Full notes
Full Frost Protocol update
Read the full published notes in a cleaner layout. The original post stays linked below.
What changed
- Gameplay
- Performance
- UI and audio
- Balance
- Maps
DevLog #4 – Combat system updates
Hi guys!
Why am I starting with Devlog #4? Older devlogs are on itch.io (https://atlas-corp.itch.io/station-11) But from now on, I'll post each devlog here as well.
This week, i solely worked on the combat system or rather everything related to the expeditions (and I actually stayed with turn-based instead of realtime!) The combat actually seems fun now, even though replayed it dozens and dozens of times...
New Features:
Combat Abilities
Better pathfinding / Simulataneous movement of enemies
Task system updates
Details:
2D grid system for pathfinding → Changed to A* for better performance
Turn manager → All enemies first decide on their path and then start to move -> no waiting for dozens of enemies to move one after another! (This took MOST of the time...)
Combat abilites: including UI, animation, sound → Reload: Uses 1 magazine to reload ammo → Line Attack: attacks monsters in a single line (Cooldown 1 turn) → Shock Attack: stuns all enemies in a circular range for 1 turn (Cooldown 3 turns) → Single attack: High dmg attack on a single enemy
2 different enemy types with different dmg and movement range
Basic armor system for enemies
Tasks on expeditions → Tasks have skill requirements (Engineering, Physics, Biology, etc..) and a duration → When a character performs a task, it can lead to a → Failure: No progress → Success: -1 duration → Crit Success: -2 duration → Chances are based on character skills vs task requirement
UI changes / updates → Select characters and robots by UI icons → Robot: show abilites / cooldowns / ammo / magazines
Map updates: more details: rocks, plants, etc.
Design Decisions:
Decision #1 - Visit expeditions once vs multiple times At first, I planned for the player to revisit an expedition, if it wasn't finished the first time, which leads to balancing HELL! Now, you have 1 chance -> higher stakes, easier balancing, better gameplay.
Whats next?
The next days, I want to focus on the base management. After that's finished (at a basic level), the gameloop is done and I can start a few alpha test with playtesters.
Conclusion:
Very happy with the combat system and the atmosphere that it's creating.
Wishlist the game, if you like it so far!
For more gifs and images, check out my Bluesky or Twitter accounts (I'm posting daily):
Source
Changelog.gg summarizes and formats this update. How we read updates.