DEV BLOG - #007 - The Elites
Welcome back, Marauders.
Welcome to our Seventh Dev Blog! Our new development schedule has allowed us to launch our 3rd patch (Plunder 1.2) in the last 6 weeks, and we are seeing amazing results! But full transparency, the Guilds 1.0 update is larger and we anticipate we will need extra time, so after Plunder 1.3 expect a 3 to 4 week gap (rather than 2 weeks). Our goal is to drop Guilds in October!
In terms of the previous patch we have received positive feedback on the hit registration change and internally we are finding a massive improvement, so we hope you agree. We also feel our change to hip firing spread was too much/over-tuned so look forward to more tweaking in the next patch.
You can watch this Dev Blog recording here!
[hr][/hr]
[h2]Gamescom[/h2]
Me and the team have just arrived back from the greatest gaming event in the world… Gamescom! I’d like to thank all the kind fans who came up to us to chat about Marauders, always great to meet the players in the “real world”. One of the other benefits of Gamescom was getting to try a wide range of upcoming games including some new extractions shooters, which is always inspiring. I personally feel this genre is special, and the more games out there, the merrier! - Mac
Meeting the “grandfather” of extraction shooters Nikita and playing his latest outing Arena was a great highlight, I feel its not said enough but me and the team are Escape from Tarkov players, and we wear our inspiration with honour. It was interesting to see their team trying to innovate again inside a genre that's the most competitive market in the world, and I must say it's already feeling great. You’ll be proud… we did well in the 2v2 bracket tournament and got to wear our hard earned “scav” cosplay!
[h2]Elites In-bound[/h2]
Today we will be highlighting the upcoming “Elites” currently in production. Much like the Warden or the Red Baron, “Elites” are bosses that will provide a harder challenge, unique item drops and have unlockable killer cosmetics! First one up is the U.A. Marines Commander, as teased in a previous dev blog! This squad leader takes the fashion of a tank captain managing a massive space turret. This will be the first boss that protects a breach only location with his fellow crew mates.
The Commander has a unique head and body cosmetic to unlock and wields the versatile Mini-14. This new rifle is a semi automatic 5.56, lightweight but punchy death machine. His crew wields the M3A1 “grease gun”, an infamous weapon chambered in .45 ACP. This sub gun will handle and feel like a big brother of the Mat 49 but fire a little slower and hit a lot harder…
This United allies commander is held up inside a heavy armoured multi-turret space tower nicknamed “Fortress” which, as previously mentioned, can only be accessed via breaching. It’s a multi story death trap filled with heavy artillery and weaponry. Marauders will be breaching at the bottom floor and have to reach the top to fight the boss. It won’t be an easy task, and we are very interested to see who will be up for the challenge!
The Kingdom Alliance also has a new Elite in development. This one takes a form of a ship boss, much like the Red Baron, however this elite team will have no individual in charge. Collectively they act as a dangerous threat, with gunners and pilots on board coordinating to take out enemy factions.
Their Ship is also unique, being the first frigate to have 3 operating turrets, 2 dual auto cannons, and a torpedo bay (which can be found on the underside/belly.) This ship is heavily inspired by the Dambuster bombers from World War 2. The following concepts are early but show you the direction we are headed.
[h2]Breach Point[/h2]
In our continued efforts to have breaching become more fun and dynamic, we are increasing the amount of points a breacher can enter for all ship interiors. The first ship to receive this change will obviously be the Rustbucket and Scout Frigate interior, since this is the most ‘cramped’. It will need to receive the most drastic changes to accommodate for the extra breaching space. As you can see in the before and after images. it adds a good amount of floor space.
[h2]Any last words?[/h2]
We will have more information to share on Guilds in the next dev blog, and once again, the extra time we are taking to deliver this feature will be valuable. The team doesn’t want it to feel like a “stuck on” feature, but something that players can get deep into without being too restrictive. The Guild 1.0 update will be a big one, with the delivery of the new Planet Killer map as part of it. The Guild feature itself will be expanded on with 2 to 3 consecutive updates following the initial implementation, so that it can grow to meet the high expectations we have set for ourselves with Guilds. That being said, we can’t wait to get it in your hands.
We hope you enjoyed this Dev Blog, and we hope to see you very soon for another patch!
Dash or Die, Marauders!
- The SIG Team
