of these a week just to keep me on track with work.

This update has the beginnings of the game's story being put in, with 4 quests startable and 2 fully tested and complete.
This update also had the long awaited and much talked about Friend system I have been planning for YEARS.
The system is very bare bones right now, still being worked on, hopefully next week's update will show more features.

The character art is still all the dummy art I got, and it will be for a while unfortunately.
I hope to remedy this in the future, but IDK when I'll be able to.

Thanks for any continued support, and I look forward to any feedback you guys have. <3
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Domo origato Homesteadins! Weekly update time!
Download: https://lukan.dev/downloads/Homestead-N-19.05.03c-DEMO.zip
NOTES: https://lukan.dev/HOMEAPIv4/UPDATES/05.03.19/notes.txt

There's no visible story progress yet, but I've got some stuff written to put in the game next week.
The major fix in this version is with the Gamepad support, which is still not perfect but it's much better!
You can now also move in 8 directions with the keyboard instead of being locked to the cardinals.

There was also a few updates to how the Newsfeed in-game works.
You can click the active entry to open the link associated with the feed instead of having to right-click for that.
It will also ask if you want to open the website and show you the source of the link before opening.

I might be a bit late to reply here if anyone has questions, as my wedding is tomorrow.
Have fun, and thanks for reading! :D

BUGS FIXED SINCE DEMO UPDATE:
-Sky surface sometimes drawing over UI elements like menus and clock
-Control mapping screens for keyboard and controller not closing properly, causing softlock
-Crop plots never showing the "Water" indicator on the action UI element
 
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Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
It's that time of the week, time for unstable updates! :D
Not gonna lie, it's not a lot of new stuff again this week, mostly fixes here and there.
The Flowervale Woods has finally been expanded, even in the demo of the game.
I'm working on fleshing out the map before release, so some places are still janky.

The Woods now also spawn wild flora again, this feature was removed during the rewrite last year, and hadn't been reimplemented due to bugs in the collectable item code.
Well, I fixed those bugs! Meaning you can now also drop items on the ground by right clicking on them in the inventory.

The full notes can be seen here: https://lukan.dev/HOMEAPIv4/UPDATES/05.11.19/notes.txt
Demo can be grabbed here: https://lukan.dev/downloads/index.php?looking=Homestead-N-19.05.11

Also, I don't know if I'm going to keep the itch.io and gamejolt pages up. I forget to update them and they have very minimal traffic.
As always, tell me what you think, report any bugs here and I'll get back to you asap.

Thanks all! <3
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Hey-o Homesteadians!
So, as you may or may not know, this has been a very busy month for me irl.
First I got married on the 4th, and now today is my birthday.

I haven't had a lot of time to work on the game, so today's update fixes a few small bugs from the last build.
Hopefully development will pick back up next week, I have plans to introduce a lot of main game quests in the coming weeks, so keep a turnip out for that!

Also, Ubuntu Builds won't be uploaded weekly with the test builds anymore.
They get no traffic and are kind of a pain to build and test.
I'll start uploading them only with the last build of a month, and fix bugs when needed.

Notes are here, but they're very short: https://lukan.dev/HOMEAPIv4/UPDATES/05.18.19/notes.txt
Download: https://lukan.dev/downloads/index.php?looking=Homestead-N-19.05.18a-DEMO

Thanks for reading, have a great day!
Oh my god I'm old now...
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Howdy ho, Homesteadians!
Unfortunately the work I'm currently doing in the game means I can't do a weekly build right now. It might be ready by mid week ish, but I think I'm just going to wait until next Friday/Saturday to build just so I can work out as many bugs as possible.
Sorry for the inconvenience ;-;

I am currently adding several new quests for the main storyline, making it difficult to release a build without possibly spoiling some stuff or the game just not working.
Will be back next week with info, promise <3
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Well hi again....

Due to several real life factors I am again unable to update, and don't believe I can maintain the weekly releases I have finally started after 4 years of work.
I am not halting development, and will still post weekly, but there won't be builds weekly.

If you're interested in why it's due to medical issues and me finally getting a job for money.
I am still dedicated, it's just hard to find time with real life happening around me.

Sorry guys, I feel like I let you down.
I'll keep you updated.

<3 ~lukan
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
So, no build this week, but I did get a few things done and am close to finishing some others.

I fixed some zone issues that stop you from entering parts of the Woods.
I've progressed the main quest line a bit more.

I am currently working on re-adding double-tap to run with the new gamepad and 8 direction controls.

Hope to have it out sometime!

<3 ~Lukan
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Hello again!
Work on the game charges ever forward, though there's some pretty annoying bugs introduced that I need to fix before a build is made..
Mostly stuff with the quest system.
I have almost fixed these issues, but I want to make sure it works so it doesn't corrupt any saves anyone may be attached to.

I apologize again for no build this week, however as I am now working this means I'll have more money to put into getting resources and help with the game.
Thanks for stopping by to read, and thanks for the continued support of anyone who is reading!

~Lukan
 
T

Tran Thi Huyen Trang

Guest
For me this is best game, it makes me think stardew valley game. I like farming game, i have a question want to ask: how do you save object (that you create it in game such as: fences, crop, house...) ?
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Thanks for replying!
To answer your question: all items and objects in the game have an id value. The entire world is based on a ds grid.
The grid can hold either crop or item values, so I just loop through it to save these values to the save file and again at load to load them back up.
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Sorry for the illegal bump mods but I have news that needs to be read!

I have finally fixed the issues introduced by the quest system updates!
This means that going forward you can load your saves and access new quests with your current characters!
There are some limitations currently such as completed quests not triggering newly linked quests, but that should be an easy fix on my part.

I hope to have a lot of new content/quests ready for you guys shortly, which should make the demo more engaging as I continue to develop the game going forward!

I am aiming for this Friday/Saturday(my time, pst) for a build, but please be patient if I miss that goal.

I've also become aware of a few annoying issues in the current release that I have fixed along the way:
-You can now unlock the Animal Shop via completing the Just the Beginning quest, I believe I had code typos stopping this before
-I've adjusted the wild flora in Flowervale Woods, it spawned WAY too much money which kind of broke the game. I am also looking into tweaking the economy to adjust to supply/demand parameters
-Double tap to run should be fixed by the time I release the build, but it's an ongoing struggle for me code wise
-Double Tap to run is fixed for keyboards! I'm looking into gamepads but I feel it's easier to just press the button for that.

There's more bugs I've lost track of while fixing, but I'm trying to be more organised about it.
Look forward to this weekend(I hope)!

~Lukan
 
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Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Hello Homesteadians!
Wot's this, eh? AN UPDATE!
https://lukan.dev/downloads/Homestead-19.06.22a-DEMO.zip

SO, a few things:
Not that many quests got added yet, but a few were updated.
I am currently working on the rest of chapter one's quests, so I hope to have that done on my end soonish*.

This is mostly a bugfix, so sorry for the wait.
There is one quest in the game that doesn't have any flags yet, "Ranching 101". You'll get the quest, but can't do it yet, sorry.
I was focused on making sure this build worked with my tweaks more than adding features.

If you have any issues or questions let me know here!

~Lukan
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Sorry Homesteadians!
I missed a week's update there. I've been super busy at work and at home, things have been hectic everywhere.
I am working on some more story stuff and small bugfixes here and there, but nothing is ready to be pushed yet.

Sorry again! <3

~Lukan
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Domo origato Homesteadians!
Some web server issues led me to fix a pretty glaring bug I never noticed. The game would crash on the menu if it couldn't connect to my server in time.
This has been addressed, and now the Newsfeed stores a local backup in the game files that will display if the server can't be reached.
Alternatively, I'm adding an option to turn off Newfeed off. This will not delete the local backup of the feed, but it will stop the game from contacting the server on game start.

Still working on adding the quests for the main story to the game, but I'm also trying to make the quest system more versatile.
I'm slowly opening up more of the game's internals, which will make mods possible in the future.
It's a long way out, and no official support for them yet, but I am writing documentation for the game's inner workings as I work on the systems.

After Chapter One is done, I'm going to focus on mods for a bit. I've had a few requests for it, so I want to make sure it's done right. It'll be the focus of it's own update.

As for the continued lack of updates, I am still working as much as I can in my free time, I just don't have as much as I used to.
I'm saving up money to get some sprite work finished for the game as well as trying to fix a bevy of bugs.

I hope to have an update next weekend with the new Newsfeed options at least.

Thanks for reading!
~Lukan <3
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Working on publishing the update, but keep in mind this one's less polished than most of the one's I've pushed.
It has the new Newsfeed Option and a bug fix for the Newsfeed crashing the game if it can't connect to the server.

I apologise for the later update, I've been working like crazy to save up money.

DOWNLOAD: [REDACTED-BUGGY]
~Lukan
 
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Perseus

Not Medusa
Forum Staff
Moderator
I get this error immediately after inputting a name:
Code:
___________________________________________
############################################################################################
FATAL ERROR in
action number 1
of  Step Event0
for object objShopMenu:

ds_grid_width argument 1 incorrect type (unknown) expecting a Number (YYGI32)
############################################################################################
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
called from - gml_Script_itemGetPrice (line 3)
called from - gml_Script_SaloonSetup (line 5)
called from - gml_Object_objShopMenu_Step_0 (line 40)
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
My goodness Homesteadians!
Is it Friday already? Holy cow!
I've been fixing a few small bugs as I add in story elements.
I've also reactivated a much needed and old feature from the main menu, the update notifier!


This can be toggled on or off in the Options menu.
The Absotootley! button opens the browser to download the new file directly off the server.
This notifier is turned off automatically if the Newsfeed option is also off, though it can be turned off if the Newsfeed is on!
It currently uses data collected from the Newsfeed data stream to get version information, in later revisions it will be an independent system.

This Update Update should be live by the time I click Post!
It's live HERE: https://lukan.dev/downloads/Homestead-190726-0.zip

Sorry for the smaller bugfix updates of late, I haven't had much time to do real work on the game.
I hope this is a welcome addition to the features of the game.

~Lukan
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Heyyyo Homesteadians!
I'm not releasing a build today, but I am so excited by what I've been working on that I just had to share!

First off:

The Semi-Auto Updater is now finished!
The last build has the main bits of the system in, but it was tied to the Newsfeed functionality.
Now they are their own systems, and the settings can be toggled regardless of the other's state!
Hovering over the Option also now shows the Current Version, which can help me in addressing bugs you may report!

Secondly:

The Journal and Shops Systems have been revamped!
While cleaning some bad code out I saw a lot of bad hastily written code, which led to an inability to update the Quest Journal the way I wanted.
Now Quests are shown in a few different ways!
Main Quests have a Jewel marker next to them, as well as being shown in brighter colours.
Shops also have improved performance as they load up the menu due to this rewritten code.

I am also working on the Main Questline, and hope to have at least 2 new quests in it done in the next month or so.

Thank 4 reading <3
~Lukan
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Hello Homesteadians!
I'm sorry I missed update day again, it's been crazy at work lately!
I honestly haven't had much time since I showed my previous update to do much of anything, but I'm gonna do some work tonight.
I hope to get at least a couple new quests out soon!

~Lukan
 

Lukan

Gay Wizard Freak
Hello again, Homesteadians!
In my small bits of free time I have been adding small features to the game.
Not a lot of stuff, just some small things I feel help the game's feel overall.
The Story stuff takes longer to add, and I don't have the free time to sit down and work on it for that long very often, hence the long gaps between any real updates.
I do have some free time tomorrow to try and power through some of that, but tonight I just wanted to share a small thing I'm testing:

The Water Meter.
As I fix a few bugs related to mining and tool forging, I've found another way to make them more worth while!
Now as you upgrade the Watering Can, it will hold more and more water in addition to the watering area getting bigger[which is currently glitched...]
I'm fixing a lot of bugs tonight and hope to work on story tomorrow.

I'm trying to keep you guys more in the loop with what I'm doing, because I know I've fallen silent pretty hard core in the past.

Thanks for reading this rambling mess!
~Lukan
 
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