New Spells!

These are always the funnest updates and I've been working on this one in conjunction with the gamepad support. Four new Summons, one new Enchantment, three new Structures, and four new Spells (Conjurations)!



Exploring New Phylum

So back when running the Kickstarter I got called out for only having "cute" creatures. While this was kind of subjective and possible false (hey, I don't think snakes are all that cute), they did have a point when they pointed out that there were no spiders or slugs. Well, guess what? That's right, now you too can summon more bizarre creatures.

This update includes four new summons: Pirate Macaw, Nephila Architect (Spider), Crab Battlemaster (Coconut Crab), and Giant Snail.

Going wider means adding new features. Now there is also a new ability some characters will possess. After all, what's the fun of a spider if you can't climb walls!



As a side note, I'm a bit arachnophobic, so I hope you all enjoy the beast.



Other Magics

So there are already a lot of Enchantments in the game, so I reigned in my enchantment love and added only one, Earth, to round out the elemental enchantment set.



Structures get a good bump. Now you can build Turrets, Barracks, and Keys. Adding some flavor beyond just platforming elements to the spell type.



Spells (Conjurations) get the biggest bump with four new instant creations. Boulder and Ice Blast round out the launchable element set. And the addition of Alchemy and Persuade add some interesting twists to what player can do in game.

I'll be detailing half of these new spells in upcoming blog posts, so keep your eyes open. Or ... jump in the game, unlock the new spells, and see what you can do!

As always, thanks for reading. All questions, suggestions, and feedback are more than welcome.

-Del



And for fun, let's look at content tallies for the game.

20 Unique Levels
24 Rooms (Level Generator)
36 Missions
52 Items (Weapons, Accessories, Crowns, Shields)
14 Skills
4 Guides
4 Wardens
8 Tents
32 Summons
40 Non-Summon(13 Spells, 10 Structures & 17 Enchantments)

New Spells!

These are always the funnest updates and I've been working on this one in conjunction with the gamepad support. Four new Summons, one new Enchantment, three new Structures, and four new Spells (Conjurations)!



Exploring New Phylum

So back when running the Kickstarter I got called out for only having "cute" creatures. While this was kind of subjective and possible false (hey, I don't think snakes are all that cute), they did have a point when they pointed out that there were no spiders or slugs. Well, guess what? That's right, now you too can summon more bizarre creatures.

This update includes four new summons: Pirate Macaw, Nephila Architect (Spider), Crab Battlemaster (Coconut Crab), and Giant Snail.

Going wider means adding new features. Now there is also a new ability some characters will possess. After all, what's the fun of a spider if you can't climb walls!



As a side note, I'm a bit arachnophobic, so I hope you all enjoy the beast.



Other Magics

So there are already a lot of Enchantments in the game, so I reigned in my enchantment love and added only one, Earth, to round out the elemental enchantment set.



Structures get a good bump. Now you can build Turrets, Barracks, and Keys. Adding some flavor beyond just platforming elements to the spell type.



Spells (Conjurations) get the biggest bump with four new instant creations. Boulder and Ice Blast round out the launchable element set. And the addition of Alchemy and Persuade add some interesting twists to what player can do in game.

I'll be detailing half of these new spells in upcoming blog posts, so keep your eyes open. Or ... jump in the game, unlock the new spells, and see what you can do!

As always, thanks for reading. All questions, suggestions, and feedback are more than welcome.

-Del



And for fun, let's look at content tallies for the game.

20 Unique Levels
24 Rooms (Level Generator)
36 Missions
52 Items (Weapons, Accessories, Crowns, Shields)
14 Skills
4 Guides
4 Wardens
8 Tents
32 Summons
40 Non-Summon(13 Spells, 10 Structures & 17 Enchantments)

Control Layout Screens
You can now view the control layouts from the menu screen. There have been a few tweaks to gamepad controls.

Generated Level Fixes
A few fixes to Generated Levels have been made. You should no longer see floating mission objects.

Sorry for another small update. The next one will be cool, I promise!

-Del

Control Layout Screens
You can now view the control layouts from the menu screen. There have been a few tweaks to gamepad controls.

Generated Level Fixes
A few fixes to Generated Levels have been made. You should no longer see floating mission objects.

Sorry for another small update. The next one will be cool, I promise!

-Del

Gamepad Support
The first pass of gamepad support is in. I've tested it with a 360 controller and it seems to work pretty decent. So if you like gamepads on your PC games, give it a go and let me know what you think. I'll start doing some tweaking with it in a few weeks.

Healers Tent
Having only one tent to choose from at the start felt cheap. Sure there are quite a few to unlock within the game. But I wanted to give the players a few more choices to start. So I've added the Healer's Tent. It lets players cast Heal twice from their starting camp. I think it's a good option for beggining players too.



As always: all questions, suggestions, and feedback welcome.

-Del

Gamepad Support
The first pass of gamepad support is in. I've tested it with a 360 controller and it seems to work pretty decent. So if you like gamepads on your PC games, give it a go and let me know what you think. I'll start doing some tweaking with it in a few weeks.

Healers Tent
Having only one tent to choose from at the start felt cheap. Sure there are quite a few to unlock within the game. But I wanted to give the players a few more choices to start. So I've added the Healer's Tent. It lets players cast Heal twice from their starting camp. I think it's a good option for beggining players too.



As always: all questions, suggestions, and feedback welcome.

-Del

New Achievements
Four more achievements have been added. Each one attempting to teach the players the nuances of each spell type. One such one is Enchant Enemy. Sure, you can enchant yourself. Even allies. But the fun comes when you learn to debilitate your enemies!



Of course, what's a new achievement without a title!



I also added this handy achievement button to the main menu so you can track what achievements you've achieved as well as their rewards.



New Unlockable
For those brave enough to complete difficulty five, there is now a new reward to unlock. The reward is well worth the effort though. Good luck!



Tutorial and Other Fixes
I spent a bit of time touching up the tutorial just a bit as well as a few other additions.

Now return to camp is a button and not an alternate attack. Hopefully this will be easier to learn and remember for players.

Missions now have a split for difficulty. Harder missions only show up on harder difficulties.

The Steam overlay should now be working properly (thanks MadSpy).



As always thanks for reading. All questions and suggestions are always welcome!

-Del

Oh, and I added bubble effects. Bubbles!!!

New Achievements
Four more achievements have been added. Each one attempting to teach the players the nuances of each spell type. One such one is Enchant Enemy. Sure, you can enchant yourself. Even allies. But the fun comes when you learn to debilitate your enemies!



Of course, what's a new achievement without a title!



I also added this handy achievement button to the main menu so you can track what achievements you've achieved as well as their rewards.



New Unlockable
For those brave enough to complete difficulty five, there is now a new reward to unlock. The reward is well worth the effort though. Good luck!



Tutorial and Other Fixes
I spent a bit of time touching up the tutorial just a bit as well as a few other additions.

Now return to camp is a button and not an alternate attack. Hopefully this will be easier to learn and remember for players.

Missions now have a split for difficulty. Harder missions only show up on harder difficulties.

The Steam overlay should now be working properly (thanks MadSpy).



As always thanks for reading. All questions and suggestions are always welcome!

-Del

Oh, and I added bubble effects. Bubbles!!!

Extended Tutorial
I've still be recieving feedback of confusion on the game. Believe me, I know the game is different, that is very much intentional. But good news! The tutorial section is now almost twice as long! I've tried to keep the earlier tutorials focused and repetitive of similar facts. Hopefully, this will let players get a good feel on the nuances of the mechanics. Then there are a few more sections that ramp up in size and let the player play with their new spells.



Leaderboards
Using Steam4C2 has opened up the possibility of leaderboards, so, I figured, why not? Now you can compare your best score versus your friends! Unfortunately I can check for cheaters, so this is currently a friends only leaderboard.



Trading Cards, Badges, Emoticons, & Backgrounds
This one has be asked for by several Steam players, so, here it is! Trading Cards come in sets of Wardens and Realms.



There are then the unlockable badges of various levels.



And of course the rewards of various emoticons and profile backgrounds. There is a background for each Realm and emoticons for each gem type and guide.





Other Things
And of course there have been a few bug fixes and polishes.

• Player light should not shudder.
  
• Environments Effects optimized.
  
• AI optimized.
  
• Aligned generated level castles.

Thanks for reading. All questions, suggestions, and feedback are welcome!

-Del

Extended Tutorial
I've still be recieving feedback of confusion on the game. Believe me, I know the game is different, that is very much intentional. But good news! The tutorial section is now almost twice as long! I've tried to keep the earlier tutorials focused and repetitive of similar facts. Hopefully, this will let players get a good feel on the nuances of the mechanics. Then there are a few more sections that ramp up in size and let the player play with their new spells.



Leaderboards
Using Steam4C2 has opened up the possibility of leaderboards, so, I figured, why not? Now you can compare your best score versus your friends! Unfortunately I can check for cheaters, so this is currently a friends only leaderboard.



Trading Cards, Badges, Emoticons, & Backgrounds
This one has be asked for by several Steam players, so, here it is! Trading Cards come in sets of Wardens and Realms.



There are then the unlockable badges of various levels.



And of course the rewards of various emoticons and profile backgrounds. There is a background for each Realm and emoticons for each gem type and guide.





Other Things
And of course there have been a few bug fixes and polishes.

• Player light should not shudder.
  
• Environments Effects optimized.
  
• AI optimized.
  
• Aligned generated level castles.

Thanks for reading. All questions, suggestions, and feedback are welcome!

-Del