Well, I've been quiet lately, and I likely will be for the very near future. I've been taking a break from developing to partake in my usual vocation in different parts of the country! Gotta' make that paper am I right?
So I'm here today to address the big looming question above...What is Next?!
What's next for Happy Bones?!
What's next for Frosted Fears in general?!
Well let's start off strong here...
ACT 2 BABY!
*ACT 1 SPOILERS BELOW*
Taking place 5 years after the ending of Act I, Act II focuses on a world that has learned to live with demons as an everyday threat. Laura and Waverly set off to a particular destination in a last ditch effort to finish what they started so many years earlier.
Why do demons continue to appear?
What did Laura find out about the Alpha-Humans?
Will the world ever be able to return to normal?
All will be answered in this epic and moving conclusion to Happy Bones Infernal!
In Act II you'll play as a new character, Ophelia!
What is Ophelia's role in all this?
You'll have to wait and see!
Act II will be a standalone campaign, so you won't have to mess up your Act I Endgame files or even complete Act I to start!
Additionally, the entire game's camera system is being reworked right now to have an automatic optimal camera angle upon entering every room, as the camera has been a complaint that I have heard about the game. You'll still be able to control the camera, it's just going to be a lot smarter now when entering rooms.
More details on Act II will be announced later this year.
What else?
I'm happy to announce that I've begun working on a game that ISN'T AN RPG?!?!?
Plunder Hunter
Plunder Hunter is an aquatic themed Shoot-Em-Up style game with narrative elements!
I'll have more details and a trailer on it later on, but that's all for now!
As always, thank you all for playing and being the best fans ever :)!
Tower of Nightmare Postgame Update
It has been an incredible first week for Happy Bones Infernal!
I truly can't thank you all enough!
From the support you show each other in the forums, to the support you show me, I thank every last one of you and I truly believe that this is one of the finest communities on Steam!
So tonight at 7pm CST (3/22/22) , I'll be releasing the first update for Happy Bones Infernal! It's not a major update by any means, but it will be adding a new area and challenge to those who have completed the game...
The Tower of Nightmare!
Bosses from the first Happy Bones game have appeared in this tower!
But is everything as it seems?
What sort of trickery has caused this and why?
Experience new versions of the original bosses, complete with their original boss music!
Loot upgraded versions of items in addition to new ones!
Conquer the whole tower to receive a ring that MAXIMIZES a characters agility, allowing them to move first almost every time.
Additionally, the enemies found inside the tower have a considerably higher chance of dropping a Glowing Ore!
Players who have completed the game can access the new area via a portal that appears in the Eastern Woods!
I hope you enjoy this update, truly.
As always,
Thank You For Playing!
Much Love!
-FrostedFears
Happy Launch Day!
The day is here again, just about a year after the release of Happy Bones, the follow-up Happy Bones Infernal has now launched here on Steam!
Firstly, I'd like to thank every last one of you who wishlisted, bought, gifted, commented, reviewed, offered words of encouragement, tested, or generally showed any amount of support for Happy Bones or Happy Bones Infernal!
Truly, that got me through some hard times this past year.
To put it all in perspective I'm going to tell you a story here, just two months after Happy Bones released, I got into a pretty gnarly motorcycle accident. One that left me bedridden for two weeks, unable to walk normally for months, and with painful reminders to this day.
That was probably my all time lowest point.
But...I had my laptop, and there was always at least one person playing Happy Bones at any given time. That really spoke to me, I couldn't move much but I still knew I had the ability to make something that you would all enjoy.
So I IMMEDIATELY started on Happy Bones Infernal.
I didn't know how to use Smile Game Builder, let alone Unity, and I hadn't used Blender since I was in school, but with the time that I had recovering and the inspiration that you all provided I somehow figured it out and persevered!
So if you ever wondered how this game got developed so quickly, it's because it was fueled by the support that you all provided...and several torn ligaments.
Thank you for everything, you guys continue to be the greatest players out there and I'll continue to provide content to both these games, and fix any bugs I may have missed along the way!
Enough of this sappy stuff...
Launch Week Exclusives!
Don't forget to claim your Launch Week Exclusives by using the 'Gift Bag' item in-game and entering the code found below! You'll only be able to claim these until 3-22-22.
Special Costume and Weapon!
You'll be able to obtain this code indefinitely, it gives you a special costume for Roan, and a special Chainsaw Weapon not found anywhere else in the game!
Bugs, Glitches, Errors
Guys, I'm not perfect. I strive to make every game run perfectly with zero bugs, but things may slip through the cracks. If you find something, please report it on the forum linked below and I'll get it fixed ASAP.
So Happy Bones Infernal is a MUCH bigger and longer game than the first one. There's more puzzles, more secrets, more special events. Therefore there's more opportunities for players to find themselves stumped.
Or maybe you're just wanting some solid strategic advice to take down one of the games bosses?
Use the link below to get to the TIPS/HINTS/SECRETS forum and we will steer you in the correct direction.
Just like Happy Bones (1) this game is launching with all community items ready to be activated just as soon as Valve grants us the privilege...and they're freaking awesome.
I'm hoping the release of this entry as well as the rising popularity of the first game will help get those activated so we can finally have them!
Content Updates?
When Happy Bones launched last year, I only had two minor class updates planned. I ended up releasing an entire DLC campaign in order to flesh out the background of a key character in Infernal.
I will say now, that my focus for Infernal this time around is a little more organized and targeted.
Somewhere in the near future I may put together a roadmap, but as it stands now here's what I've got planned:
-A Spanish Translation of the Game. 35% of all Happy Bones players are in a country whose primary language is Spanish. Specifically the South and Central Americas. I've received many requests to have Happy Bones localized by you all, and I'm in early negotiations right now to have Infernal properly translated! I'm not sure when it will be, but I've got the ball rolling.
-2 Major Content Updates So I'm planning on Infernal having 2 major content updates, one of which will be a standalone campaign much like Episode: Alpha was for the first game. This one is already in development. I'll release more details on these as development continues.
-Bestiary Update A small update will come in the near future that will increase the monster pool for the game, specifically there are a lot of fan-favorite monsters from the first game that were left out of the second game. I'm wanting to bring every monster from the first game into the second game in some capacity, though of course with the addition of Shining Demons in Infernal this is a hefty task of drawing alternate versions. Along with this update there will likely be new weapons, armors, and items added to fit the themes of the newly added monsters.
Console Ports? Mac Ports?
When I started development on Infernal, I knew I wanted to do so in an engine that I could port to consoles with. I'm one of those peasants that prefers to play on consoles myself. I've gotten Infernal to play on my Xbox Series S after exporting through Unity, but that's as far as I've made it in this task. I will focus on porting the game over after all Major Content Updates have been released.
Well I guess that's all I have to blabber about today!
Go play Happy Bones Infernal!
From the bottom of my heart, as always...
Thank You For Playing!
-FrostedFears
LAUNCH WEEK EXCLUSIVE ITEMS!
We're officially a week away from the launch of Happy Bones Infernal and I am...
SO FREAKING HYPE.
I know you guys are going to love it!
So today I bring you the second Special Item Code that you'll be able to obtain!
You'll enter 46193555 into the Gift Bag to obtain the Special Launch Day Costume for Izz, Number One Claws, and 5 Shining Coins!
You will only be able to obtain these special items from 3/14/21 to 3/22/21!
-FrostedFears
SPECIAL COSTUME & ITEM CODE!
We're officially a month away from the launch of Happy Bones Infernal and I am...
SO FREAKING HYPE.
I know you guys are going to love it!
So today I bring you the first Special Item Code you'll be able to obtain!
You'll enter 81817412 into the Gift Bag to obtain the Serial Killer Costume and the Bloody Chainsaw!
In Happy Bones 1 you had to reach a certain point in the game to use the special item codes, and you were limited to one per playthrough, in Happy Bones Infernal you are able to use them right from the start of the game and you can use as many as you want! (But they're only able to each be collected once per file)
The Weapons received are all unique though they won't scale with you throughout the game, so no worries you can collect this from the get-go and not be completely overpowered. But you'll look cool for a bit right?
Keep your eyes here for more gift codes in the coming weeks!
Much love!
-FrostedFears
Happy Bones Infernal Buyer's Guide!
Question 1: How much will it cost at launch?
Question 2: Do I have to have played the first Happy Bones?
Absolutely not, this game primarily follows a new group of characters, and the plot points from the first game that carry over are explained in a way that is newcomer-friendly! That being said, if you played the first game, you're going to dig it just that little bit more!
The first game will be discounted until the release of Happy Bones Infernal on 3-14-22! You'll also be able to purchase both games in a bundle at a discounted price on release day.
Question 3: How long is this game?
It's fairly long, I wouldn't say it should be beaten in a single sitting. That being said there's also an enormous amount of replayability and alternate paths that you can take throughout your different playthroughs. I'd say a first time play through with no side quests or secrets would likely take about 8 hours. (That's the rounded average for testers at the moment) On my own file I currently have 17 Hours and 53 Minutes in the postgame, but I'm trying to 100% the game, get the ultimate weapons and armor, while doing every side quest. But that's on one playthrough where I romanced Hilda, I could potentially go back and have 4 different experiences if I so desired. The game also has some hidden RNG built into the background of the engine, so things that happen on one run, monsters that spawn, could be completely different your next time playing. This is definitely a game that you can and will be playing for a while if you so desire to.
Question 4: How about the soundtrack?
It's being released as of this posting! You can stream and download the entire soundtrack for free ahead of the game's release at the link below! My gift to you!
It is some of my best work musically and I'm proud to be sharing it with you all a bit early so you can get excited for the upcoming game!
Question 5: Tell us about some of the new features?
Absolutely, so let's start with SHINING ENEMIES!
Basically every single enemy in the game has the 1 in 10 chance to appear as a shining version, these versions of enemies are THREE TIMES stronger in every stat, and yield three times the coins, items, and XP! Some are simply a different color while some appear considerably different. They always drop a Shining Coin which will be used to open secret passages and secrets!
My oh my, the relationship system! The most mysterious of features in this installment! At the end of most chapters you'll have the option to spend time with a character of your choice, by doing this you'll witness specific dialogue only found by spending time with that character in THAT chapter. If I've done the math correctly there's 70~ possible combinations you can do over the course of one playthrough, each choice yields it's own rewards depending on the level of your bond with that character! It's an extremely deep system that will grant players so many different choices and special events every time they start a new game! Roan even has the option to just go to bed every day instead of spending time with people, which leads to it's own special rewards! Some characters even have the option to be romanced if certain conditions are met. You will not find any extreme nudity during these events, but you're certainly in for a surprise if you pull this off!
The party system! You are not alone in Happy Bones Infernal! This game is about banding together to survive against all odds! Throughout the story different characters will join and leave your party periodically, later in the game you'll be able to switch out party members as you please! Each character has different strengths, weaknesses, and skills! Don't like one of them? Swap them out with their counterpart. Having trouble with a boss? Maybe swap to a character that can give fire resist to the whole party! The choice is yours!
There's also a secret party member that can be unlocked by a side quest later in the game, will you find her?
Achievements! In the first Happy Bones game, these were Steam Achievements! Some have been blacked out for spoilers. They've now been moved to an in-game achievement system that can be accessed anytime by selecting the journal, as you unlock them they'll be checked off in the journal!
Question 6: Will there be content added in the future?
Absolutely, to some degree there will be added content. Whether that's just special items for events, more costumes, or full blown bonus story and game content I can't say right now, time will tell!
Question 7: What is the difficulty like?
I would say this game on normal difficulty is CHALLENGING, but not super hard. That being said, Happy Bones Infernal is launching with 3 difficulty options!
-Casual (Not looking for a challenge) -Normal (The recommended difficulty) -Infernal (For those who seek a true challenge)
These are selected at the beginning of the game, they cannot be changed, and are displayed on your achievements screen when the Journal is used. You know, for bragging rights!
I believe by including different difficulty settings this time around everyone will get a chance to enjoy Happy Bones Infernal!
All in all, I believe you will thoroughly enjoy Happy Bones Infernal for many many hours after it's released March 14th, 2022!
Be sure to wishlist it today, and keep an eye on this community for special launch items!
