Welcome to this very special announcement. Today's update to Heart&Slash is probably one of the biggest we've done since we entered Early Access and, for sure, the most important. We have added lots of new content and fixes, so be ready for the long list.
Today we are releasing the Windows and Linux builds. We'll upload the Mac version during next week.
QUASSY AND GAME ENDING
The main antagonist, QuAsSy (Quality Assurance System), is in the game, waiting for Heart at the top of the space lift. Will you be able to defeat it and face the truth?
This means that Heart&Slash can now be played from start to end!
Only one of the planned endings is accessible for now, but the other one will come soon.
As always, this is the first implementation and it needs tweaks, balancing, etc.. Also, if you find any bugs, please let us know in the bugs thread.
SOUND FOR MORE WEAPONS
Our audio collaborators have implemented sound in almost all weapons currently in the game. That's a great boost to the experience, and a very important step in the road to being content complete.
NEW ENEMIES
The Space Lift is now guarded by the latest and greatest of QUASSY's units: the Elite bots. These new robots are based on the most advanced technology HeartTech ever built, so be careful.
COPS has also improved its army, deploying armoured units into the City. They are not allowed to carry the heaviest weaponry, but only because they are not expected to ever need it.
COMBAT MODIFICATIONS
We have added new strategic options during combat.
- Some enemy attacks can now damage their allies, as was the case with missiles, bullets and lasers. Use this wisely and things can get a lot easier.
- We have fixed a bug that would make enemies stand still without attacking. This might still happen from time to time, but that's now a configuration issue. If you think enemies are not attacking when they should, please let us know with a screenshot and an entry in the bugs thread.
- Fire and electric attacks are now affected by water. Feel free to experiment.
- Light damage weapons, like the daggers and the blade on a stick, were unable to damage armours. This has been fixed, so it is no longer possible to get stuck in a fight against armoured enemies you cannot defeat. Hint: this also means that all weapons can now take advantadge of FRANK-Y's weakness.
HEALTH IMPROVEMENT
We won't tell exactly how, but it is now a little easier to raise the maximum number of hearts during a run.
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS
Although this is an area we're still working on, we've implemented a couple of systems that should help keep frame rate high enough on lower end computers. The RAM requirements remain the same, but at least we abuse the CPU a little less.
Since this has been a considerable change regarding how enemies and rooms are configured, some stuff might fail. We've fixed all bugs we've identified, but please let us know if you see anything funny happening with missiles, bullets, explosions, etc..
BUGFIXING
And here comes the list of bug fixes included in the build:
- Switch Roborang ranged attack to the strong attack button (makes using the roborang to trigger computers less awkward)
- Ruined building windows show skybox
- [(ISIG) JDEzekude] Trapped in sewers COPs ambush
- [Rotrio] Can get stuck below crate in sewers pickup room
- Selected character does not show when closing level selection menu
- [Baelmung] City hallways shift direction while moving inside
- [Baelmung] Level 2 bosses do not transition to level 3
- [Baelmung] Constant step sounds
- [Col. Hunter Gathers OSI] Roborang and factory quest 1
- [Rotrio] Factory Slash quest 4 is bugged
- [Megermum lergens] First slash quest is broken if Slash is killed before combat starts
- Unlocking Doctor #1 quest doesn't work when upgraded weapon is not used to hit the computer
- Flame/Ice throwers can hit Heart twice in a row
WHAT'S NEXT
We're working on completing the city and sewers quests, which would unlock the other ending of the game, if you do the right thing. We are also trying ways to improve the game's performance and considering ways to make things a little easier, but still challenging.
Also, since we're getting closer to finishing the game content, we'll get a lot more serious regarding bugfixing.