So, what's been going on with this game? It's a tricky question to explain but let me start off with the progress that has been made so far.
First off: The redirection with this game.
So after a while of updating this game when it first came out, it became clear to me that the current state wasn't really going anywhere. There was that little itch in the back of my mind that pressured me into moving the scope of what I wanted this game to be. So, after a long talk with TecShield, we did just that. My first priority was character creation. Now, personally, I love when games allow me to craft my character to look however I want. This is exactly what I communicated to the team, and within a couple of months, it became a reality. So far, it is still a work in progress, however the core mechanics are in the game. You can pretty much create whoever you wish with our editor.
You can even go the "Oblivion route" if you wish. Something I think is necessary for a game like this. It is the wasteland after all, why not make your character look like they've been through something freaky. Maybe make them go through a mutation or have them be created by a madman experimenting with individuals.
"Oi! Come over er donkey!"
Or make them look full on Schwarzenegger
Alright, so you kinda know where we're going with this. You can make them look however you wish. Morph them into yourself or turn your character into something from a nightmare! I sure had fun messing around with this, but what you see isn't final, there is still so much to do for this module. There are more hairstyles to add, more clothing to suit your needs and even a roleplaying background selecter that will modify your unique creation into something more personal.
Second: The new path
While we're focusing on keeping the game's vision as it currently is now, I made the choice to change up how the introduction works. What I mean by that is the safezone. Having those little lizard people guide you through was my first idea at the time, but everyone else's feedback was somewhat of the opposite. So, while everything else is more or less the same, I have instead allowed a different approach when it comes to the starting world.
Introducing: The new safe zone.
Right now, we have implemented a multi-storey building that will act as a new safezone for the player. This will allow the player to tend to their needs; as in sleeping to make night into day, modding and customizing their weapons, change their clothing, change the ambient music and even read a book! That's right, you can even sit down and read my whole book: The Chronicles, Wasteland.
I wanted this to be included with the base game. If the player wishes to know more about the world that they're currently playing in, I thought it would be a nice addition to give supporting players my whole first book as a thank you. After the player is ready to venture out into the wasteland, they can scavenge and loot in the city map. Just like how you can now, you can gather materials, collect credits, find ammo and so on. The idea of finding the previous underground safezone at a later time is possible. Maybe that can be a place for you to have a breather if things get overwhelming for you.
Now do keep in mind that all of the above isn't publicly out yet, there are some things in my personal life that I have to address before closing out this update.
What's happening with me?
Now, you may know that I'm someone who's been funding this game by myself for a very long time. I work an insane amount of overtime at my job just to pay the TecShield developers and to support myself and the family. A new hurdle has appeared in front of me, it's called the Victoria Police. My application has been going very well. I've been passing the required tests left and right and I'm nearing completion in becoming an officer. However, there is something that has hit me financially hard: my eyeballs! To put it simply, my vision has failed me. I currently am short sighted, and I failed the minimum requirement for the sight assessment. I could either close my application and continue with my monotonous life, or get surgery. I'm sure you can tell where I went with this. So after thinking long and hard about it, I went with the latter. As of publishing this article, my surgery is set on the 21st of Nov, this coming Tuesday. While exciting as this may be, it has been very impactful on my wallet. It's pretty much come down to me putting progress of this game on hold until I have fully recovered and am confident on continuing this project. I mean, 6,000AUD for improving my life-long vision is very appealing and to secure a job in law enforcement, but it was painful to communicate with TecShield that the game has to be paused at the current moment.
That's kinda where we're at now. Progress on improving the game has definitely been made, but more time is needed to drop an update that will turn this game into something more worthwhile. It's a dream and a legacy that I don't wish to give up on, I love it too much.
Besides all that:
I have lowered the price of the game to $5USD, it should reflect correctly for your currency, but this was something that should've been standard from the start. You'd think you'd get more results from a game that you've spent so much money on, but hey, not all investments are worth while. Either way, it's my legacy that I will leave behind, but it's one I don't plan on abandoning.
This is Mr. Ox signing off, for now...
Patch 1.2.0
Hello all!
It’s been a hot minute, but for good reason. There’s quite a lot of things to get through right now so I’m not going to waste any time and will go through the changes this new build has. Afterwards I’ll be highlighting what the team and I are going to be up to in the next coming weeks.
First off, the map overhaul.
This map still uses the same landscape and locations as the previous world. If you’ve played this before, you should notice some… minor changes to the level. As I’ve mentioned before, the map that the game launched with was a good starting point, however I wasn’t satisfied with the aesthetic of the world and it doesn’t reflect well in my books. If you were to play this game and read the novels, you would think that these are two completely different worlds. This build changes that by, well, making the map look like it’s gone though a whole century. However, I am going to cut this section short, because this isn’t going to be the final version of the world. In the coming months, there are going to be some serious changes to the game itself. I’ll explain more further down but I’ll quickly cover a cut feature that I don’t think many people knew of.
Top down mode.
This game has gone through several changes since we started this project around 2 years ago. The game was meant to be exclusively an isometric game, where the player survives wave after wave against Screamers, think of CoD: Zombies. Over time however, new ideas came, and soon enough, third person was implemented and with ever update, top down mode because more and more obsolete to a point where the mode was broken and unusable. With the way the game plays now, third person is much more suited as a default mode anyway. So we removed the top down mode and replaced the TAB button to switch shoulders of the character so you’ll have an easier time to look around corners.
But that’s pretty much it…
Besides a few minor fixes, this is how the game will be… for now Recently I have had a thought, something that’ll pretty much change TC:WA for good in a positive light. These past few months after releasing the game has taught me so much in how to handle building a game, showing it off to thousands of people and releasing it for the public to play. Besides a few harsh comments, this has been a huge learning curve for me and now I’m ready to take it up to the next gear. Doing this will take a bit of time, but after observing how everything turned out, the wait will surely be worth it. Let me walk you through what’s in the oven right now.
Character creation. I’ve grown up as someone who loves RPGs, you name it: The Elder Scrolls series, Mass Effect, Fallout and so many others. I’m actually doing a new playthrough of Mass Effect Legendary edition right now and the crucial component of such games always have one thing that I absolutely adore: character creation.
Nothing is better to me than seeing a reflection of myself in a virtual world where I’m the hero. I want this to be the case for TC:WA! What we’re doing right now is going to be quite literally a game changer. The team at TecShield are currently experimenting with a powerful new tool that will give the player endless freedom to how they want their character that is surviving the wasteland to look. Zaighamgram is doing a fantastic job making sure this implements into the game seamlessly. Not only will you be able to customize the way your character looks in the game, but you will also choose their background and their alignment to truly immerse you in this world. Right now, there is very little to show off right now. These next coming weeks will be focusing on adjusting everything to fit properly into the game itself. After this has been done however, there is going to be more!
Base building and world overhaul! The underground bunker was a good start in terms of giving the player a place in not having to worry about the dangers of the outside world. To me however, it wasn’t MY safezone, that’s what kind of gave me doubts after releasing the game, Other players will experience the same place that didn’t really allow them to say “this is my safezone” if that makes sense. You were really a guest in someone else’s bunker and after a while, you didn’t really feel like it was a place that you belong. This is what I’m striving to do now. Having a large landscape that the player can call their own and build their camp into a stronghold where they can be proud of what they’ve built. As I mentioned before, the world will change as well. One that will be custom made instead of a pre-built map that exists currently. That’s what I meant by this won’t be the final version to the world with this build. After the previous two modules are completed, a new map will be forged that will properly be optimized and made to cater to a mysterious wasteland, full of secrets and horrors.
In saying all of this, the current build (V:1.2.0) will be as is for a while now. Not that anyone is playing this game anyways, I’m pretty much typing this out as if I’m talking to myself. But if you’re someone who already owns the game and is reading this far out of curiosity; thank you, there’s going to be a lot of exciting new features that are going to be put in over the coming months. Even if there’s going to be a slow-down on game builds, I’ll still be updating everyone on how things are going ever few weeks/fortnights.
That is all for now, thank you for your support and for reading on.
-Mr. Ox
Patch 1.1.1
Hello there. Another fortnight update and I’m pretty excited to share this update with everyone. Now this isn’t the BIGGEST update that we have planned but this will definitely add some excitement to the world. I’m just gonna get straight into it and will share our future plans after listing the changes.
What’s new:
Prologue level!
This level begins at the very start of a new game. This will show you how the main mechanics will work and will allow you get a good idea on what to expect further on. You will play as an unnamed survivor who hears a ruckus outside. It’s up to you to investigate and find out what has happened.
New settings: Toggleable enemy health bar
New hidden achievement: Hume teaches us…
What’s fixed/changed:
Shotgun has been buffed
Machine Screamer spawn has been fixed outside of church
Achievements should now appear as soon as you meet the requirements. Before you had to check the achievement tab in the main menu for it to unlock. Now it should unlock instantly
What’s next:
Now this is the exciting part; something that has been in the backburner for a while now. I’ve mentioned it before that this current city map is more of a foundation for what I really want my game to be. What we have now is an apocalyptic map that feels like that only a few years have passed while in my novels, it’s been over 100 years. I’m please to share just a few images of what to expect for the next upcoming update that will pretty much overhaul everything that this current world is now.
Now I know that I said that this update will come with a wipe, however we think it’s best to do it once the new map is done. If you want to give the prologue level a try, either go to the settings menu and click delete progress in the bottom left corner, or wait until this next update.
Hello all. Just in time for the summer sale with a brand-new fortnightly update. I will be honest; I must have completely misread Steam and the sale date because I swear I read that it was starting late July, like the 20th or something. Kinda shocked me when I saw that it was starting now. Nevertheless, this update is quite the chunky one with a few new additions. It originally took a week to implement but then we took an additional week to fix the bugs that were present. If you think this update is impressive, wait until you see what we have in store for the next couple of weeks.
Now just to let everyone know, the next update that’s coming on the 15th will reset everything. This obviously includes progress, but it’s for a good reason of course; there will be a new prologue introduction for new players to properly show them what this game is about. For Halo Reach players, think about the Lone wolf mission and how that ended. I think that’ll be a great way to introduce everyone to what this world holds.
It’s been over a month now since TC:WA came out and already I’ve learnt a lot about how to handle launches, feedback and updates. Thanks to everyone who’s been positive and have provided constructive comments about how we can make this game better. Other than that, here are the new patch notes:
What’s new:
New Screamers!
Armoured Screamers: Just like your normal enemy but takes more to bring down.
Machine Screamers: To fight, or not to fight. Do not cross this foe when you’re low on ammunition. They hit pretty hard too.
Updated mission board. We have revamped the missions into more of a neater collection. We have remade the purification missions with better rewards and will add more in the coming weeks.
What’s fixed/changed:
Lootable misc objects now sparkle white Chests give off a blue sparkle Removed purple eye icon from the map for misc loot A lot of other minor bugs have been resolved.
What’s next:
Implement a new prologue mission. (This update will wipe the game into a new save) Buff some weapons Add new bounty board missions Lootable chests that hold high tier rewards…
What is also being worked on is new assets including buildings and clutter around the world. To put it simply: I’m sure almost everyone knows that a majority of this game world has shared assets that a lot of Unity developers use, mostly including apocalyptic type of games. These assets have been great to use as building blocks to make the game. However, I’m now wanting to diverge this existing map into a more personally crafted one that suits my world better.
If you take one look at the world, you would think that only 10 or 20 years have passed since the apocalypse began. In my novels however, it’s been over 100 years and the world would look so much more different compared to what’s in the game now. *cough cough* insert self-promotion here…
That is all for now. I’m looking forward to sharing this next specific update with everyone.
Hello everyone! A new patch is out and things are looking pretty good. The new looting system is finished and the team has added over 430 new locations for you to find items to help you on your journey. We’ll be tweaking it a bit more so that the items can be searched again after some time has passed.
Changed/Fixed:
Made an item that couldn’t be picked up now… pick-up-able?
Bandit guard now drops keycard on death.
Fixed a text bug where it says the player picked up ammo when they haven’t walked over it yet.
Back button for wizard is now functional.
Sometimes was impossible to pick up loot depending on what item you search; player can now easily pick up items.
Screamers now only drop body parts on death.
Sized ammo pickups down by 50%
What’s new:
The AR could only be unlocked by finishing the first 4 missions given by Kin-Yar. The player then had to unlock the blacksmith and equip it from there. This has now changed. Upon unlocking zone 2, the player should see a battle that has been lost with a survivor and 3 Screamers. Their AR and spare ammo should be laying there for the player to pick up. It is now theirs to own and customize.
All other zones on the map now has misc loot containers.
New button prompts for players under the map. (We might add all controls on the right side of the screen for new players with a hotkey toggle to hide and show these buttons)
What to expect next week:
The AR that the player picks up in zone 2 has a bug where it dumps its mag within a second after pulling the trigger. We’ll fix that.
Adding new Screamer variants.
New missions!
That's it for this week. What we're working on next will add so much more life and thills to the game. I look forward to sharing this with everyone. Until then, have a good weekend.
Another week down and another patch is out. As I'm sure some of you know, we're working on a new looting system where the player can search objects that could possibly store something of value. Right now as we experiment, only zone 1 and 2 have this new feature. Next week we will focus on covering the rest of the map and will also tweak the chances of finding loot. Right now, it's 50/50 with the player finding nothing at all or something that will help them in their travels.
Changed/Fixed:
Fixed more arm streching in dialogue Removed blank cards that have no effect on player Cutscene at start now moves onto the game after it finishes. Player was forced to skip at the end Swappable survivor now appears after missions
What's new:
New looting system 3 new achievements added New setting toggles: Brightness, blood toggle, bodies timer, motion blur and other misc effects
What to expect next week:
Further expand and tweak the looting system Fix more outstanding bugs Work on new Screamer variants!
That's all for this week. Looking forward to sharing more upcoming content.
Hi everyone. I’m pleased to share our first patch for this week. The team have tested the game a lot and we’ve changed a few things around thanks to players’ feedback. Starting a new game for some players should now be much more straightforward now.
Changed/Fixed:
Third person crosshair is toggleable through options Top down crosshair is always enabled The player won’t be able to go out side until he is required to. The player is prompted clearly with icons to where to go in the start. Fix Wizard card menu, players should be able to merge duplicate cards to make stronger versions Fix various ammo bugs: Ammo in the minus, or purchase ammo bug Fix bandit guard bugs Fix players arms flapping around when talking to bandit Bandit engage with dialogue even after he is killed Player doesn't gain skill points Fix female evade rank 1 Shotgun should do more damage and reload faster Make sniper do more damage Size sniper down Make the swappable character appear after the tutorial is over Bandit should not spawn only ammo when killed Player falling off map when entering water Medkits are very common, we’ve now lowered the chance of getting them Lootable Screamer hands and feet don’t appear as pick ups Game Stuck if player press esc key when game scene is loading is now fixed Fixed collision with multiple objects Removed floating object in front of powerplant door Player could pass through powerplant doors without unlocking them Fixed hole in the world near the start Interaction with the blacksmith has been fixed
What’s new:
6 new achievements Minimap in bunker to guide the player Added health and stamina icons Prompt the player on picking up the unlocking item for a door
Known issues to fix in this build
Might encounter aiming bug after switching to top-down mode. Go to bunker and back out to city to fix A couple of drops from Screamers can't be picked up A Screamer may drop an equipment card that hasn't been implimented into the game just yet.
That's everything for this week. Next week we'll keep an eye out for more bugs but also begin working on adding new missions and other exciting content.
Keep track with us using Trello here: https://trello.com/b/gVZgk8oA/tcwa-update-board
Have a good week
-Mr. Ox
Keep track with us using Trello
Hello all!
Thanks to everyone so far who has joined us at launch! We hope you've had fun being the first to try out Wasteland Assault.
There is still so much more work to do. Instead of guessing or wondering when our next patch or major update will be, we have left a link to our page on Trello. This app is very useful to those who want to see a breakdown of what we're working on, what's planned for the next update and what's been finished that will be applied to the next update. Check it out for yourself. Right now, there's not much, but after these next couple of patches come out, we'll start working on some bigger features.
Like some have done already, let us know if there is something in the game that should be fixed, added or altered during our development and most likely, it'll appear here on the Trello page.
https://trello.com/b/gVZgk8oA/tcwa-update-board
What's new 07/05/23
Hey all, we're so close to launch. With only a few weeks left from going live, I thought I'd post a little update with points with what to expect when the game comes out.
First off; to me, this is huge. Developing a video game has really taught me a lot about the insides of the industry. Nearly two years ago, I got in contact with TecSheild after sending them a manuscript of what my game is about and what I want in it. Looking back at it today, nothing in that document resembles to what we've made now. I have expanded the game with new ideas and thoughts on how to really make this game stand out, consequently, this has add on so much more time and money than I had anticipated, but that doesn’t matter to me because I am proud for what has come as a result of it. With more plans and content to add into the future, I really hope that this game will result in hundreds of hours of fun for millions around the world. Right now, however, we are starting with just a few.
Now, with that message out of the way, what is to be expected at launch? Currently, the game will be launched at a 25% discount for its first week. It will be a great time to take advantage of this deal if you’ve been following the game during its development. After launch, the game will continuously be worked on. Expect weekly, fortnightly or monthly updates that will expand the game with free content, features and add-ons. I will remain vigilant with the discussion page of the game to assist anyone with questions about the game. I’ve taken several days off from my day job to make sure everything goes smoothly. Maintaining the integrity of this game is going to be a new aspect of my life. It will be a new habit that I will get myself into to make sure everyone is having a good time and that any issues that may arise will be solved by my team and I as soon as possible.
Next is the updates themselves. Currently there is still a lot to add. Once the game comes out after May, it will be hard to communicate what exactly we will be adding in the future, but I will definitely address what is new as the updates roll out. Making a roadmap right now however is unlikely though. I personally am still experimenting and feeling out how to release not just new content, but polished content that is properly in working order. I would hate to have specific dates on new features and miss the mark because there has to be more work put into it. Obviously there is a lot of communication needed between the team at TecSheild and myself where we need to be confident that we’ll deliver on what players will be expecting. As I mentioned before, I will keep in close contact with the community about what’s being worked on. I’ll be happy to answer any questions ranging from future content to new idea that players may have that would make the game more enjoyable. Keep in mind that I’m just one guy with many ideas on the world that I have wrote about, but I am always open to other people’s opinions and ideas about their thoughts on what make a video game good.
I guess that’s the message I’m trying to make to the community; the success on this game will dictate my own future. Without getting too personal, I wish to really make a difference to not just the gaming community, but to the business world in particular. If I ever make it to a point where I can have my own team in Melbourne, then that’s where I really want to make an impact and a long lasting impression for many decades to come. Let’s face it, gaming has taken a sharp turn in the past couple of decades. Yes, AAA games look outright realistic and compared to what’s been made in the past, but as a consequence, there’s been more greed that has been forced into the gaming world. From cutting already developed content and making it into a DLC to microtransactions allowing an advantage in a game. Yeah, it’s up to the player on what to spend their hard-earned money on of course. But it has been proven many times that companies have manipulated their players into spending more money than they normally should. Now without getting too political with those current events, I just hope that I can contribute my own positive light with my novels, video games and other content that I plan to bring out. Right now however, this game and its success is really what matters to me.
Thank you all for reading on. The next update you’ll see is when the game come out. Until then, have a good week!
-Mr. Ox
What's new 01/04/23
See ya March, hello April!
It’s been a quite a month of progress since our last update. We’ve just finished this milestone, full of fixes and modifying existing content. Currently, we are on our last milestone, and this will be the final touches to truly make this game a great first impression. For now, let me show you what we’ve done. But first, have you seen our new trailer? Ohhhh it's so new and shiny!
Equipment cards
I’ve showed off equipment cards before, a lot of them have now been optimised that each have their own special effect and visual impact on the character. During your travels, you will come across and earn these cards where you can merge copies of the same card to buff the effects and decrease the cooldown timer to use them again. There are two types of cards, active and passive; both are pretty much self-explanatory. Active cards are used when you need them, pressing the hotkey will bring the card into effect and will have to cooldown until you can use them again. Passive cards are the opposite, I’m sure you can guess. You simply equip these cards and they’ll always have an active effect. As a matter of fact, let’s show a few of them off so you know what I’m talking about.
Stomping rounds
Stomping rounds will be a life saver when you come across a hoard unexpectedly. At the press of a button, you’ll load a cheeky custom magazine loaded with extra punch into your assault rifle where it will flatten a Screamer within just a few rounds. As you can see, the card is now in effect represented by the ammo count, and the card itself is now cooling down.
Soldiers helm
One size fits all, with this equipped you are slightly more resilient to damage from all sources. This one will be a favourite to many, I’m sure.
Medkit
Another active card that will come in handy at the very last second. Can't find any health pickups when you're on your last leg? You no longer need to worry. Patch yourself up.
Now that was a close call.
Now, while a lot of the other equipment cards were taken out to be worked on, they'll be slowly introduced in bulks after release. So don't worry about content running dry, there's still much more to come.
Skill trees
The tree of skills has been overhauled since we last saw it as well. All skills are split into their own categories and will give the user a better understanding of what they're choosing and how it will effect their gameplay.
You'll gain skill points as you progress through the game buy simply slaying Screamers or bandits, completing missions and even finding little secrets. Future plans for this game post launch will involve new skills to be implemented as well. Right now we're seeing the skills players will use the most and what will be use less or ignored completely. Oh and I'm totally sure that you have noticed the skins we've applied to the characters as well.
Just like the cards, other playable characters have been taken out to be further worked on and optimised after launch, for now let's enjoy our basic survivor characters and understand what makes them special. But not to worry, I'm sure some of yous are thinking this now:
"We've seen other playable characters and cards before from previous updates. You're not cutting them and bringing them back as a purchasable pack?
Now let me quickly assure everyone who has thought this and the answer is HELL NO. I personally want to set an example in the gaming word where this modern culture of micro-transactions is ugly to a point where a lot of companies make it painfully obvious that their DLC is axed pieces of the original game with a price tag. Enjoying a game greatly make it so much better when you suddenly see a free content update downloading the next day. That's what I want to do for my game.
I just want to make sure that everything is done right. Either I can release the game now and continue working on parts that need fine tuning, or extend the game for another year. Let's face it, if you've been following me for a while, extending the date is not an option for me.
That's pretty much it for now everyone. Now that a date has been set, I am so excited that we're only just around the corner to releasing this project that TecShield and I have been working on for so long. Until then, have a good weekend :)
