We are a small team building something quite robust, so progress at times can be slow or unapparent. Creating a game that keeps users challenged requires lots of small nuances, so we spend a lot of time implementing these features that players don't necessarily notice right away. Physics are very hard to perfect in games and require more than just code - a full set of well made animations, particle effects and sound effect the way even the most simple actions look.
We have been introduced to a handful of the major brands through our athletes and are discussing with them what it would take to have their gear in the game. Keep in mind that some of these brands are part of massive companies and can't always make decisions easily or quickly. One of the pillars of the game is to be able to express yourself on the mountain, and so having real brands is very important to us.
We are more interested in working with our athletes on the design of the game, rather than having them in the game. Though the development team are all skiers and snowboarders, our knowledge of the sport is still limited. Therefore, Tom, Tanner and Russ have more value ensuring that our design decisions retain the authentic feeling we're aiming for. On top of that, we will work with our athletes to create features designed by them. Riding style requires huge sets of animations, so unless we end up doing motion capture, this would be a very tricky feature to offer.
We hope to have something to show the community soon, and then something for you guys to get your hands on and test shortly after.
