Hi there!

Thank you to everyone who came to our booth at Gamescom! It’s been a truly wonderful week, connecting with gaming fans from all over the world definitely motivates us to work even harder!



Lots of people have visited our booth, played the demo of The Riftbreaker, and shared their feedback. We are very grateful for all the suggestions we received. We want you to know that you have a direct influence on what the game will look like in the final form, that’s why your opinions are so important to us.



If you couldn’t attend this year’s Gamescom you will have another chance to try out the demo of The Riftbreaker, this time on the other side of the globe. PAX West is starting this week in Seattle, WA, and our team is going to have a booth there as well. Stay tuned for more details!

As always, make sure to follow us on our social media not to miss anything. Join our Discord - www.discorg.gg/exorstudios - and tell your friends about the game. The more, the merrier!

See you soon!

Other social media:
www.facebook.com/exorstudios
www.twitter.com/exorstudios
www.mixer.com/exor_studios
www.twitch.tv/exorstudios
www.youtube.com/exorstudios

The biggest gaming holiday in Europe (perhaps in the world) has arrived! It is time for Gamescom 2019. We are present there as well. You can find us in hall 10.1, booth A031. We recommend using the official Gamescom app to make the navigation a little easier.



During this year’s event, we are showcasing our latest project - The Riftbreaker. Visit our booth and play our custom-made event demo - a special, standalone mission designed to take you through the basics of gameplay. There is a little bit of everything there - base-building, fighting, exploration, and if you prefer to just admire the views - that is possible, too.

When you’re at our booth, you can also get some sweet EXOR Studios swag. We have loads of goodies to give away, including pins, energy drinks, pens, and X-Morph: Defense game codes. The only thing you need to do is to come over and spin the wheel of fortune. Don’t worry - we won’t run out ;)

Lastly, you can take a picture with a giant, 2.5m sculpture of Mr. Riggs! Come and see it for yourself!



Hall 10.1, booth A031. We’re going to be there during the whole show. Come and say hi, especially if you’re a member of our Discord server. If you aren’t, join now! www.discord.gg/exorstudios We’re going to be chatting there during the event and sharing some sweet, behind-the-scenes footage. We will also be giving closed beta access to early builds of The Riftbreaker through our Discord.

Lastly, we are also going to be streaming The Riftbreaker development builds right here on our Steam page. Look out for further announcements :)

See you there!

Other social media:
www.facebook.com/exorstudios
www.twitter.com/exorstudios
www.mixer.com/exor_studios
www.twitch.tv/exorstudios
www.youtube.com/exorstudios

Hello!

A couple of weeks ago we ran a vote on our Discord server ( www.discord.gg/exorstudios ). The users had to choose one of the five outfits we made for Ashley. Each of them was connected to a different story from her life. This short story is the follow-up to that vote. More events like this are coming in the future, so join the Discord and take part in uncovering the full backstory of The Riftbreaker's protagonist.

The Phantom Pain

Orion 214LV seemed like a perfect planet. However, what seems beautiful at first might be hiding terrible cracks underneath. The core of the planet is destabilized beyond any hope now. Colonization is impossible at his point. The sands of time are running low for this world. 'I still have the time to research this anomaly' I thought. I never stopped to think of the many dangers of space. That mistake would cost me dearly.

I could feel the vibrations in the ground beneath my feet. New ruptures were opening one by one all around me with clouds of smoke rising from the cracks. Sudden gusts of wind kept hitting me with enormous strength, enough to knock a regular person off their feet. A regular person, but not me. Not a Riftbreaker in a recon suit. I moved steadily, as the stabilizers’ engines did their dirty work while humming calmingly. Despite all the heat outside, the interior of the suit was pleasantly cool. The analysis of the data I gathered indicated that I was closing in on the anomaly, the source of all this mess. If I had had the time, I would have surely stopped and basked in the glory of this breathtaking spectacle. Dust particles shimmered all around me as they were lit by waves of flame erupting from the planet’s core. Electrical discharges jolted within the dark clouds. Anoryx crystals pulsed erratically. I was too focused on reaching my goal, though, leaving only my subconscious to enjoy the show. Whatever could cause such a degree of change to the structure of the planet must have been seaming with energy and I was determined to find out what that was.



The next couple of meters were not pleasant. The ruptures were growing wider as I leaped above them. I almost did not notice all the boiling lava within them. One more hill. Just one more. The wind roared, blowing away larger and larger pieces of rock from the surface. A football-sized piece of debris hit the forcefield around my suit, then disappeared into the darkness. I knew it didn't even leave a scratch, but I started feeling uneasy at that point. I reached a cliff. I jumped towards the ledge, engaged the brakes. Years of training augmented by the AI of the suit were definitely paying off.



A bolt of lightning split the darkness, revealing the source of the anomaly. An enormous, blood-red crystal covered with thousands of luminous veins. The light reflecting off its surface created vivid mirages and it seemed as if there were living creatures all around. The whole surrounding area was soaked in the crimson light emanating from the crystal... 'Crystal... Crystalized... Infected.' – I thought.

“I have to take a sample”. Another lightning struck the crystal. It seemed as if a small wave ran along its surface. Something strange was happening with my suit. Each step came with more effort than the last. I saw a crystalized flower to my left. One more step. Raging inferno outside. Sweat from my brow got into my eyes. I could taste metal. Another step. Why is that flower getting further away?... A red mist drifted slowly all around, not affected by the raging storm. What a terrifyingly beautiful sight... Debris gracefully danced in the small twisters... The gravity was going nuts... I didn't have much time left. I needed the sample. I took the leap. All the servos in my suit wailed as they were trying to aid me. I fell on my knees next to that flower. It was all muscle memory and training at that point. I took the sample. The searing pain in my head had me paralyzed. I could hear the distant sound, signifying the completion of the sampling process. The red mist covered my eyes...



Nobody knows how I managed to jump back. I have no idea myself. It must have been all the years of training.

The recon suit acted just in time. The crystal started infecting its defense mechanisms and my arm. It was spreading fast, too fast to deploy any countermeasures. The only chance to get me back to base was to get rid of the infected part of the suit. Amputation. Clean, quick. I would love to say painless, too... But it hurt like hell.

It haunts me to this day. I still wake up some nights, sweating buckets and screaming. I see the red mist again. That's when the phantom pain comes. I feel it radiating all the way from my shoulder down to the fingertips. I move my hand around and the pain is gone. It was never there in the first place. I never remember the dream. I only remember the horrific beauty of that crystal. It's still somewhere out there, in the abyss of space, waiting for our next encounter...

Hello everyone!

We are holding an AMA on the r/Games subreddit right now. The general topic of the thread is going to be our game engine, The Schmetterling. We have been working on it continuously since the days of Zombie Driver and we think it is a pretty interesting topic in the days of big-name, free-to-use game engines.

The AMA is available under this URL:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Games/comments/cps839/hello_we_are_exor_studios_we_have_been_making/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x

Since this is an AMA - ‘Ask Me Anything’ - you can ask us about anything you like. The questions do not have to be related to The Schmetterling Engine. You can ask about any aspect of indie dev life, our games, plans for the future and other things that might interest you. All questions are welcome!

If you can’t make it this time, join our Discord server. It’s an almost 24/7 AMA ;)
Find us at www.discord.gg/exorstudios!

Hi!

We would like to thank you all for joining the Survival Mode stream from The Riftbreaker!

We hope that the stream gave you a good idea of what the gameplay is going to look like. Many elements of the game are still under development, so nothing is set in stone. If you have any feedback or suggestions, please share them with us! It’s incredibly important for us to know how you feel about what you’ve seen so far. Let us know in the comments and on our Discord server - www.discord.gg/exorstudios.

If you missed the stream, do not worry. We have uploaded the complete VOD to our YouTube channel. You can find it here (It might take a while for it to be available in full HD, so we ask for your patience):

https://youtu.be/ZJob51C8B48

We plan to start streaming regularly very soon to show you the improvements we make on a week-to-week basis. It’s a very exciting moment in development, as new features are added almost daily!

You can also check out the exclusive gameplay video we shared with IGN. A couple of things have changed since we recorded that one, but the general premise stays the same. You can find the article and the video here:

https://youtu.be/W_OF1TPfix4

Thank you and see you soon!

EXOR Studios

The stream is live right now! Join us at https://mixer.com/EXOR_Studios to check out the current state of the game!

Hi!

We would like to make a friendly reminder that we are going to stream The Riftbreaker Survival Mode today at 3 PM CEST on our Mixer channel. You can find us here: www.mixer.com/exorstudios

During the stream, we are going to enable the interactive streaming features, giving you, the viewers, the chance to either help us or to make the gameplay much harder for us. You do not need to install anything - it's all going to happen through the MixPlay interface.

If you want to check out what it's going to look like, you can check out the 25-minute video with commentary that was published yesterday. Here's the link:

https://youtu.be/W_OF1TPfix4

We hope you will join us on the stream! All feedback and interaction welcome! After the stream join us for a chat on our Discord server - www.discord.gg/exorstudios We will also upload the VOD to our YouTube channel later. :)

EXOR Studios

Hello!

For the past couple of weeks, we have been showing you the dissolve feature we have implemented in The Riftbreaker. We use it to remove objects from the scene, change them from one to another, or, like in the case of buildings, to gradually introduce them into the game world. Today we will show you the smaller elements that undergo dissolution in the game.


The regular texture of Mr. Riggs' energy blade.


This is what makes all the magic happen

In order to make the dissolve effect happen, we need two textures. First - the regular texture of the object we want to apply the effect to, and second - a special dissolve texture. It resembles a cloud of smoke, as it is irregular and grey. However, those things exactly are its key properties. The pixels on this map represent values, from 0 to 1. Once projected onto the regular texture of the object, we can start removing parts of it. We set up a threshold that changes over time. All the elements that fall below this threshold are removed by the shader.


The weapon is automatically hidden at the start of the mining process. Also, you can see the shadow of something being built nearby!

In The Riftbreaker you will often see this while gathering resources. The drill is not an equipable item. We want the player to always have access to it, but without taking up an inventory slot. Drilling is a context action. When you approach a resource that you can mine, pressing a button will automatically change what you’re holding in your right hand to the drill. We employ the dissolve effect here to avoid a sudden change of the item. We also apply an additional emissive light to make it feel more ‘magic’.


The gibs don't dissolve all at once.

We also dissolve the parts that spawn from destroyed enemies and elements of the environment, also known as ‘gibs’. Instead of making them transparent using the alpha channel, we decided to also dissolve them. Since there are so many of them they do not get any emissive lights, that would only distract the player. The effect is very subtle but makes for much nicer visuals.

Make sure to join us on Thursday for the stream! You will find us at www.mixer.com/exorstudios at 3PM. We are going to show off our streaming features, as well as a full-length survival mode gameplay (as long as the stars align right ;) It's still pre-alpha, so we might encounter some problems.)

You can also join us at www.discord.gg/exorstudios. We chat with our users regularly and everyone is welcome.

Other social media:
www.facebook.com/exorstudios
www.twitter.com/exorstudios
www.mixer.com/exorstudios
www.discord.gg/exorstudios
www.twitch.tv/exorstudios

In The Riftbreaker you arrive with next to nothing. Then, a couple of days later, you find yourself in the middle of a massive base. How is that possible?

Ashley’s mission on Galatea 37 is to establish a two-way portal back to Earth and enable the colonization of the planet. Such an undertaking requires a lot of power, so it is necessary for her to build up a base. In order to achieve the required energy level, Ashley must set up a network of mines, refineries, power plants, and many other useful facilities. How is that possible when the only thing at the Riftbreaker’s disposal is the Mecha-Suit?


This is what the building process looks like from start to finish. The building speed is not final and it will vary depending on the size of the building.

3D printing is the answer. Centuries of development allowed to reduce the size and necessary materials required by this technology. That pushed humanity to an entirely different level of progress. Each building is a marvel of science and engineering. Thanks to the use of Nano-Paint it is possible to print buildings quickly and efficiently, with no user action required. Mr. Riggs is equipped with building cube launcher. The cubes are an all-in-one printing solution. Once Ashley chooses the blueprint and starts the building process, the cubes autonomously fly to the destination and deploying a structure similar to a scaffolding, which serves as railing for the printer itself.


This is what the ghost of the building looks loke. If you try to place a building, but do not have sufficient resources, it will flash red.


Here's the complete version of the building above. Our printing process essentially 'reverse dissolves' it, so that it looks as if it is printed on top of the ghost version.

Let’s take a look at how this all happens, Schmetterling-wise. ;) The building process is a variant of a dissolve, technically speaking. We print buildings from the ground up. By looking at how much of the structure has been completed, the player can assess the overall progress of the building process. Each vertex of the building model has its own position in the local coordinate system. Given this position and the overall height of the building, we can project the printing line on the model exactly where we want it.


Notice the fluctuation of the printing line.

The completed parts are given their regular PBR material. The remainder of the building is shown in the form of a ghost, using a classic blue fresnel effect. To indicate what is currently being built we apply a strong emissive light. In order to make the effect even more spectacular, we added some waving in the XZ plane. The end result looks as if someone was filling a vessel with some liquid, so it is a little irregular, but much more lively.


Here's what it would look like if the line was completely straight. Artificial and uninspiring.

Add a couple of particle effects, some cool sound samples and you’re done! If you want to sell a building that is no longer useful, the process will repeat, but this time in reverse. Questions? Thoughts? Leave them here: www.discord.gg/exorstudios

Other social media:
www.facebook.com/exorstudios
www.twitter.com/exorstudios
www.mixer.com/exorstudios
www.twitch.tv/exorstudios

Hello everyone!

We are very excited to announce that we are going to start streaming in-development builds of The Riftbreaker regularly, starting next week! The first stream is going to take place on Thursday, August 8 at 3 PM CEST at www.mixer.com/exorstudios!

We have finally reached the point in development where we can finally let you see some real, live footage from the game. What we are going to show you is the basis for what we call ‘survival mode’. Our task is going to be building up a base and surviving a set amount of time while fending off waves of monsters trying to get rid of us. You’re going to see some of the new features in action and, best of all, you can take part in the stream!

That’s right! On Thursday we’re going to show off our interactive streaming features for the first time. You will get the chance to help Piotr by giving him resources or canceling attack waves, or to make his life a nightmare! Tornadoes, acid rain, doubling the strength of the attack wave - that is all within your power through the use of our features and the interactive MixPlay interface.

If you have never seen The Riftbreaker in action we have a couple of videos for you to catch up on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDuBjKhDhho - the highlights from the event demo we present at various trade shows.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZH0GhDAdNQ - the VOD of the first Riftbreaker livestream ever.

The streams are going to show off all the new features we introduce into the game on a regular basis. It’s also a chance for you to ask questions and give us direct feedback. We love interacting with the viewers, so all questions and suggestions are welcome!

Mark your calendars. It is going to be awesome.

If you'd like to interact with us on a regular basis and take part in future beta testing of The Riftbreaker later down the road, then we invite you to join our discord server:
www.discord.gg/exorstudios

EXOR Studios