Abyss Crew will be released in Early Access on 30. April 2020!
The game will cost 19.99 € / 21.99 US$ / 29.99 CAD$ during the early access duration, meaning a 33% discount compared to the final price (29.99 € / 32.99 US$ / 44.99 CAD$). You can also have a 4-players pack for the price of 3, i.e., 59.99 € / 65.99 US$ / 89.99 CAD$. To play online, you will need one key per player: each player runs the game from his own library. To play locally, you will need only one key: the owner runs the game, and the other players use a special "local client" of the game, which is free to download, to join a game. This special version cannot join online game or create a game, however.
For those of you who have contributed to the Kickstarter, Steam keys will be sent about 10 days before the release, around April 20th, 2020. If you don't want a Steam key, but would rather have a stand-alone game instead, please message us as soon as possible.
For any question, send us an email to contact@abysscrew.com !
End of transmission,
Captain Pol, out --
Steampunk lamp renovation
This week-end I found an old rusty lantern in my parents house, ALG "Luciole" type (don't know how old it is). It seemed a great steampunk decoration for the stand, so I wanted to renovate it. Here is the step-by-step transformation 🐙
So here is the lamp. Quite old, rusty, not usable as it. Some parts are missing.
First, unmount all pieces, to clean pieces one by one.
Here is some alcohol, an (old...) toothbrush, some Q-tips, and sand paper. Now let's rub!
Should I paint the lamp? I tried a brown mate color, but I am not satisfied.
I used this varnish with a copper color, it gives a great feeling I find.
Let's use a big vintage bulb.
Difficulty: how to hold the bulb? And the socket? It's too large for the lower tank, so I have to hold it from the top. It's not designed for it, so I have used some screws.
I also found a iron metal ring, I have added some varnish and fixed it on the top, to hide and protect the electric wire.
I almost forgot the tank cap (I found it in my garbage bin...)
So here is the result!
And it looks great when turned on!
Took me a weekend, but I do think it was worth it ;) You'll see it if you come to one of the festival we're participating!
[Devlog #4] Using particles to display a picture in Game Maker
-- Greetings, fellow devs,
I'd like to share a cool effect I found with Game Maker Studio, which can be adapted for many other projects.
To give a little bit of context, in the game, the sonar player has to scan objects, and I wanted to make an image appear progressively on the screen.
I found it worked well by using particles!
The principle is to pick places randomly in a box around the shape we'd like to have, and to create particles only if the place is inside the shape.
1) First, you need to create the particles system you wish. I personally like the spheres, but there are many other possibilities.
2) Then, draw the sprite you wish to use (in my case, a whale silhouette). Tick "Use precise collision".
3) Create an object with this sprite. Remove the "visible option".
4) In a step event, create the particles randomly around the object. If the place is inside the shape, create the particle, if not, do nothing.
for (var ii=0;ii<100;ii++){
var randX = 500+random(200);
var randY = 300+random(150);
if collision_point(randX,randY,obj_sonar_analyzer_drawing,true,true){
part_particles_create(global.particlesUI, randX, randY, analyzerBlip, 1);}
}
}
5) Test it!
Other ideas:
-making lines for a CRT screen.
-exploding object
Question: Which version of Game Maker to use? I am using GMS 1.4 but code for GMS2 should be identical.
Question: Do I need one object per sprite? You can use multiple sprites for the same object. Remember to put an image_speed = 0 in the Create event.
You could even make an animation, although I didn't test it.
Other questions? Answer here or send me an email at contact AT abysscrew.com , I'll update the questions list here to share it with the community :)
Hope it helped some of you!
Captain Pol, out --
Draw results
-- Greetings, crewmembers,
As promised, we made a draw among the survey participants.
And we have the pleasure to announce that Pablo L. has won a key of the game!
In any case, thank you to all who have participated to the survey, it is really helping us ;)
If you missed it, you can still answer there:
(EN) https://forms.gle/4ee8k5RYk11xdPSj8
(FR) https://forms.gle/SuwcqCv2MQjGURjW7
More information about the development of the game soon!
Captain Pol, out --
[Devlog #3] The Gunner Front Weapon
For the front weapon of the gunner, we wanted to get a quick and versatile weapon, in opposition to the torpedoes, harder to handle but stronger.
In this scope, we designed “the harpoon”, a weapon did not need to be loaded manually, had a limited range, made some damage, and was recovered after each shot.
We had difficulties to find a proper balance between making it truly useful and encouraging players to use torpedoes. We tried many damage, speed and range parameters, but we were never satisfied.
The harpoon was then transformed into what has been named the “flechettes”. It was a sort of miniature torpedoes: flechettes made low damages and were automatically reloaded with infinite ammo. The range was widened, while its maximum angle was reduced so that the weapon was not overpowered… It didn’t really work as we planed: unlimited ammo made it too easy for the gunner to use many flechettes instead of carefully loading and firing a limited reserve of torpedoes. We increased the number of flechettes required to destroy an enemy or a obstacle, but it lead players to spam it, which is not what was intended!
We then got back to the initial idea, a weapon which reels back after each shot, has a short range and do little damage. It proved to be a good complement to torpedoes: it can be easily fired at any time, but torpedoes are much more efficient.
But we realized that players used it for everything, including to destroy rocks and other obstacles: it didn’t fit with the lore of the game (destroying a piece of rock with a harpoon?). And the amount of damage was hard to define: too high, and the torpedoes were not useful anymore; too low, and people spammed it to destroy a single enemy or obstacles…
So we decided to transform the harpoon in an “attractor”: it could attract crystals, scraps and other metallic obstacle towards the submarine. It gave something to do for the gunner outside combat, and it fitted better with the lore.
However, a last problem appeared: in some occasions, the submarine could become stuck if the gunner attracted an obstacle too close to the submarine!
We then added the “repulsor” mode for the front weapon, which works similarly as the attractor but in the other direction, so that the gunner always have an option to repel any obstacle and avoid the submarine to be stuck. And to switch from the attractor mode to repulsor mode, the gunner simply has to double press the front weapon selection key (“W” by default)!
[Poll] Your opinion about Abyss Crew
-- Greetings, crewmembers,
⚠️We need your opinion about Abyss Crew release. It's very important for us!⚠️
➡️We've prepared a form asking a eight short questions. Would you like to answer it and share the form with your relatives?
Here are the links:
(EN) https://forms.gle/4ee8k5RYk11xdPSj8
(FR) https://forms.gle/SuwcqCv2MQjGURjW7
To thank you, we'll make a draw among the participants to win a key of the game!
We count on you !
Captain Pol, out --
[Update] Version 0.94a
-- Greetings, crewmembers,
The build version 0.94a has been released!
This version was focused on the level design:
-average level size has been decreased
-two new maps have been added
-a trigger system has been coded to include dynamic elements
-we conceived the first three game campaigns: Moby Squid, The Hunt for Red Octopus, and The Diving Dutchman. If you have ideas for cool campaigns, we're open to any suggestion! We got some great ideas already, thank you to the contributors!
Additional changes:
(network) scanning of environment obj_object behaves strangely as a client
(gameplay) reduce scrap quantity
(gameplay) decreased scanning time
(gameplay) decreased standard torpedo loading time
(gameplay) remove lockable target (for gunner)
(graphics) improved bubbles appearance on menu and bridge
(network) on clients, start game button should light only when a game has been started
(gameplay) players should receive incoming calls/transmissions
(menu) options: remap keys
(graphics) differentiate left locked/right locked on gunner screen
The version can be found in the releases section of the Discord server for those who have access to the game.
/!\ Identified bug /! \ The map "Hunt for Red Octopus" cannot be finished, as there is no exit in the level. This bug has been fixed in the future version 0.95.
Captain Pol, out --
Submarine prototype maiden voyage
-- Greetings Crewmembers,
Our submarine prototype has successfully passed its maiden voyage.
No seamen were hurt during these tests (they even seemed to enjoy the experience ;) )
Other adventures scheduled soon!
Captain Pol --
Building the submarine
-- Greetings, crewmembers,
Here is a picture of the submarine we're currently creating. We still have to add portholes, lights, and many other stuff. You'll see it if you come see us in festivals!
Captain Pol, out --
Interview
-- Greetings, crewmembers,
Here is a new interview of the Abyss Crew Captain (in French ), by Alexandre Seve:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dOH9YynJRc
When the interview was recorded, the early access date was not defined, but now it is scheduled 🤫 - and we'll announce it soon with all the details :octopus:
Enjoy!
Captain Pol --
-- Greetings, fellow devs,
