Cyber Knights: Flashpoint News

The artificial sun is setting in the New Boston dome and the team is gearing up, checking weapons, shining up the cyberdeck. It's time for another heist, it's time for another update. As we have hammered through roadmap milestone after milestone in June and into July, we've piled up an astronomical number of F10s. Small bugs, important bugs, little suggestions, big ideas. Currently, we are working on finalizing the Matrix Tutorial milestone and building out new content for the game -- but alongside that effort we're laying down some Major Bug Lt. Squash. Let's see how many we took out tonight!

If you're enjoying the constant improvements to the game, we hope you'll take a moment to review the game. There is no better way to thank our small team for their efforts, and you can always edit it later to say "I can't believe they just kept updating" =D

[h2]Lure and Stuck AI[/h2]
We've fixed two big AI issues with this update. The first is with Vanguard's Lure. If you were using it close to an enemy, sometimes they might move to it and then just keep "Hunting!" through it and beyond, often leading to your Vanguard getting caught in the act. This isn't the promise of the Talent ... so we fixed this behavior to be sure that - even when thrown very close - the enemy will go to the Lure spot and end their turn their as they should.

The second important bug was related to enemies skipping their Turns after being attacked. In these cases, you'd shoot an enemy and they'd rotate toward you and ... then on their next Turn they would do absolutely nothing. There are a number of circumstances that have to happen for this to occur but it's been plaguing some enemies and making them look really daft.


[h2]Vision System Rebuild[/h2]
Cameras, Radar Arrays and Motion Detectors were the first 3 security devices ever added to the game. They've built up a lot of historical bugs and with Update #121, we've taken the time to rebuild a lot of their guts to address these bugs en masse in a single go.

• Cameras and Radar Arrays will now see multiple characters who pass through them on the same Turn. They had an old issue where they would only trigger one per Turn, period. Not great. Now, they will trigger once per character spotted per Turn - fair and challenging. So, if Ghostman and then Jellybean run through the camera back-to-back, you'll be properly dinged twice now.
  
• We've fixed issues with Cameras and Radar Arrays not being very accurate at spotting your mercs while they are rotating between turns. Now, their sweep is much more successful at spotting anyone who is seen during the movement.
  
• Cameras and Radar Arrays could also refuse to see a body for a while. They would usually eventually spot it, but it could lay in plain view for a bit - especially if they were just turning back on from being diabled - and not spot it.
  
• All vision systems have been improved to better handle smoke - being inside the smoke especially, which they were not great at following the rules.
  

This fix has closed out a huge number of old F10s about Camera, Radar Arrays and Motion Detectors. A big thanks to everyone who submitted F10 tickets!


[h2]Proximity Mine Fix[/h2]
Proximity Mines were taking damage from the explosion point into consideration when rolling their damage, like a grenade. But they trigger when you enter their zone, so you were always at the max distance ... so, the damage was always low. They have been corrected now to deal full damage which is still Ballistic Damage and so reduced by armor. Still, expect these to have a bit more bite, especially if they have switched into lethal mode.


[h2]Overhead Noise Warning during Attack[/h2]
While we've had useful attack warnings in the hovers over enemies' heads for a while, they were only visible while idling or planning a move and disappeared if you planned an attack. This could make it difficult to remember if a specific enemy was going to hear your attack and even more opaque if you changed weapons during your targeting - "who is going to hear?" was not an easy question to answer.

We have now added the same warning icon over all enemy heads during the attack prep phase where you are checking out accuracy, considering your shot and might change weapons or Talents. This gives you clear guidance on who will hear the attack without having to hit ESC or (B) to back out and check the overhead warnings again.


[h2]Better Clicking in Class Tree[/h2]
The class tree is now far more mouse-friendly, allowing you to click on another node at any time during your journey to upgrade a node. If you're looking at Red Dot's upgrades, you used to have to click the close button or hit ESC before you could click on Coordinated Charge. Now, the click goes through correctly and you can one-click to open another node and check it out.


[h2]Timestamp Corrections[/h2]
The saved slots in the game were using an inconsistent timestamp compared to the main save and it was overall just confusing. We've resolved this now and the timestamps should all be correct, to your timezone and useful. Let us know if you have any issues.

[h2]Improved Hospital Rooftop "Plan B"[/h2]
With Update #121, we've made some improvements to the looting and enemy spawning on the rooftop. We're working our way steadily through the game to improve enemy starting locations, patrol paths and loot groups to make sure everything is varied per play through and feels good. With this update, the loot is a bit more reliable on the very level so there are less changes of "spikes" in value and the surprise arrival of the T-REX may also arrive in some different points and positions which can make things moderately different every time you restart. It is still the first level, so we've not going to hard on this one.
 
[h2]v1.8.41 - 8/6/2024[/h2]
- Fixed issue that could cause AI in combat to skip their turn stupidly
- Fixed issue with Vanguard's Lure where, if thrown close to the enemy, the might keep hunting that same turn
- Rebuilt vision systems (Camera, Radar Array, Motion Detector) and fixed tons of old bugs
- Improved all vision systems reaction when inside smoke
- Improved ability of vision systems to spot separate characters moving through them on same turn
- Improved ability of vision systems to spot characters when they rotate between turns
- Improved combat logs produced by vision systems when spotting characters
- Improved ability for vision systems to spot dead bodies
- Added new overhead hover on enemies when targeting, showing who will hear the shot/attack
- Fixed issue where proximity mines always did low damage - watch out!
- Fixed District HQ starting position that started inside camera view angle
- Fixed building in District HQ that you could sink into the wall when taking cover
- Fixed issue with last time played date being incorrect in saved game slots
- Fixed saved game name would not correctly match if you renamed Knight in new game
- Fixed issues with Crafting cost being incorrect and blocking the start of crafting
- Fixed issues with Start Crafting button being enabled incorrectly on sub-Blueprints
- Fixed issue trying to click Talents but click going through to Lootbox (etc) underneath
- Fixed Grenades were bouncing off Refact wall from Vanguard's class tree
- Fixed sometimes hotkey graphics were too small for the hotkey ("Shift")
- Renamed market filter category from "Blade" to "Melee"
- Improved click handling in class tree, when viewing upgrades can still click on other node to focus
- Fixed issue with Connection % dropping to 0% at the start of a turn and not getting dumped from Matrix
- Fixed issue with Health-over-Time healing not always updating the initiative track correctly
- Improved description of difficulty options for saving games and death modes
- Improved enemy position, patrol variability and loot in Hospital Rooftop level ("Plan B")
- Fixed oddity with Send to Detox button sometimes saying Send to Destresser

Part of our 10+ year journey as game developers has been constantly working to improve every aspect of our games with each new release. If you’ve been with us for a while, you’ve seen, and heard, this evolution in each game. For soundtracks, our studio has progressed from buying non-exclusive tracks from online markets to hiring our own team and lovingly composing original soundtracks from scratch.

Today, we’re taking an exciting new step forward for both our studio and Cyber Knights: Flashpoint with the release of Reactive Music: dynamic, engine-controlled music layering that reacts to your gameplay, building tension when you’re close to being discovered or amping up the excitement as your shoot-out intensifies.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
^^^ Not trying to play well here at all, just trying to illicit big changes from the reactive music's tension system

[h2]A major tech upgrade made possible by our Kickstarter backers[/h2]
Because of the success of our Kickstarter, we were able to upgrade Cyber Knight’s audio engine early on to use Wwise, a much more feature-rich interactive audio solution for games, made by Audiokinetic. It’s made it easy for us to integrate SFX across Cyber Knights’ tactical encounters with all of your squads’ abilities and interactions.

Now, working with our composers and sound designers at Studio Viking, we’ve rigged up the game’s soundtrack with dynamics unparalleled in any previous Trese Brothers release. We’re no longer just looping songs from a static soundtrack - by using Wwise with Unity, the game’s audio engine can process and mix individual instruments, movements and tempos rather than just starting and stopping static tracks.


[h2]A better heartbeat (and melody) for the game experience[/h2]
This means the music will now match itself to game events as they’re happening real-time in your heist. As the gameplay tension rises, guards start to become suspicious, a body is found or the first shots are fired - the game feeds this into the music engine as a tension rating and musical mode that cues the reactive music component on how to mutate, change tempo, add and remove musical instruments and intensify the mix to match your gameplay moment.

As the tension increases and wanes within a level - as more reinforcements arrive, or as Head Hunters kick down the door, or you kill the last guard who knows you’re in the building - the music can dramatically shift to follow the rise or drop in threat.


[h2]Roadmap milestone + more audio polish[/h2]
This is a huge step up for the game’s sound experience. This not only completes the Reactive Music major milestone on our roadmap, but adds all of the other tracks (and their component elements for Reactive Music to use) from the game’s soundtrack that weren’t yet included in the game, increasing the variety of in-game music by more than tenfold.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2645330/Cyber_Knights_Flashpoint_Soundtrack/

We have also received a lot of feedback about the sound effects and the music in Cyber Knights: Flashpoint. This patch addresses some of them and we are working to incorporate more of that feedback into upcoming patches. We’ve adjusted several audio effects, mixes and made platform improvements that should help resolve several of the higher priority issues.


[h2]Added 5 new Matrix Hosts[/h2]
We've improved the catalog of matrix templates again for solo hacker missions as well as matrix hosts used in across the proc-gen missions with SCU and APU available. Every push to increase these helps us strive for a point where every proc-gen map, objective, matrix host combination is reaching a tipping point of uniqueness as these catalogs continue to grow.


[h2]Talent Rebalance: Coordinate Charge & Deflection Shield[/h2]
With this update, we've completed some needed rebalance for Soldier's Coordinated Charge and Cybersword's Deflection Field.
First, we've reduced power on Coordinated Charge, removing the ability to get a second max charge. With the recharge rate, ability to extend duration, this Talent can already be almost omnipresent so this helps bring it back into a fairer spot within the meta. In addition, the final upgrade that gives +1 MP no longer adds +5% Move Speed, leaving the total achievable Move Speed at +25%.

Cybersword's Deflection Shield has received a 6th upgrade node which can enable you to drop the shield for 0 AP and only an IO-Batt charge from your blade. This can be really helpful in those clutch situations where the AP are just too tight, so consider this new upgrade!

[h2]Decoy Upgrades[/h2]
The Decoy II and III programs' have both received an improvement, a minor buff to their armor and a reduction in program rating so they are viable on more decks. Decoy II is up to +4 Armor (which matters all the more now that Hacker's brains are bleeding more!) and has had a Program Rating reduction and Decoy III is at +6 Armor with an even bigger Program Rating reduction.

Enjoy making those IC and the Q-Sec Escalation miss!


[h2]Better Power Level 2 Prices[/h2]
Thanks to all the players sharing feedback and chatting with us in Discord. With your help, we've improved the pricing matrix for low level armor and weapons you can get at the beginning of the game. All of the prices have come down a bit, so remember to go shopping when you've got some U-Dahs after your latest heist.

[h2]Story Repercussions[/h2]
We've improved the story events if you ignore the starting Vanguard's Cube Run mission. Don't do it - it is not exciting, and the Vanguard just gets mad. But before we had missed the consequence here and nothing was said and no one cared. That said - go on the mission! z

[h2]v1.8.39 - 8/2/2024[/h2]
- Added reactive music system - game music now responds to rising stealth and combat tension, varies music intensity
- Major increase in variety of music in missions
- Added 5 new matrix hosts maps to hack-only and proc-gen missions
- Down-balanced Soldier's Coordinated Charge - removed option to get +1 max charge, total move speed bonus is +25%
- Improved Decoy II and III with more Deck Armor, reduced Program Ratings
- Added 6th upgrade option for Cybersword's Deflection Field to reduce cost to -1 AP
- Fixed issue with Chameleon Sheathe implant blocking Stealth Armor from being equipped
- Minor price reduction for Power Level 2 weapons and Power Level 2 an 3 Armors
- Improved starting Vanguard's reaction to ignoring Cube Run mission
- Tightened up timeline on all proc-gen missions, reduced by 1-2 days

Two days, two new maps! We're excited to roll out Update #119 with another map to play for the new assassinate VIP objective type. In June and July we smashed roadmap milestone after milestone but now we're getting ready for the late summer deluge of content - maps, missions, stories, recruits and more. Time to make this game deep! So with Update #119, we're rolling out new proc-gen map, improved the bodyguard behavior once a VIP goes down, fixed a lingering bug with double-counted corpses, fixed a sneaky longstanding bug with extra Silencers being generated if you were swapping characters in new game and made a list of quality improvements to the H Interchange map rolled out yesterday.

If you're enjoying the pace of updates and improvements to the game, please consider leaving a review as a way to thank our small team and push us to keep going!


[h2]New Map for Assassinations - District HQ[/h2]
With Update #119, we're excited to roll out another new map - the District HQ - which appears one of the options in the new assassination proc-gen objective type. This new map has a cool city district style that is really beautiful and you'll find some new unique rooftop challenges here as the enemy forces have had a time to fortify this zone against attackers.

We've also fixed all reported issues with yesterday's release of the new map and assassination objective. There was one VIP landing zone where the ZIP was trapped and couldn't move and another funny situation where you contact was congratulating themself about the assassination gone well.

Finally, we fixed a bunch of starting camera positions that were rotated into geometry or rotated so that you couldn't see the characters.

[h2]Improved VIPs and Bodyguards[/h2]
Our first big round of improvements toward getting VIPs and bodyguards to coordinate their actions went pretty well. They are much better at sticking together and bodyguards are now resolute in their fast movement to take tactical positions in a circular fashion around the VIP and protect them.

With this update, we've fixed some of the bodyguard behavior after the VIP is dead to be sure they don't mill around stupidly and instead try to take retribution on the attackers.

We'll keep working on improving this set of intelligence and especially are excited to add some new Talents to the bodyguards' bags to help make them better defenders.


[h2]Double Count Corpses[/h2]
We fixed a bug - thanks for the F10s! - introduced a few updates ago that could cause a body to be "double counted". An enemy would discover a corpse and then the Sec AI would receive multiple reports of fatalities on that turn. This is now resolved - each body is counted exactly once when it is first discovered and if the discoverer is killed on the same Turn, the body reverts to be undiscovered.

[h2]New Game Silencer Pile[/h2]
We're excited to fix a sneaky, longstanding bug and a mystery that has been blamed on the EQ system for quite some times. Some players find that they have silencers in a pile in their inventory at some point in the game. Sometimes 14/14 ... that makes no sense, there are only 4 equipped on my characters! Sometimes 56/56 ... wut?

The true cause of this was actually switching characters in new game could leave silencers hanging around. If you tested out enough team combos, it could leave a lot of silencers around!

We're excited to have this fixed for future new games :D

[h2]v1.8.37 - 8/1/2024[/h2]
- Added new proc-gen map "District HQ" for mission objective Assassination
- Added more variety for mission names, especially bodyguard missions
- Further improved behavior for VIPs and bodyguards - better guarding routine
- Fixed issue with one VIP/bodyguard arrival where they are stuck on the rooftop and don't move
- Fixed funny Contact thanking themselves for completing the assassination mission lol
- Fixed bad starting camera angles in new H Interchange map
- Improved lighting and fixed some flickering elements in new H Interchange map
- Fixed new game issue where changing characters could result in extra Silencers later
- Fixed reported typos

The New Boston streets have never been so dangerous - because your Knight and your mercs about to to get paid to go hunting. With Update #118, we're rolling out new proc-gen map, new proc-gen objective and new cybernetics screen with a ton of fixes and features that were previously missing, such as removing a cyber class you accidentally multi-classed.

We've hammered through a huge number of major milestones in June and July and we've got 2 more just slipping out of July into early August - Reactive Music and Hacking Tutorial are days away from landing. And now begins the late-summer content binge - let's do it!

If you're enjoying the pace of updates and improvements to the game, please consider leaving a review as a way to thank our small team and push us to keep going!


[h2]New Proc-Gen Objective and Map[/h2]
With Update #118, we're excited to be back on the new map train! The H Interchange map is now released with a new proc-gen objective of assassination. You've been offered a high priority hit but the target is only at risk for a very short window - you need to get into position, be patient and then hit hard before they can escape.

With a new map and a new objective now added, our next proc-gen step will be to add another new map with the assassination objective and then to circle back to bring everyone into the fold - adding assassination objectives to existing maps and adding existing objectives to these new maps. We'll rampage through a short cycle here, hopefully making some big waves in the amount of proc-gen playable content before pivoting to stories, recruits and contacts.

[h2]Improved Bodyguard & VIP Behavior[/h2]
With this update, we've also put extra hours into rigging up the behaviors for bodyguards and VIPs so that they are more actively taking their rolls. VIPs will move quickly at a walk toward their extraction point until they become alerted, at which point they will run. Bodyguards aim to never be caught flat footed, so they run and move quickly to keep up with asset and take tactical advantageous positions nearby.


[h2]Upgraded Cybernetics Screen[/h2]
Update #118 brings a complete revamp to the cybernetics screen for your mercs. Before, the screen was presented in a pretty dry inventory of 6 slots you can fill with cybernetics. Now we've upgraded the screen to present you with the 12 possible slot types (arms, legs, deep-brain, fast-brain, heart, etc) that can be augmented with cybernetics.


We've also improved the language and clarity for all the conflict and fail case pop-ups to be more clear. Some of the messages were just plain wrong (saying the implant would conflict with another implant you had when really it was blocked by requiring to train a 3rd class, etc).


Also, implants that provide a new multi-class cyber class are tagged to be more obvious within the lists.


[h2]Remove Cybernetics for Limited Respec[/h2]
With Update #118, we've also added a highly requested ability to undo class training in a cyber class that has a cybernetic requirement, such as Vanguard or Scourge. Now you can select any implant and simply uninstall it. We skip over the gross procedure and getting the vat grown replacements and just get you back to the game. If your Cyber Knight doesn't want that Dermal Plating - pull it. If you regret multi-classing your Hacker into Agent EX, pull the Nano-Hive and bingo, you're clean slate Hacker again.

This uninstall procedure does not require a SimStream Trainer token as it is only a partial respec, only removing the class nodes trained from the specific tree of the class you're removing.

We discussed making this cost money, a week, and a cyber surgery bed at with a Contac but - for now - have opted for free and instant. You've already paid a hefty price to get that implant installed, so our team found this feature is mostly used to undo mistakes as there is very little or no gameplay advantage from doing it.

And if your starting class came with an implant -such as Emille starting with a Chameleon Sheathe and Vanguard - you cannot remove it.


[h2]Upgrade to Matrix Link 2[/h2]
We've fixed the conflict bug that was preventing the upgrades of required cyber class implants, such as Matrix Link 1 to Matrix Link 2. Get your hacker, get your fistful of cash and get yourself to the clinic now!


[h2]Proc-Gen Name Upgrade[/h2]
We've really enjoyed all the players posting the best mission names to the Best Mission Names threads on our Discord, the names that everyone helped suggest and the generator has done an amazing job of creating some cool stuff. We've gone back into this little content engine with a new round of updates, better expanding the set and letting both the map and the objective have more of an impact. We hope you post up the new results too :D

[h2]Improved Stun vs. Security Tally [/h2]
We've fixed a number of issues related to Stunned enemies reporting to the Sec AI, that Security Tally would still appear in yellow in the HUD even if they were Stunned and that some types of events could still end up being reported. All of this is now cleaned up and we've standardized the handling of Stunned as a priority status across the stack so that the Sec AI and the individual agent intelligence adhere to the rules everyone would expect.

[h2]v1.8.35 - 7/30/2024[/h2]
- Added new proc-gen mission objective for Assassination
- Added new proc-gen map "H-Interchange"
- Improved behavior for VIPs and bodyguards - much better in Snitch Snuff mission too
- All new cyber surgery screen makes slot options much clearer
- Now uninstall any implant from cybernetic screen, including cyber-class implants to remove that class training
- Fixed conflict preventing Hackers from upgrading from Matrix Link 1 to Matrix Link
- Improved and clarified text in all cybernetic surgery conflict tags, added Multi-Class tag to highlight those
- Improved Tally display and Sec AI reporting rules for stunned enemies - they do not see, they do not report
- Widened range of custom/flexible difficultly, opening up ranges for those locked at 75-125% to 50-150%
- Fixed issue with helper extraction dialog playing at the end of every hack only mission, now plays first time only
- Fixed issues with landed hovertrucks not correctly blocking sight lines

Knights and mercs - we're back with another update and some key improvements and a big bundle of F10 fixes. Our next update will introduce a new map and a new exciting proc-gen objective type, but first we need to get this patch on the street to address some of your requests and bug reports. We've remixed SFX, improved barracks tagging, added more lore entries, tweaked how range display works in hovers, improved the visual of where your hacker is in the matrix and done some stunning (lol) re-org of the options screen into tabs. Let's dig in!

If you're enjoying how our team is running Early Access, please take a moment to leave a review. A review now is a big help for us to keep going and remember, you can always edit it later! 

[h2]Remixed Sec Escalation SFX[/h2]
We've heard from a number of players that some of the SFX are remixed too loud. We made some changes in an update earlier this week but are back with special focus now on the Sec Escalation SFX that can play at the end of the turn and is way out-of-band too loud. Hopefully this update really pulls it to a better level. Let us know about any SFX issues you have, we're continuing to work to improve!

We've also greatly reduced the intense SFX that was played when you opened the color picking window in appearance. Wow, that was a bit much!


[h2]Better Barracks Tagging[/h2]
With Update #117, we've added a new "Training" tag at the top level of the barracks, letting you know if you have mercs ready to train. We've also fixed a longstanding mistake in counting, where someone recovering from cybernetic surgery would count as -2 Ready Mercs. This has likely been the cause of most of the F10s about bad counting, so we're excited to see this behind us.


[h2]Agent EX Signal Graft[/h2]
We fixed the mistake with Agent EX's Signal Graft Talent which protects you from triggering certain types of security devices. These devices were still giving movement alerts even with the Talent active. Now we've resolved that and if the device won't trigger than you won't get an alert in your movement path.


[h2]Journal for D-Cartel[/h2]
We're continuing to round out the journal lore entries for factions and added the D-Street Cartel, aka the D-Cartel, with this latest update. In addition, the Faction page on the Cyber Knights wiki has been updated with all the latest details from the in-game journal as well.

[h2]Matrix Current Node[/h2]
We fixed two bugs with the recently added Matrix hacking current node selection. First, it always follows you now. It was not accurately following the hacker and second it also follows the hacker being forcefully teleported in the host to another node by either an IC or the Q-Sec Escalation.


[h2]Range Clarity[/h2]
When hovering over a target within 10m we now add an extra decimal value for extra clarity. We were having players see "2m" in the hover and think that they should be in range with their 2m melee weapon but the range is really 2.5m and you're not in range. You can also always check the bottom left corner for helpful values about number of targets in range of your current position or movement destination with either weapon.


[h2]Better Options Screen[/h2]
As the game has gained more and more options, things have become increasingly hard to find. More players have asked when we will add the feature to rebind keys for example :D

So, to help make the big types of options and features clearer, we've split options out into tab groups. I know... breaking huge ground here, what a novel thought, we're the first, it's amazing! ... when the rest of the industry catches up, you can thank us :P

[h2]Favor Limit Breaks[/h2]
We've fixed a few more bugs with Contact Limit Breaks and Favors. We fixed issues where the Power Level Limit Break could lock the screen up, where spending a Favor would sometimes not add a new option and still eat the Favor.

[h2]v1.8.33 - 7/28/2024[/h2]
- Remixed SFX for Sec Level raise and Escalation played often at end of turn
- Added new lore Journal Entries for D-Cartel
- Improved tag set and counting rules for Barracks tags, added "Training" tag
- Fixed issue with double-counting mercs in cybernetic surgery that caused tag counts to be wrong
- Movement alerts for security devices no longer incorrectly appear for Agent EX's Signal Graft Talent
- When showing range in hovers less than 10m, a decimal is added for clarity (2.5m)
- Improved organization of (too long) options menu to be in tabbed groups - Graphics, Sound, Controls, Gameplay
- Fixed issue when selling something worthy of a Favor to a contact with 0 Favors, was incorrectly listed as "1 Favor worth $80K"
- Fixed issue with Contact Limit Break and the Power Level offer
- Fixed overly big SFX when opening appearance color changing window
- Fixed issues where animator selector on current node in Matrix wasn't following hacker or didn't teleport
- Fixed issue where hitting ESC or (B) on Contact Limit Break would leave game locked up
- Improved controller support for start button, preventing it from opening menu in the middle of screens it shouldn't
- Fixed issues with program image appearing for Intrinsic Weapon Mod blueprints