# Investor Readiness Audit - 2026-05-19

## Current Verdict

The current build should not be presented as investor visual MVP until it passes
a real-GPU packaged-client visual and stability check. The systems are further
along than the presentation, but the player-facing first impression is still at
risk.

## Findings

- Packaged crash logs show a Slate/UI paint crash while the character-selection
  frontend is active. The crash callstack centers on `SButton::OnPaint` and
  `FSlateDrawElement::MakeBox`, so the immediate fix removes custom button brush
  styling, defers frontend actions to the next tick, and shortens the investor
  path from character selection directly into Ground Zero.
- The project content library still contains only placeholder meshes plus the
  Manny/Quinn mannequin assets for characters. The current character and object
  visuals are proxy-quality, not final investor-quality realism.
- Ground Zero editor verification confirms landscape, water/resource actors,
  foliage variation actors, and environment materials exist, but this does not
  prove the packaged executable looks good through the real GPU path.
- Cooked runtime logs warned that tree, shrub, and grass materials were missing
  instanced-static-mesh usage. Those flags are now set on the assets and in the
  repeatable map setup script.
- The generated investor roadmap/report can show old milestone completion state
  if it is not regenerated from the current roadmap after fixes. The source
  roadmap still contains explicit visual QA acceptance items that remain open
  until real packaged screenshots or clips are captured.

## Required Before Investor-Ready Label

- Launch the packaged Windows demo through the real GPU desktop path.
- Capture startup credits, character selection, first spawn, terrain, vegetation,
  water, campfire, shelter, pause menu, and save/quit.
- Confirm selecting a character and entering Ground Zero does not crash.
- Confirm the first player view is not ground/legs, the menu does not appear
  after gameplay starts, water is visible, foliage is visible, and debug-looking
  primitives are not the dominant read.
- Replace proxy/mannequin art with real or production-directed free/internal art
  assets before calling the build visually investor-ready.

## Verification Completed In This Pass

- `verify_mvp_menu_input_and_quit_flow.py`
- `verify_mvp_character_archetype_choice.py`
- `verify_mvp_character_proxies.py`
- `verify_mvp_frontend_umg_flow.py`
- `verify_ground_zero_natural_environment_pass.py`
- Windows package BuildCookRun completed successfully after the fixes.

## Remaining Risk

The packaged build still needs a real interactive visual pass through
Sunshine/Moonlight or direct Windows display access. Static checks and editor
commandlets are not enough to clear the user-reported crash and visual quality
concerns.
