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Halloween Event

Shortly after the anniversary update, we have new content for you - all destroyed threat blocks in 3x64 are now coming back from the dead and once again they will try to endanger you. Our first Halloween event with a new unique game mode is here, with pumpkin TNTs and ghost threat blocks!

First something about the background of the event. I have to admit that this was the hardest event so far. The gameplay and technical side isn't so complicated like our previous community event (Destroy Threats Together), but there was a very little time after releasing our anniversary update. Halloween is a great theme for 3x64 with all those powerups and threat blocks, but until the last moment I couldn't find the right gameplay. But because the last year we were launching the game during halloween and there was no time for special content, I didn't want to miss it this time. Fortunately, after many experiments, I figured out the right gameplay mechanics yesterday afternoon and event is ready now!

What is Halloween mode about?

The mode mostly expands upon the original game mode, but instead of classic threat blocks there are randomly spawning ghost threats! You can eliminate them immediately in their spiritual form before they transform to the blocks around - after transforming you have another 5 seconds for elimination just like the normal threat block. But be aware of transformed threats - they can be much more dangerous than normal threats! Also you have access to a unlimited supply of pumpkin TNTs during this mode!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

how long does the event last?

The event is time limited and is available until Friday, 13 November 2020. During this period, you can send your scores to a special Halloween leaderboard and win rewards.

Rewards


The best player will win a special badge ‚Ghost Threats Buster', which will be always present next to their nickname in all leaderboard.

Additionally, every player who reaches at least 800 points will receive a special set of Halloween threat skins, which can be set from the new rewards menu.





You could notice a 30% discount with the Czech and Slovak Games Week event on Steam, which the game has been part of starting October 26. It's the highest discount since the release as we celebrate one year on the Steam, and the discount will continue until the end of the Halloween event :)

I hope you will enjoy this event, I'm really glad we managed to bring it on time. This time the event isn't as big as the previous one, but I think it will bring a nice halloween atmosphere to 3x64 :) Unfortunately due to lack of time, the event isn't compatible with our leaderboard replays, but as compensation, we bring you brand new music that our heroic composer Peeterangelo managed to make at the last minute :)


As always, we will be very happy if you share your feedback about the event and I would like to thank all the players for the feedback regarding the anniversary update. All bugs and issues will be very soon resolved in future updates, most likely before the end of the event :)

Halloween Event

Shortly after the anniversary update, we have new content for you - all destroyed threat blocks in 3x64 are now coming back from the dead and once again they will try to endanger you. Our first Halloween event with a new unique game mode is here, with pumpkin TNTs and ghost threat blocks!

First something about the background of the event. I have to admit that this was the hardest event so far. The gameplay and technical side isn't so complicated like our previous community event (Destroy Threats Together), but there was a very little time after releasing our anniversary update. Halloween is a great theme for 3x64 with all those powerups and threat blocks, but until the last moment I couldn't find the right gameplay. But because the last year we were launching the game during halloween and there was no time for special content, I didn't want to miss it this time. Fortunately, after many experiments, I figured out the right gameplay mechanics yesterday afternoon and event is ready now!

What is Halloween mode about?

The mode mostly expands upon the original game mode, but instead of classic threat blocks there are randomly spawning ghost threats! You can eliminate them immediately in their spiritual form before they transform to the blocks around - after transforming you have another 5 seconds for elimination just like the normal threat block. But be aware of transformed threats - they can be much more dangerous than normal threats! Also you have access to a unlimited supply of pumpkin TNTs during this mode!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

how long does the event last?

The event is time limited and is available until Friday, 13 November 2020. During this period, you can send your scores to a special Halloween leaderboard and win rewards.

Rewards


The best player will win a special badge ‚Ghost Threats Buster', which will be always present next to their nickname in all leaderboard.

Additionally, every player who reaches at least 800 points will receive a special set of Halloween threat skins, which can be set from the new rewards menu.





You could notice a 30% discount with the Czech and Slovak Games Week event on Steam, which the game has been part of starting October 26. It's the highest discount since the release as we celebrate one year on the Steam, and the discount will continue until the end of the Halloween event :)

I hope you will enjoy this event, I'm really glad we managed to bring it on time. This time the event isn't as big as the previous one, but I think it will bring a nice halloween atmosphere to 3x64 :) Unfortunately due to lack of time, the event isn't compatible with our leaderboard replays, but as compensation, we bring you brand new music that our heroic composer Peeterangelo managed to make at the last minute :)


As always, we will be very happy if you share your feedback about the event and I would like to thank all the players for the feedback regarding the anniversary update. All bugs and issues will be very soon resolved in future updates, most likely before the end of the event :)

Anniversary Update 1.3 - One year of 3x64!

This month it will be a year since the release of the first version of 3x64. A lot has happened since then and the game has gone through two major updates and two successful events (one of which was a community event). We also gained a lot of experience with our first game on Steam, and now it's time to introduce another major update so you can celebrate with us!

The anniversary update mainly focuses on two things - new gameplay features (ingame quests) and improvements to the technical side of the game, including the most requested features like support for gamepads, cloud profiles and UI improvements.

But there is a lot of news, so let's go through them one by one:

[h2]Ingame quests and ranks[/h2]
The ingame quests present a new challenge for both new, and returning players who already know the game mechanics well. During the game you can complete these quests by using powerups, collecting points, destroying threat blocks and more. For players who like real challenges, we have prepared unique daily quests for extra points!

This feature also comes with ranks, where each player can progress and gain higher ranks by completing quests. Your current rank is visible in the new leaderboard menu, so make sure it stands out above other players :)



[h2]Support for more input devices[/h2]
With the implementation of the new input system we bring the long-promised support for various input devices! 3x64 is now fully compatible with all common gamepads and game devices. Better defining of custom keys is also included through the new controls menu.



[h2]Redesigned menu[/h2]
The game menu has been completely redesigned. Now it comes with cleaner and faster theme and better categories. Explore the new graphics settings, rewards manager or improved leaderboards!

[h2]Cloud support[/h2]
You no longer have to worry about your game data when switching between computers - your current rank, quests and statistics are safely stored in the cloud.

[h2]Many tweaks and fixes[/h2]
We also found time to fix and improve a lot of bugs and features that have appeared throughout whole year since the release. Many UI elements are now higher quality to better support high resolutions. Also some particle effects were added or tweaked in accordance with the upcoming mobile version, and some serious bugs were fixed. You can see the complete changelog below the article :)



I hope you will enjoy all the new content we prepared! After one year of active development I'm finally satisfied with technical side of the game. This update was very important for the long-term support of the game, and I hope there will now be more time for another milestone that many of you are waiting for - mobile version of 3x64 :). It still needs some more time before the first beta version, but in the meantime, you certainly don't have to be bored in the PC version - we are preparing new content very soon, which you will definitely notice after a closer examination of the menu - and that's not the only thing you can look forward to :)

We will look forward to your ranks in the leaderboards and we'll be happy if you decide to share your feedback of the new update either here on Steam or on our
Discord server!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h2]Full changelog[/h2]

[h3]Major features:[/h3]
  • New input system with support for all common game devices
  • Rank system and ingame quests + achievement „Unbreakable!“
  • Regular daily quests shared for all players (more challenging than local quests)
  • New redesigned menu (rewards manager, custom controls, resolution settings, better navigation, better leaderboards, better performance)
  • New menu theme „Modern“ (with replays in the background)
  • Cloud support (for player's statistics, highscores, rank and quests)

[h3]Tweaks:[/h3]
  • Renamed „Color Block“ to „Magic Block“
  • Improved visual quality of ingame blocks
  • Damaged irons now have more variants
  • Powerups can now be obtained even if magic blocks were among destroyed active blocks
  • Better quality of multiplier text
  • Faster particle effects at higher levels of gravity (for a clearer game board)
  • Improved Anvil and Mega Anvil icons
  • Added effect after block landing and improved iron block landing effect
  • Decreased delay when new blocks are spawned by a threat
  • Added navigation controls for the game over screen
  • Game over screen is automatically faster now without pressing any key
  • Painted iron block is now counting into the stats as destroyed iron block
  • Better quality of ingame texts (powerups and leaderboard)
  • Particles after destroying Magic Block have random color now
  • Minor graphics tweaks
  • Better format of time in leaderboards

[h3]Fixes:[/h3]
  • Fixed not destroying blocks after a threat activates invisible blocks
  • Fixed starting more negative effects from single threat block
  • Removed text from the volume buttons (Ingame)
  • Added missing sound when using Remove Line powerup
  • Added some missing polish texts and graphics
  • Fixed broken longest line in gameplay statistics
  • Fixed not translated "Use powerups" text and fixed wrong position (Polish language)

Retro minigame available as free DLC

On April 1, you could try what 3x64 would look like if it released decades ago. The retro minigame was quite popular and we decided to add it to the core game at some point, so that it wouldn't be forgotten. And from now it is finally available :)

The minigame is almost identical to the April version, but we made some updates. A game menu and icon of upcoming block has been added, and the new version also supports gamepads. The support of gaming devices is a feature that will come into the main game very soon.



The promised 1.3 update for the main game is approaching for the one year anniversary of the game next week. We have already introduced the biggest news on our social networks and the update will be really big - in short, it will offer game quests you can complete to increase your rank, support for more gaming devices, completely redesigned menu with new features, cloud support and many other changes and fixes.

All new features are currently in beta testing, but if it goes well, it will be available in exactly one week.
We will then look forward to your feedback - in the meantime you can shorten the wait with this retro minigame!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1282620/3x64__Retro_Minigame/

Conclusion of the Destroy Threats Together event

The Destroy Threats Together event was very special for all of us. It wasn't exactly planned but due to situation in the world, we had to stay home just like many of you. It wasn't easy but in the end, it gave us a unique chance to try something different - the first community event in 3x64!

I am very happy to say that we succeeded - with the last day of the event we destroyed all 6400 blocks which threatened our game! It's an incredible number and it's amazing that 22 unique players took part in it :) The community destroyed 35% of all threats, the remaining 65% was up to us, the developers. More detailed numbers will be shown below, now I want to congratulate 3 players (except me) for getting the personal reward and also to each participant for getting special threat-themed motive for the menu.



And the biggest congratulations belong to the event winner morrelo with incredible score (9118)! The leaderboard badge ‚Threat Slayer' travels to him :)

[h2]Conclusion and next events[/h2]
At the beginning we chose a little high amount of threat blocks to eliminate, so we were counting on the help of the community. It was intended as the last big update for a while because we want to spend more time developing the mobile version, and possibly new features for the PC.



But the results are very inspiring for such a small puzzle game - at this place I want to give special thanks to isthereanydeal.com for featuring our game during a significant part of the event, and I hope it brought many new players into 3x64 :) Don't forget to check out other interesting indie games which are regularly featured there!

We're definitely planning more content and events this year, especially for autumn when the game will have its one-year anniversary, and we will also make a special April Fool's version available for you as a free DLC very soon.

At the end I want to thank everyone for the participation. It was a really exciting experience because it was our first community event, and I enjoyed seeing all players unite together with one common goal in mind :)



Minor updates in version 1.2.3
  • Concluded the Destroy Threats Together event
  • Fixed wrong level in leaderboards (Simple mode, Destroy Threats Together mode)
  • Fixed wrong color of effect when using Color TNT (normal and contrast color modes)
  • Reward badges are now hidden if leaderboards aren't loaded
  • Fixed replay bar for very long replays
  • Fixed broken replays when sent from different regions and Linux (again)