Mar 23, 2022

Skullgirls 2nd Encore - Liam

Hello, Liam here.

Today's update is one of the final beta mode updates as everything begins to be finalized for release on PS4.

THE BOARDWALK

Umbrella's stage has been updated with a brand new look, complete with new animations and NPCs - check it out!

VISUALS

Fixed a bug where glows from lightning, flames, and such would still shine even if characters were invisible from being thrown, stuffed in a bag, chewed by Hungern, etc.

UMBRELLA

Added an alternate voice pack as a Season One pass bonus - Skullgirl Umbrella!
(... Her Season One pass bonus palette will be arriving very soon.)
Salt Grinder (QCF + LP)
- Redistributed (and lowered) overall damage from grinds during Salt Grinder.
- Removed assist damage scaling penalty, and removed SATIATED damage scaling penalty.
- As an assist, Salt Grinder always does the maximum amount of assist grinds possible in previous beta versions.
Tongue Twister ([Back], F, LP + LK)
- Redistributed (and lowered) overall damage from chomps from Tongue Twister.
- Removed SATIATED damage scaling penalty.
Bobblin' Bubble (QCB + MK)
- OVERSTUFFED damage increased from 650 to 700.
- Hunger gain reduced from 1 pip to 1/2 a pip.
- Will no longer be popped by Umbrella's bubbles created from Under The Weather, Cutie Ptooie, or Wish Maker. Projectiles from other characters (assists) or sources (Retina Reflector) will still pop it as before.
- Now ignores hits from Ms. Fortune's head when she tags in.
OVERSTUFFED damage from Hungern Rush increased from 800 to 900.
Wish Maker (QCB + HK) no longer hits anything but the enemy point character, again. Projectiles and assists will not interact with it.
(... This bubble still vanishes if Umbrella is hit, but it will always attempt to favorably trade for a few frames when this happens.)
Cutie Ptooie (QCB + LK) bubble travels considerably slower.
(... This allows Umbrella to more easily move in behind it, control the air space in front of her for a longer time, and gives the projectile more time to ramp up its frame data, which increases the longer it travels as mentioned in other patch notes.)
Umbrella can only have a maximum of 3 puddles out at once. The oldest puddle is replaced when she exceeds this limit. Puddle lifetime increased from 12 seconds to 25 seconds.
(... This gives Umbrella substantially more time to play around placed puddles while making sure she can't coat the entire stage in them.)
Slurp 'n' Slide activates nearby puddles for the boosted version from slightly further than before.
Slurp 'n' Slide, when boosted, will now continue to consume any puddles that she slides over.
Fixed a bug where pushblocking reflected projectiles from Umbrella would push characters the wrong direction.
Fixed a bug where after reflecting an enemy projectile, allied projectiles could still destroy it despite it being friendly now.
When Umbrella tags out during a combo, her hunger state will change instead of being locked until that combo ends.
(... Ensures that calling an assist will perform the correct hunger state version based on her true hunger level when she tagged out.)
Updated the visuals on Retina Reflector: Contact Lens, to differentiate the startup from Retina Reflector.
Fixed a bug where one of the rising hits from s.F+HP could hit tall standing characters.
Fixed a bug where failing to hit with sHK would cause Bobblin' Bubble and Wish Maker to vanish prematurely.
Fixed a bug where characters weren't reacting with the proper VO line when caught by Wish Maker, if they were using alternate VO. Alternate VO lines are used for Peacock, Double, and Painwheel.
Fixed a bug where Slurp 'n' Slide did not have a kara cancel window into Outtake.
Fixed a bug where starting a chain with sHK at less than 240 Undizzy could cause a burstable Undizzy hit if it crossed the 240 threshold. sHK now sets off IPS and Undizzy on the grab hit, allowing them to burst immediately after being released.
Minor sound and visual adjustments.
Fixed a bug where Hungern could vanish during Umbrella's "Feeding Time" Blockbuster.

ANNIE

Fixed a bug where Meteor Strike scaling while point was errantly removed compared to retail in the last update.
(... It does apply forced scaling in retail)
Meteor Strike scaling is now a flat 70% across the board, with no exceptions based on being used as a DHC or not.
(... Up from 45% compared to the last beta update for a considerable damage boost.)

This update paves the way for Umbrella's official release on Steam and PS4. We'll have more news about that release very soon!

(Build version 3.3.20)

Mar 14, 2022

Beta Mode Update [2022-03-14]

Skullgirls 2nd Encore - Liam

Hello, Liam here.

It's been awhile since our last update! Here's what we've been working on:

Creating and testing Umbrella's character tutorial and her trials.
Polishing up the new version of Umbrella's stage.
Finalizing all of Umbrella's palettes.
Finishing Umbrella's gameplay, per all of the update notes that you'll find below.

We're eager to get Umbrella fully finalized so that she can be released on PS4 in the near future - almost there!

STORY & OTHER

Added Umbrella's tutorial and her 4 trial combos. Please note that this early release of these features are available in ENGLISH only. Translations are not available in other languages yet, but they will be for the full launch.
Updated character select UI to make it more clear which characters have alternate VO packs, and how they can be selected.
Updated key art and cinematic animations in Umbrella's Story Mode. The Art Gallery has been updated to reflect the new art. (Note: Some of the old versions of the art have been archived in the Art Gallery)
Fixed a bug where some characters weren't visible in Parasoul's Story Mode.

UMBRELLA

Commentary:

posting on our official forums

Changes below:

Updates to her voice over have been implemented. Look out for new voice lines, a full audio and volume balance pass, and more!
Updated the look of some of her palettes already included in the last update. Brand new palettes will be arriving very soon - thanks for your patience!
Slurp 'n' Slide ([Back], F + MP)
- Can now slide through puddles to receive a boost in speed, damage, and an alternate hit type. (She trips if doing this while STARVING.)
  (... This is a pretty large change. Using the boosted version of Slurp 'n' Slide allows Umbrella to convert from new attacks with the right puddle positioning and set up. For example, midscreen combos from ground throw, Tongue Twister, sHP, etc... Due to these new conversions, her damage has been adjusted.)
- Lowered collision box height while sliding to ensure she can slide under characters without them getting stuck against her, and increased collision box height right before active to help with some corner combo stability.
- RAVENOUS damage 900 → 800
- OVERSTUFFED damage 1100 → 1000
- OVERSTUFFED hit launches opponents further and faster.
- Fixed a bug where Umbrella would slide backwards when landing from Slurp 'n' Slide instead of forwards.
- Fixed a bug where Umbrella would pass through opponents in the RAVENOUS version before she hit them. This fixes some difficulties hitting some characters in the corner.
- Increased hitstop on SATIATED and STARVING version to help give more time to confirm into a super on hit.
- Reduced super cancel duration.
  (... Super cancel window ends at the point where the new L+M Retina Reflector would have not been a true combo.)
Salt Grinder (QCF + LP + LK)
- When starting Salt Grinder in SATIATED or OVERSTUFFED, a 25% and 50% damage penalty is applied on follow-up grinds, respectively.
- When used as an assist, grinds now have a flat 25% damage penalty, and this replaces previously implemented assist damage reduction, for clarity. This damage multiplier stacks with the damage reductions above.
- As an assist, Salt Grinder can only grind as many times as she would have been able to if she was point, with respect to being unable to grind further because Hungern is completely full.
  (... Assist TL;DR - Get Umbrella into the RAVENOUS state and tag out, and then the assist will function as it did before.)
- Reduced active frames from 5 to 2.
- Fixed a bug where Umbrella herself did not experience any hitstop on block. Reduced frame advantage on block.
- The very first grind (left or right) is now buffered like other grinds.
- Reduced max time allowed between grinds before Hungern automatically spits the opponent out.
Tongue Twister ([Back], F + LP + LK)
- When starting Tongue Twister in SATIATED or OVERSTUFFED, a 25% and 50% damage penalty is applied on follow-up chomps, respectively.
- When used as an assist, grinds now have a flat 25% damage penalty, and this replaces previously implemented assist damage reduction, for clarity. This damage multiplier stacks with the damage reductions above.
- Increased recovery on Tongue Twister whiff by 7F.
- Fixed a bug where characters could be hit briefly when Hungern chomps his own tongue pile to begin chewing, if Umbrella was not the point character.
- Lowered hitbox on the tongue while rolling to prevent it from interacting with certain projectiles.
- Slightly tweaked character wall bounce velocity.
- Reduced recovery on success by 2F.
- Fixed a bug where comboing into Tongue Twister would incorrectly advance the combo stage more than intended.
- Fixed a bug where you could call assists in the middle of the grab while the tongue was retracting.
- Added a normal buffer after Tongue Twister ends to help time corner combo follow-ups.
Hungern Rush ([D], U+HP)
- Hungern Rush is now strike invincible (can be thrown), instead of fully invincible.
- Fixed a bug where blocking Hungern Rush grab while rising would not display the new shield block effect, even if you blocked due to rising unblockable protection.
- STARVING version jump height slightly reduced.
- OVERSTUFFED version jump height and active frames increased. Removed super cancel window on landing during this version.
- RAVENOUS version now scales to 55%, like all hit grab style attacks.
- As an assist, the first hit while rising scales to 55%, instead of scaling to 55% on the second landing hit.
  (... This reduces the damage to be more in line with other DP assists.)
Retina Reflector (QCF + PP ... DP + PP)
- "Retina Reflector: Projection Lens" is now known as just, "Retina Reflector". The physical hit version (DP + PP) is now known as "Retina Reflector: Contact Lens". For clarity, our hope is that referring to them as "Retina Reflector" and "Contact Lens" separately makes it easier to discuss and differentiate between the two moves.
- Retina Reflector now vanishes if Umbrella is hit with a physical hit or thrown, but not when hit with a projectile.
- Removed logic where L+M version of Retina Reflector would always shatter if Umbrella was hit briefly after the start up, due to the above.
- Retina Reflector now vacuums opponents towards the projectile if they are grounded, to prevent them from falling out of it.
- Various improvements to the reliability of reflecting projectiles as the projectile is spawning.
- Increased L+M version start up time before active frames begin after the projectile has spawned.
- Retina Reflector (but not the Contact Lens version) is now projectile invincible on startup. L+M version has more projectile invincibility after spawning the shield.
  (... Can be used to reliably counter various projectile attacks while leaving Umbrella safe.)
- Reduced gap between hits against opponents for the ground and air versions.
- Against airborne opponents, Retina Reflector bounces opponents lower than before.
- Retina Reflector: Contact Lens damage reduced from 2000 to 1750.
- Retina Reflector eyeballs now always show veins when they're about to explode, if they're attached to the opponent. (Bug Fix)
- Fixed a bug where the eyes shooting off Retina Reflector could get stuck on other projectiles and fail to reach enemy character.
- Increased size of hurtbox (for reflection) and hitbox (for hitting).
- Adjusted and polished other non-gameplay related eyeball behaviour.
- Retina Reflector (and sHP) can reflect additional projectiles. More projectiles will be reflectable in the next update!
  - ALL projectiles for Annie, Painwheel, Double, and Fukua. If you can't reflect one of their projectiles, it's probably not going to be reflectable in the final version.
  - Valentine - Air / Ground Checkmate Incision.
  - Robo-Fortune - JHP and Headrone RAM.
Under The Weather (QCF+KK)
- There are eyeball(s) inside of the bubbles, and they are looking respectfully. This is just a visual change.
- No longer uses any randomization for Bubble placement and pathing. It is now the same each time to help set ups stay consistent.
- Chip damage on regular bubbles reduced from 100 to 75.
- Damage reduced on regular bubbles from 200 to 175.
- OVERSTUFFED version now produces larger bubbles that knockdown. Less bubbles are spawned in this version. (12 → 9)
- Bubbles now interact with other projectiles and pop when touching them.
Cutie Ptooie (QCB + LK)
- There are eyeball(s) inside of the bubbles, and they are looking respectfully. This is just a visual change.
- Total animation length reduced.
- The projectile will no longer vanish when Umbrella is hit.
- OVERSTUFFED version has had its size and hitbox increased slightly.
- Frame data (which has always scaled based on how long the bubble has traveled) improved for all versions.
- Bubbles now interact with other projectiles and pop against them.
- Adjusted launch angle.
- OVERSTUFFED damage reduced from 650 → 500.
- If LK is held throughout the entire animation up to the point where the projectile is created, the butterfly will not be eaten.
  (... You can use Cutie Ptooie more freely while still trying to increase Hunger, if desired.)
Bobblin' Bubble (QCB + MK)
- Drastically reduced animation length.
- The bubble now vanishes if it goes off screen, or Umbrella is hit.
  (... This only happens midscreen, since it slides back on screen if it touches the corner.)
- Slides back on screen faster than before, if it is touching the corner.
- No longer puts the opponent in preblock.
- Default damage 850 → 500. OVERSTUFFED damage 1000 → 650.
- OVERSTUFFED hitstop on hit reduced from 24 → 18.
- Fixed various visual bugs related to the bubble being inside of Hungern's mouth when created.
- The projectile will vanish when Umbrella is hit. If Umbrella has already hit it, it won't vanish and continues to pop.
- Added a normal buffer after Bobblin' Bubble ends to help hit the bubble as fast as possible.
Wish Maker (QCB + HK)
- Wish Maker will now pop when touching assist characters, but it will not capture them.
- Wish Maker will now pop when touching other projectiles.
- Wish Maker (all versions, before capture) travels a shorter distance before popping.
- The projectile will vanish when Umbrella is hit, unless it has already captured the opponent.
- Fixed a bug where Wish Maker would fail to capture opponents if they were too high up when touching the bubble.
- Fixed a bug where Umbrella would create another bubble as an assist even if one was already out. She now leaves immediately if a Wish Maker bubble is already active, like her other bubble assists.
- The bubble now vanishes if it goes off screen.
- Captured opponents will no longer be pushed into the corner, if the corner is already occupied.
- Fixed a bug where hitting the opponent at the same time the capture naturally ended would cause the hit to not function correctly. (Applies to air throw capture bubble as well)
sHP (Reflection)
- Will no longer interact with projectiles that are not reflectable.
- Removed projectile invincibility on start up.
- Fixed a bug where projectile reflection continued even after Umbrella was hit or interrupted.
sHK
- Damage reduced to 975.
- Start up decreased by 5F, and she runs and jumps slightly faster.
- Fixed a bug where under some rare circumstances the follow-up slam hit would not connect.
Puddles
- When Umbrella interacts with multiple puddles at once using J[MK], sMK or cMK, only a single splash is created for one source of damage.
- Fixed a bug where splashing a puddle in the middle of a string could activate Undizzy.
- sMK puddle splash damage reduced from 600 → 400.
- sMK puddle splash range slightly increased.
Feeding Time (QCB + PP)
- Fixed a bug where it would not pause the match timer.
- Fullness increase from chomping reduced from 3 pips to 1 pip. Swallowing the opponent no longer grants any fullness.
  (... This is meant to help keep Umbrella closer to the hunger state she wants to be in when finishing off a character and preparing to fight the next one.)
- Bonus RAVENOUS threshold increase granted per eaten character is now 2, instead of 1. This still caps at 3.
- Added extra water visual effects.
- Umbrella slides backwards a little bit when firing the opponent out of Hungern.
Miscellaneous
- Fixed a UI bug with Umbrella's hunger meter on P2 side.
- Standardized visual effects on Umbrella's eyes when she activates any Blockbuster.
- JMP - Hitbox improved, again. In RAVENOUS, it is one frame faster (11F → 10F startup).
- Added VO to Egret Soldier during her timeout animation.
- JHP - Reduced landing hit frame advantage.
- Improved visuals on backdash wind twirl.
- cMP - Increased hitstun by 2F when SATIATED and STARVING.
- Various other visuals and audio tweaks.

ANNIE

Commentary:

Annie is getting some of her powerful tools back that were adjusted in the last beta update. However, her DHC damage potential is drastically reduced, and her Star Power mode will require more meter commitment to activate.Changes below:

JMP behaves as it does in retail, but with two extra frames of recovery.
Dash speed reverted back to retail values.
Re-Entry hitstop adjusted from 10 back to 13 on the first two kicks.
(... This was just meant to speed up combos, but people preferred the oomph it had before.)
Expanded air dash backwards collision box to fix a bug where Annie could air dash backwards through a crouching opponent, while technically being grounded.
Pillar of Creation (QCB + KK)
- Bonus DHC scaling on the first hit reduced from 70% → 40%.
- Hitpause on the second hit (fist clench) increased from 10 → 25, when not used as a DHC.
  (... Enables Annie to confirm at long distances when using Pillar of Creation on point.)
- Hitpause on the second hit (fist clench) reduced from 10 → 5, when used as a DHC.
  (... Annie can't convert easily from fullscreen when this is used as a DHC.)
- Knockback reverted to retail values, leaving the opponent slightly closer.
Meteor Strike (QCF + KK)
- Now applies the same amount of super hitstop regardless of if the opponent is in hitstun or not. Increased hitstop value to 4, up from 2 in the last update. (It is 6 in retail)
  (... This super can hit characters from longer distances without them having a chance to block or reversal, again, but it's still not quite as good as it is in retail.)
- Applies bonus damage scaling (45%) when used as a DHC.
- Damage reduced from 2250 → 2000.
  (... These changes are required to prevent Meteor Strike in the corner from being the new DHC Pillar of Creation, in terms of damage.)
Star Power (D, D + KK)
- Star Power requires that you have at least two bars of meter to activate. Even to use it as a DHC, you must still have two bars of meter.
- When Star Power activates, it consumes one bar of meter immediately, up from zero.
- Since Star Power uses meter to activate, you can now DHC out of it.
- Stars from Star Power now deal chip damage. (!)
- Gravity Collapse (D,D+KK in Star Power) now deals a lot of chip damage. (!)
- Annie displays in front of Crescent Cut when performing the activation animation.
North Knuckle now performs the follow-up slam on block, on all versions, when used as an assist. However, the H version slam has reduced blockstun and blockstop as an assist, like Big Band's H Brass assist, or all DP assists.

ELIZA

Commentary:

Eliza receives some buffs and quality of life changes. While the power of Sekhmet is reduced, base Eliza's power is increased as a trade off.Changes below:

Sekhmet now has a generous buffer when her supers are ending to perform a fast as possible return to the anchor. When returning to the anchor using this buffer, she won't lose life as she retreats.
Extended the DHC window for Crimson Scourge after Sekhmet dismounts from the opponent.
Forced scaling applied from Crimson Scourge adjusted to 45%, from 55%.
If Sekhmet's Carpenter's Axe is blocked (grounded H), she cannot perform Sekhem Rebound (backflip).
(... This opens up punishes from previous versions of the game when Sekhmet attempts her fast overhead and it fails. A very well timed throw will grant you a scaled combo (or a counter hit JM in the face if mistimed), or you can attempt an Outtake for a lower risk punish with damage scaling. Sekhmet can still get numerous mix-up attempts or simply retreat to safety using her low (2L) combined with Sekhem Rebound. She can also still use Sekhem Rebound after the slower overhead option, (JM) Ptahxe)
sHK start up reduced by 3F.
sHP start up reduced by 3F.
(... Note, the above two changes also allow Eliza to chain lights into heavies)
cHK armor against projectiles starts 4F earlier.
Fixed a bug where Weight of Anubis (QCF + HK) and Nekhbet Breaker (J.QCF + KK) incorrectly scaled to 50% instead of 55%.
Throne of Isis (QCF + LK)
- Hitpause increased by 2F on hit only.
- Reduced knockback by 20%
- Slightly reduced the extended hurtbox on the chair, making it less likely to be nullified by opponent attacks.

ROBO-FORTUNE

Theonite Beam (H) reverted back to retail functionality. It's no longer pulled harshly with the camera.
Fixed a bug where Robo-Fortune couldn't perform Homing Directory after sHK hit Ms. Fortune and her head at the same time.

PEACOCK

Reverted all changes back to retail, except:
- Shadow of Impending Doom (level 2 charge) still has 20 extra frames of recovery, from the last update.
- Four extra invincible frames from the start up and four extra invincible frames from the recovery of all versions of The Hole Idea (Teleport) are now vulnerable.

DOUBLE

Cattelite Lives length when used as a DHC lasts for 33F longer.

MS. FORTUNE

Reverted all changes back to retail.
Fixed a bug where headless "rekka" moves (Cat Scratch, El Gato, Cat Slide) would not auto correct to face the opponent.

FILIA

Expanded air dash backwards collision box to fix a bug where Filia could air dash backwards through a crouching opponent, while technically being grounded.

(Build version 3.3.17)

Dec 21, 2021

Beta Balance Update [2021-12-21]

Skullgirls 2nd Encore - Liam

Hello, Liam here.

Welcome to day 1 of the next beta balance patch cycle.

IMPORTANT NOTICE:
As you know, we’ve been providing fairly frequent updates over the past couple of months. However, in light of the holidays, the next update likely won’t occur until late January. Thanks for your patience!

This first update focuses on the changes that are likely to be the most contentious, to give players more time to adapt and discuss these changes. Since Annie is the newest complete character, she will be the focus for this update. Expect other changes in the future!

Also, to make some of these changes easier to read for existing players, we'll be using some community nomenclature instead of some in-game terms for mechanics. (Blockbuster → Super, etc)

UMBRELLA

Just bug fixes for now! There are more outstanding bugs and tuning that still need be made in the new year.

Fixed a bug where Bobblin' Bubble's bobble jump was not possible.
Fixed a bug where Cutie Ptooie's butterfly eating was increasing fullness even as an assist.
Adjusted trip and wallsplat hurtboxes to fix some combos not working on Umbrella.

ANNIE

Annie is a great all rounder, but some of her tools and mechanics go a bit beyond their intended strengths. Annie's gameplan and the range of things that she's capable of should more or less be unchanged, but the effectiveness that she these things has been toned down.

Remember that new characters usually receive a lot of tuning in the first update after their release, with Annie being no exception:

North Knuckle
- As an assist, Annie will no longer perform the follow-up slam on block, unless it's the L version.
- Hitstop and blockstun reductions for all North Knuckle punches, and follow up slams.
- Increased recovery of North Knuckle (H) slam. (.. Yes this impacts corner combos)
- As an assist, the first punch of North Knuckle applies 1 extra hit of damage scaling, like Big Band's similarly hard hitting Brass Knuckles (H) assist.
Pillar of Creation
- Moved 250 damage from the first hit to the second hit. (750 → 500, 1000 → 1250)
- On DHC only, the first hit scales to 70%. (The second hit continues to scale to 70% on point just as it did before.)
- Reduced active frames on the first hit.
- Increased start up before Super Flash freezes time.
- Increased recovery, and recovery is increased further if the opponent blocks it. Advantage on block reduced.
- On DHC, the Super Flash freeze ends slightly earlier, giving the opponent a bit more time to recover or act.
  (... Note, hitstop was never applied on DHC, but hitstop from the previous super could sometimes carry over. This change makes that less likely.)
- Second hit has had its hitstop reduced and velocity adjusted.
Reduced Meteor Strike hitstop if the opponent is not in hitstun, reducing the extreme range that the opponent is completely unable to act before Annie hits them. Combos and conversions should be unchanged.
Sagan Beam (air version) goes into a vulnerable (but not counter hit) falling state if the opponent blocks it, much like Big Band's Tympany Drive. If the opponent is hit after blocking, she can still act.
JHP hitbox has been normalized to be more in line with other arcing swing hitboxes like Parasoul, Valentine, etc.
JHP only spawns stars during Star Power once per jump.
Reduced JMP hitstun.
Reduced sMP hitbox to match the art shown during active frames.
cHP damage adjusted: 1300 → 1200.
sHP [2nd Hit] damage adjusted: 700 → 600.
s.F+HP damage adjusted: 1500 → 1300.
s.F+HP step forward before swinging slightly reduced. (~20%)
Slightly reduced movement during dash start up, and reduced second phase dash speed by 5%.
QOL - s.F+MP no longer produces a star during Star Power, allowing her to get the Stagger.
QOL - cHK in Star Power now has a buffer into sLP, making the link much easier.
Re Entry has slightly less hitstop than before.
(... Mostly intended to speed up her Re Entry combos slightly)
Fixed a bug where Destruction Pillar VFX could show up in the wrong location for a moment when Annie is thrown.
Fixed a bug where Annie couldn't cancel cLP into itself during the active frames of the first punch, like every other self repeating normal.
Fixed an issue where Annie's Destruction Pillar blockstun and hitstop values were not adjusted correctly as an assist, like all other DP assists (Updo, Napalm Pillar, etc). Blockstun and hitstop is reduced across all versions as an assist.

ROBO-FORTUNE

Slightly reducing the effectiveness of pressure and mix up speed during Systemic Circuit Breaker, and a long outstanding "H Beam" experiment.

Increased Instant Air Dash (IAD) lockout from 5 frames to 8 during Systemic Circuit Breaker.
Reduced Air Theonite Beam (M) bonus recovery speed from Systemic Circuit Breaker. (8F > 5F)
Reduced knockback on Theonite Beam (M) during Systemic Circuit Breaker, for both air and ground versions.
Theonite Beam (H), as an assist, will now remain on camera as Robo-Fortune is firing, instead of hiding off camera firing from off-screen if the point character is moving forward quickly.

PEACOCK

Continuing with a few more changes from the last beta balance changes that didn't have enough time to be completed and tested - this is likely the full list of Peacock changes.

Adjusted "The Hole Idea" (H), AKA "H Teleport"
- H Teleport will become M Teleport if an assist is being called and has not landed, just as before.
- However, H Teleport will also now become M Teleport up until:
  - The assist attacks the enemy point character and puts them into blockstun or hitstun. An assist hitting armor does not count.
  - The assist performs their assist taunt and begins to leave.
  - The assist enters hitstun.
  (.. This allows Peacock to switch sides, escape, or combo using the blockstun or hitstun of her assists, but does not allow it before the assist makes contact, outside of a few telegraphed set ups with projectiles.)
Boxcar George appears 5 frames later into the summoning animation.
George at the Airshow appears 1 frame later into the summoning animation.
(.. These last two changes revert Peacock's M and H George start up back to what they were during Robo-Fortune initial's release patch.)
If Peacock goes into hitstun at any point during L, M or H George travelling, that George now forces follow-up damage scaling to 70%.
Shadow of Impending Doom (level 2 charge) lasts for 20 additional frames before Peacock can perform the special move again.

MS. FORTUNE

Changes to make Ms. Fortune slightly easier to hit, especially when jumping away. Providing another option to beat her main meterless reversal. Light tweaks to the range of JLK, and how contestable it is.

Fiber Uppercut (all versions) are now strike invulnerable, and can be thrown.
Fiber Uppercut (all versions) has no invulnerability when headless.
JLK - Adjusted animation timing so that Ms. Fortune's leg is stretched out for longer immediately before and after the active frames. Frame data completely unchanged.
JLK - Adjusted hurtbox to fill in the empty space between her legs.
JLK - Removed hitbox from the tip of her toes.
(.. Ms. Fortune's ever oppressive JLK should hopefully feel slightly easier to contest.)
Expanded Ms. Fortune's jumping hurtbox while she is tucked into a ball.
Added hurtbox around her tail below her for the first few frames after jumping off the ground.

(Build version 3.3.16)

Dec 16, 2021

Umbrella Early Access Release!

Skullgirls 2nd Encore - Liam

Umbrella's Season Pass alpha period has concluded, and she's now entering Early Access! Note that to access Umbrella and any of the Early Access and work in progress features she has to offer, you will still need to launch the game in "beta" mode. You can always access the option to switch from the in-game Options menu.

Umbrella and her stage can be unlocked by owning the Season One Pass, or her individual DLC which is now available. Her DLC is also 10% off for the first 7 days of her Early Access launch - act fast!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1744550/Skullgirls_Umbrella/

NEW STAGE + MUSIC

A heavily work in progress version of Umbrella's stage, "The Boardwalk", is now available in the beta version of the game. We're still working on creating NPCs, adjusting the layout and perspective of the boardwalk, and adding additional detail. Please stay tuned for the full version of the stage arriving closer to Umbrella's final release!

The Boardwalk's stage music, "Ice Cream Headache" (composed by the legendary Masaru "Raito" Kuba best known for their work on Melty Blood and Under Night In-Birth) is also included in this update.
(You can also find the full version on YouTube - have a listen!)

STORY MODE (WORK IN PROGRESS)

Surprise, Umbrella's Story Mode is releasing early! The story is complete, but may receive some minor art, animation, and text tweaks before Umbrella's final release.

The story is also translated into all supported languages except Japanese. We're hoping to have Japanese out in one of our minor updates very soon, and we apologize for the inconvenience.

As with all major story content, please be considerate of others when discussing spoilers!

UMBRELLA CHANGES

THE BIG ONES:

Added new Umbrella palettes, and more will be added in the future. Note that palette #7 and #8 are unlocked by completing Umbrella's Story Mode and Arcade Mode respectively.
Added Umbrella's voice lines! These are still work in progress, so expect some of these to change and have more variety (especially with her different hunger states) in other updates.

ALSO THE BIG ONES, BUT NOT AS BIG AS THE PREVIOUS "THE BIG ONES" SECTION

Slurp 'n' Slide
- Start up decreased across all versions.
- Improved hitbox.
- No longer trips when Umbrella is in the Starving state.
- Advantage on block and hit increased.
- Reduced dismount recovery length.
- Knockback on block slightly reduced
- Umbrella now dismounts forwards into the opponent instead of jumping backwards.
- Satiated version has had its duration shortened, but it moves slightly faster at the beginning of the slide.
Bobblin' Bubble
- When attacked, it will now move towards the opponent for a brief moment before popping.
- Tweaked scale before exploding, which adjusts the hitbox slightly.
- Hitspark now spawns when attacked by an ally.
- Will now pop if hit by allied projectiles.
- Reduced movement speed. (2.85 to 2.0)
- Reduced up and down sway when moving.
- Will now sway back onto the screen if it touches the corner.
- Removed forced scaling.
- Adjusted block pushback.
Hungern Rush
- While Satiated, opponent velocity on landing has been adjusted. In combination with cLK changes below, she can combo on everyone after if OTG is available.
- Forced damage scaling while Ravenous is now 75%, up from 55%.
- No longer trips while Umbrella is in the Starving state.
JLK
- If Umbrella is rising, velocity change (up and down) is reduced.
- Increased forward momentum on the kick.
- Active frames increased by 2F.
Tongue Twister
- Reduced recovery by 8F.
- First active frame hitbox appears further away from Umbrella, increasing immediate range.
- Umbrella slides back slightly further from the corner if she's too close, helping her position for follow-ups.
Puddles
- Will now drop further away from the corner if they're too close. This allows them to always be interacted with using her MK buttons.
- Increased width and interact distance on Puddles slightly.
- Randomized art direction on the floor. (Visual change only)
Hunger Mechanics
- All hunger changes (except Taunt assist!) are completely disabled if Umbrella is not the point character.
- Hunger build over time in all states except Ravenous has been reduced by 25%.
- Hunger build while in the Ravenous state is reduced by 50%.
- Hunger build during Wish Maker, Bobblin Bubble, and Cutie Ptooie is locked.
- Cutie Ptooie bubble hunger build reduced from 1 pip to 0.5 pips.
- Cutie Ptooie hunger reduction from eating the butterfly increased to 1.5 pips.
- Reduced hunger build (by about ~25%) on Under The Weather bubble spawning.
If cLK is performed from a dash, Umbrella will slide into it with a boost of speed.
Modified Umbrella's dash. Each lunge moves faster, but landing between lunges is slower while she switches legs. VFX updated.
Can now have two bubbles (Wish Maker, Cutie Ptooie, Bobblin' Bubble) out at the same time, similar to Peacock's George projectiles.
Salt Grinder startup is now impacted by hunger state, like every other special. It is slightly slower when Overstuffed and Starving, and slightly faster while Ravenous.
sMP sliding velocity tweaked. Now travels slightly less far, but velocity is retained again after the hit.
sHP is no longer projectile invincible during the attack active frames.
Improved vertical reach and hitbox on sMK splash from kicking a puddle.
Salt Grinder, Tongue Twister, and Cutie Ptooie can now cancel into Taunt early in the moves to fix Taunt being harder than intended to perform.
Fixed a bug where Wish Maker would always knock opponents back in the same direction regardless of its facing direction. Also adjusted (fixed) air blockstun velocity.

BEOWULF

Is also in these update notes?!
Added missing VO to super jump.

GENERAL BALANCE CHANGES

Will not be arriving in this update, but should hopefully be arriving before the end of the year!

(Build version 3.3.14)