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Wall Moldings Exclusive Preview + Christine Is Leaving the Team :'(
🕑 Added 2021-07-16 17:40:35 +0000 UTCTeam Update: Christine is leaving the team 😢
Hi everyone, Christine here.
I have a very bittersweet message to share with you today. Next week will be my last working for Paralives as communications director.
There is a project of mine that I have cherished for quite some time now and I have decided to give myself the chance to explore it.
I am very sad to leave this team, project and community that I love so much. I have seen firsthand Paralives blossom and I could not be prouder of where it is at today. I have also met a talented, passionate team that is capable of doing amazing things and that will continue to do so. Rest assured that my departure in no way affects the development of the game.
On a more personal note, I want to thank you, patrons, for making the development of this game a reality and for your support throughout my time here. Please know that your impact is significant and that it never goes unnoticed. It was an absolute pleasure for me to get to know you, help you and take note of your ideas. While I will not be in charge of the community anymore, I will always stay a part of it. I remain very close with the team and will continue to support them and follow the development here, on Patreon.
My experience here has been amazing thanks to this wonderful team and all of you. I will always have fond memories of it.
Hugs,
Christine
🔨 Exclusive look at wall moldings in Paralives (For Patrons only! Please don’t share)
Hello everybody! Jérémie here, and this week we’re going on about one of the latest features we’ve added to Paralive’s Build Mode: the ability to add moldings to your walls. These pieces of decorative architecture will allow you to customize your interior and exterior walls even more and they look quite spiffy so far! Everything in this post is pretty much a work-in-progress even if they look quite functional because, you see, we have only worked for about two days on the moldings so far. We had moldings in some previous videos that we shared but the system was simple so we are working on more robust and flexible features for moldings.
Some interior and exterior moldings in real life.
Sometimes when we have features that we want to jumpstart and get working in a basic state quickly, what we’ll do is treat it as a Game Jam. Usually, these events are ones where people will try to make a game really fast - oftentimes a few days - and will stay up late and devote all their time to the game, but what we did is a lighter version where we’ll spend one day focusing on one feature and work as a team to bring a version out quickly. We do not develop all features like this, but it’s fun to do from time to time!
We first spent one good day on the design of our molding system. While it might be tempting to jump into programming immediately sometimes, we had to be sure of the tasks we would need to complete to get a minimally functional molding system. We thought about what moldings were, we studied pictures of moldings online, we took a look at the #build-tools channel on Discord, we even went to Google Street View and inspected the various external moldings of buildings around. When we had enough data, we started designing what would be needed in the code to store the molding information and to create their 3D models to dynamically fit with the walls. This is a bit of a challenge because it needs to work on curved walls and the corner junctions of the molding need to adapt to any corner angles, not just 45 or 90 degrees angles.
A sneak peek at the intro of our design document : )
We distributed the tasks and waited another day before we actually started working on implementing the molding system. Everybody knew what they had to do, so it started very quickly with crude UIs and debug-purpose 3D models, but through that day we built a basic molding UI, created the concept of moldings in-game, wrote part of the algorithm to generate them and place them, made the molding 3D models and parameters mod-able, added support for moldings at the top/bottom of a wall and on both sides, and more. The process went fairly well, and as you can see below we started with weird shapes but progressively got closer to actual molding models.
Three steps in our molding development progress, there were many more!
At the moment, this is what our moldings look like. Not too bad for two days of work!
These really give a plain old wall some well-deserved decoration. Some moldings can be applied on top of a half wall.
All of that being said, we’re not done with the molding system. There are plenty more things to implement before we can consider the system “completed”. Things like being able to undo/redo the placement of moldings, how split levels interact with moldings, moldings on curved walls, creating a beautiful UI and all of that. We’ll give you all more insight into how you can customize your buildings in the future and we’re happy that the molding system will be part of that.
Have a great weekend! Keep on molding!
Jérémie
Comments
Dustin AB
I really like the idea of the moldings, but what disturbs me here is the fact of not seeing small details in the places that are supposed to be hidden (the top of the walls and the moldings, inside the walls) to give the impression that the building has electrical circuits. here is my little suggestion :)
TortiTab
it be great to have a range of ages, so that the world doesn't get populated by old people and suddenly all die off around the same time. And single people! if everyone is married it will be hard to find a partner
Madam_Hyjinks
Awesome! I wonder if you'll have a way to add texture to walls as well? I've seen you use the color wheel, but I'm curious what plans you have for actual texture, whether that will be a part of each wallpaper or paint, or if you'd be able to apply wood, stone, marble, tile, stucco, etc to any object, floor or wall, in part or in whole? Sims 3 obviously did this in their Create-a-Style feature, but I'm thinking of backsplashes in particular, in which we could apply tiles onto only a certain segment of the wall right above the kitchen counters. I'm hoping to specify which segments I want to put tile on in the middle of an otherwise painted wall.
kayla
yesss molding should be an independent addition! the two days of work looks amazing, so excited!
Becky
Will miss you lovely 🥺 but it’s been an amazing journey and I wish you all the best in future and to hope to still see you around as we all Support the game! Much love 🥰🙏🏻🎉❤️
Linzinha
You're really making all my dreams come true (the molding not Christine leaving, I hope we get to hear about your project!)
Constance Keller
Perfect! I'm super excited to see everything happening with paralives. Can hardly wait to play when it's released. I assume I will need to take a week vacation so I can spend all of my time on building on paralives. Thank goodness I'm the boss. Lol 😆🤣
Jeffrey Sun
I love this idea! It really makes designing the home realistic.
Blandina
Wow, You guys did a pretty decent job to implement moldings to walls in such a short time. I always find it frustrating when they're attached to a certain wallpaper etc. And here you are separating the whole thing. /Fantastic! I'm very happy to see this feature. It's an awesome Idea! Especially for the outside of a building. Like some old houses have them decorated with ornaments. Perhaps something simular could be possible as decoration around windows on the outside wall as well.
Helioblau
The idea of the molding being independent from the wallpapers is awesome! I'm especially looking forward to experimenting with molding on the exterior, that should be loads of fun!
Laura Cardea
I love this SO much! It would be amazing to have a room with a feature wall that really ties in with the other walls thanks to continuous molding. And in generel, to be able to use wallpapers with any molding, instead of having fixed moldings on some wallpapers. The possibilities of customisation are simply astonishing. <3
Maiden Minnesota
Can't see the final photo, and had to manually load the rest (right click on box in upper left corner, click on 'load image').
hjs_wells
Love the moldings and I'm excited to see more and more development of Paralives! I know it's a bit late but wanted to say thank you to both Christine and Camille for being a part of the Paralives team and for the work they've done to help it to fruition! I wish you both success in all that you do and I'm glad that I have a postcard with both of your names on it so :)
chameleonwren
wishing Christine all the best in future endeavours! we'll never forget you! :D as for the mouldings... that's VERY impressive for only a few days of work! :o it's all coming together so nicely
Estelle
This is soooo good!!! I love love love this detail to the game, I love building and this is going to make the game feel more unique and realistic. Also, I wish Christine all the best and thank you for contributing to this project.
Callum Brunt
I hope Christine enjoys whatever project she is leaving to do. And i hope she has a wonderful time making it. Also, im curious, will wall thickness be a thing we can change? Like to have thicker walls. Or is that a no go?
sofia lol
Thank you for everything, Christine! I wish you all the best in your endeavours <3
Joseph Michael Hebert
Christine, thank you for your contributions to this project and I wish you all the best in the future!
Kanchaross J.
Thank you for everything you've done for the community, Christine. So sad to see you go, but wish you all the best. For the molding, I'm so excited. It'll really help complete the building.
Kymberlee86
I'm sad to see Christine go but I hope whatever is she working on is successful. 💚 On the topic of wall moldings, that's not even something I thought about but I like it!
kesionna
We love and support you Christine, though we are sad you're leaving. The game is coming along fantastic.
Zeevryn
Very cool! I love it! And Christine, we’re sad to see you go, but wish you luck in your project!
ladyteruki
Goodbye Christine. This feels a bit sudden, but I'm glad you can do something you believe in. Your dedication and patience will be missed, though I'm sure the next person in charge of Communications will show these same qualities it won't be the same without you.
Anna Wendel
Excited about the moldings, they look great! I’m really sad to see Christine go. Thank you for all the time and love you put on this project! I wish you all the best and all the luck with your future endeavors ❤️ You will be missed!
Fran Smith
Hehe, my house too is an old Queenslander. Mine is small, but it has lovely ornate ceiling friezes around the ceiling lights. They are lovely houses, and quite unique. I'd love to be able to make them too, but there are never enough or appropriate ornamentation in games to make them. Plus Queenslanders often have colour variations in greens and maroons etc that highlight them from walls, which aren't possible in games. I'd love to see Paralives have this type of ornamentation, and I'm sure that other people would enjoy having them in the pool of tools and variations too. :-)
KendraDior
Moldings are nice but I’d take a wall cutout tool or something of the sort than this. I am dying for the ability to cut out sections of walls for kitchen/dining rooms, living room/ dining room, etc.
Sabine B
hello fellow aussie! i live in an old queenslander and would love to be able to recreate my house in game. i've never been able get it right in the sims :')
Nowanuno
I love that there will be moldings implemented. I feel that trim or baseboards really help finish a room, and to see that in game is fantastic.
Diamond Nicole
Not Christine 😭😭 I hope she continues to flourish in whatever she ventures off to!! We love and support you! ❤❤ hope you are doing alright Alex!! ❤
ramaru
Such a simple but often overlooked detail that adds interest to an otherwise basic wall. I hope to see more of these types of architectural flourishes (such as vaulted ceilings with exposed framework and recessed windows*also seen in earlier videos) I wish Christine well in her future endeavors as well (:
Hannah Varnell
Best wishes to Christine and her new adventures!!
Adina
All the best, Christine! <3
Fran Smith
I'm sure you've researched moldings very, very well but I thought I'd suggest some moldings from Australia (who would have thought Australia had interesting moldings?). Queensland has houses called "Queenslanders", where moldings are a very important part of the house design traditionally. Queenslanders are houses that are traditionally on stumps (to keep the house cool in harsh Australian summers) and with wrap-around verandahs (also to keep the house cool and the sun out in harsh Australian summers). People used to sit on those verandahs when it was too hot inside - whichever side of the house there was a breeze. Although there is considerable variation, when we think of Queenslanders, we think of moldings. If you Google "traditional old Queenslander houses" (images), you'll get masses of pictures of Queenslander houses with moldings that you may not find elsewhere. Moldings were/are a feature on both the inside and the outside of these houses, so if you Google "Queenslander house moldings" you'll also get pictures of the elaborate moldings on walls (top, bottom and middle) and ceilings and in doorways, in halls, and around fixtures. Most of them are wooden, but some of them are iron, too. You might probably find other ideas beyond those of moldings. Thanks for making a great game!!
Christina Ozeki
Good luck Christine! Also the moldings look nice too :)
Togepi01
I wish you the best in your project Christine! 💪🏻
Bogusława Zajączkowska
Christine. I'm very sad and happy you leave. Sad because you was our light in this chaos of comments, happy because you wanna grow on you own terms. Believe. That's brave. All the best for you ♥
Bogusława Zajączkowska
Question. Para have to clean them or not? 😂
Stermatical
It’s sad to see yet another member to leave the team. 😢 Christine did an amazing job on conducting Brainstorming sessions and gathering info on what players want to see in the game. I wish her well and good luck on all the future projects! 👋😃
Calista
GOOD LUCK CHRISTINE, WELL DONE FOR YOUR HARD WORK <3
Talking Limbo
Thanks for all you've done, Christine!! It's great work! Guys, i'm so exited! I already love this project, wish you luck, health and more awesome ideas, best wishes from Russia <3
Elizabeth Gonzales
Understood! Honestly, I'm happy with just being able to change the color and texture! Thank you for your response. 😊
Melissa Toothman
Thanks for all you've done, Christine! ---------- FINALLY, a game where we can customize wall and floor trim and mix/match with any wall pattern... and the trim will have dimension and not be flat!
Tini
Thank you Christine for your hard work and love, I hope only the best for your future ❤️
Alex Massé
Hi Michael, thank you for your concerns! Everything is going well with the team and the development of the game and there's nothing to worry about. It's just a sad coincidence that two people left recently and there's no conflict or issue within the team. Please read Christine's reply to Sean and Auntyleti in the comments above for more info. Thank you! :)
Michael
This is the 3rd major player to leave game development, I am starting to get worried. What's really going on? Every week its someone new leaving.
Gill Reid
Bye Christine, thank you for all your hard work and good luck for the future 🥰
Ella Pilchik
you can do all that in 2 days? man im excited
Christine
Hi! This message is quite similar to my reply above, sorry about that, but I just want to clarify things for myself. I made a difficult decision to leave because there was a project that was always of interest to me and now, with a lot of things starting up again, the perfect opportunity presented itself. I gave two weeks to Alex and we decided together to announce it today. He'll be looking for someone to replace me as community manager but this is a process that can take some time. My departure does not affect the development of the game as I was in charge of community and marketing-related tasks. It was an unfortunate coincidence that my departure was announced within a week of Camille but these two events are not connected at all and everything's going well with development and organization of tasks. As with any workplace, sometimes people leave to pursue other challenges they set for themselves and I am really grateful to the team for their understanding and will remain in very good terms with them. Hope I was able to clarify some things! Cheers! :)
Akasha O'Connell
Merci beaucoup Christine! Bonne chance! Nous t'aimons!
Julio Saliba
Good luck Christine, thank you for everything! ❤️🥰
Alex Massé
Thank you! Not planned for now but it could be cool to have that feature eventually!
Maxayn Henderson
Love the moldings....but gave me a thought....is it possible to have paras open windows?
Maxayn Henderson
Good luck and you will be missed Christine!!!
Christine
Hi Sean! Thank you for your kind words <3 I just wanted to clarify for myself, I absolutely loved my job here at Paralives and my workload was perfect. At the end of the day, I made a difficult decision to leave because there was a project that was always of interest to me and now, with a lot of things starting up again, the perfect opportunity presented itself. I gave two weeks to Alex and we decided together to announce it today. He'll be looking for someone to replace me as community manager but this is a process that can take some time. It was an unfortunate coincidence that my departure was announced within a week of Camille but these two events are not connected at all and everything's going well with development and organization of tasks. Hope I was able to clarify some things! :) Take care!
xPami
Thank you Christine for everything 🥰 best of luck!
Auntyleti
I love this project, but it really is concerning that two people left in two weeks, with no newcomers either. I would love to know, if not why, at least how it will afect the team and the project.
Sean McDorman
Hi team! First of all, thank you so much Christine for your clear communication when interfacing with patrons and detailed, organized summaries. You set the bar and I want your team members to continue that level of discourse. I have to say, though: I scrolled down here to type out this comment without even finishing the rest of the post, because this is the second employee departure in two weeks (3 total for the project in 3 years - doesn’t seem unreasonable, but also you’re a small team) and I wanted to get a clearer understanding of why. Is it just that the workload didn’t justify having two people solely dedicated to team organization and communication? Were Christine and Camille hurting for work to do at the end of the day? Is it maybe that the people doing the important foundational work on the game systems are so good at self-organizing that you felt the patrons’ money would go farther if you replaced them with more programmers/artists/animators? I’d really appreciate clear communication here. Thanks team! Edit: I didn’t read far enough to see that Christine seems to be leaving to pursue a passion project, so thanks for sharing that - I think the rest of my questions are still relevant.
Alex Massé
That would be really cool! There's a lot of technical challenges that would come with that feature so it's not planned for now but maybe in the future
Alex Massé
For now, you can change the texture and color of ceilings but it's not currently planned to be able to add extra geometry patterns to a ceiling since it's really complicated
Alex Massé
It was not a 1 year contract, Christine is leaving to go work on another project that is important to her. It was not an easy decision since she really liked Paralives and the community
ZombieZmaj (Jenni)
Best of luck, Christine!! And love the moldings... they're going to be the perfect finishing touches to walls!
Sarah
We'll miss you, Christine!! Best of luck! <3 As for the game, I love being able to jazz up a space with some moldings!!
S&M Gonzalez
Same! I’d love to see different ceiling moldings and gothic style molding too hopefully
SmirkyBoot
Firstly, I love the moldings. I was hoping it would be a thing because it gives extra depth to just plain walls. And secondly, we have loved having you around Christine. We cherished what you brought to Paralives so much and we all wish you the very best of luck on your project and to whatever the future holds for you <3
S&M Gonzalez
Love that the moldings are gonna be 3D and separated from walls, I can’t wait to see what more molding designs come about from you guys!
S&M Gonzalez
Sad to see you go Christine :( I wish you all the best for the future 🙏🏼
Christine
Thank you so much everyone for your heartwarming messages ❤️
Bleeb90
Good luck Christine! Also these wall moldings make me so very happy! Will they be accompanied by ceiling moldings?
Harlequin Herveaux
I wish you the best of luck with your new project Christine! 🧡
Personforsure
Best wishes to you Christine! I love how the mouldings look in game. Paralives is looking to be a builders paradise! Thank you so much!
Virginie M.
Good luck Christine!! Thanks for your hard work and kindness!
Draconicrose
Sad to see Christine go but I wish her all the luck on her new project! The mouldings are looking pretty good! I've got to admit I didn't even think about them until now.
LightDeficient
Best of luck to you Christine!!!❤️🙏 Also the moldings look amazing and it’s a nice detail to have in build-mode😍
Elizabeth Gonzales
I'm sorry to see you go Christine. I wish you luck on your project! This is awesome. Are you guys going to make it possible to customize ceilings, too?
BekkiRoss
Love that moldings are separate to wall paint 🤩 Looks very good so far! 😁 Sad to see Christie leave, but wish her the best for her personal project! 😊
Tearionia Miller
I think their 1 year contract ended around the same time
sm duta
You guys are planning to implement moldings? This is, I must admit, better than expected 🤩. That example looks good, too. Have a great weekend!
Alex Massé
Yes!
Cali Ann Y.
Thank you Christine! As sad as it is to see some team members adventure elsewhere, this gives us a chance to meet new developers in the future :) very excited
Alex Massé
It's a sad coincidence that two people are leaving within two weeks but everything's going well and we will be recruiting more people
sm duta
Christine, I wish you the best of luck with your new project, you will be great! Keep on molding! ❤️
Henrique S. Cunha
we'll miss you, Christine! good luck on your new journey! ❤️
Kiya Averhart
Good luck💜💜💜
Alfie
sad to see you go, christine, but thank you for all you’ve done and good luck on the new adventure!!! now, these wall mouldings holy CRAP IM EXCITED.
Nick Rowan
Thank you for your work with Paralives Christine! Wish you the best on future endeavors. ❤️
wicked maestro
Please, please, please minimal mouldings! Simple rectangular profiles. Maybe even ones that are flush with the wall? With shadow gaps 🥺
Mikeela Chandler
Good luck Christine wishing you the best! 💖
Sophie Goodman-Merel
Sad to see such a talent and kindness go! I am so impressed by the idea of moldings separate from wall paints! Really allows more variety without an overflowing build mode
Sofia
Why is everyone one leaving?
1luckydandelion
Thank you Christine! ❤️❤️❤️
Zo
All the love and happiness for you Christine! I hope your project will fulfill your desires and dreams!
Lily Tindel
o7 Christine! We will miss you ♥️
Lauren
Good luck Christine! ❤️
chanel moon
we’re going to miss you christine ),:
