Black Skylands News

[h2]Greetings, Captains! 👋[/h2]

Our Closed Playtest is now over and we have already implemented some of the feedback gathered. If you haven’t participated, don’t fret - we’d like to invite you to the New Updated Playtest version to give the Revamped Aerial Gameplay a swirl.

│ More info about the Playtest │

[h2]HOW TO JOIN[/h2]
Right-click on Black Skylands in your Steam library → Select "Properties..." → "BETAS" → Enter the password branchforexternalplaytest → "Check code" → From the drop-down menu above, select the "playtest" branch → Update your game and start testing!

📌 Please take a moment to fill in the playtest feedback form: https://forms.gle/EHMWo7e2HFQeyZ9X9. It only takes a few minutes, but your feedback is extremely important to us since we are community-oriented developers;

As always, we welcome all your suggestions and feedback. Enjoy!



[hr][/hr]

[h3]September 16th-20th[/h3]

Greetings again, captains! We invite you to participate in the closed playtest of an upcoming big Reworked Aerial Gameplay Update we're currently working on. As a community-oriented studio, we hold your feedback dear. That is why we decided to throw a trial balloon before finalizing the new features.

[h2]TESTED FEATURES[/h2]

• [h3]☁️ Operable onboard gun turrets for your skyships[/h3]
  You can install turrets on your skyship's bow in the Skyships menu. Use the right mouse button to fire, move your mouse to rotate the turret. Hold RMB down for continuous fire. Has a cooldown.
  

  

• [h3]☁️ Salvo for skyship cannons[/h3]
  While at the helm of your skyship, use the left mouse button to fire your cannons simultaneously. Press and hold down LMB to narrow the angle and move your mouse to switch between port and starboard guns. Has a cooldown.
  

  

• [h3]☁️ Destructible armor on enemy ships[/h3]
  Some enemy vessels are equipped with armor that can be destroyed gradually. Also, those vessels have weak spots: if you hit that spot, the enemy becomes more vulnerable.
  

  

• [h3]☁️ New skyship ability: Impulse Shield[/h3]
  Reflects projectiles back at the enemy. Activate by pressing Q when the ability is selected. Has a cooldown.
  

  

• [h3]☁️ Reworked skyship boost[/h3]
  The boost has a significant initial impact. It uses energy that replenishes automatically.
  

  

• [h3]☁️ New enemy cruiser[/h3]
  

  

• [h3]☁️ Enemy skyship squads[/h3]
  Enemies patrol in squads instead of splitting up.
  
• [h3]☁️ Air currents that speed up map navigation[/h3]
  Also, now islands have more space between them.
  
• [h3]☁️ Improved enemy balance and AI[/h3]
  
• [h3]☁️ New music manager[/h3]
  

[h2]📝 HOW TO JOIN[/h2]
To apply for the playtest, go to our official Discord server and then open the #assign-playtest-role channel. If you are selected, you will be assigned a special closed playtest role on the server and gain access to private playtest channels. Currently, the number of playtester slots is limited to 200.

We would appreciate if you filled out the Playtest Survey after playing—as we've said, your feedback is very important to us.

Have fun, captains!

[hr][/hr]

For the past few months, we've been working on massive improvements to the key feature of the game: aerial gameplay. So far, we are satisfied with how it all is working out, and we're extremely excited to show some of the new mechanics and additions to our community. Which we are going to do, actually. But, just to some of you.

[h3]That said, we are announcing the Closed Community Playtest that will run from September 16th to 20th.[/h3]

Players selected as testers will be able to try out the brand new features that are still in development:

[h3]
• ☁️ Operable onboard gun turrets for your skyships
  
• ☁️ Salvo for skyship cannons
  
• ☁️ Improved enemy balance and AI
• ☁️ Destructible armor on enemy ships[/h3]
  ...and more.
  
  
  
  

Currently, the number of slots is limited to 200. To apply, join our official Discord server and go to the #assign-playtest-role channel. if you are selected, you will be assigned a special closed playtest role on the server.

Looking forward to seeing you, captains!

[h2]Greetings, captains![/h2]

[h3]An update for the early access version of Black Skylands has been released[/h3]


The list of changes:

[h3] - FEATURES - [/h3]

- Some cutscenes are able to be skipped now
- Ship's cruise control is no longer activated automatically at engine's max power, but it can be activated manually at any point by double pressing the acceleration button. Any further acceleration or deceleration input will disable the cruise control.

[h3] - BUG FIXES - [/h3]

- Minecart's destruction during a raid is always correctly finishes the quest now
- Splatter's bullets that ricochet off the player's shield now deal damage to enemies
- Player's animation won't be reset to the empty-handed one after a cutscene with raid boss' appearance
enemies on a boarding ship cannot be pushed through walls by projectiles now
- Speech bubbles are always the same size regardless of camera distance now
- Fixed a bug with disappearing of boss' HP bar
- Fixed an issue with death screen, if the nearest respawn point is Fathersip
- Fixed a projectiles' missing sound, when they are reflecting by the player's shield
- Fixed an issue, when players got broken save with a ship inside surface's collider

[h3] - MISCELLANEOUS - [/h3]

- Inventory items sort by tier and power now
- Reworked the boss fight in the "Helping Hands" quest
- Free camera on the ship is always active without pressing the button now
- You can put any weapon in each weapon slot now (previously only pistols could be put in the first slot)
- Added a ship's hold capacity widget to the ship's HUD
- Removed the "Raise Shields" hint in the HUD

Please, update your game.

[h2]Captains! Jump into the new week with the new video about the Raids Update! ⛅️[/h2]
[h3]Watch it and get in the mood for action! Don’t forget to share your feedback![/h3]
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[hr][/hr]
Yours truly,



• • •

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