Parcel
Updated to version 1.0.2652
- Worked out a few rough edges with Steam Cloud.
- Shade and Porter won't lose a charge if a mid-game save is made in middle of their action.
- Fixes in User Levels and Editor menu.
- Block's pulling action optimized.
Updated to version 1.0.2634
- Steam Cloud support added
- WASD buttons won't move the cursor when typing in a new user name
- User is prompted to accept Steam's User Agreement when publishing a level if the user hasn't accepted the agreement yet
- Some of the tutorial images are updated
The Steam Cloud save compatibility has been tested thoroughly and your saves are safe. If you want to be double sure, please make a backup of original save files.
Parcel OST now available!
Listen on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYbPfnipbMKCvd5GJL7OxSRP8cJcctqyo
Download MP3: https://www.dropbox.com/s/kxwkum29269xgvb/parcel_ost_mp3.zip?dl=0
Download FLAC: https://www.dropbox.com/s/0he5yr3lh3jxb85/parcel_ost_flac.zip?dl=0
Parcel OST available!
Listen to it on Soundcloud or YouTube:
https://soundcloud.com/polar-bunny-ltd/sets/parcel-soundtrack
bit.ly/parcel_ost_yt
Download links (MP3 and FLAC):
bit.ly/parcel_ost_mp3
bit.ly/parcel_ost_flac
We are on Reddit and Twitch tonight!
http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/33hym1/we_are_the_original_team_behind_parcel_the_game/
http://www.twitch.tv/polarbunnyltd
Come out and chat :)
LAUNCHING IN 3... 2... 1...
Parcel will launch today!
Regards,
the development team
Moving out of Early Access
Yes, you heard us right. Early Access didn’t work for us. We had gone way over budget already, and wished that our EA time would buy us more time, which it didn’t. In these times of fierce competition over visibility, Early Access games have enormous trouble to get coverage in media, and we witnessed that first-hand, resulting in not-that-good sales numbers. The good thing is that the game is already at a very complete state gameplay-wise, so what players will be getting is a full, complete game. Early Access users had a unique chance to catch a glimpse of what is still to be added into Parcel. Or what we still dream of adding into it.
We’re a young team that couldn’t foresee all the trouble. A lot of sacrifices have already been made, and we reached a limit on those. To be frank, the past two years have been one massive personal sacrifice for some, myself included. We’ve given a huge portion of our youth and humanity to this project, and we were aware that this amazing opportunity to make the game we’ve dreamed of making would end at some point. Despite all the perfectionism that makes us see the flaws still present in the game, we should be thankful that we ever got even this far.
We didn’t rely on Early Access as a funding channel: we just genuinely hoped that it would work as such, so we could polish the game to a super shiny, perfect diamond. What we really, really wanted was to make the editor working smoothly and get the story fully implemented into the game, but when Plan A didn’t work and give us the possibilities we dreamed of, we’ll move on to Plan B and make the best of it. Of course the game isn't as polished as I would like it to be, but as we say in Finland, "aina ei mee niinku Strömsössä". It's still a great game with tons of content and 100% positive feedback at the time of writing. I find solace in that.
Our backup plan was what we’re about to do now: remove the dialogue and cutscene components (for now, at least). I wish to apologize to those of you who saw beyond the dialogue boxes’ usability issues and liked the story so far. As the creator of the story, I did, too. This was not a decision I wanted to make, but the harsh reality was that both the character dialogue and the mechanics through which it was conveyed are too incomplete to be included in our initial release build.
So, is this a full game? Yes. Despite our initial scope, Parcel is an intact gaming experience. Is it the full game that it was envisioned to be? It will be, as long as we’re able to continue our operations. The editor works already and the story wasn’t that much work-in-progress; the decision to scrap the dialogue and cutscene components altogether for now was due to usability issues that we simply didn’t have time to fix. Nevertheless, the full release of the game will be a full game, with over 120 lovingly crafted puzzles - over 160 if you count the tutorials.
Basically, what we want to say is: buy it, feel free to already love it, tell your friends and stay tuned for improved and added content later. Parcel is a major challenge for the brain, and we’re confident that both newcomers and seasoned puzzle fanatics will enjoy their stay. No matter how much we needed to cut back, there’s still years of love contained in this game.
A huge thank you goes to Frozenbyte for supporting us all this time and being patient with our constant stumbling. Among all the focus on sulking over the negative things, I’ll always remember that the project (which started as my school project two-and-a-half years ago) would never have gotten even this far without our arrangement with Frozenbyte. Without them, Parcel would have crashed and burned a long time ago. Now it has a fighting chance, and taking Parcel out of Early Access enables it to fight for its right in the spotlight.
But most of all, to everyone who found the game, saw its potential and supported us during our short stint on Early Access: Thank you so much. Your positive feedback, kind words and support have made the grueling life of game development feel worth it. Hopefully, with this next step, we'll reach an even bigger community of people to puzzle.
- Pyry Takkunen, Creative Director
Moving out of Early Access
Yes, you heard us right. Early Access didn’t work for us. We had gone way over budget already, and wished that our EA time would buy us more time, which it didn’t. In these times of fierce competition over visibility, Early Access games have enormous trouble to get coverage in media, and we witnessed that first-hand, resulting in not-that-good sales numbers. The good thing is that the game is already at a very complete state gameplay-wise, so what players will be getting is a full, complete game. Early Access users had a unique chance to catch a glimpse of what is still to be added into Parcel. Or what we still dream of adding into it.
We’re a young team that couldn’t foresee all the trouble. A lot of sacrifices have already been made, and we reached a limit on those. To be frank, the past two years have been one massive personal sacrifice for some, myself included. We’ve given a huge portion of our youth and humanity to this project, and we were aware that this amazing opportunity to make the game we’ve dreamed of making would end at some point. Despite all the perfectionism that makes us see the flaws still present in the game, we should be thankful that we ever got even this far.
We didn’t rely on Early Access as a funding channel: we just genuinely hoped that it would work as such, so we could polish the game to a super shiny, perfect diamond. What we really, really wanted was to make the editor working smoothly and get the story fully implemented into the game, but when Plan A didn’t work and give us the possibilities we dreamed of, we’ll move on to Plan B and make the best of it. Of course the game isn't as polished as I would like it to be, but as we say in Finland, "aina ei mee niinku Strömsössä". It's still a great game with tons of content and 100% positive feedback at the time of writing. I find solace in that.
Our backup plan was what we’re about to do now: remove the dialogue and cutscene components (for now, at least). I wish to apologize to those of you who saw beyond the dialogue boxes’ usability issues and liked the story so far. As the creator of the story, I did, too. This was not a decision I wanted to make, but the harsh reality was that both the character dialogue and the mechanics through which it was conveyed are too incomplete to be included in our initial release build.
So, is this a full game? Yes. Despite our initial scope, Parcel is an intact gaming experience. Is it the full game that it was envisioned to be? It will be, as long as we’re able to continue our operations. The editor works already and the story wasn’t that much work-in-progress; the decision to scrap the dialogue and cutscene components altogether for now was due to usability issues that we simply didn’t have time to fix. Nevertheless, the full release of the game will be a full game, with over 120 lovingly crafted puzzles - over 160 if you count the tutorials.
Basically, what we want to say is: buy it, feel free to already love it, tell your friends and stay tuned for improved and added content later. Parcel is a major challenge for the brain, and we’re confident that both newcomers and seasoned puzzle fanatics will enjoy their stay. No matter how much we needed to cut back, there’s still years of love contained in this game.
A huge thank you goes to Frozenbyte for supporting us all this time and being patient with our constant stumbling. Among all the focus on sulking over the negative things, I’ll always remember that the project (which started as my school project two-and-a-half years ago) would never have gotten even this far without our arrangement with Frozenbyte. Without them, Parcel would have crashed and burned a long time ago. Now it has a fighting chance, and taking Parcel out of Early Access enables it to fight for its right in the spotlight.
But most of all, to everyone who found the game, saw its potential and supported us during our short stint on Early Access: Thank you so much. Your positive feedback, kind words and support have made the grueling life of game development feel worth it. Hopefully, with this next step, we'll reach an even bigger community of people to puzzle.
- Pyry Takkunen, Creative Director
Updated to version 0.9.2576
This change DOESN'T remove or corrupt the DataSphere's you have already collected, only where the DataSpheres can be collected. The change can also affect the level info that informs you whether a DataSphere has been collected in that level or not.
So, unfortunately, if you want to collect them all and have collected some of them already, you have to go through the levels where a DataSphere is to actually check whether it has been collected or not. Whether a level has a DataSphere or not is indicated in the level select menu, when a level is highlighted.
Note that collected marker can show up whether it's collected or not, if you have save from an earlier version. DataSpheres collected after this update are not affected.
Changelog:
- Optimised level loading a bit, mostly affects slower computers
- Fixed a rare case where pause menu stayed on screen after exiting pause
- DataSphere order changed
- Improved Level Restart from Pause Menu
- Usage counters should now work properly even on level start
- Menus generally improved a bit
- Improvement in game progression (Special Place is hopefully not so hidden anymore)
- Platypus achievement gettable by combining the achievements of multiple local profiles
- Many more minor fixes