-Due to the request by Valve, we replaced all semi-realistic images (17 images) from the base game with new non realistic anime images. Even though this was a request by Valve, the semi-realistic didn't really fit with the rest of the images in the base game.

[h4]Fixes[/h4]

• Fixed crash in demo version related to attemping to place more points than possible in one go.
  
• Fixed broken or missing tooltips on all controls. They should display correctly and give accurate information now.
  
• Clarified an error message when an audio device conflict is encountered. Choosing another one from the options menu is generally all that is needed, but the error message made it seem like audio wasn't going to work at all.
  
• Fixed issue where traveler injection would only inject one traveler on the first available selected object. It now sends a traveler on each selected object.
  

[h4] New Stuff [/h4]

• Now included with your installation is a PDF which contains a full documentation of the program (as of this version). You can get to it by clicking the 'Help' button on the top bar of the screen. Note for Steam Deck users, this button won't do anything in Game Mode, you'll have to get to it in Desktop Mode.
  
• Added button to the main UI to reach the Help PDF in one click -- there is a button with "Help" on the top bar.
  
• Updated Linux version MIDI backend library, adding some stability and fixing some internal errors. Should be transparent to users
  

It has been an interesting couple of weeks! Midinous hit some new highs but it also came with a lot more work for me. Suffice it to say it has been stressful but rewarding. Thank you to all the new users, Discord members, and contributors to the discussion boards. New ideas, fix suggestions, and bug reports (thankfully not too many) were given to me and I hold to developing Midinous to be a user-shaped software. Your contributions have been invaluable so, thank you! Where to go from here? I'd like to add more MIDI output ports, a minimap, and a 'preset' or 'snippet' box where small sub-sequences can be saved and recalled in any project. This would make things like logic sequences way easier to manage and reproduce. No more replicating a J-K flip flop in each project. I don't have a timeline on these ideas, but they are bouncing around in my head. I want to do some streams and videos showing off the program for people who would prefer to have that as a reference instead of a PDF. Again, thank you all for your patience, kindness, and support. Stay tuned for more, and keep creating.
-Jae

It's been a while! Let's catch up on what's new, what's being worked on, and what to expect next!



A nasty right hook

Combat is being reworked from the ground up. It was a tough decision for me to do this, but the previous system didn't accomplish a lot of the goals that I set for how I wanted combat to work.

The way I envision combat in Runeforge is something actiony and fast-paced like hack n slash, mixed in with an occasional souls-like mob that has slow but very punishing attacks if you don't dodge in time.

So making sure combat is done right is important because I want players to be able to use their own weapons, weapon abilities, and spells in an environment that makes it fun to continuously tinker, upgrade, and test out new designs you come up with!



A swing of the sword. The weapon trail isn't correctly mapped here, something I'll be fixing tomorrow!

There will be several weapon types that you can create when the demo rolls out. Each weapon type offers a different playstyle. Here they are:

Daggers - Although not as strong when fighting face to face with opponents compared to other weapon types, daggers reward players for flanking opponents and attacking from stealth.

Axes - Axes provide a high risk high reward playstyle by having the largest damage range out of any weapon and offering high crit damage at the cost of crit chance.

Swords - If you're looking for a more balanced and reliable playstyle than look no further than the sword. Swords offer high damage and decent attack speed.

Hammers - Hammers have the smallest damage ranges, providing very consistent damage as well as having the highest knockback of any weapon. If you're looking for more of a supportive or defensive playstyle then the hammer is your best choice.

Greataxe - Has the highest damage potential in the game. Two-handed weapons, like the greataxe, also provide AoE damage with sweeping attacks. Two-handed weapons are also slower, deal more damage, and have higher knockback.

Greatsword - The fastest two-handed weapon. Great choice for a two-handed DPS build.

Greathammer - Has the highest knockback in the game. If you like the defensive style of the hammer but want more damage, knockback, and AoE attacks the greathammer is the best option.

Bow - A ranged weapon requiring you to aim your shots, not much else to say ^^

Staff - A two-handed weapon with low damage and decent knockback to keep mobs away while you cast your spells. Reduces mana cost of spells.


Damage types also provide additional ways to customize your playstyle. Damage types are given to weapons when you find an ore with a damage type modifier on it and use it to craft your weapon. You can also learn how to create spells with a particular damage type from a skill tree. Here's the damage types you'll find when the demo is out:

Physical - This is the default damage type for all weapons. Armor is used to lessen the damage of incoming physical attacks.

Magical - Magical damage is a blanket term for the different damage types below. Resistance is used to lessen the damage from incoming magical attacks. You can also have specific magical resistance (fire resistance for example).

Arcane - Arcane damage provides stacks of "Amplify". Amplify is a status effect that increases arcane damage. Good for ramping damage.

Fire - Causes "Burn", a status effect that deals tick damage to the target. Good for damage over time.

Frost - Causes "Freeze" stacks. Each stack slows the target until a max stack is reached where the target freezes for a short time. Good for crowd control.

Electric - Causes a "Static" attack. Static attacks deal a portion of the damage to nearby targets. Good for AoE damage.

Spirit - Causes a "Smite" attack. Smite executes targets below a certain amount of health. Good for finishing off targets with a lot of health.

Shadow - Provides "Lifesteal". A portion of your damage is converted into health for yourself. Good for sustain builds.


Rayes has been cookin' up an absolutely amazing OST that I cannot wait for you guys to hear! We have just a few more songs left before it's done! Here's one of the songs that we teased a little while back, it's one of the battle songs:



There will be tracks for different environments to help create the right vibe wherever you go. Whether its a mysterious cave, an enchanted forest, open fields, or an ancient desert, you'll have the right tunes playing the entire time.

There's also two battle songs, a "regular" one (the one that was released). Then we have a dramatic, more epic sounding one for special occasions.. 👀

There's also going to be a main theme song that will play when you open up the game that I can't wait for y'all to hear it! Rayes has also cooked up some really cool tunes for leveling up, dying, and even when you enter a new region!



Running around in a forest

Just a couple changes to movement that I'll go over:

The run animation has been changed, the player leans forward and the swaying of the torso is more noticeable. It gives more life to the animation, if you want to see it in action I highly recommend joining our Discord! http://discord.gg/HqXdhKjJ2q


So this section is gonna be more about theory and vision than me showing you actual stuff. I wanted to provide you guys more information about what you can expect soon.

First you'll have the basics like choosing a race (each race will provide certain benefits), appearance, name, etc..



"Project Zomboid": Good traits in green, bad in red. You can see points to spend in the bottom right.
On top of that there will also be a trait system. This system is similar to ones you find in Project Zomboid, Stellaris, and Deep Woken.

What these systems have in common is you pick positive & negative traits for your character (or in the case of Stellaris, your whole species).

You'll have a certain amount of trait slots, I think 5 may be a good number. Then you'll have trait points to allocate. Really good traits cost more trait points, and to get more trait points you need to add negative traits. Really bad traits give more points.


"Stellaris": Traits affect your species.
I want to go with this system because it provides first of all more replayability and nuance to character creation, but also it allows for some pretty interesting builds. My focus with the traits will be to create traits that are interesting and fun that will actually affect how you'll play the game.

I've thought of a few already that I may just add. Some are more game changing than others, for example the "Prizefighter" trait will make it to where you cannot wield weapons, but you do substantially more damage from unarmed attacks.

Then there's some traits that have a smaller impact like the "Dimwitted" trait, which decreases your intelligence score. Some traits have versions that are even more significant such as "Brainless" which significantly decreases your intelligence score but gives you more trait points to allocate.


Now what I think will make Runeforge stand out from the very start is allowing players to craft their own starter weapon, spells, and abilities from the character creation screen.

This will get you right into the gameplay loop from the very beginning. Because now you're thinking about how you want to play the game, what build you're going with, and how you want to upgrade your spells, abilities, and weapon!

One of the primary goals of developing Runeforge is to make it a "personal" game. I want the character to feel like it's really your own. The sword you made, the spells you designed and upgraded, those were all made by you. I want the player to feel a personal attachment to the character they create, and starting this from character creation really helps with that I believe.

So if you're like me who enjoys spending an hour in a character creation screen then I think you'd like how character creation will be in Runeforge. If not, then go ahead and click that randomize button and choose some spell and weapon presets!


So I've been thinking a lot about how progression will work in Runeforge, because it's almost about that time to implement a skill tree.

I really would like y'alls opinions on this but I have 2 main ideas for progression.

Idea 1: Traditional Progression


"Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order": Traditional skill trees where one skill leads to another.

A traditional progression system of unlocking passive skills from a skill tree, or multiple skill trees. Skills may also have levels that you can continuously allocate XP to gain increasing benefits from that skill.

Idea 2: Introducing Chance


"Deepwoken (Roblox)": You choose from a hand of cards when leveling up. What cards you get are random but are influenced by your stats. You can also burn cards to not see them again or freeze to get a card you like for your next level.

A different take on skill trees where there is a random chance of unlocking a skill (probably when leveling up) that you can then allocate XP to. This system would allow me to have a rarity system for skills, where Fabled skills provide game-changing benefits if you were lucky enough to get one.

I think it increases depth and replayability at the expense of having less control of how you develop your character.

I'd really like to hear your opinions on this, because I'm leaning towards traditional progression unless you guys would like to see the 2nd option, in which I'd be happy to do! ^^



Zombie run animation

I really wanted to show you guys some real combat today, but I'll have to save it for this week and next week to polish things a bit more.

I've also been thinking about doing some long form content on my YouTube! I might replace these posts with videos showing everything. I think it'd be more entertaining and reach a larger audience. But it's just an idea for now, let me know what you guys would want!

But as for development, the next news post will feature a lot more combat mechanics! I'm polishing things and adding more animations for the mobs, I'm also improving mob behaviors too. Then once that's all done I'll be working on character creation and that'll be the last major update before the demo releases to patrons! :D

'Till next time!

Fixed a bug that was causing AI to finish puzzles sooner than intended

This Demo update optimizes the art performance of the game, making the game more in line with the theme.

The game values ​​have been adjusted to make the game experience smoother.

The game levels have been adjusted, and the experience is more refreshing than in the past.

Add keys modification function

For more changes, please explore by yourself in the game

In the near future, the relevant display categories of the store will be updated

Dear players, we have released an update for the game.
In the previous version, some players reported an issue where purchasing DLC did not unlock heroes and towers as intended. We take this issue seriously and have fixed it in this update.
We sincerely appreciate your feedback and support for the game.

Other changes in this update include:

· Fixed the issue where tasks were not displayed in 2-1 Hell mode.
· Fixed the issue where icons were not displayed in some interfaces.
· Fixed the issue where some achievements could not be achieved.

Celebrating the success of the "Kotonoha Lernado" crowdfunding project, an additional spin off to the "Alternate World Language" visual novel series, we will be discounting the first two games!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1044490/The_Expression_Amrilato/

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1591490/Distant_Memorao/

"Kotonoha Lernado" CF project
https://soreosu.com/projects/lernado
(Japan Only)

Fixed main menu scene not starting

Hey supporters!

This update is super exciting and I think you guys will love this one!

Credit to quax from our discord for this idea!


Added a new secondary ability that reveals the positions of all enemies for 4 seconds.

• Unlimited uses
  
• Recharges on an 8s timer

Over the past few months, we've had complains that there's not enough players. I hear y'all loud and clear so now you should see up to 2X more players in lobbies.

1. Removed the region select. This is a temporary change, over the next few weeks all games will happen on either EU or US for that week
   
2. Removed MMR-based matchmaking. I've done some work on the AK and other beginner weapons to make sure they're easy to use even for new players.

This feature HAS at one point been in the game, but it was underdeveloped so now I'm re-releasing it with significant improvements.

• You can now change your selected microphone, and your selected microphone will persist in your save file
  
• Voice chat can be toggled on/off
  
• Voice chat keybind can now be changed
  
• Upgraded voice chat servers to handle the bandwidth

I feel like this feature will make playing with friends so much more fun! Enjoy!

• Added first-person hand animations
  
• Added a new option for adjusting UI scale
  
• Added a loader UI for timed ability
  
• When you have reached a limit for the number of turrets, the UI will become red
  
• Fixed smoke grenade and orange grenades getting stuck when switching weapons
  
• The randomiser power-up will now randomise both abilities
  
• Added a screen for initialising the voice over
  
• The starting tutorial is now skippable
  
• Fixed translations
  
• Pausing the menu music will now persist between game sessions
  
• New pop up for 3 hour XP boosts
  
• Added more contrast to health text to make it more readable
  
• Fixed bugs with a number of daily challenges
  
• Improved map ambience sounds
  
• Added new menu music
  
• Buttons in the armoury now toggle

• Increased invisibility duration (2s —> 3s)

Enjoy the update! Head over to our discord to partake in tournaments, report bugs of offer ideas!

各位操作员们，你们好啊~
可能你们已经在别的地方听说了这个好消息，但是我们还是要在这里跟大家正式说一下。

我们《R.O.O.T.》将在本周末6.10和6.11，这两天时间，参加今年的广州“核聚变”，在独立游戏展区出现！

去年没能在线下与大家见面，我们感到十分可惜。但是这一年的时间里，我们也是将《R.O.O.T.》不断打磨，向着理想中的样子不断靠近。

终于，经过三年陆陆续续的开发，游戏也将在8.4开启“抢先体验”！国区定价￥42，首周折扣-10%，折后价￥37.8。大家现在可以先把愿望单加上~

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2153430/ROOT/

现场的试玩活动可以体验到发售版本的全部内容，还有官方亚克力钥匙链赠送！完成分享任务或者关卡挑战，更能抽奖官方好礼，“雷文钛科”入职笔记本、“独立方舟”优选游戏合集、北通阿修罗手柄，限量抽取，先到先得哦！

另外我们开发组“安奇钛科的”成员也会出现在现场，可以去现场的小伙伴们不要错过这个与我们见面的机会吖。

广州“核聚变”具体购票情况可看各大网站，这里就不多作介绍了。地点在琶洲·保利世贸博览馆3/4号馆，到时候我们就会在那里等你们咯。

久违的线下展会，久违的核聚变，我们带着《R.O.O.T.》诚信期待与你们见面！