Well, another year ends! And it's my first year as a full-time indie game developer. The feeling's awesome!

Now, there will be time for a yearly summary, but let's wait for the year to end first. And now, let me show you something else.

I was recently thinking about how to make the game visuals even more appealing. One of the ideas was to make sure that the animations are as smooth as possible.

Take a look at this animation:



In here, there are no transition animations between the crouching and standing stances, and no turn animations. Now, the lack of them does not break the game, but I believed that filling in these gaps might be worth the effort.

Here's a new approach, with the transition animations in place:



Feels smoother, doesn't it?

The other thing I've worked on was adding some emission map-based HDR bloom effects, based on this YouTube tutorial from Brackeys. It allowed me to add extensive glow on specific things, like this grenade explosion animation:



Now, these are just some of the things I've started to implement to up the visuals/feel of the game. This, combined with a pretty nice gameplay loop will result in a fantastic game!

In the meantime, I wish you all a Happy New Year! Take care!

As 2021 comes to a close (feels like déjà vu) we'd like to round up the advancements we've made since our last development update, such as our improved weapon handling, foliage being able to be set ablaze, and high-poly renders of our family of M16 rifles for the United States and other NATO forces, along with a general summary of some of the progress we've made in the year!

So, little time to spare, we'll jump straight into our first showing, our improved PSO-1 (ПСО-1) model!



While our previous PSO-1 model was serviceable in terms of functionality, we shall not rest until we provide you the players with the most authentic models we can muster, and considering one of our developers had recently come into possession of an authentic original Soviet PSO-1, we only saw it as right to model it after it!



In addition to the model looking nicer in general, we've also added a lot more functionality to the PSO-1 in the form of a few new features.



After hearing your pleas of "WHERE НАГЛАЗНИК", we made it a priority to give the PSO-1 its correct eyecup which as in real life gives the shooter a bit more scope stability (reducing scope shadow) at the cost of a lack of peripheral vision.



Like many other elements of weapons in Afterconflict, the PSO-1's eyecup can be removed based on the player's personal preferences and play-style, so be sure to experiment and figure out which you're more comfortable with using when you play!



For the PSO-1's second feature addition, some context in the form of another new addition is needed.

As you saw in Development Update 15, the Soviet T-72B (Т-72Б) tank has arrived in Afterconflict, and with it we intend to properly reflect its real-life capabilities in-game, and one of those capabilities is that of its "Luna" (Луна) Infrared (IR) Spotlight which shines a bright beam of IR light virtually invisible to the naked eye but visible with devices such as night vision.

Here you can see the said spotlight as viewed at night through the NSPU (НСПУ) night scope (as originally seen in Development Update 13):


Now that you're up to speed, our second feature addition of the PSO-1 is the oft-forgotten IR light detector present on earlier models of the scope; when activated, the filter highlights IR light, even during the daytime, as seen here:


However, due to its general ineffectiveness, especially with NATO forces largely focusing on passive night vision devices over active ones (I.E: Requires an IR light source to illuminate targets) even on vehicles, the PSO-1's IR detector was removed on later production models, but that certainly hasn't stopped us from including it!

On the subject of vehicles (though not on the subject of infrared on account of it actually using a photocontrast homing system instead), we also previewed the Soviet 9K31 Strela-1 (9К31 Стрела́-1) (known by NATO as the SA-9 "Gaskin") attempting to shoot down an American A-10, albeit unsuccessfully:


Though unsuccessful in this attempt, the 9K31 and other similar SAM systems will be invaluable in the defence against enemy air assets while playing Afterconflict.

But while the skies are certainly to be feared, there's still plenty down on the ground to be feared, including the elements themselves.

An often understated part of combat ever since it was first discovered and weaponized is fire, from the Romans using incendiary arrows to burn enemy ships to the Soviets using incendiary ammunition to burn the fuel tanks of lightly armoured vehicles, we thought it right to depict fire as the destructive, unpredictable force it is in reality.

So, to that end we've started small with the ability for grass to be burnt, largely from sources such as tracers burning on the ground, incendiary ammunition, back blasts, explosions, etc. under the right conditions, however for this example the flammability of the grass was turned up for demonstrative purposes (along with a current lack of sound):


Eventually, we intend to give the player the ability to set all foliage ablaze, making tactical arson a viable strategy when in pursuit of a scorched-earth policy against the enemy team, because the enemy can't use vegetation as concealment if you've already burnt it down!

In terms of the player's own abilities, we've now given the player more control over weapon handling in various different ways!
Firstly, we've separated changing your weapon's magazine and chambering a new round, giving more control to a player performing an action such as changing ammo types (or trying to look cool), or a very worrying [click] for the unfortunate sod that forgot to chamber a round before getting into a close quarters battle:


Along with this, you can now also hold back your weapons bolt by simply holding your rechambering button, giving a more tactile response to reloading your weapon:


Aside from simply looking cool, this system also works the same for checking your weapon's chamber, allowing you to better track if your weapon is loaded without having to simply rely on HUD elements:


In the near future we intend to further iterate and innovate with this system, so stay tuned for that too!

Something you should always keep track of however is what ammo type you're using, as using the wrong sort of ammo with the wrong sort of gun (E.G: M855 in an M16A1/M193 in an M16A2) can have dire consequences, one of the best examples is that which you can see here:


As you can see, trying to fire 7.62x39 US (УС) ammo without the PBS (ПБС) suppressor it's designed for does not generate the required level of pressure needed to cycle the bolt, effectively turning your selective-fire assault rifle into a bolt-action rifle with a bullet that is effective at a few hundred meters at absolute most, even less in practical terms.

To complement this, we've also overhauled our Soviet ammunition models to add some more well-deserved detail!

In order:

5.45x39: PS (ПС), T (Т), US (УС)


7.62x39: PS (ПС), T-45 (Т-45), US (УС), Z (З), BZ (БЗ)


7.62x54R: LPS (ЛПС), T-46 (Т-46), PS Snajperskie (ПС Снайперские), PZ (ПЗ), B-32 (Б-32)


But don't think for a second that our overhauls have stopped there, we've been improving and updating things across the board, including our beloved AKs (or more specifically, AKMs)!





As you can see, we've been making improvements to our AKM model and are currently in the high-poly modelling stage, and we'll be excited to show you the complete, detailed model in the new year with all of the small details you've come to expect of us!





But just before we jump over the Iron Curtain to see some new NATO high-polys (or perhaps while jumping over on account of the topic), we'd like to show your our new high-poly of the Soviet PMN-2 (ПМН-2) anti-personnel mine, the first of its kind in Afterconflict!





In Afterconflict, planting mines won't be quite as simple as many other shooters, with various factors you'll have to take into account such as the time taken to deploy it, the time it takes for the mine to arm after being deployed, and whether all of this is even worth the time if the enemy is liable to simply walk around or even over it, so if you decide to plant a mine, make it count.





Now for something a lot of you have been waiting for while we've been listing off a large list of our AK variants: our large list of M16 variants!

Over time, AR-15 style rifles have become ubiquitous, seen in all sorts of different configurations with all sorts of different attachments, but it's not so often that the more retro AR-15 style rifles get the attention they deserve, and we seek to rectify that!

Starting off strong, we have the M16A1 (Model 603), improved from the XM16E1's (Also Model 603, confusingly) many shortcomings, the M16A1 served with distinction with the United States Army as their standard service rifle for near 20 years before it was replaced by the M16A2 during the mid-1980s, however it would continue to serve in a limited capacity all the way into the 2000s.



While the US Army demanded that the M16 design include a forward assist, the United States Air Force had no interest in this feature, so while the Army and other branches used the M16A1, the USAF elected to use the M16 (Model 604), and while many M16A1s would be rebuilt into M16A2s, later USAF M16s being rebuilds of previous USAF-issue rifles such as the M16 was effectively the standard.

The USAF were not the only NATO force to use the M16 either, as the British Armed Forces acquired a number of M16 rifles of different varieties (mostly "slickside" ones such as the Model 604) for limited issue in a variety of locations such as Northern Ireland, Germany, the Falklands, Belize, Borneo, and Hong Kong, especially to special units such as the Special Air Service (SAS) and Special Boat Service (SBS).



While the M16 was designed from the ground-up to be light and portable, there was still a demand for a smaller carbine variant of the rifle to be used by those working within confined spaces such as vehicle and aircraft crew, along with special forces units.

So after some teething issues with the Model 605, GX-5857 (Model 607), and the earlier iterations of the XM177 series with the XM177 (Model 610) and XM177E1 (Model 609), the XM177E2 (Model 629) was developed: sporting a 11.5" barrel length and distinctive flash hider/moderator, while it did still retain some of the issues of the earlier models, it nonetheless served with distinction with United States special forces units such as the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, Studies and Observations Group (MACV-SOG)

The slickside USAF counterpart to the XM177E2 would be the GAU-5A/A (Model 630).



While the XM177E2 was created during a time of great experimentation, the M16A1 Carbine (Model 653) created the initial blueprint for what would later become the M4 Carbine (Model 920), with its 14.5" inch barrel length and default use of a standard M16A1 flash hider over the XM177 series' unusual flash hider/moderator; the M16A1 Carbine would never become standard issue, but that wouldn't stop it from becoming a common staple amongst various forces of the US Armed Forces, especially special forces units such as the United States Army Rangers and United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams.

Similar to the M16, and to a degree the XM177E2, the M16A1 Carbine also found its way into the hands of British special forces units.



As mentioned earlier, during the 1980s an updated version of the M16 designed to fire the new NATO standard SS109 round (having been developed as the M16A1E1) was made standard across the entire US military, albeit with an at times controversial array of updates spearheaded by the United States Marine Corps (USMC): such as a vastly more adjustable set of rear sights (preferred by the US Marines due to its greater capacity to be used for target shooting) and non-resetting 3-round burst (which will be depicted accurately in Afterconflict).

When newly named M16A2 (Model 645) was introduced, the USAF finally standardised with the other branches of the US military and made the M16A2 their standard service rifle, albeit the fact that, as alluded to earlier, many USAF "M16A2"s were Frankenguns, created with the parts of earlier models of USAF M16s (which we intend on allowing you to do in Afterconflict)!



And the last M16 high-poly we have for you here today (though by no means the last we intend on including in Afterconflict We already know how much you want to see the M231) is one that most of you are likely to recognise in one form or another, the M16A2 Carbine (Model 727); just as the M16A1 Carbine was the 14.5" barrel answer to the M16A1, the M16A2 Carbine was the 14.5" barrel answer to the M16A2, with all of its changes (for better or for worse), along with a few more specific improvements from the M16A1 Carbine such as replacing the older style collapsing aluminium stock with the plastic "fiberlite" one.

While the M16A1 Carbine set the blueprint for the M4 Carbine, the M16A2 Carbine would be largely indistinguishable from the early XM4 Carbine (aside from its unique barrel profile), with the final, early-production M4 Carbine only largely being different in the addition of a MIL-STD-1913 rail to its upper receiver.

While the M16A2 Carbine had less time to settle in and disseminate amongst US forces than the prior M16A1 Carbine, it still found use among specialist units such as USMC Scout Sniper teams.



While we've given our AKs a lot of attention over the last year or so, worry not, we'll be giving the same level of attention to our NATO weaponry too in the new year, and if you spot anything we could improve upon, whether NATO or Pact-centric, do not hesitate to contact us about it!



As with last year, while things have been tough for all of us, we have managed to make great strides in our development of Afterconflict in 2021, from the addition of functioning compasses and advanced scope functionality, to our first highly detailed tank and the ability to set the world ablaze And who could forget the North Korean Type 88-1?, we've got many things on the way in 2022 that we're sure you'll be just as excited about as we are!




On our Discord server we discuss everything from the game and Cold War history to posting photos of hedgehogs!

We hope you enjoyed reading this development update, if you wish to keep up to date with all Afterconflict updates, be sure to follow our Twitter feed too.

Finished Olympic Trap Mechanics – Both singles and doubles are working as intended, with scoring. Singles releases a random trap from an array of 3, assigned to each station. Doubles uses the centre 3 traps only and fires a random pair on each call.

Added referee voice commands, indicating when a stand has been completed and to mark the end of a round. These have not been added to Sporting practice mode, allowing the player to replay the same stand multiple times.

Updated the navigation map to reflect the most recent changes to the landscape.

Fixed bug causing clay break FX to appear offset from the impact location.

Fixed bug resulting in clay sometimes failing to break upon being hit.

Finished the stand menu boards on Sporting 1.

Added a number of new prop models, for decoration.

Added more decoration to the Olympic Trap area.

Added bonus score increase on completion of round based games.

Added UI popup and sound effect for when the player levels up.

Fixed broken trigger on Sporting 2 competition mode. An oversight on my part.

We're happy to announce that Beetle VB has been added to RetroArch Steam as core DLC!

An emulator for a portable handheld console released in the mid '90s. It was a virtual reality handset console, and one of the first to showcase stereoscopic 3D graphics.

Link to the new DLC is here -
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1844870/RetroArch__Beetle_VB/

The user guides can be found here -
https://docs.libretro.com/library/beetle_vb/

Hello friends! Happy New Year to everyone! The past year has been difficult and the latest events in the world are like some kind of fantastic TV show or game with an unpredictable plot. In this regard, I would like to wish everyone to survive in the new 2022 without losses :) All health, patience and strength!





About projects, at the beginning of the year there will be a small update of the game "35MM" with full support for the gamepad. There will also be some bug fixes.

An updated version of the game "35MM" with a photo mode will be released on consoles this spring. The event is very important for me, because for a long time the fate of the project on consoles was not clear.




No updates are planned for the "The Light Remake" project yet, unfortunately I have no time. The latest news is the release of the console version of the game in physical media from Red Art Games. Soon the box will reach me :)

Also now I am actively working on a new project "Hail to the Rainbow".




A lot of work, but little time :) All year I have been developing the project structure, mechanics, save system, controllers, etc. Made several locations. I can't show anything complete yet, only some materials are posted on my Patreon channel. But closer to spring, the game will finally get a Steam page, a teaser and other visual content.

Good luck!

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Dear Denizens of Issilith!

In all of Issilith, The Drakkorith Empire can easily be called the mightiest of them all. Drakkoriths are a race that values physical strength and martial prowess above all else, but they don’t neglect their spiritual side. The Dragon-God Trinity, (Harigazz, Reva, and Versilion) are offered veneration from their worshippers whose innate Drakkorith power and adamant will are strengthened in exchange. However, their culture mostly revolves around substantial and tangible things. That is why they are not too keen on using magic, even though they sometimes dabble with fire magic, Wildflame mostly. They are disciplined, honourable, loyal, and willing to lay their life down when needed to protect the Drakkorith heritage.
These characteristics are also apparent in the way the Drakkorith faction is played. Recognizable mechanics for them are buffing units, synergies with leadership, and special attacks.

General Tyros, Hand of the King “He is called by many names while folk recount his victories, but seeing him on the field of battle leaves both his allies and his foes mute with awe more often than not.”

The Drakkorith army is notorious for its well-renowned generals. But the most legendary of them all is definitely General Tyros. Many times his superior tactics were the difference between victory and defeat. On one of those occasions, when the enemy was known for its almost impenetrable front lines, Tyros introduced the concept of organized ostodon charges, utilizing the strength and agility of these beasts to trample the enemy’s frontline and turn the tides to his advantage. This strategic mastermind developed a multitude of effective battle tactics, many of which were integrated into military training and are frequently used by the Drakkorith. You won’t find him commanding his army from behind the lines. No, he is always in the front row with his comrades, motivating them and giving them advice on how to best handle certain tricky situations.


General Tyros is portrayed by a legendary card costing 4 essence. His stats are set at 3 power and 4 health, but this General also has a very special effect. Every time General Tyros changes zone, units adjacent to him gain +2 power and juggernaut mod (juggernaut unit deals excess damage to the enemy Core when attacking). That means you can effectively buff up to 2 units every turn, and this effect can stack (juggernaut mod can only be applied once). Just make sure to position him in between cards you wish to buff.


Ashbringer Templar “Woe be to those who stand in his way, for ash is always preceded by incineration.”

After the first charge breaks down the enemy’s formation, it is time for the Cinderith legion to shine. Ashbringer Templars are the heavy infantry of this elite squad. Ferociously charging on their enemies, they disrupt their still-standing defenses and thoroughly wipe out enemy forces. Even though their heavy armor makes them somewhat slower than your average light-footed unit, Ashbringer Templar are deadly and can easily shear off any limb. At least the wounds will be instantly cauterized so they don’t need to worry about bloodstains on their armor.


Ashbringer Templar is a 3 power, 6 health unit that gains +3 power at the end of your turn, effectively becoming a 6/6 for 7 essence on the end of turn he is played. You generally want to keep this devoted unit in play for as long as possible for some impressive damage.


Seismic Shock"What's the matter, whelp? Lost your balance?" - Basson

Even though most of the Drakkoriths aren’t inclined to the use of magic in the traditional sense, you can often see them on the battlefield being fueled and empowered by combat. When using these enhanced abilities, for which some believe are the gift of gods, they amplify their natural skills and use them to put their enemies in an inferior position or simply to deliver the killing blow. One of these skills is Seismic shock. Drakkorith soldiers can slam the ground in such a way they send focused shockwaves to unbalance their enemies, opening their defenses and leaving them vulnerable to attacks.


Seismic shock is a 4 energy cost ability card that is best used on powerful units. For maximum value play it on your turn while having units on your side of the board ready to push into an enemy that can’t hit back.


What is your favourite way to play Drakkoriths? Comment below or join our Discord channel to discuss it with other Residents of Issilith: Discord.
While we will close this year with a Drakkorith art showcase, let’s turn to 2022 with hope for a better tomorrow and more Phageborn related content!

Yours truly,
Games Revolted

Greetings, disciples of Ortharion!

Throughout development, I will share with you the evolution of the game, the ideas that are put in place, if I encounter any problems or if I have important information to share with you. So let's get to the heart of the matter, right away:

The first step in this development was to recover the basics of the old game, Ortharion Project, and to rethink some technical mechanics in depth:

Backups

The backup system has been completely revised. It's now faster, easier to read, and easier to delete for character creation. An encrypted cloud backup option has been implemented. This is probably the biggest part since this seemingly simple change took me over a month.

Movement

The movement and camera systems have been recreated from scratch. There will be no more collision issue, and you will have smoother movement animations. This new system also allows me to make movements for the character on moving platforms, to use the weight of his body, etc.

The world design



A world design and a scenario worthy of the great RPGs of the genre! An amateur / proofreader of paper role-playing games, Sylvain Mayet, joined me to work on this game as a screenwriter / dialogue writer He had only had a corrector role on the first, on this second he will have a plus big role! We will also see elements of gameplay together but especially of World / design quests and Lore. We hope that the game will have dynamic factions that you can join. The choices you make during the campaign will have a strong impact on the entire game!
The campaign is planned to last around 50 hours, compared to 12 on average on Ortharion Project, with an infinitely greater level of freedom and quality and additional content, we hope, dizzying! The size of the game being more than 10 times larger than the first, the use of many creation tools, will save us a lot of time.

Richness

In addition to the story, the number of possibilities for builds and gameplay will be much greater! With more combinations than you might see in any other Rpg ... except Path of Exile ... And I will talk about the "theorycrafting" aspect in a future news, very quickly I hope.

schedule

We are preparing a schedule for the future with the hope of a very early prologue / demo, in the first half of 2022.

Disciples of Ortharion, wishing you a happy new year 2022, we say "see you soon".

Hi, bravelanders! Our indie team wish you happy new year. Today is a good day to summarize what our team of 10 people add in Braveland Heroes this year:

• The long-awaited 2v2 duel mode. You can fight both in a friendly duel within a clan, and in a special event with a random player.
  
• A new Hunt mode, in which you can finally get random special creatures to expand your army.
  
• Improved Blessing of the King with uprage levels. Get extra bonuses from the blessing for your hero.
  
• A new faction of Dwarves with a special hero has been opened. Their brave squad of Brigadiers is freely available to all.
  
• Equipment of Gladiator is available. Now you can gather even more deadly army in the new year.
  
• Battle Pass, which allows you not only to receive new prizes for earned stars, but also to receive many additional rewards in the premium pass.
  
• 8 new special creatures have appeared: Digger, Rider, Spearman, Boatswain, Jarl, Undertaker, Wanderer, as well as the legendary archer - Forest Guardian
  
• And many other quality of life improvements.

We wish you a happy holidays, luck and wealth in the new 2022 year. We have presents for you in the game - 3 days of blessing and 1 random legendary creature. Happy new year, bravelanders!

Happy New Years!
Thanks for playing Project MIKHAIL last year!
We hope you'll keep playing it in 2022, too!
--
Project MIKHAIL Staff

As we look forward to 2022 and everything it will bring, we’d like to take a moment to reflect on a great year and thank all the Conqueror’s Blade players for being part of our amazing community!

The game has grown so much in the past year, including recently releasing our milestone tenth Season, and we couldn’t have done it without the support of our fantastic players.

From everyone at MY.GAMES and Booming Tech, have a safe and happy new year—here’s to 2022!


Don’t forget, you can still finish the year strong with 50% Boosted Unit and Hero XP until January 3, and pick up your free Winter Wonderworlds gifts!