New Trailer + What's new!

Hey guys, Bantam here with not one, but two things for you! Today, we've got a dev log and a killer trailer. But before we dive into all that goodness, we want to give a huge  shout-out to all you amazing peeps who've been patient and supportive. You guys are awesome. Swing by our twitter to peep the new trailer! or click here 

We want to talk about the battle system because that's been our main focus lately. But before that...

Dialogue

We've made an important decision to revamp the dialogue system, and here's the scoop: we've switched to using Yarn Spinner as the backend. Yarn Spinner is an open-source dialogue system package that allows you to write dialogue outside of Unity. Why did we make this change? Well, we wanted to prepare for an upcoming modding update after the game's release. With Yarn Spinner, you'll have the freedom to write dialogue for both existing and new characters without needing any proprietary software.

But that's not all! While we were reworking the system, we ensured that all characters can be fully animated within Yarn Spinner. So now, you'll be able to animate characters and create dialogue, branching out dialogue trees based on choices you make. You can also set variables and dynamically change the dialogue based on various factors (like if a character is unhappy with you). Additionally, you can even give items to the player using Yarn Spinner alone.

This change has not only streamlined the process of creating the game's story but also made it much easier for us. And trust us, it was definitely worth it!

Skills

We've made a switch to an AP (Action Points) based system, and here's how it works: each turn, you earn a small amount of AP. Normally, any unused AP carries over to your next turn, allowing for some strategic planning. This change enables us to introduce more powerful skills for characters, some of which may require the use of other items or strategic turn passing. To keep the battles engaging, you'll receive an extra +1 AP each round under normal circumstances, preventing the battles from dragging on.

Now, let's talk about combo abilities. Certain skills have the ability to combo. When you and your adjacent allies have compatible skills, you can combine those abilities into one turn, but it comes at a cost of 2 stress. It's important to note that both attacks must be valid at the time of the turn for the combo to be active. If, for example, a weapon has no ammo or a skill is on cooldown, the combo will be deactivated.

We're also currently working on enhancing the ranged weapon skills by introducing select fire options. This means you'll have the ability to choose whether or not to use bullets, at the cost of AP, by switching the fire control. This way, you can conserve ammunition when needed.

Abilities

We have added a variety of abilities recently we’ll be polishing and showing them off soon! Let's break down the details of some of these abilities:

• Summon: Certain characters have the ability to summon other characters, minions, or even barricades! It's wise to prioritize stunning or eliminating these summoned entities first.
• Stun: Skills with a chance to stun can temporarily incapacitate the target for a specific number of rounds.
• Bleed: Inflict stackable damage over time on enemies, primarily effective with Anya's abilities at the moment. Keep in mind that this is her specialty.
• Shield: When a target is shielded, the first damaging action against them will be nullified, consuming the shield. Plan your next attacks carefully when facing a shielded opponent!
• Taunt: Enemies under the effect of taunt must be attacked until the taunt expires. This ability is primarily useful for an Eri build, where she takes on the role of tanking attacks. Currently, we are experimenting with taunts expiring either after the first attack or based on rounds.
• Stealth: When a character is in stealth, they cannot be directly targeted. However, be aware that spread or Area of Effect (AoE) attacks, like Anya's Aku Soku Zan, can still affect stealthed characters indirectly. Stealth is lost once the character takes any action other than passing their turn.
• Last Stand: Major characters enter Last Stand mode when their HP reaches 0. In this state, they are still in the fight but gain stress each turn. Moreover, the chance of dying increases after every attack. Healing can remove the Last Stand effect, but the accumulated stress remains. It's crucial to have a character capable of healing or possess healing inventory items to rescue allies from Last Stand.
• Blind: Use flashbangs or smoke grenades to blind enemies, causing their next attack to have a 50% chance of missing.
• Smoke: Characters shrouded in smoke experience reduced accuracy when targeted by ranged attacks. You can also employ smoke on your own allies to lower the enemy's accuracy when targeting you.

Inventory

As the team commander, you'll have a 3-slot inventory at your disposal during any ally's turn. These inventory slots can be filled with single-use items that you acquire during events or from shops in the game world (in the full game). These items usually have no usage cost and are consumable only once. Use them wisely!

Events

As you progress through your playthrough, you'll come across modifiers that significantly alter gameplay mechanics. These modifiers have the potential to dramatically impact your run, either in a positive or negative way.

Random events will also occur throughout the game, offering a variety of outcomes. These events can bring both negative and positive consequences, and occasionally even game-changing effects. Stay alert and be prepared to adapt to the unexpected!

Traits

Traits are unique characteristics that define each character in the game. Some characters begin with inherent positive or negative traits right from the start. Throughout a run, you have the opportunity to acquire or lose traits based on your performance.

Let's take Melody as an example. She starts with the Nervous trait, which causes her to occasionally panic and unleash a flurry of wild shots at enemies. Interestingly, you can cleverly exploit certain negative traits like this to your advantage if you strategize effectively!

It's worth noting that enemies can also possess traits of their own. For instance, the Bent Pipes Grunts exhibit the Bodyguard trait, which compels them to protect Mia by absorbing the first attack directed at her. Stay vigilant and adapt your tactics accordingly when facing enemies with unique traits!

Specs

Here are the specifications we have identified during our testing.

Likely Minimum Specs:

• CPU: 2-core 64 bit
• RAM: 2GB
• GPU: 4GB VRAM @1080p/6GB VRAM @4k + DirectX 11

Please note that we are continuously working to optimize performance, so these requirements may potentially be reduced further. Our goal is to ensure the game remains playable even on toasters or smart fridges.

What's left to be done?

We still have some exciting tasks ahead! Let's break it down:

• SFX and Music: We're in the process of fine-tuning the sound effects and music to deliver an immersive experience. Plus, we've implemented directional audio through FMOD, taking the audio experience to a whole new level.
• Controller-Friendly Gameplay: The groundwork for making the game compatible with controllers is complete, ensuring most gamepads will work seamlessly. However, we're still working on refining the controller-specific interface, which will be finalized once the UI is complete. This way, you'll have a smooth and intuitive gaming experience, whether you prefer a controller or keyboard.
• Introducing JiYeon and Lillie: Exciting news! We're currently adding JiYeon and Lillie to the battle system, along with a diverse range of grunts for both allies and formidable enemies. Keep an eye out for separate announcements featuring JiYeon and Lillie coming your way very soon!
• Polishing the Prologue Story: The prologue story is undergoing the final touches to ensure it slaps from start to finish. We have put in the effort to make it engaging and memorable, and we can't wait for you to experience it firsthand. Trust us, you're going to love it!

Stay tuned for more updates as we make progress on these exciting tasks. We're committed to delivering an exceptional gaming experience, and your support means the world to us!