A 2 level demo for Keep Defending is now available for those who would like to try the game without parting with hard-earned cash!
The levels included in the demo include scene 1 in the main game called "Homestead", which acts as an introduction to Keep Defending's gameplay mechanics.
Once you've learnt the basics, have a go at scene 4 called "Highguard" where you have Wizards, Crossbows, and Knights to place in your defenses and help you try to repel the enemy over two stages (day and night).
You can also select between 4 difficulty levels which increase the number of enemies as you progress from Easy all the way to Insane. More enemies allows for higher scores, so you'll need to ramp up the difficulty to get better scores.
And talking of scores, there are Steam Leaderboards setup in the demo for the Homestead and Highguard scenes for you to conquer, although please note these leaderboards are for the demo only and aren't shared with the leaderboards in the main game.
For those who enjoy the demo, please take a look at the full game which features an additional 8 scenes to play (to make 10 in all) with different level types (Ambush and Advance modes as well as Gate Defense) and many more allied units to deploy (Soul Collectors, Cannons, and even Exploding Sheep!). There are also Steam Achievements to chase.
Can you complete all 10 levels in the full game? I hope the demo gives you enough of a taster to want to try!
Please leave any comments regarding the demo or the full game in the discussions, and thanks for reading! :)
Windows Mixed Reality support is here! (v1.11)
Keep Defending now includes support for Windows Mixed Reality headsets with the latest v1.11 update!
If playing in Roomscale then the game works similarly to using a HTC Vive.
Thanks for reading and of course supporting and playing Keep Defending!
Leaderboard stability changes, hint message changes and a Call to Arms (v1.10)
The v1.10 update for Keep Defending contains some refinements to the game that improve the integration of Steam leaderboards on the level selection scene, as well as improvements to the hint/tutorial messages that are displayed in the game.
There's also a "Call to Arms" note at the bottom of this announcment (please read):
Leaderboard stability fixes
There are occasions when loading the level selection scene (usually when the game is first started) that the level leaderboards fail to load correctly or completely.
I've made some changes to the logic handling this in the background and this should hopefully be much more reliable (and efficient) than before, and better suited for handling potential edge cases.
Revised hint messages
Rather than showing hint (help) messages to the player as text locked to the player's viewpoint, I've transferred the majority of them to in-game objects which makes them easier to read, ensures they're always available, and is much less annoying (well, for me at least!).
There's a new banner positioned behind you in the level selection scene that contains a list of instructions for new players (replacing all of the hint messages shown in the level selection scene).
There's also a new level intro panel implemented which replaces the previous level name/info and "Shoot arrow to start" texts that were previously locked to the player's viewpoint.
There are still a few of the old hint messages remaining to remind players what they need to do next, but as a whole the hint messages are much less visible in the game.
Other changes
- I've removed the ambient sound effect for soul orbs as they were overbearing the other game effects (especially in levels where multiple orbs may be rising at any given time).
- Improved the logic controlling how the Main Campaign Completed achievement is unlocked.
- I've also unlocked the Early Access achievement for players that can complete all other achievements first (so they can register 100% achievements for the game, even though they didn't take part in Early Access).
- The Unity version has been updated to the latest release in its branch (5.5).
Call to Arms - The quest for a Steam rating
In a bid to try and get the game a Steam rating score I would like to request as many players as possible to please leave a review for the game in Steam as it still hasn't reached the goal of 10 (Steam purchased) reviews a couple of months after release!
I genuinely hope everyone has enjoyed playing the game and it's great to see so many scores registered in the leaderboards for each of the 10 levels available. However, very few people are leaving reviews so Keep Defending is receiving zero exposure on Steam.
If you've experienced problems with the game, or simply don't like it - please let me know in the discussion groups and I'll try to remedy whatever the issue may be.
Otherwise please help support the game (and its developer!) by taking a minute to post a review and hopefully we can get Keep Defending an official Steam rating!
Thanks for reading and of course supporting and playing Keep Defending!
Eagle Heights level now easier plus more optimizations (v1.09)
This v1.09 update for Keep Defending includes some changes to Eagle Heights to make this level easier for newcomers. There are also some extra optimizations that will make a difference to owners of both lower powered VR configurations (minimum spec) and higher powered configs (recommended spec+).
Eagle Heights Changes
After watching a number of playthroughs where players are trying to get to grips with Eagle Heights I've made a couple of small changes which I hope improves the level's accessibility for all:
1) The player now starts with 50 gold on this level which means they can immediately afford and purchase a Teleport for placing in one of the portals available around the level.
2) I've implemented an additional hint message which appears for a few seconds (and then disappears automatically) when the player's gold reaches 250. The hint message is a reminder to buy defenses to help against the enemies.
The playthroughs I watched involved new players skipping the Homestead tutorial level and going straight to Eagle Heights. They were then quickly overwhelmed due to the long distance shooting required to hit enemies (until you earn enough to buy a teleport). Because Homestead was skipped they were also unfamiliar with buying defenses to help out.
I originally designed Eagle Heights as an exercise for players to see the value of teleports and extra defenses (crossbows for this level) as it is impossible to complete by yourself from the start position, and much, much, easier when you can teleport around and have allies aiding you.
I hope these small adjustments change an initially daunting level into one where new players are able to complete it much more easily.
Optimizations
After watching another player with less than minimum spec hardware trying to play the game (which was painful as the player's bow aiming was lagging badly due to the inadequate CPU in his rig), I have taken another look at some of the mechanics in the game in a quest for further optimizations.
Fortunately I found a number of areas where improvements could be made (a couple of them significant) which I've implemented accordingly.
For lower end hardware the result is a much smoother experience versus previous versions as the overall performance requirements are now lower. I've also managed to smooth out some of the more taxing effects in the game so they have less of an impact on framerate when they occur (e.g. when an enemy transforms into a Soul Orb was a real framerate killer on lower-end hardware).
The optimizations obviously benefit everyone whatever your hardware, but the wins are much more obvious if your setup was at the minimum end of the hardware requirements. However, owners of recommended spec hardware (or higher) could try playing at Hard or even Insane difficulty levels which significantly increase the number of enemies you face!
Note that I'm not lowering the minimum spec required for playing the game as it is actually still very demanding on CPU and GPU power. When playing the later levels, you can find yourself battling with dozens and dozens of enemies in play at once. Factor that with up to 32 allies helping you, and all the resulting projectiles and pyrotechnics, and the minimum spec is unfortunately something that can't be compromised on.
However, if you do have low end hardware, then you can still play Keep Defending but I'd recommend looking at the in-game video settings and dropping the Sampling from the default 1.0 value to say 0.9 (or even lower). Disabling the "Additional FX" option would also help (as this limits the number of lights in a scene as well as the intensity of any Weather FX).
Thanks for reading and of course supporting and playing Keep Defending!
More optimizing and alternate rotate option for Rift (v1.08)
The v1.08 update for Keep Defending features optimizations for the game as well as a new control option for rotating on the spot (Rift users only).
The exploding sheep now have a limited lifespan following detonation so the level is no longer overrun by them (which unfortunately tends to slow down gameplay on the larger levels).
Staying with the sheep, the explosion effects when they detonate are now much more efficient and no longer hitch/pause the gameplay briefly when multiple sheep (in close proximity) explode at once.
The bonfires seen on Eagle Heights, The (Small) Wall, and King's Ending are now more efficient so performance on those levels will have improved slightly.
For Oculus Rift (+ Touch) users I've introduced a new setting in the options menu named "Use Thumbstick To Rotate". When this option is enabled you must press the thumbstick (on either controller) left or right to rotate your view left or right (in 90 degree steps). This is instead of using the grip buttons which some players may press accidentally. Note that you must release the thumbstick and then move it again to rotate again, it doesn't rotate additional steps if you hold the thumbstick in position.
New (Rift) players will have this option enabled by default, whereas existing players must set it themselves (to avoid confusion for players who don't see this announcement).
If you experience any bugs or problems with this latest version, or with the game in general, please report them in the group discussions (or comment on this post) and I'll try and address them as quickly as possible!
Thanks for supporting and playing Keep Defending!
Changes to Homestead (tutorial) level (v1.07)
This v1.07 update for Keep Defending changes the gameplay for the 1st level "Homestead".
As this is the tutorial level for Keep Defending, and so the starting point for all new players, I've expanded its scope a little bit to introduce the management of ally units.
To facilitate this I've implemented 2 additional portals (so there are now 4 overall including the player's position) and have enabled crossbow allies for this level.
The hint messages displayed in Homestead have been tweaked to show when the player has (a) enough money to buy a teleport, and (b) enough money to buy an ally (crossbow). The hints also disappear automatically after a short time (before this update they remained on until the player accessed the defense interface).
Note that there is a setting in the options menu where you can disable all hints permanently if you no longer wish to see them throughout the game.
Hopefully the above changes incentivise new players to learn how to manage defenses while playing this (relatively) easy level, before stepping up to the (much more challenging) level "Eagle Heights".
Even though the above allows Homestead to be played differently to before, there's no need to reset the leaderboard for this level as the new features are all optional and, if used, actually result in a lower achievable score than before due to enemy kills by allies scoring lower than by the player.
Finally, I've also tweaked the projectiles flying overhead in the level selection scene. Cannons are much less frequent (as they are noisy!) whereas the magic bolts are now more frequent.
If you experience any bugs or problems with this latest version, or with the game in general, please report them in the group discussions (or comment on this post) and I'll sort them out as quickly as possible!
Thanks for supporting and playing Keep Defending!
New control option and rare achievement added (v1.06)
The new v1.06 update for Keep Defending adds a new setting to the options menu that affects the button mappings for Vive users.
The option is named "Restrict buttons to bow hand" which, when set, disables the Vive controller's app menu button and grip button on the hand you use to grab arrows. So the portal menu and the options menu can only be opened using buttons on the bow hand controller.
This helps if you like to play the game with the "Use Quiver" option enabled so you must draw arrows from your shoulder. Unfortunately when you do this you run the risk of bashing the controller on your shoulder and accidentally pressing the app menu or grip buttons. This new setting should now stop that from happening.
Note that existing players will need to enable this option as I didn't want to introduce any confusion for players who don't see this announcement. New Keep Defending players however will have this option enabled by default.
The tutorial signs and hint messages shown in the Homestead tutorial level also reflect the above changes.
Finally I've also implemented a new achievement for those who win all 10 levels in the campaign.
This is currently a very rare achievement! :)
Please report back any bugs or problems you find in the group discussions (or comment on this post) and I'll sort them out as quickly as possible!
Thanks for supporting and playing Keep Defending!
Post release bug catcher update (v1.05)
This new update build (v1.05) for Keep Defending brings the following fixes/improvements:
New: Gate damage state is now reflected on the actual gate.
New: Added sound effect for the gate being repaired.
Fix: Implemented additional colliders on the level selection / main menu scene to stop the player falling through the floor!
General: Updates to the credits panel.
Please report back any new bugs/problems you find in the group discussions (or comment on this post) and I'll sort them out as quickly as possible!
Thanks for playing Keep Defending!
Keep Defending released from Early Access (v1.04)
After an exhaustive testing and fixing stage I'm pleased to report that Keep Defending is now finished, and has been released from Early Access into a completed game state!
This v1.04 update features additional FX added to the main menu / level selection scene which enhance its atmosphere a little. :)
I'd like to extend a special thank-you for the invaluable feedback given by Early Access players during the last 6 months and of course for having faith in the game from such an early stage.
I'll be focusing on the game's launch for the next few days but will be back in short order to start planning and designing extra levels and features for the game.
Thanks for playing Keep Defending!
Additional fixes and revised bow hand swapping control in latest update build (v1.03)
I've just uploaded a new release build (v1.03) for Keep Defending with even more fixes as I continue to play through the game in a final Quality Assurance pass before release.
Fixes in this build include:
Set the Keep Defending logo image shown when loading between scenes further back so it no longer dominates the view in the headset (Vive only).
The 2 ranged unit portals on the right hand size of the last zone in Crystal Caves were swapped around when assigning units in the Portal UI. These have now been correctly set in the UI map for this zone.
Restored missing colliders on the cave roof in the final zone of Crystal Caves.
I've removed the Faster Time Games splash image shown when loading the game as this would intermittently stop it from starting up correctly on the Rift.
I've also changed the control needed for swapping the bow to the other hand. You must now click the Touchpad (on Vive) or Thumbstick (on Rift) when holding the controllers together to activate the swap. This works much better than the previous Trigger button control which caused problems for players when trying to spawn arrows near the bow (although arrows can't actually spawn too near to the bow to stop rapid firing).
The "Bow Changing" setting is still available in the Options menu which, if you disable it, stops any bow switching at all. However this setting is largely redundant now as previously the Touchpad was only an active control for Vive users when pointing at UI panels, and the Thumbstick was not used at all for Rift users.
