After more than a year without updates to Ethereal Legends, I am excited to finally release version 1.3 on Steam! Grab the free update, now.
This isn't a huge update, and it's purpose is more for stability and maintenance than anything else. While I do not have as much time these days to dedicate to Ethereal's development as far as features go, I also don't want to allow the game to get too far behind, as far as keeping it running on modern technology is concerned. I've used this opportunity to fix a couple things that had been bothering me as I'd collected feedback from players throughout the last year, repairing a few obvious bugs and making the game a little easier overall.
Specifically, I adjusted the randomized level advantage applied to boss monsters so that they can spawn up to a maximum of 10 levels greater than the player's current level (they could spawn up to 15 levels greater in previous versions). While this change affects all boss monsters, it will specifically make the final boss battle less of a chore on average (considering the stat difference of a capped level 60 player with average gear, it was really drawn out if The Eternal spawned at level 70+).
Additionally, I made a rather significant change to the algorithm that distributes drops when you defeat an enemy, with the intention of making it faster to farm all of the items in the game. Enemies in Ethereal adhere to a loot table; in previous versions of the game, because of the loot table design, the enemy would occasionally roll (behind the scenes) to drop an item that already existed in the player's inventory. When this happened, the player would simply receive no drop from the enemy. This mechanic made "Rare" items (with a 10% drop rate) actually rare, considering you could sometimes go many kills before finally seeing the "Rare" item drop from a specific enemy. With Version 1.3, I've modified this mechanic to check whether or not the rewarded drop already exists in your inventory, and if it does, the drop will "fallback" to the next available item within that enemy's loot table. For example, if you defeat The Eternal and he drops Comet, but you already have Comet in your inventory from a previous kill, then he'll try to give you the Beam Saber instead. As you can see, this change will limit the number of times players have to defeat a particular enemy in order to obtain all it's loot (at the expense of making certain items far less rare).
Along with a few general optimizations around lighting and collision, these changes help make Version 1.3 a pretty good update!
Ethereal Version 1.3 Update Notes
Version 1.2.2
Ethereal Version 1.2.2 was released three days ago (4/22), but I totally forgot to announce it here. Making up for that now!
I am excited to release version 1.2.2, which includes a handful of adjustments and improvements to make for a more polished experience. Current players can grab the free update via the Steam right now. Again, I pushed this update live on 4/22, so if you have automatic updates turned on, you should already have this update installed.
Ethereal Version 1.2.2 Update Notes
Version 1.2.1
Ethereal Legends version 1.2.1 is here! Grab the free update now via the Steam client.
This is a small update, adding a handful of new features and fixing a few minor bugs. I am most excited for this update because for those of you on the Green Team, Ethereal Legends now supports the Nvidia Ansel screenshot tool! Ansel allows players with Nvidia GeForce GTX 650 or better graphics cards to take beautiful high resolution or 360 degree screenshots while in game. For more information about how Ansel works, see this post.
One of the most significant changes in this update is the removal of the Simul trueSKY plugin, with all skies now having been replaced with custom solutions that no longer require engine modifications. I decided to remove trueSKY for three reasons: First, trueSKY is cumbersome to work with, especially when building cross-platform. Don't get me wrong... once it's compiled and you're working with it in the editor, it's pretty great. Actually getting it to compile successfully, and shipping a build with it? That's not nearly as easy as I would like it to be. The trueSKY plugin makes changes to Unreal Engine that require you to overwrite Epic's source code - it's a series of ambitious changes to an already complicated engine that adds a relatively significant amount of technical debt to my work. Which leads me into my third, and most important reason for removing trueSKY: Ethereal Legends simply did not put it to good use. Ethereal is a fantasy game, set in fantasy locales. Simul's trueSKY, on the other hand, does exactly what it's name implies: creates true, realistic skies. It's a fantastic plugin, but it simply can't do fantasy. Despite how great trueSKY looks, I found it impossible to make any skies that looked "unnatural". Because of this, I was only using trueSKY in 50% of Ethereal's maps (Arcadia, Shiitake, Boreal, and Empyrean - other Realms were already using custom skies before this update). With all of this in mind, I decided to remove trueSKY entirely and recover from the technical debt incurred from supporting trueSKY.
Also in this update is one of the most requested features I've had since release - the ability to purchase multiple consumable items from the shop!
Now without further ado:
Ethereal Version 1.2.1 Release Notes
Version 1.2
I've spent the last few weeks implementing the first of Ethereal's "end game" content, which I am excited to release today!
Ethereal Legends Version 1.2 is now available for all users; simply update directly through the Steam client.
In addition to a number of bug fixes and improvements, Ethereal version 1.2 contains a new endgame system that I call "Signet Notorious Monsters". I've made six additions to the Arcadia map; six boss arenas each locked by an elemental gate. Behind each gate is a confrontation with the most difficult monsters yet, and defeating these monsters will reward players with new and powerful items.
Above is an overhead view of Arcadia, revealing points of interest in the area.
Before players can unlock the gates, they must collect "Signet Rings" from the boss within each corresponding Ethereal Realm. Players must use the Portal to travel to new Realms, and defeat the boss there to find the elemental Signet Ring. For example, you'll find the Aqua Signet within the Shiitake Temple as a common drop from the Death Cap boss enemy. Signet Rings are not 100% guaranteed drops. For more information on loot and where to find it, see the Loot Table.
Once a player has obtained a Signet Ring, they can use it to unlock the corresponding gate. Signet Rings are destroyed upon use, and the gate will remain unlocked while the player stays within Arcadia. Traveling to a new Realm or exiting the game will cause all gates to lock, requiring players to obtain another Signet Ring to unlock each gate.
Defeating the enemies found behind the Signet gates will reward the player with some of the game's rarest and most powerful items.
Ethereal Version Update 1.2
Version 1.1
I'm just going to jump right into the changes I made over the weekend that should help improve the experience for new players. My hope is that the changes made here will more successfully funnel new players into the tutorial, and make it easier to get into the rest of the game. Additionally, having some magic equipped by default should help new players learn the game's rules more intuitively by simply pressing buttons, as well as progress through the game's intro more easily.
Ethereal Version Update 1.1
If you have any further feedback, be sure to hit me up and let me know!
Version 1.0.1
Whew! The last few days has been interesting!
First, a HUGE thanks to everyone who purchased a copy of Ethereal Legends on launch day and took the time to play my game or tell me about their experience. I truly value your opinions and feedback, and I want to incorporate more of it into Ethereal to make this the best game I can.
This is a real quick update to address a couple issues I noticed from players after the first few post-release gameplay videos started coming out. First, I noticed that some players had severe performance issues, so they immediately went into the options menu and starting tinkering with video settings. While nearly all of them worked, the resolution settings were misconfigured, and since that was the first thing they all tried, it didn't leave a great impression. The game defaulted to "Fullscreen Borderless", which is a mode that doesn't seem to recognize realtime resolution changes, and so players would mess with the resolution settings and they would appear to not work. I've fixed up the video settings to avoid all this, and it should now be a much improved experience.
The second thing these players would do was just wander around, not knowing where to go. They spent a good while figuring out how to initiate the tutorial quest simply because they started walking in the wrong direction. Since the objective is ultimately to enter the Portal, I figured that having the Portal explode on the main menu when you hit "New Game" would be enough to draw the player's attention and make them want to head towards the Portal. I was obviously wrong... because the Portal explodes, then the player ends up immediately kicking a chicken, after which they get distracted and wander right past the Gatekeeper and off into an area where nothing else exists. I'll admit, it's bad game design... it's just something I didn't recognize until I watched those videos. In a vain attempt to quickly fix this, I've simply moved the player start directly in front of the Gatekeeper. He should be near impossible to miss now, and will hopefully become the very first thing most new players interact with.
I'm listening to all of the complaints about the overall performance, and I'm working hard to make things smoother and bring down the minimum system requirements. I've also heard concerns about the map's size in contrast to the character's walking speed, and I'm keeping an eye on where that discussion leads. I'm waiting for more people to get Haste and the movement speed leg armors before making any decisions, because I think it's less of an issue once you're moving quickly. Arcadia is the starting area, and the largest in the game. For what it's worth, the map was built so large because I initially wanted to have a lot more content in this area, split into sections which would unlock as you progressed and completed the Portal Realms. I still want to put all that stuff in the game, so I don't want to resize the map just yet if I don't have to!
In the meantime, I hope these small fixes will help improve the new player experience!
Ethereal Version Update 1.0.1
Release Date February 21st!
I am extremely excited to finally announce the official release date of Ethereal Legends on Steam as February 21st, 2017!
Ethereal Legends will launch at $9.99, with a 10% discount during the first week
(so it'll be $8.99 if you buy during launch).
Please note that the game is designed for and plays best with a gamepad/controller, and while you can use a keyboard/mouse, I don't recommend it.
Additionally, please be sure you meet the game's minimum system requirements before purchasing, as published on the Steam Store Page. Built with Unreal Engine 4, the game is graphically intensive and requires a decent gaming PC to run at a smooth 60 fps.
A handful of minor, known issues do exist thanks to my excellent beta testers. I have documented possible fixes on this post, so if you experience any problems playing Ethereal Legends, your first stop should be there. Of course, I would love to hear any and all feedback you may have, so hit me up on any of the community channels or send your thoughts in an email to info@soverance.com.
For the most arduous adventurers, I have published a full list of the nearly 100 available items on this page. There, you'll find a full loot table, complete with item descriptions, effects, and locations. Everything you need to get the most out of the game!
Press
Members of the press interested in covering Ethereal Legends should direct themselves to the game's official Presskit: http://soverance.com/ethereal/presskit/
If you are a YouTuber, Twitch streamer, or other influencer with a significant subscriber count and you would like to feature Ethereal Legends on your channel, please feel free to email me with requests for Steam keys. I cannot guarantee I will honor your request, but I'll do my best!
The march towards release continues! I am happy to announce that I've recently begun translating all of the Blueprint prototype code into native C++, and I have open-sourced the module on Github under the Apache 2.0 license for all of you to learn from and use as you please!
Do note that Soverance Studios does not have the ability to distribute the assets or Blueprint code used to create Ethereal Legends, so the module is not intended to be a complete, working game. About 60% of the game is still in Blueprints. It's not going to run if you try to compile and run it in a new project without assets.
With Ethereal Legends now open-source, I'd be ecstatic if anyone wants to contribute, and they can do so by simply making a pull request on the Github repository. I'll work to integrate any acceptable PRs into the game, and be sure you get credited appropriately for your effort.
Also be sure to check out the Ethereal Legends Game Guide. The Game Guide contains a complete bestiary, item, magic, and weapon lists, tutorial information, and everything else you'll need to know while exploring the Ethereal Realms. It's still a work in progress, so be sure to check back as the game gets closer to release.
Ethereal Legends has been approved for release on Steam, PS4, and Xbox One. I'm working hard to get it out before the end of the year, so hopefully you'll be playing it very soon!
