Hello everyone and thank you for grabbing another entry of our weekly Something's Brewing, the one place for you to read how Ale Abbey is coming along and then some!
This is a chunkier one so prepare your eyes for some assets galore. We are dipping our toes into a mechanic we have been wanting to introduce for quite some time (hint: brooms are not only used for flying), had some progress in the UI side of things, and added some details to Ale Abbey's outskirts to spruce up its seasonal look.
Onwards with the news!
-- Extras on seasonal assets
As you might very well know from our last Something's Brewing, we are now fully engaged in the seasonal aspects of the monastery's environs. Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall will all have their very own looks (and gameplay twists!) and we have to say, Raimo has a lot of fun preparing those...
A few delicate additions to make Spring pop...
And some cute shrooms taking over during Fall...
These come as additions to the work we've already done on the seasons, mostly on the colors and whole aesthetic of the monastery's surroundings.
-- UI and main menu evolves
Something that our project lead Emiliano has been constantly working on is Ale Abbey's main in-game menu and... well, all of the UI. He's not happy about it, but this only makes all of this work all the more worthwhile and commendable!
Adding a bit of flair and "texture" to the main UI (i.e. scrollwork, holes, cuts, and flourishes), the middle part of its elements differentiate themselves both in size and shape to demand more attention (reading it from that middle outwards). Adding to that, this same spot is stylized in a way that resembles the monastery's rooftops.
We have also made some quite significant changes to Ale Abbey's UI board, the one board to rule check them all for consistency (aesthetic and otherwise). Don't tell anyone you've seen this as it's still pretty much WIP, but we couldn't help it... with the amount of work it took to get here, we were itching to give you a sneak peek! Oh, and you can click it for a larger version ;)
More to come, so giving us your feedback is highly encouraged!!
-- A clean monastery is a happy monastery!
Ah, to be able to use some of that free time to keep your monastery clean... Yes, this is the new mechanic. We have been contemplating this idea for a few months and believed it was high time we started with some tryouts.
The Littering system will be a constant battle between messiness that will slowly build up in the Abbey's rooms and how fast your brewers deal with it. Keeping the Monastery - relatively - clean will make sure its inhabitants are happy. That happiness translates into motivation which in turn turns into faster, better brews. Kaaaaaaa-ching!
We are now building the backbone for the Littering system; in essence, how fast the monastery gets messy, as well as the way your little brewers will be assigned to cleaning duty when not occupied with more serious matters (brewing, it's always brewing). This latter point will probably justify the creation of an extra room, but we'll keep that one under wraps until we've made some more progress.
Stay tuned!
-- A major contribution
We talk about cleanliness, but the concept of sanitation as we understand it today was not fully developed back in the late Middle Ages. However, monastic brewers did seem to have a knack for implementing practices that contributed to sanitary brewing processes that also enhanced both the safety and taste of their ales. To be honest, they made it quite easy to say they practically laid the foundation for more refined brewing methods for centuries to come.
While they may not have understood the science behind it, brewers observed that some of the following practices led to better-quality beer (not only drinkable... actually safe!):
- Cleanliness as a Religious Duty: Monasteries often emphasized cleanliness due to religious beliefs that equated physical purity with spiritual purity. This cultural emphasis probably bled into brewing practices, with monks being excessively meticulous about maintaining clean brewing environments and equipment.
- Documentation and Standardization: Probably the unsung hero of this entire list. Monks were known for their record-keeping and documentation. This helped speedrun the standardization of brewing procedures, ensuring the repetition of successful batches. Standardization inherently improved sanitation by removing practices that carried higher risks of contamination.
- Use of Copper Vessels: Monasteries began using copper kettles and vessels for brewing, which were easier to clean and less prone to harboring bacteria (compared to more traditional wooden containers). Copper also has mild antimicrobial properties, which might have indirectly helped in maintaining sanitation!
- Controlled Fermentation: Monks developed better methods for controlling fermentation, including the isolation of brewing yeast. By reusing yeast from successful batches (this is where you say thank you to documentation and standardization!), they selected yeast strains that were less likely to spoil.
- Clean Water (if you can believe it...): Monasteries understood the importance of clean water since they saw it reduced the likelihood of failed brews (contamination). It was also easy for them since they had access to fresh, clean water from wells and springs.
With this, we'll let you enjoy your weekend responsibly, but remember to join us next week for some more Ale Abbey news!
-- Hammer & Ravens
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