[Ver 0.953a] I'm sorry this patch took quite some time. The "gem preview" system and localization both had a lot of situations that I didn't anticipate and required additional polish.
[ MAJOR FEATURES ]
Language can now be switched to 日本語 / 简体中文 / 繁體中文 by selecting options in the main menu (upper left gear button or ESC key). [Cannot switch language mid-run, but you can save & quit and switch language, and then load.]
Important note:
These localizations were compiled with help from Google and are meant for debugging. In particular, in order to give the files to the localizers and native speakers to improve it, I want to ensure I have all the strings properly captured. I am sorry for any mistakes in this preliminary translation.
ゲームの翻訳はGoogleを使用しています。誤訳がございましたら申し訳ありません。今後改善してまいります。
游戏翻译目前由 Google 翻译完成，之后将由母语人士持续进行优化和改进。如有任何翻译错误，敬请谅解。
遊戲翻譯目前由 Google 翻譯完成，之後將由母語人士持續進行最佳化與修正。如有任何翻譯錯誤，敬請見諒。
In the coming weeks, I will have several native language friends read through the text and give me feedback. I will also implement suggestions from players on how to improve the text -- please feel free to join the Discord to let me know how it can be improved! These localization improvements will take place no matter what, to express my gratitude for your interest in Rutrum. Your wishlists and feedback on X and other places have been very encouraging.
It is my sincere hope to further improve the localizations even further with paid human translators, but based on initial quotes from professional localizers, I can only afford to do this for languages where 500 copies or more are sold. It may also take several weeks after the release to finalize these improvements. I am sorry for this trouble.
[ UI ]
As requested by several players, I have added a "drop preview" system where you can now view (approximately) where the coin or gem will land. This may also help with getting the drop as close to the edge as possible.
Note there may be some situations where the prediction is wrong, notably the "east wind" battle modifier. I also hope to include the "rune" in the preview, but this is not yet implemented.
You can turn off this system in "Menu" -> "Other" -> "Gem Preview (at Bottom)". Turning it off might help very slightly with performance.
Enemies now visually throw stuff upwards into the crate (has no impact on gameplay). (They might occasionally get stuck, but will fix this in next patch.)
Tower at end of run will accept any keyboard press, mouse press, or joypad press, not only space bar.
Steam is now somewhat "integrated" into Rutrum, in the sense that I have 2 very basic "debugging" achievements. I hope to improve these in the next patch (at least one seems bugged) and maybe give some real achievements for the demo. (There are in-game achievements, but they are not yet linked to Steam.)
[ Gameplay ]
Beetle Bane Shield:
It now generates 4 poison vials each coffer refill, down from 8.
The upgrade also generates half as much poison as before.
In short, players were struggling with Beetle Bane a little more than I anticipated, probably because of the new midrun bosses extending battles out, which meant more poison.
Sprint:
Now gives +1 draw when it triggers (Start of Battle)
Reduced price from 8 gold nuggets to 6 gold nuggets.
Decay Rock:
Previously: Pop Rock: 100% chance to drop 1 rock. Decrease by 1%. Start Battle: Reset to 100%.
Now: Pop Rock: 100% chance to pop 1 rock. Decrease by 1%. Start Battle: Reset to 100%.
The handle has also been changed along the same lines.
In short, Decay Rock now does extra damage (in the form of popping extra rocks) rather than adding additional rocks.
Coal Pop:
This item has been removed entirely. It was one of the least popular items at the shop, and in terms of gameplay, it was somewhat unnecessary, as forging a Coal would already result in a lot of rocks popped (due to the large explosion radius).
Double Bed Handle:
Previously: Healing Spots will give full ability charge
Now: Healing Spots give +10 health
So one Double Bed Handle would make a healing spot now heal 35 instead of 25. Two double bed handles would make a healing spot heal 45, etc.
It was also one of the less popular items, and very situational, especially for Flower Girl.
Magma Flow (Bomb Bag) Handle:
Previously dropped 2 lava, now increased to 3 lava. (Will keep reflecting on.)
Purse Handle:
Previously triggered on a "Buy" action, now triggers on "Sell" action, including selling gacha.
(Still triggers even if a shovel or handle sells for 0 gold.)
Coal Key:
It says it will now target the highest rarity chest, but I need to test and debug it more. It currently targets the lowest health enemy, as before.
[ Bug Fixes]
My sincere apologies, there was a bug in the last build regarding "Shields". Notably, because of the new attack animation, the turn would "end" before the pickaxe animation finished, so for the last enemy attack each turn, you would potentially lose your shield generated over the course of the last turn. This was particularly problematic during boss battles. It has now been fixed, and I apologize for any run ruined by this bug.
Separately, sometimes enemy attacks wouldn't show up on their banners, or delay showing up until you drop a few drops. This was also related to the timing of the new attack animation, and has been fixed.
Fixed Clumsy handle bug where it was not giving the strength promised (+2 strength).
Flighty enemies who have their chest unlocked (and thus will fly away) should no longer attack on their turn.
"Cautious" enemies are now hurt by bombs. -- Sorry, they incorrectly blocked damage from bombs previously, but they should only block damage from rocks.
"Persistent" enemies weren't throwing pickaxe properly.
[ Next Steps ]
Of course, I hope to continue to improve any issues in the localization that occur. Please feel free to post in the community hub, steam discussion, discord, or twitter (@uncertainkey).
I also see a need for improved sound effects, I identified at least 3 key sound effects I want to implement.
I also hope to offer compressed sound files (.ogg) as there was one report of the music switching causing FPS issues for the uncompressed sound files.
I want to continue to improve the gameplay, and in particular, revise items that are seldom chosen or smooth out encounters that are uneven. (Mid-Run bosses as well.)
Simultaneously, I will aim to polish the full game release as well, and incorporate feedback from playtesters, such as the feedback below.
[ Feedback and Acknowledgements ]
From anonymous players commenting in game:
"Sound effects -- More punchy Enemy sounds
(I like them shaking the box when they hit)
Check "Slay the Spire" for maximum impacts sounds with minimal animations.
pebble rock noises could be more satisfying. Check "Deep Rock Gaalctic" for nice "krownchy" sounds"
Thank you! I'm sorry this patch took longer than expected, so this comment hasn't been addressed yet. But I greatly appreciate the specific examples, I will definitely look into them as a reference for how to improve the sound effects. I hope to address this in the next patch.
It has been a few weeks since I played last, The stripe that is drawn under the drop , i just noticed shows the key. Is it possible to show that on the bottom where the drop will land? It actually took me awhile to notice it, because i'm generally focused just on where i am dropping it. The rounds felt a bit more interesting in that i had to consider my moves more then before and i wasn't just mindlessly dropping stuff. Hard to qualify, but the game feels better overall, just can't name a lot of things.
This comment gave me a lot of energy and motivation over the past week, thank you! To address your comment (also asked by another user 2-3 patch notes before), yes! You can now see at the bottom where the drop will land as of this patch! :)
Thank you for the kind words, I will strive to continue improving the game so that if you try it out again it will hopefully feel even better. (I hope.)
"Not every rock and attack explains well enough what the effects are when they are popped."
Ah thank you. I think what I'll try to do in the next patch, or maybe the patch after that, is an extension of the tutorial where the very first time you see each thing, it will sort of take a 5 second diversion and Treasure Bear lets you know. (If I understood your message correctly.)
2 separate player feedbacks:
Controller support for Steam Machine
this was my first run - I'm playing o n Steam Deck and using a controller, so I would definitely appreciate controller support though I'm making it work. Some of the text is a little difficult to read on a smaller screen / at a distance, and I wasn't really sure what any of my perks were doing, so maybe some more explicit visual feedback when shovels/handles proc. also playing with a controller it's easy to miss how the different enemies work since I was rarely moving my cursor from inside the crate. Overall enjoyed it!
These were the first reports asking about controller support that I could remember. I will do a little exploration into improving controller support, or at least Steam Deck / Steam Machine default settings. (I often play on Steam Deck too.) I am sorry, but if it turns out to be as difficult as I imagine, controller support might need to be a post-launch patch. I fully understand if you don't wish to play the game due to the lack of controller support.
However, one thing you highlighted: "Small text on steam deck" -- I think I can improve this situation by making items expand when mousing over them. I'll try adding it to the next patch, if I can. (In the mean time, right clicking on items in your equipment, items you want to sell, or gacha, can help slightly. But it doesn't currently work with the items for sale.)
There's a very subtle feedback effect that occurs off to the side when a shovel or handle triggers, but I agree players (including myself) tend to focus on the middle of the screen. So I will try to think about how I can improve the feedback for players, probably a sort of optional "overlay" effect on the center of the crate. Thank you for the kind words and constructive feedback!
"I liked the game. A lot, actually. I didn't really know what to expect, going into it, but it was a lot of fun. I think it would be more fun if certain things were more distinct or understandable. For example, I had several things that modified runes but I didn't understand what runes were, if I had any or how to locate them if I did. Maybe I'm blind though, haha. Also it would be nice if there were something like a visual reminder which shows that you have the potential to make a key in your crate. Thanks for the fun game. I look forward to the full release and I hope it's EPIC!
Thank you for your kind comment. Rereading the "Rune" tooltip, I agree it sounds very vague (and is also easy to miss). I like the idea of telling the user "You currently have X runes" in the tooltip, if I have space. But maybe I should focus on improving the "feeling" / feedback of inscribing a rune. Making the Gem front and center, a chisel animation, chop chop chop.
But I think another takeaway from this is that I should also not have these rune-oriented shovels and keys available on a first playthrough, but rather put them behind achievements related to runes. I'll probably implement this first, and then if I have time, improve the "feel" of inscribing runes to help make it more memorable. If you do go have a rune on a gem (i.e. from an "inscribe rune" spot on the map), you can also right click it in the coffer or crate to see what it does. But I agree this is insufficient.
For making a key in the crate, the dropper turns a somewhat subtle "yellow" with little keys floating up, but only if your gem is currently situated over the thing that it can form a key with. So, I guess quickly "sweeping" the mouse over the whole crate once is necessary to see if a key can be formed. I did have one player a few weeks ago also ask for an indicator on this, so I will keep reflecting on it. Maybe an optional UI where a little key icon appears next to the gem... I will have to keep thinking on it.
Thank you for your kind words! (You also made me realize... should I rename "ultra rare" shovels and crates to "epic"...? hmmm)
Okay everyone I'm heading to bed but will fix any critical issues as soon as I wake up. Thank you!