Like all our technical updates, this update is a mix of features, fixes, and other work needed to prepare for upcoming content updates.
The biggest internal change is that the entirety of the input handling system has been rewritten and all of our input libraries have been updated to their latest versions. This was a necessary step towards supporting in-game rebinding for both controllers and keyboard/mouse. It's also given us much of the infrastructure we need to eventually show context sensitive button prompts. If you notice any changes in behavior regarding input/controls please let us know in the bug report forums! (And if you've already been customizing your keyboard controls please note the file has changed, you now need to be editing keyboard_controls.xml in your save data folder.)
Another change that won't be visible but I'm excited about is that all weapons now belong to one of six classes - going forward we'll be using those classes for different types of buffs/penalties so they can refer to an entire group of weapons instead of just an individual weapons. It sounds like a small change but it opens up what we can do with relics and items quite a bit! Weapon classes will be made visible in the upcoming content update.
With this update finished I'll be moving on to full time work on Content Update 2 (Craig has already been working on the art for it). We'll be posting more news about that as it gets closer to completion.
Finally - Sony has graciously invited us to demo at Playstation Experience in Anaheim! If you're going to be there, please find us and say hello.
Cheers,
Ryan
What's New:
Active items are now visible in player hud
Transitioning between floors now requires an explicit button press
Game should now remember last selected relic set from a single player game for subsequent games
Added the ability in local multiplayer for a player to drop out of the game from the pause menu
Added Shoppe music
Added custom weapon sfx for several weapons, and several reworked sfx
Fixes:
Game should no longer crash if paused for an extended period of time
Reworked zombeast attack sequence to ensure full damage from attacks go through
Reworked zombeast to be immune to knockback
Misc Tech Stuff:
Input Libraries updated to latest version
Completely reworked input handling and input binding serialization
Weapons have been grouped into classes in preparation for upcoming content changes
Reworked relic internals to share an implementation with the item system
Added additional local stat tracking to know when players have seen a given gun/item/relic, and how many times they have picked it up during play. Data will be used in a future content update
S.C.O.N.E. INTERNAL MEMO # 10001
From: Overlord To: Minions
My Dear Minions,
I would like to commend you on your efforts in stopping the heroes as they traverse our encampments and attempt to interrupt our grand schemes. You have worked admirably as a team and I know that you truly are trying your best.
However it has come to my attention that heroes are frequently and repeatedly defeating us across all our current zones of engagement and this simply will not suffice. As such I am ordering several changes, to be implemented immediately:
First: New objectives and events have been deployed across all zones. You, my minions, should not need to do anything for these to take effect but they should add a new set of challenges for the heroes to overcome. I do recommend that you avoid gazing into the magic portals, lest it mistake you for an enemy.
Second: We’ve received reports that the heroes have gained an ability called a ‘damage state.’ Intelligence believes that this makes it more clear for them to recognize when they are injured. Along with this change they have learned a new technique that allows them to keep firing while being knocked back. Going forward please be aware of this new threat to you.
Third: Several of you will be sent to combat training. All Spider Thieves will receive more training in knife throwing, and Chimney Bats will spend time practicing with Mummybats. After training please deploy back to your original zones.
Fourth: We have started deployment into a new zone, which we are currently calling The Forest. Minions from the town are currently holding the encampment until the new recruits can be summoned. The heroes should not be able to find this zone yet, which will give us time to prepare our forces there.
Finally: There are rumors of secret entrances that ███████████████████REDACTED███████████████████. Please do not call attention to these entrances as we do not wish for the heroes to find them.
Again, thank you for all your efforts so far! I, and everyone else at headquarters, appreciates your effort and resolve. Please continue to push and in no time I’m sure we’ll have the world domination that we so desire.
Respectfully Yours,
Overlord of the Secret Criminal Organization of Nasty Evildoers
PS - For more specific information, please see the included intelligence report.
INTELLIGENCE REPORT #: 1.2.6144
TOPIC: RELEVANT CHANGES IN ZONES OF ENGAGEMENT
CLASSIFICATION: TOP SECRET
New Features:
* Secret Room Generation: Initial pass of secret rooms you can find. Still very early! Please report a bug if any of the entrance spawns cause an issue
* Added unique chests for secret rooms with varying drop rates
* Random Events System: 10% chance of an event triggering on a level
* 4 Enemy Events: When event type is triggered, enemy types on floor change
* Door & Key objective replaced with Barrier & Key objective
* Barrier & Key objective added to all zones
* 2 all new objective types
* Characters now have a damage state and show it when hit along with sfx
* Shooting and dashing no longer prevented during knockback states
Changed Features:
* Bosses now have a guaranteed relic drop
* Made changes to relic drop rates across the board
* Mansion doorways now have variable width
* Chimneybats no longer have a dash attack
* Mummybats have moved into the town
* Chimneybats and Spider Thieves both have much longer range on projectiles
* Chimneybat projectiles have been slowed
* Spider Thieves have had their projectile count increased
* Spider Thief projectile now can hit up to four objects before expiring
* Updated tilesets on dig site
In Progress (Features are in the shipped build but disabled by default):
* Forest Map zone generator
* Forest Props: rocks, graves, standing lamps, tree stumps
* If you wish to preview the forest map, you can add "forest" to Mods\base\zones\available_zones.json. We do *not* suggest playing it online at this point in time
Fixes:
* Fixed some sound effects that weren't pooling so stacking doesn't cause them to blow out
* Spider thief projectiles now do damage as expected
Technical Update 1 Now Live
As you read this, tech update 1 (version 1.1.6110) should be rolling out, the changelist can be found below. As mentioned previously the focus for this update was primarily on balance and quality of life issues, along with tech that we need for upcoming content updates.
Please let us know in the forums if you run into any issues! We will push a hotfix if any big issues appear. Otherwise I'll be transitioning to work on the next update which is a content update.
Have a great weekend!
-Ryan
Weapons
Several balance changes to weapons. Notably auto stake launcher, stake launcher, tea gun, shotgun, cluster bombs, scone mines. Balance is an ongoing exercise and we will continue to make changes as needed.
Fixed bug with calculating target passthrough for a projectile
Added screenshake/vibraton back to power weapons, they felt a bit flat without it.
Teagun no longer fires through walls
Added a feature where controller will rumble as guns are close to overheating. Makes it easier for controller based players to know when to swap weapons. We're still evaluating changes to make this easier for keyboard/mouse players.
Relics/Items
The relic interface now tells you how many you've found out of the total set.
Fixed bug with passthrough calculation when modified by relics
If you already have an item or weapon of a given type, you are now prevented from consuming another by picking it up.
Slight increase to relic drop rates. Rare relics should now be found more often. Will continue to monitor this and continue to adjust as necessary.
User Interface
Started process of localizing game. In this update I added support for pulling strings from a localization spreadsheet, updated the font used, and switched the bulk of the menus/UI to use localized strings. For players interested in helping with localization I will be posting notes on how to help soon. The new font should have the needed characters for significantly more languages.
Pressing cancel button (circle or b on controller, esc on keyboard) will now unselect character in character select, allowing you to choose a new one
Pressing cancel button in character select with no controllers activated will return you to main menu (local game only).
Tech
Enemy generation and loot table systems have been reworked so we can introduce shifting values based on loop count. This will allow us to increase the variance between loops and provide a sufficient reward for those challenges.
Added support for using static maps in levels. Right now the airship is still the only static map, but this tech will be used in future updates for better store and boss level layouts.
Misc
Updated mansion tilesets - basic cleanup and a color change on one of the rugs
Updated boss health bar with new art
Skullington's laser hitbox has updated to be more consistent with the graphical representation
Skullington's attack patterns have been updated to increase variance
Status Update: 9/16
First off an apology for being pretty quiet in the forums and news lately - Craig and I both got sick demoing at PAX and have just been trying to get healthy.
PAX West
That said we had an amazing time demoing at PAX. We had a full 10 foot by 10 foot booth in the Indie MEGABOOTH and we were crowded for four days straight. It's a lot of work to run a show but we had a great time showing the game to new players, and even got to do some co-op runs with folks who already owned the game. If you came out to say hello, thanks! It was incredibly rewarding to meet people who have bought and are enjoying the game.
Game Updates
We're actively working on two different updates to get out the door as soon as possible. As always if you're curious you can see detailed status on our trello board, but I'll talk briefly about what to expect here:
Technical Update 1
The first update you'll get is a 'technical update' - this is focused on adding any new tech needed for future content, as well as rebalancing existing content and fixing bugs. Right now this update has about 25 changes in the changelog, and I'm hoping to get a few more in before we ship it to you. Technical Update 1 should go live sometime next week.
Some highlights of this update are a first pass at rebalancing guns that are clearly problematic (tea gun, auto stake launcher, more) and adding some tech that we should be able to use in content updates to make game loops more interesting (modifying enemy generation systems based on loop count, improving loot quality based on loop count). This update will also be the start of enabling localization in the game, so we can start to add languages other than English.
Content Update 1
After the technical update ships we'll be focusing on getting the first content update out the door. Craig is creating all of the necessary art right now while I wrap the technical update, and then we'll both work on getting the content update finished. We don't yet have a date for releasing the content update but we're hoping it will be two to three weeks after the tech update ships. If there are any major bugs/issues in the tech update that may delay things.
The focus of this content update will be adding new elements that will make the existing zones more entertaining and varied to play - new objectives, an event system that can change enemy generation for a given floor, and some new enemies. Also the very start of secrets, but I can't tell you about that because they're secret.
We're also working on the first new zone but it will not be ready in content update 1. Zones are a massive undertaking that consist of level generation, new enemies, new boss, props, etc. If you dig around in the mod files you'll likely be able to get a sneak preview of it - but it'll be a couple more updates before it's in the main game proper.
I think that's everything for now - back to work on this technical update for me. Have a great weekend!
Hotfix 1.0.6080 available
Changelog
Added the ability to dash through props
Disable online mode if steam initialization fails
Updated aim system to reduce cases where gun and player sprites can flicker
Changing new mouse and keyboard camera to be enabled by default
Fixed bug where new mouse & keyboard camera would not follow live player on death
Fixed bug where a player has > 4 devices in local multiplayer
BUG: Removed ability to select broken config options with launcher
Changed default cursor size to 25%
Notes
Aiming is still not perfect with mouse and keyboard, especially when the cursor is right above/below the player. I'll keep working on it.
What's Next?
This will probably be the last hotfix for a while - I'm going to roll the next batch of changes into Technical Update 1. This will also give me some flexibility to make some much needed changes (like balance changes to weapons and items) in addition to more bugfixes.
If you've still got a bug affecting you it has *not* been dropped - I will keep looking at them and fixing them. Also I'm aiming for a relatively short timeline for Tech Update 1 so you hopefully won't be waiting long.
After Tech Update 1 we'll be working on and delivering Content Update 1. This will contain the first batch of new content for the game since launch. How much content we manage to fit in will partially depend on the bug load. More info on this as it gets closer to release.
PAX West
Finally - we'll be at PAX West in the Indie MEGABOOTH! If you're going to be there please come visit - we'll have pins and art cards to give away, and we'll be happy to chat about what's coming up in the next updates.
For folks who can't make it - I apologize in advance for not being able to spend so much time on the forums or for a lack of updates over that period of time. Running a show is very time consuming, but I'll do my best to keep an eye things while I'm gone.
Hotfix 2 Now Live
Hotfix 2 has now been pushed to the default branch, it contains the following changes:
Experimental camera rework for keyboard and mouse players
Basic error checking around steamworks initialization
New Camera
To enable this new camera, please enable the experimental setting in the settings menu, under the controls tab. This new camera system should feel much snappier and responsive for keyboard and mouse players.
PLEASE give feedback on this new camera system. We'd like to make it the default at some point for keyboard and mouse players if the majority of people find it to be an improvement.
Error Checking
It appears that a non-trivial number of bug reports have been due to the game not fully initializing due to steam/steamworks not being available when the game launches. I am working on more robust fixes around this but in the meantime I have added a basic check on the title screen to ensure that initialization has occurred. If you see a red error message please try restarting the steam/the game to see if it fixes your issue.
Up Next
Based on issues reported it looks like there will be at least one, but more likely two hotfixes left before we settle into our normal update cycle. I'll post more information as we get those hotfixes out and settle into our normal cycle.
Cheers,
Ryan
Hotfix 1 Now Available
I'm getting ready to push the first hotfix. The hotfix contains several small requests, and a good bit of work was taking a first pass at rebuilding the settings screen. The settings screen (and the settings dialog in game) now is separated into four sections. This will give us a lot more space for options going forward.
There will be at least one more hotfix after this one to deal with additional launch issues/suggestions, so please don't worry if your issues aren't addressed in this one.
Cheers,
Ryan
Changes
Reworked settings screen to be separated into 4 sections to accomodate increasing option count
Added music track to title screen and menus
Audio settings now have separate music and sfx sliders in addition to the master volume slider
Added sound effect on player join in online lobby
Added vsync option in video settings
Improved cursor visibility code in online and local multiplayer
Added option to constrain mouse to window
Fixed a typo in the game over dialog
Notes
There are a set of bugs with constraining the cursor to the window when the game is in windowed mode. This does not affect play during full screen use. Notably the issues are:
Windows: cursor can still exit into title bar area
Windows: when changing window resolution, cursor constraints do not update correctly. This fixes itself on switching to a new menu/screen.
OSX: Cursor does not properly restrain to window when constrain cursor is selected.
I've filed bugs with unity about all of these and I'll be working with them for a resolution. For now I just wanted you to be aware of the limitations and as they improve stuff in the base engine we'll roll those changes into the game.
First 24 Hours & Incoming Updates
First and foremost: A HUGE thank you to everyone who’s picked up the game so far. The first day has been a smashing success and we couldn’t be happier with the reception we’ve gotten. After 2.5 years of hard work it is exciting and encouraging to see everyone playing and enjoying the game.
Unsurprisingly, there are bugs and good feature suggestions popping up. We’ll do our best to address as many of them as we can in short order, but we appreciate your patience as a small two man team making this game. Going over the issues, we’ve identified a handful of things we want to try and improve as soon as possible. They are:
Bug: occasional crash/black screen for some players
Camera improvements needed for keyboard/mouse players
Players need damage state animations/better notification of damage taken
Movement around props and walls can be frustrating
Missing vsync option
Option to lock mouse to window
Separate audio volume sliders
Bug: flickering mouse reticle
Improve reticle size
Other one off bugs reported (sync issue, one player with framerate issue, etc)
Once we get into a rhythm of regular updates, fixes would normally just get rolled into one of the two week updates. Given that we’ve just launched we’re going to be applying hotfixes as soon as we’ve had a chance to test them locally.
If your bug or suggestion isn’t on that list, it hasn’t been forgotten! We’re tracking everything and we will continue to roll out fixes after this initial batch.
Have additional feedback? please head to the forums and post it there! As I start coding these fixes I won’t be in there 24/7, but I will be monitoring it for feedback and posting as I go.
As a final note - I’m happy to announce that we’ll be in the Indie MEGABOOTH at PAX West next month! If you’re there please stop by to say hello. :)
-Ryan
State of the Game - Early Access Launch
With release now less than 24 hours away, I wanted to sit down and write up a “state of the game” post so players know exactly what to expect from the build tomorrow. We feel that transparency with players, especially during early access, to be a paramount factor in our success. Hopefully the only surprises you have will be pleasant ones. :)
If this post doesn’t answer any of your questions - please feel free to hop over to the forums and ask! I’ll be monitoring the forums and will do my best to answer whatever questions come up.
If you’d like to skip the text and just see some previews/streams of the game in action, I’ve included several links at the bottom of this post. Go check them out!
Networking
Networking is in and functional. We currently suggest a ping of 120ms or less between players in a game. Given the frantic speed and nature of the game, and the volume of active players and enemies We are optimizing for those ping times. This unfortunately means that games that go across the ocean will generally have a degraded/poor experience. There’s only so much we can do to fix this, but we will continue to make improvements where we can.
Networking currently uses a standard matchmaking/lobby system where you create a party pre-game and play from there. We currently do not support hot joining games in progress, although we would like to get that in at some point in the future.
Voice chat is currently not supported, a task for investigating initial support is tagged for the first release.
Gameplay
Basic gameplay, both single and multiplayer have been in for a while now and we’re pretty happy with the core. We will continue to tweak things where we think it’s necessary but what you get in the initial build is solid. (e.g. - we’re looking at is adding a damage state animation to make player damage more evident, and reworking how gun overheat is signaled to try and make approaching the limits more clear.) How this evolves over time will also partially depend on your feedback!
“Looping” is still in its initial form. If you successfully loop now the levels stay the same but the enemies increase in difficulty and drop increased rewards. Over time we want to improve this by changing enemy compositions and adding additional challenges/objectives.
Levels have a fairly small number of objectives right now - we’re working on adding more variety in the first update.
EDIT: I forgot this in the list originally but it's worth adding - the first version does not have a UI for keyboard/mouse configuration. It's
not* hardcoded, there is a file you can edit to change your mapping. But it's certainly not an ideal process. This is tagged for being fixed in one of the first updates.
Content
Full Zones: 3 - These zones are complete in the sense that the level generation, enemy sets, and bosses are complete. There will be additional things still added to these levels over time was we incorporate new mechanics (e.g. secrets, revisions to enemy behaviors, new enemies/objectives), but they are fully playable in their current state. It’s worth noting that all of the current bosses will definitely evolve over time - we have plans for additional attack states and mechanics to make them feel more dynamic.
Guns: 21 - These run the gamut from the starting revolver to big guns like the firebuss to sillier guns like the tea gun. This is by no means the final set of weapons, we plan to add more over time.
Items: 9 - The 9 items currently in the game were a first test to see if non-persistent items made sense as a mechanic at all. We like how they change the game and our testers have as well, so they are now an official mechanic in the game. We’ll be adding more of these going forward, as well as the concept of an “active item” that you press a button to trigger.
Relics: 23 - The relic system will likely have an overhaul before too long to make relics more interesting as an element of metagame progression, but the existing relics are still perfectly usable.
Secrets: 0 - Why am I listing this? Two reasons: 1. I want you to know that currently there are no secrets in the game. 2. I want you to know that there
will* be secrets in the game, but we won’t necessarily talk about them in update previews/release notes. They wouldn’t be very secret if we did. Keep an eye out.
