Empyrean Frontier
Update 22: 8/26/18
This update adds a variety of voice effects for unit selection, move orders, and attack orders, as well as notifications for important events (base under attack, construction complete, mission accomplished, etc.)
Additional notes:
-added new sound effects and volume sliders for unit vocals and notifications
-fixed player spawn position in the first miniboss node
I wanted to push this small update out before release because I felt that having the extra vocal effects really improves the gameplay experience (I'm going to be sending out a bunch of press/youtube codes now so it's important to give the best impression.)
Previous Update: https://steamcommunity.com/games/586920/announcements/detail/1698307655598532406
Update 21: 8/22/18
Empyrean Frontier is now scheduled to leave early access on August 31st. The price has also been reduced from $19.99 USD to $11.99 and will remain at that price after the full release.
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This update adds the last of the corporate bosses and contains the full campaign except for the final imperial boss. The campaign lasts for 6 Zones with pirate bosses for the first 3, corporate bosses for the next 2 and the final node of the final Zone will be the imperial boss. In each zone, standard nodes have a pool of 59 possible scenarios to randomly select from, with different node types (base vs no base; neutral, pirate, or corporate owned) having different (and sometimes overlapping) sets of possible missions. These nodes range from tactical fleet vs fleet battles to heavily scripted missions and base building skirmishes. In addition to the random selection of nodes, there are 7 possible boss battles, 3 miniboss battles, and 3 enemy stronghold skirmishes that are found at quest markers (!) on the map.
Each Zone now includes 3 quests: the faction boss at the end of the zone, a miniboss in a random node, and a base building skirmish mission in a random node. These quests also involve the other factions, as the player can get additional reinforcements and rewards from whichever faction they have the best positive relationship with. Each zone contains a different (and increasingly difficult) version of the boss fight and base building skirmish.
Additionally, the player's flagship will now be replaced at the start of the next zone if it is ever destroyed. The replacement however will always be the cheapest flagship model, regardless of which flagship model the player started with.
Patch Notes:
-implemented the tech corp along with a boss fight node
-added 3 miniboss nodes and 3 stronghold skirmish nodes
-added tech corp to all missions with random faction selection
-the first use of each flagship ability module in each node now costs 0 energy
-added 3 new ability modules: damage boost, armor boost, damage debuff
-cluster missile flagship modules are now usable by the player
-campaign nodes are less likely to repeat within the previous 7 nodes
-added 3 additional campaign node scenarios
-fixed problem where projectiles that hit multiple targets were not colliding with all intended asteroids and scrap
-fixed problem where projectiles that hit multiple targets were not colliding with all intended members of a group object
-area markers can now have dynamic sizes and can be set to show only on the minimap (used in tech corp boss fight)
-added white highlight effects and "Boss Invulnerability" messages to the armor stages for the corsair's bastion boss fight
-flagship modules in campaign node pre-battle screens are shown when appropriate (only when the player can't select which units they want, to avoid confusion)
-aggressive units will no longer attack fleet portals
-fixed error where flagship modules would be invisible in the campaign setup screen after leaving a campaign with a different flagship (not the first model)
-camera move triggers can now be set to follow units
-fixed some incorrect fighter and frigate build times
-2 abandoned base missions in neutral base nodes now have a repair only store after successful completion
-harvesters are no longer selected by box selecting if non-harvester units are also being selected (to avoid accidentally giving them orders along with combat units)
-significantly improved performance of maps with many separate scrap fields (tends to happen in late game skirmishes)
-fixed problem where scrap turrets could be prevented from collecting resources if mining rate was too low or framerate was too high.
-skirmish "all buildings destroyed" victory condition now excludes capturable scrap turrets
-in the campaign map, nodes can now be "pirate" or "corporate" owned, affecting which factions are likely to appear
-fixed problem where node owners were being reset when the player first moved to it (this prevented the allied station node from ever being reached, along with other nodes which were modified in the second phase of map generation)
-fixed issue where some damage upgrades were not being applied
-increased damage of flagship module cluster missiles from 1000 per missile to 1500 per missile
-fixed rare crash related to fighter move orders
-Corporate Zones 1 and 2 and the Imperial Zone are now correctly named
-the shipyard corp boss now displays the correct intro messages
-supply cap for corp boss nodes changed from 750 to 500
-renamed the plasma ability module to "plasma gun 1" to avoid confusion with the weapon module "plasma cannon 1"
-heavy cruisers can no longer be added to the fleet in the campaign setup menu
-campaign starting credits are now increased by the number of unlocked flagships and the number of zones cleared in the previous attempt
-reduced size of regular nodes to 2/3 of star node (end of zone boss), and reduced base nodes and fleet symbols to 75% of star node
-updated quest marker texture
-quest marker for currently selected quest is now larger than non-selected quests
-reduced ore gained from the after battle screen in the campaign
-resource gain from the after battle screen is further reduced in higher difficulty levels
-in the split fleet node, the AI will now always attack correctly in both grids
-fixed potential memory overflow crash
-lowered income from trade fleets in solar system game mode
-fixed bug where trade fleets in solar system games couldn't be attacked
Further notes on the Price Change:
I had intended to keep the original price at $20 USD and I have tried to make a game worthy of that price, however it really wasn't selling very well so something had to change. At $12 the game is priced more competitively for an indie game and should be an even better value. At this point, even if the game isn't a financial success I'd like at least for more people to be able to play it.
Update 20: 7/10/18
-added new mouse-over panels to all persistent fleet lists in the campaign, showing the unit's portrait, a short description ex: "strong vs fighters" and a list of any special upgrades
-units with special buffs will have a purple arrow icon visible above their healthbars, unit upgrades are displayed in the Buffs panel
-added 4 new campaign missions
-at the start of each new campaign Zone, the player receives 2 special upgrades to random units in their fleet
-certain missions can now award special upgrades or unlock techs
-rebalanced income rates in fleet conquest skirmishes
-rebalanced veterancy level 3 damage bonuses for shotgun and Gatling laser frigates
-fixed potential crash when tier 2 or 3 technologies were researched
-fixed potential crash when Command Centers in newly created maps collided with units or moons (could happen in planet battle in fleet conquest skirmishes)
-fixed bug where the player would stop being able to add or sell modules in the campaign's flagship panel
-fixed bug where the "attack right" button wasn't working for union cruisers
-fixed bug where the frigateDamage3 buff icon was appearing when frigateDamage2 was unlocked
https://youtu.be/ncwvqeL1EQE
The main thing in this update is to add the special unit buffs, which provide an additional way of increasing the potency of the player's fleet without simply adding more units. These buffs are also available in regular skirmish games via random crates (the collection method is similar to the Command and Conquer games.)
The addition of the new mouse over panels in the campaign menu was also an important addition, as it lets new players know at a glance what each of the units in their fleet looks like and what its general role in battle is.
I also made some changes to the income rate from territory in the Fleet Conquest skirmish mode to reduce the problem of snowballing incomes in the late game. I haven't done much with that mode lately as the campaign has more or less replaced its role as the longer term repayable game mode with persistent fleets. The campaign seems to be the more well liked mode in general, but I want to make sure all of the current game modes are as fun as possible.
Update 19: 6/18/18
-added 6 additional campaign missions with multiple map and faction combinations
-added new skirmish map
-both corporate faction boss fights are now in the boss rush mode
-new map type: planetary map. These are cloud covered maps with gravity and platforms to catch falling debris
-added new "faction info" button to campaign dialogue screens featuring an enemy faction's portrait
-fixed bug where move orders that had both a regular destination and a rotation destination weren't being removed when both results were reached (this caused an issue with some scripted Command Center movements in the campaign)
-the AI will now upgrade cruisers with weapon modules and the skirmish AI will build cruisers and other T3 units on normal and hard difficulty
-adjusted Wreckers League boss battle to add a slow effect to the boss when ship shredders are active and reduce the production rate on easy and normal difficulty
This update adds the 2nd corporate opponent and boss fight to the campaign (the 6th overall.) I still have a few things to change, including the faction portrait, which will be changed in a future update.
(here's a video of me playing through this boss fight on normal difficulty)
https://youtu.be/3vhRZL7K1r8
The new map type which includes the boss fight and a new skirmish map should add some additional variety to the game. These "planetary" maps take place high in the atmosphere of a large planet and unlike the space maps, scrap metal from destroyed ships will simply fall to the surface, rather than floating around where the ship was destroyed. Large buildings with flat platforms will catch any falling debris, so it is good to fight above them if you wish to collect any scrap after the battle. I've had this idea for a cloud map for a while, but this update finally adds them to the public build. It took a while to get the shaders for the clouds and buildings working properly (making the cloud layers appear to have real volume and making the buildings fade into the clouds below) but while I was working on that I managed to find some optimizations to the way regular units are drawn as well.
I've gotten feedback that the player's relationships with the other factions is one of the more interesting parts of the game so I've been trying to focus on making that an even bigger part of the campaign. Among the new missions, I've added 3 where the player chooses between 2 enemy fleets that can have any combination of factions. Each faction will have a fleet makeup and reward that is customized to fit with that faction's strengths. I've also edited some of the old missions to have better rewards and add in additional possible factions.
Additional Notes:
My next step is to complete the last additional corporate faction/boss and then the final Imperial boss fight. I'm close enough to the end that I can say that the final release date should be within a few weeks of the end of the summer sale (I'll also be putting the game on sale to try and get some players before it comes out.) That will give me time to finish the rest of the campaign, make a new trailer, and try to do some marketing.
Update 18: 5/9/18
-added 2 new frigate unit abilities (EMP Missile and Smash)
-added a new panel in the units selection bar which shows all current upgrades and buffs/debuffs for the selected units
-persistent tech upgrades can now be unlocked in the rogue fleet campaign through the new "Techs" tab
-added campaign meta-progression where completing zones increases the number of starting techs for the next playthrough
-the player can now select enemy units to see their unit type/health/short description as well as any upgrades or buffs/debuffs they have
-added a new variation of the miner hunt scenario
-added faction effect and increased the time between waves on the miners hunt campaign scenario
-added area markers to the asteroid belt in the miners hunt campaign scenario
-the Robotic Mining Corp faction boss is now also available in the Arcade Boss Rush mode
-Rockets will now correctly track "drive by targets" (note: this is an existing feature which means when a unit is given a regular move order then a queued (shift) attack order afterwards - it will prioritize attacking the targeted unit if it is in range while moving to its primary destination)
-group object icons are now more accurately drawn over the unit's center (for selection and targeting purposes)
-improved enemy AI in maps with multiple unconnected map grids
-queue move formation orders can now be accurately given even without use of the formation hotkey
-fixed issue where rotation orders were inappropriately being removed for non-player units (when assigned by triggers in the campaign)
-fixed issue where rotation orders were being cleared when the game was paused then unpaused
-fixed bug where cruiser "sell module" buttons could be clicked when invisible
-fixed rare bug where units could become invisible
-fixed bug where flagship refineries would collect resources too slowly during high game speed/low framerate
-fixed bug where the next zone wouldn't start if the player used the number keys to select the last dialogue option after defeating a campaign boss
-added additional check to prevent the game window from starting partially off-screen when launching in fullscreen mode
-fixed issue where some units could continue firing at captured units that have recently changed owners
-fixed issue where the FTL missile would activate at inconsistent distances
-FTL missile trail particles are now always visible regardless of view distance
-units will can no longer be accidentally selected by left clicking while targeting abilities are being issued
-fixed issue where the mouse's scroll wheel and the up and down arrow buttons for scroll panels wouldn't work when the game was paused
Additional Notes:
Tech upgrades are one of the features I've been planning for a long time and I've finally added in the new systems in this update. Like most of the recent updates, the tech system was heavily influenced by the design needs of the campaign. In the campaign screen, in addition to having a fleet of units and flagship modules, the player can also gain persistent techs during the course of the campaign that will make their fleet more powerful.
In keeping with the convention of faction differences, the Imperial and Union factions also have different types of basic upgrades. The Union's basic damage upgrades are differentiated by unit class (fighter, frigate, cruiser) while the Empire's basic damage upgrades are separated into 3 main weapon types. In addition to providing a different kind of strategic decision for each faction, this allows us to simply double up damage upgrades in the campaign. (Normally, a Union player cannot research Imperial tech and vice versa, but in the rogue fleet campaign, the player can be granted Imperial techs as a possible reward for defeating bosses.)
There is also now a form of meta-progression to the campaign. Each time the player starts a new campaign, they will have additional bonus starting techs based on the number of zones cleared in the previous campaign. I am wary of adding too much meta-progression, but the extra bonus techs are meant to be a nice consolation prize for an unsuccessful play through. The campaign is still designed to be something that can be completed on the first run with good play.
Ability Upgrades are another related feature that I added in this update. So far, there are 7 already implemented abilities (not counting those granted by flagship abilities.) Part of the work behind the scenes for this update involved re organizing the ability related code to make it easier to add new abilities in the next patches. In addition to adding new abilities to the Imperial units and some more of the higher tech Union units, I'll be bringing in some campaign specific abilities that are much more powerful (and probably more fun) than those available in standard skirmish mode. These techs will be unlocked by completing special missions and will generally be limited to a single unit in the player's fleet, making it very much overpowered compared to regular units.
Lastly, I'd like to note the new interface (the new button next to the health bars on the bottom bar switches between "unit info view" and "upgrades/buffs view") that allows the player to see the currently equipped tech upgrades and buffs or debuffs for all selected units. The current list of buffs/debuffs hasn't changed much in this patch, but the player can now see whether their units (or enemy units) have a speed buff or debuff or an armor buff or whether they have been weakened by tractor beams.
This is the last of the big new feature additions, for real this time. The remaining work is mostly adding content (more campaign missions, boss fights, and new techs/abilities) and polishing what's already there. I'm getting close to setting a final release date - it hasn't been decided yet, (it's hard to estimate these things, and the timing of the summer sale will probably have an effect on it) but for now the next few patches should start to come out with greater frequency.
Update 17: 3/21/18
-added 2 new campaign node types and modified or changed opening dialogue in several others
-Re-balanced campaign difficulty: each difficulty level now has the same starting resources, some mechanics are only active in normal or hard, enemy fleets size still increases faster in normal and hard, but now on certain nodes the enemy fleet will scale up even more or bring in different unit types to match the strength of the player's forces for that battle
-fixed stability of campaign save/load actions
-decreased size of campaign save files
-custom attacks, effects, and highlights can now be added to units in the campaign (primarily used in boss fights)
-super wave cannon effects are now always drawn regardless of view distance
-fixed bug where weapons would fire at already destroyed objects
-"gladiator" nodes no longer allow allied escort fleets
-improved collisions for cruisers and command centers
-units will no longer push allied units with higher push strength
-fixed potential crash when drawing formations with multiple lines when the first part was drawn without the formation hotkey
Additional Notes:
The first of the corporate factions (uses the Imperial units and buildings) has now been added, which can be reached in the 4th zone of the campaign. The plan right now is to have the full rogue fleet campaign consist of 6 zones (3 frontier zones with pirate bosses, 2 corporate zones with corporate bosses, and 1 imperial zone with the final boss.) Subsequent corporate bosses also shouldn't take as long to implement since most of the new scripting work (adding in custom attacks and customizing the production AI in each particular level) is already implemented and I won't have to make a new 3d model for each boss (since they use the standard Command Center model.) Since they don't center on a single flagship, there's a bit more room to add in more complicated mechanics and more of the standard RTS base building gameplay into these levels.
Update 16: 2/3/18
-added borderless window mode, which can be set in the Options menu
-fixed potential crash involving fullscreen mode while multiple monitors are connected
-added new research menu
-added a new button in the bottom right corner of the screen for bringing up the research menu that is no longer dependent on having a Command Center or Command Ship
-updated tutorial 2 to refer to the new research menu and prevent the player from skipping to higher tech levels
-cruisers and command ships are now able to push smaller ships out of the way
-the Fire Hawks boss has a much more powerful version of this push effect during its charge attacks
-improved unit pathfinding and collision avoidance
-fixed potential crash during the campaign related to saving/loading
-fixed potential divide by 0 error with credit or ore spending
-various optimizations for better performance
Additional Notes:
The icons for the steam achievements are all the same image for now, although I plan to update them eventually. There are also a number of hidden achievements in the list of achievements; these are just placeholders for campaign related achievements that are not currently implemented. (It's not possible to re-order a game's achievements after they've been added, so I'll be updating these placeholders so the final display order will have related achievements next to each other and in the right order.)
I ended up spending a lot more time than I had hoped to working on the display and save/load bugs, but they seem to be fixed now. It's always possible that certain display configurations still have issues, I wasn't even aware of the fullscreen problem until I got a 3rd monitor which duplicates my main display.
I'm returning my focus to making more missions and bosses for the campaign, although I'll also be working on adding some new techs and unit abilities. With the new research menu, I'll be able to add techs more easily, it's just a matter of coming up with some relatively interesting upgrades and balancing everything. I'm also trying out adding special unlockable techs to the campaign, but I'm not 100% sure that'll end up in the final build.
Update 15: 1/17/18
-added automatic "setup fleet" and "clear fleet" buttons to the campaign setup menu (these allow the player to fill up their starting campaign fleet and flagship modules with 1 click - useful for new players who aren't sure which units to choose)
-units that aren't colony ships or fleets can now no longer be set to target allied or neutral planets or moons
-harvesters will now ignore targeted attack orders and attack move orders
-changed formation nodes list to a pool with a limited node count. This fixes a bug where drawing a formation line for a very long time could lead to a crash
-formation move orders drawn with just the right mouse button (no hotkey) will now properly add in intermediate nodes at the end of the drawing
-fixed bug where pressing the number keys during quest dialogue would also select the corresponding option for the regular node dialogue hidden below it
-changed spelling error in the tutorial node for the campaign
-fixed a possible crash that could occur when interacting with campaign nodes quickly after finishing a battle
-fixed bug where going from the main campaign setup screen directly to the tutorial campaign would keep the last currently selected flagship from the main campaign instead of using the Flagship 1 model that the tutorial is designed for
-allied units in the campaign battle menu will now correctly appear to be selected when there is a limited unit count
-in tutorial 1 the user can now skip the intro camera movements by pressing the escape key, also user input is disabled during the next 2 camera quick movements. Also the enemy fighters being spawned in have less health and shields to make the battle go faster.
-the player can also skip the camera intros in tutorials 2, 4, and 5
Some Additional Notes:
The "Boss Rush" mode as it exists right now, is designed to be a quick demo of the various bosses and at this point, it is useful for showing off some of the most interesting fights from the campaign. Eventually, (after the final launch) I'll probably require the player to beat these bosses during the regular campaign first, and the player will probably take a single persistent fleet from boss to boss, making it more of a proper "boss rush" mode.
The arcade mode will have additional modes when the game is finished, but for now that's a low priority. (For instance I already have a working variation on tower defense, however it's not available in the public builds of the game, as it is still relatively unpolished and when it comes to early access publicity, especially from streamers and youtubers, showing just that kind of extra arcade mode could give viewers the wrong impression of the game.)
I've recently discovered that there is a potential crash in this and other directx/XNA based games where the game cannot run in fullscreen mode if the user has a 3 monitor setup where monitor 3 is a duplicate of monitor 1. (It seems to be just this specific setup that doesn't work, not other 1, 2 or 3 monitor setups. I've been trying to find a solution, but for now, if this is your screen setup, I recommend disconnecting the duplicate monitor.)
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The next big item on my todo list is implementing the first steam achievements. I'll try to make these interesting, probably tied to milestones or special challenges in the campaign (defeating bosses, completing certain missions without losing units, or under a time limit, or other special accomplishments.)
Update 14: 12/25/17
-formation move orders can now be drawn simply by holding and dragging the right mouse button (formations split into multiple parts still require use of the formation hotkey)
-added new customizable hotkey commands for "select all units that match the currently selected types" "select all combat units" and "select all units"
-flagship modules and Command Ships are no longer displayed in the player's side of the pre-battle fleet unit list during the campaign
-the enemy side of the pre-battle fleet unit list now displays all enemy buildings and modules
-buildings and modules that aren't production buildings no longer have rally points
-the new flagship menu and some dialogue messages now allow right click orders to be issued through them
-cruisers given rotation orders will now turn to face the direction their main weapon direction is set
-rotation orders can now be given when the game is paused
-fixed bug where units would sometimes ignore non-player given move orders after getting a rotation order
-fixed bug in the choose campaign menu when lag occurred if the player clicked start before selecting a campaign type
-fixed bug where the selection box wouldn't work if the bottom corner ended over the minimap or other interface objects
-fixed bug where mouse over panels inside scroll panels could remain visible when the mouse moved outside the scroll panel
-non-movable units are no longer considered when calculating formation spacing
-units bunch up less when given tight formation orders
-fixed bug where the AI would sometimes regroup units in the vertical direction above or below the map
-fixed bug where the resolution could be inaccurate, potentially leading to a crash the first time the game was launched from steam after updating
Update 13: 12/12/17
-added 3 other mission nodes to the campaign
-added explosive mines (used by the new flagship and on 2 of the other missions)
-the Command Ship's unit info panel in the bottom bar now displays small icons over the shortcut buttons, showing what type of modules are currently connected
-defensive move orders will no longer be triggered by friendly fire
-optimized projectile drawing, and reduced the particle effects spawned by units or projectiles offscreen
-Union AI players will now attempt to rebuild their capital shipyard if they currently do not have one
-improved strategic decision making for the AI and fixed a bug that caused AI players with bases to hesitate when they have high confrontation values
-enemy flagship bosses now have their shield health capped at 5% on easy and 25% on normal difficulty
-fixed bug where flagship unlocks wouldn't be loaded if the player started a new campaign without first going to the main menu