[UPDATE May 25, 2025: this dev log is super outdated and almost everything mentioned is no longer in the game. I'm leaving this up for... I don't even know why. So you see how the sausage is made? Or maybe it gives another dev an idea for their own game.]
Hi everyone, it's Yuji again for a monthly dev log update. Today I'll talk about permadeath in Mars Tactics and how it differs from other games in the genre.
I'm designing Mars Tactics to be a difficult game. On Mars, death can strike anyone at any moment; none of your units -- not even veterans decked out in the best armor -- should ever truly feel 100% safe. However, losing a unit is especially punishing in Mars Tactics because of the game's unique progression system that creates special one-of-a-kind units. (More on the progression system in a future log.)
So in designing how death works, I wanted to balance the tension of possibly having your units taken from you on any turn while still giving players recourse so that they don't feel cheated by a bad dice roll.
How it works
When a unit's HP drops to 0, they fall to the ground and all their weapons (including throwables such as grenades) are knocked from their hands. During this downed-but-not-out (DBNO) state the unit has just 1 AP limiting their mobility, but they still can:
- Lay still and wait to be rescued
- Crawl to safety to be revived by teammates
- Crawl to grab a weapon and fire it from a prone position (or grab and throw a grenade)
Marketa probably won't make it out alive. But at least she will take a baddy down with her.
The key thing is the enemy AI will only target DBNO player units who performed an action in the prior turn. That means if your downed unit lays still they will not be fired upon, and at present there is no death timer for DBNO units.
During my playtesting this has created interesting situations. For example, I kept a downed unit laying still behind enemy lines. Then when the opportunity was right, she crawled to grab a rifle and shot an enemy unit in the back. She was ultimately finished off, but it was an epic moment.
Pollice Verso
Enemy units follow the same rules after being downed. Most will try to crawl to safety. Others will be more brave. As the player, you're free to deal with them as you wish and you can shoot them at any time -- not just after they performed an action. You have many tactical and strategic choices, such as:
- Finish them off and earn experience for your units
- Bait other enemy units to come to their rescue, creating ambush opportunities
- Keep downed enemy units alive until the end of battle and take them prisoner
After battle, captured prisoners can be interrogated for intel or healed back to full health. Showing mercy might convince them to join your cause but there's a chance they will escape and rejoin enemy ranks.
Finishing off an enemy gains your units big experience points. But taking prisoners can also bring benefits.
DBNO
Crucially, DBNO units cannot flee from battle. A unit downed near the edge of the map cannot crawl out of the battlefield, and if your squad flees the battle without reviving your DBNO units, they might become available for rescue in a later mission.
Lastly, when your units are permanently killed, depending on their rank their deaths can be "spent" to acquire various long-term bonuses after battle to help with your campaign. This is another way to reinforce the link between the tactical and strategy layers that I explained in last month's dev log. More on this in future when I go over the strategy layer in detail.
As always, things are subject to change based on feedback during playtesting, but my hope is that giving players options after a unit is downed will create room for interesting decisions and deter save scumming.
That's all for today's dev log - thanks for reading! See you in a month for the next log, and if you're looking for more regular updates, check out my Twitter or join our Discord for WIP screenshots and videos.