Hi SUPERBUG fans! It’s been about a year since our last news update; that’s way too long, an entire career for some! In that time, we’ve been hard focused on development and polish. Let’s talk about it.
SUPERBUG: Version 2.0
If you haven’t heard, SUPERBUG is getting a major update on December 5th this year, which will be available as a free demo on Steam and Itch. That’s just 12 days from now! I encourage you to read the full patch notes here: SUPERBUG Version 2.0 Patch Notes
Since our last dev log, we’ve been holding up to our promise of a demo and quietly pushing towards having a new, playable version with all of the improvements on the base SUPERBUG game. It contains 4 new levels, new enemy types, many other new features, balance changes, performance improvements, accessibility improvements, and possibly the most important thing: controller support! However…
This is not The Mutations Update.
Version 2.0 serves as a checkpoint for our development; it’s structured just like SUPERBUG always has been, but is much more polished and rich with content. It does not contain weapon mutations or bosses, which are intended for The Mutations Update. For this reason, Version 2.0 will continue to be free to play when it releases, and it will remain free as a demo even after The Mutations Update comes out.
When The Mutations Update does come out, we plan for SUPERBUG to be priced at $4 USD. All of the features of The Mutations Update will be contained in a separate “run type,” meaning that the “classic run” will continue to be playable separately, and that “classic run” will continue to be the way the SUPERBUG demo is played. Now, since SUPERBUG is nearly 5 years in development and still free, we’re shooting for ways to expedite this last stretch of development. This is where our funding comes in…
The SUPERBUG Kickstarter
If you want to give us your money, we’re going to be launching a tiny crowdfunding campaign at the same time we release the SUPERBUG demo. Our goal is only $900: enough to make one month’s rent in our current apartment. We’re doing this to gauge interest; if we make enough money to work a little less, we’ll invest all of that extra time into The Mutations Update. This way, if you and enough people want to buy the full game before it’s out, we’ll guarantee that the game is made with more haste and determination than it would be otherwise.
For those who think SUPERBUG is worth more than $4, or who just have a lot of enthusiasm for our work, we’re extending our gratitude by also offering additional rewards! These can range anywhere from your name in our credits, to physical merchandise made by us, to the opportunity to design your very own boss enemy. See the image below for more information!
(Alt Text: $1: Your name in credits. $4: Own the game (Digital key). $15: Digital bonus booklet. $40: Signed Soundtrack CD (Does not include poster). $60: Signed Poster (Does not include CD). $100: Poster and CD. $300: Design a miniboss (Max of two). $500: Design a superboss (Max of one). Bigger tiers contain smaller tiers' rewards. All prices listed in USD.)
Additionally, here's a work-in-progress preview of our game's key art, which will be featured on the SUPERBUG poster. It's made by (the very lovely) arsenicvisionary!
I won’t expect much to become of this - if the campaign fails, we’ll continue to work on SUPERBUG, even if we have to make some cuts to things we would really like to have. Frankly, for a tiny, unfinished game from an unknown indie developer with no history or portfolio, in this economy no less, I would be surprised if we passed our goal! But every shot not taken is a miss, so I’ll hail-mary this one, even if I am nervous.
If you're interested, follow our page ahead of time, it gives us a great boost! SUPERBUG on Kickstarter
Lastly…
We have a new trailer for the demo that will be premiering in about 30 minutes! If you’re reading before 9:00 CST, you should stop by.
We hope to see you in just 12 days for the demo launch as well! Whether or not you want to support the project - anybody wishlisting, downloading, or leaving a review for SUPERBUG is greatly appreciated. Thank you for taking an interest in our project!
Love from the Plumicorn Digital team! -Borbo