I’ve made a lot of progress on the detection algorithms, but still couldn’t get them as good as I wanted. Fortunately, I’m working on the last issue and expect to have a beta version on Steam in early June. The delay is primarily due to cancer treatments, especially Chemo that knocks me out for a week.
What is coming in version 0.9?
Better gameplay. I felt some of the older game modes were not necessarily fun or did not look good, so removed them, even if they otherwise worked. But they are coming back soon. Meanwhile the remaining game modes work, play, and look better.
The included game modes for version 0.9 will be
- Crow Harvest. Improved graphics, with a brighter better looking background.
- GSAC 21. (Short for Georgia Semi-auto pistol qualifcation course, used for police). Improved detection.
- Shoot No Shoot: Brighter screen. Improved detection.
Calibration is roughly four times as complex as before, but will work for more users as a result. I can now also display graphics at full quality, without darkening or desaturating the screen. The new algorithm has a different philosophy to hit detection. I now measure every value I can, rather than take the easy route and try to pick a number that works for my computer. I use a strategy of high precision noise exclusion rather than laser inclusion.
Previously, I tried to support every possible Webcam. But after weeks of trying I realized I will never defeat image adjustments as long as I also support animation. Auto-exposure and auto white balance changes how bright the screen is in unpredictable ways. Even the same region of the screen can have dramatically different levels of brightness as objects move across the screen. So now I require a camera that supports turning off auto-exposure, but the Logitech Brio 301 can do this and is affordable. Especially compared to the competition. The game will warn you if you do not have such a camera.
Mobile support is coming back soon. Thanks to the Camera APIs provided by Googel and Apple it is possible to natively turn off auto-exposure on most modern devices. This is a good thing, as otherwise it would be impossible to get Interactive Gun Range to work well on these platforms. I hired a senior programmer who has worked on a similar problem before to help with this, and expect his work to be done within a month.
Still Free For A Limited Time
As mentioned earlier, the new version is still free as it is officially version 0.9 rather than 1.0. Version 1.0 will be released once there is a sufficient user base I am confident the game works for a large audience, and not just me and a few testers. Once 1.0 is released I expect to begin charging, although price and pricing method is still to be determined.
