Another update went live, working around the performance issues while making saves less prone to data loss.


Version 0.5.230324 - 24 Mar 2023

• Fixed companions sometimes not choosing torments correctly
  
• Fixed problem with Aether Splash not breaking the block
  
• Fixed issues with game saves during battle impacting performance
  
• Set different outfits for Frostmancer and Trickster companions

Hello Everyone!
We want to let you get to know the dev team a bit more, so we asked Joni of Rockodile Games and Alex of Octobear Knight Games, a few questions about their personal motivations for making Death From Above and what the plans are for the game in the longer term.



Joni: Raising funds and awareness for Ukraine are my main motivations. With DfA we get to do something meaningful.

Alex: My personal motivation is deeply rooted in my connection to Ukraine. Working on projects which are not related to the support of Ukraine is challenging for me at the moment. "Death from Above" serves as an important statement, compelling players to take a side and debunking the myth of the invincible Russian army.


Joni: It is a sensitive subject, but our intentions are to help Ukraine and I’d rather help right now. Death from Above donates most of its revenue to charities helping Ukraine and raises awareness of the war started by Russia.

Alex: I don't find creating a game about an ongoing war to be controversial. It is undoubtedly challenging, particularly when addressing war crimes and atrocities - striking a balance between sensitivity towards victims and acknowledging the reality of the situation can be tough.


Joni: The development thus far has been funded by us and our publisher Lesser Evil and after we have covered our own costs we will be donating 70% of the games’ sales to charities supporting Ukraine. The remaining 30% will be used to further develop the game and to involve even more Ukrainian developers and artists in the development of the game in the future.


Alex: During Early Access, we plan to enhance "Death from Above" by extending the narrative, introducing more ways for players to interact with the world, and adding new enemies, including more common types and unique bosses. We may also borrow some randomization elements from the “roguelite” genre based on user feedback, but that’s still to be determined.


This was only a glimpse at two of our main devs, but you can check out their full Q&As on our Kickstarter page's updates section!

Have a great weekend,
The Death From Above team

• Bus Modding: Modders can read here how to create buses using the new modding tool and players will surely find the first new buses in the workshop soon
  
  
  
  
• Bus Upgrades: Upgrades (e.g. premium seats, passenger information system) are now available for buses to improve passenger comfort.
  
  
  
  
• WLAN: Mobile data contracts with different data volumes can be booked in order to offer passengers WLAN during the journey
  
  
  
  
• Timetable: The driving times in the extended timetable can now be entered manually instead of having to select a fixed interval per timetable
  
  

• The driving times in the extended timetable can now be entered manually instead of having to select a fixed interval per timetable
  
• Up to 250 lines can now be built
  
• Clients of public service lines no longer complain about poor passenger numbers when the line has not yet run or when passenger numbers are high
  
• The given timetable interval for public service lines can no longer be lower during rush hour than outside rush hour
  
• Fixed grey camera glitch in the map
  
• For public service lines, the entire line can now be deleted and rebuilt without losing the order
  
• Fixed a bug when calculating the number of buses needed for a line
  
• Lines in the line overview are now correctly sorted by name
  
• Stops on the map are now displayed more clearly
  
• In Brazil, it no longer loads wrong starting points / cities in the map

• Adjustment of the number of passengers so that they should no longer be so extremely high in large cities
  
• General improvement of passenger behaviour
  
• Optimised number of passengers at airports and schools
  
• Fixed bug that line exchanges sometimes did not work
  
• Remuneration of tasks optimised
  
• Companies with high capital now receive lower subsidies

Please note that the new passenger numbers will first be calculated from the next day in existing savegames. The balancing has changed a lot with this update. We would be happy to receive your feedback on the new passenger numbers in your savegames, so that we can make additional adjustments. Please also let us know how the ticket prices are set, what the current company rating is and how high the current willingness to use public transport is, as all this has an influence on the passenger numbers 🙂

• The names of the employees now depend on the region in which you play
  
• Fixed bug where staff were queuing for a single item (toilet, fridge etc.) even though multiple items were available
  
• When bus drivers assigned to a shift are terminated, the assignment is now removed
  
• Employees now recover during a time jump
  
• Tooltips added to employee properties to get more information about them

• Turkish translation and Turkish lira added as currency (Thanks to @altariann and @Povalsiki)!
  
• Added Czech and Dutch translation of the reviews
  
• Many missing translations completed
  
• Display of languages with special characters significantly improved and missing texts fixed

• Performance improvements, especially with many employees (There will be more performance improvements in the next update).
  
• Update to Unity 2022.2.11
  
• The repair form now shows how many spare parts are available
  
• Fixed a bug that objects at the edge of the depot could not be built in some cases
  
• Fixed bug that street lanterns disappeared
  
• Fixed a bug in the paint shop
  
• Fixed a bug that purchased buses got stuck in the barrier
  
• Fixed a bug that the layer allocation window did not disappear in rare cases
  
• Fixed a bug where the autosave did not work when the game was paused
  
• Other small bug fixes and improvements

For the next update we will work on the following topics:

• Optimisation of the loading time
  
• Larger maps
  
• Waypoints during line building
  
• Optimisation of performance and RAM consumption and fixing of resulting crashes

Version 0.5.230324 - 24 Mar 2023

• Fixed issues with game saves during battle impacting performance

[h4]We're delighted to be hosting Fatboy Slim's 'Eat Sleep VR Repeat' immersive concert in ENGAGE on March 30th 2023. [/h4]

Fatboy Slim's career has always been punctuated with fun and firsts and this first-of-its-kind event will take you on an immersive virtual reality experience, unlike any other VR concert that you’ve experienced before!

The 45-minute adventure will take your avatar into the burrows of Fatboy Slim’s mind; starting at the drive-in diner, where you’ll begin the journey with friends and fans.

Check out our promotional video.

Download ENGAGE and visit our Central Plaza in ENGAGE LINK to register for this free concert. You will find a Fatboy Slim poster, once you load into this plaza and follow the steps by pressing 'Click to Register' button here. Alternatively, you can visit out landing page and follow the registration steps. Registration is mandatory to acces this event on the day.

You can also visit the Fatboy Slim Diner ahead of the event in the Event Space 1, just off the ENGAGE LINK Central Plaza to get a preview of just one the scenes you will visit on the day. Tour the Diner scene, learn to ride the motorbikes and more...

For more information about the Fatboy Slim immersive concert you can also visit our concert guide

We look forward to seeing you at "Eat Sleep VR Repeat"

Everyone gets +15% Move Speed & +35% EXP this weekend!

Our latest Anti-Cheat Status Update for March 2023 is here, bringing the latest updates on anti-cheat and more.


For an overview on bans, we bring our latest BattlEye and Data Ban numbers, including data for the last 6 months.




We've addressed a number of cheats since our last Anti-Cheat Status Update which are listed below.

• Instant kill while in Prep Phase
• Code insertion via Ban Ticker
• Add/Remove score points
• Team chat accessed by cheater on opposing team
• Flores drone can be teleported

As well addressing new cheats, we've also been making constant updates to ensure that hacks that we're currently detecting remain detectable, protecting players.


We're aware that cheats have been used in order to misuse the Privacy Mode feature, and we're working hard to make sure this is not the case.

Since our last update we've:

- Addressed a cheat enabling the additional numbers to be removed from nicknames
- Addressed a cheat enabling the user to change their nickname multiple times during a match

What's Next?

We are aware of and currently looking into an exploit being used to discover a player's real username when they've got Privacy Mode enabled. We'll share more on this in a future update.


Input spoofing has long been an issue on console, and we've been hearing your feedback throughout Siege's life so far. With Mousetrap we're taking action to create and foster a fair and competitive environment for console players.

How Will Mousetrap Work?

When a player is detected using an input spoofer, a penalty will be activated adding latency to their inputs which will also build up over time. The goal here is to remove the advantage that mouse and keyboard users on consoles are getting over controller players. If a player receiving the penalty starts using a controller instead, the input latency penalty will gradually be removed.

This experimental solution has been quietly in development for some time, and we're excited to have this released in Y8S1.2. Work on this feature will also proceed after its release as we continue to fine tune the system.

For more information, check our dedicated blog post.

Welcome to our 48th Development Status. You can see what we were working on in two weeks!


Another panzer from the family of German medium tanks. Not many changes between the F2 version. The right visor from the front of the turret has been removed, as well as the visors from the turret sides.

A rack for carrying spare road wheels on the left wing and hooks for attaching seven track links to the top plate at the front of the fuselage has been added.


We created a system designed specifically for our game that enhances the player's experience when submerged in water. Our technique features a special post-processing graphics effect that simulates the feeling of being underwater. The effect alters the visuals of the game, with the ability to add a color tint, a blur, and distorted sounds, making the player feel as if they're truly underwater. The deeper the player stays submerged, the more intense the effect becomes.




In the last two weeks, we designed a tutorial for Tank Squad consisting of two parts: repair station and battle. The tutorial aims to teach players only the essential mechanics and functions of the game, keeping it minimalistic and basic without unnecessary distractions. Tutorials are typically tedious, and players wish to complete them as soon as possible; therefore, we have designed them to be short and user-friendly. Players will learn additional cool mechanics as they progress through each mission. If a player wants to learn a specific mechanic in detail or remind themselves about it, there will be a menu with visual and text descriptions of each mechanic.

The repair station tutorial comprises nine steps:

• Movement
  
• Headquarters interaction
  
• Spawning a tank
  
• Checking the tank's status
  
• Repairing the tank
  
• Using the crane to place the engine in the tank
  
• Using the wrench to fix broken parts
  
• Placing the missing part
  
• Starting the mission

The battle tutorial consists of eleven steps:

• Battle map menu
  
• Tank controls
  
• Tank movement
  
• Terrain surfaces
  
• Destructible environment
  
• Airstrikes
  
• Repairs in battle
  
• Shooting
  
• Conquering objectives
  
• Destroying objectives
  
• Calling artillery

Completing the tutorial will take around 10-15 minutes.

Thank you and have a good one!
DeGenerals

Hello venturous gamers!

How are you doing these last few days? Hopefully not too bad, wherever you are. ♥

Many of you have now played our demo, thank you for that. We have gathered a ton of valuable feedback and suggestions from all of you. It's great! Naturally, the development is still ongoing, with features and changes being integrated regularly.

Today we'll take a quick look at one important aspect of any RPG: the damage types. We'll also go over a new feature we are currently working on that was not in the demo build: patient attention. But first, a little announcement.


We revealed it moments ago during the Future Game Show, Wantless will enter Early Access this fall. We are very grateful for the screen time the event offered. It was a great opportunity to gain visibility. As you would expect, the future success of Wantless depends in a large part on our ability to spread the word. So the word is now out: Early Access is just a few months away!

By the way, have you seen our first look trailer?






As mentionned earlier, now is as good a time as any to talk about damage types. In Wantless, there are currently four damage types: fear, pain, pure, and grief. Each enemy has different resistances to different damage types. Resistances are often associated with enemy types and their home mind realm. As an example, a Wretch, one of the first enemies you'll encounter, is resistant to Pain, but weak against Fear damage.



Each damage type is now associated with 2 Afflictions. Afflictions are Damage over Time effects that conditionally inflict damage on their target:

Oppress: deals damage to the target every time the caster uses an Action Point.
Hyper-empathy: replays a % of the damage taken by the caster on the target.

Wound: deals damage every time the target moves, even through forced movement.
Fragilize: deals damage every time the target takes damage (damage other than the one dealt through fragilize, that is).

Abase: deals damage to the target when its turn starts.
Intoxicate: deals damage to the target when its turn starts, and stacks limitlessly.

Pure damage is special, it is only dealt through special effects, pierces shields, and usually meets very little resistance.

We’ve formalized Hit damage resistance and Affliction resistance, which are base resistances that apply to all non-pure damage, before the damage-type resistances are taken into account.

We are currently at work on our talent system, the Mind Tree. Our aim is to offer the player a real choice as to what type of damage they want to favour in their builds, or which afflictions they want to develop.



For instance, Violence essentially increases all hit damage and hit damage resistance everytime any pain damage is inflicted by any entity, friend or foe. We're aiming for each damage type to have their own philosophy and effects beyond the traditional resistances and weaknesses.

Whatever build you're going for, you should feel the importance of your decisions. This is a rather big topic we'll cover more extensively at a later date!




The patient's subconscious is now unaware of your presence when the transposition begins, which gives you the Concealed effect. While Concealed, enemies will completely ignore you and either idle, walk around aimlessly or cast skills on each other.

This is a new feature that was not implemented in the demo. It is meant to give you the opportunity to reposition, use buffs, heal, or open the fight by taking out a priority target you might otherwise not have reached as easily.

Remaining Concealed, however, requires that you thread silently: using too much AP in a single turn, targeting an enemy with any harmful effect, or getting too close to an enemy, will all reveal you!

Here is an early preview of how it works:



Hopefully it gives you an idea of what we're aiming for.

We are also at work on several new ideas, including some that were inspired directly by your feedback. So stay tuned! We're eager to show you more of what we're up to next time!



If you want, we encourage you to wishlist Wantless on Steam.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1807090/Wantless/




To stay up to date with our latest news or engage with other like-minded Transposers, be sure to join our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, or simply head over to our Discord server. We have also set up a community section over on Reddit.

Thanks for reading!

Speak to you soon.

News Tower is participating in the Future Games Show 2023.

The Future Games Show is one of the industry’s flagship gaming showcases and is rapidly building a reputation as one of the best ways to discover new games!
We are very thrilled and proud to feature our game there among other exciting titles!

We felt this was the perfect time for us to give you an update on how the game has been evolving, what we have been working on and developing since 2021!

• Jan-Maarten - Creative Director
  
• Maxime - Game Designer
  
• Iris - Illustrator & Graphic Designer
  
• Louis - Brand Manager

Stay tuned to meet the rest of the team in a later episode!! :D




Jan-Maarten
-
In 2018 I came upon an article about the New York Times newspaper production in 1941. It had a series of pictures showing every department from Newsroom to Printroom.



Filled with awesome analog machines and oozing with a sense of nostalgic craft.
Coming from an art school background I always had an affinity for letterpressing and movable type.



I have always been a big history enthusiast and when a Newspaper Tycoon first came to mind, the 1930s seemed like a perfect fit. It’s a really interesting decade because it was in constant uproar by a global economic and political crisis that ultimately led to the second world war.
Prohibition, Famous Mobsters, Hollywood Golden Years, the rise of Jazz, the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl... It felt that for a tycoon game, where stories are the main resource, this decade would never be short of providing Interesting material.
And New York City just felt like a natural central point to base the News Tower in.




Jan-Maarten
-
A Tycoon game consists of hundreds of little systems coming together. This means that it took a really long time to create somewhat of a working prototype. That made it really hard to judge if we were working on something great or not. For lots of game devs it's always tricky to know if you are making the right choices but for a tycoon game, for a long time you're just in the dark. Having a core idea that everybody is enthusiastic and feels good about really helps to keep things going. Nowadays it's just really hard to change any system when it's connected and depending on so many other elements. Just accept that half of the time the project doesn’t run and you're in for lots of rewrites. It's a marathon but a fulfilling one at it.

Maxime
-
The most complicated design aspect of a tycoon is the risk of accumulating too many mechanics to give life to an autonomous and coherent "ecosystem". This genre-specific systemic density can turn into an overflow of information, phases or resources. Because of this density, the balancing work is much more demanding than in any other game genre.




Jan-Maarten
-
It's always tricky to say what's innovative about your own project. But we do feel that we're
adding new interesting elements to an established Tycoon landscape.
News Tower has very rounded play phases: Report, Process and Print. Which makes it ideal for shorter 15/30 min play sessions to more casually go through the game if that fits your playstyle. Where the Process Phase is the more known tycoon element of building and managing and there is lots of that. Report and Print bring new unique mechanics to the genre.

Choosing what stories to report on and assigning the right reporters alters the news item resource composition. Do you go for Hot-topics and gain lots of new readers or abide by some influential outside party's hidden agenda. We want the player to feel like their choices matter and really put them in the publisher seat.



Players can arrange their Newspaper to their own liking. This visual element really brings the newspaper to life and shows the choices a player made earlier. For instance, when you've sent a photographer to the news location, that article will show a photo. The headlines also reflect the story paths you chose.



FREE PRO TIPS HERE ⬇
Make sure you leave room for one of those juicy ads. Because staying profitable is one of those golden Tycoon rules that everybody understands.




Iris
-
The Key Art needs to reflect the game ambiance and to be attractive at the same time.
Here, the New York's 1930s period and the journalism theme are the main focus.
The architecture, with the skyline, the roof water reservoir, the iconic Empire State Building or the characters wearing old-fashioned clothes and using old technologies, are all elements who are here to give you a narrative context and suggest the gameplay thematics.

⬇ Here you can see a before/after of the Key Art, highlighting the many changes ⬇






Iris
-
First, the development team gave me a brief with some suggestions about the graphic content and the atmosphere. With their notes, I've made some quick sketches trying different compositions, character types and logo placement.
Then, we started to identify what is important to keep, which size the elements should be to deliver a clear message. They selected one drawing and from there I made a new version using the game graphic style and color palette.
I draw everything in Illustrator. We started to move elements again, as colors changed all the image balance. A key art needs to be understandable no matter the size, even in a really small format. To achieve this, we simplified some elements. For exemple, initially, the tower was open, showing the environment in which most of the game happens. We realizes that closing it allows you to focus more on the environment as a whole, not being frustrated by the little details you struggle to see.
When we were sastisfied, the final step started. The entire game visuals are made with vectors. To create something that fits the game and at the same time brings an element of surprise and newness, I've used vectorial art as a background for a digital painting with warmer organic lights and textures you won't find in game.




Iris
-
It's a really important part, the creator's vision of the game needs to be highlighted in the key art. In a way, it's a quick static trailer, giving you the desire to see and know more about the game.

Louis
-
We have been working for a while on the new visual identity of News Tower. With the production progressing every day, it was time to update the key art of the game.
The key art is an essential visual for a game - especially for indies! When a game appears on the home page or in your searches, this is the first visual you’ll see. It must show major elements of the game and be recognizable for players!

We felt that some elements were missing for the player to dive properly into our game atmosphere and universe. The tower was already there, but how would a business run without a team? As the 30s news are the game core, it was important for us to accentuate the immersive side of the key art and to add the setting of your future (old) newspaper business: New York!
A touch of the Empire State Building, a bit of old-fashioned clothes and a lot of journalism... and you get this new key art!
I spare you technical marketing terms and the looonnnnggg description of the process to find the perfect result… but don’t worry our graphic designer came out unscathed!