DD#236 Back to the Battlefield

Hi, everyone, welcome to the first developer's diary of August!

Now that people are no longer dying, I can focus on the game's updates. (Alright, this is not funny at all.) Also, the developer's diary's title has nothing to do with EA's upcoming Battlefield 6. It's about the Siege of Dana.

This week, the storyline there received some big pushes so that an obstacle to our main story is about to be removed. During this week's updates, you can get into a covert operation to take down an important military objective of the machine invasion, allowing the North Legion to get rid of the invasion force in their town. (If there is anything that the ongoing war in real life has taught us, that is, you do not fight an enemy that can send endless cannon fodder in a WW1 style trench warfare. You go take down their command center, communication nexus, and logistic hubs. And that is what this part of the quest is about.)

Once this counterattack is successful, you can see the soldiers literally turn enemy machines into junk piles, which you can dig and recycle some materials.

Of course, such a unique quest requires some unique rewards.

So, a new blade has been added that allows you to freeze those machine foes into endless blue screens. It works on other enemies, too. Alternatively, you could use it to make some ice cream this summer just for fun.
Background story: The name of this blade comes from Old Norse. It means the "Echo of Winter." It matches this Skyrim-like island pretty well, especially when you figure out what the count is really up to later.

Now, talk about the Count. As you finish this part of the quest, you will gain some relationship points with him and also with the general Dana population. But let's not stop here because the next stage of the quest starts shortly afterwards.

If you remember that tunnel underneath the shelter that is filled with all kinds of anomalies, it's time to get back down there. It's a rule-based horror. But, how many rules are real, and who wrote those rules, for what purposes? It's time to uncover parts of the truth. There is a secret room down there. During the story, you will be instructed to break one of the rules intentionally. This week's story ends here. But things are just about to get more interesting.

Now, let's cover something else.
Here is a story of this week.
One day, I was making some mashed potatoes for dinner.

Then I heard...

The United Kingdom went into 1984 mode by enforcing a new Online Safety Act.

All British people and some who do not even live in Britain now see such a warning all over the place unless they can somehow verify their age by giving up their private data and sensitive information to a God-Knows-Where 3rd party verification organization.
Sounds totally safe, right?

Oh, shoot. Hideo Kojima has warned us. D:

They say it's to protect children.
But, the truth is, we know what it is really about.
Let me tell you a story about China, which you can also find in the game.
Many, many years ago, we fought a war, known as the "Internet Addiction War," against people who want to censor teenagers' rights online. We lost that war. So, many of the kids got sent to shady hospitals and concentration camps run by Dr. Yang to undergo torture with electric shocks long enough so that they no longer want to go online at all. Even nowadays, teenagers can only play games for 3 hours every week. Is this the way to protect kids? Do you want this to happen to your kids, too, under your Online Safety Act?
Who are they to decide which content is too mature for kids?
Today, they can come to social media, game platforms such as Steam and Itch, and YouTube.
Tomorrow, they can declare a lot more things to be too mature for kids!

Oh, well, things like C++ and Advanced Mathematics, for example, are obviously too mature for kids. They shall be forbidden from accessing such dangerous knowledge.
It's a joke. But you get the idea that they will ban anything they dislike if they have a chance.

Let me remind you what my childhood was like in case you missed my old developer's diary #DD# 162
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1519140/announcements/detail/4102287868191116620
It was about once upon an uncensored time.
It was about the golden age of the 1990s.
We can watch things like the following in China. All kids are allowed to watch them without any censorship.

We learned to be manly to fight difficulties in our life head-on, to be strong.
Now, they call it violence.

We learned to admire the beauty of girls, respect them as our equal fellow warriors in this battlefield known as our life.
Now, they call it suggestive themes.

When I was younger, when I was named, it was a generation unafraid.
Because we have learned the truth of this world in the early ages.
We know blood is red, bones are white, and people die if they are killed.
We faced all those High School Entrance Exams, University Entrance Exams, and other exams, wars after wars for glory and honor, knowing full well that each time we succeed, tens of thousands fall. And each time, we wade into the blood of the fallen, we become stronger and better. It's cruel but fair. It's how this world is.

What kind of parent would want to raise their children in a censored fairy tale where they will never learn the harsh truth to truly grow up? What kind of parent would want their children to live in a censored environment without knowing their birthright of freedom? What kind of parents want to censor their kids so that they lose their imaginations and dreams without even realizing it?
Well, here is another cruel truth. I don't really care how they are going to ruin their kids by "protecting them." I will simply raise my kids, who will be strong in an uncensored environment, to slaughter those weaklings with no mercy.

Now, let's look at the good side of this world.
In a world where the UK falls into the Online Safety Act,
In a world where payment processors censor Steam,
In a world where Collective Shout hates everything that is beautiful and does not want anyone to have fun,
We still have Donald Trump!

Many people don't understand why I support Trump. Here is just another reason why.
I find people who are on the RIGHT side of history more aligned with my view on freedom and anti-censorship. After all, based on the science study, the right is actually more diverse than the left.
As such, it's time to add more content to the Republican faction in Queensmouth.
First and foremost, the MAGA hat is finally here.

There is also other content, such as a doctor from Texas who found a cure in the zombie apocalypse: bullets!

There are also some other content updates.
Such as:
1. We got many new skill icons. The ultimate reason for creating those icons is to make it easier to find a desired skill. The human mind, just like modern AI, reacts to an image better than text.
Should each skill have its own unique, distinct icon, it can help locate a skill, especially when everyone's skill set grows a lot as they progress through the stories of the game.

2. We got some new appearances for Persona Masks.

Persona masks are made from your pets. Each type of pet shall have its own distinct icon as well. It has been a while since the last batch of such icons. So, I just made a few more.

One last thing:
The dust of the last month is almost settled.
The daily game update has been restored.
The DLC development is restarting.
The third stage will likely come back online next week.

The living still have a universe to conquer, and this is a brave new month!

The full update log of this week:
20250726
English
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[Cooking]New Recipe: Mashed Potatoes (Basically, you only need to add a potato into a grinder. However, you can also add optional milk (any milk, including the one generated by your pets) and/or salt to make it even better. I assigned a homework to an AI to modify the cooking system to allow optional ingredients. She completed this task perfectly.)
[Mashed Potatoes]Added an item description to mock the United Kingdom's Online Safety Act. (Once again, I am against any censorship.)
[Wiki]Updated the cooking page.
简体中文
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【料理】新配方：土豆泥 （基本上，你只需要把一个土豆丢进能研磨的厨具里就行了。不过，为了让效果更好，你还可以加入牛奶(任何的牛奶，包括你的宠物生成的那些)和盐之类的东西。我给AI布置了一个作业，让她去重写了料理系统的一些代码允许了可选的非必要的食材的情况。她完美地完成了这个任务。）
【土豆泥】加入了一个吐槽不列颠上网安全法的物品说明。（重申一下，我反对任何形式的审查和谐。）
【维基】更新了料理页面。

20250727
English
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[Loot]The following types of enemies may now drop First Aid Spray: Mercenaries, Agents, and their shaded versions.
[Site Demeter]You can now find some First Aid Spray in the security room.
[Lost in the Sand]If you convinced the Illuminati to be your ally in Chapter 2, they can now sell you First Aid Spray and Antidote Spray before you enter the Black Pyramid.
[Queensmouth]The Republican faction now has a doctor. He can provide you with First Aid Spray.
[Item]New Equipment: MAGA Hat (It was on my low-priority list. But recent events pushed it upward. Can you imagine if it were not the UK but the US that fell into an "Online Safety Act"? Trump is needed to hold the line for us. The hat can also change the appearance of your character.)
[Queensmouth]You can now find a MAGA Hat in the Republican base.
简体中文
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【掉落物】下列敌人现在可能掉落急救喷雾：雇佣兵、特工、以及他们的暗影版本。
【前哨站点-德米特】你现在可以在警卫室里找到一些急救喷雾。
【迷失于沙粒中】如果第二章你说服了光照派作为你的友军，在进入黑色金字塔前，你可以从他们那里购买到急救喷雾和解毒喷雾。
【王后镇】共和党阵营现在有了一个医生。他可以向你提供急救喷雾。
【物品】新物品：MAGA帽 （这原本在我的低优先级开发内容中。不过近期的局势变化让它的优先级突然提高了。我们不能让美国像英国一样出现一个【上网安全法】这种东西。所以，我们需要川普同学继续为我们坚守阵地。这顶帽子也会改变你的角色外观。）
【王后镇】在共和党阵营的基地现在可以找到MAGA帽。

20250728
English
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[The Siege of Dana]The story continues. (This is the part where the North Legion turns all those invasion machines in Dana into junk piles.)
[Wiki]Updated The Siege of Dana page.
简体中文
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【达那围城战】剧情继续。（在这一部分，北方军团会把镇上所有入侵的机器变成废铁。）
【维基】更新了达那围城战的页面。

20250729
English
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[Persona Mask]Added new appearance for persona masks made from wolves. (Previously, they used the dogs' masks.)
[Persona Mask]Added new appearance for persona masks made from pigs.
[Persona Mask]Added new appearance for persona masks made from demons.
[Persona Mask]Added new appearance for persona masks made from angels.
[Skill]Stone to Flesh now has a new icon.
[Skill]Sweep now has a new icon.
简体中文
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【人格面具】用狼制作的人格面具现在有了它们自己的图标。（此前和狗使用一样的图标。）
【人格面具】用猪制作的人格面具现在有了它们自己的图标。
【人格面具】用恶魔制作的人格面具现在有了它们自己的图标。
【人格面具】用天使制作的人格面具现在有了它们自己的图标。
【技能】石化解除现在有了新的图标。
【技能】扫腿现在有了新的图标。

20250730
English
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[Weapon]New Unique Weapon: Gjallvinter
[The Siege of Dana]The story continues. (It will soon have some connection with the main storyline.)
[Wiki]Updated The Siege of Dana page.
简体中文
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【武器】新独特武器：加尔文特
【达那围城战】剧情继续。（即将和主线剧情发生关联。）
【维基】更新了达那围城战的页面。

20250731
English
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[Skill]The "Berserk Attack" skill now has a new icon.
[Skill]The "Double Attack" skill now has a new icon.
[Skill]The "Triple Attack" skill now has a new icon. (Yes, that's a One Piece meme.)
[Skill]The "Resurrect" skill now has a new icon.
[Skill]The "Calm Heart Extinguishes Fire" skill now has a new icon.
[Skill]The "Power Charge" skill now has a new icon.
[Dana Shelter Underground Level 1]Added a secret room. It will become accessible once we get the next part of the Siege of Dana quest.
[Dana Shelter Underground Level 1]It no longer shares the same area tag with the Dana Shelter. It now has its own area tag.
[Butterfly]When you use Butterfly Wings to teleport from Dana Shelter Underground Level 1, you now go to the dungeon entrance instead of the entrance of the entire building.
简体中文
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【技能】狂暴攻击现在有了一个新图标。
【技能】两段攻击现在有了一个新图标。
【技能】三段攻击现在有了一个新图标。（对，这里有个海贼王的梗。）
【技能】复活术现在有了一个新图标。
【技能】心静自然凉现在有了一个新图标。
【技能】能量聚集现在有了一个新图标。
【达那避难所地下一层】加入了一个秘密房间，会在达那围城战下一部分的剧情中可以进入。
【达那避难所地下一层】现在该区域不再和达那避难所共用标签，而是有了自己的标签。
【蝴蝶之翼】现在你从达那避难所地下区域用蝴蝶传送时会回到电梯入口的位置而非整个避难所外面。

20250801
English
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[The Siege of Dana]The story continues. (You will find how the North Legion is using those tunnels filled with anomalies.)
[Dana Shelter Underground Level 1]The secret room added yesterday is now accessible once you have progressed The Siege of Dana far enough.
[Wiki]Updated The Siege of Dana page.
简体中文
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【达那围城战】剧情继续 （你会发现北方军团如何利用那些充满异常的管道。）
【达那避难所地下一层】昨天加入的秘密房间现在会在你在达那围城战的剧情发展到一定程度后可以进入。
【维基】更新了达那围城战的页面。