Alpha 5 is good to go

Gravity Garden alpha 5 is ready for action. This month i've been experimenting with the locomotion system. Previous versions were working ok, but not as smooth or simple as I wanted. The main problem was the two different controllers for the character.  I was handing off control between the two depending on what mode the player was in. This made for some complicated code and the behaviour was not consistent for the player.  Now there is one controller that handles all of the movement - and it's all physics based. Much cleaner and more consistent. 

I've also been working on comfort options. You can now choose between smooth and snap-turning.  Tap the right stick for a quick snap-turn, or hold the stick to turn to any specific direction. You can also turn strafing on/off. Turning and side to side movement are two of the most common causes of VR discomfort. More comfort options win the works including walking speed, turning speed, dash teleport, teleport blinking, steering with face/hand.

The Teleport controls also got a bit of makeover. Teleporting is no longer a tool-based action. You choose between teleporting or thrusters using the pop-up menu. This makes moving around a more consistent experience.  You use the stick or trackpad to move, no matter which mode you're using. 

Here's a rundown of all the new stuff in Alpha 5:

• New player controller. Now it's all under one coherent system, all physics based.
• Teleporting is no longer a tool based action. 
• Player can change locomotion modes: teleport or thrusters
• smooth turn or snap-turn
• snap-turn by specified angle or choose any angle with stick/pad
• turn strafing on/off
• Improved teleport controls and marker
• fixed velocity of thrown objects
• fixed: some held fruits pushing player around

I'm still working on the inventory system and full game loop.  I wanted get all that ready for this release, but it 's not quite there yet.  Not too much longer now. Hoping to have that working and in the next Alpha by mid-October.