The major update v4.0 is now available. It focuses on the spaceship, the ice biome, and the cure quest.
The spaceship
It is now possible to fix the spaceship of your friend found on the second island. Once fixed, you can use it but there is not enough fuel to leave the planet. You will need to find that fuel.
You can navigate freely with your spaceship, however it is impossible to land in the tempest. Landing is only possible near weather controllers, station docks or on the sky station. It is mainly useful for fast traveling, but can also be used to winch boxes.
Some assets such as the weather controller and the station dock have been updated to add a landing platform for the spaceship.
Thanks to this feature, the world is now 3 times bigger. We made some modifications and adjustments to keep the game as enjoyable as when it was smaller.
The ice biome
A new biome is now available, filled with snow and ice. It is different from the previous ones since it is a group of small island with small icebergs and ice slabs between.
You need to find a path between those islands, or create one with the ice ammo. They produce a small ice slab when they hit the water.
There is no new mecha for the time being, but it is planned for the next updates.
The cure quest
This is the reason why you were going on this planet. Now this quest has been added. Everytime you pick a plant or some mucus, you earn some points which allow you to get closer and closer from the discovery of the cure.
But not only. You can only craft the Quick Repair when you launch a new game. You will need to gain some research points before crafting new recipes.
The more you pick a type of plant, the fewer points you earn. Try to pick various types to increase your research level.
The sky station
As the purpose of the game is to spend time on floor (on the planet) and to spend a small amount of time in the station, we decided to put everything needed for evolution (for the player and the mechas) in the station rather than in the inventory or a submenu.
We also decided to remove the possibility to build, move and remove rooms since it has no gameplay impact. All rooms are available from the start.
There are 3 new station rooms which are:
- the mecha room (you can unlock new mechas to control and raise your mechas' capacities)
- the evolution room (where you can evolve your character)
- the ship room (to put your spaceship)
New features
the spaceship
station ship room
evolution station room
mecha warehouse station room
ice world
ice ammo
oil
cure quest. Every plant picked increases the cure recipe research percent
medicinal plant
individual attack order to mecha
fragments particle effect when mecha dies
activating all weather controllers of an island removes the map fog
"hack timer" highlight for dead mechas previously hacked
item description
new items: Quick Repair +, Endurance Serum +
snow and sand visual effect on the player after staying outside too long
footsteps on sand and snow
landing platform for the spaceship to the weather controllers and the station docks
can escape from ingame menus/interactions with interaction button, inventory button, or item selection button
Updated features
mecha life does not regenerate automatically anymore. Must go to the station or use a heal ammo
easier crafting recipes
player evolution only possible in the station
cannot change the station anymore. All rooms are already there
crafting item recipes must be unlocked with the cure research system
mechas always produce fragments
mecha loot is predefined by its type
quest panel
islands are 3 times bigger
mecha evolution cost is dependent on the skill level
windmill are now spread over the map
windmills provide framgments
trains provide oil and chips
mecha passive skills. It now has more impact on the combat
station performance optimization
no more battery required to activate the beacon
player evolution skills are all accessible (no skill tree)
enemy repartition is now biome dependent (not just island dependent)
crafting timer goes twice faster
font
passifist mechas are now attacking if under attack. They live in bigger groups than aggressive mechas
if a mecha cannot attack the player, he will run away
Fixes
shadow transparency effect on plants
hacked mecha not attacking if under attack
station lighting issues
healing machine fx not stopping
wild mechas stuck in objects
Sky Break EA v3.3
The update v3.3 is now available. It focuses on the tempest system and the desert biome.
The tempest system
Storm elements now happen locally and can be seen from the distance. It is composed of two elements (as previously): tornadoes and lightning.
Tornadoes are bigger and move around a center point. Going too close to them will harm you but you can still walk away.
Lightning strike in the same area. You attract lightning only if you enter in this area.
The weather controller and the station dock now create a hole in the clouds (removing any tempest element in the area).
The desert biome
The desert is now composed of 4 biomes (instead of one previously). There are now:
- the sandy biome (same as previous one, filled with resources, dry grass, trees and rocks)
- the oasis biome (only sand and some spots for resources)
- the rocky biome (filled with different rock types and big rock columns)
- the dry biome (filled with dry grass)
New features
new desert biomes (oasis, rocky, dry)
new desert dry grass, rocks, trees
floor texture mix
cloud holes
forest new types of grass
Updated features
tempest fx (rain, wind, lightning, tornado)
lightning and tornado system
difficulty progression (hacking is easier, less enemies in a group, more life for the player)
smooth floor delimitation
combat musics now stops other musics
clouds lighting
sand lighting. There are now some sky reflections
station chest can host more items
Fixes
take item from ship chest does not update equiped items
hacked mechas continue to attack enemies around him after killing its target
unloading island and coming back generates different hill forms
sky lift switch animation
chunks loading incorrect LOD when the game starts
attack warning direction incorrect when aiming
Sky Break EA v3.2
The update v3.2 is now available. It focuses on a complete evolution system for your mechas.
Mecha evolution system
You can now point at one of your mechas and open its evolution window view. There is a range of 5 skills to improve. Each evolution requires a certain amount of fragments, which can be found on dead mechas.
The evolution skills are:
- Armor
- Attack
- Special Attack 1 (different on each mecha)
- Special Attack 2 (different on each mecha)
- Passive skill (different on each mecha)
Regarding the enemies, they still have a level. It reflects its level of armor and attack. If it is a leader, it can use its special attacks during combat.
New features
complete evolution system for hacked mechas
new special attacks
new tree models for the second island
dry grass, rocks and trees for the desert biome
Updated features
lighting params to give more brightness to the forest biome
improved scorpion and bird behaviour
can jump even with no stamina
enemy leveling system. Level of enemies show how much armor and attack they have
leader (enemies) can use between two special attacks during combat
improved forest tree leaves & LOD
Removed
player evolution skills related to mechas' global stats (armor, attack, speed, XP)
Fixes
flying mecha attack range too wide
mechas side sliding when moving
VRAM memory leak
hack view not working correctly while aiming
Sky Break EA v3.1
The update v3.1 is now available. It focuses on controlling your hacked mechas.
Special attacks
Your hacked mechas now have a set of special attacks. Only 4 available for this update, which are: powerful attack, damage zone, heal zone, and stun zone. When you use a special attack, it uses an energy bar that has been added to all your mechas. It takes a few seconds to recharge so you can launch a new special attack.
Some wild mechas can use special attacks too. In case that happens, you have the possibility to avoid it if you control your mechas correctly. This brings us to a new features: command your mechas.
Command your mechas
At any time during the game, you can point at any place on ground and click. Your mechas will automatically move to this spots. It can be useful if you want to run away from combat or avoid an enemy special attack for instance.
If you point at an enemy, they will attack him.
In order for this feature to be interesting, the AI of the mechas has been improved. Also for more accuracy in your orders, you can stop time during items and special attacks selection.
New features
move, attack and special attack orders to hacked mechas
energy bar to hacked mechas
special attacks to mechas. Can be used when the energy is full
leader enemies. They can use special attacks on the player
Updated features
hacked mechas do not collide each other anymore when following player
no friendly fire anymore
blaster heat system
AI behaviour. Enemy attacks hack mechas in a more distributed way (no focus on one mecha)
UI weapon and item selection
item equipment is automatic
wild pacifist mechas are running away from combat
wild mechas repartition
Fixes
AI system. Mechas now avoid obstacles more accurately
sounds cut
mechas UI state desynchronization
combat music could keep playing in the station under some conditions
Sky Break EA v3.0
The major update v3.0 is now available.
Weapon & Hacking
The first thing to notice is the change of weapon. Fighting is not a close combat style anymore. Instead, as hacking drones becomes an important aspect of the game, it is better to manage combat from a long distance. This way, it is possible to attack but also to heal your drones during combat.
Plus combat is a bit more difficult since the drones are stronger than you. Hacking mecas is the best way to survive. So how does the hacking system works?
If you want to hack a meca, you first need to kill him, then use your hacking taser (integrated in your weapon) to shoot him and hack him. When it is hacked correctly, its health is restored and it will fight with you.
When you start the game, you can only hack one meca. You need to evolve to unlock the ability to hack have more hacked mecas at the same time.
Enemy levels
Mecas have now a level representing their strength. This level number is displayed during the game, so you know before engaging combat which enemy is stronger than the others.
It also means that your hacked drones have a level. The more they fight, the more experience they get and they can gain new levels and get stronger.
The desert & New points of interest
A new biome is now available: the desert. It is still incomplete and requires several updates to gain in maturity, but it offers a fresh air in your exploration. Be careful, from time to time, sand tempests occur and lower down your visibility. All your map system do not work anymore during those tempests.
New point of interests have been added. They offer chips which are useful to evolve your character, but they are often protected by drones. Getting those chips is not an easy task.
Crafting & Evolution
Crafting has been simplified in order to get more interesting and give more depth to it. You can now craft from anywhere, and the list of items required to craft has been simplified. The goal is to remove unnecessary complexity and improve the gameplay depth.
The chip system will be replaced by a skill tree system, for the same reasons as the crafting system. It will be more about your capacities ingame rather than just improving your statistics.
No retro-saving compatibility:
As there are many changes, savings from the previous versions of the game are not compatible with v3.0. If you wish to continue playing v2.2 even during update v3.0, the retro-access is explained here: http://steamcommunity.com/app/405370/discussions/0/385428458169641772/
Dev Log:
New features
level to mecas
XP system. Tamed mecas earn XP with combats and can reach new levels
taming launches a connection system UI
new biome: the desert
new music assets for the desert biome
can choose how many items to drop
meca state UI
windmill spots
train wreck spots
Updated features
sword has been replaced to a blaster weapon system
minimap fog look and feel
map is a bit smaller but has more density
main menu is pausing the game
chip system is now replaced by a skill tree system
no dramatic music anymore during continuous tempest
inventory is now limited by a number of items
inventory look & feel. It is now a 3d augmented reality hub for inventory, map and evolution system
the weather controller and the station dock are now saving spots
once activated, the weather controller attracts pacifist drones
drone echo does not indicate anymore the types of element to find unless it is already discovered
beacon must be activated with a battery. These batteries are plugged on some mecas
damaged life (due to multiple death) cannot go under 75% of full life amount
sky lift buttons does not show a menu anymore. It goes up or down directly
endurance consumption when jumping or rolling
beacon and weather controller activation goes faster, with no timer countdown
tree leaves color
bird move system
map topology generation parameters
improved AI behaviour in combat
increased LOD distance parameters
the drone radar indicates ship wrecks
player state UI
Removed features
tempest continuous damage and tempest shield
flying truncks (temporarily, was too frustrating)
Fixes
performance optimization
floor seams (occuring randomly from time to time)
save mouse sensitivity option
equipment display synchronization with inventory
light movement desynchornization with wind
save previously discovered island map data
Sky Break EA v3.0 still in dev... (delayed by 2 weeks)
We want to warn you that there will be some delay on the v3.0 update as there are many changes/improvements/new contents.
Globally you already know what to expect for this update (please refer to our previous news). Yet there are some changes that we did not mention. The main one is the weapon. Indeed, we are making changes to make combat more strategic and interesting rather than just brutal and repetitive. The sword will be replaced by a kind of rifle/blaster, with possibility to handle your tamed drone from outside the combat area. Again, our goal is to bring more depth to the gameplay.
Also, be warned that because of all the changes (craft, map, items, station, and more...) all previous savings won't be compatible with the new version of the game. We will make an access during one month to v2.2 to let you continue playing your old game if you wish.
Sky Break v3.0 should be available around March, the 18th.
A major update in progress
The next update will bring many new contents and improvements, and will also bring some important changes in order to mainly improve the tame feature.
First of all, the crafting system will be updated to a simpler one accessible within the inventory. No need to get back to the station to craft. Recipes have been simplified. The goal is to remove unnecessary complexity and improve the gameplay depth.
Also, the chip system will be replaced by a skill tree system, for the same reasons as the crafting system. It will be more about your capacities ingame rather than just improving your statistics.
The sword may change to a new type of weapon. It is still under testing, we cannot give more information for the time being.
The tame system will be improved in many different ways to become a key element of the game. You can have a group of mecas to help you through your journey, heal them, and improve their XP to make them stronger.
You will be able to find new points of interest during your journey, such as abandoned trains, windmills, former mecas. We start to give some history to the land your exploring.
The tempest will have some minor improvements, nothing really noticeable for the moment.
Finally, a new biome will be implemented: the desert. There will not be new enemies for this update, but that will come soon afterwards.
There is no precise release date since there is a lot of content. We hope to release this update in two weeks, but it may come a bit after.
Sky Break Update v0.2.2
A new update is now available. Because of the delay of the previous one, it comes earlier.
New enemies
Two new enemies have been added. One of them is flying and can attack on a medium distance, the other one can use a laser as a long-range attack.
Improvements & fixes
Combat is a bit more challenging. Indeed some improvements have been added to the AI behavior. For instance, they now behave as a group, and if one of them is attacking, the others will help him. It is increasing the difficulty, but in the same time it is now easier to dodge the enemies.
Along with the fixes, the loading time when the station is docking to a new island has been improved a lot. It may have fixed the deadlock issue that some of you have sometimes, please don't hesitate to warn us in the steam discussions page if the problem is still not resolved.
New features
2 new enemies
"previous slot" and "next slot" input settings
Updated features
enemy group cohesion. If an enemy of the group is attacking, the others help him
enemy is easier to dodge (no rotation towards player during attack)
standard player attack affects one enemy at a time
increased enemy aggro distance
enemy detection time is a constant. If too closed, detection is instantaneous no matter what the player position is
fog wall is more transparent for a better visibility
ai improvements
Fixes
loading optimization when moving to a new island. Potential fix for loading deadlock
deadlock if the player dies before reaching the station dock
stealth not triggered in some bushes
terrain chunk seam gaps
Sky Break Update v0.2.1
Finally, after a delay of two weeks due to a UI flickering issue which is now fixed, the update EA v2.1 is now available.
New Enemies
We wanted to add more life and variety to the enemies, so we decided to completely update them to keep a mechanical aspect but with an animal look and feel. The AI has been completely re-written to match with an animal behavior. For instance, one has an energy battery that provides enough energy to create a shied in the storm and protect you. It is also possible to tame those drones. They will then follow you and protect you if you are under attack.
Two drones have been created for this update. More will come along with each update.
Tempest
We decided to make important changes to improve the tempest gameplay. First, no more random events hitting directly the player. Lightnings, ripped off trunks and tornadoes are biome related and occur all over the world. They are easier to avoid.
No more oxygen! Indeed this is a big decision, but we felt that something was wrong with this gameplay system, and decided to remove the oxygen and the heartbeat. Instead we introduced the tempest shield, which protects you from continuous damage in the storm. So time is limited in the tempest, but once in a calm area you are safe.
Because of these changes, we improved the UI to work better with this system. There are also less equipment slots for a more convenient item selection.
New features
plant indicators in corner minimap
two new drones, with a more "animal" look and feel
tame special capacity
tempest shield. The tempest is dealing damage if the player is not protected
indicator for the short health quest
Updated features
drone AI. A custom A* algorithm is now used
storm system. Now lighting and tornadoes are spread over the world, not aiming the player especially
storm effects are biome dependent
UI interface. Compact presentation of primary elements (life, equipment, tempest shield,...) with less equipment slots available
the player does not stop anymore when using an item
the player hides automatically when inside bushes
weapon sheathe/unsheathe is now handled automatically
light params for more visibility
scale corrections
combat enemy behavior
endurance system
changed combo system into a selection system using shield energy
audio for better sound effects over music
Removed features
previous enemy drone
oxygen
heartbeat system
Fixes
station docking deadlock
cinematic camera start rotation
performance issue with some FPS drop spikes
streaming music files for RAM optimization
crafting list not updated correctly
PS: because of this delay, EA v2.2 will come earlier (in one week approximately)
Next update (v0.2.1) in a few days...
We said in the last announcement that the next update should be ready for January the 14th, i.e. today. This is the reason why we are making this small news to actually warn you that there will be some delay (a few days normally).
Indeed, everything is ready but we updated the project to the latest version of our 3D engine (Unity 5.3.1) which encountered some issues with a flickering UI. Unity is aware of this issue and we are waiting for them to fix it.
Sorry for this delay, as soon it is ready, we launch the update on Steam.
In the same time, we are currently working on the update v0.2.2 (even if we'd rather see some feedback first on v0.2.1).
PS: if you want some more info on this issue, you can have a look at this thread http://forum.unity3d.com/threads/5-3-elements-in-the-ui-flicker-between-different-sprites.373098/
