Things have been a bit quiet on social media in terms of new graphics being posted for a while now. Behind the scenes, however, the work has never stopped.
We have upgraded our rink templates to include some more realistic ice and lighting effects. This is our most realistic ice texture yet! Take a look at the following snips from the new textures.
The ice texture itself still contains some skate cuts, but also includes horizontal streaks left by the Zamboni, and some water droplets showing how recently the ice was resurfaced. You will also notice light reflections. We tested many different lighting designs and kept them toned down enough that they would be noticeable, but not take away from the overall logos and markings on the ice.
The lighting will even be noticeable on the post-game rinks, though it will not be as prominent just as it would appear in real life.
These new textures can be found on most NHL ices already, and soon on other leagues as well.
Ever since introducing in-ice advertisements for the NHL, we have received requests for authentic ads for more leagues. This is quite a task with minor leagues due to the lack of reference photos/videos that are available. That won't stop us from trying though. Starting now, we will be adding in-ice advertisements to as many AHL rinks as possible and any other leagues we are able to find references for. Please note that in some cases, ads may not be 100% accurate due to the lack of good reference shots to work with. We will try to get them as accurate as possible.
With this challenge, we could sure use your help. Any photos/videos you could provide for current and/or past seasons of your favorite Minor League team would be extremely helpful!