Since it is difficult to join them together, it is safer to be feared than to be loved when one of the two must be lacking. - Niccolò Machiavelli
Hello everyone!
Last time we have introduced the automatons with The Cogs of Progress Update - this time let’s talk about something even bigger: advanced endgame mechanics. It’s something we’ve kept secret for a long time - even though you tried really hard to squeeze some information out of us. We’re finally ready to show you one of the biggest choices you’re going to make in Frostpunk: choosing the path for your people. Showing them purpose... even if you have to do it with an iron fist.
--- ENDGAME MECHANICS REVEAL ---
"What makes you a good leader? Or to put it differently - what makes you an effective leader? If you're democratically elected one in some modern country, or if you rule a city in a video game about last bits of civilization trying to survive on a frozen Earth, the rules stay the same" - says Aleksander Kauch, lead gameplay programmer of Frostpunk. "You can try to be the noble one and listen to the people, no matter if they're right or wrong, or you can believe that your cold-blooded calculations will prove valid over the course of survival. Introducing Neighbourhood Watch Law can be the answer to the need of safety on the streets... unless you deem it insufficient and decide to send guards to detain rioters with bats. From a watchful overseer to the rigorous visionary that puts the higher cause over decency - that will be your choice as a player."
See the newly unveiled endgame mechanics and features in the “Irreversible” Developer Update video:
https://youtu.be/pFId6lm2MZo
--- GAMEPLAY DETAILS ---
Choosing the path of Order will deeply impact your society - and for you as a leader it means a whole new range of tools available at your disposal. We want you to discover them when you play the game but let us show you some examples of new laws that will become accessible after you choose to pursue the path of Order.
Law: Neighbourhood Watch
We need to mobilise and stand together to help people in need and protect them from troublemakers.
Neighbourhood Watch allows you to construct a brand new building: Watchtower. People living nearby Watchtowers are protected by their neighbours serving as watch members and feel a lot safer. This gives them hope.
Law: Guard Stations
Organised militia will guard the peace and order in our city and help us deal with anyone who would threaten it.
This law allows you to establish a Guard Station. Guard Stations bring peace and order to nearby homes. The presence of guards lowers the discontent and restores hope.
Law: Patrol
Ensuring safety and order is of utmost priority to the long term survival of our city.
This law won’t unlock any new buildings - but it gives you an active Patrol ability to use. After enabling it, guards will patrol the streets near their guard stations to uphold law and order. You'll have to provide them with extra food for their effort.
These are just three basic laws that you can introduce after choosing the path of Order. More of them - in different form and magnitude - await you in the world of Frostpunk!
--- RELEASE DETAILS ---
We’ve already announced that we aim to set the price for Frostpunk to be on a “premium indie” level. What most of you assumed was €35-40... so you should be happy to hear that Frostpunk’s digital version will be available for $29,99/EUR 29,99 (or your regional equivalent)! We really want it to be as accessible as possible - so we hope you’re happy with this price!
That’s not all! We have also finished the box art for the game! It was created by one and only Jakub Kowalczyk - who was responsible for a lot of “This War of Mine” artworks as well. Jakub - busy as he is - was cool enough to share some insights about creating Frostpunk’s cover art:
“The biggest challenge here was to create an inclusive art that would show all aspects of the game: harsh and freezing weather, the generator that towers above the city, cross-section of the society and - of course - you as its leader. It not only had to work as an attractive illustration - but I had to make sure it’s still usable as box art - which means adjustability for different platforms etc. You never know where some additional pesky logos may appear...”
Click here for high resolution
What about the price of the retail version? What versions of the game are we preparing in general? Do we plan to release an art book? What about the release date? We’d love to answer all these questions now but we’re still discussing some final technicalities with distributors and whatnot. We will give you all the details in one of the future updates - stay tuned!
--- ADDITIONAL Q&A ---
1. Do you plan to support controllers (Xbox/PS4/Steam Controller)?
Maybe in the future - but definitely not on day one.
Click here for high resolution
2. Are you going to do a surprise release or are you going to announce a release date some days in advance?
We plan to announce it beforehand. We just gave you the box art and the price so rejoice! We want to share more info about the release in one of the future updates, stay tuned.
3. You started to show new things from the game: first the automatons, now the Order. Are you adding it to the game last minute?
Don't worry, we are not adding new stuff to the game at this point. Automatons are not something new, we didn't introduce them two weeks ago. We just didn't show them before! Same situation with the Order mechanics - they are not new by any means, we were just keeping them a secret.
4. Do you plan to make some kind of AMA in the future?
Yes, we would love to do that later on - when we have more information revealed already. In the meantime, we try to visit this discord channel created by our wonderful community: https://discord.gg/CukfhBG - we tend to answer some smaller questions there, so be sure to visit us from time to time!
Click here for high resolution
5. One word: airships. Do you plan to include them in Frostpunk?
Well… you have already seen the Beacons that we have in game, right? Let’s just say that they are not the only flying objects in Frostpunk! However, remember that we try to depict our vision of steampunk - which is quite pragmatic and authentic. So don’t expect huge fleets of airships or something like that.
6. Is there going to be a new preview demo for press/influencers anytime soon?
Nope. We focus on bringing the final game as soon as possible so the next build that we plan to distribute is going to be the full, review copy of Frostpunk.
Click here for high resolution
7. When do you plan to post next update?
We want to release it in few weeks at most. Again, the idea is to create substantial updates - and those take some time. However, in the meantime we’re going to share some cool screenshots (and GIFs?!) on our social channels - so be sure to follow us there:
Have a good one and see you next time!