This weeks Developer Journal is not hitting until later in the week so things are a little out of order. However, it means you have plenty of warning for the live chat with the developers which is scheduled for Thursday 24^th at 10am PDT. To get you in the mood we are going to dive into the last official live chat and look at two different questions that related to the same broad topic. Lets talk about interactions with the in game terrain. Lets talk about we are going to navigate trees, walls, mountains and the ground itself!

Community member Xilana has rather eagle eyes and noticed in the last character customisation developer journal that there was a reference to those living in jungles spent a lot of time climbing up and down trees. I missed it entirely but they jumped on it, asking the developers if we could do that in game? What about climbing walls, or up mountains?

Yes. I’ve long said I want the game to feel more like an action-platformer… ie. Tomb Raider or Assassins creed. We want adventuring to feel like an adventure…

My heart immediately sunk at the word platformer however, all you people out there that actually have any co-ordination will be jumping for joy! This opens up so many possibilities, which is another one of those running themes with new features we learn about in this game. I can imagine bandits hiding in trees only to jump down on the unwary, or just on their friends as a joke! Breaking into secure buildings by scaling unguarded walls. Exploration that has meaning and skill because if you can notice that ledge and get yourself over there, then you are the one that gets to reach the spoils on the other side. Terrain being a part of the game rather than a backdrop is a really great approach and makes our connection with the world of Elyria that bit stronger.

How else can we interact with the world around us? How about the very ground we walk on? Well Sabbicat was on to that question, and managed to get confirmation that the Easter Egg from the last developers journal regarding subterranean grottos had been unearthed:

It is possible to dig holes in the ground, even without terraforming, for the purposes of building underground structures…Caves and other things… Mines… Dungeons…

Terraforming was mentioned a month or so ago as as a system they would like to add but was possibly not going to be available at launch. However, while it looks like large scale changes to the land mind not be possible it will not stop us getting down and dirty. Basements for homes are an obvious first step, but adding that dungeon you have always wanted starts to tie us back in the grand vision of player generated content. Running and owning a mine is also a possibility and with finite resources out in the world of Elyria hitting that vein of copper might make you a rich player if you can extract it all. Could people use it to make traps? What about tunnels linking friends properties, or smuggling routes into a Kingdom with tight border controls?

It looks like Soulbound Studio are not just looking at their world as a setting for the game. It is not just a box that denotes out limitations it is a true sandbox, one where we can use the very contents as part of our fun. The range of ideas, of systems, coming out of the studio is inspiring. If they can all be implemented we are in for a rich and innovative world. Just please don’t make me have to learn to platform!