Mar 3, 2023

🔮 Warlander Community Spotlight Hangry_Henry 🔮

Warlander - PlayWarlander

Greetings Warlander!

To celebrate Warlander’s recent PC release and the phenomenal community that helped get us here, we are kicking off the debut of our Community Spotlight series where we recognize standout community members who have become true ambassadors of Warlander in and outside of the game.

What better way to launch this spotlight series, than with one of our OG Content Partners that has not only been holding it down since Open Beta but has in a very short time amassed a viewership that has everyone taking notice.

Looking for top-tier supportive content with a touch of razzle-dazzle and love? Hangy Henry is your guy!

Hangry Henry Community Spotlight

Hangry Henry the Entertainer

How did you come up with the name Hangry Henry?

When I don’t eat, I become Hangry Henry. It’s real, you can see it live. If I don’t eat, I get Hangry.

When did you start making content?

October 2022

What inspired you to make content?

I spent time building a career in a field that made me unhappy. I decided to stop and do something that I love.

What are your goals as a content creator?

To have as much fun as possible and to have as many people play Warlander as possible- it’s really fun to play with friends.

Where can we find your content?

https://www.twitch.tv/hangry_henry LIVE from my home in Washington (USA)
https://www.youtube.com/@hangry_henryttv7727

Hangry Henry the Warlander

How did you find Warlander?

My brother asked me what games I was playing over dinner. I said, “Escape from Tarkov and other things.” He told me to check out Warlander, “I shit you not, one of the spells is finger guns.” I said, “I’ll have to try that.” The rest is history.

Why should people watch you make Warlander content?

You’ll learn techniques for the game and find the best community in our chat

What is your favorite piece of Warlander content that you’ve created?

My Execute Order 66 video
https://youtu.be/etDuqDk7WE4

What advice would you give to a new Warlander Content Creator?

Be yourself and be happy.

Hangry Henry in the Warland

What has been your most memorable moment in Warlander?

Toss up between Being called a Gigachad by Sacriel and being the world’s first Centurian.

What is your favorite Class in Warlander?

Warrior, because as long as I have my team as support I cannot die.

What does your current deck setup consist of?

0-Star build-speed Cleric | 1-star Warrior The Peacock | 3-Star Mage Darth Tickle | 5-Star Warrior Henturion | 5-Star Warrior Henturion 2

What advice would you give a new player?

Start with 0-Star of each class first, play around with the class and find which one you like. From there, decide which you want to grind to 5-Star.

Hangry Henry IRL

Who inspires you?

Benjamin Franklin, the dude said, “write something worth reading, or do something worth writing about.” I try to do that every day.

What is your special talent?

I can whistle through my nose.

What is something that no one knows about you?

I have a five-octave vocal range, like Beyoncé mutha *****.

The future of Hangry Henry

What do you enjoy most about Warlander and what do you look forward to the most in the future?

I love all of the cosmetic and otherwise customizations. It’s so fun to change things up to Min Max the game. I look forward to new subclasses in the future.

What is the future of your channel and content?

Sky is the limit - come be a part of it.

⚔️ Your Warlander Team 🛡️

Join our community-focused game development discussions on your favorite platform:
❤️ Steam Discussions
💙 Discord
💜 Twitch
💛 Twitter
💚 Feedback and Bug Reporting

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1675900/Warlander/

Mar 3, 2023

Dev diary. Update announcement v. 0.225

Plutocracy - GREY

Greetings, Plutocrats!

It's time to talk about how we are improving the game and what you will see in the upcoming update.
We focused on the following vectors for the new update - these are banks, increasing the CEO’s role in the game world and new agents as well

So let's get started.

1. Banks and the new credit system.

As it was announced earlier, banks will appear in game, and in the upcoming update they will enrich the gaming capabilities. It’s rather difficult to imagine a financial empire without the participation of banks.

The main difficulty in developing a banking system for us was to preserve the continuity of the economic model of companies development, but at the same time, to distinguish the bank from the general background of manufacturing companies, because it is a rather unique structure and is very different from factories and resource companies.

What is the purpose of a bank?

First of all, for lending to your manufacturing companies that require cash investments to expand and quickly capture the market. Having your own bank, you will be able to credit companies easily, without worrying about the defaults and the interest rate - it will be significantly lower than in other banks!

As you know, cheap and “long money” is a huge boost for development.
And now, instead of ephemeral loans “out of nowhere”, loans will need to be taken from banks in the state where the borrower company is located.

The structure of the banking system.

The banking system itself in the Plutocracy is built in a following way:
The Central Bank lends to all private banks at a rate influenced by the economy, and they already possess these money, giving it to the population and companies at a higher rate, which is influenced by the level of development of a particular bank.
Also, banks attract money from the population in the form of deposits.
The number of bank employees and their productivity affect the amount of funds raised.

The higher the bank's goodwill and the quality of services, the higher the rate at which it can lend and earn more. Certain technologies can reduce the loan rate from the population. Therefore, if you follow the key parameters, including the productivity of bank clerks, your bank will be able to attract more money from the population and give more loans, turning the bank into a stable profit stream.

2. Increasing the role of CEOs in companies.

We have fundamentally revamped the role of company managers in Plutocracy.
First of all, we have given more freedom to hired managers. Taking into account your feedback and wishes, microcontrol in the field of decision-making during strikes and accidents has been reduced.

More independence means less microcontrol.

Now CEOs will independently deal with the emergency in the managed company, without distracting the members of the board of directors to resolve these issues. The chance of a successful solution depends on the CEO's Economics skill.

Thus, if a strike starts in the company, the director will try to stop it, but he will have to increase the workers wages.
If an accident occurs, he will try to hide the incident so that the company avoids a fine for violating safety regulations.

Thanks to greater independence of hired CEOs, the owners of companies will be able to be less distracted by emergencies. When the owner himself is the CEO of a company, the decisions will be needed, and it won’t be possible to shift responsibility to managers. Events in the managed company have been reworked and improved, so there are more ways to resolve the problem and probable consequences.

Specialization.

An important addition will be the fact that each CEO will receive his specialization by default, which will make it possible to improve the relevant technologies twice faster than others. After all, there are no managers who are equally well versed in all areas of the company. In the upcoming update, we have settled this injustice.

3. New agents - new opportunities.

Recruiting managers with the help of Headhunter.

Previously, it was possible to hire only an unemployed CEO.
But by strengthening the role of managers, we also added such an agent as the Headhunter.
With his help, you can lure away any experienced CEO of any company, thereby killing two birds with one stone: weaken a competitor, and strengthen your corporation.

Despite his gift of persuasion, the Headhunter won’t be able to lure away a CEO that is hostile to you. After all, loyalty has not been canceled.

Provocation of strikes.

Another tool against competitors in the upcoming update will be an agent that is called Provoker who can organize a strike and ignite the righteous anger of all workers against their employers, no matter how good a company they work in is. After all, there is always something that irritates ordinary hard workers - for example, low wages or awful working conditions.

Of course, the use of agents, in case of failure, as before, will entail unpleasant consequences. Therefore, whether to use them or not is always at your discretion.

4. The vector of development.

After the release of the upcoming update, we want to focus on improving the mechanics of agents, and also add such an important thing as selling shares to other characters using negotiations, which we have been asked about more than once in our active community.
We will tell you more about this in the next diary.

In addition to that, in the next diary, we will publish a roadmap for the development of the project before its full release, which, we hope, is not far off. This will help to better understand where we are going and what to expect from the Plutocracy.

Thank you for reading and believing in us!
You will find out the info about the upcoming update with the announced changes in the news in the coming days.
You can also receive information and share your thoughts on our Discord server: https://discord.com/invite/tsy8juk .

Until next time, friends!

Mar 3, 2023

Devlog #21. Creating Alchemy Maps

Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator - Rosie_tinyBuild

Hello, Alchemists!

During your research and experiments in your laboratory, surely many of you’ve wondered: how exactly are alchemical maps created for various bases? In today's devlog, we'll show you exactly how!

But first, let's talk a little about the "Zone Drawer" - a custom tool that allows us to draw and erase the relief of the map, as if we used a brush. It makes working with maps faster and more convenient. Here are the settings for this tool:

The first setting allows us to select one of the zone types that will be drawn with a brush.

The second setting defines the current radius (size) of the brush, and the third one is the step for adjusting the brush radius when it is changed via hotkeys, so that we can adjust the brush size on the fly, like in the gif below.

Now that we’ve familiarised ourselves with the main tool used for creating alchemical maps, let's try to create a small custom map with it!

To begin with, we need to set the limits of the map by drawing some impassable walls.

Having decided on the size of the map, we can then place the desired potion effects on it.

Next, let's add some danger zones to the map and surround the effect icons with them.

After that, we pave a path to the effect icons by erasing some of the skulls.

Also, let's throw in some swamp zones for good measure.

Let's not forget about everyone's favourite whirlpools. For each whirlpool, a location where it teleports the potion indicator to should be set, as well as a dotted line that leads to that location and shows up after the first teleportation.

Alright, the main terrain is ready, all we need to do now is to adjust it a little bit, as well as fill the map up with experience books. And so, our custom map is ready!

That’s how it looks in-game.

Now you know how new maps are made for Potion Craft. We hope this entry was interesting. Stay tuned and follow our Steam Page. Also, make sure to join our Discord so you don't miss the next devlog!

Mar 3, 2023

DevBlog 33: Update 1.2

Crossfire: Legion - The Game Doc

Greetings commanders,

After last month's balance update, we’ve added 3 new tank type units to bolster your ranks with, each bringing new utility and abilities to the battlefield. Speaking of which, you can hone your command skills on a new 1v1 map. Furthermore, we have implemented some balance changes and a host of general fixes and improvements.

Now is an excellent time to enter the fray and to celebrate it we’re offering -50% off until March 9th.

Yeoman (Global Risk, slot 4):

Light vehicle with ground to air missile system designed for anti-air superiority.
Can be upgraded with the ability to increase attack range at the cost of becoming immobile.

Rhino (Black List, slot 8):

Heavy tank that is able to enter stealth to ambush prey. With a little patience and preplanning, the Rhino can lie in wait, gaining power that significantly increases the 1st attack dealing that delivers a devastating blow to unsuspecting enemies.

Arachne (New Horizon, slot 5):

Heavy hybrid artillery tank that functions as an anti-air unit. It can be upgraded with the ability to designate a target AoE from long range that will fire at any ground enemy that foolishly enters.

Fight over a critical sector that is divided by the Cheong-Lim Canal. Use the ample high ground to your advantage and secure the numerous choke points as you advance across the map towards your foe.

And now you can enjoy all this for 50% less until March 9th

Black List

Crocodile: Visual fix to Scorch ability

Global Risk

Gladiator: Updated material cost to 150

New horizon

New Horizon units will no longer pick up med kits if they are at max health
Siren: Singularity ability duration changed back to 5 from 8 seconds
Icarus: Updated unit speed to 9 from 8.5
Lycan: Jump ability will no longer freeze when using the jump ability
Hyperion: Saturation bombing will no longer be interrupted when issuing a movement order

General Fixes

Improvements to key bindings
Improved Localization text and fixed issues
Fixed the kick player functionality in lobby
Improvements made to rendering of teams with uneven player counts
Fixed unit info rendering issue
Max efficiency of workers is now working as communicated by the U.I.

Maps

Labyrinth: Fixed some of the various art, invisible obstacles and collisions
Predator: Fixed some of the various art issues
Blacksite: Various art fixes

Campaign

Mission 3: Freefall hacking ability behavior fixed on enemy turrets
Mission 4: Players will no longer get blocked after restarting at the second checkpoint
Mission 7: Fixed mouse issues occurring after post screen
Mission 8: Various art fixes
Mission 9: Behemoth's mass teleport ability will now always unlock when intended
Mission 13: The scepter properly unloads the units on this mission

Game modes

Battlelines: Issues with unit spawning have been addressed
Battlelines: Players can now choose commanders properly after completing a game of Battlelines

For those who love a deep dive and want to completely customize their battlefield experience, here is a guide to the game’s built-in level editor:
https://static.kochmedia.com/yac_sites/crossfire/CFL_MapMaker_UserGuide_v3.pdf
Be sure to give it a try and share your creations with others on the Steam Workshop! It's a powerful yet accessible tool that goes beyond just level editing.

We have put together a Fan Kit for all your content creator needs - incl. artworks, unit cards, logos etc. here: https://static.kochmedia.com/yac_sites/crossfire/cfl_fankit.zip
We also have some dedicated assets for streamers like overlays etc. here:
https://landingpages.deepsilver.com/crossfirelegion/cfl_influencer_pack.7z
Get the latest intel by following us here:
Twitter
Facebook
Discord
Instagram
Twitch
Reddit

Right, time to warm up those RTS fingers.
We can't wait to see you take to the battlefields anew and of course, we'll be monitoring your feedback closely as we prepare for future updates. Thanks again and happy gaming,
- The Crossfire: Legion team

Mar 3, 2023

An Audio Blog from Pierre-Marie

Blanc - Gearbox_CM Noelle

The sound (by Pierre-Marie Blind)

Let’s set the scene:
Scratch, scratch, scratch. The wolf cub's furry head just emerged from the snow.
Huff, pant.
Panting heavily, it tries to catch its breath and then lets out a faint whimper.
The cold is biting, you can even hear the frost crackling on the nearest tree branch. The wind gently whistles through nearby trees.
A gust of fine-powdered snow has brushed away the trail of the wolf’s family.
Awroooooooo.
The cub howls and the only response is the distant echo of its own voice.
It is all so quiet, yet the silence is deafening as we introduce players to the world of Blanc.

In-game screenshot, the wolf cub introduction cutscene.

So Much Snow!

Hello! My name is Pierre-Marie Blind, the Audio Designer and Foley Artist on Blanc. I remember that I was onboarded onto the project in late January 2021 - it was winter in Holland, and much to my luck it was -12 °C (32°F) and snowing heavily outside my window. I was able to get started right away.

I spent my first week on the project outside gathering sounds: rolling snowballs, lifting up frozen tree trunks, shaking heavy branches, pounding on the snow, walking on frozen lakes… and falling through one of them with my microphones.

Field recording sessions for Blanc in January 2021, Venlo, The Netherlands.

Yet at this point, all I knew about the game was that the cast would be all animals. A wolf cub, a fawn, some ducks, and… plenty of snow! Just lots of it! These field recording sessions proved to be essential later and allowed all the careful articulation that was needed to bring these characters to life. Indeed the needs for Blanc's soundscape were truly one of a kind.

The Game that was Only Wind

The sound design of Blanc composes with the silence of nature during a long winter. Its reduced orchestra plays only a few instruments: the presence and movements of the animals on screen, their whines, howls, and cries of joy (hear the many celebrations in Chapter 10!). The second main instrument is the epic wilderness itself, the wind. Sometimes protective (the quiet hush of the forest in Chapter 2), sometimes lonely (the deserted village in Chapter 3, standing for a bit near those TV antennas), sometimes dangerous (have you crossed that bridge in Chapter 8?), or occasionally absent (like in Chapter 9’s eerie all-white landscape). Louis' music left plenty of room for an intricate dialogue between the arrangement of his interactive tunes and the melody of the wind.

We spent a lot of time fine-tuning how we could contribute to each other’s propositions at any moment of Blanc'sadventure. Chapter 8 contains a good example: An incipient storm is coming, and our duo is now accompanied by a couple of goats as they start crossing a bridge. As they progress, the wind roars and whistles while the bridge’s metal structure screeches and whines. The music reduces itself to a reduced ostinato of violins. The danger of the environment dominates all of your senses.

A bit later, as the wolf cub and the fawn now head down alone in the snowstorm, the environment evaporates. Visibility is reduced to a few meters. Sound-wise, suddenly you can only hear the snow and wind violently whipping our duo while the music takes over the dramatic tension with dozens of instruments, high and lows, and leads the way until the scene’s ending.

“Clip-Clop”, Bringing the Characters to Life

Most of the Foley* of our two companions were done by hammering fresh snow and icy lakes with gloves and other props. As you may have noticed the wolf cub has a very different attitude compared to the fawn. He is short, easily out of breath, growls as he tries to climb the higher spots, and walks (or should I say pushes!) around the snow, a bit like a snowplow.

Make sure to pause for a bit on the frozen lake in Chapter 4. You’ll start to hear the ice crackling below their feet, and who knows, they might fall through like me and my microphones!

The prop that was used for the sniffing nose of the fawn.

The pair of gloves that were used for most of the wolf cub movements across various surfaces.

For the fawn steps on the wood beams, I used cooked coconut meat and ground coffee sprinkled over a few wood planks.

The Foley for the goslings and the mother goose is a classic trick: plastic gloves and a feather duster. Their voice was made with a flute’s beak. If the goslings didn't drive you nuts by the end of Chapter 5, make sure to lean in an attentive ear once they have reached safety and you will hear them taking the cutest nap in unison!

The vocalization palette for the fawn turned out to be the most difficult design of the game. In the real world, fawns are very quiet animals, they only make a few noises, with one of the most common being a not-so-attractive “bleat.” In the final game, after many unsuccessful iterations, the fawn ended up using a mix of a few real fawn vocalizations, adult does, along with vocalizations of coyotes, human babies, baby goats, and even baby camels!

On Natural Sounds and Comical Sounds

On the technical side, Blanc’s sound design uses minimal technology and systems for real-time gameplay. We focused most of the effort on the content. Blanc being a linear experience, the most important was to get the atmosphere, the pacing, the dramatic tension, and the inherent degree of repetitiveness right.

An interesting thing about repetitiveness is that some sound effects have a lot of variations and high granularity, like footsteps sounds. Others have purposefully no variations. Beyond technical considerations (like memory budget which is not really a problem on today’s platforms), the choice of having none, a bit, or many variations was conditioned by the relation the player would have to these sounds in their context. The wolf cub’s footsteps, for example, are made up of three groups: walking, trotting, and running, each broken into 2 to 3 subgroups (depending if the step is a strong support step or a light step in their animation cycle). Each of these subgroups contains up to 15 variations - he is a four-legged animal after all! Because these footsteps are triggered so often and have to feel the most natural, it was important to give them a high number of variations.

On the opposite end, a puzzle like the large tree trunk balance in Chapter 4 only has a single sound for each direction it pivots. For this, the intention was to make the riddle more amusing, so purposefully I made it feel more artificial to the ear (no natural sound repeats exactly the same in the real world), making it a bit funny and easily memorized. As our two characters balance up and down again and again until they find the solution, the sound design sets an audible running gag for each of the players’ missteps. Making sound variations is relatively cheap with today’s technology, yet the use and quantity of variations need to be carefully considered as they can make or break a subtle comical opportunity.

In-game screenshot, the tree trunk riddle in Chapter 4.

From the quietest to the most intense sequences, we hope you enjoyed the sound experience we crafted for Blanc as much as we enjoyed making it!

Buy the Soundtrack on Steam!

Follow Pierre-Marie Blind on Twitter

*Foley is the art of performing custom sounds to a picture, a game, a radio, or theatre screenplay generally with the help of various props. Things like character movements are often best recorded fresh for every project to match best their attitude, weight, and other unique traits.