Our 04/16/19 update is now live on Steam. If you haven't yet, restart your games to receive it. Verify your files to get the update instantly.

Quick hotpatch this time to take care of a few hanging wires.


General

• All Special FX should now disappear or clear up very quickly when the character creating them gets hit or cancels their attack by landing

Arizona

• Can no longer continue running if you input and hold the opposite direction without touching neutral
  
• 236ATK+ATK (Trample) hurtbox has been significantly moved back

Velvet

• Combo Trial Master 02 has been replaced and Prestigious 01 has been removed due to previous character changes breaking them

Paprika

• Can no longer continue running if you input and hold the opposite direction without touching neutral
  
• 2B should now properly count as multihit for meter building purposes
  
• 236ATK+ATK / 214ATK+ATK (Smother) now armor breaks on the first hit, as intended

Pom

• Follower Dig Dog now kicks up dust visually, rather than metaphorically

Known Issues

• Arizona's 236ATK+ATK (Trample) still acts stangely when making contact with certain disjointed attacks
  
• Paprika's edible gifts may still act strangely if she attempts to eat them after throwing a certain amount of them out all at once

Our 04/11/19 update is now live on Steam. If you haven't yet, restart your games to receive it. Verify your files to get the update instantly.

Oh boy! We've got another round of animation updates, bugfixes, and balance changes for ya'll, but unfortunately, not everything we wanted for this patch made it in by the deadline. Here's the situation:

In our most recent development update, we promised the return of Arizona's pixel lobby and the overhauled AI system. Regrettably, neither of those features are included in this patch. Long story short: they're not ready to ship yet. They need more time in the oven.

This is no doubt disappointing, but even though the flagship feature of this update wasn't ready in time, there's still plenty of tasty stuff to dig into today. We will continue working on AI improvements to accompany the release of our Salt Mines update in mid-May.

We want to do more for you guys in exchange for more time to work on AI. Arizona and Paprika's lobbies are millimeters close to being finished, so we're gonna bump things up and do an intermediate patch later this month for a triple-scoop pixel lobby update. Arizona's lobby will be reopened, Velvet's lobby will be receiving some small upgrades, and Paprika's lobby will finally become available for the first time ever! The Alpake Highlands could certainly use some livening up.

As promised, we're doing a post-patch stream this coming Monday, April 15. Same time (3pm PT), same place (https://twitch.tv/manesix)

During the post-patch stream, we'll be reviewing the thought process behind the changes we made, responding to feebdack, and answering your questions. Here's who will be there:

• Oreo (QA, master of ceremonies and of the streams)
  
• Cam (QA, community manager, knower of things, just went to japan and we're all jealous)
  
• MPK (community manager, now an official staff member, let the hazing begin)
  
• Aaron (production manager, the floggings will continue until morale improves)
  
• Nappy (lead designer, responsible for all of... this)
  
• Hope to see you there! If you can't make it, no worries. You'll be able to catch the VOD archived on Twitch and on YouTube.

Okay. That said, let's get into the patch notes!

• Some folks have been experiencing performance issues in Pom's stage, and we believe we've finally found the culprit: the flowers. Yes, the flowers. As a temporary measure, we've removed all of the flowers from Pom's stage until we can find a way to prevent them from causing unusually high CPU activity in certain computers.

• Reduced meter gain both given and received on multi-hit attacks (per hit) across all characters.
  
• Attacks that force standing on hit no longer cause stand blocking. (The previous change to this presented too many underlying problems that would have ballooned later on.)
  
• Fixed pushblocks still allowing chip kills.
  
• Fixed situations that allowed players to block while still running straight towards their opponent.

• Can no longer whiff-cancel launcher into everything on the planet.

• j.C recovery animation frames fixed.
  
• Air throw now properly counts each hit of damage ingame and in training mode info.
  
• Fixed the cancel windows across all :D: snowballs. (The previous animation update shifted them around, our b).
  
• j.B animation effect is no longer cardboard.
  
• j.C animation effect is no longer cardboard.
  
• 6A (Anti-Air) animation effect is no longer cardboard.
  
• 3C (Launcher) animation effect is no longer cardboard.
  
• Shatter B fixed crumble animation effect.
  
• Shatter C ice cracks on animation effect no longer show up on top of players.

• Cleaned up page flip animations.
  
• New character select animation.
  
• Fixed incorrect book coloring on 'Mecha' and 'Eastern' palettes.

• The second hit of 6C,C,C (Free T-Shirt) now pulls significantly harder towards Paprika.
  
• Can now cancel 6C,C,C (Free T-shirt, all hits) into Kiss (command grab) on contact.
  
• 5C and 2C are now active for longer.
  
• 2C now slides forward a bit.
  
• Teleport C now has paprika more closely fitting the hitbox area
  
• Teleport C gets closer to the ground before Paprika lands, so it now hits opponents more reliably.
  
• Eating a gift you created now locks you into the eating animation for less time, with no penalty to the total bonus health/meter.
  
• Fixed weird eye color bleeding, missing leg colors, and various other artifacts during several animations.
  
• Super 1 (Smother) no longer triggers off of Arizona's Magic Counter. It's now treated as a blocked attack.
  
• Cinnamon Roll no longer self destructs if Paprika blocked an attack before the roll touched the ground.
  
• Fixed a situation where if Paprika's super is performed after being pushed blocked into a corner, the superflash disappeared entirely.
  
• Paprika now breathes heavily during her "selected" idle in character select.

• Fixed minor artifacting during 3C (Launcher) animation.
  
• Fixed specific situation that caused Pilot Pup to groundbounce unusually high.

• 5A has a new animation.
  
• j.A has a new animation (during Ran Shao Feng).
  
• Stand Throw has a new animation.
  
• Volcanic Ash animation has been updated.
  
• Volcanic Bash animation has been updated (ground version).
  
• Fixed being unable to do Volcanic Ash during Ran Shao Feng.
  
• Tianhuo no longer loses her ears during character select and victory poses (whups).

Hello.

Normally this is about the time we'd be announcing our next work stream.

During the last few weeks since the previous patch, we've been working on some highly technical stuff, and we're not convinced it would make for a very interesting stream. So this month, we made the difficult decision to skip the stream in favor of a more traditional progress update, complete with some yet-to-be-released predator pixel sprite gifs to show off our work on Salt Mines 2.0.

Don't worry, we're still doing a post-patch #13 stream with our QA team the Monday after the next patch goes live. More details on that next week.

So... here's an update on the two features we've been focusing on most in addition to Story Mode:

This is incredibly important, since it's the backbone of our single-player/co-op content. We're well aware that even on the easiest difficulty settings, the current AI is still giving people a hard time. That's why we're tuning it up. Soon the rebuilt herdmind will be ready to test your might, or be your sandbag (your choice, it's a robot, it exists to serve).

Also part of the new AI update is the option to choose your preferred level of AI intensity before you begin Arcade Mode. You won't have to set it in the options menu beforehand anymore!

The current salt mines is a solid proof-of-concept, but it certainly needs more. On the road to 1.0, we'll be fleshing it out with goal of increasing replay value. That update will include:

• More tightly-tuned progression so accessory rewards are unlocked at a more reasonable pace.​
  
• Predators will spawn in the dark places of the overworld (caves, and such), not just explicitly in the salt mines. Fight against them to win introductory levels of salt for an alternative entry method into the actual mines.​
  
• Temporary power-ups that enhance your stats and capabilities.​
  
• Ending "boss" event that triggers at a specific time, ending your run and dishing out salt rewards based on how far you got.​
  
• "Hat" merchant with a rotating stock with whom to spend your hard-earned salt (and only salt).​

There will be unique sprites for all four predators and all six shadow versions of the champions. Now you know what you'll be up against when you see something charging towards you. Here's a preview!!!



I hope you're ready, cuz predators will gain the ability to teleport around the map. NOWHERE IS SAFE.


Early Access Patch #13 will be released within two weeks (approximately April 11th), and will contain bugfixes, more Velvet FX updates, the new AI system, and the return of Arizona's pixel lobby! We needed to close it down for awhile to upgrade it to the new tileset. Not much will be different about the layout, but now it will match the assets we're using for Story Mode.

Salt Mines 2.0 will be released later, in Early Access Patch #14, which will be sometime in the first half of May.

That's all I have for tonight. There's still some ultra-awesome news coming down the pipe which we will be allowed to share soon. Stay tuned, my friends.


Aaron Stavely
Production Manager, Mane6

Early Access Hotpatch 03/15/19 is now live on steam so if you haven't yet, restart your games to receive it. Verify your files to get the update instantly.

Just a bit of general dusting off of some issues that popped up with the last update, particularly involving the recent backdash + blocking change. Things should be much more consistent now!

• Instant blocking should now properly reduce maximum knockback while midscreen
  
• Fixed an issue causing inconsistencies with blocking during jump startup after backdashing
  
• Fixed invalid combo counter inaccuracy when throwing an opponent directly out of rolls

• 214(atk)+(atk) (Frostbite)'s frost slowdown effect no longer affects the opponent's throws

• Fixed Cross Canter not costing the correct amount of meter

• Fixed being unable to do 236A (Volcanic Ash) during Ran Shao Feng

Curious about the details behind our new patch? Oreo from our QA team will be hosting a post-patch stream today at 3PM PST/6PM EST! Come on by, chat, hang out, ask questions! We'll be discussing everything from system mechanics to character balance - Please join us and say hello at https://www.twitch.tv/manesix

Early Access Patch #12 03/08/19 is now live on steam so if you haven't yet, restart your games and pixel lobby servers to receive it. Verify your files to get the update instantly.

As we get closer to 1.0, you're gonna start seeing some big pushes for polish while we continue to work on story mode. This patch brings some much-desired combat HUD enhancements as well as further animation/balance updates.

Also, as a reminder, Oreo of our QA team will be hosting a Post-Patch Stream on Monday March 11 at 3pm PT. Same place as always: https://www.twitch.tv/manesix

Read on...

The JD Bar now has an animation when filled and changes color as JDG is tightened.

• Yellow is the beginning of JDG
  
• Orange is Average JDG
  
• Red is high JDG (Time to wrap up that combo!)
  
• Pink is insane JDG (How are you not done yet? CALM DOWN)

An 'invalid' combo is a combo that could have been teched out of at a certain point.

• The combo number will change color if at any point your opponent could have teched out of your combo
  
• Another number will show up underneath the color change to display on which hit of the current combo the opponent could have gotten out of it
  
• Up to 3 failure points can be displayed at once (at which point how and why are they still letting you get away with this? HIT SOME BUTTONS, NEVER GIVE UP)

Expressions are context sensitive, for example "in hitstun", "performing super", "low health", etc.



Characters now strike a pose when chosen in character select! These are still a bit of a work in progress. We hope to finalize the animations by next patch. (it's still Early Access, after all)



JDG value is now displayed in advanced data. This number is only ever affected after JD is filled



Frame data in Advanced Training mode now display division lines every 5 frames. This was long overdue and we apologize to all the lab monsters out there



We've applied a layer of polish to Oleander and Fred's portraits in the tutorial. Fred is now much more pointy

• The Gas Mask accessory is now a face slot item. It was formerly a head slot item
  
• Shadow characters in the Salt Mines now have proper in-fight palettes
  
• There is now an icon in the server select menu that tells you which map it's hosting (though only Velvet's lobby is officially supported until next patch)

• Replaced Oleander's Intermediate 5 combo trial
  
• You can no longer block during backdash -> jump startup

• Fixed an issue that caused Trample's recovery to prematurely disable counterhit, including on block
  
• 6B hurtbox no longer totally clears the average height of an A
  
• Running now continues if you pass your opponent
  
• Trample animation updated
  
• Trample startup no longer slides forward before launching
  
• Fixed several cases where Trample could be cancelled into Level 2, even if the opponent has not been hit directly
  
• 2C now has a new animation

• Velvet now has several new animations for casting ice missiles and snowballs for air and ground
  
• 214A and C have new ice animations. B's ice animation now crumbles
  
• 623(ATK) ice animations now crumble
  
• 214A and C no longer work strangely when Velvet is under the effects of another Velvet's level 2 frost effect (...finally)

• Teleport C can now properly be counterhit
  
• Running now continues if you pass your opponent

• Can crouch cancel forward dashes again
  
• The first backdash of the match no longer has 1 additional frame of invulnerability (...yep!)

• Air normals can no longer be cancelled into specials on whiff
  
• B animation updated

It's been one year since Them's Fightin' Herds went into early access, and we're excited to share our progress as we inch ever so closer to the full 1.0 launch!

As always, feel free to hang out, chat, and ask our team questions.

Our stream this month will be focused on pixel art! Jay Wright will be taking us through his process of making sprites for story mode NPCs, and guest star Alco will be hanging out to answer questions about environment tilesets.

We'll also be showing off our next patch, which is to be released next week! Bugfixes, some cool UI improvements, we really think you're going to dig it.

We thank our community for the continued support. You're all awesome.

https://www.twitch.tv/manesix

More info

EA PATCH #11.1

Hotpatch time! CC strikes again! (but can now be struck back)

Restart your games and pixel lobby servers to receive the new update. Verify your files to get the update instantly.

• CC invulnerability timings are now fixed up for real this time, and should therefore be consistently baitable/punishable across all characters.
  
• Fixed infinite install timer UI settings affecting all other modes.
  
• Dimensional rifts in caves have been repaired.

• Debris created during Trample no longer slides forward during startup, only back.

• Ice Cyclone now has a proper ending animation for both level 1 and 2.

• If Velvet gets hit by another Velvet's level 2, some specials may act particularly weird/disappear.
  
• 4D into j.A with tianhuo reads out to be 14 frames of startup before earliest possible hit, but it's actually 18.
  
• There are some situations where the damage mitigation of pushblock at low health does not kick in properly.

Sorry we got... tied up... for a moment there.

Work stream #18 was first mentioned about a week ago in Aaron's announcement video, but here is the dedicated post. This is a bit short notice, but don't worry! You can watch the replay on our YouTube channel or catch next month's if you miss this one.

That's right. Devstreams are happening again, every month, until 1.0 and beyond!

January's stream is Tomorrow, Thursday the 31st. Same time (3PM PT), same channel (https://www.twitch.tv/manesix).

Our number-one goal is to show you some spoiler-free story mode tools and content. Keep in mind that everything's still very much a work in progress. Things will be changed between now the final product. There's still many months of work to be done to get it ready for you to play.

Other than that, the rest is up to you! We'll be around for about two hours total to hang out, talk about the latest patch, and answer questions.

See you there.

Early Access Patch 01/29/19 is now live on steam so if you haven't yet, restart your games and pixel lobby servers to receive it. Verify your files to get the update instantly.

This patch introduces a new save file format to fix a previous issue of saves being inconsistent and unreliable. Unfortunately this means that current saves involving target mode will be reset. We tried our best to preserve this data but there wasn't anything we could do. Going forward things will be much more stable.

• Fixed some inconsistent collision boxes for Oleander and Velvet knockdowns
  
• Cross Canter attackbox now ends much sooner
  
• There is now a proper graphic for item pickups (gifts)

• Trample no longer forces preblock during its long recovery
  
• Trample now has a new animation
  
• Cleaned up animation for Rebound

• Fixed mistiming of Shatter C which made the recovery slightly faster than intended when the new animation was introduced
  
• Ice Tornado is now animated (the final hit(s) will also soon be updated)
  
• Fixed some inconsistent collision boxes for knockdowns

• Fixed some inconsistent collision boxes for knockdowns
  
• Maximum magic regen from reading has been reduced
  
• There is now a UI element for Fred's Summon timer

• There is now a UI element for Picnic's timer
  
• There is now a UI element for Picnic's remaining gifts

• j.B now causes slightly more hitstop on grounded opponents. This should further ensure Unblockable Protection kicks in consistently

• Fixed 4D acting strangely during Ran Shao Feng, it should now more consistently pass through opponents.
  
• Volcanic Ash now hits 3 times during Ran Shao Feng, with the third hit causing a groundbounce like before
  
• Volcanic Crash now causes hard knockdown during Ran Shao Feng
  
• During Volcanic Crash, the flight cancel window is now strictly after the knockdown has been completed. Previously tian was able to let go too soon which would force a soft knockdown
  
• Flight Speed reduced in all directions
  
• There is now a UI element for Ran Shao Feng's install timer

• If Velvet gets hit by another Velvet's level 2, some specials may act particularly weird/disappear.
  
• 4D into j.A with tianhuo reads out to be 14 frames of startup before earliest possible hit, but it's actually 18.