Soundodger Turns 10! (secret song, trading cards, merch, and more)
Long Time No Dodge, Soundfans!
A Decade of Dodging
Happy Anniversary to not onlySoundodger 2 releasing in Early Access on this day in 2021, not only for announcing it a year earlier in 2020, but to the grandodger of them all, Soundodger+, released as well on this day exactly 10 years ago. Wow!
To celebrate such a packed and important day, we've got a bunch of goodies dropping. Unfortunately, since I am now working at another company, a proper game update is not in the cards today. Speaking of cards...
Trading Cards
Trading card drops are now live for Soundodger 2! Collect them all, trade with friends, earn badges, unlock emotes, and all that other stuff people do with Steam trading cards. Oh, and some of the profile backgrounds were made by fellow Soundodger 2 level creator Oxy, so look out for those!
Points Shop
We also have a couple profile backgrounds and borders available in the Points Shop, including an animated sticker of everyone's favorite skull. Check em all out here!
Merch Store
Moving outside of Steam, we have 2 new shirts dropping in the merch store! (There are also a bunch of other shirts, if you are just finding out now). What better way to celebrate a thing you love than to wear an obscure reference to it on your chest? (merch store, new shirt 1, new shirt 2) TIP: Use code SOUNDAY23 at checkout for 15% off! (good for the next week)
Soundodger on itch
The entire Soundodger franchise is also now available on itch, if you prefer to have options. This includes Soundodger+, Soundodger 2, the soundtracks for eachgame, and the ultra rare soundodgerLIVE. The Soundodger 2 Soundtrack in particular is special on itch, as it also contains all of the main game level files, for those who wish to pick apart the XMLs and discover how truly chaotic things are in game development.
Secret Song! Secret Level!
Last, but certainly not least, we have a secret song to announce, a lost relic to the deadline gods: a third track from longtime collaborator MOWUKIS! And not only is this track debuting for the first time, it also has a level to go along with it. If you already own Soundodger 2, all you have to do is unzip the contents and add the folder to your Documents>soundodger 2>levels folder. It'll then appear in User Levels from the title screen. MOWUKIS has also put all three Soundodger 2 tracks into a new EP, so please support your favorite French Soundodger composer and check it out! - Download MOWUKIS - Flows for Soundodger 2 - Check out the EP from MOWUKIS
That's it for Sounday 2023. I hope you enjoy all the little things we put together above. I know it's disappointing to not get some kind of an update. I would have loved to make one. I still want to do something in the future, so for now, you have trading cards to unlock and shirts to wash.
Happy Dodging, ♥Bean
v1.0.5: Better text, small fixes
Salutations Soundodgerers,
Another week has passed, and so another update is upon us. The biggest news here is that text now behaves properly for everyone, whether cam tilt is on or off. This will break the visuals of very specific user levels that did lots of fancy text decoration, so sorry about that.
Here's how text now displays (in level creator lingo):
If a text marker appears later in time than an earlier one, it will remain on top.
If more than one text marker exists at a certain time, the higher layer will stay on top (eg Layer 1 will appear on top of Layer 2)
Small potatoes other than that as far as changes go, but do please read the patch notes, as it's all I have left to type at this point.
Happy Dodging, ♥Bean
changelog v1.0.5 Game
Updated Feeling Again (challenge) to accommodate new text rules
Updated S***DODGER challenge to accommodate new text rules
Fixed <1x size bullets animating down instead of starting at smaller size
Fixed gameplay speed animating incorrectly when unpausing if playback speed mod is active
Fixed text not displaying in credits if lyrics display is off
Level Select
Changed folder display to keep parent folder selected when you go back one folder
Fixed all_others unlock counting 1-too-high in user levels
Added sfx when viewing album art
Editor
Fixed text to correctly display on top of older text
Fixed prefabs being able to be resized to negative durations
Changed duration bars (bullets + extras) to not be dragged below .001s
Fixed shift-selection not working inside prefabs
Misc
Fixed photosensitivity warning not displaying correctly for non-16:9 resolutions
v1.0.2 Now Live - fixing blurry images and hungry eyes
Ahoy Avoiders!
We just pushed out a minor update addressing a few QOL fixes. The biggest changes depend on what you care most about, so feel free to read below and decide for yourself!
♥Bean
changelog v1.0.2 Game
Fixed bullet size bug affected by recently-removed large bullets
Tweaked Silvergun (expert) pachinko chaos
Changed text objects to always display the most recently-created objects on top of older ones (This fixes several background text issues in Bean Bounty)
Changed Hungry Eyes achievement to only work in Vengeful Eyes (expert) and updated achievement description too
Fixed enemies showing certain particle fx when hidden / not currently visible
Level Select
Added sfx when viewing album art
Fixed blurry album art previews in Main / User levels
Fixed missing thumb art being blurry
Title
Removed feedback button (please use the #bug-reports channel in our Discord)
Launch Day + 1, aka v1.0.1
Hey Bullet Avoiders,
We had an amazing launch day yesterday. I'm glad so many new and Early Access players are getting to enjoy the finished, complete, occasionally-challenging version of Soundodger 2. Our creators worked yesterday to make some minor tweaks to levels, and I went ahead and squashed a few bugs that really had no business being there.
Thanks for reporting bugs in the discord, and continue enjoying your dodging!
♥Bean
changelog v1.0.1 Game
Tweaks to Bean Bounty (normal + expert)
Tweaks to Drops (easy + advanced)
Tweaks to Loathing (normal)
Color tweaks to Drops (challenge)
Fixed missing unlock requirement for Ford the River (challenge)
Fixed Making Omelettes achievement not working in certain situations
Changed requirements for Ouija achievement
Fixed bug when previewing audio in Shatter heatmap but clicking retry instead
Fixed bug when previewing audio in Results heatmap but clicking retry instead during practice
Fixed shift key changing what happens when clicking a button at Shatter screen
Fixed scoring bug when skipping Results animation
Goodbye Early Access, Hello uh... Access!
Hello Dodge Fans!
The day has finally come. Soundodger 2 is now 1.0.0! No more Early Access. All features and songs and levels and dreams in general are in the game, ready for you to dodge to your heart's content. Thanks to everyone who has helped the project out along the way, including the lovely folks from the official discord, countless friends and family, and of course the incredible musicians and level creators who joined the team to bring you the amazing experience we now have.
I'll keep this short so you have more time to enjoy the game, so from all of us here, please enjoy!
♥Bean changelog v1.0.0 Game
Added 27 Achievements
Added 15 new songs & 45 new levels
Added heart gain/loss to heatmap
Removed Seventeen & Something expert (...for now)
Tweaked ending of Crowds expert to be less impossible
Minor tweaks to Talk About It, Modular Origami, safety in the sun advanced, ShinShinjuku expert
Major revisions to Shibuya advanced
Updated audio for Sophomore Slump
Added 2nd heart to Sophomore Slump challenge
Fixed inconsistent graze score math
Added 2 unlockable modes
Added ability to hold arrow keys to quickly scroll through levels
Fixed stream patterns sometimes firing while paused
Level Select
Fixed jpeg thumbnails not displaying
Tweaked position of grade quotations
Fixed thumbnail preview for album art not coloring correctly in some situations
Added 40 album art images (1 for each song)
Adjusted unlock requirements for most songs/levels
Editor
Fixed text that was sent away via gravity staying in its last position when time jumping
Improved performance when too many extra markers
Fixed text getting stuck on screen when time jumping
Soundodger 2 is hitting 1.0 on April 10
Ahoy Dodge Folks!
The time has almost come. After 3 excruciatingly fun years, I'm proud to announce Soundodger 2 will be leaving Early Access and reaching that golden 1.0 status on April 10. That's just 2 weeks away! I won't scare you with how much work there still is to do on the game, but rest assured this is always how it goes no matter how much time you give yourself.
The Trailer
I'll let this shiny new trailer do most of the explaining, but basically you should have one last goodbye to your socks before they are blown off.
The Soundtrack
The Soundodger 2 Soundtrack page is also now live and ready to be wishlisted. It'll launch on the same day as the game (April 10, remember?) along with every track, including the ones you don't even know about yet...
The team and I have been working hard and have plenty more wonderful work to tend to in these final 2 weeks. Please pardon us if we more or less stay silent until then.
See you in a couple weeks! ♥Bean
ver 0.5.11 [BETA] Now Live! auto-restarting...
Hows It Goin Fellow Dodgerydoos?
A substantial-yet-small update has gone live for the Beta branch. The only thing of interest here is auto-restart, one of the most-requested features since Soundodger+ launched 10 years ago. I've always been against the idea and still have no interest in using it, but uh... here you go! Enable it via Options > gameplay.
A major major update is coming next month! Please look forward to my silence as we scramble to make sure it all goes smoothly. Until then, patch notes below!
♥Bean
changelog v0.5.11 [BETA] Game:
Added autorestart to Options > gameplay (ignored in zen mod and in editor)
Changed heatmap border to be more visible on bright backgrounds
Changed crack visuals in later stages of low health
Fixed cracks not displaying in fragile mod when losing a heart or restarting practice
Fixed shattering fx not displaying if particles are turned off
Fixed flickering squash animation on player when hitting arena wall with hori movement active
Fixed being able to shatter when unpausing to pick a new practice point
Fixed being able to shatter when unpausing to quit
Fixed graze amount not resetting when restarting practice
Fixed center enemy collision deactivating after an enemy is done shooting, but still visible
Fixed bullets that have been stopped not being able to stop again when restarting in practice
Fixed shatterproof mod not recording hit for heatmap
Fixed jittering visuals on score circle when choosing new practice point while having an imperfect score already
Editor:
Added error message if exluded enemies in settings contains incorrect characters (and prevents softlock)
Fixed distribute button not lighting up when shift-selecting markers
Fixed center enemy's preview cone aiming incorrectly
Fixed world aimed preview cones not updating when dragging playhead
Fixed streams reading amount2 value from previous bullet pattern type
Fixed softlock when zooming to hilight while nothing is hilighted
Fixed misaligned hitboxes on +/- buttons in Editor Color window
Fixed not being able to use controller to test forced powerups in fullscreen preview
Changed preview cones to extend as arena size increases
Improved performance when dragging playhead
Level Select:
Fixed visual error on mod window buttons
Hearts Will Be Broken: The Shatter FAQ
Howdy Dodgerinos!
Our latest update certainly packed a doozy of a changelog, but there's one aspect I felt needed its own space to breathe. Of course I'm talking about everyone's favorite mechanic to have feelings about - shattering.
What is shattering?
First off, you now take damage when getting hit. This appears in the game as cracks in the player. The cracks heal over time, and getting a heart instantly heals fully. If you get hit too often in too short a time, you will shatter. When you shatter, the song ends and you're kicked out. From there, you can either play again or go back to the menu.
How can I improve in a level if I keep shattering before seeing it all?
Luckily for you, we've added a handy heatmap of your gameplay, including marks to indicate every time you got hit. Simply hover over the heatmap and click to jump into practice mode from that point. You even get to hear an audio preview of the song to know roughly where it is. (This heatmap has also been added to the results screen in the bottom left, so you can still see your damage and jump in to practice even if you finish a level)
Why add it to the game?
This is something I've wanted not only in this game, but in Soundodger+ and even Overpass. Rhythm games, music games, and generally every video game has a fail state built in to give you an out if you're not ready yet. The first Soundodger used to have a fast-forward as a punishment for getting hit, which was odd, yes, but served this purpose. Once I added smooth listening mode and almost every player used it, that punishment was gone. Any player, regardless of their skill level, would always make it to the end. Sometimes a good score, sometimes bad. It's generally not good game design to rely on players to self-motivate themselves.
This also creates a new milestone for players to work towards - simply finishing a level. Before, you'd always make it through, get your grade, and move on. Now, a player can feel the pressure of having to perform well, celebrate making it through alive, then worry about their score another time. It's also a lovely indicator that you just might not be ready for this level right now. And that's okay! I'd much rather be kicked out of a super difficult level early rather than get an F and feel empty inside. (There are mods to allow you to play through an entire level, see below)
Why add it now?
Hey, this is still Early Access! Anything can happen at any time. And for your information, an early version of shattering has been in the game files since day 1, albeit disabled. It was a lives system. It was not good. Anyway, I really felt this needed to be added to the game before 1.0 and make it a better product because of it.
What if I don't like it?
Well, the good news is, once you get better at dodging stuff, this won't really be an issue. You can always practice as much as you want. We added a few collision mods to help as well. Zen mod of course lets you play without any score penalty when hit. There's also shatterproof mod, which still takes score away, but you'll never shatter. This is essentially how the game used to be. This is ideal for nearly impossible levels no one will ever beat, so you can brag about your score and share your results screen. Keep in mind this is a mod, so your score isn't saved. Lastly, there's fragile mod, which is just a 1-hit shatter for the masochists out there.
So that's that! We hope you enjoy the new shatter system and learn to love it as much as we do.
Happy Dodging, ♥Bean
Update 0.5.10: SHATTERED
Hello.
It's been a couple of months, so here's a couple of months of updates! Lots of small QOL fixes can be found below, such as holding shift on the Pause screen for additional options, but there are some major additions to the game you probably wouldn't have guessed would ever be added. That's right, you can now shatter to pieces right in the middle of a game. But don't worry, there are plenty of ways to practice, get better, and show those mean bullets you came to dance.
In fact, I had more to say about shattering than could fit here, so please read through this Shatter FAQ if you have any questions. I hope you enjoy it!
I also might have mentioned some "bangers" arriving a month ago, which you've surely noticed are absent from the game. Rest assured they will arrive in a later update. They need a little more time in the creator oven. Thanks for being patient!
Added heatmap to Shattered and Results screens (hover to preview audio, click to practice)
Added practice points to all levels in main game
Added , and . for choosing practice points
Added results animation skipping. Press any key or click
Changed center enemy to push out player in progress movement challenge
Fixed squash direction of player in vert movement challenge
Fixed header reading invisible line breaks
Fixed lasers not colliding with updated shield radius
Fixed blank practice points displaying an empty text box
Fixed clears not firing when in pause/unpause animations
Fixed invisible center enemy having a hitbox during intro animation
Fixed invisible center enemy pushing player outwards with progress movement active
Fixed shadow clones being able to collide with domes
Fixed erroneous-looking pixels in shadow challenge icon
Editor
Added obey stops to advanced bullet deck
Added undo/redo buttons (and ctrl+z/y), removed other defunct buttons. Undo is still WIP, use at your own risk
Added functionality to all remaining tool buttons (and removed some, too)
Added select all by type button to Extras toolbar
Added transparency support for outline color
New Project: Added more checks to prevent folders from opening
New Project: Added error message if project already exists
Changed Stop to be its own extra (stop clears from 0.5.3 are converted automatically)
Changed stop event icon to be consistent with others
Changed bullets back to not animating as gravity affects them
Changed text extra input box to match selected font
Separated OOB and ignore border into 2 things
Color window: Fixed invert color when non-color1 is active overriding that slot with color1
Fixed reset anchor value not updating input box
Fixed survive rewind button not having its own tool tip
Fixed dynamic event view not updating when reversing event anchor values
Fixed clear events sometimes firing multiple times
Fixed text wrapping of [exclude enemies] input box
Fixed softlock when canceling the load xml window when current project is unsaved
Fixed dome inconsistent dome thickness between preview and fullsize game windows
Fixed wrong x values for placing/dragging markers on ultrawide monitors
Fixed visual offset of waveform in timeline
Updated [set prefab trim to playhead] icon to match the playhead better
Improved performance when selecting all
Changed various input text boxes to not display rich text
Fixed not being able to paste bullet markers in prefabs
Level Select
Added collision mod: choose between zen, shatterproof, or fragile (1 hit death, oh boy!)
Added better coloring when hovering over a level with a transparent outline color
Changed "classic" tag to appear on all legacy levels
Changed mod window hover sfx to play uniquely to prevent overloading
Changed powerup button hover sfx to change in pitch
"---" displayed for unfinished level that's been played
Fixed odd behavior when holding shift and selecting a level
Fixed unlocking level/difficulty sfx being muffled
Fixed folder music not looping
Fixed wrong powerup colors shown when selecting blast/shield
Fixed hovering over non-focused level switching to unreadable white text
Removed "new!" in score position of level buttons
Misc
Options: Added page 2 to How to Play (and next/prev buttons)
Options: Added controls page (under gameplay tab)
Pause: Added shift key holding to get alternate options for certain buttons
Update: 0.5.3 - New tools for creators and thumbnail previews (finally!)
Hi Again,
I wasn't too long this time, was I? An update went live in the beta branch a few days ago, and now that my sanity has been confirmed, here is that same update for all players with a few more bugs squashed along the way.
If you missed out on 0.5.2's patch notes, please refer to this post.
See you next month for some new bangers!
♥Bean
changelog v0.5.3 Main
Fixed bullets sometimes not disappearing when surviving rewind
Changed OOB-disobeying rubber bullets to fulfill their bounce quota before leaving the arena "forever" (-1 bounce rubbers will continue to bounce forever)
Editor
Fixed lots of odd behavior with stream bullets inside prefabs (dragging duration bar, changing pattern type, etc)
