Before talking about the bugs, I would like to ask: do you want to play Hired 2 Die? The registration for the alpha version is still open on our website, and it's free: hired2die.com
It comes a moment when you must stop what you are doing and see if you are on the correct path. Even though testing is constant, we had to go back sometimes and check if everything is working. And not just check the obvious things, but also make questions like:
What happens if I try to use two flashlights at the same time?
What if I close the door while standing in its path?
What if I throw boxes in the enemy's way while being chased?
Not only did we find some strange behavior, but also some complicated bugs to solve. As the closed alpha approaches, testing and solving bugs become our main activity. We want to deliver the best experience possible for you.
If you are participating in the closed alpha, please, be aware that this is not a demo, and you will find some bugs during the test. So, we would like to ask everyone to use the bug reporting tool in the game to report these bugs. We are not worried about that, though. It is part of the development of a game. Hopefully, we will find a bug that will become a feature.
Here is the player working with his heart to inspire you.
Until next time!
Devlog #004 | Singleplayer Mode
Hello guys,
First of all, I would like to apologize for the delay in posting the devlog. It should be posted last week, during the Steam Survival Festival.
I believe I've already said it before, but during the last few weeks, the team has been preparing the game for our closed alpha. We created our website and added a form so anyone can request a free key. We send it by e-mail, individually.
Now, with the closed alpha getting closer, you might be one of those players wondering: I prefer to play alone, but the game seems to be designed for 2 players. Are the developers considering the singleplayer option?
Yes, we are! The basic principle of playing with a friend is the exchange of information. Usually, what happens is that one player stays in the security room watching CCTV cameras, collecting information, buying items, etc. And the other player is adventuring in dark corridors, doing the actual job, but also giving information about the system to the first player.
Now, when playing alone, it would be too hard to be in two places at the same time, travelling between two different rooms to check if the cable should go on the left or right plug is not exactly convenient. So, we gave the player the best gift ever, this:
The intersection companion
The intersection companion is a tablet designed to give you access to all the information you need. It does not count as an item, so it won't occupy a slot in your inventory and prevent you from getting the items you might need.
The tablet has functionality from both computers. You can access the CCTV Cameras, use the same supported features of the main computer, and buy items on the go. There are two different views when using the tablet:
Focus Mode - it's a fullscreen view, just like the ones on the PC, for you to focus on the information.
Preview Mode - the character holds it in front of you, taking about 1/4 of the screen. It's useful to walk around while still checking for creatures. You can even hold an item in the other hand.
We are still exploring possibilities with the tablet, like navigation and actions through shortcuts, so you don't need to focus on it every time. The Intersection Companion is a powerful tool. We must be careful to keep things balanced and fun to play. That's why it is not available when playing with a friend.
Devlog #003 | Steam Survival Fest & New Trailer
Hello everyone!
This month we are very excited about Steam Survival Fest (August 1 - August 8). It will be the first festival/event to which Hired 2 Die is exposed. We will start recruiting players for our closed Alpha. Stay tuned! Join our Discord Channel if you want a free key to play our closed Alpha!
Because of the Survival Fest, we are improving the quality of our store. Most of the visuals were placeholders or needed to be changed. Also, we will upload a new trailer, showing better the experience of playing Hired 2 Die with a friend, which required us to upgrade a lot of stuff and improve the assets.
Help us boost our visibility during the event, wishlist our game:
Welcome back! I am Hugo Campos, responsible for the development of Hired 2 Die. In "Devlog #001 | What do I do in Hired 2 Die?" you learned about H2D and its main objectives. This time, I will present to you the Store, how it works, and why it is vital in all matches. If you didn't see the last Devlog, check it out:
As we explained before, in your first match, you will probably choose an easier contract, i.e. one that has Ordinary Tasks. In that case, these tasks won't require items from the Store, you will be able to complete the match with good coordination and planning. But, imagine the following situation: during a match, you see yourself without money, but you need to buy an item from the Store to complete the contract objective. What to do now?
Earning money with Anomalies
Anomalies are unnatural changes to random objects in the setting, the mere existence of supernatural creatures causes anomalies. These Anomalies are very important to the research team at Intersection (the company that hires people to do these "wonderful" tasks), for that reason, each player receives a photographic camera specially designed to deal with these Anomalies.
This camera has advanced components of cutting-edge technology, and for that reason, you can see things through this camera that our eyes can't see. Using this camera will make you able to visualize where the Anomalies are in the environment.
After photographing an Anomaly, it ceases to exist, the only evidence remaining is the photography itself. This photo will immediately be sent as a piece of evidence, and payment will be made to you accordingly with the Anomaly rarity. You can keep doing this until the last Anomaly is fixed, that is if you can find it.
From the point of view of development, Anomalies are very fun to create, currently, they involve changing a characteristic of an object: increasing or decreasing its size, making it shake, or even changing the texture of portraits. Some anomalies are simply objects that shouldn't be there, things completely out of context. In the future, we intend to create more bizarre and funny Anomalies, if you have any interesting ideas we have a Discord channel called "#suggestions" that you can use to, well, send suggestions.
Contract Items x Utility Items?
There are two types of items to buy in the store: contract items and utility items. As mentioned in the last Devlog, in advanced contracts, the players must fix some kind of system. In that case, these systems have missing parts and the players must buy these parts in the Store. Therefore, many times it is impossible to complete a contract without using the Store.
On the other hand, you can buy utility items for yourself, these items may help you to complete your objectives and deal with obstacles. For example:
Plier – The plier is useful to break chains that lock certain doors and openings. In some cases, the chain is locked with a padlock, and you must find a way to open the padlock. But if you don't have time for this but have money, you can buy the plier to cut the chain.
Strong Flashlight – Some creatures are affected by light, but the default flashlight is not strong enough for that, buying a strong light will give you a way to defend yourself.
Delivery
At last, we arrived at the final step of buying an item: the delivery. In Hired 2 Die, the items sold are delivered after a period, simulating real-life. This period may vary based on random factors of the Store, it can last some hours (the game time equivalent to minutes) or days of work, which makes you lose a day of its deadline to complete the job. Optionally, you can pay a higher value to make the item arrive immediately. The items are delivered in the lockers located in the main room or in the storeroom.
I hope you already have a good idea of how to play Hired 2 Die. If you are interested and wish to buy the game, don't forget to add it to your wishlist so you don't miss its launch:
Hello again, my name is Hugo and as promised in the last post, we'll keep reporting the development of Hired 2 Die every 2 weeks, if you know nothing about H2D, I recommend reading the Devlog #000.
Sometimes when there is a new horror game, I feel that I've already seen that game before, until I understand what makes that game unique. Right now, you might be associating Hired 2 Die with other horror games. To clarify what makes H2D unique, we listed here its main rules and objectives.
Walkthrough
In H2D the players work for a company called Intersection. Before starting a new match the players must select a work contract, that will define what is the main objective of that match. There are 3 types of contracts in the game: Ordinary Tasks, Complex Tasks, and Hunting Tasks.
Planning Phase
Each match involves different maps, items, strategies, and deadlines, for that reason at the beginning of the match the players have the opportunity to plan their steps in the main room, where they will organize items, access security footage, and buy auxiliary items to help them out.
Ordinary Tasks
These tasks won't involve much mental effort to be solved. Usually, it will require some type of manual work like carrying objects to the correct places or cleaning dirty rooms. They are low-risk and low-reward contracts, a good start for beginners.
Complex Tasks
The players need to execute a complex procedure to complete this objective. The complex tasks always involve fixing some non-intuitive system that is presented to the players in a puzzle format. To increase the replayability value of the game, the solution of each module of this puzzle is randomly generated, this way even if the player completes the objective, it will be different in another match.
Try and error won't be a good way to fix the system, some vital information about the solution is written in a manual, and it can be accessed on the main room's computer. Thus, making it essential to have clear communication between the players.
The player that assumes the guide's role, shall conduct the other player to the desired place avoiding "unpleasant surprises" along the way. The security systems will help in this task, he can live access security camera footage, open/close doors, turn lights on/off, and access the information in the manual to solve the puzzle. Though getting distracted here might be fatal since he might not be alone in the main room.
The player that will risk his life in the dark corridors, should carry with him items to solve the puzzle and to protect himself from panic situations. Besides moving with intelligence to avoid stumbling with a creature. This player also needs to communicate clearly, since each system has different brands and characteristics. These differences are crucial to the guide in order to find the correct solution to the puzzle.
Hunting Tasks
We are still working on many things about the hunting tasks. So we won't show much in detail. Now, if you are the kind of player that is tired of being hunted, this task will allow you to assume the role of the hunter.
In order to hunt a creature, you must become the creature, understand its behavior, and how to manipulate and deceive it. To find out all the information about a creature you can count on a special camera provided to you for free by Intersection, with this camera you should take a picture of the creature specific behavior and send it back to Intersection. You will receive an analysis of the creature explaining its behavior, this will give you hints on how to face these creatures.
Conclusion of the Contract
To end the contract, the players must clock out and leave using the elevator, but the salary paid by its conclusion depends on some factors:
You need to be alive. Even though it is possible to end a contract with a deceived colleague, this won't be very good for your salary.
Death. Obviously, when all the players die the contract ends, but since there is nobody alive to receive the salary, they might pay the firewood to cremate your body.
Deadline: the deadline is measured in days. You can try to solve everything in a single day, but there is an ideal time to stay in a game, after a certain number of hours, the creatures get too aggressive. Besides that, they naturally become more aggressive as the days go by.
In the next Devlogs, we will explain more about what to do with the money you earned. And just to remind you, if you have any questions or are interested in talking to us, you can join us on our Discord Channel.
