Demo update #2

For the second update we've focused on a number of things, there are a couple new modules, tweaks and balance updates, but most importantly we've completely revamped the driver system and improved the tutorial!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3350900/Fogpiercer_Demo/

The new driver system

Previously drivers had a levelling system, wherein the player collected experience points by destroying enemies, and then adding one of the driver cards into their deck when levelling up. Although not a bad system, since inception of the idea, we wanted the driver cards to feel more special, more impactful akin to an ultimate skill.

This all lead to the decision to go ahead and try something new! We've removed the experience point and leveling system, and replaced it with a much simpler one where the player gets points by dealing damage (each driver will have a different trigger), once the gauge fills up, the player is instantly given a random driver card, that has to be used during the turn. At the same time we also made the driver cards more powerful!

Before:

After:

Tutorial changes

The tutorial is another part that we wanted to take a step further, apart from fixing bugs and implementing safeguards against soft locks we also added an additional fight encounter that is really tough to beat (not impossible!):

This way you'll have more of an opportunity to test out what the numerous cards and carriages are capable of!

Changelog

Alright! Let's take a look at the list of things that have been added/changed/fixed in the demo!

Added

• New modules

  • Piston Overdrive

  • reduce movement cost by 1AP every 4th train move in fight

  • Scrap King

  • tier 5

  • grant 1AP every 3 exhausted cards

  • Diamong Diamond Hands

  • tier 6

  • do not discard hand at the end of the turn. -1AP. cannot exceed maximum hand size

  • Extra valve

  • draw an extra card for 5 discarded cards

  • Vents

  • gain 1AP for every 10th enemy intent

  • Lookout

  • add 1 shield to the locomotive for every 15th enemy move

  • New module illustrations, updated some of the old ones!

  • Stranger

  • Random card gets randomized AP when drawing hand

  • Shielded Wheels

  • carriages take no damage from ramming if shielded

• New stats that contribute to making spikes, each adds 1 spike at the end of the run

• Redesigned the UI for end of run stats

  • Cliff throws

  • Cliff collisions

  • Ram kills

  • Env. hazard Kills

• initial stop !

  • gives a random selection of 3 bonuses

  • happens right after pressing the start button

  • counts as a "station mode" since the train is stationary, meaning you can sell / upgrade right there

  • subject to change

• New driver system

  • Fill gauge for every point of damage that happens in the game

  • When full, get a driver card in your hand.

  • If unused it disappears

  • Driver cards are 0AP

  • Driver screen UI

• deck button at the end of run screen

• "Extra overdrive card" boost card

• when the next overdrive triggers, you get an extra driver card

  • can be stacked

• label that mentions number of turns left for applied effects

  • i.e. burn will last 1 more turn

• Attack order button and panel

• When launching the game, you'll now be presented with running the game either with Vulkan (default) or D3D12

  • use the latter if you're experiencing crashes and let us know!

• warning message when the player doesn't have enough spikes to unlock a module or a card

• driver card activation SFX

• new fight encounter in tutorial

Changed

• start run bottom tab buttons are now hidden in tutorial as not to confuse new players primary button sound effect

• "Grant" to "Gain" rewording

• Improved audio for random encounters

• Pause menu "Restart" button now specifically mentions that it restarts the run, to avoid run/encounter confusion

• bigger ranges for all of Monica's cards

• redesigned driver screen to align with the new driver system (Overdrive)

• changed XP boost card to give +2 extra overdrive points next time the gauge ticks

• "Bandit Intel" module is changed to "Intel", gives +1 overdrive point every time the gauge ticks

  • effectively making overdrive gauge progress twice as fast

• improved mouse hover area for the overdrive gauge

• auto-accept loading screen by default

• train steam blow-off sounds in stations got tweaked

• Illustration for "Overdrive points" card

• Improved illustration of Extra valve

• pimped the visuals of in-game console

• removed "Driver cards" panel from the end of run screen

• deck is reset at the end of the fight instead of before the next one

• Shield siphon -> can be used on any unit. The unit doesn't need to have any shield

• makes it possible to steal shield from one carriage to another

• Overdrive boost card now gives 10 extra points instead of 2

  • can be stacked

• Improved the deckview pop up

• Effects

  • changed the logic of effects

  • they all last 1 turn by default now

  • their on unit effects are applied after attacking

  • effect lifetime is reduced at the end of enemy turn (and removed when it reaches 0)

• "Save slots" are now separated from the main play button.

• Default FPS limit is 144 instead of uncapped (Vsync is ON by default)

• module and card previews are now larger in the first screen

• Lookout illustration has been changed

  • The previous one will become a new module

• new Carriages are free in tutorial runs

Fixed

• correct loading of Module id 20, this hadn't been an issue till today, but the bug was there, FIXED!

• correct picking of modules for random encounters

• Golden Circuits no longer has an incorrect counter label

• deck view UI no longer has a moving return button for the module screen

• game crashing when an env hazard destroys an enemy with active intent while the game is on the fastest animation speed

• "carragies to buy" animation speed now also responds to animation speed setting

• improved code handling validity of carriage level meshes

• rewards panels no longer block mouse events when disappearing

• driver screen and the deck screen no longer allow the contextual information panel to pop up

• floating card info panel no longer jumps up and down randomly when looking for its own position

• driver cards no longer stay on hand when "diamond hands" module is active

• invisible station stop lights no longer make constant ticking sounds

• driver cards contain the "Driver card" effect even before they're added to the hand

• Repair button

  • uses the correct word for currency

  • updates instantly when the amount of scraps changes

• Better handling of max hand size for "Diamond hands"

• Card information panel will always close when a card / module were bought in the shop

• Cards with a single effect did not show it, they do now!

• bottom screen player message correctly recalculates its center point

• units flash white again when damaged or upgraded

• all discarded cards go away from the hand (data wise) hopefully fixing shadow cards!

• discarded cards correctly registered by Extra Valve

• driver cards are always destroyed at the end of the turn

• only driver cards are driver cards now

• price of card removal is now properly calculated not only shown

• driver cards are removed when deck is reset

• time tracking is stopped the moment the run is finished

  • pause screen no longer keep on tracking the time after a run's been ended

• most fullscreen UI Pop Ups no longer allow focusing grid elements with the mouse

• card details panel now properly disappears after buying a card

• overdrive instant boost cards can appear regardless of player XP (legacy driver system)

• card details panel correctly disappears after removing a card (edge case)

• shield siphon no longer unlocks free endless shielding on the available cells

• Shop UI can no longer be abused. It is cleared up once the train leaves a chop shop encounter

• AP sprite on cards no longer casts shadows

• Attack order no longer hidden behind other elements

• God mode (take no damage), is now correctly applied and saved when going in and out of tutorial

• Destabilized shows its visual again

• Extra Valve (fingers crossed)

That's it for this update! It's live now so have fun trying out the new stuff and let us know how it went! Cheers!