Thank you for playing Attack of the Astrals! If you didn't see it, check out our previous announcement revealing 3 more Champions joining the full release this year:
This update is focused on replay value and the new player experience. New and returning players should find a lot to love here: the level curve is faster, tutorials are completely reworked, and the narrative of the world is better established for new players.
Unfortunately, these changes are breaking. Returning players will open the game to a blank profile and need to play through the tutorial again. We didn't make this decision lightly, but it was required to re-balance the game's difficulty levels to accommodate a dedicated tutorial level. Luckily, new content awaits you!
Faster progression
More upgrades and Scrolls each run, and more combo potential.
You can now reach Level V! Five levels are spread across 650 EXP, as opposed to the previous three over 600 EXP. With just 60 EXP required to reach Level II, you'll get upgrades earlier and more frequently. We've doubled the number of upgrades in the game, so each run will feel more varied.
When you level up, you now get both an upgrade and a Scroll. Instead of a choice of upgrades, one is given to you randomly. These changes make the game feel a lot faster and combo-y.
Optimal play still earns EXP faster, and reaching Level V now awards a particularly strong upgrade to one of your Champions.
Overall, the game is a bit easier and a lot more fun at Challenger difficulty. We'd love to hear how far above 1000 EXP you can score!
Improved tutorials
The majority of tutorial popups now play a movie to demonstrate game mechanics in action. The tutorial now advances in difficulty with each region, giving a better preview of the challenges available in a typical Defender-level run.
Tutorial text has been condensed and edited, and you can now re-open them on the turn they appear:
Introductory cutscene
An introductory cutscene now plays before the tutorial to set the scene for the game. Expect more of these short world-building art pieces in future updates! To get an idea of what's coming, Bastion has an early version of his leader cutscene in this update.
Other changes
The Pixel Perfect video setting now works correctly on all tested screens, adding black bars appropriately to preserve the aspect ratio and pixel size of art assets.
UI/UX:
There is no longer a warning that you're moving the final Champion in a turn.
Unlocked content is shown after each battle, instead of at the end of the run.
The settings menu has new visuals and works properly with controllers.
Summons:
Three Seraph skills have been removed from the game: Sanctuary, Flicker, and Wonder Guard. They had a low pick rate and all were too situational to be useful or exciting.
Upgrades:
Upgrades now have detailed tooltips when hovered.
Arena Crown buffed to Execute shifted enemies at 2 Health or less, instead of just executing Minions.
Cloud Bangle buffed to allow Sorcerer to move again after using a skill with 5+ targets, instead of a skill that deals damage in all directions.
Scrolls:
Some Scrolls now more reliably overheal, to support Druid's Spring Blossom and Cornucopia upgrades.
Arcane Blessing now restores half of max Health, instead of half of missing Health.
Panacea now restores Health equal to the target's full Health, instead of just restoring missing Health.
All Scrolls have been slotted into five power levels, instead of the previous three. As a result, you will not receive any EXP-generating Scrolls at levels IV and V.
Upcoming events!
If you're going to Sydney Supanova June 19th-21st, or Adelaide AVCon July 4th-5th, Hari will be exhibiting Attack of the Astrals in their indie game areas. Come try out the game and say hello!
Future Plans
In the near future, we'll expand on some features in this update:
A library to check tutorials and tips
Additional champion upgrades
Introductory cutscenes for each champion when you select them to be team leader
We'll also be continuing with regular content development, working on additional enemies, regions, champions and abilities for the full release!
Thank you,
Rob and Hari