HellSign
HellSign v1.0.2.6 Update
We are pleased to announce 3 new tools, a new enemy, and some extra goodies!
Carving Knife
The new carving knife tool is used to extract certain cryptids parts, perfect for sweeping jobs.
Also all crafting recipes have been revised to use cryptid parts & evidence.
Dead Man’s Map
A tool that doubles up for navigation & sign finding, uses corpses/bonepiles as reference points.
Also useful for finding those quickly to work in conjunction with blacklight.
RX-20 Shotgun Mic
Detects potential signs in “odd sounds” areas, veteran players might recognize this one.
The mic replaces the tier-1 parabolic, and can also detect sounds through walls.
Spectre
Entry level spectral enemy, with teleportation & psychosis abilities.
https://youtu.be/TS4tnMpnaRU
Improvements
• Dead Man's Map, navigational tool that helps find signs
• Carving knife, new tool used to extract cryptid parts
• RX-20 Shotgun Mic, new tool to investigate odd ambient sounds areas
• Spectre, new ghastly enemy for rookie scouting jobs
• New level property, odd ambient sounds area
• Ghoul meat now extractable via carving knife
• Meglapede carapace (extractable cryptid part)
• Parasite spike (extractable cryptid part)
• Spider gland (extractable cryptid part)
• Updated ghoul meat quest to reflect on new carving knife
• Improved emf buzz angles to be more consistent with sign position
• Crafting recipes tweaked to require cryptid evidence & extractable parts
• Optimization for early jobs
• Slight vram optimization for decals, kelpie oil & bloodpool
• Updated Ninja & Hunter classes to start with carving knife
• Updated Detective class to start with shotgun mic instead of parabolic
• Updated Archeologist to start with dead man's map, and tier 1 blacklight
• Increased forensics job sign spots
• Added gathered signs count in HUD
• Replaced tier-1 parabolic with shotgun mic
Fixes
• Fixed localization issues with older versions
• Fixed tut1 self chat issue when leaving house
• Removed outdated reliability field for earpiece/glasses attachments
Thanks for the awesome support and positive feedback, and happy hunting!
Ballistic
HellSign v1.0.2.5 Update
With the reworked gadget system & forest out, we could finally resume working on the gadgets as planned.
This update offers numerous gadget improvements, optimization, and more!
Gadget Improvements
The various improvements encourage more varied gadgets use.
For example gadgets rely more on the environment now (e.g. thermal gives readings from fog & tendrils, blacklight investigates bone piles for trails, etc..), they no longer use battery for sign scanning, gadgets give different information (e.g. emf gives precise sign location, whereas blacklight provides a vague hint to the general direction of sign), and much more.
Manual Search
Searching for signs is now triggered via its own key [F], independent from gadgets and can be done anywhere.
This also allowed the removal of the basic/advanced gadget slot concept, and instead all 3 gadgets slots are now interchangeable.
Improvements
• Picking signs up is now a separate action [F], and can be done anywhere
• Reduced video card memory usage by 30%
• Tweaked veteran scouting spawn counts for more variations
• Cleaner inventory popup for items, also shows more in depth gadget info
• New level property bone piles
• New level property fog (also indicated by breath vapor)
• EMF now uses same slot type of other gadgets, all 3 gadgets are interchangeable
• EMF no longer works near tendrils (due to interference)
• EMF is now pure audio (no cone), and get static disruption instead of range scaling
• Blacklight now shows symbol trails pointing to signs from bone piles
• Blacklight gets disrupted via flickers as well now
• Thermal now has 2 modes, analyze tendrils & fog condensation temperatures
• Thermal no longer has battery or recharges from tendrils
• Parabolic updated to show cone in invalid areas as well, albeit red
• Removed beeping for parabolic/EMF when near a sign
• Regular scan for parabolic/blacklight no longer consumes battery
• Improved tutorial #1 to be more intuitive
• Added house black boundaries in unreachable areas (like the forest)
Fixes
• Fixed Zoe evp quest to work on generic signs (to support new manual pickup)
• Fixed forest caravan crush was missing the collider
• Fixed notebook mission description for forest
• Removed Noah dialogue referring to old utilities
• Removed redundant uv flares
Thanks for the continued support and patience, there’s still a fair bit to explore with the gadgets so stay tuned!
Hope you enjoy the gadget improvements & happy hunting!
Ballistic
HellSign v1.0.2.4 Update
We are proud to introduce scouting 2 and hunting support for the forest map!
Since forests don’t have electrical boxes and gas canisters lying around, the trap jury rigging UI had to be redesigned using the reserved icon in the player's inventory.
Improvements
• Added scouting2 & hunting support for forest level
• Added lightning strike shadowbeast encounter for forest
• Added shadow fog shadowbeast encounter for forest
• Added burrower enemy for forest
• Removed boss fights toxic rain when going outside in house level
• Reworked trip wire to ground based, so it can work in forest levels
• Moved trap boss jury rigging via inventory toolbox, so bosses can work in forest
Fixes
• Fixed issue in tutorial 1, where house door remained locked
• Fixed missing forest missions from translation file
We hope you enjoy the new forest missions, and thanks for the continued support!
Till next time, happy hunting!
Ballistic
HellSign v1.0.2.3 Update
Thanks to the reworked gadget system, as planned we are proud to release the first iteration of the new forest level!
This includes scouting 1 & sweeping support, which will randomly appear in the job selection map.
Also in this update are various gadget improvements, fixes and optimization!
Improvements
• Scouting1 & sweeping support for new forest level
• Prevented cryptid analyzing if they're already dead
• Optimized vram usage when using thermal gadget
• Improved thermal & parabolic descriptions to mention the mechanics
• Increased parabolic range by 20%
• Replaced journal upside down text with proper hieroglyphics
• Parabolic gadget now supports original dead people sounds
• Added few missing string to locale file
• Added footstep splashes to kelpie oil & bloodpool
• Forest water property, messes with temperature readings and blacklight trails
• Improved parabolic visuals
• Toned down emf sounds (were too loud)
• Reduced parabolic & blacklight battery consumption
• Rebalanced xp needed for level 17, and increase level cap to 20
• Slightly faded the noscan striped red boundary area
Fixes
• Fixed issue with stutters every 3-5s
• Fixed thermal recharge electricity fx visibility issues
• Fixed rare issue with older saves not loading, due to outdated ingredients in slots
• Fixed being able to shoot jumping enemies before they appear
• Fixed redundant key message on locked doors in tutorials
• Fixed cigars & boots artifact blueprints using invalid sign types
Thanks to everyone who provided feedback about the gadgets, as a reworked system it was always expected to have some kinks.
We are very fortunate to have such a patient fanbase providing meticulous feedback, together we’ll make HellSign the best investigation RPG it can be!
Enjoy the forest iteration, and happy hunting!
Ballistic
HellSign v1.0.2.2 Update
After two long months of hard work, we’re proud to unleash a major update!
This includes reworked & improved gadgets, spirit orbs, interdimensional tendrils, and numerous improvements & fixes across the board!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lijtYmsIH4U
Improved Gadgets
All gadgets have been reworked to encourage a more varied gameplay, while keeping exterior level support in mind.
You’ll find they all have varied pros/cons in different situations, some are battery operated, some can analyse the environment for nearby cryptids, and more.
Ranges vary greatly now, and as such skills/attachment (such as the earpiece) will have a more noticeable effect.
Also added support to open doors with gadgets, and sprint (which will immediately unequip the gadget for balance & immersion).
Cryptid Analysis
The blacklight & parabolic can now be used to investigate corpses & spirit orbs respectively.
This gives different options, such as revealing the cryptid identity or gaining an anatomical damage bonus.
Watch out however, as this costs a significant amount of battery, which is required for gadget operation.
Interdimensional Tendrils & Spirit Orbs
The new update comes with two new dynamic properties
(1) Interdimensional tendrils from the poltergeist dimension.
(2) Spirit orbs, a passive creature that carries the fragmented spirit of the deceased.
Each of these have different effects on the varied gadgets. For example the interference caused by the tendrils radiation is required to operate the parabolic when searching for EVPs, but on the other hand heavily disrupts the EMF.
Extras
To sweeten the deal, there’s a magnitude of new improvements across the board, such as giving access to top-tier gun skills (e.g. carbine), “interaction key” for more intuitive interaction, pistol/revolver reload animation fixes, and much more!
Improvements
• Added Spirit Orbs - a passive creature that reacts differently to certain gadgets
• Added Interdimensional Tendrils - creates interference affecting gadgets differently
• Reworked EMF gadget (basic scanner susceptible to electric interference)
• Reworked Blacklight gadget (battery, can analyze corpses, etc..)
• Reworked Parabolic gadget (battery, interference only, can analyze spirit orbs, etc..)
• Reworked Thermal gadget (huge battery drain, multipurpose, rechargeable)
• Interacting (doors, etc) is now via simple proximity "use key" (default E)
• Improved level loading times
• Carbine/combatshotgun/heavy handgun skills are now unlockable
• Added support to sprint with gadgets, which unequips them immediately
• Allowed opening doors with gadgets equipped
• Removed redundant precision mode toggle
• Reworked tutorial 1 to accommodate improved gadget mechanics
• Reworked tutorial 2 to accommodate new analyze mechanics and be clearer
• Cleaned pistol reload anim
• Cleaned revolver reload anim
• Changed gadget interference to range reduction
• Marked invalid scan areas (at level bounds) red, for clarity
• Better gadgets now significantly increase range (in same signal disruption)
• Added sounds & delay when equipping gadgets
• 1-2 extra signs under the hood to counter long search times for last sign
• Reduced costs of top tier guns (incl shotgun attachment)
• Increased top tier shotgun attachment damage
• Very small hits no longer interrupt stim anymore (e.g. spiderlings)
Fixes
• Fixed breaching issues, by switching to use kick instead
• Fixed special bullets sometimes not working on bosses with lemat equipped
• Fixed bug not allowing attachment on smgs without having shotgun attachment skill
• Fixed keybinding and dodging issue
Thanks for the support & feedback, we are super excited to hear what you guys think about this update!
Time to grab a cold one here, already getting pumped for what’s to come!
Stay safe, stay sane & happy hunting!
Ballistic
Roadmap News #6
After relentless prototyping, and under-the-counter medicine, we’ve made some great progress!
Previous roadmap recap
In the previous roadmap we set out to prototype integration of the gadgets to work in exterior levels.
This is an extension of the plan mentioned earlier this year, to improve the investigation side of things.
We’re happy to announce the prototyping was a huge success, and in the upcoming update you’ll see various improvements as outlined below!
Gadgets
As planned, we have reworked and improved gadgets to be more about choice. Players are now free to choose the best tool based on situation, environment and personal preferences.
Gadgets will now have pros/cons, many will be multi-functional, some use battery, and some can even analyze forensics to reveal cryptid locations & gain anatomical advantages.
For example the blacklight works unhindered in interference areas, but drains battery, it can also be used to analyze corpses for the cause of death (revealing cryptid location, anatomical advantages, etc), but is affected negatively from spirit orbs (see below).
Spirit Orbs
We’re introducing a new passive creature, which will roam the level, and interact with various gadgets differently.
For example, as they’re spirits of the deceased, they can be analyzed via the parabolic for EVP to get more information on the cryptid that killed them. On the other hand, if you use a blacklight near them, they will latch onto it, disrupting and draining its battery >:)
Interdimensional Tendrils
Levels will have randomly scattered Lovecraftian tendrils from the beyond.
They create electrical interference around them, which disrupts certain gadgets, but enhances others.
QoL stuff
Based on popular demands, we’ve made precision aim to be default, cleaned revolver/pistol reload animations.
Doors/interactables will be handled via a new proximity based “Use Key”, which is more intuitive and easier to use.
Also solved the common issue of jammed locks not working half the time, by utilizing the above method, ensuring smoother gameplay.
Talk is cheap, time to get back to the update :)
We appreciate the support and can’t wait to hear what you guys think about it!
Happy hunting!
-Ballistic
HellSign v1.0.2.1b Hotfix
Thanks for the swift reports about the issues (reload prompt issue, fire bug, etc), this hotfix should address those ;)
Fixes
• Slight optimization ~5%
• Fixed reload prompt issue
• Fixed burnt enemies effecting the player
• Fixed lemat shotgun attachment icon in inventory
• Fixed disappearing cursor when exiting to main menu
Happy Hunting!
-Ballistic
HellSign v1.0.2.1 Update
As mentioned we’ve been busy prototyping!
As you’ve seen in the last roadmap news, the exterior forest level is progressing nicely, but integrating the game to work with it is a mammoth task. After extensive testing, lots of things work, but also lots don’t (e.g. a more prominent ghast ended up being more of a hindrance than being enjoyable).
And since it will be a while, we decided to make an update with a few things that were in the works anyway.
Update
We’ve added some optimizations, balanced a couple bs enemies, and QoL stuff.
Based on popular requests, skills can now be freely re-allocated. (yay!)
Also a lot of players complained about the unreachable content (e.g. lvl 99 skills, out of stock guns, cliffhanger plot at the end, etc…). Although we have a lot of plans for HellSign, we’ve realized the ideas belong to the forums, and having them in the game is nothing but annoying & confusing.
Improvements
• Optimized performance by 15-25%
• Optimized bloodpool & kelpie oil by 33% performance each
• Reduced video memory usage by 300mb
• Added player scout outfit, when equipping low-tier armors
• Improved running so it automatically faces direction of movement
• Can now freely reallocate skills (yay!)
• All sign/rewards are now retained on death, allowing for more aggressive gameplay
• Removed various conversations encouraging retreat
• Artifact skill now only required to use artifacts, not craft them
• Hid unreachable content to avoid confusing players
• Added gamma options in settings
• Added delay to cursed painting damage, was immediate before
• Added very minor delay to nephilim damage, was too quick
Next up
We’ll resume trying to integrate the forest, which has numerous technical challenges due to how cryptids/gadgets/bosses/etc are intertwined with interior environments. But we’ll know more as we continue prototyping it ;)
Just wanted to thank everyone for being so patient with us, we are working around the clock doing our best, and will keep you updated as usual!
Stay safe, stay sane & happy hunting!
Ballistic
Roadmap News #5
After countless sleepless nights, and dodgy rituals, it’s a pleasure to say we've made some great progress on the prototype!
Previous roadmap recap
In the previous roadmap we finished planning various ways to improve the content pipeline.
As we are now halfway through on the test prototype stage, we wanted to take a breather and give you guys an update!
Forest Level
The biggest milestone for the prototype is the ability to create levels faster, and it was a huge success!
In order to achieve this, various aspects of the investigation had to be improved, for example instead of a trillion objects all over the level (which you get stuck on, bug out, etc) the sign locations will be independent from the environment, and the way you collect them will be up to you.
Also thanks to these changes, we managed to drastically reduce level loading times!
Without further ado, for your viewing pleasure, we’ve included a teaser of the forest level, enjoy!
https://youtu.be/MUmtR9NF2k8
Next up
With the levels out of the way, we’ll be focusing on the various aspects mentioned in the last roadmap - e.g. new investigation improvements (more gadgets & ways to collect signs), UX, more engaging ghast, bosses, etc...
Aight, time to get back to prototyping, as we can’t wait to get it into your hands and hear what you think!
Thanks for the continued support, we’ll keep you updated!
Happy hunting!
-Ballistic
Roadmap News #4
After much planning, a quick recharge of the batteries, and lots of coffee and booze, we’re done with the planning stage!
Previous roadmap recap
In the previous roadmap we set out to figure ways to clean out various elements in the game that were bogging down development and slowing the production of new content (levels, etc).
After countless hours of planning, meetings, mindmaps, testing and medicinal stims, we’ve reached some fruitful conclusions about things that can be improved, which we will tackle in the upcoming prototype stage.
Levels
There are numerous things in the way the levels are constructed which drastically slows the creation of new levels.
For example the specific indoor layout, having to interact with furniture while investigating, specific cryptids that have to spawn from specific places and many more that can all be improved upon.
So for starters we want to address the above and finally test the waters on a brand new level.
Investigation
Even though the current investigation is fun at first, it gets repetitive very fast, and limited us from giving you more gadgets which is the whole point of this game :P
There are many other gripes, for example there’s little choice as you have to use X gadget to pick up X clue, but instead it would be much more fun to give the player a choice which gadget they want to use for the specific circumstance & preferences.
In the upcoming prototype we’ll test various ways to improve upon those points, allowing you to be the paranormal investigator you all came here to be ;)
Combat
Aside from the points mentioned above, everyone knows how many issues the combat has, not to mention it mostly relies on grinding rather than investigation.
However HellSign’s vision was always for the player to be a badass investigator that uses their knowledge to crush the enemies, things like specialized bullets have been one of the top requested features from the community.
And thanks to the planning there are many fresh ideas on the table to make it a reality, which we can’t wait to prototype!!
Ghast
Many of these technical elements also limited what we could do with the ghast, which ended up being pretty superficial.
In a game about ghosts (doh), it was always strange that the main threat ended up being the cryptids and not the supernatural ;)
So another thing we’ll be exploring, is making a more exciting ghast/s, with more varied attacks & behaviours.
Bosses
The way the bosses are currently laid out, forces you to play a 20-30min level just to learn their attack patterns, not to mention you’ll likely get a different boss each time :P
This leads to a grindy experience, so we’ll be prototyping ways to fix this issue without harming the random investigation element.
That’s enough words for now, time to get down and dirty and start on the prototype!
Although this will keep us busy from releasing patches for the current game, we’ll be keeping you updated on the progress as usual.
Thanks for your support, and we can’t wait to hear what you think of it all!
Happy hunting!
-Ballistic