Since the game launched 7 days ago, it has been great watching people play it on YouTube and Twitch, as well as to hear direct feedback from players. This first update is aimed to address some of the most frequently mentioned requests from the community.
Version 0.51b is now out and brings the following changes:
Difficulty Adjustment
The default difficulty level of the game has been lowered, in order to be a bit more forgiving and welcoming for new players.
If you were fine with the old difficulty, however, the new Difficulty Level dropdown in Settings > Gameplay Options will let you set it back to Hard for the original experience. And if you were really hoping for even more punishment, try the Very Hard difficulty!
Ease of Play
The default input behaviour for engaging the thrusters used to be pressing and holding the left mouse button, and you had the option to change it to a toggle kind of behaviour. Things have switched around with this update, where new players will find a single click will turn their engines on and off, without having to hold the button down. Players who want finer control over their thrusters can go back to the older method from Settings > Gameplay > Control Bindings.
The firing arc of the main cannons have also been increased to make aiming and firing easier, especially for new players who are getting used to firing broadsides from their aircraft!
Progression
All persistent upgrades to your ship are unlocked with Blueprint fragments, and finding them could be hard in the older version. With this update players always get at least one Blueprint fragment in each run, to allow constant progress even with frequent defeats.
Misc Improvements
The wording of some sailor perks have been changed to better explain what they do. Plus I've fixed small issues here and there that I have noticed.
If you are having any issues at all with the game, do not hesitate to let me know. You can reach out using the contact info on Steam store page.
Cheers!
Anchors Aweigh!
Ahoy mateys!
The day has finally arrived and Pirates of Gravitae is now available on Steam Early Access for purchase.
This is a very exciting milestone for this journey that I embarked on as a solo developer almost a year ago. The game that started its life as a toy for my kids' amusement, the game that I later decided to realize as a full indie game, is now out in the world for all to enjoy.
I say solo developer, but only in the sense that I have been the only designer/developer on the project. Otherwise I am grateful for the contributions of Emiliano Giugliano (2D art), Joe Barrucco (sound design), and Ryan Leach (music), as well as everyone who tested the game and gave feedback to help me craft a better game. A very special thanks goes to my family for their support and the endless inspiration they provide.
So what now?
The next little while will be focused on making sure any reported issues and bugs are resolved as fast as I can.
I am hoping once the dust settles after the first couple weeks, I can turn to working on improving some of the existing game mechanics, and addressing any quality of life issues that the community may request. Already I have received a number of feature requests and suggestions, and I will work on gathering them all and prioritizing.
Once the existing content has received a good level of fine tuning, next comes the business of adding new content to the game as planned. Currently the game has the first act of the grand campaign, from a total of three planned for the final release. Along with the new acts, there will be new enemies, new environments, and more, to keep the game fresh, challenging and interesting throughout the entire campaign. I can't wait to hear what new ideas the community will come up with!
So this is the plan so far. But of course, in the words of Terry Pratchett: "Only presumptuous fools plan. The wise man steers."
Bon voyage everyone, and thank you for joining me on this swashbuckling journey. :)
Best, - Taylan
Launch Day Cast
Hello everybody,
The early access release of Pirates of Gravitae on March 31st is imminent. So I thought it would be fitting of me as the developer of the game to welcome you in person via broadcast.
The stream is going to be pre-recorded (working from home and having kids make it very hard to avoid interruptions otherwise) but I will be engaging with people in chat and on Discord, so if you have any questions or comments about the game you wanna share, please drop by and say hi!
