There Will Be Ink News

Hey there! This is just a small hotfix to address a couple of nasty crash bugs. I have a significant update nearly finished, and don't forget to fire things up tomorrow on 2/14 for "There Will Be Smooches", one day only!

Fixes

• Fixed Main Menu crash with "There Will Be Smooches" seasonal content
  
• Fixed crash upon ending multiplayer battle
  

Hello! Here is a smaller update with some bug fixes and a bit of tank balancing and enhancing. Tanks were previously pretty OP vs. infantry. I’ve balanced things out by reducing the blast radius of tank shell explosions. This change has the added bonus of making tank combat more interesting by requiring a more tactical approach. It’s now harder to get a direct hit, making the aim penalty while moving more significant. AI will now also treat destroyed tanks and tank turrets like other cover objects. Full change log below. Tally ho!

[h3]Changelog[/h3]
Changes & Enhancements

• Reduced tank shell blast radius by 40% (less OP against infantry and requires better accuracy against tanks)
  
• Tanks and tank turrets now turn into proper cover objects when destroyed
  
• Tank turret pops off when tank is properly destroyed (ie if incapacitated first)
  
• Made trees much more effective as cover (without needing to be next to them) when not toppled
  
• Craters no longer appear on destroyed tanks (or other larger cover objects)
  
• Engineer now sets sandbag facing based on their own position when no barrack present
  

Bug Fixes

• Fixed crash bug that occurred when Dino drop is unlocked
  
• Fixed crash bug that occurred when Engineer tried to figure out where to place sandbag when no Barracks is present
  
• Fixed bug where T-Rex sometimes shot self in head(!)
  
• Fixed bug where AI aim was slightly off (especially an issue with T-Rex)
  
• Fixed bug where Alt Flamethrower (ie “Flametosser”) flame tank was drawn incorrectly when prone
  

Hello there! I hope everyone is well. I didn’t realize how much had changed since beta 6.0 until I put it all together in the list below. It turns out there are a good many things! Two of the biggest changes, pathfinding and a new dynamic stat system, are not very exciting from a gameplay perspective, but hopefully the many other changes make up for that. One of those smaller changes, the Engineer’s new ability to place sandbags, can have a pretty big effect on the direction of a battle. Similarly, the change to have units face their target/destination when prone makes it a lot easier to hide behind cover when battling vertically, while also making flanking more effective. There are many other additions and enhancements, including a new campaign mission, river segments for the map editor, falling tree damage, new stats, improved AI, and of course, new “Jolly Edition” art assets. See the full list in the changelog below. I’ll also talk briefly about some of the bigger ones.

[h3]Jolly Edition[/h3]
Xmas trees (and cacti), falling snow, snowballs, glitter, and of course that pesky Yeti! Jolly Edition content is enabled automatically for the rest of December, or you can say “humbug” and turn off seasonal content from the Options menu. Here is the game in action:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[h3]Discord[/h3]
That’s right, There Will Be Ink has a Discord server! Come say hi and join in the conversation or just keep up with all the latest. Steam users can even get access to experimental builds to test out the latest features. I’m hoping to get some community submissions for maps and campaigns to include in the game, either built-in or as separate downloads, but more on that later.

[h3]Pathfinding[/h3]
I scrapped the old, cobbled together “freestyle” pathfinding system for a more traditional grid-based system. Tanks aren’t always brilliant, but they’re a lot smarter than before. I’ve also hopefully fixed many of the bugs around the old system. In addition to getting where they need to be, tanks also now make a point of finding clear lines of sight and finding alternate paths (or waiting) when another vehicle is in their way. In other tanks news, turrets are now sometimes blasted off, damaging units where they land. Engineers can also now repair incapacitated tanks, if the damage isn’t too bad.

[h3]Prone Units & Sandbag Placement[/h3]
For a long time it was awkward when battling vertically, as prone units were more exposed than standing units in such situations. No more! Prone units now face their target, so they’re able to hide behind trees and the like regardless of the angle between them and their target. Of course, going prone does still provide more surface area when approaching a unit form the side, and AI has been improved to take advantage of this by spreading out and flanking a lot better than they used to. Further tactical depth has been added with the Engineer’s new ability to place sandbags. As the player you can take control of an Engineer and place cover for your troops where it’s needed, or you can let the AI take care of things and focus on combat. This new ability should help out with those massacre zones that new recruits tend to bravely but foolishly charge forth to.

[h3]Dynamic Stats[/h3]
I spent a lot of time on this, but it’s not really something you see in game. The good thing though is that it makes the stat system much more dynamic, manageable, and scalable, so I can add new units with little trouble and don’t have to worry about the old hardcoded stat info. End-of-battle stats are a little different in this way in that they’ll only reflect units that participated in the battle (which now includes tanks).



[h3]Changelog[/h3]
New Features & Content

• Implemented new pathfinding system for tanks
  
• New Engineer tool/ability: Sandbags
  
• Player can place sandbags as engineer; AI will place based on where comrades are dying if there is not already cover
  
• New Engineer ability: Mechanics
  
• Allows Engineer to repair tanks
  
• New campaign mission, “All In A Row” (tank-focused, can be difficult)
  
• Tank turrets now have a chance of being blown off of tank upon destruction, damaging units & settings fires
  
• If turret not blown off, tanks now become incapacitated (but not destroyed) and can be repaired
  
• Implemented new dynamic stat system (no real in-game effect, but will make adding new units and stats much easier)
  
• When prone, units now face their target/destination (instead of only left/right)
  
• Added 6 river segments that can be tiled together for more river varieties
  
• Added new leg sprites/animation for normal unit movement (ie jogging)
  
• Old sprites used for sprinting
  
• Trees now damage units when falling
  
• Added sounds for trees falling and landing
  
• New stat: Tree Deaths (the number of times a player was killed by falling trees)
  
• New stats for vehicles incapacitated & vehicles destroyed
  
• Plugged Tanks into unit stats (eg. shots fired/hit, killed/killed as, unit progress, etc)
  
• Reworked weapon system to allow for more than 2 weapons
  
• Added new “Jolly Edition” versions of all trees and cacti
  

Changes & Enhancements

• AI is now better at spreading out and flanking
  
• Units look for more than just 2 cover options
  
• Going to Barracks from pause menu now saves current unit XP (reworded pause menu items)
  
• Separated water/rivers into their own group in the Map Editor
  
• RPG is now much more effective against tanks
  
• Added more frames to torso animation
  
• Various adjustments to cover bonus amounts
  
• Units don’t need to be as close as before to get cover bonus (makes cover more effective for AI)
  
• Reduced roll speed/distance by 20%
  
• Reduced cost of Engineer’s Mine Deployment ability to 1 point
  
• Infantry now flee out of the way of tanks (not just friendly tanks)
  
• Tanks can no longer run over friendly units
  
• Friendly fire sound now plays when hitting a friendly unit instead of upon their death
  
• Tank turrets now tilt at a random angle when destroyed
  
• Increased Stick Man boss health by 50%
  
• Performance tweaks for how often units refresh target, updating cover capacity, etc
  
• Smoke is now emitted from the tank barrel when firing
  
• Updated bullet collision detection with cover objects to be more precise
  
• Increased tank bullet friendly fire “safe zone”
  
• Main menu options no longer respond to click unless the cursor is over them
  
• Units no longer continue moving to cover if their target is killed or incapacitated
  
• Added hand-drawn sprite for tank turret
  
• Added Discord icon & link to main menu
  
• Boss damage and boss kills now tracked over campaign
  

Bug Fixes

• Overlapping tanks at mission start now push away from each other instead of hanging things up
  
• Fixed sandbags to use precise collision detection
  
• Fixed bug where mission wouldn’t end in countdown missions when all friendly units are lost
  
• Fixed crash bug when bringing up Steam overlay when battle is over
  
• Fixed crash bug relating to tanks and vengeance
  
• Certain stats no longer require that a unit be player controlled at the time of calculation (effectively, stats are more accurate)
  
• Parachuting/jetpacking units no longer leave footprints
  
• Fixed bug where animation speeds were sometimes incorrect when prone
  
• “Time in Battle” stat on Barracks page now shows proper time format
  
• Game no longer pauses if battle is over and game window is no longer in focus (eg during alt+tab)
  
• Fixed bug where units sometimes run in the wrong direction when first setting out to approach target
  
• Fixed bug where cover capacity wasn’t properly being calculated
  
• Fixed bug where ranked Alt Rifle & Assault infantry would not switch to secondary weapon
  
• Fixed bug where secondary weapon was not being destroyed on unit death
  
• Mouse in Map Editor once again shows x/y coords when dragging (GMS2 port issue)
  
• Fixed bug where Engineers wouldn’t rebuild buildings that are on fire/destroyed (may have been introduced after Beta 6.0)
  

Hello, friends! There is a new build out today for There Will Be Ink. Beta 6, let's call it. It is a big one! There are tanks, new missions, reworked controls, a new game engine, AI and UI improvements, many enhancements and fixes, and much more. Before I jump into the details of the update, a small note about a big change since the last update back in July.

As was the case for many, my day jobs were affected by the pandemic. Once June came around, my usual summer work was not there, and I had to look for something else to pay the bills. Luck was on my side, and I managed to get a full time position with Mohawk Games, my first job job in the game industry, doing QA work on their fantastic historical 4x game, Old World. They are a great bunch of people, and the game is incredibly good. I highly recommend checking it out! Anyhow, some of my other work picked back up after I started with Mohawk, which made for a very busy summer indeed. As a result, work on TWBI was very slow for a while there. Needless to say, my springtime goal to finish 1.0 for September 2020 was not met. But! Now that I've settled in to my new routine, I'm finding ways to make more time for TWBI, and I did indeed get a lot done over the past few months. On to that!

[h3]Tanks[/h3]

That's right, There Will Be Are Tanks! They are showcased in the (current) last mission of the main, "There Will Be Ink" campaign, but they can also be placed in the map editor. There will be more missions to come that feature tanks. Although quite functional, tanks are still a work in progress. For instance, some of the art and effects are not finalized, and I'm still sorting out their pathfinding methods. I've been freestyling it with different heuristic methods, which works well a lot of the time (and hilariously bad some of the time), but I might just end up with something more methodical and established for pathfinding, like trusty ol' A*. All that being said, I find the tanks pretty fun and I'll be curious to hear any feedback on them (see note below on the new Discord server!). I know I had a lot of fun banging on a cast iron frying pan to make those bullet-hitting-metal sound effects.

[h3]New Missions[/h3]

I won't say too much about the new missions, so to leave something to discover for the player, but most of the new levels feature unique mechanics, terrain, and environmental effects of some form or another. They are quite a lot more varied than the Act I missions, and some are pretty difficult. Also, more is learned about your Alt Write foes starting right away with mission 9. I can taste that Pulitzer prize already!



[h3]Gamepad Controls[/h3]

At last, I think I've got gamepad controls optimized pretty well. I've eliminated "precise mode" that was previously activated by holding down the right analog stick. Instead, it's a lot easier to make precise adjustments with standard aiming, and aiming vertically is much more smooth. In addition to that, I've added a "free aim" mode, which is toggled by pressing down (not holding) the right analog stick. In "free aim" mode, the cursor stays put and is moved using the right analog stick in a similar way to how the mouse moves the cursor. This method is much easier to use for aiming with RPG infantry (as well as tanks) and can also be effective for strafing and the like.

[h3]GameMaker Studio 2 (and a very pesky Windows 10 2004 update issue)[/h3]

Although I've used GMS 2 for other small projects, I stuck to trusty ol' GMS 1.4 with TWBI, mostly because I was used to (and still prefer) the old workspace layout. But, aside from getting with the times, I recently discovered a pretty big issue that encouraged me to make the move. As (hopefully) many others did, I held off on updating to the 2004 build of Windows 10, released earlier this year. Upon finally doing so, I found that it effectively broke TWBI, in that the game runs at about 10fps below the default 60fps the game is designed for, regardless of what's happening in the game. I tested things out on a couple systems with the same results. I was able to find a fix in GMS 1.4 to get the issue mostly resolved, but it was still running at 1 or 2 fps below 60, which is unacceptable. The only way I could fully resolve the issue was to port TWBI to GMS 2, which actually was a pretty smooth process. There were a few quirks I had to work out, and there are sure to be a more remaining, but I think things will be good going forward. I may have even gained a few fps in my TWBI stress tests in GMS 2 vs. GMS 1.4. My main worry is that a lot of players are experiencing this performance lag, especially since the game was released as part of itch.io's Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality a few months back, during which the player base of TWBI greatly expanded. I originally hoped to include the Act II boss level as part of beta 6.0, but it will just have to wait for 6.1 as I hurry to get this performance fix out.



[h3]Discord[/h3]

There Will Be Ink now has its very own Discord server. Come on by for a chat, the latest updates, test build access for Steam users, and so on!

[h3]All of The Other Things[/h3]

There are a lot of other things! The full list can be found in the changelog below, but a few highlights include beaches and landing craft, unit footprints, new stats and badges around mines, more effective mine laying for the Engineer, more friendly friendly-fire, grayed out aiming cone when reloading, Grabby Mode improvements, player colour updates, StickMan Boss rebalance, AI improvements, many small QoL improvements, performance optimizations, and many bug fixes. Also starting very soon (Oct. 1st), Spooky Edition is unlocked! I've updated the artwork, so everything should kick in automatically come October first. Seasonal content can be disabled from the Options menu if you prefer the standard visuals.



[h3]Changelog[/h3]

New Features & Content

• Tanks!
  
• 6 new missions added to "There Will Be Ink" campaign, most with unique features
  
• Reworked gamepad controls
  
• Easier to make precise adjustments; smooth aiming for full 360 degree range
  
• Replaced "precise aim" mode with "free aim" mode - Right analog button toggles aim to behave like mouse
  
• Added slight gamepad rumble when player-controlled unit dies
  
• Landing craft (for specific campaign missions)
  
• Unit footprints (and treads for tanks. Footprints are player-only by default; can be changed in options)
  
• New Stats: Mines Detected, Mines Defused, Mines Recaptured
  
• New Badges: Field Studies, Recycler Award
  

Changes & Enhancements

• Ported TWBI to GMS:2 - resolves performance issue with Win10 2004 update, may be some quirks remaining
  
• Updated Spooky Edition art
  
• Engineer now has mine detector by default
  
• Replaced "Mine Detector" skill with "Mine Laying"
  
• Friendly fire now has a 'safe' distance where it won't hit friendly units (similar to how it doesn't hit nearby cover)
  
• Sightline/aiming cone are now gray when a unit is reloading
  
• Grabby Mode icon is now tinted to player colour, fades when no valid option, and draws line to target unit
  
• Reduced Grabby Mode selection range
  
• Player colour is now based on gamepad index (and not order joined)
  
• Revised player colours (removed some grays, added cyan and yellow)
  
• StickMan boss now spits grenades instead of having flamethrower
  
• StickMan now gets one additional hp per enemy destroyed in campaign (to max 1000)
  
• The mouse cursor is now hidden when placing or dragging items in the Map Editor
  
• Team 2 units now face left by default at battle start
  
• Bullets, Grenades, RPGs now have an armour pierce attribute
  
• Added fire resistance attribute to units (applies mostly to tanks)
  
• Toggling fullscreen on the Options page now changes the mode immediately
  
• Cycling resolutions on the Options page while in windowed mode now changes the window size
  
• AI: Units no longer throw grenades at very close distances
  
• AI: Units will no longer attack buildings whose flags are being lowered
  
• AI: Engineers now space mines out a little further
  
• AI: Engineers will now avoid laying mines on buildings and other objects
  
• AI: RPG infantry now target the center of their target instead of the nearest edge
  
• Units now always leave the HQ standing up
  
• The game now pauses when Alt+Tabbing out
  
• Pressing Esc during Quick Battle now defaults to pause menu (instead of going to Map Editor)
  
• Chance to bleed out is now inversely proportional to a unit's overKill (HP below 0) at time of death
  
• Unit stamina, health, vengeance, etc is now hidden when in building
  
• Tooltips on Main Menu now come up more quickly and use a larger font (helps with lower res displays)
  
• Shells are now slightly smaller
  
• Player name colours on "click/button to Join" UI are now all gray
  
• "Deploying Weapon" text no longer displays when HMG is being fired while undeployed
  
• Optimized method for detecting nearest hostile projectile
  
• Optimized target check for units with "Hold Position" behaviour
  
• Optimized checks for weapon deployment
  
• Optimized building draw code
  
• Optimized unit draw code
  
• Some simplification around sandbag generation
  

Bug Fixes

• Fixed performance issue with Windows 10 2004 update (ported TWBI to GMS:2)
  
• Fixed bug where bullets could hit a unit more than once in same step (eg head, body, legs)
  
• Fixed bug where the last unit who dies can still be controlled after defeat if they are bleeding out
  
• Fixed bug where incapacitated units could be controlled by cycling left/right to them
  
• Fixed bug where game would hang when joining Blue team on "Stick Man" boss level
  
• Fixed bug where countdown mission would not end after surrendering
  
• Fixed map corruption bug when Medical Crate was placed in Map Editor
  
• Units no longer continue rolling when entering a building while rolling
  
• Grabby Mode is no longer activated when Alt+Tabbing out of game
  
• Puddles no longer generate in cloudy weather
  
• StickMan boss' arms no longer animate when game is paused
  
• AI: HQ will no longer target incapacitated units for airstrike
  
• AI: Units will no longer consider their own cover as in the way when finding a clear shot
  
• AI: Recruits will now resupply when running out of grenades while attacking a building
  
• AI: Fixed bug where Engineers weren't consistent when determining coords for mines
  
• Various text fixes and updates to TWBI campaign text
  

Hey there, Billies!


There is a new There Will Be Ink update out today, featuring mostly some quality-of-life updates. I was going to hold off until beta 5.1, which will feature Act II of the campaign (8 more missions), but I got a bit carried away and just about every new level has a new mechanic or unique feature, so it is taking a bit of time. So, in the meantime, here are some other new things!

[h3]Sights Update[/h3]
The player GUI, showing ammo, rank, etc, is presently up on the top of the screen, but it can be a pain to glance up there just to check on ammo levels. No more! I’ve added a an indicator directly below the sight to show how many clips and rounds are remaining, like such:



It is a subtle effect but so far proving to be handy. It is essentially three overlapping bars: one full bar, the colour of the player highlight, one partial bar indicating magazines (or rounds, for single round weapons) remaining, and a third overlapping bar for rounds remaining. It also fills up when the unit is reloading.

[h3]Counter Countdown[/h3]
It is now much more obvious in countdown-style missions that the time is counting down. To achieve this I’ve made the counter much larger in such cases, and it displays below weather info. In addition to that, it starts of red and fades to orange, then yellow, then green as it nears zero/victory.



[h3]AZERTY?[/h3]
That’s right! I’ve added AZERTY keyboard support for any friends rolling with that keyboard layout. Keyboard layout can be changed from the Options page.

[h3]Other Thangs[/h3]
There are several other changes and enhancements, like the player GUI items becoming transparent when blocking a player unit, a slightly re-worked destroyed/destroyed as end-of-battle stats page, floating crates, new terrain objects and art here and there, and slightly less hateful heavy machine gunners. Check out the full list below if you’d like. Now, back to working on that tank prototype!

[h3]Changelog[/h3]
New Features & Content

• Added bar indicator below sight indicating how many rounds/magazines the player has and whether they’re reloading
  
• Added new terrain objects to Map Editor: River 6, rock 4, rock 5, log 3, log 4, skull sign, cactus 2
  
• Added AZERTY keyboard support to Options page
  

Changes & Enhancements

• Player GUI items on top of screen now draw at half opacity when covering a player-controlled unit
  
• On countdown missions, timer is now displayed large and down below weather/wind
  
• Timer text fades in and starts off red, transitions to yellow and then green upon victory
  
• Added game option to disable weather/timer HUD or to show timer only
  
• Added “burnt out” sprites for cacti
  
• On Barracks page, locked units no longer show unit name or icon (new “?” icon is shown instead)
  
• End-of-battle stats (pg3) now display rows darker or lighter depending on how many units of that type were destroyed or destroyed as
  
• Crates now float in deep water
  
• AI: HMG units no longer fire while moving to cover
  
• Added new sprites for RPG smoke (and randomized angle for greater variety)
  
• Crater puddles now only put out fires if they are big enough (40% full and up)
  
• Map Editor item lists are now cleared out upon exiting (to free memory)
  

Bug Fixes

• Fixed bug where incapacitated units would become controllable after victory
  
• Fixed bug where cargo plane would sometimes fly vertically when making drops
  
• Game no longer pauses when the Steam overlay is brought up if the battle is over