Hey everyone, Kaan here.

I hope you're all doing well. I wanted to share some updates about Swarm Grinder and what's been happening behind the scenes.

Recently, our team went through some big changes, and I'm now the only developer working on Swarm Grinder. It's been a lot to manage since my last post, but I'm commited to continuing to improve and expand Swarm Grinder.

Meanwhile, the rest of the team is carrying on with Tears Apart. If you're looking for news on that end, don't worry, they'll also be in touch.

Initially, the Swarm Grinder team was made up of nine incredibly passionate and talented individuals. As the founder of Last Bite Games, I loved the energy and creativity they brought to the project, and I think that their work is a testament to their dedication. This was our first game to bring to you all, and despite the challenges, the team created something truly special. I'm honored to continue building on their foundation.

Over the past three weeks, Ive been diving deep into Swarm Grinder and its systems, tackling optimization challenges to improve the gameplay experience.

As a result, today Ive delivered some performance improvements and a few smaller changes to enhance the overall experience. Dont forget, Ill quickly add to these changesthis is just getting started.

Here whats included in the update:

• Fixed localization issues in the modding menu.
• Fixed some UI text issues in the main menu.
• Most importantly, I tackled a major optimization issue. The ProcessCellMatrix method alone took 102ms on a low-end CPU. After the fix, its down to just 32ms!
  

Im confident updates on this month addresses optimization problems on macOS 100%, and now Im focusing players with low-end CPUs on Windows. My main goal, though, is making Swarm Grinder run smoothly on Steam Deck. Having access to a MacBook Air with M1 chip really helped with macOS optimizations, and Ill find a way to get a Steam Deck to ensure I can focus on that too!

Ive also been reading your recent reviews and commentsjust as I was getting ready to write this post, I saw how positive the response has been. Honestly, it took me by surprise! Ive been fixing things quietly without much communication, but seeing so many of you see these changes and mention on comments made me realize I shouldve shared more updates. Ill be replying to as many of you as I can, so lets keep the discussions goingIm here and listening.

Lastly, let me tell you a bit about the kind of developer I am.

Im the kind of developer who gets called in when the project is almost done, and suddenlybam!something critical goes wrong. Maybe its a compiler error buried in some obscure third-party code sitting at the heart of your games systems. Thats when I step in, fueled by determination (and a lot of coffee), and work tirelessly until its fixedno matter how long it takes. And yes, Ill find that one line of code buried deep that nobody bothered to document.

Ive got 141 Git repositories and a stack of Unity projects under my belt. Some have been sold, others are still running with publishers. Before Last Bite Games, I worked on nearly 50 game projects for other companies. A lot of you probably get itIve got a dark side in my past.

But thats what I do. Ill dive into the madness, fix the impossible, and keep pushing forward.

With all that out of my mind.

For future updates, yesIll constantly be rolling out UX fixes and optimization updates. But I know youre looking for content. So, Im planning to allocate time from optimization to developing new game modes that don't have the same optimization challenges. This way, I can give you fresh experiences while still improving the core of the game.

Thank you again for all your comments and feedbacks.

[ 2024-11-30 12:21:46 CET ] [Original Post]