Our first new map in Sky Noon, called ‘Pinnacle,’ will be releasing in a free patch on the 15th this week. This blog will give a bit of insight into its development, starting from the concept stage and progressing to the final result.

Pinnacle is a section of lake and a water source that was raised very, very high into the sky long ago, causing all the water to freeze for easy harvesting.

Before we began, we knew that we wanted to create a map inspired by the ice trade, which involved the mass collection and transport of ice from the 19th to early 20th century. We felt that this theme meshed perfectly with Sky Noon’s backstory of fighting over water. A large mass of ice would be a goldmine for whoever controls it, as they could gradually mine away at it and ship it off to wherever it was being sold or used.

https://architectofthecapital.org/posts/2016/8/5/american-ice-co

We felt that ice physics would be an interesting addition to Sky Noon. Having ice would allow us to create slippery ramps and surfaces that you could maintain your momentum while sliding across. It would be a unique addition to the game both in appearance and gameplay, striking quite a contrast against the existing maps.
The map started as a bunch of grey boxes piled on top of eachother into the shape of nearly a map, inspired by some concept art which helped to set a general idea of the direction. After a few iterations and varying map styles, we arrived on a rough but functional level to test on. We played it a lot, then moved forward with the internal feedback and new ideas.

From there it was a balance of creating assets and developing the design of the level, which went hand in hand. A new set of rocks was created to act as the base land, with a new look that stood apart from the rest of the maps. The goal with the rocks was to create something that was familiar to Sky Noon and the western theme, but with some layered snow and hard cuts like a quarry.

The ice itself would make up a large portion of the walkable space, standing out against the orange of the rocks and creating a slippery playspace. We believe we have struck a good balance with the ice physics. You retain a great deal of control while walking on the ice but can still feel the slippery effects if you try to stop or are sent flying across it. You can take a break from grappling to slide across the ice with your momentum, but you will quickly slow to normal walking speed. That is unless the ice is sloped, in which case you will slide all the way to the bottom.

Major changes began to take place as we tested the map, finding that some parts worked and some didn’t. For instance, having a map with a single tall mass tends to reduce the potential for creative grappling, devolving into a constant roundabout. Adding extra high points, splitting up parts of the map into separated play areas and cutting out a few unnecessary sections brought it much closer to the final result.

A cozy building was added to act as a base of operations, a workshop for storage and management of the ice trade. Along with it came the barges and ice wagons, used to transport the ice locally or to far away places. We also added a few large ramps of ice to make better and more interesting use of the ice physics.

Now here we are at the final result with some post process changes and new assets. We will leave you with a few screenshots to peek at. We hope you enjoy the new map!

This week we have some new information to share regarding Duels, the latest game mode coming to Sky Noon as mentioned in our roadmap. You can expect this new mode in the coming weeks with update 0.6.
Duel is a 1v1 round based game mode that takes place on very small symmetrical maps with a strict ruleset. You can invite your friend (or enemy) to a personal competitive challenge to determine which of you is the best at Sky Noon. Duels are compact and tense, allowing for risky and daring moves to ensure that the other player falls first.

In a duel, the only thing that matters is that your opponent falls out of the map before you do. If a player is eliminated, then the other player will receive a point and a new round will begin. This will respawn both players with new weapons and abilities, continuing on like this until one person has earned 3 points.

It is the typical Sky Noon experience with randomised loadouts. A major element to success will be quick adaptability to what you have been given in the face of another skilled opponent, using the elements of the sandbox properly to out play them.

Standoff, one of the special duel maps
The maps will contain random weapon and ability crates if you are unsatisfied with your loadout or run out of ammo, but there aren’t many and you must compete with the other player for them. Being able to effectively use any weapon or ability will be key to success.

Each map is varied in layout, complexity and theme, allowing for different tactics and grappling manoeuvres

If both players are evenly matched and last the full time limit of a round without an elimination, then both players will be automatically given the powerup, lasting until the round is finally concluded.

That’s the basics of the new game mode coming soon to Sky Noon. Now we want to hear what you think. This is all subject to change as we continue to test and polish, so be sure to let us know your thoughts. The Sky Noon Discord channel remains the best place to do so. If you haven’t yet, you can join through the following link:

https://discord.gg/skynoon


Thanks for reading!

Hello everybody, it’s time for a new patch! It will be adding Quick Join, a much requested feature that will automatically find the best server for you. Another new feature is reticle customisation, which will give you control over the appearance of your reticle.

You can read the full patch notes by clicking the link: http://lunarrooster.com/2018/07/10/sky-noon-patch-v0-5-2/0

Quick Join

The goal of Quick Join is to put players in games easier. We’ve added a button to join the best dedicated server for you, based on ping and player counts, so you can get playing right away. The server list is still around if you want to get more selective, but the idea is players are able to jump into a game quicker. It’s important to note that this isn’t Matchmaking, there are no queues while the game waits to find 7 other players with similar pings and skill levels before it puts you into a game. The goal here is to get people playing immediately and easily, proper matchmaking will come in the future.

Reticle Customisation

In 0.5.2, you will be able to navigate to the reticle settings menu through the in game settings. From the main menu, select Settings > Game. Here you will have control over which elements of the reticle are visible, along with their Size, Shape, Rotation, Colour and Opacity. Use it to create your ideal reticle, or even something that doesn’t make sense. Whatever you like!

The only limitation is that the grapple indicator part of the reticle is not yet customisable. For now, it will always be present in its typical form. If demand is great enough, then we may also add variations and settings for this part of the reticle in the future.
Here’s a few examples of what you can do with this new system.
Thanks for reading!

Hello from Lunar Rooster! The blog this week is just a quick general update on Sky Noon and to let you know that we are still working hard to bring you new things.

We are now full swing into work on new features and content. Above is the section from the roadmap that we are currently focused on. To put it briefly, that means we are working on duels, customisation and other quality of life features to improve your Sky Noon experience. In addition, we have a new map in the works! A future blog will go into deeper detail about it, we won’t leave you out in the cold.

By the end of this week will be another small patch, including the reticle customisation feature. This will allow you to change your reticle appearance following set parameters, including colour and style.

For fans of time trials, we have a sneak peek at a neat prize for those going the extra mile and earning gold medals in every trial. This prize will come later on when the systems for weapon and grapple skins are implemented.

And with that, here’s the prize! The great golden grapple gun. Once earned, you can use this lovely thing in any game mode you want.

Thanks for reading! See you next time.

Hey everybody! Sky Noon is finally out in Steam Early Access! We’re thrilled to see the positive reactions and fun that has come out of it so far. Being able to interact with the community, discussing strategies or playing alongside you, has made it much more fun.

Up next we will be walking you through our plans for the future of Sky Noon and its evolution as an Early Access title. We believe that being as transparent as possible with our ideas and future additions is massively important, giving our great community the chance to offer feedback and suggestions as we go. We want to make sure that there is always something cool to look forward to.

As stated on Steam, we think the Early Access period will last a maximum of 6 to 8 months. All along the way we will be updating with new features and content, as listed below. There may be more updates past 0.8 before full release if required, which we will know more about as it gets closer.

Features

These are new additions to Sky Noon that aren’t currently in the game or are in a very early state.

Duels

A true Western experience – standoffs at Noon. Challenge another player to a 1v1 match. The first to eliminate their opponent scores a point, first to three wins! We want Duels to promote community interaction with the ability to challenge friends and foes to a test of skill.
Duels will take place on specialised small scale maps, designed specifically for compact, competitive 1v1 matches.

Brawls

New unique game-modes that will be available for a limited time. Brawls will be a mixture of polished custom game rules or even completely different from the usual Sky Noon experience.You will be able to play these brawl game-modes on dedicated servers all while earning XP.
Brawls are a great way for us to test out new concepts or share a crazy custom game with the community, potentially paving the way for new permanent game modes.

Progression and Expanded Customisation

Levelling up to unlock customisation is only the beginning of our ideal progression system. In the coming updates we will be adding new ways to earn customisation.
We want to add a currency system alongside a customisation store. You will be able to earn currency through regular play, which you can spend on a selection of cosmetic items. The idea is to give players something to work towards, independent of leveling.
We want to introduce new kinds of customisation, separate from outfits, which can be earned in different ways. We want to allow you to stand out and interact in more ways than before, even show off some of your best achievements in Sky Noon. This could potentially include weapon skins, grapple skins, emotes and elimination effects, however, nothing is yet set in stone. Be sure to let us know what kind of customisation you would like to be added into Sky Noon in our Discord.

Bounties

These are long term, tiered goals or challenges that require you to play in certain ways to achieve them. Completing bounties might reward you with currency, special customisation unlocks or just xp, depending on the tier of bounty that you had completed. You might also see temporary bounties, lasting only for a set time period.

Localisation

We are striving to localise Sky Noon in many languages. Our first task will be to create the systems that will allow us to easily add languages in the future. While you won’t see new languages pop up right away, we will be keeping the community informed as we make progress.

Accessibility

We are keen to add in accessibility options to make Sky Noon enjoyable for as many people as possible. At the moment we don’t have a set list of accessibility options we will add. We are aware of the basics, but, if you have any requests or thoughts on accessibility feel free to drop them in the feedback channels in our Discord.

Parties and Matchmaking

Parties and Matchmaking is not on the Roadmap above because it could slip in anywhere, or nowhere, based on demand. It’s a feature that greatly relies on the number of people using it. Parties and matchmaking are features that we feel are important for ease of use and convenience, and we hope they will make it into the game closer to full release. However, we believe that the higher priorities should be general gameplay features and accessibility.
Parties will allow you to group up with your friends in the lobby. You could then take that party into matchmaking which would ideally put you against opponents of similar skill level with low ping. You could also use matchmaking solo.

The server browser and player hosted custom games will give the players plenty of choice and control in finding games for now, and we’re looking to expand it and make it easier to use, but we do see the value of matchmaking. As development goes on we may re-evaluate the priority of matchmaking, but for now it is low priority.

Content

In addition to the new features, we will be constantly working on additional content for already existing systems

Maps

We will be expanding the selection of maps with new and interesting layouts, using different themes and obstacles to keep gameplay different. While nothing is ready to be confirmed yet, some potential new maps could include:
-Damaged and fractured landmass with little to stand on
-Snowed over environments, perhaps with some slippery iced surfaces
-A Cartel fortress, rough and scrappy yet functional
-And more! Feel free to offer your ideas. Your suggestions could inspire the next map (We are keen on the windmills idea).

Time Trials

New time trials will be coming, being much like the ones you see today at various levels of difficulty and length. You may also see new kinds of trials and challenges that require you to completely change your strategy.
Down the line we hope to reward those of you committed to the trials, granting unique cosmetics that you can use anywhere.

Customisation

With the new progression system will come various new outfits and items for you to dress up and customise your characters. Our goal is to create a nice variety of appealing cosmetics you will want to work for.
In addition, you may eventually see new characters come into play. They will fit in to the list with Jaz and Steve, letting you dress them up separately as well. How these characters will be unlocked is something we are still considering.

Weapons and Abilities

We want to add new weapons and abilities sometime in the future. We will take a look at the sandbox and see what could be added that is unique or worth adding. However, we feel that the balance and diversity of the sandbox is in a good place for now. For the first milestones we will be focusing on new features and general accessibility.

Thanks for Reading!

That is the roadmap for Sky Noon as it currently stands. As we advance and in future blog posts we will continue to discuss and preview what you’ve seen above. A huge thanks to everybody who has purchased and played Sky Noon

June 14, 2018 - Saddle up and grab your cowboy hat, lasso, and grappling guns for a showdown in the sky! New Zealand-based game developer Lunar Rooster and Reverb Triple XP announced today that Sky Noon is now available on Steam Early Access. Join a faction – either the Minutemen or the Cartel – then attempt to knock off opponents with air-powered weapons while using grappling hooks and lassos to pull yourself back onto the level, leading to a thrilling “tug of war” pace of combat that’s both hilarious and exhilarating! Send your enemies soaring off the edge of the Floating Frontier and lead your team to victory!

Watch the Sky Noon Launch Trailer HERE[http//www.+youtube.com]

"Through many hours of design work, testing, and community feedback, we’ve reached the major milestone in releasing our first video game - Sky Noon on Steam,” states Craig Taylor, co-founder and lead programmer at Lunar Rooster. “In the next few weeks we plan to unveil Duels, enhanced customization and a lot more as we want to take advantage of the Early Access development to listen to our amazing growing community and further improve the Sky Noon experience.”

Named by Game Informer as one of the Best Indie Games at PAX East 2018*, Sky Noon takes place in a reinvented Wild West universe where the frontier floats among the clouds. Powerful factions crave to control the most precious resource in the West: water. Players take the role of hired gunslingers that battle opposing fighters across floating islands in the sky. There are no health meters in Sky Noon; instead, to eliminate enemies, players use various super-power compressed air weapons to send them flying out of their boot spurs! Grappling hooks and lassos must constantly be used to prevent players from falling off into the great blue sky. Combined with other items like steam-powered jet boots, jump pads, teleporters, and more, cowboys need to be quick on the draw and light on their boots in the fast-paced, aerial mayhem of Sky Noon.

Sky Noon is now available on Steam Early Access (SRP $14.99). Cowboys looking to join the gang should follow the game development on Twitter, ‘Like’ us on Facebook, connect on Discord, check us out on Reddit, and visit the official site SkyNoonGame.com.

*courtesy of Game Informer[www.gameinformer.com]


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Greetings from all four of us at Lunar Rooster. Early access isn’t far off now! On the 14th of June you will finally be able to buy Sky Noon on Steam and keep it forever. We are super excited to get it out to you all and see what you can do. A huge thanks to everybody who participated in the beta tests and community discussions for helping to shape Sky Noon into the best experience it can be, but we aren’t finished yet! We read everything you say and are always making improvements, which only gets easier the more you share with us.

Now we want to share what you’ll get with the early access release of Sky Noon. What you see below is a preview of the maps, game modes and other features that you will get to start playing with immediately on release. Next week’s blog will feature a road map of our post release plans, including what we may be adding over the course of early access and which features will be expanded upon. For now, here is what’s in Sky Noon:

• Free for All (FFA)
  Max 8 players – Everybody fights one another to find a single winner. First person to reach 10 eliminations wins.
  
• Team Deathmatch (TDM)
  Max 4v4 – Two teams standoff with eliminations being the only way to victory. First team to 30 eliminations wins
  
• King of the Hill (KOTH)
  Max 4v4 – Two teams must contest and take control of 5 hills to win. The hill will move each time one is captured.
  
• Cart
  Max 4v4 – Two teams must fight over a minecart with the goal being to blow up the base of the enemy team. The cart can be moved along the tracks by shooting at it. Along the way are track changers which allow you to change the direction of each track intersection. First to blow up 3 doors or the team that destroyed the most in 10 minutes wins

It is just you and your grapple hook, a true test of your grappling skills and speed. Race solo against the clock, travelling through every checkpoint as fast as you can. At early access launch there will be several different trials varying in length and difficulty hosted on our playable maps. Compete against your friends and the world to score the best time on the leaderboards, and attempt to earn the bronze, silver and gold medals by beating the par times.

Maps

A section of land that was mined out long ago is now the best place to go for a cool glass of water after a tough day. Those who prefer the the rustic country life gather here, far from the nearest town in semi-isolation. With plenty of water in reserve and lots of business, it’s no wonder the factions want to take control. This place is said to be among the first lands to be raised from below many years before.
A series of tall silos are under strict guard by the Minutemen. They contain the grain and water that feed the Minutemen controlled towns and peoples, one of many such containment sites throughout the sky. Control of these areas is vital for the long term success of larger settlements.
This town has been so greatly distorted and changed by the raising from below that it is barely recognisable. Now named “Hightown,” the small community lives huddled together in the few buildings that haven’t been lost. Constant bickering between the Cartel and Minutemen over control of this town has prevented greater expansion, with most people opting to leave and found their own floating lands.
A lone hermit lives in his house under an arch, having had his land brought up into the sky against his will. Efforts to remove him from his old home are futile, so the factions fight on for the land while he remains inside. The silo full of grain and mostly intact barn are too valuable to leave under the control of an uncooperative old prospector.
A highly contested symmetrical zone, with the Minutemen and Cartel separated by a mere wooden bridge. A relatively new set of floating islands that is constantly changing, this land has yet to be properly settled and won’t be until a winner is determined. (Note that this map is still undergoing changes and may look different upon release)

Supports the Cart game mode.
An intersection of the great sky railroad that has long since fallen into disrepair and segmented. This land would be a great prize for those who are able to take control, so long as they have the resources to repair and reconnect the distant sections of the railroad. The Cartel and Minutemen have dug in to this symmetrical mesa and neither have plans of leaving.

Supports the Cart game mode.
This zone is highly volatile as a result of the contained tornado at the centre. It was an experiment conducted in an effort to quickly and efficiently harvest water from the nearby clouds, but it proved to be too dangerous. Now the Minutemen and Cartel fight over it, seeing its potential and foolishly thinking they can control it better than the other side can. Don’t get caught in the tornado.

Supports the Cart game mode.
Choose between two characters, Jaz or Steve (doesn’t affect gameplay), and dress them up with cosmetics that can be unlocked through playing Sky Noon. Fully customise your ideal cowboy or cowgirl, allowing you to mix and match a selection of hats, face accessories, shirts and pants.
That’s a preview of our major features upon early access release of Sky Noon. Stay tuned for next week as we will be discussing a road map of our post release plans, including potential new maps, our plans to expand customisation, weapons and more. Thanks for reading!

We’re back with a brand new blog for you all. We hope that all of you in the US had a nice Memorial Day! The second beta for Sky Noon has been and gone. It was great to see so many people giving our game a go, helping us to find those pesky bugs and test new balance changes. We have gained a great amount of information and feedback from the beta which we are putting to good use.

Overall we are pleased with how everything performed, barring a few bugs like the Teleporter sending people into walls. This and other such bugs will be fixed as soon as possible. Some tweaks to certain weapons and abilities are necessary but the balance is stable. We are happy to see that the revolver is no longer dominating the sandbox yet is still strong in its long range niche. It’s also great to see the hand cannon getting a lot of love. We have no specific weapon or ability changes to mention just yet, but if changes are made then they will definitely be in the patch notes before you can next play Sky Noon.

Thanks to everyone for playing on the dedicated servers. We were more or less happy with the stability, for our Early Access release we want to have more locations around the world allowing everyone to join games with a low ping. We heard the concerns of players who had to play at higher ping. We have been making changes to smooth out projectiles on high ping and will be making further changes to interpolate the character movement which should smooth enemy movement and player grappling.

As for maps, we saw a great deal of very important feedback. We learned that players felt that Hightown wasn’t as dynamic as Towers because of the more simplified two layered play spaces, so we are looking at ways to improve the verticality. More importantly, however, is that we have come to the conclusion that Bridge as a map didn’t work as well as we had hoped. We learned that flatter maps in Sky Noon don’t flow with the combat like one with greater verticality and space between landmass does, such as Towers. As it was, Bridge was underwhelming and didn’t showcase the Cart mode well enough. Bridge will be receiving a massive rework before early access release.

The next major goal is our Early Access release on Steam. We will be announcing a date and price soon. While we don’t have another beta planned as of yet, you should keep an eye on our Discord server for potential “opportunities” as they may or may not arise between now and Early Access.

We shall end this week’s blog with some of our favourite clips from the beta. Remember to post yours in the #clips-steams-videos in the discord. Enjoy!

Diction - https://clips.twitch.tv/VibrantGloriousLasagnaCoolStoryBob

DDaFox - https://clips.twitch.tv/FancyTentativeSoybeanMingLee

GoldenTot - https://clips.twitch.tv/ThoughtfulYummyDaikonCoolStoryBob

BarDownRL - https://clips.twitch.tv/SassyLivelyUdonUWot

Bryonato - https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=73&v=beYpU1Iw1wU