Lost River is Released!

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loboLoco
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Lost River is Released!

Post by loboLoco » Thu Dec 15, 2022 2:59 pm




The v1.0.9 update is now available, with a few improvements and fixes to the main game, plus the new reimagined Lost River game map, available as DLC for US$12! Game and DLC sales are how we fund WQ game development, so thank you to everyone who will be purchasing this map!

NEW: LOST RIVER MAP (DLC)
A fictional area in the Mountain West, featuring both expansive wilderness and a mysteriously-abandoned town. Some years ago, all human residents evacuated the town of Lost RIver. Nature has begun to reclaim the place, with elk herds and other wildlife wandering the abandoned streets and subdivisions. Wolves may wonder what happened here, but they will never know. This is a reimagined version of the Lost River: Classic map, remade from the ground up and now equal to the scope and quality of Amethyst Mountain and Slough Creek.

Features;
* 8x8 kilometer map (30% larger than the WQ:AE Yellowstone maps)
* The full arc of quests, from learning to hunt through raising pups. (That currently brings you to Endless Summer, but once the Saga is completed, it will be available in Lost River as well as in the Yellowstone maps.)
* The mysterious town of Lost River, which humans abandoned some years ago -- but where you'll find clues about their activities and concerns.
* A vast wilderness reaching into the mountains, where elk roam and grizzlies roar, dotted with interesting natural and human-made features.
* Over a dozen buildings that wolves can enter and explore.
* All the gameplay and animals in the main game, plus a few more!
* Over 20 new achievements.
* Cattle ranch where players can press their luck by preying on the herd -- but beware of tricks that the ranchers have up their sleeves!
* New music tracks when exploring the human areas of the map, in the same style as the original Lost River soundtrack.
* And much more (including the return of Lost River's best-kept secret) -- but you'll have to explore the map to discover it all.

ALSO NEW:
* Once you have a mate, a new Mate tab appears in Pack Info, where you can see your mate's attributes and genetics, and write a short biography if you wish. (Bio is saved with the game save.)
* Snow remains at high elevations in the springtime. Snow coverage is now synced correctly between the terrain and rocks, trees, and other objects, based on elevation.

IMPROVEMENTS:
* For the "travel a long distance with pups to a new rendezvous site" achievement, an alert now notifies you when you've gone the required distance.

BUGS FIXED:
* Some small gaps in deep snow.
* Small birds fly out from snow-covered sagebrush in winter.
* Multiplayer: Sometimes notifications don't appear for all players. (Possible fix, might still occur, please report if you see the problem.)The v1.0.9 update is now available, with a few improvements and fixes to the main game, plus the new reimagined Lost River game map, available as DLC for US$12!
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DinoDogDude209
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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by DinoDogDude209 » Thu Dec 15, 2022 3:14 pm

Oh boy, I'm so excited about this! I haven't been this excited about a WolfQuest update since Slough Creek was released for the Anniversary Edition. I can't wait to check out the new Lost River map!

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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by Shiranuiii » Thu Dec 15, 2022 3:18 pm

Fantastic - can't wait to check it out!!

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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by wolfluvr101 » Fri Dec 16, 2022 9:03 pm

I may or may not have cried when I saw it was out.

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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by DinoDogDude209 » Tue Dec 20, 2022 12:27 am

Now that it's been a few days since the new DLC map was released, I'd like to give a few of my thoughts on the map itself. For anyone who may be reading this and hasn't checked out the new map yet, consider this your spoiler warning!

I was a bit apprehensive at first when I heard that the new map would be 8x8 kilometers, and I was a bit concerned that such a huge map might have large stretches of it that feel like an empty wasteland with nothing going on. I've actually been pleasantly surprised in that regard. Even in the wilderness areas of the map that are far away from any signs of human civilization, it still manages to feel like there's interesting little things waiting around every corner, which is great! Whether you're walking down the streets of the town or running along a long stretch of empty road extending out into the wilderness, you never know what you're going to find next while exploring Lost River. That's important in an open world game with a big playable area, because it encourages exploration and increases the replay value of the game. Plus, with all of the new lore and locations to discover, along with so many new and different den sites to find and choose from, I think this map will give the game a lot of replayablity that will keep players coming back to play it again and again.

The new map has so much variety in both old and new locations. The areas from the old map make a return, but have been completely reimagined. For example, Hank's Ditch still exists in this new map, but it wasn't completed in this version, leaving the lower half of the river untouched in its natural beauty. The town has all new buildings while still having some familiar places. Grant's Glen still exists too, but the humans were just beginning to build the houses there when the town was abandoned. Allison Acres makes a return, but it's bigger now, and the beavers didn't end up flooding the entire neighborhood this time. These unique twists on familiar places are excellent. Then we get entirely new locations, like L'il Yellowstone, which has some really cool geothermal features, the first of their kind in the game. We also get places like the Cattle Ranch, which are clearly meant to expand upon locations from much older versions of the game. We even get a place called Midnight Mountain, located close to a mysterious place referred to in the game as "Midnight Pass", which is clearly a nod to a community rumor from the game's past. It's all so varied from place to place, while all feeling like part of the same continuous game world. It ties together so many different locations and themes into one coherent map that makes them all feel connected. It creates a sense of wonder while still feeling grounded in reality.

That's what makes the Lost River DLC map so awesome! I really love this new map. It's huge and gorgeous. It perfectly expands upon the themes introduced in the Classic Lost River map (and other aspects of the game), while bringing so much more to the table. It reimagines what made the original so great, while expanding on it in unique and interesting ways. I think this is undeniably the best map in the game, and if I may be so bold, perhaps the WolfQuest team's greatest work yet. Excellent work as always, WolfQuest team. You've outdone yourselves once again!

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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by loboLoco » Tue Dec 20, 2022 9:51 am

Thanks for your review! We really appreciate your comments!
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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by duskypack » Tue Dec 20, 2022 6:51 pm

You guys have outdone yourselves! This map is stunning – and I can tell you've made tons of optimizations, because I can now run the game on the highest graphic settings on my Macbook Pro without any difficulty (which would've been a pipe dream this time last year). I love that Lost River incorporates aspects of Yellowstone that aren't feasible in the other two maps, like the geysers and alpine meadows. It captures the Rocky Mountains so well and I can really see the attention to detail in both the human civilizations and wilderness areas. I'm curious – did you make any trips to specific regions as you designed Lost River, or were you basing it off of general knowledge of the Wyoming/Montana area?


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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by loboLoco » Thu Dec 22, 2022 2:13 pm

Thanks! And lol, it's basically a composite of many favorite places of mine in the mountains.

Did you get an Apple Silicon MBP? They're pretty amazing.
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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by DinoDogDude209 » Fri Dec 23, 2022 12:26 am

loboLoco wrote:
Thu Dec 22, 2022 2:13 pm
Thanks! And lol, it's basically a composite of many favorite places of mine in the mountains.
That's cool! I definitely noticed some similarities to various real places in the new map.

A lot of the high mountain areas remind me of Beartooth Pass, the area northeast of Yellowstone. I went through that area twice with my family during our trip to Yellowstone a couple of years ago. Lost River definitely has a similar vibe in the higher elevation areas, though it's obviously not exactly the same.

The town itself also heavily reminds me of various towns out west, like Cooke City and West Yellowstone in Montana, Cody and Jackson Hole in Wyoming, and Estes Park in Colorado. I'm sure that some of the resemblance to these real places is coincidental, but regardless, I found that it made the new map more immersive for me.

I feel like I could imagine Lost River as a real place, despite it being fictional. That's something that is hard to accomplish in a game, but I think the team did a great job.

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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by Windstrider » Wed Jan 11, 2023 11:23 am

The new Lost River looks amazing! It's gonna be fun to run around and explore.

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Re: Lost River is Released!

Post by Joy 2010 » Thu Jan 12, 2023 5:35 pm

I love it so much

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