Is this intended or a bug? (animal skin patterns)

[Slaskia]

I've noticed that the only way for skin patterns to show up on the animals is to not only have a skin pattern color trait (which is logical), but a bioluminescence trait (which is only logical if you want the pattern to be glowly). I'll see if I get some proper screenshots to show what I mean....

Edit: ok, here we go. This guy I just made has everything but bioluminescense, but the skin pattern color is not showing.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240304523

This one is one I did add a bioluminescence trait (#1), but you can only barely make it out (especially during daytime)...but at least it shows?
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240304972

So to reiterate: is it intended to need the bioluminescence trait for the skin pattern color to show?

[wyldfae28]

Most of my animals don't even have a skin pattern color. They just have level 1 biolume which shows up as white. When I do use a skin pattern color, it has to contrast sufficiently with the B color (the one on the back of the animal) to really make a difference. If you want something without a lot of contrast to show up, raising the biolume seems to be the only way to do it.

I rarely use higher than level 1 because I don't really want garishly bright mammals like some of the butterflies. (which are cool, but small) It's a personal preference thing. Below are some of my mammals to illustrate. All of them have biolume 1, except the one with the really delicate pattern. I had to raise it a bit (3 I think) to make it stand out more. Only the teal and black Nyx has a pattern color. I do the same with the others. Biolume is necessary if you want to see them at night as well, obviously.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240323146

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3232169387

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240322884

[Broockle]

I'm 35 hours into the game and still nowhere near having animals 😆
Dun think I'm getting there.

[wyldfae28]

Originally posted by Broockle:

I'm 35 hours into the game and still nowhere near having animals 😆
Dun think I'm getting there.

Why not? I'm like nearly 700 hours in. Lol. Mostly cause I was really early access. But if you only need 5.00 TTi to win, that seems like not a lot. But I suppose that's because I'm at 1.66 PTi now and trying to slow things down. Can't seem to slow the oxygen, but I've stopped everything else but biomass.

Point is, take your time and enjoy the game. You'll get there. The different stages are fun in different ways. As long as you have a nice number of heaters and drills going, set off about 40 rockets each over time, and a healthy amount of top tier tree and flower spreaders, it will happen. When you access insects, fish and frogs, put a bunch of them around. Planet develops itself after a while. Good luck!

[Jeronimosss]

Hi Slaskia,
as far as I know biolume only works on skin patterns, but skin patterns should be visible without biolume. Admittedly, all my animals either have both or none - I'll try your case during my next gaming session.

[prtmh]

Originally posted by wyldfae28:

Originally posted by Broockle:

I'm 35 hours into the game and still nowhere near having animals 😆
Dun think I'm getting there.

Why not? I'm like nearly 700 hours in. Lol. Mostly cause I was really early access. But if you only need 5.00 TTi to win, that seems like not a lot. But I suppose that's because I'm at 1.66 PTi now and trying to slow things down. Can't seem to slow the oxygen, but I've stopped everything else but biomass.

Point is, take your time and enjoy the game. You'll get there. The different stages are fun in different ways. As long as you have a nice number of heaters and drills going, set off about 40 rockets each over time, and a healthy amount of top tier tree and flower spreaders, it will happen. When you access insects, fish and frogs, put a bunch of them around. Planet develops itself after a while. Good luck!

Yes, been around for awhile myself , worked the same save since the prologue, (with some splitoff saves to try different things). Sometimes it seems slow so I just experiment to see whats possible. Fae's right , just sit back and enjoy , its your world after all. And by the way wyldfae, my biomass and oxy are the only things still moving up. I guess removing all the noisy ugly machines must have stopped the rocket multipliers. Can't do much to stop oxy at this point so no campfires by the lake for me .

[Slaskia]

Originally posted by Jeronimosss:

Hi Slaskia,
as far as I know biolume only works on skin patterns, but skin patterns should be visible without biolume. Admittedly, all my animals either have both or none - I'll try your case during my next gaming session.

Two animals I made without the biolum grew up and I noticed the pattern on them now...it's just VERY hard to see due to the colors I chose. I'll have to test this more with something more contrasting....

Edit: I'm starting to think it may be a bug specifically with Species 2. Just remade one with species one with purple/purple and white pattern color with no biolum and the pattern shows up fine. Meanwhile...a white/yellow Species 2 with red pattern color and no biolum isn't showing the pattern....

[Slaskia]

Screenshot time of my findings:
As mentioned in my last post (editted in), I made this guy and the pattern shows up fine:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240546130

I think put him through the shredder so I could change his species to #2...and lo' and behold the pattern still shows.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240546251

So, my conclusion so far is that it may be an issue with dark pattern colors over light body colors, such as with this guy:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240546050

You'd think red would show up very well over yellow....maybe I should remake this one again with brown pattern color and see what happens....

[wyldfae28]

I have found that light patterns show up easier on dark colors than dark patterns on light colors, even if you use biolume. This is why all my critters tend to have a reasonably dark upper body and a light or dark lower body. I've made lots of blacks, browns, russet, (red brown) critters and put either just biolume 1 or a lighter color pattern plus biolume 1 on them. I tend to like more natural colors (but not a fan of yellow) :) I do have one black octosphyra with purple markings. I did try to put dark brown markings on what was a pale cream colored Capra, (deer) and like yours, it didn't show up. Didn't make sense to me either. But without the biolume, it just doesn't pop.

[Slaskia]

Originally posted by wyldfae28:

I have found that light patterns show up easier on dark colors than dark patterns on light colors, even if you use biolume. This is why all my critters tend to have a reasonably dark upper body and a light or dark lower body. I've made lots of blacks, browns, russet, (red brown) critters and put either just biolume 1 or a lighter color pattern plus biolume 1 on them. I tend to like more natural colors (but not a fan of yellow) :) I do have one purple octosphyra with white markings. But I don't think I used a color pattern with it, just biolume. I did try to put dark brown markings on what was a pale cream colored Capra, (deer) and like yours, it didn't show up. Didn't make sense to me either. But without the biolume, it just doesn't pop.

Hmm...then this sounds like an issue of how the colors are layered over each other and what blending mode is used for the pattern color. I do digital artwork sometimes, so I'm a little familiar with how they work. I'm not sure if the process is similar in game textures as it is in art programs like Krita/Photoshop, but it seems like the pattern color is set to a blend mode similar to 'screen'.

In an attempt to explain: picture a black and white image on one layer, with a colored layer below, when the black and white layer is set to the blending mode 'screen', the black part of that layer essentially disappears (the colored image below shows through in it's place) while the white part remains. For obvious reasons, darker colors simply do not work, they just disappear (or might be very very faint). The same happens with the blending mode 'multiply', but with the inverse: light colors disappear, while the darker ones remain.

[Broockle]

Originally posted by wyldfae28:

Point is, take your time and enjoy the game. You'll get there. The different stages are fun in different ways. As long as you have a nice number of heaters and drills going, set off about 40 rockets each over time, and a healthy amount of top tier tree and flower spreaders, it will happen. When you access insects, fish and frogs, put a bunch of them around. Planet develops itself after a while. Good luck!

ye rockets are good advice. Only used one of each until today.
Didn't know the buffs stack, also wasn't sure if they're even permanent.

[Jeronimosss]

So I got pretty much the same results as you did. It seems that both pattern colour and species affect the intensity of the pattern, e.g:

You can see the red pattern on species 1, but can hardly see it on species 2:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240613966
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240614027

You can hardly see blue pattern on species 1, but cannot see it at all on species 2:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240612564
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3240612659

Dark grey pattern is not visible on any of them.

I agree that it seems like wrong behaviour. I can understand dark not visible on dark or light on light, but here those are such distinct colours (at least if we believe the colour preview on the trait). One might say skin patterns are only intended to give 100% intensity with biolume, but this is not confirmed by the game's Wiki.
Maybe you could report it on Discord? I'm not sure it will be fixed though :)

[Slaskia]

Doesn't look like they have a discord? At least there isn't one noted on Steam. There's mention of Reddit and Twitter, but I don't have accounts with either of those.

Edit: ah, nevermind, I found it.

[wyldfae28]

Originally posted by Jeronimosss:

So I got pretty much the same results as you did. It seems that both pattern colour and species affect the intensity of the pattern,

I agree that it seems like wrong behaviour. I can understand dark not visible on dark or light on light, but here those are such distinct colours (at least if we believe the colour preview on the trait). One might say skin patterns are only intended to give 100% intensity with biolume, but this is not confirmed by the game's Wiki.
Maybe you could report it on Discord? I'm not sure it will be fixed though :)

It does seem like something is amiss, you're right. I still put level one biolume on all my animals because why not? It doesn't make them look odd in daylight and they stand out nicely at night. But it probably shouldn't be necessary. Here are two of my octosphyra, the all gray one's purple markings stand out fine. The other only has biolume, no pattern color. But it is weird that darker patterns don't stand out on light colors. Your digital artwork explanation was interesting. I do like using just the biolume a lot though. It makes the more delicate patterns much more visible.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3241133108

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3241133225

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3241133533

[Slaskia]

I did report it on the discord bug channel, so hopefully it will be addressed. Along with in game screenshot examples, I provided a visual aid of what I meant by blending modes. (hopefully this link works)

https://www.deviantart.com/stash/02e0jsiygurx

[Jeronimosss]

Originally posted by Slaskia:

I did report it on the discord bug channel, so hopefully it will be addressed. Along with in game screenshot examples, I provided a visual aid of what I meant by blending modes. (hopefully this link works)

https://www.deviantart.com/stash/02e0jsiygurx

You're a better person - I usually end up not reporting anything >_<