After a lot of thought I've decided to retire Roun while I work on it's as yet unnamed successor.
Roun mutated a bit during development and then had to change radically after launch when performance issues made it clear the initial concept of a fully online, multiplayer game was unrealistic given my skills and resources. It morphed into a single player game with local database server and I was never very happy with that approach.
The local database server was problematic for several reasons, greatly complicating installation and troubleshooting. There were also some dependencies on external web resources left over from the original design that couldn't really be removed without a thorough rebuilding.
In the almost two years since launch I have naturally imagined many gameplay improvements and feel there is now a better game within me. So the time has come to take down Roun's external dependencies and begin work on a successor with the following goals in mind:
Gameplay
- Purely single player.
- Emphasis on avatar development whilst retaining the concept of improvable followers joining the party but on a more of a temporary, swapping in and out basis.
- Redesigned core combat, removing limitations carried over from the original online concept. Combat rounds will be conducted on a party, not character basis.
- Surrender mechanic removed and replaced with quest driven way of temporarily recruiting non human followers.
- Deeper crafting system with no random elements.
Development
- New game engine for faster development and easier maintenance.
- No dependency on local (or other) database server.
- No web dependencies other than cloud saves.
Roun's successor will, like the original, be free to play.
I don't know the exact date yet when the current game will be removed from the Steam store but I have submitted a request for it to be taken down. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Steam, without which Roun would likely have never seen the light of day.