Hello. This update brings a new character but I don't think that's even the most exciting part (for me). I spent a lot of time on GUI changes and improvements to areas that have been neglected for some time. Hope you enjoy.
Dwarf character
Please welcome Hjalgrim to the character roster. He brings a mighty dwarven hammer to the battle with a smash ability and of course ale as a power-up!
Character leveling/points
Speaking of characters, there's new customization options. You now level up your character based on enemy kills and can then assign permanent character points to it. As this is the first iteration of this feature let me know how I succeeded and whether it needs further improvements.
Building improvements
I try to make all the available map buildings somewhat useful at any point in the game. The bank is one of those buildings that had pretty limited use during a run. The interest rates now scale based on time so there's more incentive to use the bank early on too.
Local events
Similarly the Pub (previously Winery), Church and Sacrificial Altar haven't had as much use as they could. There are now new local events that pop up from time to time (similar to missions) that offer better prices on said buildings. For example the Happy Hour event at the Pub offers discounts on all products. But hurry - these events don't last for long!
GUI changes
Power-ups
The power-ups menu has been a bit of a mess for the longest time. It has now been overhauled with tabs and more straight-forward purchase options.
Main
I think I'm finally getting to the point where I'm starting to be happy with the main game UI. I've streamlined the new look by decluttering the space and opening up more visible space for the game area.
A quick overview of changes in the screenshot below:
- Consumables are front and center where you need them most
- Inventory weapons/items have been moved to the side
- Health and Ability bars moved to the top
- XP bar removed, but more text information is displayed for level progress
- Button/control hints removed (small loss but once you know the keys it's just extra noice)
Player damage
Every time you take damage a visible healthbar is displayed near the player so you don't have to take your focus away as much.
That's the majority of the bigger changes. See the full changelog below for other smaller tweaks.
Competition reminder
The Village Hardcore leaderboard competition got extended to June 13th. Top 5 players will receive keys to When the Light Dies. At the moment there's not even 5 players on the board so be sure to try the map if you want a key!
Weapon/Item ideas reminder
Previously I've asked for ideas for new weapons and items as the recent poll suggested that is the most wanted content. So far I've received 0 ideas from the community. It's a bit disheartening but it is what it is. This doesn't mean I won't be adding new ones but it'll be a slower process and not as fun one. Remember there are no bad ideas or suggestions so feel free to suggest anything.
Full changelog:
General
- New character: Hjalgrim (Dwarf) - Melee fighter
- New consumable: Ale - +50% primary weapon damage for 10s
- New power-up: Ale Drinker - Ale lasting effect
- New power-up: Pocket Watch - Increases timer for missions and local events
- New local event: Happy Hour - xx% off on all products at the Pub
- New local event: Service - xx% off on healing at the Church
- New local event: Ritual - xx% off sacrificed health at the Altar
- New achievements (5) for Hjalgrim (Dwarf)
- New achievements (6) for Endless maps: Score 10000+
- New character customization: Points - Level up your character and assign permanent character points
- Bank changes: The returns now scale based on time, you can only deposit the full amount and withdrawal option has been removed
- Winery changes: Name changed to Pub, sells Ale as well, has happy hour discounts, removed option to buy wine with apples
- Church and Pub are available on all maps
- Main in-game GUI has been reworked
- Power-ups GUI has been reworked
- Player healthbar is displayed near the player for a couple of seconds every time taking damage
- Teleport addition: Leaves behind a clone for 3s
- Multi-Fire no longer gives double damage, increased lasting time from 5s to 10s
- Wine cost reduced, decreased lasting time from 12.5s to 10s
- Haste increased lasting time from 5s to 7.5s
- Jester's base health increased from 60 to 75
- Reduced Banker power-up max from 50% to 30%
- Tweaked all the timers so that they probably end after 1 (and don't stay in 0 for another second before going off)
- Leaderboard shows character stats when hovering over the character sprite (only for new records as data is being collected)
- Elite Rewards screen can be closed with Esc or Space
- Changed the Mountains map main ground tile colour for better contrast
Bugs
- Church Divinity would take a while to execute as it was fired from wrong coordinates
- Size on weapon info corrected so default is always 100%