Gumstein: The Awakening
Gumstein: The Awakening going free to play
Gumstein's full release was 3 years ago, and we have decided to make it free to play for everyone. So grab it now and give it ago. We really enjoyed the journey from creation to release and everything after. We hope you enjoy this game and please leave comments and suggestions for us. We would love to hear from you.
We would also like to take the opportunity to all those who have supported us thus far, and hope you enjoyed playing the game.
Steam Sale!!!! and Mac release in the works
It's Steam Sale time!!!
To celebrate we are knocking 60% off the price for Gumstein, so if you have it wishlisted, and keen to give it a go, now is a great time. Add some traction to your race cars by applying some gum :)
We also do appreciate any feedback on the game. Although there are no plans for an update to the game at the moment, your feedback is valued as we might decide to extend the game if enough interest is shown and also for any other projects we might be working on.
Also, we are busy trying to get a build out for Mac users. If all goes well this should be available before the sale ends. More updates to follow on this.
Have fun and happy steam sale :D
The Acceleration patch
The new patch is live and comes with 2 big changes:
1) Sample pack / Full Pack game mode introduced.
-This option is changeable via the menu room.
-In Sample pack mode the player will be taken to just a few key levels in the beginning. This means that you will skip over a few levels at the start of the game.
-"Full Pack" mode will play through all levels in sequence as it was before.
-The intention is to get players to the "fun" part of Gumstein quicker. Where you have more abilities and the game isn't just a simple platformer.
-Skipped levels can be played from the level select menu option (or via level select in the menu level).
-This mode only affects the early game. From level 20 all levels will be in sequence.
-The current flow for "Sample Pack" game mode is 1->7->9->11->13->14->16->20
-Achievements will be missed if you play on this mode.
"Sample pack" mode is only available on Easy and Normal difficulty.
2)Hint system.
-On level 1 you will be introduced to HINTS placed around on levels.
-The hints can be activated by standing next to the decal and pressing [C] or [Select]
-The hint on level 1 simply introduces hints, but hints on other levels will give critical information about solving the puzzle on the level or getting through a part that might be difficult.
-Hints contain serious spoilers, so only use them if you are done trying to figure out the puzzle.
These changes have been added after taking most of the recent feedback into account. We have seen that a lot of people don't even make it past the labs, and we feel that the game only comes alive in the later stages, and we really want to get people to play that far.
Feedback on these changes would be greatly appreciated. If you had stopped playing because you got bored/stuck we encourage you to give that game another go now. Also let us know in the forums if you think the sequence for "Sample Pack" needs to change or if the Hints are not enough, or if Hints needs to be added to other areas.
Thanks and have fun.
The Lost Worlds Patch
We have release a patch that has some significant gameplay changes. It also contains a number of bug fixes for problems that has been noticed after the release. Here are the details:
Improvements:
- Menu Level: Added a "tip of the day" message board. This board shows a random tip every time you enter the menu level. You can also cycle through all tips by using the button. Some tips offer insight on game mechanics, some might help you solve a puzzle, some might help you progress quicker, and some are just nonsense and funny.
-F12 will now capture screenshots in appdata/local/Slime/screens directory
-The delay to jumping tied to the landing animation has been removed. You can now bounce around by holding in [Jump]. This should make some timed jumps much easier.
-Improved the code for landing on moving platforms (specifically vertical moving ones). This seems a lot better and so far I haven't been falling through platforms when I clearly land in the middle.
-Level 7: Added a hazard in the wall at the small tunnel. If you dropped an anvil in this area it was extremely difficult to get it out. Walking into the wall with the hazard while carrying the anvil will reset the anvil's position.
-Level 8: Changed the switch type of the first switch triggered to an "always on" switch. This keeps the door open, so if you lose the crate without touching any checkpoints with it, you will not be forced to restart the level. The crate will still respawn at the last checkpoint you touched while carrying it as usual though.
***Bug Fixes***
- Fixed a bug that would disable the stretch abilities on level 29 on the Easy and Hard difficulties, making the levels impossible to complete.
- Gamepad Dpad should now work while controlling Gumstein, or the mustache mini.
- Push/Pull should now work correctly with the controller
Other than the changes highlighted above, there have been slight changes to some levels that are Not Visible, but we hope that dedicated players who have long enjoyed platform games will Find these helpful and fun.
Please let us know if you find any other problems.
Enjoy
Gumstein now out of early access
We are proud to announce that we have now officially moved out of Early Access. We have some really cool new levels for you, and we hope you enjoy the game.
At this point we also want to issue a challenge:
Once we sell 500 copies of the game the 2 developers will Stream themselves playing the game on Hard right through to the end. The ramp up from Normal to Hard difficulty is quite extreme, and this will surely be a challenge to complete.
We also welcome all the hardcore platformers to try and beat the game on Hard. It is quite a challenge. If you prefer a more casual experience check out easy mode for some nice puzzles that will be very satisfying to solve.
Most importantly have a great time, and if you find any problems or have any feedback be sure to let us know.
Moving out of Early Access next week
We are excited to announce that we will be leaving Early Access next week. We have made some really cool new levels and would love you all to experience it. We will be uploading the build that contains all the new levels and features this weekend (hopefully tonight). You can then play them.
We will however stay in early access until next week, just so we can see if any bugs pop up over the weekend that we may have missed. And also to give everyone a last chance at getting the game at the discounted Early Access price. When we move out of Early Access the price will increase. There may be a release day patch, depending on if we found any problems over the weekend.
We hope you enjoy the game and we welcome your feedback.
Gumstein's Developer at Africa Games week
Just a short announcement to say that I will be at Africa Games Week in Cape Town this week. If you are going and want to ask me a few questions, drop a message and we can arrange a meet.
After This week is over we hope to start finishing up the game and have it ready for release around the Steam Winter Sale.
Price adjustments and estimated release
We have adjusted the price for Gumstein slightly for certain currencies. This will be the only adjustment before the game leaves Early Access. Upon leaving Early Access the game's price will increase.
Development is going well. We are working on the last few levels, Then need to adjust all of the final 10 levels for each difficulty, and get the artwork done. The new abilities are in place and are pretty cool. We look forward to getting the last part of the game to you. We seem to be on track for release before end of the year, and we hope to be in time for the Steam Winter sale.
More Progress
Again we will not be patching today. We are working hard on finishing the last few levels, and we have some pretty cool levels and ideas.
Next week there will be a patch for sure as we have a few minor issues we would like to correct.
Also note that when the new levels gets added we will also be adding a few more achievements. Until then, have fun.
No Patch this week - Progress update
There were no significant bug fixes this week, so we will not be updating the game client. If you do have any problems please let us know and it will be fixed as soon as possible.
In the mean time we are hard at work creating the last few levels, and working out the bugs in the new abilities and environment pieces that are still to be included. We have some really fun levels so far. And we are trying to make each level have quite a bit of content in puzzles and hazards to really get value out of those last few levels.
We will probably be releasing the last few levels in 2 batches, so we can get some playtime on them before we transition out of Early Access. And we look forward to hearing what you think of them.
Until then though, get some score s up and tell us what your favorite parts / levels are!