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CK Console DD #4: Tech Optimization & PS Exclusive Features

Howdy all!

Today is the day for our Crusader Kings III release on Next-Gen Consoles! We are very excited and hope you are as well. Once again, our friends over at Lab42 have brought us some wisdom and insight into the process of how the game was created to reflect the performance standards for Xbox Series X|S and Playstation 5.

Our team in Stockholm is hard at work on the next steps of the PC version and with gathering and taking action on the feedback we have received thus far. Hopefully we will have more information on that side of things for the near future! In the meantime, this Dev Diary is for Console news.

Today, our Dev Diary will cover technical optimizations as well as console specific features for the Playstation 5. Hopefully this provides some useful information and brings further excitement to your day!

Without further ado:

Technical Optimization and PS Exclusive Features:

The adaptation to console brings some natural technical optimisation that comes directly from the features of the current gen consoles. This includes quick loading, which is a welcome feature for Crusader Kings on console. Despite the latest consoles being powerful we still had to be wary of performance so our game held up and was an example of how things should be. As your kingdom grows you end up with a lot of “widgets” in play, so we made sure to focus on optimizing performance and UI flow to keep the game, and the gameplay, running as smoothly as possible. To get certified on consoles is definitely a challenge: quality is very important to our Partners and they are very exacting!

Game Help & Activities have been utilized on Playstation 5 to assist with on-boarding and signposting for users in game. CK3 is not a linear mission based game, so the inclusion of Activities was not a straightforward implementation but something that was considered to be beneficial for the overall user experience. The use of Haptic feedback from the PS5 DualSense™ controller was implemented to add immersion to the game experience. Major in-game events were given apt haptic feedback and local controller audio, such as major Stress or Death. The longer term aim is to expand on this feature over time to further engage the user and add to the ambience and CK3 setting. The DualSense™ touchpad has also been used to allow the user to pause and un-pause game time as well as increasing and decreasing Game Speed.

New achievements have been added to the console experience which are designed to add signposting to the game as well as new console specific game challenges. These new achievements are in addition to the wide variety of PC achievements that have been ported to the console game – and certainly provide a challenge for you in the Community to complete over the long term.

In addition to the features described above, we’ve introduced some quality-of-life functionality that has been specifically designed for the console experience. The Quick Access Bar was introduced to enable seamless access to any active process. This includes fluid interaction with active wars, raised armies, building construction and upgrades, and schemes in progress. We’ve also added an Automated Warfare option which gives army control to the AI. This enables players who do not wish to manage wars manually to select the Automated option, allowing them to focus on alternate strategies like Dynasty building and Intrigue. Alerts and Suggestions are easily accessible through the Hints Menu that can be invoked through a single button press. For those players that want to dig down into the detail of the game, you can use the Auto Tooltips or Advanced Tooltip Mode to improve your knowledge of the CK3 world and refine your strategy and approach to gameplay.


 
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I want to. I so want to, if only to open the game even more. And... other... reasons I won't disclose... Not entirely my call (I am your new AI overmaster for PC working out of Stockholm), though. We'll have to cross our fingers that we can do this.
( 人・ω・)
If the "AI overmaster for PC" can't make the call on what to do with the AI for PC, then whose authority do we need? Surely we don't need to await the Second Coming to get approval from the Christ Himself? :oops:
 
If the "AI overmaster for PC" can't make the call on what to do with the AI for PC, then whose authority do we need? Surely we don't need to await the Second Coming to get approval from the Christ Himself? :oops:
I am the primary stakeholder for AI development on Crusader Kings 3 at Studio Black, but that is just part of my role. I can recommend where I think we should allocate resources for AI development, but it is ultimately not my decision whether or not the resources are allocated. I don't solely do AI development, after all.
 
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I am the primary stakeholder for AI development on Crusader Kings 3 at Studio Black, but that is just part of my role. I can recommend where I think we should allocate resources for AI development, but it is ultimately not my decision whether or not the resources are allocated. I don't solely do AI development, after all.
Fair enough, thanks for the clarification. :)
 
I want automated warfare to appear on PC. It's a fantastic thing for accessibility, and a good way for people to engage with the things they want to engage with. Will it happen? I would like to say: yes, but I cannot say when.
If you want it, why don't you put it at the very end of the task list with a low priority. You just make it sound like "yeah that's cool, but it's not going to happen, maybe if lucky" - It's not professional.
Put it on the to-do list, and at least I'll have some hope. Thank you.
 
I want automated warfare to appear on PC. It's a fantastic thing for accessibility, and a good way for people to engage with the things they want to engage with. Will it happen? I would like to say: yes, but I cannot say when.
Please add "automated warfare -PC" to the to-do list!
Or somewhere to get it noticed, and sooner or later, to get it done.
Thanks.