It's been a busy few days for me. I'm very happy to say that RC1 is out now! That means this could be a build I actually ship as Cloudbase Prime 1.0! I'll wait and see how it performs in the wild, and I'll continue slapping it with vigorous tests on my end.
I'm pretty excited about this, though!
Things that will still change are Steam Achievement icons and Steam Cards, because those are separate from the actual game software.
I've released a couple betas since 0.15.1 while ironing out those controller issues, so I've actually got a few versions worth of changes here.
Full Change List Since July 11:
Improved in RC1:
Hex fighters can now drop fuel.
Lil' Chomper enemies now die en-masse more efficiently.
Enemy damage sounds are generally more efficient now.
New voice lines added for 4-2:score attack
Level picker: zone stats now have black backgrounds to improve readability.
Fixed in RC1:
Overly-generic gamepad button labels on mac/linux
Using ammo types while another ammo type was still active left the old hand/charge effects instead of replacing them
You could "lose" boost by landing on missiles and launched enemies in midair. Don't worry, you can still jump off them if you believe in yourself.
Boost audio didn't respect the "sounds" volume setting
Boost audio kept playing while paused
Mouse cursor interfered with gamepad movement through the options menus
Graphics options could not be applied with a gamepad
Fuel drops and homing missiles chased the player while the win screen was displayed
EMPing missiles achievement could be triggered without an EMP
Fuel gauge wouldn't show itself if the first upgrade you found was special ammo
In-game hint text could stay visible while paused
Other various UI fixes
Fixed in beta 0.15.3
SteamOS: game exited when USB devices were unplugged. (introduced in beta 0.15)
SteamOS: no controllers worked. (introduced in beta 0.15)
Mac: Steam controllers didn't work.
Fixed in beta 0.15.2
"LB" buttons could just get the "L" icon
Shield power-lines were being drawn before shields were activated.
Key bindings text could possibly fail to display the correct key.
Options menu: mouse cursor could stay visible and highlight buttons while the controller was using the same UI.
Cloudbase Prime beta 0.15.1 out now: Controller-specific intro audio!
So I've been wanting to rerecord some lines for controllers for a while, and have been utterly failing (the intro jokes about mouse and keyboard controls). Those recordings were made years ago, on very old hardware/software, and splicing in new recordings, or doing new recordings altogether, just wasn't working out.
I liked the originals too much to mix them up with things that didn't match! But this morning I got my old recording setup going and there are now controller-specific audio/subtitles for that cutscene!
I know it was confusing some people, and this is probably funnier, too. Hooray!
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Also, while I'm here, I'd like to blab about beta 0.15's new "boss boost" system for bosses 1-4.
If you die three times in a row on boss, you'll see this screen:
If you agree to that, then you'll respawn with the "SUPER CHARGED" rings spinning in your HUD, like at the end of most collect fixbots levels. You'll shoot giant exploding bullets and launch dramatically higher while moving large chunks of terrain at once.
This tends to result in you winning the boss fight, but you won't get the fixbot.
I hope this will result in people still coming back to play and master the level later, perhaps after getting more suit powers.
It's not a huge change, but I was really sweatin' it. I think this will let me keep the challenge most people like in the boss fights while not locking anyone out of the rest of the game just because they happened to get stuck.
Cloudbase Prime 0.15 is out now. Achievements and much more!
Fixin' things, makin' things. Missing sleep.
Beta 0.15 is out now! This is the last major beta! Hopefully it's the last beta, entirely. Cloudbase Prime's first release candidate is planned for next week. It seems a very realistic goal, given my current schedule and the state of the game right now. We'll see how that goes!
As always, your feedback is welcome, but we're now really, really close to release :D.
This release fixed a lot of issues, adds a new score attack level to 4-2, Steam achievements (I'll make pretty icons soon!), bossfight help, and a much-improved EMP story scene animation. Full change list below:
Added:
4-2 score attack: the first score attack level with giant walkers!
A fixbot will now offer to supercharge you in bossfights 1-4 if you die three times in a row. You don't get the fixbot if you accept this help, but you can move on to the next zone!
Steam achievements
Added an EMP story animation
Legs now animate behind the player while boosting. Looks better, especially while swimming downward.
Improved:
Combust ammo icon is larger/more readable.
Loading special ammo now pulses the HUD icon and makes an ammo-specific sound.
Food chain enemy factories now have a death sound
Fixed:
Enemy walkers would get confused and stick a leg up in the air sometimes.
Fixed button icons for Xbox triggers not showing up correctly.
Fixed score attack spawners sometimes not spawning as many enemies as they should.
Tractor beams could cause exciting player yoyo situations if the player grappled into them.
Ramp "launchability" text could be seen through almost everything
Some "player sounds", like repair sounds, were tagged as voices instead of sounds.
Auto-quality hardware detection should now recognize some more obscure setups
Suit hands clipped into exit cannons at the end of the level.
Keybinding notes for
Alt/tabbing in and out of the game while a cursor was displayed used to leave the player with two cursors.
Left hand didn't join the beam animation when using homing shots
Grapple text hints didn't fit on narrow screens
Second character's hand particles remained visible after fading to black
misc. other bugs and performance improvements
Cloudbase Prime beta 0.14: controller support!
It took a lot of tuning, but Cloudbase Prime is working well with controllers now! Even Switch joycons, if you pair both of them! Since you look up and down a LOT in this game, there are dedicated buttons to snap your look down/forward/up.
A note on Steam controllers: I'm curious about your feedback here! Steam controllers emulate Xbox 360 controllers when possible! I do support that, but you're missing out on a good few Steam controller features then. You may want to use them in "mouse and keyboard" mode instead.
(EDIT: I now recommend trying one of the gamepad configs I posted here. The button icons'll match up nicer then!)
There are a good deal of other changes in here, too. A pile of bug fixes, an easier food chain mode, and a pretty cursor for menus.
Full change notes:
Added/changed:
Controller support!
New options menu (now controller-friendly)
Added hint text on how to throw balls and detach from grabbed terrain
Updated look bindings, they can now be customized. I tried to keep mouse sensitivity identical: tell me if I didn't!
Added snap look controls: up, down, forward. Only bound on controllers by default.
Reload/interact are now the same binding
You can now throw held items by hitting interact a second time.
New cursor for menus
Food Chain mode is now easier: collector has more HP, enemy factory stays vulnerable longer.
Improved control help text in 1-intro: better text, colored control bindings.
Added move help text to 1-intro.
Lowered fall death height on all levels in zone 5.
You can't change the direction of the architect while your hands are busy any more (caused animation bugs, confused people).
Exiting the end credits now requires you to press a specific button.
Fixed:
Improved corrupt save file handling, automatic loading of backups on failure.
Exit cannon can no longer be disabled by enemy terrain destruction
Fixbot voices are now consistently affected by the "voice" volume setting.
6-boss no longer becomes harder the more you die... sorry about that.
Fixed duplicated subtitles, hand animation bugs in 5-intro.
Enemy shield repulsor is no longer active during 5-boss's intro cutscene.
Fixed Atlas's voice lines being too quiet in the intro to 6-boss.
Fixed 5-1's starting checkpoint not consistently respawning the player.
5-1's food chain stuff no longer shows up outside of food chain mode.
Cloudbase Prime beta 0.13 released!
Hey look, new store art!
Beta 0.13 is out! It focuses on tutorials/help, while improving player movement with a new boost ability and swapping "survival" mode for a more fun "score attack".
With this beta release I now consider the game to be far friendlier to new players! I made this video to show off all of the new stuff in the game since it reached beta:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fz8J9exMPMk
We're pretty far along now, so get that Early Access feedback to me if you've got it. Release is getting close!
Full change list:
added:
Added a post-launch boost button (left ctrl by default!) to make level traversal faster and more fun
Added help manuals to the pause and HUB menus
Added/improved tutorials
Removed survival mode, replaced it with score attack
"Alternate" level modes are now locked until the primary mode is beaten
Strategy HUD is now always unlocked
fixed:
Fixed bunny balls being gigantic while held, especially when playing as the second character
Improved audio levels on some Atlas dialog in 6-boss
Strategy HUD now looks better with few unlocks, hinting at how many unlocks remain
The pause key binding now applies in the level picker menu
Gave freeze ammo a proper model in the HUB weapons menu
Empty strategy HUD text now reflects actual key bindings
Hitting escape with the key binding menu can no longer unpause the game
Hitting the strategy HUD key can no longer unpause the game.
Cloudbase Prime beta 0.12 released!
Cloudbase Prime's beta now! The big thing here is that the game's story is now complete. It has end credits and everything! There's a new story level and a pretty hefty boss fight. Also, I apparently hadn't released the ice ammo yet. It's hidden somewhere in 5-1 if I remember correctly.
These levels took a while. Complex story scenes really take a lot of effort, and 6-boss is my most complex yet. 6-2 was no slouch, either!
I hope you enjoy the update and, as always, am looking forward to hearing your feedback.
added:
6-2: get help to go and attack the tower's evil robot factory!
6-boss: the end boss!
ice ammo
win music! most non-boss levels now have win music that joyfully blares out your victory.
fixbot heals are now more noticeable
fixbots no longer talk every time you respawn
powers are now introduced in 1-1's survival mode, too
fixed:
player no longer gets stuck on tiny terrain edges at low speeds
homing weapons no longer lock onto dead stuff
fixed jump drop pod in 1-intro
fixed fixbot names being at odd angles on 6-1
fixed homing hands getting stuck in "lockon" mode sometimes
fixed angled and extra-large terrain breaking grappling hook
fixed grappling while on rails
Cloudbase Prime alpha 0.11.4 released!
This is hopefully the last in a flurry of alpha releases to get the current stuff in the game up to "beta" quality. Its main features are auto-quality and more in-game settings options! If anything's missing, please feel free to make requests.
The game also now has a splash screen, but it shouldn't slow down your game bootups at all (except perhaps the first time, while the automatic quality check is running!)
changed:
auto-quality assignment on first run
new in-game graphics and keybinding settings.
sound settings now have separate settings for sound, voice, and
music.
a splash/loading screen
tutorial text now reflects key bindings.
increased minimum animation quality
increased minimum lighting quality (tell me if things are too slow! seemed fine on my min-spec machine)
fixed:
fixed 2-boss's core model loading improperly.
fixed charge shot possibly getting stuck on hand after closing the Strategy HUD.
fixed giant lockon dot indicators while using the Strategy HUD
Cloudbase Prime alpha 0.11.3 (hotfix) released
Fixed: angel spheres couldn't shoot bullets any more!
That bug made angel spheres into pretty boring enemies :(.
Sorry about this bug! I brought it about by fixing another bug where enemies couldn't hit themselves ever in alpha 0.11.2. So... you can do that now, too! They can't kill themselves, but it's a decent way to avoid homing missiles.
Cloudbase Prime alpha 0.11.2 released!
I've added a new Strategy HUD to the game! The upgrade pod for it can be found on 3-1. It lets you slow the game down while you use a radial menu to cast powers or change equipment. This is the only way to change weapons mid-level, so that's a thing you can do now!
I'm a little torn about making this an unlockable. It could be especially useful for controller-bound users, so I'm a little nervous about hiding it away at all. That said, having something change the game this much while being casually hidden in a level is very appealing to me. It feels neat and provides a handy spot to introduce you to the controls.
Enjoy your new slower, more strategic Cloudbase Prime.
Cloudbase Prime alpha 0.11.1 released!
This is a bit earlier than I was planning on, but the rest of the changes I have planned could take a while. I'd rather get this update in your hands right away!
Your crosshairs will now change shape and color to give you a better idea of what your grapple will do when you fire it. It’s always been consistent that you swing towards terrain that’s above you and slam-attack into terrain that’s far enough below you, but this will help it be obvious at a glance!
Also, you can’t spam the grappling hook repeatedly to fly any more. Sorry ;).
Full change notes:
Added:
Grappling hook status is now visible in the HUD.
There is now a cap on how many mid-air grapples you can do before landing or grabbing onto terrain (2).
Fixed:
Homing shots can now lock onto carrier maintenance hatches.
Fixed poopbot’s beautiful face
Fixed the level picker menu’s zone 6 fixbot counting issues
