Howl and Response

Find out what we're doing and thinking as we develop WolfQuest 3: Anniversary Edition and the Tower Fall expansion!

Moderators: Neamara, Koa

Post Reply
User avatar
loboLoco
WolfQuest Team Member
WolfQuest Team Member
Posts: 2885
Joined: Thu Jul 19, 2007 4:51 pm
Gender: Male
Contact:

Howl and Response

Post by loboLoco » Thu Jan 13, 2022 4:19 pm



A few months ago, we got a feedback report from the player FrostByter with an excellent suggestion: if the player howls when looking for a mate, dispersal wolves should howl in response. We had to set that idea aside while we focused on Slough Creek multiplayer, but we've returned to it this month -- and it's one of the improvements coming in the next patch. And not only do dispersals respond to your howls, but stranger wolves -- whether patrolling their territory or back at their homesite -- might also respond. Any wolves who do respond and are nearby (within two kilometers) will be marked on the compass, to help you track down dispersals whom you might want to court. This is a fairly small feature but I think it adds so much to the game. Thanks for the suggestion, FrostByter!

Fun fact: Our game developer Tommi realized that howling responses would be affected by the speed of sound (343 m/s), so he added an extra delay to account for that, based on the distance between those wolves and the player.

Another improvement in this patch: All animals now deal less damage when low on energy. This is most pronounced with prey, who become less dangerous after you've chased them for awhile -- but remember that you too will deal less bite damage if you've got less energy at the time. We hope this encourages more realistic hunting tactics, especially since weaker elk will now slow down as you chase them, and tired elk will do less damage to you.

These improvements plus a few more, plus a lot of bugfixes, are coming in v1.0.8d, which is in pubilc beta now. We expect to release it within a few days.

________________________________________

The WolfQuest saga will continue! Stay tuned for more news in upcoming devblogs. More maps and wolf customizations are also coming in 2022!

Once the game is completed on PC/Mac, we will turn our attention to other platforms.

We do not announce specific release dates. We will release them when they are ready.
Dave/loboLoco
WolfQuest Game Producer

User avatar
rowantobias
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 248
Joined: Mon Aug 02, 2010 8:05 pm
Name: Rowan
Gender: Nonbinary
Location: California, US
Contact:

Re: Howl and Response

Post by rowantobias » Thu Jan 13, 2022 6:51 pm

the howling indicator is going to be a lifesaver - and i also really think it breathes some life into the game! the howls were always there, of course, but it's like putting a name to it makes it feel more real...

the energy enhancements seem really great too! thanks for your hard work, as always, devs!

SkyRiderMusic
Pup
Pup
Posts: 25
Joined: Tue Jul 27, 2021 10:35 am

Re: Howl and Response

Post by SkyRiderMusic » Fri Jan 14, 2022 12:02 am

These new changes make strangers feel much more alive! Definitely cool, and useful for the find a mate quest

User avatar
-Wolfdog-
Yearling
Yearling
Posts: 371
Joined: Wed Jul 24, 2019 4:09 pm
Name: Wolf
Gender: Female
Location: Northeast
Contact:

Re: Howl and Response

Post by -Wolfdog- » Fri Jan 14, 2022 5:27 pm

I actually logged on to ask whether or not the howls the player hears in the distance are just for ambience or are they actually responding-- it's been on my mind for a good month now. Talk about coincidence, eh?

[edit]
I tried out the feature yesterday and it was awesome, you could hear an entire chorus!

User avatar
duskypack
Former User of the Month
Former User of the Month
Posts: 1383
Joined: Mon Aug 29, 2011 4:49 pm
Name: “Dusk”
Gender: Female

Re: Howl and Response

Post by duskypack » Sun Jan 16, 2022 11:29 am

This is one of my favorite quality of life updates! It's amazing how little touches like this can make a world feel infinitely more immersive and alive. It's also fascinating to me that almost every little tweak is based off of real wolf behavior now – something that wasn't possible even just five years ago. I can't think of any other game that's so consistently realistic and so consistently striving to be without sacrificing player enjoyment. Even the minor mechanics on how Wolfquest operates are educational. It's fitting you guys got that National Science Foundation grant all those years ago. You're constantly setting the bar higher for educational games.

User avatar
alleykat3000
Pup
Pup
Posts: 29
Joined: Fri Oct 05, 2012 5:00 pm
Gender: Female

Re: Howl and Response

Post by alleykat3000 » Sun Jan 16, 2022 8:25 pm

I'm absolutely in love with implementing this into the game! It adds more realism into WQ, because in most cases, wolves do howl back-and-forth to each other. It would also make finding a mate much easier than it was before. Since, before it did sometimes take a bit.

User avatar
DinoDogDude209
Hunter-in-training
Hunter-in-training
Posts: 235
Joined: Thu Jan 31, 2019 10:46 am
Gender: Male
Location: Ohio

Re: Howl and Response

Post by DinoDogDude209 » Tue Apr 26, 2022 7:31 pm

I know I'm a few months late, but I think this is a really cool feature. Wolves howl specifically to communicate, and I'm very glad that this behavior has a bigger impact in the game now. That's an awesome detail that helps to make the game world feel more dynamic and immersive.

Post Reply