Default Vambrace Power: Heal—Heals nearby scavengers upon impact.
Sawbones is a valuable team player who’s capable of rescuing fellow scavengers and quickly returning to safe grounds.
Whether she’s trying to reach an ally or to make her escape, Sawbones can rapidly travel across the garden and can promptly recover from her encounters with the hunter. Sawbones is also highly resistant to the hunter’s melee attacks.
[I]Early concept of Sawbones[/I]
Backstory concept art of Sawbones
“[I]No matter how much pain they cause you, how much misery they pile up on you, they only win if you give up.[/I]” — Aria “Sawbones” Vaughn
Stay tuned as we'll reveal more info on Sawbones in the next DG Insider.
Character Reveal: Ghost
Scavenger Reveal: Ghost
Default Vambrace Power: Invisibility—Upon impact, grants the invisibility status for a short duration to all nearby scavengers.
Ghost is a stealthy scavenger, who excels at moving unnoticed. His sharp survival instincts grant him superior navigational skills and map awareness.
He’s an indispensable ally who provides scavengers with extra bolts at the start of a match.
Early concept of Ghost
Backstory Concept art of Ghost "I was part of the Enclaves, one of the chosen few. But I believe that everyone has a right to Humanity’s riches. And so, I choose to fight until I draw my last breath." – Yani "Ghost" Amini
Don’t forget to tune in for our third DG Insider episode on Youtube. We’ll unveil more information about our latest characters, the Stalker, Inked, and Ghost.
Character Reveal: Inked
Scavenger Reveal: Inked
Default Vambrace Power:Shield — Provides a shield to all nearby scavengers upon impact.
Inked is a battle-hardened scavenger. She’s not one to shy away from challenges and isn’t afraid of soaking up a few bullets in the garden.
Her strength and ability to find hiding in higher places allows her to save herself and survive. She’s now ready to face the hunters.
Early concept of Inked
Backstory concept art of Inked "I had no choice but to enter the garden—to hide my secrets in the only place where my enemies wouldn’t follow." – Aiswarya "Inked" Kumaran
Be sure to follow us on Youtube. We'll have footage of Inked in our upcoming DG insider video, so don't miss out!
Character Reveal: the Stalker
Hunter Reveal: the Stalker
The Stalker enters the garden!
Default hunter power: Fade—the hunter becomes invisible for a short duration
Default loadout: Sniper rifle and burst rifle
The Stalker lurks in the shadows, imperceptible to those who enter the garden. This sharp-eyed hunter will lie in wait patiently for that perfect, savage moment.
The Stalker is a methodical hunter; she’s equipped to accurately eliminate her targets from afar or to effectively take down scavengers at point blank.
Early concept of the Stalker
Backstory Concept art of the Stalker
"A single, well-placed shot can change the world." – Eve "the Stalker" Barnes
Next week, we’ll reveal two new characters. Check back here regularly or, if you don’t already, follow us on Twitter & Facebook to stay up to date on the latest Deathgarden news!
Cheers,
The Deathgarden Dev Team
Character Reveal: The Inquisitor
Hunter Reveal: The Inquisitor
Last week, we talked about our character lineup, which we’ve been working on these past few months. We also introduced Fog, the first scavenger to join Deathgarden’s roster. Today, we’d like to present you our first hunter, the Inquisitor.
Default hunter power: Turrets—Places up to two heat-sensitive turrets that shoot nearby scavengers.
Default loadout—Assault rifle and shotgun
The Inquisitor is a cunning hunter capable of forcing scavengers out of hiding. He feeds off the fear of those who dare to oppose him, relishing in his preys’ suffering.
The Inquisitor is symbiotic with the garden and moves efficiently around his arena.
Early concept of The Inquisitor
Backstory concept art of The Inquisitor “Make your own glory through their destruction.” — Tomás Guerra
Stay tuned for more character reveals. Next week, we’ll share some more content about Fog and the Inquisitor.
Dev Update
Over the past few weeks, we’ve been testing new features and mechanics with a few community members. Today we wanted to give you a small progress update on the game’s development.
Individuality & End-of-Game Scenarios
In the new iteration of the game, we’ve replaced team-based objectives with more personal goals. In other words, scavengers no longer depend on one another to achieve victory.
The removal of team-based objectives, however, required that we tweak the end-of-game conditions. The hunter still ends the game upon eliminating the final scavenger. However, the Exits open after a set amount of time. As you’ll discover, this end-of-game scenario further reinforces Deathgarden’s new individualistic game loop. While hunter may execute several scavengers, some may be lucky enough to make it out alive.
Exploring New Hunter Map Control Mechanics
One of our main objectives in the new iteration of the game is to ensure that scavengers truly fear the hunter. This, in effect, is paramount to the integrity of our darker and more brutal fantasy. To achieve this goal, we started by removing the scavengers’ conflictual bow powers. While this was a step in the right direction, we wanted to push this idea further.
We’ve been experimenting with a new Hunter map control tools because we truly want hunters to feel like they can dominate their arena. The feature isn’t final yet, but it should lead to tense, exciting match moments; scavengers might be able to escape the hunter, but they may find themselves running out of places to hide as the match progresses.
Naturally, if we’re giving hunters new tools to force their prey out of hiding, we need to give scavengers additional means for escaping.
Scavengers have always depended on their high mobility and ninja-esque gameplay to outmaneuver the hunter. Now that we’ve removed their conflictual powers, they rely on their navigational skills more than ever. Consequently, we’ve been working on new structure models for our agile contenders to scale. Breaking the Hunter’s line of sight is critical to the scavengers’ survival.
Not only do these structures help us capitalize on the scavengers’ exciting navigation-oriented gameplay, they also give more flavour and character to Deathgarden’s maps.
We’ll be sharing you more information about the development progress in the weeks to come. In the meantime, we wish you all the best.
Cheers,
The Deathgarden Dev Team
Character Reveal: Fog
8 UNIQUE CHARACTERS
Over the past few months, our designers, artists, and animators have been working hard on shaping Deathgarden’s character roster. As previously mentioned, one of our main goals moving forward is to create unique, meaningful characters to help us drive our new fantasy. And so, we’re pleased to announce that, over the next few weeks, we’ll reveal our character lineup, which will be comprised of 3 hunters and 5 scavengers.
FROM RUNNER TO SCAVENGER
We’ve replaced the term “runner” with that of “scavenger.” We believe that the term scavenger is more in line with the new gameplay loop and fantasy. The characters still run within the Garden (very much so), but their reason for entering the arena has changed; we’ll have more information on that in a subsequent, gameplay-related article!
WHAT IS A UNIQUE CHARACTER?
Each character, hunter and scavenger alike, has:
–Special Powers
–Perks
–A combination of Weapons (hunter)
–A character-based progression
–Character-specific bonuses/passive skills (new feature)
–A distinct aesthetic
–A unique backstory (i.e., a reason for partaking in this violent trial of blood)
Every character possesses a limited set of powers, perks, and weapons, which you can mix and match to create your own loadout. As you play with a specific character, you’ll improve their abilities, unlock additional powers, perks, and weapons, and, eventually, unlock new characters.
We do need to mention, though, that some character-related elements may change as we move closer to releasing Deathgarden’s major update later in spring.
INTRODUCING OUR FIRST SCAVENGER: FOG
Default Vambrace Power: Smoke Screen – Upon impact, the bolt rapidly creates a dense smoke screen.
Fog is a fearless, resilient scavenger. His toolkit allows him to effectively take down Constructs and cleverly escape the hunter's grasp.
Early concept of Fog's smoke screen
Backstory Concept Art "When the world fell, I fell with it. When the hunters took control of the Enclaves, I tried to tear them down. Now, I subject myself to their twisted game." – Iosif Blatov, "Fog"
Stay tuned for more information on Deathgarden's characters!
Best,
The Deathgarden Dev Team
Rethinking Deathgarden's Core Experience
Over the past few weeks, we’ve hinted at our next steps and at the future of the game. Today, we’re pleased to announce that we’re rebuilding Deathgarden’s core experience. The new gameplay elements we’re introducing will allow us to realign the game with what we’d originally envisioned; we want Runners to have a tense but exhilarating experience and want Hunters to feel powerful and utterly unstoppable.
Deathgarden is no longer a glorious sport—it’s a trial of unnatural selection.
A Battle for Resources
In the Garden, your objective is to collect as many resources as possible. The resources you successfully secure during the match will allow you to upgrade your characters’ abilities after the match (persistent upgrade on the character). This applies to both Hunter and Runner players.
Runners must locate and collect resources found within the Arena. To secure resources, Runners must deposit any resource they've collected at “resource banks.” On the other hand, the Hunter is rewarded by eliminating Runners and preventing them from collecting resources.
Bloodpost Removal
We’ve made several significant changes to Deathgarden’s gameplay. The first major change is the removal of the Bloodpost. The Hunter’s gameplay now focuses much more on the tracking and killing of Runners.
We wanted Hunters to be and feel unstoppable and make them feel in control of the arena. Therefore, we removed a major element that would force them to disengage from a chase (something that is enjoyable/exciting for Runners and Hunters).
One Life
The second major change is that each Runner possesses one life. Runners must now adopt a stealthier playstyle if they are to survive the trial and gather as many resources as possible. It increases tension for the Runners and makes killing Runners feel more rewarding for the Hunter.
Survival Vambrace Powers
In addition to this change, Runners now rely on “defensive” or “survival” Vambrace powers instead of offensive ones. In other words, we’ve removed all directly confrontational Vambrace powers (Stun, Blind, Slow, etc.) and replaced these with new tactical powers. (There are several new powers, which we’ll unveil in the weeks/months to come). We are still iterating on those to figure out which ones are most enjoyable and useful. This change further reinforces the fact that the Hunters are an utterly unstoppable force and that Runners are nimble escape artists.
Individual Rewards and Scoring
The final and perhaps most important change is that Runners will now adopt a more individualistic playstyle. While we’re not removing teamplay from their core experience (we will reward Runners for completing actions that benefit their team), Runners are now rewarded for what they accomplish within the Garden and awarded only what they manage to take out of the Garden.
If one Runner is carrying a set amount of resources and they see a downed ally, they’ll think twice before attempting to rescue their friend. Should the Hunter also “down” the Runner carrying resources, that Runner will lose everything he or she carries. As for the Hunter, they will be rewarded for all Runner kills.
In short, everything you accomplish in the Garden, (deliver resources, rescue Runners, down Runners, etc.) grants you XP and, ultimately, the resources you’ll need to further your characters’ progression.
A Different Balancing Mindset
On several occasions, we’ve mentioned that, in our initial vision, the Hunter was a brutal and unstoppable force. The new gameplay experience allows us to realize this fantasy. It lets us balance the game around the notions of tension and brutality rather than around those of agility and strength. The Runners and Hunter are no longer in a direct competition—everyone strives to complete the match with as many resources as possible. This means that more players should come out of the match feeling rewarded. Realigning our direction also gives us freedom as to how far we can push the asymmetry of power and experience for Hunters and Runners.
Ensuring Coherence Between Gameplay and Fantasy
We sincerely believe that the changes we’re making will ensure a strong coherence between gameplay and fantasy. Rethinking Hunter and Runner power dynamics allows us to transform Deathgarden into a much more enticing and heart-pounding experience.
Runners, will you become lone wolves, or will you work together in the face of the unstoppable Hunter? Hunters, will you allow those Runners to survive your onslaught.
November Transition Patch
OVERALL DESIGN INTENT:
SOFT WIN CONDITIONS
RUNNER HEALTH BARS (from the Hunter’s perspective)
HUNTER
RUNNER
GATHER & DELIVER OBJECTIVE TYPE
PREFERRED SERVER QUEUE
November Transition Patch
Next week, we'll be releasing a “transition” patch. While the changes we’re making might seem small at a first glance (or even surprising), they’re the first step towards Deathgarden’s new/realigned vision. In other words, we’re introducing some elements that are part of a bigger whole.
NEW VICTORY CONDITIONS
One of our main tasks moving forward is the redesigning and rethinking of Deathgarden’s victory conditions—what it means to ‘win’ a match. Our initial philosophy was that Runners should win as a team or lose as a team. Runners would be victorious if and only if they manage to complete all objectives and escape the Garden. On the other hand, the Hunter should win if and only if they wipe out enough Runners.
Our new philosophy, however, puts much more emphasis on the individual player. Runners are still part of a team, but they’re also individuals with personal goals and a will to survive.
When the November patch goes live, matches will no longer end immediately upon three Runner deaths or three Runner escapes. If the Hunter kills three Runners, the two remaining Runners will have the chance to escape the Garden with their lives and reap a small reward (more information on that in future articles). Similarly, if the Runner team successfully captures the objectives and three Runners escape, the Hunter will have the opportunity to get additional kills. Ultimately, we want to reduce the reliance on teamplay and better reward your individual actions.
We’re confident that these changes will change the feeling of Hunter and Runner defeats and, as you’ll discover in future articles, we believe that they’ll make for a much more meaningful and satisfying Deathgarden experience.
NEW TALLY SCREEN
In addition to altering the game’s victory conditions, we’re introducing the first iteration of the new tally screen. After each match, players will be able to measure their individual performance in the garden and will be given a score. Keep in mind that this tally screen will become more meaningful further down the line.
FEAR THE HUNTER
In next week’s patch, we’ll also implement some changes that will make Runners think twice before taking the Hunter head-on! You’ll find out more in next week’s patch notes.
NEW WEAPONS, PERKS, AND ATMOSPHERE
Over the past few weeks, we’ve been sharing with you concepts of our new art direction. This week, we even showed you a glimpse of our new in-game atmosphere. We’re happy to announce that we’ve implemented new ‘Weather Conditions’ in the November patch.
We’re also adding in a new Hunter weapon and new perks. Although these might change in future updates, we’ve decided to nonetheless release the content we’ve been working on since entering Early Access.
As mentioned above, this patch is a first step in the new direction. While the changes we’re implementing next week might seem small, they’re making way for our next patch, which should be much more significant.
Stay tuned for more information in upcoming communications.
