- (Medieval pun goes here) - 30 September 2025
Hear ye! Hear ye!A brand new track for the Take The Wheels! demo has just dropped, and just in time for the Melbourne International Games Week (MIGW) Steam event!"MedievalDay2" is a short, approx. 45 second track created for Pixel Expo 3 weeks ago, and as this track was the most popular of the weekend, I decided to feature it in the latest demo update! It also has the same Steam Leaderboard integration as all the other tracks, so go and set some blisteringly fast time! There are also a few other improvements to go along with this update (mostly improvements with performance for the particles and changes to the "ready up" state for the game) and more reliable viewing of the online leaderboards in the menu.Other than this update (and some new artwork) there has been some more "behind the scenes" work going on in the background (that isn't quite ready for reveal juuust yet) but there are m…
- Some nice features (and a performance boost) - 27 February 2025
Hello! It has been a while. I realised I never included an update log for updates 1.09 and 1.10 (and today 1.10.1) so here is what has changed with those updates! Update 1.09 Fixed seam in track This was caused by the shadow of the track, and so shadows have been disabled for certain parts of the track and should be less noticeable Lighting changes made to all tracks Lighting is now less harsh/bright to make the environment pop out more, but the track is still visible Changed hover effect Should have less of a performance hit now and is now simplified Added a new player model to the interior of the car The car is no longer being driven by a ghost Fixed leaderboards not updating when changing level Fixed the incorrect count for total leaderboard entries World best times now shown on the level select Removed old main menu theme from playing Added new speed indicator This indicator can be…
- Update 1.09 - 7 December 2024
Hello! Forgot to post this when it went live, but here are the patch notes for update 1.09! Fixed seam in track Lighting changes made to all tracks Changed hover effect Should have less of a performance hit now and is now simplified Added a new player model to the interior of the car Fixed leaderboards not updating when changing level Fixed the incorrect count for total leaderboard entries World best times now shown on the level select Removed old main menu theme from playing
- Now watch this drive - 26 October 2024
Hello all! Releasing a new update for the Take The Wheels! demo today! Featuring some new and improved replay functionality, as well as much more improved navigation of the UI with a controller! So you no longer need to rely on using your mouse to move through menus before you start racing! Check out the changes below! Updated foliage No longer has a full bright/unlit look anymore No longer has the hologram effect Toggle HUD option made more clear There is now a checkbox that also affects all HUD elements, including the checkpoint indicator Changed square/X to be used for boost Circle/B is now used for change camera R1 is still used for boost (this change is for people using the triggers to accelerate) Settings can be adjusted with the controller now (like graphics settings and stuff) Clicking back into the game now keeps the controller cursor input instead of losing it Added glow to th…
- Demo Update 1.07.1 - 6 October 2024
Hello! Small bug fix today that fixes playback of older replays crashing the game. Fixed a crash that was caused by thruster particle effects
- Groovin, Movin, and Zoomin - 5 October 2024
Demo update 1.07 is here! And with some great changes to vehicle handling, the music, track layouts and more, this is the update to play! Check out the detailed update changes below! • Added new main menu theme ○ There is now a 1 in 5 chance of the old theme playing • Adjusted hovercar movement • Changed respawning to start line to restart countdown from 1 second ○ Gives time to ready self again finger positioning wise on controller • New thruster visual effects ○ The old effects made it hard to tell which rocket was active sometimes. These ones are much more "glued" to the car model ○ They are also updated to show which effect is active on the car (e.g. thrust, off-road etc.) • New hover particle visual effects ○ Similar to above, but with the hovering particles • Changed directional arrow indicator to be above the car ○ When in front/bonnet camera, it changes to the front of the car •…
- A new track to master! - 28 August 2024
Hello all! Time for a change of pace, and what better way to do that than with an all new track! TrackDay03 is a fantastic short beginner track for familiarising yourself with the unique control scheme of Take The Wheels! and along with additional changes to the tutorial UI as well as other quality of life improvements, this latest update will help in making mastering Take The Wheels! a breeze! Check out the changes below: • Change so that when respawning from start it resets the time back to 0:00 ○ Decide if starts countdown from 1 or just immediately give control • Add in a new updated car model • Added a new track ○ TrackDay03 is a new short beginner friendly track set in a desert environment • Added sound effect for passing checkpoints ○ Also added unique sound effect for countdown/start • Fixed the DevTest track uploading times when it shouldn’t have been ○ As funny as it was seein…
- Demo Update 1.05.2 - 9 July 2024
Hello! Small (but important) bug fix today. • Fixed controller input not working correctly ○ Controls were inverted for the right joystick, and were very sensitive (for both joysticks) - This sensitivity (and invertedness) has been changed/adjusted accordingly - And the controls for the right joystick have been fixed. So now going forward actually pushes you forward on the right side of the car Other than that, I've been doing some quality of life changes that are likely to be released sometime shortly, so keep an eye out for that!
- Demo Update 1.05.1 - 5 July 2024
Hello! Small changes to the game UI today to make the timer as well as checkpoint and lap text more visible as well as a bug fix for the tutorial UI where it was possible to have it stuck on for the duration of a race. Other than that, Take The Wheels! has just been ported over to a newer version of the Unreal Engine, which is why the update is so massive today (sorry! I was informed of the bug just after the project had been ported). I've also been hard at work on a brand new short track that might be featured in an upcoming demo update! (a more beginner friendly track that should help people acclimatised to the unique control scheme that is featured in Take The Wheels!) So keep your eyes peeled! It has been great to see the attention that Take The Wheels! has been getting since update 1.05 dropped start of last week!
- Time for a new car, sounds and music! - 24 June 2024
Hello all! Big visibility, performance improvement and game related changes coming today. Brand new text, replay improvements, back-end changes and… NEW MODELS!!!! • Updated all the font in the game ○ Using a new font face for all text to better fit the setting of the game • Huge change to the back-end of the game ○ What this means for players is that there is now an option in the "Solo" menu that allows for changing between either a player or a spectator before a race starts § This may have something to do with the work in progress multiplayer • Performance improvements to replays ○ Replays currently still stutter in the first few seconds of player movement but are drastically improved in game speed changes ○ They also now more accurately project audio speed (whereas before they did not) • Replays now follow a new naming scheme ○ Replays are now named based on track and date/time • Ren…
- Demo update 1.04.1 - 22 March 2024
Hello! Just a very small update for today! - Fixed the pause menu to now actually pause the game - Changed the main menu background to be blue instead of red Again, very small update, but work is being done on the main game and hope to show more soon!
- Drifting is now king! - 1 March 2024
Hello! Today's update (Demo Update 1.04) features again, some further improved movement changes, with further reduced sideways friction to allow for smoother drifting as well as some new particles for the car, alongside some other quality of life improvements and bug fixes. See the changelogs below for the changes made! • Fixed bug when going from airborne to water it could set thrust force to zero ○ This bug also occurred when boosting while airborne and landing on water • Heavily adjusted movement again to make more drifty ○ You are now punished even less for racing with a more drifty style ○ This may have had the side effect of increasing the top speed of the car (due to changes made to make the car more drifty, so expect faster track times now!) • Added a new developer level to test the car in different environments, including a slalom, several jumps and a loop ○ The loop and ramps…
- Handles like a dream! - 9 February 2024
Today's update features a very noteworthy change in the handling of the car. With changes to airborne movement, water movement as well as general vehicle handing, you'll (hopefully!) find the car more rewarding to handle around sharp corners and long turns alike. Below is a more detailed list of what exactly has changed in this update (not just the handling changed with today's update) Hovercar Handling Adjusted hovercar handling to be far more forgiving when airborne You will lose much less speed when airborne and not in contact with any surface Adjusted hovercar handling to have less friction when sliding sideways This is to encourage more "drifty" turning around corners Adjustments made to on-water handling characteristics of the hovercar It is now less punishing if you go on the water now (slightly faster plus a small window of keeping original top speed) Physics Fixed an uncommon/r…
- Demo Update 1.02 - 5 January 2024
Hello! Small update for the Take The Wheels! demo today. Some minor changes made to the vehicle camera as well as control changes to the car to make it more sticky to the ground (less bouncy on landings) - Camera now has small amount of lag behind the car when in motion (and turning) - Changes made to the loading effect during the countdown - Countdown decreased from 5 seconds to 3 seconds - Changes made to car to make it more grounded and sticky. + It should feel less bouncy when landing from heights. More work is currently being done on some new tracks for the Early Access release of Take The Wheels! so keep an eye out!
- Now again in slow motion - 7 December 2023
Hello! It's been a while since the demo was launched back in September. Well, I have been working on this for a while now and can now happily say that replays have now been added to Take The Wheels! There have been a couple of other minor bug fixes and improvements that are listed below as well! New menu to allow you to watch replays of times you've set! By default, the game will record all track completions (from start of the countdown to the passing of the finish line) This can be disabled in the main menu Adjusted the leaderboards menu to allow you to see the top times as well as times near you. Adjustments made to the game HUD Fixed bug where it was possible to give yourself double the speed on a controller Menu visibility has been adjusted for dropdown menus New level loading effect added There is more content being planned for this demo, so do keep an eye out! Follow progress of t…
