What's new?
Today, we're going to chat about new weapons, a new biome, a new game mode, and a movement update!
Unfortunately, play tests have been more sparse than usual over the past couple of weeks since my place had a major plumbing issue and the downstairs was partially flooded. ːsteamsadː After a hard battle that included fans, dehumidifiers, and restored carpet, we can put that saga to rest.
And now we are so back, and we've got lots of goodies in this one, so strap in and enjoy.
LASER BEAMS
Please welcome our two newest loadout options, Beam Point Defense and the Cutting Laser!
Beam Point Defense
Nothing is more accurate than a laser, and Beam Point Defense takes advantage of this to the fullest. It rewards steady aim, and excels at taking out large groups of smaller missiles. Since it doesn't need to be reloaded, it also has the highest uptime of any point defense, and should be strongly considered for the more defensively minded.
That's not to say it's a straight point defense upgrade. It's low damage output means it struggles in an anti-ship role, and large missiles require a few moments of steady contact to put down. Like all lasers, Beam PD does more damage over time, so it will still defeat anything the enemy throws at you - sometimes it just takes a little while.
Beam Point Defense
Cutting Laser
Unlike its smaller point defense cousin, the cutting laser is damage incarnate. It is quite cumbersome and difficult to maneuver since it has a fixed firing arc and short range. But if you manage to get it into position, even the largest ships will fall apart before this laser's power.
Cutting Laser
A situational weapon for close range ships, the cutting laser traces its origin to a mining laser for cracking open the most stubborn of asteroids. Because of this, plenty of pirates, scavengers, and other opportunists with limited means will utilize this weapon. If you like to take all the risk and all the reward, this is the weapon for you.
Welcome to the Crystal Fields
We've got a brand new biome to explore, maneuver, and fight in. The crystal fields are composed of primarily ice asteroids and form dense, beautiful mazes. They make for excellent interstellar hiding spots, as well as cunning ambush positions against unwary travelers.
In the Pyre Sector, several of these fields surround important trading routes, so expect plenty of opportunities to safeguard transports or raid them depending on the highest bidder!
A trio of transports weave through the dangerous crystalline labyrinth.
First Cooperative Level
Get ready to explore the Crystal Fields with our newest co-op level, where you are tasked with defending a convoy of transports against determined raiders. Team up with up to 3 allies, and see if you can make it through the maze alive. The more players join, the more difficult it gets.
Co-op features the same loadout options as PvP, but against waves of enemy ships that feature their own particular weapons, strategy, and personality. This will also be the first time most players will go up against the larger "cruiser" ship classes, which are capable of delivering and withstanding a beating.
I'm incredibly excited to see what everyone's experience and feedback will be, and to that end, the next series of playtests will feature co-op!
An early attack by Talon Class frigates against the convoy.
A huge amount of work went into enabling enemy AI (note game ship AI not GPT style AI!) including pathfinding, behavior trees, movement overhauls, and much more. All this work also means the main campaign is getting even closer to a testable state. I'll most likely do a deep dive on how Last Captain computer controlled ships operate, but that'll be for another time!
Movement Update
Last but not least, there is a major update to movement shipping with the next play test. Previously, movement was much more accurate - as far as movement in a 2D space can be - where the momentum of your movement continued to carry you in the same direction. This meant that it took time to actually accelerate, turns felt unresponsive, and it was easy to get stuck.
The situation we're trying to avoid, getting pinned against an asteroid and struggling to free yourself.
This kind of movement has a few upsides, like a higher skill ceiling and being more realistic. Ultimately, I decided it proved too frustrating for newer players and gave it some significant changes.
Now, when turning, players should feel their ship is much more responsive, and doesn't keep traveling in the original direction nearly as much. It's also more difficult to get directly stuck on an asteroid, and instead it should part either to the left or right of the ship. Player ships accelerate faster too.
All this together makes it easier to perform cool maneuvers, get up close, or stay further away as needed. In the future, specific ship upgrades will further enhance these abilities so you can get every drop of juice out of your ship's overclocked engine.
Up Next
The co-op convoy defense level will be going live soon for closed beta testing. For those who want to join and haven't yet, hit up our discord to be included in the next round of testing.
Stay tuned for news around:
Last Captain factions and the first lore drop
New equipment
Campaign sneak peaks
And much more!