We wanted to fix a couple of things before we released on Early Access. Some changes were necessary to keep the game from breaking, others were needed to improve the first time experience for new players and even more fixes were made just for our peace of mind and enjoyment.
A prominent change was the addition of Blanche, our second female playable character. We wanted to feature another strong woman in the game. That sadly meant that Barney had to go! Barney was not happy, of course, but we gave him a different job to do.
Another big change was an alteration in the Spillage fine system. We want spillages to matter as we need to keep the beautiful countryside clean of harmful oil. Or as Ricardo would say: “Spilling oil is like not asking a pretty lady to dance with you!”. Whatever. Minimum spillages fines have been reduced in the levels with a shorter time frame.
A major bug fix made sure that game does not come to a grinding halt at the end of area 1. This automatically opens up Area’s 2,3 and 4, and therefore guarantees an extra 7,5 hours of gameplay at the very least. Who knew that 4 players required an amount of plots dividable by 4?! We sure didn’t!
Our first list of patch notes on Steam. Enjoy!
Changes
- A second female playable character (Blanche) has replaced Barney.
- Barney is now the environmental watch dog. You will meet him in the Saloon.
- We changed the minimum fine amount for Spillage. It now relates to the length of the level: shorter levels mean lower spillage fines. 3 months $250, 6 months $500 and 12 months $1000.
- The dowser has new animations and will not stand idly by when searching for oil.
- Audio volume of opening doors has been upped.
UI
- Added mouse-over info for upgrading pipes indicating the cost.
- Added mouse-over info for the calendar indicating the end date of the level.
- Added cost info for horse and carriage upgrades.
- Added mouse-over info on the auction screen indicating “Open for Bids” on available land.
- Added the ‘Report’ button the bank pop up.
- Added a message about Early Access after finishing area 1.
- Cash counter now is highlighted when William tells you about lending money.
Bugs
- We fixed the map for area 1 so that all players can get a piece of land at the end. This was a game breaking bug. We also prepared the next areas so that the same doesn’t happen there.
- Fixed “Land not available yet” mouse-over text, on the auction screen, that would appear underneath other UI.
- Fixed Pause text appearing underneath other UI.
- When hitting rock underground for the first time, Fred would show up but not say anything.
- When entering the stage, Raynor now enters through the open door and not the side of the stage!
- Various text improvements. Mostly explaining important info properly.
- Fixed a bug in the tutorial section where it was possible to not have enough money to buy your first Silo.