System Updates

Its Update Day Patrons!!

Today we will be going over some of the major changes we have made since the last test including the move to Unreal Engine 5. Some changes are focused towards newer players while others are focused on the long term and making sure the game can be sustainable for years to come. There was a loud majority of players who want to play Ethereal more, and as such, we want to provide that opportunity to players and grow the community as much as possible. From a development perspective, this test will largely be focusing on the stability on Unreal Engine 5 and gathering the overall impact of the major changes we have made from the engine update. 

Unreal Engine 5 has been a large undertaking, but a necessary one in order to stay ahead of the curve and at the forefront of modern technology. We have redone the lighting on the map using the state-of-the-art technology which allows for better spatial reflections and more detailed lighting throughout Elysium. And the best part? Performance is better than ever with peaks as high as 144 fps on modern graphic cards!

We know Ethereal has an above average barrier to entry and we are making moves towards making this easier for new players to learn the game at their own pace by introducing an automatic item purchase system and a system to automatically level up abilities. With this change, we have also introduced Role-Based Recommended Item sets that will automatically adapt to the Role you selected in Myth Select to allow the auto buy system to stay as optimized and easy to track as possible. As seen in a previous post, we also updated the Ability Screen to allow players to see each ability gains per level, to maximize information, as well as included the Familiar Actives and their accompanying Passive effect. What about the Primary Spells, you ask? THEY'RE GONE! 

We have a few major game system updates that need to be ironed out and the community's feedback and playtesting will be invaluable in these regards. As alluded to before, one of those changes is the removal of Primary Spells and the accompanying button press. Myth kits in Ethereal already had more than the normal MOBA amount of button pressed. Coupled with the lackluster nature of the Primary Spells, we felt these were enough to warrant their removal outright. Mark and Mask are no longer active items in game and are available at the start of the game to anyone to purchase. With the removal of the Mark Active ability, the ability for a Jungler to Mark and secure objectives is now gone and falls on the whole team in securing objectives. The Mark and Mask Tier 3 items are now suited with updated passive effects that were similar to their previous active counterparts. The jungle has also seen a sweeping rebalance, as the sustain attached to the Mark active has also been removed.

The last major gameplay system we are going to have a heavy focus on this test is the updated Fog of War system and Wards. As talked about in a previous test, the new gameplay Fog of War hides enemy units past a certain range, allowing Junglers to not have to worry about being seen from across the map or while looking down at Void lane from Fire or Ice Lane. The new Wards now are only visible to your team, constantly show their radius as long as they last on the map, and show on the Minimap for your teammates to see. 

There are many other updates that we will be revealing in the Open Test Patch Notes that all active Patreon members will be given access to next week! As always, we appreciate your support and we cant wait to open the gates again!!

Thanks,

Undying Games ~~

PS. Yes we nerfed Arawn