Welcome back for another State of the Game! Here is an update on the Kickstarter:
So Close to Unlocking Stretch Goal #1!
As of writing this, we are just a few backers away from unlocking the melee weapons part line! I am very excited about getting these weapons in the game, as they will bring a whole new strategy element to the combat and I think have some great potential for some very iconic looking builds. I can’t wait to get them in and see what people can do with them!
Soundtrack Stretch Goal
I have had a few backers send me a message asking about the OST stretch goal. Everyone seems really excited about it, but not everyone has the means to be able to back at the sponsor level to be able to get the sound track. After looking over the numbers of everything, I agree with them, so I am updating the reward tier.
Anyone that pledges at the Champion Level ($30) or more, will get the digital sound track as soon as it’s finished.
I think this is a much better reward tier for this, and allows more people to be able to get the OST and enjoy it. I am sorry for having to change stuff up like this, but the fans were right about this.
Now, on to the development news!
This week has been relatively tame so I have got a lot more time to work on the actual game. I released 1 stable build update and 2 additional snapshot updates. The way updates work is stable builds happen less often (~once a month) but are much less buggy and go out to all players. Snapshot builds, come very quick, sometimes 2-3 times a week, but can be game breaking buggy, and only go out to players that have opted into them through the options menu in the game. If there is a bad snapshot build, you can always go back to the stable version.
The stable build increased the usability of the garage, eliminating some irritating bugs that users could encounter when building their M.A.V. in the garage. It also included the new camera system, which you can see in action here.
The snapshot builds have been focused on improving the multiplayer experience.
- Building that are blown up, stay blown up if you leave and rejoin the server. Before, there was a possibility that you would see ‘ghost buildings’, buildings that only exist for you.
- I updated the server browser to better keep track of all active servers and accurately reflect the current player count.
- Fixed the UI issues of player names being duplicated if players left and rejoined servers.
- Fixed up a lot of issues surrounding deployable turrets in multiplayer games.
- Made it so the player that deploys a turret gets credit for any kills or damage that the turret does.
- Made the AI better at aiming rockets. My math for calculating gravity drop was slightly off.
- Fixed a garage issue that allowed non-mobility base parts to be added as the base part of a M.A.V.
My focus for the next few snapshots will be on player communication in multiplayer games. There is a VOIP system in place already, but has had some issues. I am trying to resolve them, but they are proving difficult for me to fully track down, so I am also improving the visibility and usability of the in-game text chat. In M.A.V. communication of strategy is key, so I need these systems to be as good as possible!
Now, there is only 1 week left to unlock these stretch goals, so let’s have a strong last push! I will be sending out mails to all my media contacts again, doing everything I can to spread the word for this last week. I would be massively thankful if you do the same!