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Horse Racing Manager is being developed by Sheep Meadow Road Games and will be released on steam sometime this year.
Build your legacy in the horse racing world. Breed the next champion, making key decisions on training the horse and choosing its diet. Every choice counts, and every race tells a story. Create your own rags-to-riches journey, from being a stablehand to owning the greatest racing stable in the game.
Some of the features you can expect to see in Horse Racing Manager are listed below, as seen in their developer’s log.
Auctions
In our last devlog, we mentioned developing the auction system. While the system is still in it's early stages, the visuals for the auction houses came from the artist, and they look stunning. We wanted different tiers of auctions, so as the player progresses, they can access more expensive auction houses. The visuals represent this progression, and the final result is pretty cool.
Example of the different auction houses.
Financials
We also worked on the financials page, mainly line charts. The charts are custom-built since ready-made solutions didn’t work. We plan to add bar graphs for more informative visuals and to make data "glanceable" in the game. The charts still have bugs, like negative numbers performing oddly (lines going out of bounds).
Currently, the financial page is simple and a bit barren. For now, it serves its purpose of giving the player a picture of the stable's current financials. We plan to improve this page later but believe our time is better spent elsewhere for now.
The financial overview.
You can make a deep-dive into the income and costs.
The assets and liabilities, the option to take loans are now in the game.
Staff Roles
Staff roles have been refined to offer a more immersive management experience. Here's a brief overview:
Manager:
Crucial for strategic decisions and overseeing operations. The idea is to make the Manager central to efficiency improvements.
Assistant Manager:
Supports daily tasks, enhancing the Manager's effectiveness.
Travelling Manager:
Handles competition logistics, reducing horses' travel fatigue.
Stud Manager:
Leads the breeding program, offering clearer insights into breeding outcomes.
Jockey:
Essential for racing, directly affecting track performance.
Head Trainer and Trainer:
Develop and execute training programs to enhance horse performance.
Veterinary and Nurse:
Provide medical care, ensuring horse health.
Farrier:
Specializes in hoof care and shoeing, critical for horse mobility.
Groomer:
Maintains the horses' appearance and hygiene.
Groundskeeper and Landscaper:
Keep the stable and track in pristine condition.
Scout:
Identifies potential new horses and assesses competition.
Inspecting the manager of a stable.
Negotiations
Negotiations for hiring and renewing staff contracts now involve more strategy, balancing considerations like salary, contract terms, and skills. All persons in-game have a salary acceptance threshold, and depending on the balance between the negotiator and the negotiatee, the salary acceptance level can either be lower or higher. This balance is also seen in the CPU hiring process, meaning that stables with managers possessing great negotiation skills will have an overall cheaper workforce, whereas managers who are poor at negotiating will have a more expensive workforce. One possible feature coming to the game is also allowing the player to own multiple stables. Then, the player could delegate the responsibilities of the stable to the hired manager, where it would be crucial to hire not only a competent manager but also an effective negotiator.
A successful negotiation.
CPU Hiring
The introduction of CPU hiring introduces a new dynamic, with NPCs making independent hiring decisions, adding a layer of realism and competition for securing skilled staff. This is the first time we've achieved a sense of the game world being "alive." The functionality still requires balancing, but the decisions made by the CPU are not completely "random." Instead, it attempts to hire personnel suitable for the stable's current status. Thus, the least successful stables won't attempt to hire the top jockeys, and so forth.
An overview of all the stables employees and the new and improved stable details page.
Horse Training
The initial version of horse training has been integrated into the game. Now, you can select staff for each horse individually and customize the training according to your preferences. The effectiveness of the training will be influenced by the staff's abilities, as well as other factors such as nutrition, care, training type, and the effort put in.
An overview of the horse training page.
Build your legacy in the horse racing world. Breed the next champion, making key decisions on training the horse and choosing its diet. Every choice counts, and every race tells a story. Create your own rags-to-riches journey, from being a stablehand to owning the greatest racing stable in the game.
Some of the features you can expect to see in Horse Racing Manager are listed below, as seen in their developer’s log.
Auctions
In our last devlog, we mentioned developing the auction system. While the system is still in it's early stages, the visuals for the auction houses came from the artist, and they look stunning. We wanted different tiers of auctions, so as the player progresses, they can access more expensive auction houses. The visuals represent this progression, and the final result is pretty cool.
Example of the different auction houses.
Financials
We also worked on the financials page, mainly line charts. The charts are custom-built since ready-made solutions didn’t work. We plan to add bar graphs for more informative visuals and to make data "glanceable" in the game. The charts still have bugs, like negative numbers performing oddly (lines going out of bounds).
Currently, the financial page is simple and a bit barren. For now, it serves its purpose of giving the player a picture of the stable's current financials. We plan to improve this page later but believe our time is better spent elsewhere for now.
The financial overview.
You can make a deep-dive into the income and costs.
The assets and liabilities, the option to take loans are now in the game.
Staff Roles
Staff roles have been refined to offer a more immersive management experience. Here's a brief overview:
Manager:
Crucial for strategic decisions and overseeing operations. The idea is to make the Manager central to efficiency improvements.
Assistant Manager:
Supports daily tasks, enhancing the Manager's effectiveness.
Travelling Manager:
Handles competition logistics, reducing horses' travel fatigue.
Stud Manager:
Leads the breeding program, offering clearer insights into breeding outcomes.
Jockey:
Essential for racing, directly affecting track performance.
Head Trainer and Trainer:
Develop and execute training programs to enhance horse performance.
Veterinary and Nurse:
Provide medical care, ensuring horse health.
Farrier:
Specializes in hoof care and shoeing, critical for horse mobility.
Groomer:
Maintains the horses' appearance and hygiene.
Groundskeeper and Landscaper:
Keep the stable and track in pristine condition.
Scout:
Identifies potential new horses and assesses competition.
Inspecting the manager of a stable.
Negotiations
Negotiations for hiring and renewing staff contracts now involve more strategy, balancing considerations like salary, contract terms, and skills. All persons in-game have a salary acceptance threshold, and depending on the balance between the negotiator and the negotiatee, the salary acceptance level can either be lower or higher. This balance is also seen in the CPU hiring process, meaning that stables with managers possessing great negotiation skills will have an overall cheaper workforce, whereas managers who are poor at negotiating will have a more expensive workforce. One possible feature coming to the game is also allowing the player to own multiple stables. Then, the player could delegate the responsibilities of the stable to the hired manager, where it would be crucial to hire not only a competent manager but also an effective negotiator.
A successful negotiation.
CPU Hiring
The introduction of CPU hiring introduces a new dynamic, with NPCs making independent hiring decisions, adding a layer of realism and competition for securing skilled staff. This is the first time we've achieved a sense of the game world being "alive." The functionality still requires balancing, but the decisions made by the CPU are not completely "random." Instead, it attempts to hire personnel suitable for the stable's current status. Thus, the least successful stables won't attempt to hire the top jockeys, and so forth.
An overview of all the stables employees and the new and improved stable details page.
Horse Training
The initial version of horse training has been integrated into the game. Now, you can select staff for each horse individually and customize the training according to your preferences. The effectiveness of the training will be influenced by the staff's abilities, as well as other factors such as nutrition, care, training type, and the effort put in.
An overview of the horse training page.