Pushing Boundaries in Gaming

From design to implementation, explore the tech that powers BIG ideas

April 25, 2023

Pushing Boundaries in Gaming

From design to implementation, explore the tech that powers BIG ideas  

Hey there!

This week we’re taking a deep give into game design and gameplay. The Immortals of Aveum™ Gameplay First Look Trailer released last week, and today we’re following it up with a breakdown of magic, spells, gear, and more. We also take a peek behind the scenes to look at the tech our team is using to build the game.

The Bleeding-Edge Tech Powering Immortals of Aveum 

What do you do when your designers pitch an idea that seems impossible to make a reality? For a lot of producers and engineers, the answer is pretty simple:

But sometimes, the most exciting games are pushing the edges of what’s doable. Whether that’s examining challenging topics or feats of engineering and artistry that allow for gameplay only previously dreamed about, game developers have a tough time deciding what’s in the realm of possible and what’s too far out of scope.

“Some of the ideas the team would throw out there, we just wouldn’t have been able to do it, because we didn’t have the technology. ‘Hey let’s have a 400-foot walking mech level, in the ocean, and we can have the mech come under attack from airships, and you’re fighting inside the mech, and you’re fighting on top of the mech, and maybe you almost fall off the mech at one point?’—and it would be like, ‘How would we ever make that a reality?’

Mark Mareata, Chief Technology Officer at Ascendant Studios

The only way was to be at the most forefront place in technology; utilizing Unreal 5.1’s newest features, like Nanite:

“This micropolygon geometry system intelligently adjusts the level of detail of any in-game object depending on how close you are to it. So, if you have an object that’s far enough away that you couldn’t make out fine details on it even if they were there, Nanite will actually make the object physically less complex—on the fly!—so that the game doesn’t waste resources rendering it fully.”

The Bleeding-Edge Tech Powering Immortals of Aveum 

Read the full blog post to learn more about what Unreal 5.1 features we used to bring IoA to life.

Explore Immortals of Aveum’s Gameplay

In case you missed it, we revealed a first look at Immortal of Aveum’s gameplay last week. The trailer takes you through a portion of a level relatively early on in the game, called Shrineforge. This is one of the few missions where Jak fights alongside his fellow elite battlemages in the Order of the Immortals.

As Jak, the player navigates through combat against a number of Rasharnian soldiers, Magni, a construct, and eventually an Archon - using a multitude of Blue, Red, and Green Magic spells to shred, slow, stun, and blast them back to the kingdom they came from. Lash, hover, dodge, and more allow Jak to stay mobile, gain elevation, make a quick getaway or get in quick for the kill.

There’s a lot going on in the 6+ minute Gameplay First Look Trailer, and only about half of the total spells and abilities in the game are shown. How do you make sense of it all (especially when the trailer doesn’t include the HUD you’ll have in game)? We’ve got you covered!

Take a closer look into Immortals of Aveum’s spells, combat, player progression, puzzles, and more in the Gameplay Deep Dive video.

Be sure to subscribe to the Ascendant Studios YouTube channel for more deep dives and behind the scenes content from Immortals of Aveum.

Unearth the Art Behind Art Direction

Season One of our games industry podcast, Rise Above, has arrived! Join us for a candid conversation with Ascendant’s Associate Art Director, Julia Lichtblau, as she delves into the artistic and technical challenges of designing iconic game environments like Telltale’s The Walking Dead, Minecraft: Story Mode, and Game of Thrones. Learn how her experiences led her to Ascendant and what inspired the breathtaking environments in Immortals of Aveum.

New episodes drop every other Monday - Follow and subscribe so you don’t miss the next episode on May 1st.

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