Good evening to all the elegant gentlemen!
The v0.4.2 Demo version is now live!

1. Performed chin plastic surgery on Akizuki Misaki in the laundry room plot section.
2. Adjusted the operation of the location selection interface so it cannot be closed but can switch to any time slot.
3. Fixed the issue where Akizuki Misaki might still lay on Inoue Akira even when he is not playing the game.
4. Fixed the issue where you can chat with Inoue Akira through the surveillance screen while he is smoking in the apartment.
5. Adjusted the opening hours of the Gentlemen's Club to also be open at night.

Hey again everyone!
Hope you're all doing swell on this Friday 13th and are having a day filled with luck and good fortune!

It dawned on me that when we talked about the voice acting we're currently working into the game, we didn't really cover cutscenes all that much, and that's what I wanted to talk a little bit more about today.



In Vahrin's Call, we're using cutscenes in two main places.

• To introduce a new boss
  
• In NPC conversations that progress the main story

Both of these, the latter especially, are very time consuming to implement. It requires several of us on the team working together to get everything functioning as intended.



In the case of NPC conversations which require more attention to detail, we have a step-by-step process that we follow for each cutscene.


Working in UE4's Sequencer, we begin simply by creating a new sequence and then positioning each character where we want them in the scene.



Next, we import every line of dialogue that will be used in the scene and time them to play like a natural, back and forth conversation.



Once we're happy with the flow of the conversation, we mark specific parts of the sequence with key frames.



Thanks to a system set up by our programmer, this will allow you to skip to the next line of dialogue in a conversation with the press of a button.

We then go through the cutscene, adding animations and facial expressions to characters, as well as setting up where we want characters to look at certain points in the conversation.



The next step is adding different camera shots. This step takes the longest, as adjusting the timing and positioning of each camera can be tricky to get right and involves a lot of fine-tuning.



After this, all that's left is putting on the finishing touches!
In this stage, we may add a fade to the start or end of the cutscene and/or make lighting adjustments.


As you guys can see there's quite a bit that goes into making each of the cutscenes in Vahrin's Call.
I hope you can agree that all the time and effort we put into them is absolutely worth it though!



I know you haven't had the chance to see too many in action just yet and of course everything is currently a work in progress, but I'm looking forward to showing you how it's all progressed once things are more polished.


As always, I hope you enjoyed today's post and we hope to see you here again next Friday!

Cheers all~

Dear Paranormal Investigators,

Last year, Joure and I (Joe) were thrilled to announce "Paranormal Tales" (PT) to all of you. Your enthusiasm took us by surprise, turning PT into a viral sensation during the Halloween season. This overwhelming support caught the attention of Digital Cybercherries, who graciously offered to both publish and co-develop the game.

With this partnership, PT has benefitted and will continue to benefit from additional funding and the technical capabilities and expertise that Digital Cybercherries bring to the table, such as custom assets, animations and sound. This collaboration allows us to implement features that were previously out of our reach. However, while it offers immense potential, it also means that some of PT's development depends on Digital Cybercherries' timeline. As they are in the final stages of their project, Hypercharge: Unboxed, many of their talented developers are currently occupied. This means certain aspects of PT's development, which require expertise Joure and I lack, are temporarily on hold.

We apologize for not updating you as frequently as we would have liked. This journey has been a new experience for both Joure and me. Please know that both of us, along with Digital Cybercherries, are fully committed to refining PT. Our focus ranges from optimizing it in Unreal Engine 5, writing stories for each episode, testing gameplay mechanics, designing levels, to figuring out what works and what doesn't. Given the attention PT received, we want to offer players the best possible experience, even if it means spending more time refining it.

However, amidst PT's development constraints and evolving landscape, Joure and I wanted to offer something unique and playable for you by this Halloween. Outside of the hard work we're already investing in PT, we've dedicated our spare hours to designing a horror experience titled DON'T SCREAM. It's an Unreal Engine 5 horror adventure where you explore a mysterious forest for 18 minutes. But there's a catch: if you scream, you restart! You can watch the trailer below.

Wishlist:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2497900/DONT_SCREAM/

Important Update: Our collaboration with Joure's Patreon has ended. Patreon is now exclusively used for Joure's personal projects and is not associated with Digital Cybercherries.

Past Paterons of Paranormal Tales and DON'T SCREAM will still receive:

• Your name will remain in PT's credits.
  
• A free copy of PT and DS on Steam is still yours.

We hope you understand our journey and decisions. While PT needs more time to perfect, we're excited to serve up a thrilling Halloween experience with DON’T SCREAM.

Warm regards,
Joe & Joure

Created by the God Veles, Horror's were design to punish humanity for their damage of his most prized creation, nature.



https://store.steampowered.com/app/1351210/Gord/

Behold, Commanders!

Sigmar blesses this day with a glimpse of the Stormcast Eternals Liberator in glorious Thunderstrike armour. Behold this latest variation of the unit which will feature in game on day one of release, November 17th!


Both the 'Classic' Liberator and Liberator in Thunderstrike armour will be available for use in Conquest Mode and Multiplayer.

WARHAMMER AGE OF SIGMAR: REALMS OF RUIN LAUNCHES 17 NOVEMBER 2023!
Take heed and pre-order NOW to reap a selection of exclusive rewards along with up to 3 days early access, as offered in our Ultimate and Deluxe Editions.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1844380/Warhammer_Age_of_Sigmar_Realms_of_Ruin/

Join the conversation and keep up to date with all the latest news, events and giveaways on...

Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/RealmsOfRuin
Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/PlayRealmsOfRuin
Instagram - http://www.instagram.com/RealmsOfRuin
Discord - https://discord.gg/RealmsofRuin

Happy Halloween!

It's been a while since we added any new features or content, so today we are giving you (for a limited time only!) some new spooky Halloween hats, and a BRAND NEW Graveyard map, designed by BellaTrellia!

Hats:
Horns - a regular offering, but bundled together with the other seasonal accessories!
Pumpkin - or "Jack-O-Lantern", depending on where you're from.
Witch - a spooky witches hat.
Wirt - A full costume made in homage to Over The Garden Wall
Greg - The lovable little brother of Wirt

Click here to watch our new weekly update video!


Cutscene News
Welcome back to another Iragon changelog. The cutscene team is hard at work on the last two scenes as well as fixing older ones. As we've mentioned before, the last two scenes are quite complicated and require a lot of technical work and precise planning. However, we're happy to share that mocapping sessions have officially been completed.

Improving Old Scenes
One half of the team is going back to refresh and better the interview room while the other half is continuing work on the Harbinger Boss scenes. We are almost there guys and we're very thankful for your support.


Cats and dogs are cool. Rats and lizards are also cool. Hell, for some spiders are cool too. What do you think the coolest pet you can have at home is? Are you on the cats and dogs train or do you like something more exotic?

Click here to watch our new weekly update video!


Cutscene News
Welcome back to another Iragon changelog. The cutscene team is hard at work on the last two scenes as well as fixing older ones. As we've mentioned before, the last two scenes are quite complicated and require a lot of technical work and precise planning. However, we're happy to share that mocapping sessions have officially been completed.

Improving Old Scenes
One half of the team is going back to refresh and better the interview room while the other half is continuing work on the Harbinger Boss scenes. We are almost there guys and we're very thankful for your support.


Cats and dogs are cool. Rats and lizards are also cool. Hell, for some spiders are cool too. What do you think the coolest pet you can have at home is? Are you on the cats and dogs train or do you like something more exotic?

Hello Robocrafters

We have just a few days left for Steam Next Fest so starting from now until October 17th, you will be able to earn double the XP in battles so that you can claim a bunch of cosmetic items!

On Tuesday October 17th, the demo will be deactivated. Anyone who has been given access to the game via Playtest will still be able to play after this time but servers will return to selected times instead of 24/7.

Of course, any machines you have created will transfer over to the Early Access version on November 7th. This also includes all Robits you’ve earned as well as any cosmetic items and any machines you have created. This is your reminder to play lots this weekend so that you can earn the items on the Next fest island for free!



Once the demo has been delisted, we’ll begin to work on some polish and feedback that we’ve gained during the event from players across steam and our Discord.

We published a roadmap a little while ago, and whilst most of the “coming soon” features have already been implemented, check it out to see some of our plans for the future.



We will produce a new roadmap soon so please keep an eye out for that in the near future!

Of course, if you want to be notified when the game launches on Early Access, please add the game to your wishlist from the Steam Store page below:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1991140/Robocraft_2/

In the meantime, if you’ve created an awesome Robocraft, please share screenshots of them with us! You can do this via the Screenshot upload on Steam or on our various socials like Discord and X (Twitter)!

Thank you for playing and I hope we’ll see many of you return to battle on November 7th!

Dear Player,

The new season is upon us, and the thrill is real! Engage in captivating endeavors and spirited competition until the journey reaches its peak on November 1st.

We've been hard at work to bring some exciting new changes and improvements to the game! Here’s a quick rundown of what’s new:

• Evolutions Replace Leveling: Leveling has now metamorphosed into Evolutions, opening up a new dimension of progress and power in your hands.
  
• Titles Over Nickname TAGs: "Nickname TAGs" have evolved to "Titles," offering a crisp and apt description of your accolades.
  
• Title Instead of Battle-Tag: We’ve simplified things; the Battle-Tag is removed and replaced solely with "Title."
  
• Item Level: Equipment will now display an "Item Level" to swiftly guide you in identifying superior items.
  
• Legendary Evolution: Introducing a new evolution tier – the Legendary Evolution, set to amplify your game with superior power and style.
  
• Battle Pass and Premium Version: Explore the new Battle Pass with monthly-resetting objectives and exclusive perks. Moreover, with the Premium Battle Pass, bask in additional rewards, free equipment, 3-letter usernames, and more, refreshed each month.

That's not all!
Peek into the future:

• Equip Store Rework: A comprehensive equipment store rework is underway and will span several days, injecting fresh excitement into your gameplay.
  
• New Legendary Items: Legendary items have now landed across all categories for you to claim and conquer!
  
• Items Schedule: Beginning next week, expect a new legendary item to grace the game every Friday, progressively adding to the existing assortment.
  
• Beginner-Friendly Mode: Introducing a new game mode designed for newcomers, offering a fun and safe environment up to the Diamond evolution.

And don't forget - our Halloween 🎃 event is lurking just around the corner! Keep your eyes peeled for more spooky details soon.

Thank you for continuing this journey with us. Your passion and feedback have been instrumental in shaping these updates, and we're excited to venture into this new season together!
Whether battling or evolving, fun is the ultimate conquest!

Happy gaming,
The Freakinware Team!