Dev Brief #8 | Introducing Stronghold Mode

For today’s devlog we’re going to be talking about a major change that we have been working on since our last playable build, our gameplay mode.

If you’ve been following our journey along the way on our social channels, you may have seen us use phrases like “the game will never be the same again” or “You’ll hardly recognize it.” While they may be overused cliches in gaming marketing today, we want to convey that when we say everything will change, we mean it.

Our previous mode, which featured three bombing runs that forced you into the shelters with the opportunity to go outside and scrounge for loot, is completely gone. It is now being replaced with what we call Stronghold mode.

To start with, you are no longer fighting on your own. When you enter Stronghold mode, you’ll be placed in a lobby where you can pick your team, select one of five different classes with unique loadouts, and voice chat with team members to talk strategy. These classes also mean that you no longer start empty-handed. Instead, you’ll begin with a basic weapon depending on your class. In addition, you will be able to customize your clothing in your character menu before you play, but it’ll be up to you to find or craft armour.

This new change encourages team play and allows players to set the match's pace.

Stronghold mode takes place in 3 phases: Prepping, Stronghold and Battle for Survival.

Like in our last game mode, this phase is about gathering as much material, weapons and gear as possible to build your army. Finding loot won’t be easy, as you’ll have to find special hiding places on the map where loot will be randomly spawned to create more of a dynamic match.

Another major change we’ve introduced is removing your hunger and thirst needs. Instead, any food you find along the way will help give you back some health, and water will bring back stamina.

We’re also introducing special map missions to unlock secret spots on the map and earn team currency (more on that later). Anyone on the team can perform these missions and you won’t need special items to complete most of them, but teamwork can be very important to pull these off.

All of our maps will include various choke points where opponents are forced to fight it out in close quarter combat and open spaces giving players more freedom to move around. Of course, where you go is all up to you and your playstyle.

This is where things get really interesting.

During the stronghold phase, players are now encouraged to go into their defensive phase. Bombs are going off outside, and it’s time to get into our bunker and claim your stronghold.

Each stronghold will be your team's main point of operation going forward. Like a game of capture the flag, you and your team will have to work together to find and claim your spot before other teams can get to it. Once you’re in there, you and your team can close the stronghold door, use your newly unlocked crafting bench and use your collected resources to get to work.

We’re also introducing an earned currency system where players can use that towards the team budget allowing you to build more defences, amenities like water sources and upgrade your crafting benches. A better level of workbench means better gear. The team currency can also be used to buy mystery boxes that may contain some valuable loot that will come in handy for the fight ahead.

The catch? There are not enough strongholds to go around. By design, there will always be one team without a spot to call home. This team will now be called the Saboteurs and will be given access to a special control room where they can wreak havoc on their opponents. The saboteur team also gets the opportunity to buy mystery boxes where a random weapon spawns.

If you die here you will still re-spawn (more on that later), but you won’t be able to get back into the bunker until phase 3.

The bombing has stopped, bunker gates are open again and it’s time to get to your evacuation bus. This time though buses work a bit differently than before.

Instead of a driver pulling up to take all players to safety, teams will now have to track down the bus, get the bus ready and take it over in a capture the flag style gameplay. Fortune favours the bold, so the only way to win is to go on the offensive in this winner-take-all ending.

Oh! And those players that you managed to take down in phase two? They’re back now but not as you might remember them. All players that have re-spawned from phase two on have become animals and are back with a vengeance to help their team. Respawning players will have a choice of what animal they want to come back as. So now you have to fight off humans as well as their moose, bear and wolf friends. Good luck!

If you manage to fend them off and capture your bus, you and your team will be rewarded with a cut scene to celebrate your victory.

So that’s a short look at our new Stronghold mode. While we’re excited to show it to you once it’s ready, we want to emphasize that this is still a work in progress, and things may still drastically change before we present you with our playable build.

So why Stronghold mode?

So you might be wondering why we made this change? After months of playtests and player feedback, we realized that our previous system was too unclear, and most players didn’t really know what to do next.

We believe that Stronghold mode gives players clearer objectives and reasons to play as a unit. The game will feel more dynamic, fast-paced and give you and your teammates more opportunities for strategic gameplay, just as we intended from the start.

Have any questions or want to see developments as it happens? Join our Discord server. We’ll keep dropping new screenshots and videos as we continue development.

• 5 Fortress Dev Team

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