Hey!

Its been another month and time for an update from the developer - aka me :)

As mentioned previously in Developer News I'm working on changing some fundamental things in the game, related directly or indirectly to multiplayer.
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1079260/view/3660917344836649708

Disclaimer: Keep in mind that I am here talking about things I am working on at the moment. You won't have access to these until the next open beta + they might have changed before we get to that.
Just want to make that clear, so you do not expect to see this in the game right now.

Originally it was my idea that Fireworks Mania in multiplayer would be a game you played only with friends and people you knew, why I started out with just having a JoinCode as you might remember from the public alpha.
However, I got a lot of feedback from the community on this topic. Many players wanted to play with friends of cause, but also play with other random people from the community.

Therefore I have this month started adding a "Server list" into the game.



It's still very work-in-progress but it works and I must admit it adds a lot more to the game than I was expecting as it feels more "alive" now that you can see and join others (if they decided to play public of cause. Making private games will be possible too, just haven't implemented that as of writing).


Not a lot to say other than the work continues on improving the UI. UI isn't what I'm best at, so its trial and error to find what feels right. I'll let the gifs below show the current state.




Not all I'm doing is directly related to multiplayer, like the new "Toolbar/Tool selection" feature I implemented during a live stream previously this week.

At the end of this live stream I show off some multiplayer gameplay too if you are interested.

Over the years I have gotten feedback that some would like to have a more "standard" way to switch the tools. With the number 1-5 on the keyboard, as it's done in many other games.
While developing this on the live stream there were already feedback that people liked the possibility to use the numbers to switch, however, not all wanted more UI on the screen. It is not implemented yet, but later on I plan to make some more settings so you have more control over what UI elements you actually want on the screen. Like permanently hiding Toolstips, the new toolbar in the bottom etc.
However, it will be a bit later.

A very common feedback I'm getting is that the game loads too slow.
In general that's not really the case as if you play the standard game with no mods, the game loads very fast.
However, players do have a point when it comes to having 200+ mods installed because that can be pretty slow with loading time of many minutes.

I think part of the reason players are "complaining" about the load times is because community mods is a official support and build-in feature that is super easy to use in Fireworks Mania - which is kind of a new'ish thing.

Not too many years back modding a game was something the community did without any help or support from the developers. The community thereby needed to "hack" their way to modding a game. This also mend that using mods in game were something that only more advanced players were doing and it was hard to get working, so when the game loaded slower due to the fact that it needed to load in a lot more stuff that is was part of the game, players understood why and were just happy when it finally worked.

In Fireworks Mania this is much simpler and easier to do. You go to the Workshop, subscribe to some stuff you find interesting and start a game. In general it just works, of cause as always with community generated stuff, not all works and I can't fix everything, but in general mods are of a very high quality in Fireworks Mania - because the mod creators are awesome :D

As a little example of their awesomeness, I can inform that the base game have around 70 pieces of fireworks. The modding community have added around 2000'ish! That's a ton of work from the modding community that the entire Fireworks Mania community benefits from - which is also why I'm trying all I can to make it as easy for both mod creators and players to create and use mods in the game.

The downside of this being so easy in Fireworks Mania is that players might forgot, or for good reason don't know, that they are adding extra external stuff to the game that needs to be downloaded, loaded into memory and progress by the game when it loads a map.

I'll see what I can do in the future to make this a bit more obvious.

Oh, and by the way, I cut the mod loading time in half in this new version of the game :)

I hear you. Almost daily I see on the Discord, YouTube, DMs etc. you guys asking for when you can try out multiplayer.
I'll be posting an announcement about that sometimes over the next weeks - so keep an eye here on Steam!

And by the way, please appreciate the screenshot at the top - it was almost impossible to get people to lineup for a photoshoot!


YouTube | Twitter | Discord

- Enjoy!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1079260/Fireworks_Mania__An_Explosive_Simulator/

Check out the event & try our demo if you haven't already! Share your best screenshots with us on Twitter with the hashtag #LunaAbyss or on our Discord!

maboroshi caravan Ver.0.2.38 now available.
*If only minor bugs are fixed, no patch notes will be listed.

• Added list of used keywords to JOURNEY LOGS
  
• Added a detail list of member's tendency to JOURNEY LOGS
  
• Added a detail list of place caravan visited to JOURNEY LOGS
  
• Added a new type of member
  
• Added new titles
  
• Added encounter caravan based on caravan registration
  
• Adjusted translated text
  
• Fixed minor bugs

■Added list of used keywords to JOURNEY LOGS
■Added a detail list of member's tendency to JOURNEY LOGS
■Added a detail list of place caravan visited to JOURNEY LOGS
I implemented it based on the requests I received. You can see used keywords, the number of past materialized members, the number of times you visited a city, and various records.

■Added encounter caravan based on caravan registration
Added caravans you will encounter along the journey, thank you for your application.

Thank you for observing the caravan this month. Please continue to observe the caravan.

Bugfix

• The plant on first floor had a graphical glitch before meeting the little girl for the first time, this was fixed
  
• Sometimes portraits weren't removed properly, this was fixed.
  
• Stamina bar wasn't removed from Coward ending, this was fixed.

1.【新增】金元素卡牌
2.【新增】部分召唤系卡牌
3.【新增】游戏难度设置最高难度5
4.【修复】手力炮系列有时候没有特效
5【优化】BOSS附加了一些元素属性
6.【优化】替换部分怪物模型

Hi everyone! The v0.8.6 patch is out. It is a very small patch that aims to fix the 2 last major known issues in the v0.8.

Bugs
- Fix Tech ship spawning while all technologies have been unlocked
- Try to Fix Scenario achievements not unlocking sometimes

If you face any bugs or think that something needs balance, don't hesitate to tell us! We will be happy to take a look!

That's all for today,

Thank you for your support!
Have a great day!

Get the game at 31% off during the Steam Scream Fest!

War broke between the industrious Imperium and the savage tribes of Wilderness. Demons and carrions have returned to the land.



Enter the world ripe with magic and monsters. Become the Black Swordsman and slay thousands of enemies!

The original soundtrack for Reliefs The time of the Lemures is now available!

This soundtrack contains 36 unique musics, including 5 exclusive tunes, not present in the game, but composed for it.

There are around 37 minutes of listening time in total in this soundtrack.

Reliefs The time of the Lemures Soundtrack link

With only a few months remaining until the release, it's the perfect time to resurrect our Dev Diary series. After a much-needed one-week vacation following our previous crowdfunding campaign, we're back in full swing, ready to tackle the challenges ahead.

• We've sent the build to Valve for their final approval.
  
• I did a complete playthrough of Cyberpunk 2027.
  
• We've conducted interviews with several talented 2D artists to update our key art and in-game portraits.
  
• Questwriting is underway. That’s a lot of text and documentation.
  
• Adding new nextgen visual features to the engine.
  
• Adding more items like weapons and loot.
  
• New music tracks incoming!
  
• Looks like we have one more 3D modeler now. Good opportunity to make new land levels.

While we can't reveal everything we've accomplished over the past couple of weeks, we're excited to share a few enticing sneak peeks.


Our composer has been diligently working on completing the OST. Only six tracks remain to be composed, which will encompass national themes and music for Justice Island, also known as the City of Abandoned Ships.

Here's a work-in-progress French theme, offering a glimpse of what we're aiming for:
https://youtu.be/bRyuz-SA5o0
New music track (WIP): French Americas

Originally, we had planned to remix the legendary themes from the first Sea Dogs game, invoking a sense of warm nostalgia. However, we are now considering the possibility of creating entirely new compositions.

We have another track to share with you today, one of the new tavern themes. There's no better place for gambling, drinking, seduction, and shady activities than a tavern!

https://youtu.be/M1pU1y7gWvw
New music track: Party Like 1660


As mentioned previously, we faced challenges in our 3D department. However, the situation has improved, and we're excited to announce the addition of more land locations to the game. We've already added two new ones in the past two weeks. The video below showcases one of these locations, which will serve as an office for a smuggler specializing in heavy ship armaments.

https://youtu.be/dyaaLjUonTI
Wait a sec, how did he get those inside?

But that's not all. We really want to expand our jungle locations. The original set felt limited and somewhat repetitive, so we're considering not only adding more locations but also making them distinct and introducing additional gameplay mechanics.




This serves as a testament to how crowdfunding enhances game development. Initially, we only had a couple of new items planned for release, but now we've expanded our arsenal to include over ten unique weapons. Our goal is to make each new weapon stand out, providing players with fresh and exciting experiences. Some of these new weapons are downright unconventional but undeniably enjoyable.

Consider the customizable barrel musket: if muskets aren't your preference, simply remove the long barrel and stock to transform it into a stylish pistol.


True high-tech.

The Sclopetta grenade launcher is effective but requires both hands to operate. If you prefer wearing heavy armor and swinging a big axe or broadsword, this compact weapon might come in handy.


You are gonna need a lot of crafting materials for that special ammo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRWqzfbW7pw
And please, don’t forget to equip a powder tester!

Lastly, behold the sexiest pirate cutlass in the Caribbean.



That wraps up today's update. The next diary is scheduled in two weeks. Don't forget to add our game to your Steam wishlist and follow us for the latest updates. Join our Discord community; tonight, we're hosting a stream and a podcast!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2230980/

Fixed an issue where Clank's turrets would no longer shoot