Phil, Steve and Elliot talk about Trendy's vision for 2016, Carnival maps, and show off our newest Hero, the Abyss Lord.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UujiiVMg9Xg

Phil, Steve and Elliot talk about Trendy's vision for 2016, Carnival maps, and show off our newest Hero, the Abyss Lord.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UujiiVMg9Xg

As we mentioned in yesterday’s Looking Ahead post, we have a new creative director -- Elliot Cannon! We’re super excited to have him on the team. Some of us also have new job titles. In this week’s Dev Log, we share what those new titles are and talk about what we’re working on this week:

Hey everyone! This year is going to be tons of fun for you. We’re unifying the game, getting PS4 and PC on the same content and release rhythm, refining what’s rough around the edges and finishing up those missing elements every game deserves. We’re expanding the game’s hero library to give you more ways to play DD2 with a deck you create that suits your play style with greater options. We’re improving matchmaking so it’s easier to play solo or with friends, and creating ways to measure your success for yourself, against your friends, and the world. Right now, everyone is cranking on the Dragonfall Carnival while design, art, and programming are designing and building new heroes. I’m working through all the details of this, the UI, the game loop, balance, community requests, and everything under the sun, all driven by the goal of elevating DD2 from its awesome foundation into something even more fun and addicting.

Hello everyone! I’ve now successfully transitioned to my new role as the Design Director. This allows me to focus all my efforts on the design aspect on DD2 and work closely with Elliot. My primary goals right now are focused on designing and implementing our first new hero, the Abyss Lord! I’m working with Derek (programmer), John (animator), Joseph (vfx artist), and others to ensure we make a strong first impression with this new hero. Additionally, I am working closely with Brys to revamp our matchmaking flow with a lot of new and exciting changes that should be a drastic improvement. While I’m not juggling those two watermelons, I’m also working a lot with Elliot to formulate a plan of action to execute a lot of the ideas we have for 2016. It should be a fun year full of blood, sweat, and tears (hopefully joyful ones!).

I am now Art Director! My responsibilities will be focused on working with the art team to maintain and continue improving the visual style of all future content for DD2. I’m also working closely with Elliot on all writing tasks and churning out tons of concept art!

This week it’s dialogue, dialogue, dialogue! Working with the world building team to solidify the aesthetics, lighting, and the color pallette for the new map! Also working with Afshin as he composes (IMO) one of the best tracks we’ve seen so far in DD2!

Getting everything set up for a big February and March for our PS4 users and trying not to freeze in Wisconsin. The next couple months will be pretty busy as we move to catch up to the PC version and release some five milestones worth of content in the process. Make sure to check out the PS4 subforum on an ongoing basis for regular updates and discussion on the direction and future of the platform.

You’ll notice a few new titles in this Dev Log, but we’ve also reorganized to open up more resources for our weekly patches. So what does this mean? We’re hoping to get more community-requested feature/balance/quality of life changes into our weekly patches along with our bug fixes! Did someone say cutscene skipping?

I also want to give a special shoutout to u/shadowlaunch on Reddit for creating a Dungeon Defenders II Planner! If you want to share your builds with other players, check it out.

P.S. While our Dev Logs are primarily about DD2, I want to give an extra special thanks to the DD1 Community Development Team, whose efforts were recently showcased by MMORPG.com! We’re so grateful for their passion and dedication. I’ll leave you with this choice quote from the article:

“Most games and companies would kill to have this sort of devotion. Most players would kill to have the developers take them this seriously.”

I’m really excited for the new direction DD2 is headed in - this year should be a fantastic one for Defenders!


The new map is coming along nicely! Setting up all the difficulties we want this map to be located at. Also moving forward with any extra little hidden items located in this map!

A bit later in the week we’ll get started on Patch 9.7 builds, but currently we’re hacking away at getting the PS4/PC projects together in one mamma jamma project. Should make development on both platforms easier. As soon as that’s done and merged, we’re full steam ahead at testing the new update as it comes in.

Lots and lots and lots of prototyping for… the Abyss Lord, new towers, abilities, animations, simulations, you name it. A super awesome hero awaits!


A new title for a new year!

Managing a whirlwind of development in production for 4 years here at Trendy (seriously!) has made me want to aspire to something more holistic. I’m glad I’m being given that opportunity, and I hope I can provide for you all in time a holistic view of where we’re going.

The focus this week is to finally start putting all the pieces of the puzzle together so we can see what we’re building. The goal is to have all the big features in place so we can understand how it’ll feel and make any adjustments before polishing. The pieces this week are fun prizes, the Carnival, the outdoor hub, normalization, a buff bar, and more!

A new year has begun and with it some changes; we are bringing the PS4 project in-house! We hope that by doing so we will get feature parity faster; it’s almost a must as we are consolidating the code between the two SKUs. The immediate target is to define and get the cross-platform development wheel spinning once and for all (in this case, cross-platform means working on two platforms at once). A lot of challenges open up with this change in the process (UIs, controller support, stores, etc.), but we are confident and excited about this; in a way we’ve been waiting for this to happen for a while now… and the time has finally come. =D

Been working on the Carnival -- most of the time in the out-of-bounds areas.


It's been a week since we've started the world building on the Carnival. Everyone is doing great efforts to have it finished very soon. I think it's coming out quite fun!

Fumigating the Carnival area for nasty bugs. Trying really hard not to be distracted by the shiny lights.

As we mentioned in yesterday’s Looking Ahead post, we have a new creative director -- Elliot Cannon! We’re super excited to have him on the team. Some of us also have new job titles. In this week’s Dev Log, we share what those new titles are and talk about what we’re working on this week:

Hey everyone! This year is going to be tons of fun for you. We’re unifying the game, getting PS4 and PC on the same content and release rhythm, refining what’s rough around the edges and finishing up those missing elements every game deserves. We’re expanding the game’s hero library to give you more ways to play DD2 with a deck you create that suits your play style with greater options. We’re improving matchmaking so it’s easier to play solo or with friends, and creating ways to measure your success for yourself, against your friends, and the world. Right now, everyone is cranking on the Dragonfall Carnival while design, art, and programming are designing and building new heroes. I’m working through all the details of this, the UI, the game loop, balance, community requests, and everything under the sun, all driven by the goal of elevating DD2 from its awesome foundation into something even more fun and addicting.

Hello everyone! I’ve now successfully transitioned to my new role as the Design Director. This allows me to focus all my efforts on the design aspect on DD2 and work closely with Elliot. My primary goals right now are focused on designing and implementing our first new hero, the Abyss Lord! I’m working with Derek (programmer), John (animator), Joseph (vfx artist), and others to ensure we make a strong first impression with this new hero. Additionally, I am working closely with Brys to revamp our matchmaking flow with a lot of new and exciting changes that should be a drastic improvement. While I’m not juggling those two watermelons, I’m also working a lot with Elliot to formulate a plan of action to execute a lot of the ideas we have for 2016. It should be a fun year full of blood, sweat, and tears (hopefully joyful ones!).

I am now Art Director! My responsibilities will be focused on working with the art team to maintain and continue improving the visual style of all future content for DD2. I’m also working closely with Elliot on all writing tasks and churning out tons of concept art!

This week it’s dialogue, dialogue, dialogue! Working with the world building team to solidify the aesthetics, lighting, and the color pallette for the new map! Also working with Afshin as he composes (IMO) one of the best tracks we’ve seen so far in DD2!

Getting everything set up for a big February and March for our PS4 users and trying not to freeze in Wisconsin. The next couple months will be pretty busy as we move to catch up to the PC version and release some five milestones worth of content in the process. Make sure to check out the PS4 subforum on an ongoing basis for regular updates and discussion on the direction and future of the platform.

You’ll notice a few new titles in this Dev Log, but we’ve also reorganized to open up more resources for our weekly patches. So what does this mean? We’re hoping to get more community-requested feature/balance/quality of life changes into our weekly patches along with our bug fixes! Did someone say cutscene skipping?

I also want to give a special shoutout to u/shadowlaunch on Reddit for creating a Dungeon Defenders II Planner! If you want to share your builds with other players, check it out.

P.S. While our Dev Logs are primarily about DD2, I want to give an extra special thanks to the DD1 Community Development Team, whose efforts were recently showcased by MMORPG.com! We’re so grateful for their passion and dedication. I’ll leave you with this choice quote from the article:

“Most games and companies would kill to have this sort of devotion. Most players would kill to have the developers take them this seriously.”

I’m really excited for the new direction DD2 is headed in - this year should be a fantastic one for Defenders!


The new map is coming along nicely! Setting up all the difficulties we want this map to be located at. Also moving forward with any extra little hidden items located in this map!

A bit later in the week we’ll get started on Patch 9.7 builds, but currently we’re hacking away at getting the PS4/PC projects together in one mamma jamma project. Should make development on both platforms easier. As soon as that’s done and merged, we’re full steam ahead at testing the new update as it comes in.

Lots and lots and lots of prototyping for… the Abyss Lord, new towers, abilities, animations, simulations, you name it. A super awesome hero awaits!


A new title for a new year!

Managing a whirlwind of development in production for 4 years here at Trendy (seriously!) has made me want to aspire to something more holistic. I’m glad I’m being given that opportunity, and I hope I can provide for you all in time a holistic view of where we’re going.

The focus this week is to finally start putting all the pieces of the puzzle together so we can see what we’re building. The goal is to have all the big features in place so we can understand how it’ll feel and make any adjustments before polishing. The pieces this week are fun prizes, the Carnival, the outdoor hub, normalization, a buff bar, and more!

A new year has begun and with it some changes; we are bringing the PS4 project in-house! We hope that by doing so we will get feature parity faster; it’s almost a must as we are consolidating the code between the two SKUs. The immediate target is to define and get the cross-platform development wheel spinning once and for all (in this case, cross-platform means working on two platforms at once). A lot of challenges open up with this change in the process (UIs, controller support, stores, etc.), but we are confident and excited about this; in a way we’ve been waiting for this to happen for a while now… and the time has finally come. =D

Been working on the Carnival -- most of the time in the out-of-bounds areas.


It's been a week since we've started the world building on the Carnival. Everyone is doing great efforts to have it finished very soon. I think it's coming out quite fun!

Fumigating the Carnival area for nasty bugs. Trying really hard not to be distracted by the shiny lights.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2aict8tdj4
Steam Early Access. Those three words inspire so much discussion. It’s no longer just the finished product that matters -- it’s how you get there that makes all the difference.

Since our Early Access launch in December 2014, we’ve released 9 major updates and 51 patches. We’ve added, removed and tweaked major systems thanks to your feedback. We’ve revealed the behind-the-scenes workings of our studio through weekly Development Logs and Devstreams. And many of you have dedicated your free time to help development in a variety of ways. It’s been an incredible experience working with you so far, and this year, we’re taking it to 11!

Here’s our big 2016 plan for Dungeon Defenders II on PC and PS4!


We’re super excited to share that Elliot Cannon is our new creative director! Elliot is a video game industry veteran with over twenty years of design leadership experience. He was one of the original designers on Unreal and Unreal Tournament, titles that launched Epic Games and the Unreal Engine as the most successful licensed game engine in the world. Elliot led multiple projects at Crytek Germany and Crytek Budapest during the development of the Crysis franchise and was the creative director behind Crysis Warhead. He has also worked as a lead designer on multiplayer titles such as Warhammer 40k – Dark Millennium Online and Steam-focused live update titles such as Killing Floor, Killing Floor 2, Red Orchestra 2 and Rising Storm. Prior to joining Trendy, he was the design director at id Software on Doom and an adjunct lecturer on video game design at Southern Methodist University’s Guildhall, one of the premier graduate video game education programs in the United States.

His experience brings a much-needed perspective to our team, and the impact since his arrival in early December has been incredible. Together, we’ve refocused the vision for Dungeon Defenders II, and it’s awesome.

So what’s the refocused vision for Dungeon Defenders II? Focusing on what makes our game great: Tower Defense and Heroes. Let’s use that foundation and build upon it. Let’s improve the systems that aren’t up to par. Let’s get the PS4 and PC versions on the same update cycle. Overall, let’s finish the damn game, and then continue to build on it.


With our refocused and reinvigorated vision, we needed a new roadmap for 2016. We’re still working out the details, but we wanted to share the big items with you right away.



Get the PS4 version in sync with the PC version.

In 2016, the PS4 and the PC will be on the same major update. It’s important that our PS4 players are right there with our PC players as we release new content and changes.

To do this, we will release the remaining updates that separate PS4 from PC in a shorter window. We’ve tentatively scheduled the next PS4 update for the beginning of February, which includes 3 major updates -- Alpha & Beyond, Ascension Part I and Ascension Part II. Then, we’re hoping to release The Harbinger Awakens update along with the current milestone together shortly after that. From this point on, the two versions will be in-sync. We’ll develop new updates for the two versions at the same time, and we’ll release the updates simultaneously.


Our first new hero... the Abyss Lord!

Make new heroes -- lots of them.

Our biggest goal for 2016 is to build a deep Hero Library. In fact, we’re working on our first new hero right now (tentatively called the Abyss Lord)!

We don’t plan to just make one or two heroes this year. We want to make lots of them. Right now, our team is doing pre-production work to get the design and play of our first hero right. We’re starting designs for more new heroes, too. Our goal is to release new heroes and expand your choices early this year, and we can’t wait to share more details with you.



Improve features. Adjust balance. Fix bugs.

Another big goal for us in 2016 is to improve what’s currently in the game. Just like our first hero, our design team is doing pre-production work right now to flesh out what changes they’d like to make to existing systems.

Our focus for early 2016 is refining the Hero Deck with a unified theme and new UI across major parts of the game. (Note: The UI above is temporary and does not reflect any final changes to the system.) We also will be improving Matchmaking so you can play with your friends and others much easier, with greater control and cooler rewards. Our designers are knee-deep in figuring out the nitty-gritty details of the changes to these systems, and we’ll provide those details after the release of the current milestone.



Make new content.

While our designers and programmers are busy designing new heroes and changes to core features, our level designers and art team are working on some fun new content for you to play!

In our next major update in February, we’re releasing the Dragonfall Carnival. The Dragonfall Carnival contains a brand-new, limited-time event map full of madness and wonder. Don’t miss your chance to win exclusive costumes!

Along with the Carnival, we’re introducing a brand-new outdoor social hub called the Heroes Marketplace. It’s time to embrace the open air as you mingle with other players. The Heroes Marketplace gives us more flexibility in real estate expansion to include...well, you’ll just have to wait to find out.



Finally, let’s finish the damn game.

It’s our plan to leave Early Access this year. Really, Trondo? Really really. Everything we do this year will move us closer to this goal. You can expect more polish and higher production values to come on top of the new heroes, system changes, balance adjustments, bug fixes and new content that’s coming your way.


To wrap things up, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on how the game has changed since our Early Access launch. Here’s a refresher on the major changes we’ve made to the game. (By the way, this list doesn’t include the hundreds of bug fixes, balance changes and quality of life improvements from our weekly patches.)

2015 was a busy year, and this year is going to be even busier. We hope you enjoy the ride as much as the result. In the comments below, tell us: What are you more excited to see in 2016?

Love,
The Trendy Team

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2aict8tdj4
Steam Early Access. Those three words inspire so much discussion. It’s no longer just the finished product that matters -- it’s how you get there that makes all the difference.

Since our Early Access launch in December 2014, we’ve released 9 major updates and 51 patches. We’ve added, removed and tweaked major systems thanks to your feedback. We’ve revealed the behind-the-scenes workings of our studio through weekly Development Logs and Devstreams. And many of you have dedicated your free time to help development in a variety of ways. It’s been an incredible experience working with you so far, and this year, we’re taking it to 11!

Here’s our big 2016 plan for Dungeon Defenders II on PC and PS4!


We’re super excited to share that Elliot Cannon is our new creative director! Elliot is a video game industry veteran with over twenty years of design leadership experience. He was one of the original designers on Unreal and Unreal Tournament, titles that launched Epic Games and the Unreal Engine as the most successful licensed game engine in the world. Elliot led multiple projects at Crytek Germany and Crytek Budapest during the development of the Crysis franchise and was the creative director behind Crysis Warhead. He has also worked as a lead designer on multiplayer titles such as Warhammer 40k – Dark Millennium Online and Steam-focused live update titles such as Killing Floor, Killing Floor 2, Red Orchestra 2 and Rising Storm. Prior to joining Trendy, he was the design director at id Software on Doom and an adjunct lecturer on video game design at Southern Methodist University’s Guildhall, one of the premier graduate video game education programs in the United States.

His experience brings a much-needed perspective to our team, and the impact since his arrival in early December has been incredible. Together, we’ve refocused the vision for Dungeon Defenders II, and it’s awesome.

So what’s the refocused vision for Dungeon Defenders II? Focusing on what makes our game great: Tower Defense and Heroes. Let’s use that foundation and build upon it. Let’s improve the systems that aren’t up to par. Let’s get the PS4 and PC versions on the same update cycle. Overall, let’s finish the damn game, and then continue to build on it.


With our refocused and reinvigorated vision, we needed a new roadmap for 2016. We’re still working out the details, but we wanted to share the big items with you right away.



Get the PS4 version in sync with the PC version.

In 2016, the PS4 and the PC will be on the same major update. It’s important that our PS4 players are right there with our PC players as we release new content and changes.

To do this, we will release the remaining updates that separate PS4 from PC in a shorter window. We’ve tentatively scheduled the next PS4 update for the beginning of February, which includes 3 major updates -- Alpha & Beyond, Ascension Part I and Ascension Part II. Then, we’re hoping to release The Harbinger Awakens update along with the current milestone together shortly after that. From this point on, the two versions will be in-sync. We’ll develop new updates for the two versions at the same time, and we’ll release the updates simultaneously.


Our first new hero... the Abyss Lord!

Make new heroes -- lots of them.

Our biggest goal for 2016 is to build a deep Hero Library. In fact, we’re working on our first new hero right now (tentatively called the Abyss Lord)!

We don’t plan to just make one or two heroes this year. We want to make lots of them. Right now, our team is doing pre-production work to get the design and play of our first hero right. We’re starting designs for more new heroes, too. Our goal is to release new heroes and expand your choices early this year, and we can’t wait to share more details with you.



Improve features. Adjust balance. Fix bugs.

Another big goal for us in 2016 is to improve what’s currently in the game. Just like our first hero, our design team is doing pre-production work right now to flesh out what changes they’d like to make to existing systems.

Our focus for early 2016 is refining the Hero Deck with a unified theme and new UI across major parts of the game. (Note: The UI above is temporary and does not reflect any final changes to the system.) We also will be improving Matchmaking so you can play with your friends and others much easier, with greater control and cooler rewards. Our designers are knee-deep in figuring out the nitty-gritty details of the changes to these systems, and we’ll provide those details after the release of the current milestone.



Make new content.

While our designers and programmers are busy designing new heroes and changes to core features, our level designers and art team are working on some fun new content for you to play!

In our next major update in February, we’re releasing the Dragonfall Carnival. The Dragonfall Carnival contains a brand-new, limited-time event map full of madness and wonder. Don’t miss your chance to win exclusive costumes!

Along with the Carnival, we’re introducing a brand-new outdoor social hub called the Heroes Marketplace. It’s time to embrace the open air as you mingle with other players. The Heroes Marketplace gives us more flexibility in real estate expansion to include...well, you’ll just have to wait to find out.



Finally, let’s finish the damn game.

It’s our plan to leave Early Access this year. Really, Trondo? Really really. Everything we do this year will move us closer to this goal. You can expect more polish and higher production values to come on top of the new heroes, system changes, balance adjustments, bug fixes and new content that’s coming your way.


To wrap things up, we wanted to take a moment to reflect on how the game has changed since our Early Access launch. Here’s a refresher on the major changes we’ve made to the game. (By the way, this list doesn’t include the hundreds of bug fixes, balance changes and quality of life improvements from our weekly patches.)

2015 was a busy year, and this year is going to be even busier. We hope you enjoy the ride as much as the result. In the comments below, tell us: What are you more excited to see in 2016?

Love,
The Trendy Team

Content

• New Squire Costume: Ebonfire Warlord!

Balance

• Hearty Blockade (Spike Blockade):
  
  • Hearty Blockade now increases Defense Health based on Defense Health (was based on Hero Health); old items should receive the updated passive.
    
  • Shields now have an exception to generate with Hearty Blockade.
    
  • Increasing Hearty Blockade per-piece maximum to 20%-25% to achieve comparatively same maximum health as before this update.
    
    • Existing items will update to a comparatively useful new value.
  • You can read more about these changes in Brett’s thread.
• Null Void (Training Dummy): Increased health bonus from 120% to 150%.
  
• Arcane Resilience (Arcane Barrier): Increased health bonus from 100% to 140%.
  
• Increased minimum value on Null Void and Arcane Barrier from 70% of Max to 80% of Max.
  
• Guardian (Hero Health + Defense Health) stat combination removed from rolling
  
  • Weighting that assigned to Guardian moved to Rook (DP + DH)
• Pet debuffs that can stack now have their damage potential capped. Note: There’s a bug where some pet abilities can only stack if the pets involved are of different evolution tiers. We’re looking into this.

Bug Fixes

• Ogres teleported by Null Void will be placed just outside of the spawner to avoid getting stuck.
  
• Fixed an issue where the Frostbite Tower wouldn’t attack enemies at Tiers 4 and 5.
  
• Victory Smell now decreases time between burn rate ticks as intended.
  
• Fixed an issue where quickly toggling a bag will glitch it and prevent it from appearing/disappearing until toggled slowly.
  
• Onslaught Currency Reward should now properly appear at the end of each round.
  
• Fixed a bug where pet stats could reroll the same as the current value.
  
• Players can now properly skip the end-of-match timer after losing on The Dead Road or Temple of the Necrotic.
  
• Removed some lingering VFX from the Tavern weapons rack.
  
• Sound now plays when players gain the Holy Buff on Temple of the Necrotic.
  
• Added an error message if a player tries to purchase a sale item as the sale starts/ends.
  
• Fixed a visual bug that occurred when purchasing a pet slot upgrade.
  
• Fixed an issue where some pet animations weren’t playing if players were using the Apprentice or Huntress.
  
• Fixed an issue where airlanes were displaying Nightmare evil eyes in the lane spawners.
  
• Fixed a typo in the Howling passive description.
  
• Fixed a collision issue on mana nodes.
  
• Fixed some lingering winter NPC text issues.
  
• Fixed a typo in the Dark Shawl costume description.

Content

• New Squire Costume: Ebonfire Warlord!

Balance

• Hearty Blockade (Spike Blockade):
  
  • Hearty Blockade now increases Defense Health based on Defense Health (was based on Hero Health); old items should receive the updated passive.
    
  • Shields now have an exception to generate with Hearty Blockade.
    
  • Increasing Hearty Blockade per-piece maximum to 20%-25% to achieve comparatively same maximum health as before this update.
    
    • Existing items will update to a comparatively useful new value.
  • You can read more about these changes in Brett’s thread.
• Null Void (Training Dummy): Increased health bonus from 120% to 150%.
  
• Arcane Resilience (Arcane Barrier): Increased health bonus from 100% to 140%.
  
• Increased minimum value on Null Void and Arcane Barrier from 70% of Max to 80% of Max.
  
• Guardian (Hero Health + Defense Health) stat combination removed from rolling
  
  • Weighting that assigned to Guardian moved to Rook (DP + DH)
• Pet debuffs that can stack now have their damage potential capped. Note: There’s a bug where some pet abilities can only stack if the pets involved are of different evolution tiers. We’re looking into this.

Bug Fixes

• Ogres teleported by Null Void will be placed just outside of the spawner to avoid getting stuck.
  
• Fixed an issue where the Frostbite Tower wouldn’t attack enemies at Tiers 4 and 5.
  
• Victory Smell now decreases time between burn rate ticks as intended.
  
• Fixed an issue where quickly toggling a bag will glitch it and prevent it from appearing/disappearing until toggled slowly.
  
• Onslaught Currency Reward should now properly appear at the end of each round.
  
• Fixed a bug where pet stats could reroll the same as the current value.
  
• Players can now properly skip the end-of-match timer after losing on The Dead Road or Temple of the Necrotic.
  
• Removed some lingering VFX from the Tavern weapons rack.
  
• Sound now plays when players gain the Holy Buff on Temple of the Necrotic.
  
• Added an error message if a player tries to purchase a sale item as the sale starts/ends.
  
• Fixed a visual bug that occurred when purchasing a pet slot upgrade.
  
• Fixed an issue where some pet animations weren’t playing if players were using the Apprentice or Huntress.
  
• Fixed an issue where airlanes were displaying Nightmare evil eyes in the lane spawners.
  
• Fixed a typo in the Howling passive description.
  
• Fixed a collision issue on mana nodes.
  
• Fixed some lingering winter NPC text issues.
  
• Fixed a typo in the Dark Shawl costume description.

Hi all. This week, we’re internally playtesting the new map to try and lock down the layout so our amazing world builders can start on it. We’ve seen prototypes for some cool new consumable items we’re trying out for the first time in our game. We’re in the process of approving a temporary replacement of our old summary screen with something much simpler. We’re also looking at a first pass of a buff bar to see what that will look like in DD2 and going through those approvals. We have just integrated the Social Hub so there’s a ton of cleanup involved there, such as hooking up new animations, vfx, optimizations, and making sure quests work. There’s definitely more going on, but those are the hot topics that I’m focusing on for now.

Continuing my never-being-in-Florida trend, I’m still out at Human Head Studios enjoying the mild weather and working on the Ascension Part II update for PS4 - get hype! We’re also talking about plans for the next few months for PS4 - get extra hype, lots of cool things coming down the pipe!

Working on pose sketches and personalities for an awesome new NPC and also churning out sketches for a map-related cool thing which I can’t really talk about. Also coming up with new dialogue!

Adding some fun and temporary consumables to the game!

Working on a thing that’s related to a thing I can’t talk about. I like the new layout of it, it works a lot better. Can’t wait to get that into your hands. Also working on multiple UI things for the other thing that I can’t talk about yet. So yeah, I’m working on things.

Working on some fun rule & enemy changes for our new map! Now that we’ve iterated on the layout, it’s time to start getting the pieces all together and identifying solid ways to improve it before it gets into y’all’s hands.

This week and last week we have been testing and iterating on our newest map. After many iterations, we have arrived at a layout with which we are happy! Now time to finalize it and start to make it look pretty.

Eagerly awaiting the PS4/PC consolidation build to test so we can get the PS4 more up to date with the PC build. In addition to that, starting prep work for the new milestone content (messing with the outdoor hub right now) and gathering info on the next hotfix.

Teaching some people JIRA @javahawk and @catfaerie. It’s not like I came out of the womb with this skillset, you guys can do it!!

Working on some assets for the new level and adding some new stuff in the new Social Hub level!

I've been working on some assets for our new level and soon we will be starting the world building on it. Can't wait!

Hi all. This week, we’re internally playtesting the new map to try and lock down the layout so our amazing world builders can start on it. We’ve seen prototypes for some cool new consumable items we’re trying out for the first time in our game. We’re in the process of approving a temporary replacement of our old summary screen with something much simpler. We’re also looking at a first pass of a buff bar to see what that will look like in DD2 and going through those approvals. We have just integrated the Social Hub so there’s a ton of cleanup involved there, such as hooking up new animations, vfx, optimizations, and making sure quests work. There’s definitely more going on, but those are the hot topics that I’m focusing on for now.

Continuing my never-being-in-Florida trend, I’m still out at Human Head Studios enjoying the mild weather and working on the Ascension Part II update for PS4 - get hype! We’re also talking about plans for the next few months for PS4 - get extra hype, lots of cool things coming down the pipe!

Working on pose sketches and personalities for an awesome new NPC and also churning out sketches for a map-related cool thing which I can’t really talk about. Also coming up with new dialogue!

Adding some fun and temporary consumables to the game!

Working on a thing that’s related to a thing I can’t talk about. I like the new layout of it, it works a lot better. Can’t wait to get that into your hands. Also working on multiple UI things for the other thing that I can’t talk about yet. So yeah, I’m working on things.

Working on some fun rule & enemy changes for our new map! Now that we’ve iterated on the layout, it’s time to start getting the pieces all together and identifying solid ways to improve it before it gets into y’all’s hands.

This week and last week we have been testing and iterating on our newest map. After many iterations, we have arrived at a layout with which we are happy! Now time to finalize it and start to make it look pretty.

Eagerly awaiting the PS4/PC consolidation build to test so we can get the PS4 more up to date with the PC build. In addition to that, starting prep work for the new milestone content (messing with the outdoor hub right now) and gathering info on the next hotfix.

Teaching some people JIRA @javahawk and @catfaerie. It’s not like I came out of the womb with this skillset, you guys can do it!!

Working on some assets for the new level and adding some new stuff in the new Social Hub level!

I've been working on some assets for our new level and soon we will be starting the world building on it. Can't wait!