Chop Chop Guys Release Date

08 Dec 2024Developer post

Update 0.5.8

Hey there! A couple of days ago, we dropped a new update! This one’s extra special because the Android version is now available worldwide for the first time! 🎉 Multiplayer, however, is still only available on PC - for now. Don’t worry, it’s coming to mobile eventually. For now,

07 Aug 2024Developer post

0.5.5 Summer update

Hey there! It's been a while since our last update. We know you're eagerly waiting for new content, especially new levels. And... this update doesn't include them. ːsteamfacepalmː Wait, what?! How could we spend all this time and not make new levels?!!1 ːsteamfacepalmːːsteamfacep

Hey there! It's been a while since our last update. We know you're eagerly waiting for new content, especially new levels. And... this update doesn't include them. ːsteamfacepalmː

Wait, what?! How could we spend all this time and not make new levels?!!1 ːsteamfacepalmːːsteamfacepalmːːsteamfacepalmː

Well, we were up to all sorts of things ːchuchelsmileː

Last time, we mentioned that we were working on the Android version of the game, and we're almost done with it. We'll have a separate announcement about that soon. For now, since we're here on Steam, let's dive into what's new in version 0.5.5, which should be available to play now.

Server Update

This is probably the biggest but least noticeable change. We're temporarily moving away from dedicated game servers to a system where one player's computer acts as the server.

There are pros and cons to this. The main advantage is that the game will no longer depend on our available servers. Now, any number of people can play Chop Chop Guys at any time. The downside is that without dedicated servers, cheating might become easier. We'll mark any accounts caught cheating in our database, and before the full release, we'll wipe them. On release, we'll switch back to dedicated servers. So, cheaters will just lose all their progress. Everyone else will keep their progress and get bonus content for participating in the playtest. What content? We don't know yet. ;)

A Thousand Little Things

Since the last update, we've made over 500 commits (changes, fixes, new bugs) to the project repository. Listing them all would be impossible. Just know that the game is now a little better, a little faster, and a little prettier. Our programming machine Alex (also known as "koban") has been fixing and improving things day and night. No one remembers what exactly anymore, so just launch the game and see for yourself.

Playtest

Today, we opened access to the game for everyone who requested it earlier. This playtest will run indefinitely. At least, we don't plan to turn it off in the next month or two. We'll be fixing bugs and adding new features directly to the live game. You can report bugs on our Discord server. We read all messages almost every day.

That's all for now. See you in the game!

--
Chop Chop Guys
Dev Team

Original post

06 Mar 2024Developer post

Future plans

Hey there! In roughly four hours, we will be disabling the playtest, and you will no longer be able to play Chop Chop Guys until the next playtest. As of now, 3,290 people have access to the playtest version of Chop Chop Guys, with 450 of them playing the game last month. The gam

27 Feb 2024Developer post

Update 0.5.3

Did you notice the new screenshot on the Chop Chop Guys homepage? Something beautiful has appeared there. It's a completely updated Darts level. Like Hamlet, it has changed both externally and internally. And we think it's for the better. If you want to try everything with your o

10 Feb 2024Developer post

Version 0.5.2

A Whole New Look for the Nuclear Pillars Map New Gameplay Rules for Color Floor We've identified an issue with the Color Floor gameplay where your final position is mostly determined by the last few seconds. We're addressing this by introducing two new features: Tiles with Bonus

A Whole New Look for the Nuclear Pillars Map

New Gameplay Rules for Color Floor

We've identified an issue with the Color Floor gameplay where your final position is mostly determined by the last few seconds. We're addressing this by introducing two new features:

Tiles with Bonus Points

Points Resolution Stages

Instead of your final points being equal to the number of colored tiles at the end of the round, we now calculate points three times during the round, at the end of each progress bar.

Darts

We've changed the target points grading to emphasize precision. This adjustment is an intermediate step before a more significant gameplay and aesthetic overhaul in the next update.

Kill Bob Kill

The spawn point is now randomized after death, reducing the impact of spawn location on your chances of winning.
We've enhanced bot behavior, making them smarter—prepare accordingly!
A minor fix has been implemented for shooting direction.

Boomchicken

The rate of exploding egg spawns now varies based on the number of players remaining on the map, ensuring a fairer experience towards the round's end.

UFO

Fixed an issue where players could fly away when spawned inside the beam.

Bobsleigh

Fixed missing "blood" decals on the Bobsleigh map and in certain areas of other maps.

Run Bob Run

Improved bot behavior to reduce instances of getting stuck on the map.

Other Fixes and Improvements

Enhanced visual quality in close-up camera scenarios, allowing characters and level geometry to softly fade in and out.

Dismemberment now reflects the location of damage more accurately. For example, stepping on floor spikes will result in legs being torn off first.
Slightly reduced loading times between map transitions.
Fixed initial character rotation.
Addressed some action inconsistencies following the 'Esc' menu.
Changed the initial tiles animation on the Volcano map.
Added a 'Bad Connection' indicator for poor internet connections.
Introduced FPS and ping indicators.
The state of show/hide nicknames now persists between levels.
Added the ability to rotate your character in the main menu using the mouse, in addition to A/D or the gamepad stick.
Fixed visible gaps between character parts in certain situations.
Increased the internal physics tick rate to reduce ragdoll jitteriness.
Fixed issues with passing through bouncers at high speeds.
Enabled emotes during the intro countdown phase.
Camera now properly resets on respawn.

UI Fixes

Removed irrelevant qualified/eliminated counters for modes where they don't apply.
Corrected overlapping UI elements.
Fixed issues with item selection in the game shop not being centered.
Implemented minor typo and font corrections.

Original post

14 Jan 2024Developer post

Update 0.5.1. New Regions

Small update with a big impact just landed. We have added game servers in North and South America, as well as in the Asia region. Additionally, we've fixed the region selection in the game client, so now it actually works ;) Have a great rest of the weekend and enjoy lower latenc

11 Jan 2024Developer post

Playtest #4 This Weekend!

Hiss… Chop Chop, Guys! We're live! It's been ages since our last playtest back in May 2023. We've got a ton of new stuff for you! Instead of bombarding you with a lengthy and tedious list of hundreds of little fixes and improvements, we'll keep it short and sweet. Let's dive in!

Hiss… Chop Chop, Guys! We're live!

It's been ages since our last playtest back in May 2023. We've got a ton of new stuff for you! Instead of bombarding you with a lengthy and tedious list of hundreds of little fixes and improvements, we'll keep it short and sweet. Let's dive in!

Level Art

We've crafted some real art for the levels of Run Bob Run and Boom Chicken. With beautiful models and textures. Be sure to let us know what you think about it.

Party Matchmaking

Now you can create a session with your friends from Steam.

J-Pass

For each session, you'll earn experience that turns into J-Pass levels.
At each level, a reward awaits you in the form of costumes, animations, or in-game currency.
In total, there will be 42 levels in J-Pass.
All costumes in the battle pass are unique.

Stores

In addition to experience, JCash is also rewarded. You can spend it in the in-game store. Costumes, body materials, and emotion animation in the store do not overlap with those in the battle pass.
All items will change over time.

New Interface

We've completely redesigned the main menu. Now it looks a bit more like a real game.

Emotion Animations

We've added several animations that you can set to buttons 1, 2, 3, 4 on the keyboard or D-Pad arrows on the controller in the customization menu.

Costumes and Body Materials

Well, and a bunch of new costumes and cool leather materials, which you can find in the J-Pass and store.

Crowns

Right now, it's just a victory counter and nothing more. But you can show off with a large number of crowns to your friends ;)

Other

And literally hundreds of other small changes and bug fixes. The most important of which is that multiplayer should now behave much better. It's not perfect yet, but it's better!

The fourth playtest will begin at 00:00 UTC this Saturday, January 13. It will last for one month. Hurry up and hit the "Request Access" button on the game's Steam page to get an invitation to Chop Chop Guys!
P.S. We also have a Discord community with 600 members where you can ask about various secrets in the game. Join us!

–
Chop Chop Guys
Dev Team

Original post

30 Aug 2023Developer post

August update

Hey there! It's Minsky from Chop Chop Guys. It's been a while since our last playtest, and now it's time to share the latest updates about the development of our game. During this time, our development team has welcomed some new faces. We've got Alex, a talented Unreal programmer

Hey there! It's Minsky from Chop Chop Guys. It's been a while since our last playtest, and now it's time to share the latest updates about the development of our game.

During this time, our development team has welcomed some new faces. We've got Alex, a talented Unreal programmer from Germany, Daniel, an artist-designer from Kazakhstan, and a trio of awesome backend programmers – Karina, George, and Sergey. With these new additions, we'll be able to create bugs three times faster and make them look beautiful, thanks to the skills of a true artist. Cheers to that!

We haven't officially announced this yet, so please don't consider this paragraph an official announcement, but we've started experimenting with a mobile version of the game. Besides the opportunity to play on the go, this has actually benefited the PC version due to the optimization work we've done. Our goal is to achieve a solid 60fps at 1080p resolution on any device.

Moving on, we've begun enhancing what's commonly known as the meta-game. No, it's not about the metaverse ;) It's all about what happens beyond the core gameplay – when you're navigating through levels, dodging dangerous traps, or outplaying other gamers. There are two specific things we're currently working on: a costume store and a battle pass. If you've joined our previous playtests, you've probably gotten lost in the customization window. Well, we're revamping that window to make it user-friendly and visually appealing. It will be split into two separate interfaces – one for buying costumes and another for your inventory, where you can deck out your character. The battle pass mechanics will act as a progress indicator in the game. At the end of your gaming session, you'll earn experience and J-Cash. Experience leads to levels, which unlock new costumes in the battle pass, and you can spend J-Cash on special items in the store.

Speaking of gaming events, you might have noticed pictures from the Gamescom on our Twitter. Yep! Last week, we showcased Chop Chop Guys at one of the biggest video game exhibitions, and countless people got their hands on it! Special thanks to the Polish Indie Booth, under which the Chop Chop Guys stand was set up.

There are two more interesting points related to the gaming expo. You're probably familiar with age ratings like ESRB and PEGI for video games. Well, in Germany, where Gamescom took place, they have their own stricter rating system called USK. If your game doesn't fall under the 16+ category, you can only show it in a closed area or cover it with ominous opaque curtains. Since we couldn't rent an entire space and wanted to showcase Chop Chop Guys to as many players as possible, we took a daring step and changed all the blood in the game to purple. We want to hear from you about how this change has impacted the game. So, here's the deal...

We've launched a demo version! Yep, no need to wait for the playtest – you can try the game out anytime now. The demo version has just one limitation for now – multiplayer won't be available. That's why we'll continue to run playtests, so you can team up with your buddies or play with random folks from the internet. We'll let you know separately when the next playtest is happening. Stay tuned!

–
Chop Chop Guys
Dev Team

Original post

23 May 2023Developer post

Playtest #3 is coming!

Hi again, choppers! Get ready for some serious fun, as starting May 24th , we’re flinging open the game doors to the public. But note that you've got a limited time window of just 5 days to soak it all in. So make sure not to miss a beat! Now, what's the scoop on this epic update

Hi again, choppers!

Get ready for some serious fun, as starting May 24th, we’re flinging open the game doors to the public. But note that you've got a limited time window of just 5 days to soak it all in. So make sure not to miss a beat!

Now, what's the scoop on this epic update, you ask? Well, hold onto your seats because we've got some mind-blowing goodies lined up just for you!

Version 0.2.0 Patch Notes

We’ve added Score game mode!

No more “Back to the main menu and start matchmaking again. Just pure fun from start to end!

In each round, you'll earn points just by playing. Now, here's where the excitement kicks in: on "race" maps, the speedy finishers will snatch up extra points, so it's all about crossing that finish line in record time! On the flip side, on "survival" maps, the longer you manage to hold on, the more points you'll gather.

But wait, there's more! It's not just about one round—oh no! We're taking it to the next level. Over the course of four rounds, you'll accumulate your scores. And guess what? The player with the highest total score at the end of it all takes home the glorious victory!

We are finally launching a Multiplayer!

As we’ve mentioned in our last Playtest, Chop Chop Guys is meant to be a multiplayer game. And we are excited to share with you adding multiplayer in the game!

However, this is our first iteration of this groundbreaking feature and we’re still in the testing phase, so bear with us.

Now, we're still cooking up a party mode to take things to the next level, but trust us, it's in the works. Stay tuned for even more multiplayer madness coming your way!

New costumes added!

Dress your Bobs to impress, and let the cuteness and laughter ensue! We have 4 exciting new costumes for you this time.

And here’s a sneak peek at new options for customizing your lovely Bob

New UFO level

Embark on an extraterrestrial adventure with our thrilling new UFO level!

Picture this: a mischievous UFO, equipped with a powerful sucking ray, is on a mission to capture you. But you're not going down without a fight, are you? Keep collecting those precious points by staying in the ray on the edge of being sucked up. It's a balancing act like no other!

So buckle up, because the UFO level is about to take you on a wild ride. Remember, in this crazy universe, the points keep coming for you being in the beam while resisting the alien allure. May the force be with you, and let the UFO madness begin!

Musical theme added for each level

We kept our promise and made beautifully handcrafted music for each game level. So grab those headphones, crank up the volume, and get ready to groove to the rhythm of the game.
We can't wait to see you rockin' and rollin' to the beats we've lovingly created for you!

And a small reminder on how to participate

Don't forget to request access (green button on the game's Steam page) and just wait until Wednesday, May 24th 20:00 CET. If you still have questions, you could ask them on the Steam Discussions or in our official Discord Server.

Phew, we've bombarded you with a ton of awesome updates, but don't worry, we've got your back. Make sure to take a good look at all these mind-blowing additions we've cooked up for this Playtest. We can't wait to hear what you think!

Original post

31 Mar 2023Developer post

What's next?

In January and February, we held two closed playtests. We found out that people like our game, which motivates us to continue working and improving the project. Today, we want to share our upcoming plans. For a long time, we thought about the pros and cons of the Battle Royale mo

20 Feb 2023Developer post

End of Playtest #2 and Survey

Playtest #2 has just ended. Thank you to everyone who joined to play! We now have over 2,000 players, which is 75% more than last time. Hooray! Yes, we were supposed to end the playtest at 00:00 UTC. But who are we to deny these three guys from Hawaii a chance to play on a Sunday

14 Feb 2023Developer post

Alert! Playtest #2 is coming!

Hey there! Starting this Friday until Sunday midnight, you can play Chop Chop Guys all around the world! Just hit the green “Request Access” button on the Steam page and you'll get an email when the playtest goes live. We've spent a month cleaning up the project. Fun fact, the fi

Hey there!

Starting this Friday until Sunday midnight, you can play Chop Chop Guys all around the world! Just hit the green “Request Access” button on the Steam page and you'll get an email when the playtest goes live.

We've spent a month cleaning up the project. Fun fact, the first build was approximately 1GB, but we managed to reduce it to just 300MB without losing any content. Well, we did lose a couple of textures here and there (ten points for those who notice where), but we'll find them for the next update ;)

There are three new costumes in this update. Aren't they cute?

You may also notice from the previous playtest that we're using the same musical theme for all our levels, except for maybe the main menu. Of course, we want (and will) have a unique theme for each game level. In this update, we've prepared the first one for the Bobsleigh level. With time, we'll make a beautifully handcrafted music theme for every single one of them.

Despite 250+ commits in our repository and 70+ tasks closed in our task tracker since January 8th, there are still many bugs and not much content. How is that possible, huh? Well, before going into full-speed content production, we must resolve so-called “technical debt.” Also, you may notice that Chop Chop Guys is meant to be an online multiplayer title. For a long time, we've been working on two separate branches: multiplayer and singleplayer with bots. We needed the latter so we could deliver the game prototype to you as soon as possible. January was when we merged these versions into a single codebase. The multiplayer still won't be available during this playtest, but we're just a few steps behind it.

One more thing. During the previous playtest, we noticed that PCs fans get really noisy when running Chop Chop Guys. That was because we forgot to enable VSync by default, so the game was basically running at an unlimited FPS rate. Now VSync will be turned on by default, so the game's framerate will be limited to your screen refresh rate. Usually, it's 60Hz, 75Hz, 144Hz, etc.

So, what should you do now? Don't forget to request access (green button on the game's Steam page) and just wait until Friday, February 17th. If you still have questions, you could ask them on the Steam Discussions or in our official Discord Server. Cheers!

P.S. Happy Valentine's Day!

Original post

14 Jan 2023Developer post

Playtest #1 Wrap-up

Hey everyone! On January 8th, we wrapped up our first playtest for Chop Chop Guys and we wanted to share some of the results with you as well as let you know our next plans. Initially, we had planned for just a couple of our friends and acquaintances to come and play the game wit

Hey everyone! On January 8th, we wrapped up our first playtest for Chop Chop Guys and we wanted to share some of the results with you as well as let you know our next plans.

Initially, we had planned for just a couple of our friends and acquaintances to come and play the game with us, just to make sure it runs on different computers. But we were curious to see how streamers on Twitch would react to Chop Chop Guys, so we reached out to a small list of streamers who recently streamed games similar to ours. Out of the 20 people we contacted, 9 responded and it was really cool! Some of them immediately streamed the game, recorded videos or made TikTok clips. Seeing other people take an interest in something you've been working on for a long time is really motivating! To make things even more exciting, one of them showed the game to their friend, who turned out to be TheNinjaProXD. He started streaming Chop Chop Guys on his channel and even posted a link to our Discord server in his chat. As a result, our Discord server grew from practically nothing to 150 people! Another guy, monodemando, also posted a link to us on his Discord server and we got a few more people from there too. Now, both monodemando and TheNinjaProXD are helping us with moderating the server, for which we are incredibly grateful. In the end, instead of a few of our friends, over 1200 people signed up for the playtest, with 800 of them actually playing the game.

Interestingly, the majority of the players were from the Spanish-speaking community. This is probably because Spanish-speaking streamers were the most active in responding to our call to show the game before the playtest began.

Just to clarify, what exactly we were testing during the Playtest. To avoid confusion with terms like Alpha version or Beta version, let's just say that the version we tested is at least one year away from the full release of the game. Essentially, this was the first playable prototype, where the basic game mechanics (movement, dash, pushing) are working and there's a minimal set of levels to convey the essence of the game.

What We Took Away from the Playtest Results

The overwhelming majority of feedback was overwhelmingly positive. People are really enjoying the game. Yeah!
Not many people understood that this was not a finished game, but rather a barely functioning prototype. We'll have to prepare the announcements better in the future. But can you imagine what it will be like when we're finished?
A couple of silly bugs. For example, v-sync was turned off by default, which caused some computer fans to make noise (because the game doesn't limit FPS and the video card is working at maximum capacity).
Many requested a mobile version. Currently, we're not thinking about it. We plan to develop the game exclusively on Steam for at least the next 6 months.
Everyone wants more maps and costumes. Definitely. We're already working on new maps and costumes.
The game is difficult. For now, we're not doing anything about it. We'll see how quickly players progress from "this is incredibly difficult" to "this is too easy, can we get something more serious?

What We'll Be Doing Next and What We're Doing Right Now

Going forward from the first prototype and based on your feedback, we'll be moving ahead with 2 or 4-week iterations. We're not sure yet how quickly we'll be able to release new updates, but we'll figure that out as we go. In each update, we'll be working on specific parts of the game such as multiplayer, controller support, finalizing graphics for certain levels or adding new levels, etc. Once an update is ready, we'll be running a new playtest, usually starting on Thursday evening and ending on Sunday night. This is how we'll be developing Chop Chop Guys for the next six months.

Right now, we're working on various improvements to the game's internal workings that we've been putting off for a while. It'll take another couple of weeks. Unfortunately, from the player's perspective, this won't result in a significant visible outcome, but it's essential that we do this now so that development can proceed faster in the future. Among other less noticeable things, we'll fix bugs that we saw during the first playtest, ensure good support for different gamepads, and create a couple of new skins.

That's it for today. What can you do while you wait for the next playtest to begin? For example, you can subscribe to our Twitter and Instagram where we post funny pictures of the development process and where you'll also be able to follow important news about the project.

Cheers!
Chop Chop Guys Dev Team

Original post

01 Jan 2023Developer post

Happy New Year! Happy Playtesting!

Happy New Year! We wish you only the best games this year! And speaking of the best games, here is our attempt at creating one. "Chop Chop Guys" is a bizarre competition of bizarre characters in a bizarre world. We started developing the game with this tagline. If you've already

Updates & announcements

Server Update

A Thousand Little Things

Playtest

And below, I'll tell you a bit more about the new features at the level.

A Whole New Look for the Nuclear Pillars Map

New Gameplay Rules for Color Floor

Tiles with Bonus Points

Points Resolution Stages

Darts

Kill Bob Kill

Boomchicken

UFO

Bobsleigh

Run Bob Run

Other Fixes and Improvements

UI Fixes

Level Art

Party Matchmaking

J-Pass

Stores

New Interface

Emotion Animations

Costumes and Body Materials

Crowns

Other

Hi again, choppers!

Version 0.2.0 Patch Notes

We’ve added Score game mode!

We are finally launching a Multiplayer!

New costumes added!

New UFO level

Musical theme added for each level

And a small reminder on how to participate

What We Took Away from the Playtest Results

What We'll Be Doing Next and What We're Doing Right Now