Whoa. Things have been quiet here for the entirety of 2020. Maybe we could call it intentional? Auto Fire has made great progress, but the updates posted to the web just never made their way here, and that's criminal. In the light of 2021 we apologize, and appreciate you sticking with us.
Auto Fire has made significant strides, and there's a lot to talk about!
Less Suffering, More Superstars
Something that seeps from of the cracks of Auto Fire's early footage is the standard desert post-apocalypse Mad Max thing. That dust-n-misery vibe is actually not quite accurate. Yes, there are deserts, and yes there was an apocalypse... of sorts. However, most of humanity is holed up in high-tech walled cities, protected from the dangerous world outside, and they are... bored. Drivers are their heroes. The life of a driver is both a fight for your life and a hustle for followers... and the new UI helps reflect that. Rusty metal is out, smart tablets are in.
There is a larger emphasis on characters... They are more prominent in encounters and they now are equipped to refer to each other in dialogue (which will continue to grow). The player's "feed" takes the place of a traditional Roguelike combat log, fielding Toots by your opponents as well as the chatter of each sector's residents.
Expanding the Fleet
The core fantasy of any vehicle game is acquiring more awesome cars and decking them out, so now the player can purchase better rides in citadels, and swap them out as they desire. Some of these professional rigs look pretty great, but just remember that the scrubs out in the wastes have new gear also... it just happens to be cobbled together from whatever rusty scrap they could find.
Hitting the Road
Sectors are now connected to each other via a highway map that must be braved to drive across the state. These are lawless routes with all the hazards of traveling long distances, and will ultimately be the setting of convoy missions as well. Eastbound and down!
Bigger and Better
The cars are always the stars of the show in Auto Fire, and originally the buildings were deliberately scaled down to help communicate the gridlines and avoid obstructing the player. However, those tiny structures inspired city roads to be two tiles across... this was just a little too cramped for enjoyable driving. As a result, everything has received a scale overhaul, bringing the world up to give a greater punch. City roads are still two tiles across, but there's now room for sidewalks that you can drive on if you need more space to maneuver.
More and More
The past year has had a lot more than that, and there's more to learn as the weeks continue forward:
- Ordnance is required for specific explosive weapons. Most weapons have unlimited ammo but use cooldowns, but for extra punch sometimes rockets are what you need.
- Entering new areas now requires gas. Cars have power cells for combat maneuvering, but real fuel is needed for scouting missions and long distance travel. A few weapons use gas as ammunition also, but are best used sparingly.
- Armor is now distributed around a vehicle in "plates", which helps players see which sides are more heavily armored on each vehicle.
- New visual effects!
- New environments, terrain and grass!
That's just the beginning... there's a lot more to see. All we can ask is that you stick around, and we'll see you on the road!
