First big content update now live (Version 0.62): New Co-Op Map, Engine Update, Other improvements
Our first big content update comes with a brand new Co-Op map, the Engine Update and a lot of other improvements. Let's jump straight into the patch notes of version 0.62:
New Co-Op Map: Urban Suburbs
This new map provides a setting which takes place in an urban environment between the Bloody Island and Balsam Retirements map. It provides some wide open spaces combined with some smaller areas. As always we implemented a lot of cutscenes and a new boss. Have fun beating him he can be quite hard to kill ;-)
Engine Update
With version 0.62 we also updated the engine to UE4 version 4.21 which comes with a lot of improvements for us devs but also provides some performance improvements when it comes to gameplay.
Other improvements
Balsam Retirements
Improved lighting for PvP map
Improved lighting for Co-Op map
Overhaul of the intro cutscene to fit to the outro cutscene of the new map
UI improvements
Replaced a lot of text with graphics for a cleaner UI
Added Kills/Deaths & HP to player screen in Co-Op mode
Resized all UI elements in Co-Op and PvP mode
Added amount of Zombies which are currently alive
Implemented some minor fixes regarding menu navigation with controller
Added version number in main menu
Fixed some problems where objective text was not updated properly
Gameplay improvements
Added arrows for the last three Zombies alive in Co-Op mode
Improved AI blueprints to increase performance
We hope you like the content, and we wish you good luck out there while killing Zombies!
Dev-Progress: Urban Suburbs (Progress+Screenshots), New Endboss in progress
Hello C.Q.C. Zombie hunters out there,
I think it is time to give you another update on the development process of the game.
Urban Suburbs
In the last weeks we worked hard to finish the level design of the most complex co-op map we did so far. There are just some minor functionality features which need to be implemented in the upcoming week and some tweaks we need to do for the cutscenes, but we are almost ready to release this map in our next big update.
New Endboss
We also started working on a new end boss for the Urban Suburbs map which will also be done most likely at the end of next week. We will give you an update as soon as we know when the patch for this boss and the map is ready.
Screenshots
Enough said, here is what you have been waiting for: some visual impressions of the new map.
Dev-Progress: New map (in progress), Engine update
Hello friends of C.Q.C.
today we have a quick update on the development process and together with that some promised eye candy for you ;-)
Engine update
We finally managed to take some time to upgrade the Unreal Engine from version 4.20 to 4.21. This comes with some improvements of the performance in general together with some new tools and features we can work with. The engine update will be released together with the new map once it is finished, which leads to the next topic.
New map
We are currently working to get the new co-op map ready for you. A rough estimation for the release of it will be around 2 to 3 weeks. The setting of the new map is a huge city together with a park. It is called UrbanSuburbs which takes place between the BloodyIsland and the BalsamRetirements map. As promised, here are some screenshots of the park area:
Dev-Blog #6: About the release, next features, new logo, Dev-Blog
Hello friends of CQC,
in this weeks Dev-Blog I want to update you about the next features we are working on, the Dev-Blog Articles itself and some words regarding the release this week.
The Release
Thanks to all the gamers out there who support us in this early stage of development. It's really not easy generating sales with almost no marketing budget. So for those of you who already bought the game I have to say "Thank you!" in the name of the whole RecklessGames team. Without you we couldn't go on with the development process.
The sales numbers itself for the first week were a manageable amount which doesn't prevent us from investing even more time in the product to deliver the best outcome possible for the final release.
New Logo
Our graphics guy took the time during release to improve our logo and created some nice assets for the store. Our new C.Q.C. logo will look like this:
Next features
Now to the interesting part. What are we implementing next?
Besides the obvious stuff like fixing bugs all the time we are currently working on one of the new maps. I can't give you many details about it right now but stay tuned for more info and maybe some eye candy ;-)
Besides the map we are also planning the next characters which will be a playable male & female char. The design isn't quite ready yet, so we will reveal them when the time comes.
Those will be the main features we are working on for the upcoming weeks and we will keep you updated about the process which leads to my next point.
Dev-Blog articles
We have decided to focus as much on the content creation as we could. Therefore, we won't invest much time in other topics like the Dev-Blog articles for example. Which means that those articles won't be posted weekly anymore, instead those will be replaced with Patch Notes.
So you will get all the important information in the Patch Notes from now on.
C.Q.C. has been released!
After two years of development i am proud to say this sentence:
!!!WE ARE LIVE NOW!!!
Do the C.Q.C. dance!
Dev-Blog #5: Native widescreen support, Boss AI, PvP adjustments
Hey gamers,
in this weeks Dev-Blog Article we will keep you up to date with our development process of C.Q.C. with following hot topics: native widescreen support, Boss AI, PvP adjustments. Have fun reading!
Native Widescreen Support
To improve game experience further we wanted to make sure to support most of the resolutions used by gaming monitors. Means: besides the commonly used 16:9 ratio of various screens we also want to support ratios like 21:9 for example.
The Unreal Engine 4 does already a good job when it comes to different resolutions and ratios but for most of the games or specific views within games you will experience an annoying fisheye effect with higher ratios. And especially in games where you can play with up to 4 players you have at least one player which view is stretched or cut on the left/right.
To avoid that we implemented a mechanic in the game which adjusts the camera automatically based on the screen resolution and monitor ratio. With that feature we managed to get rid of the fisheye effect for most of the resolutions/ratios which are used in gaming. We hope to get more feedback on this once the game has been released in Early Access.
Boss AI
During the last week we did several improvements on the boss AI. In detail, we did following changes:
Rework of the animation Blueprint across all bosses
Added additional behaviors for the Drylands map boss
Fixed some issues regarding animations which weren't triggered properly
Those changes lead to a more natural behavior of the AI during the boss fights. Our current plan is now to monitor those changes and improve the AI and the bosses itself further when we get feedback from you guys during Early Access.
PvP Adjustments
For PvP mode we used quite large arrows to show the location of your opponents. We had a closer look at it and decided to change this a bit. We replaced the huge arrows with smaller arrows which rotate around the character instead of pointing from within the character to your opponent. With this improvement the arrows don't hide much of the actual environment and gameplay anymore and feel much more lightweight than before.
Some personal words
We received a lot of positive feedback during the last weeks when we got in contact with the press and you the gamers. Thank you all for showing so much interest in the game. I hope you are still as excited about the upcoming release as we are.
Press Release: RecklessGames goes back to the roots with its new couch co-op/PvP shooter Close Quarters Combat
C.Q.C. brings back the old school feeling of playing together with your friends at one PC in a modern setting
Karlsruhe, Germany – January 13, 2019 – Indie game developer RecklessGames announced today that their top-down-shooter (TDS), C.Q.C. – Close Quarters Combat, will have its Early Access release for PC players on Steam on the 28th of January. In this action-packed and fun shooter you fight together with your friends against hordes of zombies while you complete objectives to get out of the zombie infested areas. Close Quarters Combat also provides a player versus player (PvP) mode with a variety of maps where you have to stand your ground against three other players in a local split screen match.
“It is time to bring back the old school feeling of games where you have to sit together with your friends and have an awesome time together while playing a fun and compelling game on one PC.” – David Magenheim, RecklessGames
At launch C.Q.C. – Close Quarters Combat provides a variety of maps divided in four settings: forest, desert, city and island. Each setting has its own co-op and PvP map. The co-op maps are quite large and you have to complete objectives in order to get to the next sector and to finally beat a boss on each map to escape the zombie infested area. The PvP maps are smaller and are designed to have a fun competitive experience for up to four players. In each map you are able to choose your player from six different unique characters and equip them from a selection of four different weapons. In PvP mode you are able to select, dependent on your character, a special skill which grants you an advantage during gameplay for a short period of time. The skills reach from a higher fire rate over increased speed to a health boost. The co-op mode comes also with a special feature: here you are able to get materials from beaten bosses and zombies with which you can upgrade your weapon stats like the fire rate or reload time. Higher weapon levels come also with a different look like various weapon camos and different weapon attachments. Once your guns are upgraded you are able to master higher difficulties where you gain better materials to improve the weapons even further. This leads to a numerous replayability of the co-op maps.
Additionally to all those features, Close Quarters Combat provides a full controller support with up to four players. Here you are able to switch seamlessly between Keyboard/Mouse controls and/or the controller. With this feature set C.Q.C. provides exactly what top-down shooter fans and couch co-op enthusiasts like and love: a well-tried game in a modern style which can be played alone and with friends.
So what are you waiting for? Add the game to your wishlist and get a 30% discount on Early Access release day.
Dev-Blog #4: animation and general improvement for weapons and maps, new menu option and some words to all of you
Ho ho ho to all of you,
in our last Dev-Blog article for this year I will be talking about some changes I did for various animations, improvements for weapon unlocks and changements I did for various maps to improve gameplay and graphics in general. To wrap things up for this year I have some kind words for all of you at the end of this article. Have fun reading!
Weapon improvements
The weapons had several balancing problems and some animations were just implemented as placeholders, especially the reload animations. So we did some improvements for the animations together with some balancing adjustments for the SMG and for the Assault Rifles. The pumpgun got a complete overhaul regarding the animations and some massive balancing changes to the base weapon and all levels from 1 to 10.
Here are the changes in detail:
Weapon AR-15
Reduced the damage of the weapon slightly that it fits better to the fire rate.
Increased the bullet spread of the weapon on lower levels to make it a bit less accurate.
Adjusted the weight of the physics actor.
Weapon AR-33
Replaced placeholder animation with a proper animation for the reloading and the shooting animation.
Increased the base speed of the reload animation to improve the reload time.
Increased the fire rate for mid to high level weapons a bit.
Did some collision adjustments for the magazine because it was falling through the floor in several buildings and when mag has been dropped on different meshes.
Weapon SMG
Increased the fire rate for the base weapon and for levels 1 to 10.
Adjusted the reload animation (just for visual improvement).
Increased the magazine size together with a higher fire rate and less accuracy for all levels of the weapon.
Weapon Pumpgun
Improved the whole reload mechanic together with the corresponding animations: each shell can be loaded separately now. With that changement the player is able to reload to the full ammo capacity no matter if there are shells left or not. Before those changes you had to reach an ammo count of 0 to be able to reload the pumpgun.
The reload time has also slightly been decreased for all levels and the base weapon in order to reload faster during combat.
Increased the damage for each bullet to get a better balancing compared to the automatic weapons.
Adjusted the amount of projectiles shot for mid to high levels.
Changes for the bullet spread for each projectile across all levels.
New menu option: use upgraded weapons for PvP
With this option you are able to use upgraded weapons in PvP mode. When it is enabled the system will check the upgrade level for each weapon to find the max upgrade level. This max upgrade level will be applied to all weapons used in the match in order to have a proper balancing in PvP mode.
For example: when you have an AR-15 of level 6 and an SMG of level 4, the system will give all players the weapon of their choice with level 6.
For the best balancing we still recommend to not use upgraded weapons in PvP mode because of balancing reasons. You will have the best game experience when using the base weapons.
Map changes
During our weekly playtests we have seen some minor issues regarding all the co-op maps which needed some improvements for a better gameplay. Most of the issues were related to pathfinding and collision.
In detail we did following changements:
Map Drylands
Deleted and moved some foliage meshes to improve navigation mesh which results in a better navigation for the AI in co-op mode.
Improved some passages (made them bigger) to have more space to avoid enemy attacks.
Map Balsam Retirements
Improved various meshes for better bullet and navigation collisions.
Changed collision channels to fix problems with overlapping events (bullets flew through some objects and desctructible meshes didn't collide properly).
Changed several physics materials for a more realistic look and feel.
Map Bloody Island
Changed the nav mesh resolution for a better pathfinding.
Improved the lodge meshes in the small village because of gameplay and pathfinding issues.
Adjusted the location of several meshes because the player could get stuck behind them.
Map Deep in the Woods
Adjusted the UV maps for some meshes because of shadow rendering issues.
Deleted and moved some meshes and foliage for better pathfinding on the nav mesh.
Thank you!
I think in the last dev-blog article for this year it is time to say: THANK YOU! To all of you who are interested in this product and supported me and my company in the last years. It was a rough year and the time was running much faster than we thought it would, but we are very proud to say that C.Q.C. is ready for Early Access in January. We hope you like it and look forward to the release just as we do.
The next dev-blog article will be posted in two weeks due to some days we will take off in the upcoming days to recover some energy which we will need for the release month :-)
With that said we wish all of you a nice Christmas and a happy new year!
Dev-Blog #3: UI improvement, weapon attachments & current state of the game
Hello fellow players,
this weeks dev-blog is all about UI improvements, weapon attachments, a short update of the current state of the game and the release date and some other information. For each topic I'll share some graphics and screenshots so enjoy reading.
UI improvements - Main Menu & Ingame Menu
I've redone the whole Main Menu to improve usability and the overall navigation. This means in detail:
Buttons, dropdowns, etc. are only highlighted when active which helps the controller users to know which menu point is currently selected.
Sub menu points can instantly be closed by hitting "B" on the controller. The user doesn't need to scroll to the top to get to the main menu points.
Dropdowns can be opened by pressing "A" on the controller and then select the options they want. Before you had to press left/right to switch between the different dropdown options. Now the usability is more intuitive.
Since left/right buttons on the controller aren't used anymore, I rebound them to jump to different menu points on the left/right which makes the menu navigation easier and faster.
The result of all those changemes is an intuitive usage of the main menu. The same changes have been made to the ingame menu. This screenshot shows the settings sub-menu ingame:
Weapon attachments
Enough from the menus now! Let's have a look at the weapon attachments.
When enough materials have been collected from zombie drops you are able to upgrade your weapons. Each weapon starts with level 0 and can be upgraded until max level 10. Each upgrade gives you better stats.
Currently following stats are implemented:
Amount of projectiles (for pumpgun only)
Accuracy
Reload time
Beside those stats: each weapon level has a special camo which will be unlocked and some levels will unlock an additional weapon attachment.
Here is a list of attachments which can be achieved:
Flashlight
Red Dot
Silencer (besides the appearance: changes the weapon sound)
More attachments and stats will be implemented after Early Access but the systems are in place and are ready to be improved further.
Here is an example of a level upgrade from an Assault Rifle with level 1 and level 4:
Current state of the game
During our playtests this week we could spot just a few more bugs which could be fixed quite fast, which means that we are very confident to release the Early Access version of C.Q.C. in the mid of January.
Reckless Games website & Twitter
Just a quick reminder regarding Twitter: make sure to follow @PlayReckless there to get short updates during the week.
You will also find news on our website https://www.playrecklessgames.com/ so drop by from time to time to get also the latest updates there.
This was it for today's dev-blog. I wish all of you a nice weekend and a great Christmas time. Cya next week!
Dev-Blog #2: HUD changements, bug fixes and upcoming tasks
Ladies and gentleman,
in this weeks dev-blog I will give you an update about what I did the past week, what I am working on next and the current issues which came up.
Past tasks from CW48/49
HUD changements Most of my working time was related to bug fixing in the past week, that's why I didn't have much time to improve the UI but I started with it and have a rough idea in which direction it should go. In a nutshell, lots of text will be removed and replaced with icons where possible. This results in having more space on the screen which leads to a more clearly UI.
Since I don't have some nice new interface to show I will drop for you a screenshot of the current UI just to have a comparison how it will look like when I'm done with the improvements.
Bug fixing We did a lot of play testing and found a lot of bugs during those sessions. Most of them were related to the co-op mode. Just to name a number: I fixed almost 150 bugs in the last week, yes you heard right 150! Most of them weren't critical but our goal is to deliver a smooth gameplay even at Early Access launch date.
Upcoming tasks for CW50
Since we found that large number of bugs we will have additional play tests this week just to make sure that those bugs are fixed and no new ones came up.
Besides that our plan to work on smooth loading transitions, weapon attachments and more graphic options has changed to following tasks on which we will work for the upcoming week:
Further play tests to make sure that the amount of bugs fixed didn't cause any new bugs.
UI improvements: new icons will be generated, text will be replaced with icons and some UI elements will be flattened.
Note that all to-dos are subject to change during the development process.
