SCP: Fragmented Minds News

The day of reckoning is quickly approaching us as we start to commence the final playtesting of the game build. Currently, we are focusing on polish and performance optimizations + adding the story elements and final little Easter eggs and other bits that will make exploration through the level worthwhile. We have a good chunk of fun stuff planned, which also includes adding a new attack to 610 and new effect upon its death. The Kickstarter demo video is also coming together and we are excited to have something comprehensive to help people get a good grasp of the demo and game in a single fun video.

However, we know a lot of you are super eager to play the demo and see what it is we have been working on, and we are extremely happy to say that once playtesting is over and we have fixed the weird little issues that are sure to crop up, the only thing left is to launch Kickstarter and hold our breath as the campaign runs throughout the month.

We can't give exact dates for the launch of the Kickstarter yet since we don't know what random issues playtesters might run into, but once we have that information and have implemented fixes then we will finally be able to give an exact date and time for launch, so stick around for that since we have a ton of fun stuff on the Kickstarter that we think you'll enjoy.

As an added bonus for people who have followed the project, you will be able to get the Early Bird (Day One) tier which includes the full game and some extra goodies for 25% off the normal tier price of $20!

If you want to follow to be able to get the sweet discount, you can find our launch page here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hststudiosllc/scp-fragmented-minds

(Here are some images of the new lighting in certain areas of the demo too):

FOLLOW KICKSTARTER! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hststudiosllc/scp-fragmented-minds


Combat Stamina:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

The combat stamina bar that we all knew and loved has been totally updated with a fresh design. The system has also seen an overhaul and weapons being swung around will not drain stamina if they interact with a surface mid-swing. This allows hits to always count and makes the system less fundamentally punishing to players.

AI Turrets and Drones:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Stealth is a core mechanic in the game, and a new zone has been added that'll really put that to the test. It's swarming with hostile AI that will require careful planning to get around. However, if things get sticky you can always try to use your pistol. Just don't run out of ammo....

Statues:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Located around the demo will be these statues. They'll be your way to access specific SCPs to check out in the model viewer in-game for those that want to get up up-close and personal with some of the creatures. However, there might also be something else about these statures that'll occur if you manage to collect them out, so keep your eyes peeled!

Xbox Controller Support:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

One of the newest features added to the game has been fully hot-swappable Xbox controller support! This will allow you to plug and unplug your Xbox controller so you can play however you'd like at any point. This also is a critical part of our submission and approval to get cleared to publish the game on Xbox (which we have already started the process for!)


We will have more information on our Xbox approval process soon, but we are extremely excited about what we are going to be able to share with you all shortly -- stay tuned for that!

Player Finisher Animations:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

A while ago, we promised that certain SCPs would be able to perform a finisher animation on you if you were unlucky enough to get a final blow by the creature under certain conditions. We are happy to announce that we have the in-game system now working for these animations and have a fun example to show how they'd work in-game!


More than just SCP-939 and SCP-323 will be able to perform these animations on you, so it'll give combat and death a little extra spice to keep things interesting and engaging.


Last Things and Kickstarter Launch!


We are doing our final performance pass and playtesting very soon, and after we iron out a few issues, we will be launching as soon as we take the rough cut of our Kickstarter video to a finalized polish cut. This process will have some variation in it, so we can expect a launch around the first week of next month (give or take a couple of days, depending on schedules).


However, the next time we mention a release date, it will be the actual day the Kickstarter will launch, so make sure to follow the page so you get notified and can grab the Early Bird tier to get a sweet deal on the game!


FOLLOW KICKSTARTER: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hststudiosllc/scp-fragmented-minds

FOLLOW KICKSTARTER!! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hststudiosllc/scp-fragmented-minds

Hey everyone!



We have officially broken over 1000 followers on the Kickstarter page! This is incredible and we truly never expected the reception to our videos and news posts to gather as much attention as they have -- we are truly grateful to be given an opportunity such as this to give the SCP and horror community something really interesting and fun to play.


As is customary, made a little celebration animation that you can see here: https://youtube.com/shorts/r4l2Dp72FCY

SCP-745:

The latest addition to the in-game model viewer is SCP-745, which will be a very interesting enemy in the full game when it releases. SCP-745 will not be featured in the demo directly, but you'll be able to see some animations on it and get up close and personal with the creature by using the model viewer and finding its statue in-game!. Unlike most enemies featured up till this point, 745 will always appear in pairs and will have one that'll attempt to charge and knock you down, while the other will be ready to inflict massive damage to you while you are down. It is critical to dispatch one of these entities at a distance before getting encircled and having a very tough fight.


Model Viewer:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Lighting Enhancements:

We had quite a surprise this week, with Epic Games announcing that UnrealEngine 5 is coming out of early access and into full production mode during their State of Unreal 2022 keynote speech. This has enabled us to put SCP: Fragmented Minds onto a stable version of the engine, which has massively reduced bugs and given us more tools to make pretty scenes and visuals for you to enjoy. One of the most notable is the advanced lighting tools that give performance-friendly lighting while also looking aesthetically pleasing.





Newest NPC Character - Dr. Millar:

We are very proud of our concept for SCP-049, who is going to be the first-ever non-hostile variant voiced by Volgun but we didn't want to just stop there and decided it would be very cool to have Dr. Millar, who is a legendary SCP expert in-game as an NPC (and also voiced by Volgun) as a modeled NPC character that will be interactable and will give crucial details on what happened to the facility and those who inhabited it. This character, as well as the other NPCs, will be modeled and animated using a very powerful tool in UnrealEngine 5 called MetaHuman! This tool makes it simple to create high-fidelity facial designs for characters and will allow a wider range of quality NPC designs than has ever been possible in the past.



Demo Launch:

As many of you are wondering, the demo is going well, and we are working very hard to achieve our desired FPS goals on our minimum required hardware (GTX 1060). We have been getting closer and closer with each additional performance tweak but we are still a bit off, so you can expect us to be ready to launch nearer to the end of the month as we include more performance tweaks. However, this additional time is also going to give us the opportunity to begin working with Xbox to get a legitimate launch plan for Xbox One and Series X! This will be incredible since for the first time ever, SCP games will no longer be restricted to the PC platform and those who prefer the comfort of a controller can use it to navigate around the game!


Make sure you follow Kickstarter, we have some amazing stuff lined up that we are eager to share with you all!


FOLLOW KICKSTARTER: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hststudiosllc/scp-fragmented-minds

[previewyoutube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFBs4_Obi_Y [/previewyoutube]

FOLLOW KICKSTARTER! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hststudiosllc/scp-fragmented-minds

FOLLOW KICKSTARTER!!!

https://bit.ly/3fLkIRt


Hey everyone!


This week, we have some cool changes that are going to make your life in-game more immersive and smoother in terms of gameplay and exploration!


Weapon Wheel Slow Motion:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

To ensure that combat and movement are smoother, we have added a new feature to literally slow down time when you are using the weapon wheel to prevent being attacked while looking for your next weapon or to heal. This system is going to be improved upon massively and will be a critical one to healing and replacing your batteries for the critical flashlight!

Combat Animation Inertia:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

One of the main points of feedback from playtesters was that combat felt a bit stiff, in order to alleviate this, we have since added some inertia to the camera that will gently pull your view from one side to another to simulate the inertial shift that happens when actually swinging weapons. This setting depends on your FOV and will not look nearly as dramatic with a less zoomed-in FOV (since this is non-standard).

New Grenades:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

Two grenade models have been upgraded and added into the game! The frag grenade and cryogrenade now share two lit-up models that have some cool LED effects! These grenades do serious damage to everything that comes into contact with it, so it's critical to keep your distance from their effects, or else you may end up slowing down or dead.


Performance Enhancements:

Through the power of baking lighting and optimization of memory across multiple areas, we are getting to a great spot in terms of performance across a larger array of systems. However, this improvement is ongoing and we will continue to do tests across the game to ensure the game is as performance friendly as we can possibly make it since this demo will be public and we want as many people to be able to experience it as possible.


Demo Release Info:

It is looking like we should be able to launch in the first half of next month (though we ask for some leeway just in case we find anything weird during testing), so make sure to mark your calendars around that date since we will give an exact launch time near then! The Kickstarter also launches alongside this demo and will be the defining factor into whether or not the project can continue, so be sure to follow the page and pledge if you can!