New Features

AR Tracking

In the latest version of My Buddy, several new features have been implemented, including an unlock system of new food items via augmented reality. This system uses fiducial marker tracking to detect if specific patterns are present, with these specific patterns being unlock keys for several different new food items! Get 'em while food is free; in the next update, currency (paying for your pet's food) should be implemented!

If you want these patterns, the files are available publicly on the GitHub Page. Feel free to download them and scan them in from your phone!

Evolutions

Finally, there are some new characters that we can welcome to our lineup! This update introduces two new evolutions from the base character, our favorite blue blob. These characters can be attained after you raise your Buddy for one day, a year in their time, and will be picked depending on how well you cared for your Buddy!

Our first character is a little lightbulb who's just looking to brighten someone's day. You've gotta take really good care of your Buddy if you want to get a chance to get to raise this character!

Uh oh...if you neglect your first buddy, you could end up with this mischevious character! They smile when they tell you no, and overall seem to always be causing drama and sulking around. That is, except when they can get a bite to eat, or if they're feeling particularly affectionate with you. It's not just a phase, mom!

Going Outside

It's now easier than ever for your buddy to leave the house! Have you ever sat there, thinking to yourself: does this thing just jump out the window when I hit the outdoors button? I liked the thought of that at first, admittedly; but your buddies deserve better than that.

From now on, your buddy will go outside via the front door, which opens conveniently to show the time of day outside when your mouse hovers over the door. Neat, huh?

Expect some holiday cheer!

A new feature of this update is objects that are drawn into your buddy's room during certain periods of time! Right now, the amound of these may be rather minimal, but have no fear; there will be many more drawn and written in for future updates. Not to spoil anything, but we'll give you a little taste of what's to come...

Bug Fixes & Code Improvement

This update includes a lot of bug fixes, including issues with sounds playing at the wrong times, incorrect incrementing of certain variables, shortening of some obnoxiously long animations such as eating, and other general fixes.

A lot of the code from the original version of this project has, by this point, been refactored into much more clean and compact code. We still have a long way to go, but things are looking a lot more tidy on our end!

For the Future...

We have a lot of exciting things planned for the future, including more characters, mini games, implementation of a currency system, and a shopping system that will allow us to add many more items, whether they're food items, accessories/clothing (also for a future update), or toys that will influence the way your buddy grows up. The possibilities are endless, and we're excited to keep implementing new features!

Thanks for reading! We hope you enjoy playing with your buddy! :)