Week 10: Reducing Friction

As we head into more external playtesting, we took a hard look at friction points during match setup, onboarding, and highlighted in feedback from Ubisoft. This week was about making the game easier to get into, more intuitive to navigate, and more rewarding to finish.

Smoother Starts🎮 

Player onboarding has been one of our biggest pain points, so we made several key improvements:

The player selection screen now shows all four skaters side-by-side, complete with their current skins. Previously, players had to join first to see skin options. Now players can also disconnect and rejoin to pick a different skin without needing to restart the game. This makes the selection process more clear and inviting from the get go.

Additionally, during the 3... 2... 1... countdown, we added a clear overlay that tells players to "Steal the Crown" and shows "Hold RB to Adrenaline Rush." This solves a few issues: (1) some players didn’t realize holding the crown was the objective, (2) some players never used their Adrenaline, and (3) there was nothing to do during the countdown. This screen now serves as an effective teaching moment for key mechanics while players wait to begin.

And finally, instead of the camera awkwardly looking at the player's face when the round starts, it now points directly at the crown's spawn location. This makes the opening moments feel more intuitive and focused.

Crown Arrow 🧭

This week, we also deprecated the minimap. While it was intended to improve spatial awareness, it often confused players due to its constant spinning, and limited value in 4 player split screen where screen real estate is already tight.

Instead, we introduced an arrow indicator, a simple directional arrow on the HUD that appears when you're far from the crown or crown holder. This new system provides just enough information to guide players toward the action without overwhelming them or the UI. It plays a huge role in maintaining flow and ensuring players naturally converge for showdowns.

Map Layout Refresh 🗺️

We also tweaked the map by making it smaller, adjusting elements like ramps to improve movement flow and added more city-like boundaries around the level. These changes aim to reduce confusion, minimize dead zones, and keep players constantly in motion. With fewer opportunities to camp and better visibility thanks to the new crown arrow, the action stays focused and players are more consistently drawn into the heart of the fight.

Stun Whistle Mayhem 🎺

Meet our first offensive power up, the Stun Whistle! When activated, it flinches every other player on the map. This came from a desire to introduce a global disruptor that doesn’t require aiming precision. It’s a chaos button with high tactical potential, and we're excited to see how players will experiment with it in different scenarios.

MVP Moment 🏆

Getting the highest score isn’t the only way to be a winner. We wanted players to feel recognized for how they played, not just whether they won. Our new MVP system highlights different playstyles at the end of each match. Whether you were a Gem Collector, Pacifist, or even a Punching Bag, there’s now a title waiting for you. We also included lighthearted categories like Participant to make sure everyone gets a shoutout.

Miscellaneous 🛠️

• Increased size of oil spills and added an outline so it is easier to see (and avoid or bait people into)
•  Code improvements to make things more modular and styling more consistent
• Sneak peak into our new executable icon 👀

Week 10 Progress (7/17 - 7/23)
✔️Crown Arrow Replaces Minimap
✔️️Introduced Stun Whistle
✔️️Improved Onboarding