​A demo is about to make it's way out in a few days time- so let's go over some of
the cool changes, without spoiling anything!

This demo consists of the first episode- so let's go over how that has changed in terms on content. There have been new levels added, with some sweet secrets and
what have you. There's more treasure and gear to be found. In fact, there have been 25 new pieces of equipment added to the game in the last week alone, though everything spans the whole game, of course. It's a generally meatier experience, and I can't wait for you to play it in a few days.

The only thing holding back this demo build's release is a couple of really odd bugs- these are concerning the dynamic lighting and in-game volume control. I believe I've (seemingly) traced it back to a Windows issue, but bear with me for the time being.

​So, what else is new? Well... the graphics are upscaled and in some cases re-done. I mentioned the dynamic lighting (which REALLY adds to the experience!). You can now control with a keyboard, gamepad (customizable), and even mouse or touch. The Dragon Quest style black background for battles has been changed to an out-of-focus view of the room you're in- I still like the DQ homage (and it's still used in a few spots), but the new way makes battle feel less disconnected from the rest of the game. 

​One of the issues with earlier versions of the game is that while you are playing somebody that is playing a game to save Walter Day from The Bounty- that idea was scarcely represented, much less represented well. That's no longer a problem! From the intro and lobby to more frequent fourth wall-breaking secrets, the point comes across much better, in a more fun way.

​There are a few other little tweaks to gameplay, including player speed. The option to walk or run with a press of a button (or locked to dash always on) has been added. Traps and monsters have been adjusted accordingly, of course. Difficulty has been scaled down slightly in the beginning, and rises at more of an arc, rather than just slamming into a brick wall. ;) 

This adjustment in difficulty suits the much longer game well. The forest episode (2) has a secret temple for you to discover, as well as a different ending and boss; which leads to the new Episode 3. E3 is another change in pace and tone from the separate level format- it provides a refreshing kind of challenge before the oppressive vibe of the dungeons and crypts of the final(much bigger) episode. 

That'll do it for now, huh? I'll be tightening this demo down and releasing it ASAP. The next dev blog will be a recap of Bug Attack!'s last month of development, before moving to a more succinct and regular dev blog for The Bounty: Deluxe Edition.

Updates, news, and looking forward.

Last time I spoke with you all, I said that I'd be posting more frequent updates; so here we are. Following this little update, I'll be posting focused development blogs every week or two; for each game as applicable. That'll start tomorrow with a devblog on The Bounty: Deluxe Edition, followed soon afterwards with a post on the upcoming release of Bug Attack!. 

So, since you're probably curious, a mini-recap of some things going down.

Bug Attack!- FINISHED!
 I'm looking for someone to do a trailer (if you're interested, hit me up at ludicrousda3ve@ymail.com!), then it's down to the rest of promotion and publishing. Stay tuned, cause it's coming REALLY soon. Wii U version will follow shortly.

The Bounty: Deluxe Edition- IN DEVELOPMENT
The primary PC version is... let's say 75% finished. Most everything to be upscaled and ported has been, the demo is almost ready, and a lot of the new content is already in the game. There's still a ways to go, but everything is moving really well in the new engine! Still estimating March 2016 for a finish date- but I'll keep you all updated on any developments. 

Quadfire- CANCELLED
This game has been scrapped, along with a separate twin stick shooter design. Elements of both are being repurposed with a really exciting twist. In streamlining and refocusing, this one will be pretty rad. (read: totally badass)
In planning stages, with development planned to start later this year.

Some not so secret titles, in various stages of planning and production, waiting for their time to shuffle onto the table;
Intrinsic DX- TBD

Project Spaceman- TBD

Lucid- TBD

Changes- TBD

So, there's our little state of the union update. A lot going down, a lot more that can't be spoken about yet- it's been a busy fall/winter, and things will only be getting crazier, friends.

It's been awhile! Things have been very busy around here, during and after the holidays; so here's a quick update before they start rolling out with more frequency.

Today was day one of working with Intel XDK for the recently finished Android/Windows 10 app versions of Bug Attack!, and it doesn't seem too bad! The leaderboards, achievements, and Google Play submissions are already finished- as well as leaderboards for the Scirra arcade demo version, and of course Twitter score sharing and cool extras in the Steam build.
Working on getting everything lined up so the first few versions will launch within a smallish window- there are A LOT of things to do, but it'll be very soon.

In other dev news this week, working on bonus playable characters for The Bounty: Deluxe Edition. There's been a lot of cleaning things up for later- not the most fun part, but really helps workflow so the actual fun parts of development don't turn into headaches. Oh, and I'm also getting some prep work done for Intrinsic DX. Assets are already mostly finished, so that one should be in your hands soon too. ;)

In other, other news, I'll be reaching out to a few more developers concerning hosting their free HTML5 games on our site; if you haven't checked out the games (and learned about their developers), be sure to hop over to the Arcade and have some fun. It's all free and right in your browser.

Till next time, friends.
Dave Vogt
Project Lead