We wanted to focus on the balance again this week, but even though we worked on it too we ended up having other priorities.
I'll talk about them in a second.
New contents
As I mentioned last week we were working on a new chip and now it's here for you guys! The Vampiric chip!
Want more? We also implemented the winner of the August design contest!
Asteroid Volley: your bullets will push asteroid away giving them high damage when hitting enemies.
Soundtrack
We love Black Paradox's soundtrack, so we expanded it with 2 new tracks, a game and a boss one! We'll add them to the Soundtrack DLC next week.
Bugs
Some bugs had sneaked past us, but our testers are always there for it!
We fixed them in a jiff!
Patch Notes
Weapons/Powerups
Geyser damage lowered. Also the Geyser bullet used to cover the enemy bullets making it hard to dodge. Problem solved!
Buffed the Frag Shot by adding one more bullet on frag
Now Hedgehog is a rare weapon while the Granade Laucnher is uncommon
Asteroid Volley added
The Charge Shot had a bug that made it useless. Not it works correctly!
Increased the accuracy of the Laser Drone
Chips
Vampire Chip added
Soundtrack
New game track
New boss track
Same track won't be selected in 2 consecutive games
Enemies and bosses
New drill formation has been balanced
balanced some waves
Angry Bones now has less downtimes and a little bit more health. If you get behind him he will use selected attacks to mess you up
Shadow has less downtimes
Warlock's laser attack is now faster
When getting too close or behind Reaper he will now move towards the player
Update discussion
Want to discuss the update with the devs or with other players?
There's a forum just for you!
Press/Media
Are you a videogame journalist, a Steam Curator, a Youtuber or a Twitcher and you want to make a review/video of Black Paradox? We have a Distribute() and a Keymailer account! So contact us there!
There's a lot of juice here. Have fun exploring new builds with the new chip and save the galaxy!
Thanks for reading!
Weekly Update #6
Balancing update incoming guys!
This time we gave priority to the game's balance.
We know that the RNG can be savage at times, and we worked on making it more stable.
There still will be some savage situations, but they should be a little less frequent, also we'll keep giving balance priority for a couple updates.
We're also adding a few new fixed pattern waves to reduce the random factor in the game.
This week we have 4 new ones, hope you have fun learning their patterns!
A lot of people asked for new chips.... And a new one is coming soon!
We have it ready and are testing it and balancing it.
We should add it in next week's update if no problem arises!!!
Get ready for the Vampiric Chip!
New contents
So like I said a second ago, we have 4 new enemy waves, we changed one of insane brothers' attacks (it now spawns enemies instead of throwing proximity mines) and we have a new powerup!
As for the powerup:
Adrenaline burst: when launching the Black Paradox the player will heal a bit.
Bugs
Found some minor bugs. Fixed them. usual routine!
Patch Notes
Weapons/Powerups
Adrenaline Burst added
Enemies and bosses
4 new patterned waves.
A bit of balancing on a few waves (mostly late game ones)
Insane Brothers now spawns enemies instead of launching proximity mines with one of his attacks
Slight increase in Quantum Black's health
Bugs
The Mines' explosion's damage area used to last longer than the visual suggested. Reduced the time to match the visual
Small visual bug on the Rear Shield fixed
the Geyser + Radial Rage combo wasn't working. We fixed the problem
the Geyser + Cheat Shell combo wasn't working. We fixed the problem
Misc
When a player dies his controller won't vibrate from stuff exploding around the screen
The waves spawning script is now slightly more balanced to better avoid having too many or too little waves at the same time
Update discussion
Want to discuss the update with the devs or with other players?
There's a forum just for you!
Press/Media
Are you a videogame journalist, a Steam Curator, a Youtuber or a Twitcher and you want to make a review/video of Black Paradox? We have a Distribute() and a Keymailer account! So contact us there!
So balancing is really hard, but that's why we are and will keep working hard on it.
Hopefully this update makes things a bit more fair.
Thanks for reading!
Weekly Update #05
Here comes a new weekly update!
So August's over and so is summer vacation for most of you (and all of us). Did you enjoy a good vacation? Hope you did!
This week we're coming back with a bigger update than the last one! 2 new upgrades, 2 extra tracks added to our amazing soundtrack (which will soon be added in the soundtrack dlc too!) and many fixes!
New contents
This once both upgrades are for defense focused builds. We want the tank option to be a viable one as much as the attack ones.
The powerups are:
Spare Parts: I'll spend a few lines explaining this one as it doesn't have a visual effect so it might be hard to understand. After getting this powerup it'll be twice as likely to find healing tanks. Too powerful? Yes it is! that's way there's a downside! Your maximum health will decrease by 20% for getting it.
Corrosive Rage: this powerup's effect is pretty obvious once you collect it. see it for yourself ;)
Balance
Some light balancing was done on a couple enemies and a few boss attacks. Also we tweaked some weapons and powerups effects. The most notable one is the radius shot which now keeps shooting in the last direction the player moved towards.
Oh also we realized some achievements were pretty crazy to get and made them a bit easier!
Bugs
As usual fixed some minor bugs (and a couple typos).
Patch Notes
Weapons/Powerups
Radius shot now locks the last direction it shot toward after you stop moving
the Machinegun's spread grows slower.
Corrosive Rage added
Spare Parts added
Salvager's power now increases after every 20 enemies killed (previously 25).
Fixed a typo in last week's new powerups' names
Barbed Wire's damage has been increased by 20%.
What the drone is now guaranteed to never spawn the same drone in 2 consecutive levels.
When the player dies all drones get destroyed.
Music
New game track added.
New boss track added.
Enemies and bosses
Made more consistent a late game wave that wasn't really consistent.
When Insane Brother starts going insane his weapon will now explode.
A couple of Warlock's attacks were too long lasting. Now they are shorter (and one has a bit more range).
Misc
Asteroids now have a small chance to drop health tanks.
Contest results and a new contest coming!
So this month's design contest is over. And we have our first winner! There were some really cool ideas! But in the end the one we liked the most was.....drum roll...
Nero's idea of an Asteroid Volley! We think it could spice up the game and have some ideas on how to implement it. So Nero if you want to get inserted in the game's credits feel free to contact us at info@fantasticostudio.it
As for when the Powerup will be added in the game I'll say during one of September's updates. Our schedule is a bit busy so we'll fit it in as soon as possible but can't promise miracles.
September's monthly design contest should start tomorrow.... But I'll be a bit busy tomorrow, so I'm launching it a day early! If possible I'd like to have people who already posted to post different ideas to keep things changing! Also, not only game owners are restricted to post their ideas, maybe someone wants to buy the game but haven't yet and still has some nice ideas. Everyone is free to post! Just know that we won't consider ideas that aren't doable or fitting in the game and follow the contest's rules!
Update discussion
Want to discuss the update with the devs or with other players?
There's a forum just for you!
Press/Media
Are you a videogame journalist, a Steam Curator, a Youtuber or a Twitcher and you want to make a review/video of Black Paradox? We have a Distribute() and a Keymailer account! So contact us there!
This update was a lot fun to make and to test! Hope you guys have fun playing it!
Thanks for reading!
Weekly Update #04
How was your August?
I hope everyone had some nice vacations and hopefully enjoyed Black Paradox!
We're back into action! This update is a little smaller but adds 6 powerups to the game!
New contents
6 powerups! They are upgrades for the player stats in 6 different combinations. The effect is self explaining so I won't go into details and just drop them in the Patch Notes.
Patch Notes
Powerups
Item Hp/Att up added!
Item Hp/Sp up added!
Item Hp/AS up added!
Item Att/Sp up added!
Item Att/AS up added!
Item Sp/AS up added!
Update discussion
Want to discuss the update with the devs or with other players?
There's a forum just for you!
Press/Media
Are you a videogame journalist, a Steam Curator, a Youtuber or a Twitcher and you want to make a review/video of Black Paradox?
We have a Distribute and a Keymailer account! So contact us there!
Hope the new upgrades make your runs more various! I already have a new upgrade in mind for next week!
Also remember the August Design Contest closes on the 27th!
If you have ideas you'd like to post and haven't posted yet do so now!!!
Thanks for reading!
Weekly Update #03
Update day again! Are you ready?
This week we've focused on adding a bit more content, balancing a bit and fixing a couple bugs.
As I mentioned before next week there won't be an update.
We need some summer rest and will get back to updating the game in 2 weeks ;)
New contents
So we have a new weapon, a new Powerup and a new Drone!
I won't spoil you the effects, just know they're all uncommon, so you might not find them right away.
The names are:
Weapon: Geyser Powerup: Paradoxal Rage Drone: What The Drone?
Balance
This time around we've buffed some of the less useful weapons, buffed a chip's effect and buffed a couple enemy waves that were underpowered and all around done some slight changes. I'll go into more detail into the Patch Notes.
Bugs
Fixed some minor bugs. Again, read the Patch Notes for more info!
Patch Notes
Chips
Dodge chip's effect has been doubled. Now max dodge caps at 40% with all max level dodge chips. I'm thinking of maybe buffing it further if it's still not viable as a build.
Weapons/Powerups
Weapon Geyser added!
Item Paradoxal Rage added!
Drone "What the Drone?" added!
Granade Launcher's damage has been slightly increased.
Railgun's damage has been slightly increased.
Hedgehog's damage has been slightly decreased.
Tesla's bounce damage now decreases less per bounce (from 20% per bounce to 15%).
When firing a weapon that slows you down you can't rapid tap the button to avoid slowing down anymore. the slow down persists for a fraction of the recharge time.
Blade drone's damage has been increased and its collider is now slightly bigger, making it a more viable powerup.
Enemies and bosses
A few late game waves had long wait time between enemies. Made it a little shorter to avoid moments when there are no enemies.
Bugs
Solved a bug that made background's elements not appear correctly when playing.
Some bosses had some sound effects that would get stuck. Still haven't found out what makes them get stuck, but forced the sound to shut down after a few seconds of getting stuck.
Update discussion
Want to discuss the update with the devs or with other players?
There's a forum just for you!
Press/Media
Are you a videogame journalist, a Steam Curator, a Youtuber or a Twitcher and you want to make a review/video of Black Paradox? We have a Distribute and a Keymailer account! So contact us there!
Hope this update adds a bit of juice to the game and unlocks new build options!
Thanks for reading!
Weekly Update #02
Friday is gonna be your favorite day! It's update day!
Another thing you're gonna love about Friday is our Mixtape , Galaxy Radio, featuring part of the update contents and letting you listen to good synthwave music.
This time around our main focus was mostly on Backgrounds and balance, but we also have a new powerup joining the lineup!
Backgrounds
The game only had so many backgrounds... Well we added more! there's a whole new set of cool bagrounds that can appear in the game! Hope you like them and are looking forward to more in the future, since we're adding more in a few updates!
New Powerup
The "Life Hack" is now available as a new powerup. I won't spil the effect but let's just say it's pretty usefull... Hope to hear your opinions on it!
Balance
Our focus on balance was on weapons and chips this time around.
As far as weapons goes we buffed the darts punk and nerfed a few too powerful ones such as the laser and the hedgehog (I've personally seen players reach the last boss with just a couple chips and the hedgehog...).
Bugs
Some minor bugs were fixed too! this time around the only big bug was really big and we had an hotfix mid week to fix it.
Patch Notes
Chips
Chip's shop randomizer is now more likely to select stronger chips.
Triple shot chip change has been doubled. Now the max amount is 40% triple shot chance.
Rear Shot chip chance has been increased by 50%. Now the max amount is 60% rear shot chance.
Weapons/Powerups
Item Life Hack added!
Charge Shot now charges its effect faster.
Darts Punk now slows the players slightly less and has les delay from when the bullet is fired and when it takes off.
Tesla now deals more damage on the first hit, then decreases the damage on each bounce.
Laser damage has been nerfed.
Hedgehog has slightly longer cooldown.
Enemies and bosses
Enemies coming from the back of the player had their healt reduced.
Some enemies that come from behind used to stop too far on the left area and couldn't be shot at. Now they stop slightly further.
Bosses now deal slightly more "contact damage" than regular enemies.
Warlock uses his rings attack only when lower than 50% health.
After shooting missiles Shadow waits less before its next attack.
The machinegun deals a bit more damages.
General
New backgrounds!
When starting a new level you no longer start with the base weapon selected (still need to select the one you had, but for now it's not the main one at least).
Music doesn't bug anymore when fast pressing retry on gameover screen.
Main menu is now only controlled by player 1.
When a controller gets removed game will pause even with 2 controllers attached.
In Co-op mode when the first player dies there are less explosions as not to disturb the player left alive.
In Co-op mode the player pausing the game is the one controlling the pause menu.
If a controller gets disconnected the relative player will get keyboard controll assigned.
Update discussion
Want to discuss the update with the devs or with other players?
There's a forum just for you!
Press/Media
Are you a videogame journalist, a Steam Curator, a Youtuber or a Twitcher and you want to make a review/video of Black Paradox? We have a Distribute and a Keymailer account! So contact us there!
Apparently Early Access discount only lasts for a week, as we promissed Black Paradox would be discounted for the whole duration of the Early Access we're dropping the regular price to the same as the discounted one for all the EA duration. So you won't see that beautiful -25% there, but it's still 25% off the full price!
Hope this update makes the game more fun to play!
Thanks for reading!
Monthly design contest 01: August Edition!
Is everyone ready for our monthly contest???
Starting today and until August 27th we'll be running a contest to make your weapon/powerups/drones ideas a reality in the game and get a chance to appear in the end game's credits!
We've opened a discussion in the forum for anyone interested in participating!
Please read the Rules and have a blast posting your ideas!!!
Hotfix. Level end bug
So some players have reported us a bug about the game getting stuck after collecting the end level powerup. Since the bug became game breaking for some of you guys we've proceeded to give it high priority.
The bug is really sly, and we had a really hard time replicating it. We've worked a workaround and tested it with all the team for hours. We hope this solved the problem and hope it will help you enjoy the game :)
If any problem still arise or if the problem persists feel free to open a thread or write in the dedicated one in the forum
Black Paradox now available on Steam!
So today is the great day! Black Paradox is finally available on Steam! we’re really hyped and hope you are too!
To celebrate we’ve put up a little podcast for you guys.
The podcast will feature Omega Radio, the one and only radio for bounty hunters.
The radio will go live weekly and will talk about the patch notes for said week. After that it will jump to around half an hour of amazing synthwave music! So be ready to hear it on every new update 😉
Soundtrack
As many people told us they really loved the game’s Original Soundtrack we decided to add it as a purchasable item on Black Paradox’s page.
You can either purchase it separately from the game or get it together with the game in a bundle for a little discount!
Logo
We added our studio’s logo to the finished version. Of course it had to be in a cool 80’s style right?
Do you like it?
Bugs
We fixed some minor bugs too. But bugs are always around the corner and are a developer’s number one enemy (10 little bugs in the code….. fix one…. 12 little bugs in the code…).
So we’d like to ask all of Black Paradox’s players to report any bug they might find.
If possible please report them on the dedicated forum we created here on Steam, we also have a Discord channel ! You can join us there too to let us know your feedbacks!
Fan Art
Do you have a cool fan art on Black Paradox?
either post it here on the community or tag us on Twitter or Instagram.
We’ll select a couple of the coolest ones each week and add it in our weekly devlog!
Hope everyone enjoys the game!
Thanks for reading!
Weekly Update #01
Hi everyone! ːsteamhappyː
The game's not out yet, tomorrow is finally the great day when Black Paradox sees the light of release, yet there's already an update?
Well yes.
We received many feedbacks on the game's demo, and before release we already worked on a few of them.
Also from the release onward we plan to update the game weekly (with some exception like the middle week of August) until we're out of the Early Access (we're not gonna stop updating after it, but will do it at a slower pace).
So get ready because the game's gonna get bigger and cooler as time passes! ːsteammockingː
Garage
A few players said that having the garage only in the home menu would break the flow in the game (going back to home and then to the game).
We were already thinking about it and had postponed it, but with you asking we couldn't not add the garage in the Game Over menu too right?
So now powering up your car is easier and smoother. Hope you enjoy it!
VHS effect
A lot of people loved the VHS effect we added just prior to building the first demo. Some others didn't as much and preferred the old feel.
Well this update is addressed to those guys!
The menu option now allows you to turn off the VHS effect.
We love it and play test with the effect turned on, but we do understand someone might not find it as appealing.
Railgun
The Railgun is a cool weapon. Maybe a bit too powerful....
Today one of our testers was able to reach and almost beat the 4th boss with no Chips using just the Railgun.
We have slightly tweeked the balance and since we were at it improved the visual effect.
Now the Railgun's bullet is animated and leaves a trail of particles on its path!
How do you like the new look?
That's it for this update. ːsteammockingː
Hope to hear many feedbacks and post again soon.
