Dev Log: New Tutorial Mode, Global Settings & RPG AI Fixes!

Hi everyone!

I’ve got a fresh update ready for you today focusing on onboarding new players, saving your settings globally, and optimizing the backend RPG AI logic. Here is a breakdown of what's new:

📖 Guided Tutorial Mode

I’ve added a guided Tutorial Mode to help new players get their bearings with the chess RPG mechanics.

• Learn by Doing: The tutorial walks you through your first battle, guides you through upgrading your King, and shows you how to secure your first victory.

• Isolated Saves: Tutorial progression uses its own separate save state, meaning you can play through it at any time without worrying about overwriting your main or Hard mode runs!

⚙️ Global Settings Persistence

No more resetting your volume every time you reload the game! I've decoupled settings from your gameplay save files:

• True Persistence: Board themes, music/SFX toggles, and master volume settings are now stored globally.

• Seamless Transitions: Your options will now remain consistent whether you are browsing the main menu, playing in Normal/Hard modes, or restarting the game.

🧠 AI & Backend Logic Fixes

I’ve also made some logic improvements to the AI calculations and combat simulations:

• FixedRPG Move CalculationsFixed simulation issues where the minimax CPU would incorrectly predict combat results under RPG health and damage rules. It now models surviving defenders and rollback states perfectly.
• FixedPerformance WatchdogFixed a watchdog loop that would occasionally spam calculation requests when the CPU fallback was thinking, leading to much smoother performance during complex AI turns.

Thank you so much for playing, and as always, let me know your thoughts in the forums!

— Solo Dev