Game Dev Update | 7.20.17
The Forge... FORGES! We just recently brought that system online, so crafting is afoot at Gunslinger HQ! Welcome back to the Dev Update, wherein we examine everything going on in the production of Exiles of Embermark.
Last Update, we encountered the Narrator and got a little of his background, met the Bandit NPC, showed how battle environments are setup and the progress on loot. This time around, you should strap in. Besides the Forge coming online, we’re covering progression in the game, the evolution of combat mechanics, UI design, animations from THREE different NPCs, the new avatar system and so much moar.
As always, let’s dig into it together in live Discord chat or on the forums!
We’ve been sharing updates on the gameplay evolution we’ve been experimenting with over time, including the additions of more varied Abilities and gameplay modes to increase the in-battle options that players have to adapt to certain situations. Here’s the story:
In the beginning, we designed a very simple Wego-style combat, where each combatant had 4 Abilities to choose from during battle (if you haven’t already, read the original rant for the game). We knew we wanted deep character development and tried to let the combination of lots of build choices for your character couple with super-simple gameplay to deliver on the game’s promise of 1-minute multiplayer. The problem with that was that there wasn’t enough strategic choice when you were stuck with 4 Abilities that may or may not suit the situation you found yourself in-- particularly in PvP.
So we tinkered with more Abilities, trading out Abilities during battle and a “Deck” mode where you drew in new Abilities as you used others. Each of these creeped toward deliciousness but didn’t quite get us there. And then this last milestone began.
We’ve developed what we hope is going to give you gaming goodness for generations. It’s a more malleable system of combat, summed up as follows:
Each player has 8 Abilities at their fingertips
Each Ability is assigned to a Stance: Martial, Magick* or Mystic
Using an Ability changes the player’s Stance to the Ability’s stance
Martial does increased DAM to Mystic, Mystic does increased DAM to Magick and Magick does increased DAM to Martial
Abilities have various cooldowns to avoid spam-o-rama
What we’ve learned from early testing on this system is that it creates depth without a ton of increased complexity, cat-and-mouse tactics via stance-dancing and most importantly, dramatic fun. We’ll now hold our enthusiasm for those of you who have signed up for closed testing and let you tell us what you think (if you’re interested in testing, PM TheWizard in the forums with your device type-- preferably phone)!
*please note that I am, sadly, the only Gunslinger dev who wants to spell magic “magick.” I believe it is way more fun to write (and read) “magick.” Thus, these Updates are my only outpost of protest. Thank you for your patronage.
The ambition of the world for the game (and the continent of Embermark specifically) is for it to be a living, breathing world. But it’s not a 3D world-- it functions more like a Google Map. To populate that world with Quests, NPCs and events, we’ve been working on our Progression Unlock system during this milestone, and I’m excited to report that it’s coming along as planned-- any trackable piece of data in the game, from your Character’s level, Quests complete, wins, losses, # of dwarves slain, etc can be used as a trigger in the game.
What this unlocks for us as game masters is the ability to give players agency over the world itself. Naturally, you’ll have several Quest lines that open for everyone, or for your Class, or for your House. But other, more secretive or hidden things will emerge as the game progresses and you (or your House) accomplish things within the game world. One day, the massive port of Sezunan may welcome great half-men from across the sea. The next day, it may be laid waste, with refugees pouring north to escape the devastation brought on by the uprising of the Queviel elves who are simply done with the nonstop raids from-- who else-- the players of House Revenge!
That’s one example of the power of this system-- we’ll be diving more into detail on this as we get into testing and start seeing what works, is fun and balances out the happenings on Embermark.
While Exiles hasn’t gotten to outside testing just yet, we’ve been doing plenty live, either at the studio, on a show floor or on the fly. And we’ve identified some of the early indicators for redesign needs. As you know, one of the aims of the game is to provide one-hand, one-thumb control for easy access (whether or not you’re a leftie), and we noticed some thumb-placement issues with the old interface (you can see the old one here) as well as some feedback clarity needed for things like Effects Over Time (EOT) and HP and Ability descriptions.
This led us to the exercise we’re in the middle of, and we’re excited to get feedback on the increase in clarity and control, but also the aesthetic (work-in-progress):
Coupled with the gameplay development mentioned above (which is not represented here), and the avatar system you’ll read about below, there will be much to discuss!
The loot train continues to roll down the tracks and shows no signs of stopping. In fact, it’s speeding up. So without belaboring that fact, check out a bit of the mass quantity of tasty items (at varying levels of finish) coming your way:
Axes, warhammers, staves, light & heavy armor, blunts, boots, wizardy whatnots & everything that fits in the 13 slots for your gear is underway. Moar soon!
We’re learning quite a bit about how we’ll deal with the Rogue Class design from this cretin, but don’t get excited about what’s in his left hand just yet. All work-in-progress... (but check this out!):
AUDIO FROM THE EXILES BOUND DEBUT
I asked our friends at Bound, the app for episodic fiction, audio and visuals for all sorts of interesting properties, if we could debut a snippet of Episode 1 from Tales of Embermark, the series we’re doing together to reveal a little bit of history before players start directing it themselves. They graciously agreed.
Thus, here’s an audio snippet from our Narrator (who you met in the last Update), a haggard soul who was there back when the Collapse unfolded. He’s just encountering a farmer on his way to investigate what’s going on with House Resolute. So, without further ado, the debut! EPISODE 1 END.
(and download Bound from the iOS App Store here)
There’s so much continent to concept, sometimes it gives us pause.
We’re rolling through each Zone of Embermark with evil delight, adding towns, ruins and caves to fight things in all over the place. The next one for us to share is Askala-- and here are the notes from our design doc about it:
“Temperate and slightly southern, Askala is one of the richest Zones in terms of natural resources. Farmland is abundant (though it’s not flat), and the fishing trade is huge, given Askala’s largest coastline of any Zone. In the middle of the Zone is a mountain range of steep peaks. There’s a long archipelago along the southern end, with sporadic civilization and ruins along them. House Revenge HQ located along the Eastern part of the Zone.”
Like most of the continent, even the civilized portions are tucked away for protection and under constant threat of decimation, both from Others From Over There (beyond the Breaches) and from neighbors. Here’s a rough of Pactu, a farming village nestled among the conifers below the nearby range:
As you read from the design doc, House Revenge is here, an amalgam of architecture from the once-proud elves and the men and half-men who have come to reside there:
We’re also working on Dokkul, a fishing capital right at the start of the Askalan Archipelago. Its seemingly haphazard and spread-out makeup has allowed it to regroup and restart after countless raids and invasions on its rich resources:
AND NOW, THE FORGE ONLINE
yes, Yes, YES, YES! The Forge works, people! I can’t tell you how happy this makes me (I am, admittedly, an easily delighted wizard, but indulge me)...
“Craft items of enormous power” is said in many game descriptions, so I will outline:
Forge Recipes - You will find, earn and win Recipes throughout your journeys in Embermark, and these will allow you to forge items needed and some not available in Chests or Quests. A few crafting materials (also available in drops) plus a Unique Material (which can literally be anything) and BOOM - you’ve got a unique item or a banana or what-have-you.
Forge Random - Pick one of the 13 slots available on your character, and as long as you have the crafting materials, you can forge a random piece of loot for that slot. The higher the Forge level, the better the loot!
Salvage - 1-800-GOT-JUNK has nothing on Exiles. Not only does the game take away your junk, it gives you crafting materials (and sometimes, even Ember Essence) in return!
Upgrade - Got a Legendary, except it’s Level 3 and you’ve gotten way beyond that? Throw in your mats and bring that item with you on your journey to Paragon!
(oh and you can of course Level Up your Forge, unlocking treasures untold)
In this Update’s Dwarf section, we have some animations to share, not the least of which is this Shield Slam, which will likely cause you to lose your feet (or some other awful effect-over-time) during battle:
And who says dwarves aren’t spry? Try making this type of leap at home:
All hail the mighty SecretOwl, winner of the 1st Player-Created Gear Contest! It was a heated competition, with entries as varied as weapons, to offhands to armor pieces, but a shield won the day!
Jakallen’s Aegis, a singular shield combining epic-level resistances for the bearer with an impressive side effect, won “The Paragon” and will be created, given Lore and made available in the game after launch. In addition, prizes were given for the “Loose Cannon” (craziest) and The Fisherman’s Boot (funniest). Check The Scroll of Exaltation for the winners and details on upcoming contests.
If your entries didn’t make the finals this time, fear not-- there will be many more PCGCs in the future, and your creativity just may see its way into the game along with the Aegis.
There are 13 slots on your Character’s person in Exiles, and 8 of those slots for gear are visible. Given that the creation of visible items (like helms and chest pieces and boots) are more work, we did those first. Thus, rings and belts have languished in the dark for a long time, waiting to be introduced into the game.
This milestone, those items made their way in, and the Bard is hard at work on the Ring of Whateversinhishead.
Ethereals aren’t supposed to be here.
Another race from Otherworld, these beings are intelligent and highly sophisticated but non-humanoid. Their physical forms are up to them, both in shape and in solidity. They communicate with each other entirely mind-to-mind, with no sound or vibration emitting from them. To anyone on the outside, they must communicate by the assuming of form. Assuming form and substance makes them vulnerable, but this is also how they must attack a physical foe or charm them or lull them into a stupor. Thus, a battle with an Ethereal is a dance of prepare-and-attack as they tend to buff themselves in prep and then unload on an enemy.
They move in life cycle from Wisp to Shine to Ascended to Superior, and their forms and powers and even limitations progress as well.
Here we take a look at an Ascended, chosen to form of human and fire:
Despite their ever-increasing power, they can be defeated-- and as you can see, they don’t take their possessions into the next life...
Plan on seeing more on this enemy, as we introduce their multiple forms (and multiple power structures alongside).
For a while-- in fact, a great loooong while, you’ve been looking at this guy as a placeholder player avatar in every screenshot ever:
Thus, thank you for your patience and huzzah! You don’t have to look the same as everyone else anymore. In fact, Exiles will only sometimes use faces. Instead, we’re developing an avatar system that gives players some agency over their representation to the world while playing the game. It’s a combination of options, whereby you have default choices for the various parts of your avatar as well as earn or find parts as you go through the game experience.
First, you’ll choose your avatar frame, beginning with lowly, shameful materials and progressing into fantastic borders that make your opponent go “whoa, that Character won the Hoozitwhatsit Tourney-- I’d better just quit right now...”
Then you’ll combine with a number of backgrounds for the avatar, same story:
And finally, you will add an icon as well the icon’s color for full badassery:
We’ll keep sharing details as we head into testing (remember to PM TheWizard on the Exiles forums with your device type if you want in on closed testing & beta later), and you can count on early impressions from the testers throughout our various channels.
If you haven’t already, follow along with the Exiles development on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. And if you haven’t, I’ll find you. And SMITE you.
THERE’S CHAT CHATTER EVERYDAY AS WE READY TO BATTLE
If you want to hear about the game, ask questions or connect with others who are helping the development team think about features, design and narrative, hop into the Discord Channel for live chat and say hi– it’s a friendly lot with plenty of daily shenanigans (there’s even-- still-- a Shenaniganizer).
We’re just starting to dive into our VFX plan (you may have noticed a lack of them in previous GIFs or screenshots), but rest assured, Exiles shall have them, and our bonus image this month is a WIP concept for the Ability “Armor Up,” which would appear on you or your opponent upon Ability use:
BONUS X2: THE DWARF... SHIMMY
As we prepared the dwarf model for animations, a very strange thing happened, which has turned into a GIF that you can find here. Take a look, then try and look away...
