Achilles: Legends Untold News

New Roadmap & Console Release Info

[h2]Hello Warriors![/h2]

We have some important news to share with you. Achilles: Legends Untold, our action RPG set in ancient Greece, will debut on all major platforms simultaneously.

We have been hard at work preparing for the game’s release on next-gen consoles as well as PS4 and Xbox One. With the goal of providing equal access to all players and ensuring that everyone can experience the new features and content, we have decided to postpone the full PC version of the game to Q3 2023, together with the console release. It will also allow us to polish all the content we plan to add, and it is a gargantuan task indeed - given how much we have in store!

Below, you'll find a brand new roadmap for Achilles: Legends Untold. On it, you can see our plans for the next few months, up until the full release in Q3 2023.

Given how in the past we added some features earlier than planned, we don’t want to give too much details right now, only general planned goals. We plan to release at least two major updates before the full version of the game is launched, which will include many new features. The nearest update to the game is coming in the next month! We shall give you more details right before its premiere.

Somewhere in summer will come the biggest story update yet - with a revisioned plot, new prologue in Troy and more features. The upcoming changes will require a reset of the saves, but thankfully it will be the last one (we’re about 99% sure). To sweeten the deal, we again shall provide the conversion of souls gathered previously, allowing you to keep the progress of your character.

Once the full release comes in full swing you will be able to enjoy new locations, bosses and minibosses, enemies, Steam achievements, an improved character development system, new & updated GAIA actions and many other items.

We’d also like to address the elephant in the room, which is: the co-op mode. We’re working on it! Our programmers wrestled with many different versions of it, testing which configuration is doable and satisfactory. We’ll reach the conclusion soon, and we can assure you there will be the co-op mode available in some form.

Until the game’s full release, you can expect regular updates that improve gameplay, including a refined combat system, controls, performance, stability, and game balance.

Quality combat system - an improved combat system provides smooth and dynamic gameplay, increasing realism and fun.
Controls - game control updates provide faster response and precision, resulting in smoother gameplay and better user experiences.
Performance - game performance improvements enhance the framerate and smoothness of the game, allowing players to enjoy uninterrupted high-quality gameplay.
Stability - thanks to continuous stability updates the game works more reliably, fixing bugs and crashes
Balance - regular game balance updates ensure that the game is well balanced, meaning that no character type is too strong or too weak, contributing to even better gameplay.

With the release postponed, our players gain more time to enjoy the early access phase, allowing them to have a real impact on the game’s development. We will continue to listen to your feedback to better tailor the game to your needs and expectations.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. We are excited to deliver the best possible gaming experience to all of our players!

[h2]FOLLOW US[/h2]

Discord ► http://discord.gg/achilleslegendsuntold

Website ► https://achillesgame.com

Twitter ► https://twitter.com/DarkPointGames

Facebook ► https://www.facebook.com/AchillesLegendsUntold

Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/achilleslegendsuntold/

YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/c/DarkPointGames

Giveaway time again!

[h3]Welcome warriors, it’s giveaway time again!
[/h3]

Show off how sharp your wit is as well as your weapons. Let’s have some fun and get a nice gaming mouse from Xtrfy (€59 worth each!) in the process!

The rules go like this:

Pick one of the pictures below and write the best captions or dialogues you can.
Send us back the picture with texts inserted (via our Discord server, the “contest” channel) or just texts (only properly signed, ex. Picture 3, Achilles: “Good kitty!”)
You have till 7th of March to participate.

We’ll announce the lucky winners on 8th of March and contact them for their shipping info.

Good luck and have fun!

FOLLOW US
Discord ► http://discord.gg/achilleslegendsuntold
Website ► https://achillesgame.com
Twitter ► https://twitter.com/DarkPointGames
Facebook ► https://www.facebook.com/AchillesLegendsUntold
Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/achilleslegendsuntold/
YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/c/DarkPointGames

Big Update 0.3.0

[h2]Hi everyone![/h2]

Today is the day - we’ve just released the 0.3.0 Update!

It’s our biggest update yet! If you haven’t seen the trailer for it, go and check it out now using the link below:
https://youtu.be/Gn4LwfC8l94
Now that you’re back, we’re going to take a closer look at the new features. We have a lot of exciting content to go over, so let’s begin!

Our original GAIA system got not only improved, but extended too! We’ve added a lot of new ways for the enemies to cooperate with each other and attack in surprising ways.
As a reminder - GAIA allows the AI to evaluate the situation dynamically and decide to take action by itself, so it can launch anywhere at any time.

New GAIA actions include Cyclops throwing explosive barrels (or even other enemies) at you, feasting on people to heal themselves, skeletons molding into one big enemy and more.

Update 0.3.0 introduces a lot of new enemies. While playing, you’ll encounter giant spiders slashing their claws, deadly plants spitting poison, mighty statues trying to crush you, and more!

Test your skill against these various new opponents and come out victorious! (or not…)

The game now has a brand new crafting system! Collect ingredients while exploring the world of Ancient Greece, and combine them into new items on the go, using previously found crafting recipes.

Make new grenades, weapon reinforcements or resistance strengtheners whenever you need to!

We’ve decided to liven up our map a bit. It’s now full of destructible wooden barrels, crates, vases, and other objects that you can smash right through.

Some of these can drop items, so pick up your weapon of choice and get every last one of them!

You now have a lot more freedom in the keybinding department. Keyboard and mouse players can now bind up to two keys to one option, allowing the hold & click functionality.

Gamepad players also get more choices in how they play now. We’ve added 2 new default control schemes and a 3rd one that’s customizable.

These additions will allow everyone to control Achilles exactly how they want to.

Apart from the usual performance improvements, Update 0.3.0 introduces two new optional technologies - AMD FSR 2 and NVIDIA DLSS - that you can turn on in the settings.

They both visibly increase the game’s framerate, making Achilles: Legends Untold run as smooth as ever!

As we were saying for a while now, with this update the saves are going to be reset. You can either stay on the previous version of the game (0.2.0) by choosing a different branch in the Steam settings (see more here), or continue to the new and updated content.

We have good news! We’ve managed to put together a system that converts your character level from your old save and gives you the appropriate amount of souls after you finish the tutorial. We hope it will make the transition easier for you, and gives you even more motivation to explore this new update.

NEW:

Added destructible objects - destroy them to find some resources.
Added the crafting system - collect and use resources to create items you need on the run.
Added new throwable items - introduced darts and mines, along with an update of grenades.
Added new enemies - test your skill against ginormous spiders, deadly plants, mighty statues, and mysterious Laestrygonians!
Added two new Dungeons, ready for exploration.
Added new GAIA (Group AI Actions) and improved the existing ones. Watch out for them!
Introduced remapping of gamepad controls, along with 2 ready-to-use presets.
Introduced FSR and DLSS technologies support.
Added new skill tree elements to unlock.
Introduced the possibility of multiple item usage. No more going through Fate items one by one!
Many other minor features and improvements...

UPDATED:

Improved teleportation with map usage - the map will now center on the selected Shrine for better orientation.
Many minor improvements of the combat system, forming a much better and smoother experience together.
A big update for all of the Basements/Cellars - now they are almost brand-new!
An update for the Shield Throw skill - now you can throw the shield by simply releasing the aim button.
Some attacks obtainable in the skill tree are now available from the start (e.g. sprint attack).
A major UI update and increase in clarity.
A major overhaul of the lions' and the wolves' movement system.

FIXES:

Lifted the 30 frames per second limit in coop challenge mode.
Highly improved overall game performance.
Improved gamepad support and experience.
Fixed various places where Achilles could get stuck, leave the playable area or clip through objects.
Interaction with one of the chests in Greece can no longer freeze the player.
Chests no longer appear closed after reloading the game.
Player can't lose his shield after throwing it at Cyclop.
Player can no longer start talking with Lysander while he is in combat.
Player can no longer prematurely see the chest near Menelaos, if he didn't do any quests before.
Castor now doesn’t stop attacking the player when he is near the wall.
Over 130 other bug fixes of lesser importance.

Behind the scenes design: Chimera (DevLog #5)

Hi everyone!

Earlier, you might have seen us use a graphic with a strange, 3-headed creature - either on our merch or social media posts. It's called a Chimera, and guess what? It's one of the bosses coming to Achilles: Legends Untold!

For this DevLog, we wanted to do something a little different. We're going to show you how this enemy came to be and reveal a bit about its design process.

It can be a very complicated thing! We're a small team that works closely together, either remotely or in the office, and that allows us to give each other constant feedback. While it can get frustrating, it's ultimately a quite rewarding experience, resulting in what you see on the screen.

As our game is based in Greek mythology, there's a lot of inspiration to draw from - this includes some well-known mythical characters, locations, and many beasts, with each one being scarier than its predecessor.

One that particularly catches the eye is a 3-headed creature we already mentioned - the Chimera. A big-sized mixture of three different animals - a lion, a goat, and a snake. Sounds fun already, right? So we got to work.

Designing the head itself had its challenges. It's like two heads melted together on one body! In the end, we decided on making the goat head a little more laid back and to the left of the lion one.

While creating the Chimera's body, we had to ask ourselves a lot of questions, like “How big do we want it to be?” or “What attacks will it have?”. Our artist had drawn up some concepts, so we could decide which direction to choose.

As you can see, the designs varied a lot. You might look at some of them and think "Wow! That one's great, why didn't they use it?" Well, there are reasons for that. For example, take a look at number 2 and number 6 - they have wings! While they might appear cool, we already knew we didn't want it to fly, so they'd just be a nuisance and they had to go. This way, we picked the features we liked and thought were appropriate, while discarding the ones we didn’t - this was the result:

We had the shape for the Chimera, but that’s not all. It also needed some colors!

Again, our artist prepared a few variations. We ended up with a mixture of red and brown for the body, with a blue and green serpent for the tail.

Then came the modeling. Our 3D artist did an amazing job while making the concepts into reality. The beast came out even more horrifying than we thought it would!

And now, the most important part - the gameplay.

A four-legged enemy is always tough to create, and making it a boss only complicates matters further. We want each of our bosses to have their own unique identity, so we're constantly tweaking, making new animations and giving them more special abilities.

The first problem in Chimera's case was its size. The first iteration was small, barely bigger than the average Lion or Wolf, which made it look quite underwhelming - especially when you consider the isometric perspective.

We definitely wanted it to appear big, scary and intimidating. But then we hit a new obstacle - an enemy of this size gets really clunky and is prone to abuse. When the Chimera was attacking with its paws, they couldn't be seen from some angles as its body and head was covering most of the animation. It created an unfair fight, as the player had trouble reading its movement, so of course it all had to be readjusted.

We are still looking for a perfectly balanced point and trying to get as close to it as possible. We want the boss to be challenging, but fair and enjoyable - as befits a good fight.

The Chimera will join the boss roster on the game’s full release. We'll be happy to answer any questions you might have in the comments, or on our Discord server - you can come chat with us! In the meantime, you can expect more DevLogs, where we'll get deep into other features of the game.

Hope you liked this format, and see you in the next one!

[h3]FOLLOW US[/h3]
Discord ► http://discord.gg/achilleslegendsuntold
Website ► https://achillesgame.com
Twitter ► https://twitter.com/DarkPointGames
Facebook ► https://www.facebook.com/AchillesLegendsUntold
Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/achilleslegendsuntold/
YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/c/DarkPointGames

[h3]Did you know? [/h3]

In Greek mythology, the Chimera was “a bane to many men”, as it was killing cattle and devastating the country.

One day, the hero Bellerophon was tasked by the king of Lycia to slay the beast, as the ruler secretly hoped the renowned warrior would perish in battle. Although Bellerophon knew the fight would be a great risk, he “trusted in the signs of the gods”, as said in Homer’s Iliad, and marched into battle. He mounted his winged horse, Pegasus, and while riding on its back, he shot the Chimera down.

The term "chimera" since then has come to describe any mythical or fictional creature with parts taken from various animals and anything composed of very disparate parts, or perceived as wildly imaginative, implausible, or dazzling.

Changes are coming: reset the save files

Hi everyone,

Changes are coming! The New Update 0.3.0 is planned in Q1. Since it introduces major changes in the game’s structure, unfortunately we had to make a tough call and reset the save files.

We’ve introduced a lot of new content and additions to “Achilles: Legends Untold”, with which the old saves won’t be compatible. Upon launching the game, you’ll be met with a warning - if you want to proceed to the new content and get the best possible experience, you can select to continue and the game will erase the old save, taking you to the main menu.

You don’t have to worry though if you have some unfinished quests you’ve wanted to complete – if you bought the game on Steam, you can keep playing the previous version and retain your progress. How exactly can one do that? It’s really simple, all you need to do is follow this quick 2-step tutorial:

Step 1. Open Steam, go to the library page and find the game on the list. Right-click the title and select “Properties…”

Step 2. Go into the “Betas” tab in the window that appears. Roll down the betas list here and select the “0.2.0” option.

You can now close the window and Steam will automatically roll the game back to the previous version. When you decide you’re ready to discover the new update, just come back here and select “None” from the betas list.

As a note - although the update isn't released yet, you can already follow the steps above and Steam won't update your game when the new version comes.

A lot of changes happen to a game during its development, and sometimes events like this are unavoidable. We hope that this solution can help smooth the process and let you take care of unfinished tasks before updating.

Thank you for following and supporting us during our Early Access phase. Your feedback really is a great help to us - if you have suggestions you want to share, need help with the game or just want to chat, come to our Discord server!

In the meantime, have fun!