Oct 19, 2021

Smashpunks Playtest Update 002 - The Path is Clear

Robot Champions Playtest - prospectJack

This week we bring you a Smashpunks update with new flag features, super screen effects and a bunch of bug fixes. You can check out all of these additions in our free Smashpunks Playtest on Steam right now!

Not only are we continuing to run our Smashpunks Game Night every Wednesday at 19:30 GMT, we're also going to be regularly streaming matches, development and anything else we think might entertain you! Our Prospect Twitch channel is young but ambitious, give it a follow so you don't miss us!

Let's take a look at what's in update 002...

Forgetful Flag Carriers rejoice! We've added a dynamic path that will shoot out of your fighter and direct you to the right goal, handy right? Sure Google Maps popularized this tool, but Prospect has perfected it.

Screen effects to indicate damage, healing and more have been implemented for your viewing pleasure. While some games love to have bars, graphs and a million numbers, we're opting for a more simple approach. Screen Red? You dead. Screen Green? I don't have a good rhyme but basically it means you're repairing.

Fighters no longer use magic to move! We've added Thruster Tech™ to each fighters underside to visually represent hopping and air control. We also want to add nice little contour trails to really highlight aerial movement... but that comes later!

Feel the Heal! Pulses Healing Tower ULT has gone through a visual improvement and one day, we'll even have animations for its little face and arms. Again, that comes later!

Punchers are now 100% more punchy. Smashpunks is all about kinetic combat, or to put it simply: things should move when fighting! So we've given the Wartoise puncher a nice little impulse on impact to help keep combat moving. Use it to bat back enemies or even nudge your allies in the right direction...

Key Art attack! You may have noticed at the top of the post a shiny new piece of key art and overhauled logo, cool right?! Branding is everything and our goal is to achieve a "look" that can cut through the contemporary noise of drab rehashes and uninspired sequels.

Are we doing a good job of that? Absolutely. But if you have any feedback or suggestions, let us know below or on Prospect's Discord!

Bug fixes & Changes:

Fixed the issue with the Repair not being cancelled on destruction
The health vignette should now be less obtrusive
Frequency of collision sound effects has been reduced
Host should no longer be able to hear all players' collisions
Wartoise can not be hit through the Shellguard Ultimate
Propellers on Carrier no longer interact with the Shellguard
There is a fix for the flag moving between locations when it should be static
Fix for the repair wrench visuals has been implemented
Repair prompt should no longer appear on respawn
Emote system should show the numbers/D-Pad controls when it’s selected
Pause menu has been moved to Esc when using Keyboard and Mouse
Pause Menu feedback box doesn’t close when typing words that contain the letter P.
Wartoise Special, the Bubble Shield now lasts must longer when deployed

Want to report a bug? Non-crash bugs go here and crash bugs go here. Thanks!

Smashpunks Community

As we grow, so does the community! We're going to be ramping up our efforts to produce streams, videos and maybe even memes... fortunately our fans are already doing some of the heavy lifting for us!

Cutlass206 is streaming Smashpunks and sharing the madness with the world! This Monster play session went on for hours and even featured Andrew dropping in to show everyone the ropes (aka noobstomp).

You can follow Cutlass206 on Twitch for more Smashpunks streams!

Fan Trailers? Already?! Patreon Supporter Biscuits has a very awesome son who has channeled Kojima Energy into this excellent Smashpunks fan trailer. We'll need a director for the inevitable Smashpunks movie, have we already found our match?

That's all for this update, thanks to our Patrons and Players for supporting us!

Play Smashpunks for free: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1016830/Smashpunks/

Join the Smashpunks community: https://discord.com/invite/ejSUJEJA5P

Oct 19, 2021

Endzone – A World Apart: Prosperity News – Rise and Shine

Endzone - A World Apart - Assemble_Skoddy

Survivors!

Right before the release of Endzone - A World Apart: Prosperity, we are back with another look at some new features of our upcoming expansion. This time we’ll take a closer look at some new buildings and how they can make your life easier, while also freeing your settlers from some burdens of manual labour.

New Buildings – Aspiring a new Level Of Comfort

Pump it up and stash it!

Water Towers are a great way to store large amounts of water and to prepare for droughts. Additionally, by using different water sources, like the Electric Well, you can also diversify how and when you stock up more water. Still, at least one task always remains: Assigning the many, many Water Carriers to store the precious resource by hand. This is tedious for your brave little worker bees and for you as their leader, especially when planning and sustaining larger settlements. To better this situation, meet the new: “Pumping Station” and the “Upgraded Water Tower”.

Many Water Carriers proudly fulfilling their duty.

A new and efficient way of getting those tanks filled up.

Upgrading to the new Water Tower is useful, as it can store 4 times as much water, which alone helps in having to build less of them. Additionally, the new building can work in conjunction with the “Pumping Station”.

The Pumping Station in action.

The “Pumping Station” needs to be built at a nearby lake and be connected to a power grid. With these requirements satisfied and while in the vicinity of an Upgraded Water Tower, it can pump water into the water storage of the tower automatically.

With this you can drastically reduce the workforce needed for Water Carriers, while also giving you a valid alternative besides the Electric Well as a new comfortable means of preparing for the next drought.

Keep in mind: This new and powerful building needs to be earned by researching through the new Prosperity research tree, gathering new resources and extending your electricity network to support the new building. Remember, everything comes at a cost!

Good Tools are half the Work!

We listened to your feedback concerning the production of new tools and protective clothing. Even the Upgraded Workshop or Tailor buildings sometimes can’t do the job in time, especially in bigger settlements and later stages of the game.

The typical setup in larger settlements to keep up with production needs.

Instead of having to upgrade to even more efficient buildings, we chose to introduce the “Factory Unit”. This building uses the new and advanced resources to help and boost production buildings in its vicinity and make them more efficient. Think of it as a special research facility where specialized equipment is produced to help the surrounding production buildings in ramping up their production.
As long as new resources are available, and you have engineers assigned to work in it, all buildings in the Factory Unit radius will receive the bonus. The buildings that benefit from its effect are: The Tailor, Workshop, Medical Facility, Armory and the Decontamination Post.

The Factory Unit at work, please be quiet, our engineers are thinking...

As with most of the new buildings, getting there and advancing to the point where you can research and use this new building is part of the journey and the challenge. So with this, take care and keep surviving!

Like last time, this is just another glimpse at some features of the “Prosperity” expansion, which will be released on October 21st. Additionally, stay tuned for a little free DLC that is just around the corner…

Once again, thank you for all the great support and immense feedback we are receiving since Early Access and Full Release of Endzone! Please keep it up, and stay tuned for more!

- Your Teams at Gentlymad Studios & Assemble Entertainment -

Watch the latest Endzone - A World Apart: Prosperity Gameplay Trailer:

Join the Community!

Wishlist the Prosperity expansion on Steam to receive the latest news, updates and get notified as soon as it will be available on October 21, 2021!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1632320/Endzone__A_World_Apart_Prosperity/

Oct 19, 2021

Campaign 8, Computational Blocks, Worker customization, and...1.0 Launch Date!!

Factory Town - Erik Asmussen

1.0 Launch Date

I'll get the big news out of the way upfront - Factory Town is finally ready to graduate from Early Access as a full "1.0" release! Development & free updates will definitely continue after the launch, but I feel the essential gameplay systems are solid, the game is stable to run, and has enough content & replayability to earn the 1.0 label.

The official launch date is November 17th, 2021 (in about a month).

If you've been enjoying the game and all the updates, you can do me a huge favor by writing a review on the game's Steam page. Having recent reviews will help make the launch successful & bring new people into the game, which all supports more & bigger future updates.

Speaking of which, there's quite a few changes in this version:

Campaign map 8

The eighth and final campaign map is now available. The player starts with quite a bit of unlocked technology, a giant rail network, and a production facility for making OmniPipes - which are a powerful pipe transport system that can move *any* item through them, both above- and below-ground. However, there is still quite a bit of work to do - the player must develop lots of physical & magical production capabilities to unlock the last level of technology and complete construction of the OmniTemple. This final building requires expensive inputs, but rewards the player with research that can infinitely speed up production and transport.

Additionally, a new set of Achievements have been added that are earned by completing each of the campaign maps. They are awarded retroactively so there is no requirement to re-play campaigns you've already completed.

Worker Customization

The worker units are no longer identical clones. They are randomized with an array of skin tones, hair styles, hair colors, and shirt colors. You can select an individual worker and change these attributes at any time by clicking the 'Customize" button.

Computational Block Updates

The computational block system has been a bit of a 'black box' for quite awhile, and this updates aims to make them easier to use and also more flexible. At its heart, the computational blocks are a way to control the transport and production of goods using a series of logical and mathematical operators. They can be configured to interact with each other via signal messages, like a visual programming language.

But the behavior of each block was very obscured. Now, the player can view and select from a number of Output Functions and Message Types so they know when a block will trigger an output, and how it will affect the target block.

For example: There is a Timer block that can receive values from other blocks. You can choose if this input value will set the timer duration, toggle a 'repeat' option on the timer, start/stop the timer, set an internal value that will be delayed for the timer's duration, or to simply output its current value. The timer itself has two output functions: "Timer Completed" and "Timer State Changed". The first will only output the timer's internal value once the timer has fully elapsed. The second will output a 1 ("on") or 0 ("off") whenever the timer changes from running to stopped. You could use this second function to easily control the active state of a Grabber or open & close a railway gate.

It's still a complex system and is not required to complete the game, but for players who like extreme efficiency and intricate transport solutions, it should give them many more options and a smoother experience overall.

Here's a detailed list of changes to the Computational Block system:

Can right-click on a computational block to choose the Output Function. This usually defaults to “Output”, which is sent whenever its primary value is modified. But for things like Agent Trigger you can specify if the output happens when an agent enters, or exits the block. Once an Output Function is chosen, then the player is able to select a target of the logic message with right-click.
When choosing the target of a logic message, players can now choose between several Message Types. This changes the effect the message will have on the target block. For example you can set a timer duration, start the timer, tell the timer to delay a value by a certain amount, or specify which side of a math equation is being updated.
Computation is now processed in one large batch instead of one update every frame
New block: Inverter. Acts like the previous “Bool Function” of 'NOT'. Old Bool Function blocks configured as 'NOT' are migrated as Inverters
Logic Pusher is renamed Trigger to more clearly reflect its role
Can now Ctrl-click on Triggers to activate them, on Counters to increment, on Timers to start the timer, and on Number blocks to send their value on to linked blocks
New Logic Connections panel that lets you delete, re-order, modify, and add logic links
Inventory Sensor and Agent Trigger can be enabled and disabled manually or with logic message
Counter has a Loop function that will act as a built-in modulo function if > 0. It can be set manually or with a “Set Loop Value” message.
Timer has “Repeat” property that can be set manually or with “Set Repeat” message
Computational Blocks now show list of available Actions / Triggers when you select it, allowing for manual activation
Updated most Computational block icons
Changes should be backwards compatible with most existing computational block setups

And the other changes in this update:

Balance Changes

Removed Magic Conveyor Belt from OmniPipe required inputs
OmniPipe recipe now consumes 2 Mana Pipes, but also outputs 2 OmniPipes. Omnistone input is kept at 1. This is to decrease the ratio of Omnistones needed per OmniPipe
Increased Tech Level 10 OmniPipe requirement from 25 to 200
“Collect Bonus” option on OmniTemples is now always on, and option to toggle it is removed. No additional bonus is granted when offering is complete, instead, the recipe just automatically cycles to another random set of items
All MegaRecharger recipes' speed doubled
Harvester Drill research now costs 1000 Industry Points and 1000 Red Coins instead of 2000 of each
Health Potion is worth 20 Blue Coins instead of 5 Purple Coins
Elixir is worth 40 Blue Coins instead of 32 Blue Coins

Misc Improvements

Re-organized default Hotbars
Entity Outlines are preloaded on logic structures and buildings to reduce lag when highlighting
Removed excessive targeting arrows from all available Markets when placing Houses
Town happiness is only recalculated once per second, to avoid rapid fluctuations in value

Bug Fixes

Right-clicking on main menu could hide it, resulting in empty interface
Typo in Omnistones pro tip
Obsolete tooltips for rail cars said they required “Rail Stops”.
Additional cases where resources could be placed inside structural blocks
Global Hotbar was not saving state when updated via right-click ‘delete’ option or dragging from Build menu
Antidote in Campaign 4 was listed under its own satisfaction category / item filter
Tutorial instructed player to bring 2 wood to craft a plank, when it’s now 1 wood
Tutorial would replay ‘tutorial step complete’ sound effect if player kept repeating the completion condition
Fixed inconsistent linking of pipe connectors between underground & overworld layers
Fixed excessive delay for pipe items transferring between underground & overworld layers via connectors
‘Nothing’ item filter now works on units that are not carrying anything
Fixed flickering that would occur on the entity status panel when the selected entity’s inventory changed
Fixed performance issue when targeting Markets while the game is unpaused
Fixed Inconsistent item output order when multiple pipe & output types (especially mana) existed on the same building
Advanced Medicine would automatically be completed if you loaded a map with Intermediate Medicine completed
Fixed null references when trying to place Steam Engine over water tiles
Fixed production output inventory counts not updating when displayed as a grid
Fixed selection of advanced filter (e.g. ‘Only Allow Packed’) appending to existing filters even if shift button not held down
Fixed double-click on Grabber only intermittently opening the filter panel on large maps, due to delay of drawing logic target outlines
Fixed text overlapping on Omnitemple construction progress panel
Fixed ‘Packed only’ / ‘Unpacked only’ sprites showing up as blank squares in grid-based inventory like Train Stations
Fixed ‘Packed only’ / ‘Unpacked only’ filters appearing as the regular item if slot was empty
Fixed ‘Packed only’ / ‘Unpacked only’ filters overriding the actual slot item if it didn’t match the filter
Fixed Package Filter remaining active when changing a filter via single-click on a regular item
Fixed non-localized text when OmniTemple is ready for bonus to be collected
Goods Supply and House Supply panels would show in a non-scrollable state if you first hovered over status icons, hovered out, then opened the menus by other means
Fixed Elixir not being sellable in Campaign 4
Fixed ‘Goods’ panel showing stale data when changing maps