DR4X News

Hey guys whats up!
So some big stuff happened in the last week or so eh?

I received 2 additional positive reviews that offered actual constructive criticism and feedback (I appreciate it, folks! Hoping for more). I've also fixed one of the bugs you reported, hoping to get to the rest)

And...
Just in case you didn' t know, DR4X is made with unity.
Now that this is cleared up...





Unity updated their pricing so that after 200k installs they start charging the developers 20 cents an install.
Problem is, they haven't figured it out yet and are just "trust me bro" on this not applying when someone pirates the game and they confirmed the dev would in fact be charged if a player say, uninstalls than reinstalls, not only this but they have just detroyed the entire concept of their platform being a stable foundation because they also updated their licensing so they can change this any time and they went and hid the repo that used to track license changes.
https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedev/comments/16hnibp/unity_silently_removed_their_github_repo_to_track/

Not only that but they are removing unity plus (which was affordable, and granted devs the ability to, for exmaple, not display the unity splash screen and had really handy debugging tools among other things). And instead now, the "cheapest" option to remove the unity splash screen that has become synonymous with shovelware is to buy unity pro, which costs 2 grande a year. And I cannot afford that.

(Luckily, i can 'upgrade' to unity pro for the 'same price' for one year in october, but after that i'll be forced to downgrade to unity personal or switch engines. I cannot switch engines because dr4x has had more than 3 years of dev time put into it and it would be near impossible for me to port it over to another engine without another several months or years of dev time at this point.)

So, today i rolled out an update with a new splash screen in protest that calls out unity.

This whole week has been surreal.

I haven't gotten as much done for this changelog because alongside all this crap, I also have had family stuff going on and I also got addicted to starfield. I had hoped to get FAR, FAR, FAR more done.

So lets go, simpler change list than usual.


-Fixed typos in dialogue
-improved vigil description
-improved sentry description
-new unit portrait for demon portals
-new splash screen
-Fixed bug where if you quick loaded after losing (without resigning) that the end turn, next unit, and next building ui would disappear and make it unplyable (Thanks to a review that pointed that out so i could fix it)

Back to starfield *sighs*

Oh yea...

Shes doing fine, tried to eat a qtip though, that was distressing, (she coughed it up, thankfully)
Heres a cute picture.

We just spent 40 minutes discussing how the unity changes will impact dr4x's development.
I'm going to be forced to switch to unity personal due to them removing the plus plan and I can't afford to pay another 2 grande a year at the moment for pro.
https://www.twitch.tv/natch_evil

Hey guys pop into the dr4x art stream! Usually we do thi son thursday but it was moved to friday this week.
https://www.twitch.tv/natch_evil

Get a drink, because this is gonna be a long one.

Hey guys! Its Me (The dev of DR4X, Michael Hamm, AKA Untrustedlife)
I have been developing DR4X since mid 2020, and it has been a passion project since a couple months after I started working on it.

Since than DR4X has gotten increasingly complex and has slowly cohered into something that is (I think) I really cool game that I am very proud of.


My vision for the game's narrative wasn't concrete until March of this year when I rolled out the first Major update, known as the 4B1E1E update. Another major update followed that, just before the Steam Strategy Fest, and the game has undergone transformative changes since then.

The game features improved mechanics, enhanced visuals, and even includes a comprehensive tutorial. I had optimistically hoped to see a substantial difference in the game's success at this juncture, but things have remained relatively constant.

I then also incorporated Steam achievements to gauge which story elements players have experienced so far (yeah thats the reason I added them... to see how far people got). Surprisingly, I am the only one who has reached either the good or bad ending so far. (We will get back to this later)

During the Steam Strategy Fest, I worked with several other developers for a cross-promotion, but the outcome was somewhat disappointing: zero wishlists and just one purchase, which took a toll on my motivation.


However, looking at the bigger picture, DR4X has now surpassed 500 Steam units in total. So, there's a bit of a silver lining, and a huge thank you to those who have supported me thus far. (Heres an image of the actual success of dr4x during this latest sale)


I know, I KNOW, success is relative. 20 buys isn't actually that much, but it is a lot to me, and that is what matters.

Many developers, myself included, shout over the rooftops that we develop games for the love of the art and the fun of the process.

But, deep down, what we all likely REALLY want is for people to engage with our creations and genuinely think about them. At least for those of us who see game development more as an art form than a job. I fall quite hard into the 'art for fun' category of things even if sometimes my motivation does get a hit when i don't see the success I thought the game needed at whatever point.

If it isn't obvious from the fact that i have made nearly 80 seperate changelogs over the course of 3 years while there has hardly been a peep made about dr4x in any media.
Rambling aside,

Now, let's REALLY talk about DR4X up to this point.


Not What DR4X is on the store page, where I intentionally keep the actual meaning of the game vague.
What is DR4X REALLY.

DR4X is a contradiction.


DR4X has evolved over time, transitioning from a light-hearted simple 4X game (Where the wildlife can overtake the map, unlike in other games like civ where the barbarians are static, in dr4x they actually spread and evolve and you actually have to keep them down, that was the original concept for DR4X) to a narrative engine for my RLDR multiverse told via easter eggs, and then further changing to become a game that explores themes of redemption and challenges players by questioning the conventional choices they often make in 4X games.

That is DR4X's final form,
"a game that explores themes of redemption and challenges players by questioning the conventional choices they often make in 4X games"

I realized this after I had people playtest the new version, and the reaction i got from them was some of the most positive reactions i've ever gotten,

That is what DR4X needs to be from now on.



For me, the underlying narrative of DR4X serves as a critique of how gamers seldom consider the real-world implications of their actions within a turn based strategy game. For instance, what would be the real-life ramifications of leveling an entire city to get a few more resources out of it? Or letting a character who has a family, die? Actions have consequences, and at this point one of my main objectives is to highlight the ethical quandaries that can arise in 4X games in a somewhat Meta way.

At the same time, I believe even the most flawed people (Murderers etc) can find redemption. DR4X incorporates this theme as well. The game serves as a platform for exploring both the ethical dimensions of player choices and the possibility of redemption.

But at the same time, it shouldn't be preachy about it (or at least, only should be preachy sometimes) hence why it currently really only comes up during certain parts of the campaign. The new tutorial, and sometimes during skirmishes.

I FINALLY feel like I've carved out a unique niche by focusing on these dual themes.

But I have really only tip towed aorund this subject until the last major update, but now, the game tells you how terrible you are, and it needs to do that more.



Well, forget all promises of specific factions i've ever made about DR4X, i still want to do 5 chapters (because redemption and loose ends etc) but that will take years, AND more complicated mechanics to keep the campaign interesting, forget about some things ive talked about in the past like "adding a liche faction" etc all that, is thrown in the dust bin now unless it fits the theme (and perhaps an undead army can very much fit this theme).



I know a lot of people play DR4X for the weirdness of it. And it will stay weird I assure you. Hell it will get weirder, because the theme of player choice in video games is broad, example, what does a world ran entirley through dog fighting, like how the Pokemon (Nintendo pls don't sue me) universe works, actually work. I dunno, to me dog fighting seems like a bad thing. And i touch on that a little with the new Dog I added recnetly.



I'm gonna tell you this here, the next maJor update will fOcus on broadening your choices in the game's impAct, giving you a foil to those choices and also, the second chapter. Which focuses on everyones favorite protagoNist The Red Heir



Which, coming back from the endings mentioned earlier, will have its own set of good and bad endings.

RIght now chapter one has in total 5 endings, a good ending, a bad ending and 3 differnt neutral endings.

I've kinda given up on the idea that some people will be able to find this out organically, and its partially my fault as i'm new to story telling to this degree, but spoilered below are some hints.


For those of you aiming for a good or bad ending (And i seriously hope some of you are), please pay close attention to the signs in Mirefield. If you've already made contact with the entity in High Ground (which mirefield literally tells you what to do about) , perhaps delve deeper into understanding that child. The most challenging unconventional victories can be found in the "Debacuhery and Lawlessness", and "The Hunt" scenarios. In The Hunt, you'll encounter a nice lady, the same entity you should have met during the Mirefield mission by exploring that place too , as the sign said "EM DINF," or "FIND ME". If you haven't seen her there yet that is nessessary to get the good ending so go to mireifeld and find the tavern (but to secure all unconventional victories (Which you mostly need to do to get the good ending), you'll need to revisit missions you've previously won.) if you have already gotten the neutral ending once you dont need to talk to her in mirefield to get the good or bad ending. If you didnt fire Fygrayed he will help you out. If you did fire him and especially if you got him killed afterwards, look forward to that choice biting you back HARD once you win all the missions and in future chapters.
ALso,
On high ground when you first contact the entity it stops you from leaving the mission, thats intentional, just keep ending your turn

Those are my hints for you.



And now, I need to relax and play some Undertale. It is labor day after all.

HEE HEE HEE...

Hey guys, I have an unexpected extra changelog for you this week!
You might notice that I didn't label it as "#78" even though I did a major update last weekend. That's because major updates are somewhat distinct from my regular weekly changelogs so i am excluding them from the numbered update even if it would make the number larger if I counted those too

I recently tuned into this stream by Dubbleawesome (A friend and a favorite streamer of mine) playing DR4X: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1911517983 . He had some valuable feedback, so I've implemented changes to address some issues he noticed/called out and also added some extra features.

This changelog will be less formal than usual. If you prefer this style, feel free to let me know.
Here are all the chnages made in the last week.


-Introduced a darker neutral ending for situations where Fygrayed is both fired and killed.

-Sprinkled in some extra spookiness.

-Achievements added for bad ending, saving the dog, and 'sort of' saving the dog.

-Added an achievement for the neutral ending.

-Expanded the neutral ending to include 3 additional versions (yes, that makes 5 in total!)

-Disabled random events in Mirefield city for easier gameplay.

-Removed jumpy text in Mirefield.

-Enhanced Hero Unit Bailen Blindeye with a fantastic new portrait.

-Buffed Bailen Blindeye (he has the highest visible tenacity of any unit in the game)
-Gave Bailen some more interesting passive abilities.
-Bailen is so Tenacious he can break the game. Literally.
-...bailen reacts.
-Bailen Reacts.
-BAILEN REACTS.
-BAILEN R-HEE HEE HEE!



--Game now distinguishes more clearly between the 5 seperate possible endings (including neutral ones)
--New Neutral Ending Popup, with voice acting
--The 3 new alternate neutral endings have different dialogue and interventions from multiple important characters.


-Fixed bug where if you used command to restart or restart multiple times, [NODEOSERROR] wouldnt react properly
-Fixed bug where unlocking ahcivements would sometimes halt game progression if player was playing when not connected to steam
-Fixed bug where neutral ending dialogues would sometimes overlap each other
-Fixed bug where there was chance game wouldn't progress if you had failed to get the neutral conditioninside the the neutral ending script... (those with that issue should progress now, it wa sonly an issue for like an hour before i fixed it lol)


Bella is doing fine, but I think this next week she will get her first vet visit with me. She needs to be vaccinated (And eventuially, spayed) and I just want to make sure shes all good.

In this one she looks slightly annoyed that I took her picture lol