A Step Into Darkness - August Update (Patch Notes)
Hey guys,
I'm been working on this patch for the last three days since release. T His will fix the majority of issues that players have encountered including the bug whereby the enemy's AI is dysfunctional.
The changes and patches for the update are as follows
- Fixed enemy AI not functioning.
- Added a death screen.
- Added new audio for tapes (removed iPhone notifications)
- Temporary removed options, will be fixed shorty.
- Changed size of camera in the office as well as other objects in the game.
- Randomized trees.
- Optimization for scenes.
- Added new texture to camera in the office.
- Added metallic texture to car.
- Reduced size of car.
- Reduced brightness of torch.
- Extended battery lifetime on the torch.
- Fixed bug whereby players were stuck in the trees.
- Fixed achievements not working in chapters 2 and 3.
- Added a new skybox to the forest.
- Changed the placement of some subtitles in the forest.
- Removed a bug whereby the cursor did not display after the mission was 'failed'.
- Multiple other minor bug fixes.
Size is around 20Mb.
We will hopefully rolling out new voice acting in waves shortly.
Thank you to everyone who has reported the issues.
We apologize for the inconvenience caused since this launch, we hope this update can change peoples views on the game. For those who we let down, we hope this will meet your expectations of the game. And for those who rated the game negatively with as a result of the bugs, hopefully this will switch your views
Thank you for your patience,
Eoin Clifford
GameOrchard
A Step Into Darkness - Now Free To Play On Steam!
Hey everyone,
We are finally ready to announce that A Step Into Darkness is released on Steam! The game is now free to play from the store page.
Here is the Steam Release Trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeL-YVq1q7U&t=1s
If you missed it trading cards are now out!
The A Step Into Darkness Original Soundtrack has launched on Steam for $4.99, composed Brett James, this soundtrack DLC contains all of the music from A Step Into Darkness as well as additional tracks not featured in the original game. These are provided in a 320kbps MP3 format.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/594270/
Please submit any feedback here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LBUI5Kb8gkNLNpwfca-PCRcLvfpwEuUvkUpTHG4mwp0
A Step Into Darkness Releases Tomorrow, August 1st!
Hey everyone,
A Step Into Darkness Releases at 3PM GMT on August 1st! I hope you are all as excited as we are.
I will be streaming the release at 2PM GMT. I cannot wait for the launch. There will be a release trailer and much more tomorrow!
See you tomorrow,
Eoin Clifford
GameOrchard
A Step Into Darkness - Trading Cards And Community Released!
Hey everyone,
Today I have some very exciting news that a lot of you have been waiting for quite some time. This is also a major goal achieved for myself and the team. As someone who takes interest in the Steam Community Market as a having my own community items on the market brings joy to me.
Trading Cards
Valve has now released the A Step Into Darkness trading cards and community items. A Step Into Darkness will feature 5 trading cards, 4 backgrounds, 5 badges and 5 emoticons.
These items will not be available until the game launches on August 1st. You can view all the items before release here in my inventory. Trading cards will drop after 10 minutes of play time.
Backgrounds
I will be returning today to launch the game on August 1st. As mentioned in the last update I have been away from my PC for the last 2 weeks. Obviously there will be more emphasis on promotion etc. then.
With only 4 days left to the A Step Into Darkness launch on Steam I cannot wait!
Hope you are all excited as we are,
Eoin Clifford,
GameOrchard Productions
A Step Into Darkness launches on Steam on the 1st of August
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https://Twitter.com/gameorchard
gameorchardgames@gmail.com
A Step Into Darkness - Preparing For Release
Hey everybody,
It's been two weeks since the last update. Today I will be discussing the progress made towards the launch in the areas of Steam integration, general development.
Just a disclaimer- if the coverage of the game on social media had bugs, I will not be able to fix them due to a reason which I elaborate belpw. The video also afdresses some noted bugs.
I think that a video conveys the message better than text. Here is a video of me discussing the aforementioned topics, which I really recommend for those seeking a deeper look at the development of the game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7rKMh95CKw&feature=youtu.be
Community Items
A Step Into Darkness will feature 5 trading cards, 4 backgrounds, 5 badges and 5 emoticons.All of these items will be available upon release.
Time has gone into these to ensure that they are a balance of what the general Steam community will enjoy, as well as what the core playerbase will enjoy,
Here is a preview of the trading cards:
Coverage of the game
There has been a lot of coverage of the game recently, the team and I are very grateful of this. We have used the feedback in order to create an overall better and more fun experience for the player.
If you are interested in a key, please do not hesitate to ask via email. (gameorchardgames@gmail.com)
That's it for this update. I'll be away for around the next two weeks on holiday, while I won't be able to work on actual development, I will still be active and promoting the game via social media. There is only two weeks until the release on August 1st!
We hope you are excited from the launch as we are!
Eoin Clifford,
GameOrchard Productions
A Step Into Darkness launches on Steam on the 1st of August
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Twitter.com/gameorchard
gameorchardgames@gmail.com
A Step Into Darkness - Release Date Reveal
Hey everybody,
It's finally here! The reveal of the A Step Into Darkness release date. A moment we have held in great anticipation since the beginning of development two years ago. It is a great honour to present you with the Release Date Reveal for A Step Into Darkness.
We have put together a trailer revealing the date. This trailer also showcases some of the new gameplay, music and other features of A Step Into Darkness.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kn_K9yJm0aw
So as you can see from the above video there is just a month's wait until A Step Into Darkness releases on Steam!
Many pre-release updates will be coming soon for owners of the beta. We have implemented some new features that will be released shortly, including the ability to skip tapes, new mechanics and general long awaited fixes.
Some people may be experiencing issues with the forest level at the moment, that has been fixed and will be updated tomorrow.
We have also created an official Discord for the game! Joining will give you access to the full development schedule and more - https://discord.gg/NqR2HH6
If you are a YouTuber/Streamer/Journalist and want a key of the game or more information please contact me - gameorchar
To conclude - A Step Into Darkness launches on Steam on the 1st of August
We hope you are excited from the launch as we are!
Eoin Clifford,
GameOrchard Productions
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Twitter.com/gameorchard
gameorchardgames@gmail.com
Version JN2A is now live! - Update Notes
Hey everyone,
Before we get into the update -
1. On July the 1st at 2PM GMT we will have a very special announcement, one that has been waited for for over 2 years since the development of this game! Everything will be announced on all our social media platforms.
2. We have launched a Discord for A Step Into Darkness! Please join it here - https://discord.gg/NqR2HH6
This is the final update we will be releasing until the actual release of the game. Many changes have been made a long existing bugs have been eliminated.
Size : 14.7Mb.
Fixed:
- Fixed dysfuntional audio during the office introdution.
- Fixed the 'credits intro' not playing before the forest.
- Removed 'press any key to continue' screen.
- Fixed bug where you had the ability to view the coffee animation while not drinking.
- Changed the door to wood in the forest.
- Added menu to the hallway before the meeting.
- Added ambient noise to the office.
- Fixed the buttons on the elevator in the garage.
- Added footsteps in the office.
- Fixed windows on Martin's car.
- Fixed noclipping through Martin's car.
- Hid mouse for part 3.
- Added footsteps to the waiting room.
- Fixed the Alt + Tab bug.
- Fixed multiple bugs during the underground conversation.
- Fixed z-fighting during the dream scene.
Still to fix:
- Tweak enemy AI.
- Change level design to forest.
- New pause menu revival.
- Fix options menu.
- Option to disable menu.
Hope you enjoy the changes, thanks to the community for helping report bugs!
We look forward to making the announcement on Saturday at 2PM GMT!.
Eoin Clifford,
GameOrchard
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Twitter.com/gameorchard
gameorchardgames@gmail.com
Version JN1A is now live! - Update Notes
Hey everyone,
Just a quick patch for the issues encountered by some with the MY1A update.
The underground scene still requires fixing and will be patched tomomorw.
Among the changes are
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- Fixed version indicator.
- Fixed glass on lights.
- Simplfied Unity splash screen.
- Fixed forest level not loading.
- Fixed introduction not playing.
- Introduction now has upgraded graphics.
- Fixed other bugs.
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Size is around 145MB.
Hope you enjoy the changes, thanks to the community for helping report bugs!
Eoin Clifford,
GameOrchard
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Twitter.com/gameorchard
gameorchardgames@gmail.com
Version MY1A is now live! Major Update (Graphical Overhaul) - Update Notes
[Temporary] Get a beta key to test the update now! 100 are available - https://t.co/NuVStVzrxU
Hey everyone,
Today I will be discussing future development, the eventual launch of A Step Into Darkness and details of all the new additions in major graphical rework the game has just gone under. This update (MY1A) is a pre-release verision for beta testers, if you want a key for testing/streaming/let's playing please e-mail me via gameorchardgames@gmail.com.
Starting with future development and the eventual launch. At the moment, as the main developer of the game I have upcoming exams, therefore I will be unable to both launch the game and release new information regarding the game etc. via Twitter often for about 2-3 weeks, during my exams, Nicholas will be working on the game. The next update is currently being worked on
Since the last update a new member has joined GameOrchard, Nicholas Ponomarev specializes in graphical engineering. He has since ported the game to Unity 5 and completely reworked the lighting and graphical effects. Some of his work can be found in the updated screenshots on the Store page. This update means the minimum and recommended specs will be adjusted.
The game has been translated into Spanish by Angel Luis Caballero, a localized update is on the way.
A new trailer is also in the works, releasing close to the game's completion in mid-July the trailer will feature a lot of gameplay from the newly reworked graphics.
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Here are the upcoming patchnotes for the final release:
- Ported the game in the Unity 5 engine.
- Lighting effects reworked on every scene.
- Camera effects reworked on every scene.
- Added motion blur.
- Reworked the main menu, added new terrain texturing.
- Reworked forest terrain and textures.
- Reworked the introduction cutscene with the new graphics.
- Added dust particles to multiple scenes.
- Improved performance on all scenes.
- Added bottom to toppled tree in forest.
- Added a new bed in the underground scene.
- Adjusted vent floor, roof.
- Added multiple grates in the underground vent.
- Added truck engine sound effect in forest.
- Added heartbeat monitors.
- Fixed modelling issues with Martin's SUV.
- Fixed collision issues.
- Fixed UV issues with PC.
- Adjusted size of objects in underground.
- Fixed door models.
- Multiple minor design changes with hallways.
- Multiple other bug fixes.
- Added all trading cards. (Obtainable after official launch)
Size is around 209Mb.
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Here's a few bugs that have already been noted and will be fixed in the next update. (Currently do not have access to PC)
- Pause menu not functional
- Unity 5 Splash Screen (We have not upgraded to pro edition since porting)
- Glass on lights are not transpartent.
- Version says 'April 1st Edition', this should be 'May 1st Edition'.
- Multiple bugs in forest (enemy AI is being reworked as well as the level design)
- Alt + Tab crashes the game for some.
If you have found a bug please report, or give general feedback - www.tinyurl.com/ASIDFeed
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That's it for this update. Next major news will be in around a month, where an update with new enemy AI, animation, a reworked level design and much more. Cannot wait to resume development and launch the game after my exams.
Eoin Clifford,
GameOrchard
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Twitter.com/gameorchard
gameorchardgames@gmai.com
Regarding some game-breaking issues in version A1A
Hey,
We are currently aware of some game-breaking and crash inducing issues.
These glitches are mainly based in the forest, possibly as a result of the adjusted AI.
A patch fixing all these issues will be released by Friday night at latest. After the hot-fix update A2A will be developed and launched.
Needless to say this glitch has set back development slightly as well as intentions on the promotional side of things.
We apologise for any incovience caused and will ensure such an issue will not arise in the future.
