A small update containing mostly bug-fixes. Some major bugs slipped through the cracks while testing for the v1.0.2 update. We apologize for any freezes or crashes you experienced and hope that this resolves all major issues. Happy gaming, Orb Warriors!
Fixed a critical bug that caused the LoadingScreen to not close when starting a new run for the second time in one session
Fixed a critical bug that prevented any input after closing the CharacterSelectionScreen
Fixed a bug that prevented the CardDartCarts from firing
Fixed a bugs where corner pieces of rooms where sometimes missing
Improved feedback in the PerkSelectionMenu
Patch Notes - 1.02
We've made some small changes and fixed a lot of bugs with this update!
Overcharging an orb now requires perfect timing when throwing an orb. The timing window can be upgraded in the skill tree.
Obscured enemies now show a green outline, which makes them easier to see.
Fixed a bug that prevented the Laser OrbBoost from being fired.
Fixed a bug that sometimes prevented the next room from spawning.
Fixed a bug caused by hitting the sentry orb boost with a melee attack at specific moments.
Plus many more gameplay tweaks, balancing adjustmentes and additional bug fixes.
Release Announcement
As Kool & the Gang said 43 ago: Celebrate good times, come on! And today we have plenty of cause for celebration, because today - right now, in fact - OrbWars is finally getting it's full release!
It's been a long way full of twists and turns, as well as the occasional rock on the road, making for a bumpy ride, but finally we have reached our destination and we here at Neox Games think it was well worth it. From the small little student project it started out as originally and the level based twin stick shooter party game to the cooperative roguelite it is today, OrbWars has seen quite a few iterations and we really think that, thanks to the hard work of everyone involved and your constructive feedback over the years this is the best one yet, and one we are proud to invite you to play.
Since our last major update when we revealed the switch to a roguelite gameplay to you, we have continuously worked hard on improving the game further and adding more features to the game, some of which we already hinted at in the last update announcement.
To get more specific, here are the major contents updates of this release:
Hank's Shop is back in business: Hank has reopened his store, and he shifted his business model a bit to adapt to the economy of roguelite titles better. At his headquarters in the ToyBox he continues to offer players advice and trades sticker sets for fresh coats of paint for your favourite OrbWarrior. But in addition to that you can now find him in his brand new outposts while out adventuring, where he sells you various useful items to help you on your quest.
Speaking of the freash coats of paint Hank sells: Our user interface also got a new paint job! Each and every menu got touched up to make navigating them a smoother and more pleasant experience, taking you less out of the action of the gameplay.
Where's the challenge?: Right here, because Holly is back at her side hustle, charging you out of your hard earned coins in return for letting you through mysterious portals. Behind these you will find challenging rooms that will require you to put all your abilities as a OrbWarrior on display if you want to win the prize.
Cream of the crop: The Elite Mob Encounters we teased in the Rogue Announcement are finally here! Boasting a wide array of powerful traits in various combinations, these foes really require you to pull no punches on the battlefield.
A whole new experience to explore: Literally! You can now pick experience as your reward for completing rooms, allowing you to level up and unlock powerful talents which should help you progress further through the dungeons of OrbWars.
These Romans are crazy: Last but not least, the RomanRobots world has undergone massive adjustments and is now properly integrated into the roguelite gameplay loop. New traps, enemies, environments and of course bosses await you and are ready to put an end to your run!
So what are you waiting for? Gather your friends, dive into the (as of yet) definite version of OrbWars and aid the OrbWarriors in their quest for justice!
v0.7.6 Balancing Patch
Balancing
Added entity cap for the Laser, Shield and Sentry-OrbBoost
Orb Boost Explosion deals more damage!
Enemy spawn logic got reworked for more variety on each run
Various adjustments to Boosts, life, enemy damage and more!
Bugfixes
The Boss Healthbar now displays the correct amount of health
Laser Lever: The laser lever can now only be used to turn the laser off, not back on again
Bosses are now corretly effected by OrbBoost!
Fixed an issue with the pawn movement
Fixed a bug that sometimes didn't properly display enemy shields to online clients
Enemies feared by the AmbushBoost now move in the opposite direction of the player as intended
Lasers now turn off properly when a trick room is cleared
Fixed some issues with the tutorial and updated some of it's content to better teach the current game mechanics
Fixed an issue with the Jack Surprise's (Jack in the Box enemies) movement
v0.7.5 Balancing Patch
Players
General
Reduced base physical damage.
Increased base OrbThrow cooldown slightly.
Increased physical damage of melee attack slightly.
Increased the difference in base stats between the different OrbWarriors. (For details, see below.)
Alpha
Increased all base stats slightly. (In his role as the jack of all trades, none of his stats are supposed to stand out specifically, but all of them could use a small buff in order to keep up with his new and improved OrbWarrior friends.)
Beta
Increased stamina.
Increased movement speed.
Increased repair speed.
Added a base critical hit chance.
Reduced base health.
Reduced base physical resistance.
Reduced base elemental resistance.
Gamma
Increased base health greatly.
Increased base physical resistance.
Increased base elemental resistance.
Increased base stability.
Reduced base physical damage.
Omega
Increased base physical damage.
Increased base elemental damage.
Increased base impact.
Added a base critical hit chance.
Reduced base health.
Reduced base physical resistance.
Reduced base elemental resistance.
Enemies
General
Increased the amount of bonus health enemies get for each additional player beyond the first for all enemies.
Increased base health slightly.
Pawn
Jack Surprise (Jack in the Boxes)
Increased jump speed.
Decreased jump cooldown.
The Jack now jumps around a bit more before exiting his box.
Suzanne
Decreased base health (This balances out the bonus health per player increase. She now has less health than before at 1 or 2 players, but more at 3 or 4 players.)
Perks
General
Stat increases from perks now always get rounded up.
Plasma Engine
Reduced the amount of times this perk can be picked from ~~3~~ >> 2.
Quickloader
Reduced the amount of times this perk can be picked from ~~3~~ >> 1.
Spike Attachments
Increases any physical damage you deal by ~~20/30/40%~~ >> 10/20/30%.
OrbWars goes Rogue
Hey guys! I know we've been kind of quiet over here at Neox Games in regards to news and updates to the game. But that's because we have been stuck in the lab, cooking up some very exciting gameplay changes we'd like to present to you - right now, in fact!
So without further ado we want to announce to you: OrbWars goes rogue!
Over the months OrbWars spent in Early Access we collected player feedback and did a lot of introspective thinking. And what we realized is, that the level-centric OrbWars we've known and loved for so long simply wasn't the best OrbWars could be. Completing a level, aside from the ones containing boss encounters, simply didn't feel quite rewarding and accomplished enough. Cool gameplay features got introduced for one specific level to make each of them feel more unique, but in turn depriving players of exactly these cool gameplay features in subsequent levels. The puzzeling and exploration aspects suffered from annoying backtracking passages.
So we decided to throw all that under the bus.
Instead, OrbWars' main game mode will be a brand new cooperative roguelite dungeon crawling experience! Each attempt at defeating the Monster in the Dark is now unique, thanks to randomly generated levels and enemy encounters from a still hand-crafted and thought-through set of possibilities. But that's not all! Down below is a list of all the major features you can try out and enjoy right now in the newest patch of OrbWars:
OrbBoost overhaul: As is turns out, making your Orb do cool and crazy stuff is fun. Which is why OrbBoosts are now bigger and there's more of them! Pick up one of ten Boosts, each with a unique passive, active and melee effect - and once you're done with it, simply pick up the next one and start blasting again!
Wait - melee attack?: Yes, melee attack! You read that right. OrbWarriors can now perform a quick close quarters attack in a full circle around them, that deals a smaller amount of damage and knocks enemies back. This attack is made even more powerful by your currently equipped OrbBoost, as mentioned above.
Better perk up, 'cause Perks are here: Perks have become somewhat of a staple in the rogue genre, and for good reason. As our main form of temporary player progression, you will now get to pick one of a set of randomly picked perks as reward for clearing some rooms, granting you major buffs and letting you further customize your OrbWarrior towards specific directions.
New and improved Trick Rooms - now extra tricky: With the pre-conceived levels, including their puzzle and backtracking elements gone, we put on our thinking hats and designed a wide variety of rooms to challenge your maneuvering skills and your quick thinking, rather than your combat proficiency.
Bigger and better bounces: Last but not least! When I started this list I mentioned that making your Orb do crazy things is fun. And I'll end this list on the same topic. Which is why we're introducing Flipper Objects! These nifty little devices will be placed throughout all the rooms and offer special interactions with our Orb if hit, from adding some extra punch to teleporting it to another place and more, so stay tuned to see them in action!
But wait, there's still more! Now, unfortunately we weren't able to get these features ready quite in time for this patch, but you can expect to see them soon the next couple of updates:
Player progression reaches the next level: Along with better temporary player progression through perks we want to offer you better permanent player progression, too. Which is why we're introducing Talents! Don't worry, PowerChips aren't going anywhere, but they have been redesigned to now truly contain only the most impactful of skills, while Talents are here to let you tweak and enhance particular stats and abilities of you OrbWarrior to guide them more towards offensive, defensive or utility paths.
Elite Mob Encounters are here to toughen you up: Of course, not only the OrbWarriors have become stronger. The Monster in the Dark never hesitates to think of more nefarious ways to bolster it's forces fighting capabilities. Which is why there are now special Elite Mobs you can encounter, possessing entirely new traits and abilities. Be careful of these ones!
And there you have it! Of course, there have been many more, smaller changes beneath the hood and we'll keep you informed on those in our Patchnotes, but this is the bulk of what we've been working on. I hope you're as excited as we are about this new direction for OrbWars and wish everyone lots and lots of fun sharing this coop roguelite adventure with their friends.
Sven "Svole" Friedrich, Head of Design
Next OrbWars Milestone : The Collectible Update
Price-Drop
Thank you so much for your feedback! You showed us again that you are interested in the game and want to dive into the world of the OrbWarriors. To thank you for your trust and help in realizing our vision for OrbWars, and to make it accessible to as many of you as possible, OrbWars will be available from now on throughout Early Access at a reduced price of €9.99. To all those who have already bought the game for €14.99: As a supporter right from the start, we would like to thank you with an exclusive in-game goodie - more information soon!
Codec Rooms
What are Codecs?
Codecs are hidden objects that can be found in levels in different ways, for example by activating a certain set of buttons. Once they're collected, players are free to unlock the matching Codec Rooms that can be found all over the different levels and Worlds.
What are Codec Rooms?
Codec Rooms are where the real challenge starts! Players have a limited amount of time to finish one of the six different challenges implemented so far. We don't want to get into too much detail here, so make sure to look out for them! We're planning more Codec Rooms for the upcoming worlds too.
Whats with Holly?
Holly is kind enough to let you enter the challenges, if you're so kind to give her some of your coins of course. Apart from managing the Codec Rooms she's getting a training course ready, which up and coming OrbWarriors can soon use to hone their skills before heading into battle.
What about rewards?
We've added special rewards to the Codec Rooms. If players complete a challenge in time, they are rewarded by a sticker, that can be redeemed in Hanks Skin-Shop to unlock one of the brand new Orb Skins. Here's a little sneak peek at some of them:
Ingame-Shop
Hanks Skin-Shop is finally open for business. You can help Hank finish his Sticker-Collection by collecting Stickers that are hidden all around the available worlds. After you've completed a skin set by finding three matching stickers you have the opportunity to buy the skin for that OrbWarrior. Hank is only charging some of your precious coins.
Here are some of the Skin Variations :
Quality of Life changes
There's an overview in the level selection that shows you which collectibles you're missing and which ones you've already collected.
We've reworked the SaveGame system to incorporate all the new collectibles. If everything runs smoothly, you won't even notice a difference. If you do, please let us know!
In order to make the game even more dynamic, we've added the ability to dash into orbs to collect them and get an instant orb charge. In addition, orbs will now linger on the ground for a small amount of time and can be picked up to get an additional orb charge as well!
We've added an indicator to the Dash, so you can better plan where you'll end up dashing to.
We heard you like auto-aim, so we've added some more auto to the auto-aim: This new option causes your OrbWarrior to automatically target the nearest enemy when charging an orb. This little helper can be turned on in the Controls menu. We've also added an option which automatically triggers your equipped OrbBoosts when hitting a suitable target. This, of course, also can be toggled.
Speaking of OrbBoosts, we've added two new variants to the versus mode: Utilize the powers of both the SplitBoost and the ShockBoost to defeat your foes (and friends). You can also expect these boosts to appear in the Campaign mode with future updates, so stay tuned for that!
Collectibles now have a really cool animation when they're collected, so it's more apparent you just picked up something worth checking out.
Bug-Fixes
Less punishing laser obstacles
Stopped Centuri-Oh-No's from potentially getting stuck in the jump animation
Removed some dead ends
Lots of other small bugs and issues!
We're really happy with this big update and hope all of you have a great time playing with the new features! Let us know how you like them!
Steam Achievements Update
With this update, we're adding Steam Achievements - over 60 of them are just waiting to be unlocked! Some of them are easy to get, others are very well hidden and should prove a test of your skills as an OrbWarrior. Can you unlock them all? Even more achievements will be added with the next upcoming patches, so stay tuned, achievement hunters!
As usual, this update contains some other tweaks and bugfixes, including:
Pawn enemies will no longer be teleported away upon spawning.
Toy soldier won't vanish into thin air after jumping.
Early Access Patch 02
The fight against OrbusMaximus was expanded and improved.
The Toybox was redesigned and is now more interactive.
New FlagAttack map: TinyToys 2
Parts of the environment in TinyToys and RomanRobots were redesigned and visual performance was improved.
Orbs are now even better at targeting. (Issues with collision detection were fixed.)
The fight against Suzanne is now more atmospheric.
Tons of additional small improvements and bugfixes.
Early Access Patch 01
Fixed a bug in TinyToys level 9 that hindered further progression.
