Hi all. Looking forward to the steam and Steam release on Thursday! In anticipation I've been doing some final touch ups on the engine. I will say most of the touch ups are under-the-hood engine related but a few you'll notice. Case in point, I FINALLY got around to fixing the rather lame looking smokeshot effect we had in the game up to this point. So enjoy this little teaser. More to come on Thursday!
2024-07-14 17:18:38 +0000 UTC View Post
Hi all. If you're on the discord you may know already but I'm thrilled to announce that the Steam page for MetalMercs will be going live on July 18th, 2024! Mark your calendars and join me for a special livestream event at 7pm EST where I’ll unveil the new demo, answer your burning questions, and much more.
I've said already but just to be crystal clear, with the launch of the Steam page will come a new public demo: v6.1. Su...
2024-07-09 18:05:54 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey guys. If you downloaded and have been playing the Patron/supporter v06.0.0 version of MetalMercs, the next time you try to start the game you may get a message saying the game is out of date. This issue has been fixed and if you re-download the Windows or Linux version (links below) that message will go away.
Truth be told all versions of MetalMercs so far have had a date at which they stop working, as a very primitive attempt at version control (I didn't necessarily want old versio...
2024-07-08 20:08:58 +0000 UTC View Post
Hi all! Another progress report today. This coming week I'm hoping to schedule an upcoming live stream for the NEXT week to announce the Steam page, and it looks like we'll have some other coverage on YouTube too! I'll say more soon but suffice to say, I've still been busy working away both on some final code touch ups but also all the admin and non-gaming coding required for a launch. Case in point, the revamped MetalMercs homepage as you can see here (coming soon as well).
We're getti...
2024-07-06 19:39:41 +0000 UTC View Post
Hi folks! Been a few weeks so I just wanted to update you guys on the state of things. As I said in my last video, I am presently working on getting the game ready for an official release on Steam, which is super exciting! However, it's also a LOT of work. Case in point, the game is now functioning in 10 different languages! I won't pretend it's perfectly translated since I used automated tools to do it, but it also took some doing and I'm kind of proud with the result. As I say, the translat...
2024-06-24 14:49:28 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey folks! It is with great pleasure that I am releasing the next version of the game to supporters and patrons today! As I said in the stream, I will now be working to update the free demo but for the next week or two, this update is a special treat for you fine folks who've been supporting the project directly. As always, a heartfelt thanks to all of you for helping to keep this project going. And without further ado, let's recap the big new features in this version.
CALLED SH...
2024-06-13 20:54:09 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey everyone,
Mark your calendars! I'm thrilled to share some EXCITING news with all of you! We're introducing a NEW gameplay mechanic in MetalMercs that's a total game changer. And you know me—I don't hype things up unless it's truly special. I won't spoil the surprise, but trust me, you are going to WANT to see this!
But that's not all! During the stream, I'll also be unveiling our plans for the few years, including upcoming new content and continued
This one's just for you Patrons. I'm bad at keeping secrets. There are some fun new upgrades coming in the next update. Enjoy the fireworks tonight ;)
2024-05-27 15:00:14 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey folks, quick update for you on the state of the latest update. It's churning away slowly, as always. However, I'm excited for this next update. In addition to a really exciting new gameplay feature that's in the works we've got some usability of aesthetic updates. For example, large battles to date have honestly been a bit of a mess. Yeah you can sort of figure out what's going on, but really, they're just a big slugfest that's hard to track. I've made a few small but import...
2024-05-25 16:13:36 +0000 UTC View PostHere's a fun feature that will be coming eventually, smooth list scrolling! Not exactly an essential or game changing feature but a small touch that I think the game has sorely needed. Something about being able to actually smoothly scroll through lists makes them much easier to sift through I think!
I would've added this feature a long time ago but when I originally designed the game I foolishly didn't use any libraries for my GUI interface and as a result, I had to code this stuff al...
2024-05-16 13:34:57 +0000 UTC View Post
I have a minor update for Patrons (currently just Windows and Linux versions). This update fixes a few rare issues that could crash the game, and a few other bugs. It's not absolutely *essential* but if you want the latest stable experience it's worth an upgrade. When I get the shareware and Mac versions sorted out I'll likely replace the current build with this one. In the meantime if you're a Windows or Linux user, enjoy the upgrade!
Hello Mac-bugs my old friends... So as you guys probably know the Mac releases for MetalMercs have always lagged behind the Windows and Linux releases. Also, so far we have been limited to modern Mac releases (no Intel support). The major reason behind these delays has simply been access to Macs (I'm not a Mac user so I never owned a Mac before), which makes both development and bug testing on Macs take extra time and effort.
However, thanks to all your guys' support on the project I wa...
2024-04-28 19:45:51 +0000 UTC View Post
Greetings! The next major version of MetalMercs can be downloaded here. This version includes the updated fonts, jump mechanics, mech graphics, tilesets, core mechs, intercept missions, Titan Prime and the games, and more! This early version is available only for Patrons. It will be available to all supporters soon.
UPDATE: We now have Windows, Linux, and Mac versions AND for the first time have both Intel and ARM Mac builds. Also, this new version is 5.5.1 which i...
2024-04-27 01:12:02 +0000 UTC View Post
Had some technical difficulties. Here's the new link! Going live in 2 mins
2024-04-26 23:22:04 +0000 UTC View Post
Just a reminder that I go live tonight at 7pm EST with a livestream to show off the new v5.5 build of the game. This build has got some nice new features and QoL add-ons, as well as some fun stuff (cough new mechs cough). Join us if you can!
Also, if you're a regular reddit user you can find MetalMercs over there now in its own subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/MetalMercs/ It's sti...
2024-04-26 13:47:40 +0000 UTC View Post
I'm on a bit more of a lore-kick this morning and have made two more updates to the wiki. Both pertain to the origin of mechs. Spoilers, it was the Lytherians. If you'd like to see it on the wiki you can read directly about the origin of mechs (https://metalmercs.fandom.com/wiki/Mechs) or how the development of mechs led to the Imperium ( 2024-04-20 14:58:25 +0000 UTC View Post
One of the things I've been working on as I've been developing MetalMercs is not just the game but the universe it takes place in. This means crafting houses, histories, characters, politics, and more. The Orion Corporate was a faction I developed a long time ago for the game (obviously), but its precise origins were always a bit hazy in my mind. Truthfully I never conceived of it as a corporation, hence why I called it the corporate instead. And while I liked the sound of the name I never fu...
2024-04-19 17:14:02 +0000 UTC View Post
Hi folks! I wanted to give you all another update on the progress of the next incoming build, it is still coming along. I got slowed down a bit last week as I got sick for a few days then fell behind on work and life. Just as I got better I also demo'ed MetalMercs at the 2024 ROC Game Fest Spring Mini Show. This was a great experience but did take more of my time to prepare than I'd anticipated. Suffice to say I'm probably still about 2 weeks away from the next playable version coming out. Wh...
2024-04-15 17:55:24 +0000 UTC View Post
Hi all. Just a heads up that we've got a new preview build coming this month! This build will include the graphical updates previously released and a few other quality of life updates but also include some new gameplay features.
This build will release for Patrons first but also subsequently release for all supporters as we haven't had a supporter build in a while. I should stress this is still an intermediate/preview build. We aren't at the new major release yet, and when we do get to ...
2024-04-06 14:55:02 +0000 UTC View Post
Behold, the remaining mechs have been updated! All 90 mechs from the 5 major houses have now received graphical updates. I will miss the CHR-styled graphics but it was definitely time for MetalMercs mechs sprites to actually look like the mechs they are supposed to be. These models are not only more detailed but I have been able to better balance size and scale, and make the bigger mechs beefier. Mech graphics not can overflow slightly from their base size. It does create some overlap when yo...
2024-03-24 19:53:21 +0000 UTC View Post
Time for an upgrade! I've been busy the past few weeks working on a handful of things as you know. One of the main things that's actually sucked up a lot of my time though has been graphical work. It is always UNBELIEVABLE to me how slow this work is, and I procrastinate hard on it as a result. That's why the sprites in MetalMercs haven't been upgraded much in the past year. However, I truly do want to push MetalMercs past its fan game origins and have been diligently trying to get sprites ma...
2024-03-13 16:42:49 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey all. Just another update for what's in the pipeline at the moment. Procedurally generated maps are still happening are will be a part of the Expedition update. However that update is still a ways off as there are some other coding and gameplay updates coming with it which will just take time to implement.
In the shorter term, I've been working the past few weeks to finally upgrade and replace the older mech sprites we've been using and I'm starting to get close. I'll be releas...
2024-03-09 20:36:59 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey folks! Thought you might enjoy a look at a new gameplay trailer I put together for MetalMercs. Just to be clear, this isn't a trailer for the new upcoming Expedition and so I'm not showing off new gameplay here, this is showing off existing gameplay. Really, I'm hoping to do a bit better job trying to promote MetalMercs in the coming months and one thing it hasn't had to date is a real trailer.
So here's my first stab at a trailer! If you have any constructive feedback, positi...
2024-03-02 14:18:34 +0000 UTC View Post
Just another sneak peek. This map was randomly produced by the new map generation code. The map generator can now integrated terrain, paths, rivers, roads, and cities! More work is still needed on placing spawn points, objectives, and other elements but as far as the maps themselves, they're starting to come together!
2024-02-26 17:42:04 +0000 UTC View Post
Hey all. It's been a little while since the last release and we're still a ways off on any major update however I've got a few new features in the pipeline for the next stage of the game. I'm hoping to put out some Patron-only preview releases for these features eventually but perhaps just to give you a tease today, one of the features in the works is procedurally generated battle maps!
One of the current limitations in the game is that there exist only a few dozen battlefield maps for ...
2024-02-20 23:01:55 +0000 UTC View Post
Hi all. So with v5 of MetalMercs now out the next two big planned expansions are the Games of Titan and the Great Expedition. In my original release plan the Game of Titan was supposed to come out before v5 however it got bumped to after, and I think it's going to get bumped again. There are a number of reasons but it largely boils down to me having some fun new ideas of what Titan will entail, and realizing that at least in terms of gameplay mechani...
2024-02-01 23:32:15 +0000 UTC View Post
Hi all. Attached here is an updated version of MetalMercs to fix a handful of bugs that were caught over the weekend. The full list is below. This version should be compatible with save games from 05.0.2.
5.0.3 Fixes
- fixed a bug that wasn't clearing combat flags on units after combat, causing crashes
- fixed a bug that cause pirate/bandit Orion mechs to enter combat with no damage
- fixed a bug in the mech it lube that could crash the game during repairs if spacebar ...
2024-01-29 00:13:21 +0000 UTC View Post
WHERE TO TRY FOR FREE
If you are new and would like to try MetalMercs you can find us on Steam. There you can get the latest demo or wishlist the game! If you want to gain access to the playtest build and help us test the latest working version of the game, you can sign up as a supporter here on Patreon!
WHEN IS THE FULL VERSION COMING OUT
C...
2024-01-25 17:00:13 +0000 UTC View Post
The MetalMercs Shareware Demo is completely free. This demo has unrestricted gameplay until 2/15/24. The demo will remain playable after that date but you will be limited to 1-year careers. Play, enjoy, and please share with your friends! Also consider joining us over on the discord.
Hi all. I've updated the download links to v05.0.2. This new version contains mostly bug fixes along with a few minor extra features. The details are listed here..
- added career details for high score leaderboard (only applies to high scores saved and viewed with v05.0.2, but for those scores you can click on them in the leaderboard to see details of the game)
- added weight info to the...
2024-01-24 18:30:58 +0000 UTC View Post