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Let’s Talk About Weapons Vol.2 - New Designs & Energy Mechanics

Hi, adventurers!

It’s been a little while since our first weapon blog, and we’ve been busy digesting feedback and suggestions collected from our communities and feeding into further development.

As one of the core components of Oblivion Override, the design of weapons has been something many players are most concerned about. In this blog, we will continue to introduce the weapon designs in Oblivion Override via aspects including attack moves, unique weapon skills and attributes, as well as a sneak peek into the new weapon skill mechanic - the “energy-based” weapon.

[h2]New Weapon Design[/h2]
Our last article mainly focused on weapons like daggers and fists. In today’s blog, while some of the weapons to be introduced were those previously locked in the Next Fest demo, we’ve also been reworking them based on your general weapon feedback, and hope to offer a brand-new look of the weapon system to all adventurers.

For example, when we designed the weapon [Prop Sword], we considered “combo attack” and “swift movement” as its main features - Compared to normal swords, it increases your displacement distance appropriately through weapon actions to avoid damage in some complicated situations, such as levels with traps and ground thorns. The combo attack allows you to stop the combo and turn to another enemy at any time, which brings much flexibility during battles.

We also made the attack more striking and enhanced skill visual effects for Prop Sword to avoid players being unable to locate the player-character in chaotic combats. And of course, a spectacular combo should have a cool finale, so we added "X Slash" as the final blow, hoping to deliver the ultimate attack more powerful and impressive.



Now let’s talk about the new pike weapon - [Javelin]. As a melee weapon, the longer range the better. But it would be a little bit boring if it’s just a simple thrust. So we designed some special attributes for it, such as, "Javelin can come back to you in a rotating way", and "deal continuous attack when inserted into the wall". You can toss it out as a ranged weapon and deal constant spinning damage in a rather safe place, which can be particularly useful when facing big and slow enemies.



In addition to new weapons, we have also remade [Plasma Sword], one of the popular weapons in the Next Fest DEMO. The new attribute “Plasma Field” allows you to create an electric triangle at the final hit of the combo and shock enemies in a large range (while it has an 8s cooldown). And with its previous attribute “Remise” to stun enemies with electric shock, you can combine the two attributes to take crowds of enemies under control in fierce fighting, or help you survive danger in some very moments.



Also, let’s take a look at the sweetest weapon in our game - [Sawpop]. We retain the rapid rotation attack of its skill “Sweet Storm” in the DEMO version, and add an upgradable stepped-up ability: "release the skill at the 2nd/3rd/4th hit of combo and the skill will be infused with guard-breaking/ blast wave/ HP lifesteal effect”, which may turn your “button-mashing” into real “tornado-smashing”.



[h2]New [Energy] Mechanism[/h2]
We have always wanted to provide players with a varied and dynamic combat experience in Oblivion Override. In the previous DEMO, there were many sorts of weapon skills, but in general, all of these skills have only one refresh mechanism - [time-based cooldown], which is a little bit dull in gameplay.

Therefore, we adjusted the weapon system with a new [Energy] mechanic — in short, it needs some energy to unleash a skill, instead of waiting for the cooldown. The energy can be obtained through attacking enemies, or through special weapon attributes, such as "gain 50 energy points immediately when entering a combat room".



Compared with cooldown, which is relatively more like waiting passively, the energy-consuming mechanic emphasizes more on the proactive attack. You can use skills more frequently by keeping on attacking enemies. The more you attack in a fight, the stronger you will be.

[h2]Energy-Based Weapons [/h2]
With the emergence of the [energy-based] mechanism, some weapons under this mechanic can have unexpected performance - without affecting the game balance, the [energy-based] mechanic will not only effectively enhance the power of weapons, but also create some new tactics if you combine their original weapon features wisely.

For example, regarding the weapon [Storm Coil] in the DEMO version, its original skill “Dynamo” was to strike the enemy with a magnetic electric drill, which needed to be activated in appropriate timing because you wouldn’t be able to move when using the skill. But when we turn it into an [Energy] weapon, the skill becomes more convenient and flexible: “It will consume energy continuously when you use it, and you can stop the skill anytime”, in which way the ease of use and safety can be effectively guaranteed.

Also along with this change is a new weapon attribute, "AC/DC" which fires a small drill every second when you use “Dynamo”, dealing damage to enemies at a distance. As an energy-consuming bonus, this attribute further increases the frequency of skill use. Now you may beat those big enemies hard as a maniac electric drill man!



The energy-based axe weapon [Ascendance] showcased in the DEMO has an imposing look and attack effects. It can deal tons of wide-range damage when you face a considerable number of enemies. Its [Energy] skill "Lunar Spiral" has a wide attack range and jumping distance, designed to compensate for the weakness of the axe's slow normal attack speed.

Speaking of which, the slow attack may also make it hard to accumulate energy, so we added another attribute to make it more efficient, “Ex mode”: hold the skill for 0.3s and it will start to charge itself - you can charge in advance in a safe place before ready to seize the initiative in intense combat.



Those inventions, created from cold scraps of rusty metal, may also be filled with longing for traditional festivals from the distant human age. Take the new weapon, [Yuletide], for example. Although it looks like a hammer modified from a Christmas tree, you can use it more than swinging-attack - It has a skill called "Sleigh Ride": Ride the Christmas tree and rush to hit the enemy fiercely! By consuming 100 energy points, players can freely change direction during this invincible time, hitting and penetrating enemies along the way.

Of course this entertaining weapon is not just a roadkiller, we also designed additional festive attributes for it, such as “Spark - throwing Christmas presents at intervals during the Sleigh Ride”. These stars, candies, and bells that splash and explode around should be your surprise Christmas gifts to the gathered enemies on the ground.



That's all for today’s sharing of the weapon system! We’re still working on developing more weapons and new gameplay systems which will be gradually revealed in later blogs. If you have any advice for our game, please feel free to leave a comment or join our official Discord server and discuss with fellow adventurers!

Official Discord: https://discord.gg/49C4wSYDph


Weapons in Oblivion Override Vol. 1 - Weapon Preview, Redesign & Recast System

Hi adventurers, good to see you again!

It’s been a while since Next Fest. We've been engaging in a closed development phase based on your demo suggestions and survey feedback since then, fixing crashes and working on weapon optimization & new gameplay content.

In the following few months, we will continuously share our dev progress and secrets behind the Dulce Base, and first of all, let’s talk about the weapon system - one of the core components of Oblivion Override.

[h2]Overview[/h2]
In Oblivion Override, there are different main types of weapons such as daggers, swords, hammers, axes, and fists. Whether it's slaying through splashing blood with a big axe or dodging through groups of enemies with daggers, we hope the unique skill and random attributes possessed by each weapon can always make your hack-n-slash gameplay refreshing.



Amongst Next Fest demo feedback, we found several main issues about weapons that players are concerned most:
  1. The skill design of some weapons doesn’t lead to smooth slashing experience during battles as we expected;
  2. Some weapon attributes are not powerful enough and cannot fully show the weapon speciality;
  3. Weapon balance is not good enough that some weapons are much less used than others.

Based on these feedbacks, we immediately set out to optimize and even redesign those weapons, hoping to bring a diverse and balanced weapon gameplay experience to you at launch.

[h2]Weapon Changes[/h2]
From your feedback, we found that daggers (such as Bayonets), Jet Fists, Supre Slugger, Sawpop, and Storm Coil have a lot of room for improvement in skills and attributes.

For example, the skill of the Bayonets in the DEMO is Binary Vortex, which will cause the character to fly up a bit. We designed it to make Bayonets more flexible, but this brought movement inconvenience in the real game.

So we've modified the original skill to Roundhouse Kick - a powerful forward kick that breaks the enemy's guard and triggers rupture. The vertical movement now becomes lateral movement, and the skill can even evolve into a bursting combo.



Besides, we have merged the original attribute "Rupture" into skill, and created a new attribute "Bloodthirsty" for replacement: 35% chance to restore 1% of max HP when killing an enemy in rupture. This will make Bayonets more useful in fight.

Another typical weapon, Supre Slugger, has also been optimized - the original attribute was catching the baseball resets its cooldown. We found that during the game, especially in complex situations, it is quite difficult to predict the direction of the baseball and reset cooldown.

So we changed this skill to "Division": 15% chance to divide a baseball each time it hits an enemy. This makes the weapon more powerful and visually striking.



Additionally, since many demo players reported Jet Fists are not that wieldy because of the low attack speed and long attack animation, we also reworked the attack animation and the skill effect of "Jab": always strike a heavy punch in 5s after using Flying Fists. Now Jet Fists are more flexible and its power has been noticeably improved.

Some other weapons have also been modified, but in general, we have appropriately upgraded most of the weapons in terms of performance, ease of use, and skill balance, so that players can fight more smoothly with enjoyment of fast-paced intense combat.



[h2]New Weapons Preview[/h2]
In addition to those playable weapons, you can also see some weapons that are only for display in store during the demo playtest, such as Violet Dagger, Grasscutter, and Ascendance. We've also optimized these weapons, and they'll be available upon launch with a new look.

For example, the Grasscutter that appears in the store — compared to fast daggers and powerful hammers and axes, the performance of the Grasscutter is somewhere in between. Its four-shot combo has a wide range in front, and can even attack flying enemies.



As its name suggests, its blade is designed to be leaf-like with its handle also in the shape of a four-leaf clover, and its skills are naturally related to plants: After smashing, placing a random plant cannon to shoot enemies automatically. It can be surprisingly helpful in some long boss fights if cannons are placed in the proper location.



Another weapon, Violet Dagger, has a "Ambush" skill that can move behind enemies in a flash and deal high damage. With quick movement, this skill allows you to get close to enemies instantly to backstab. We've adjusted the skill animation, now backstab is more useful in real game, you can attack immediately after ambush.



[h2]Weapon Recast System[/h2]
Besides different skill effects, each weapon in Oblivion Override is also given a variety of random attributes, some of which increase the charge effect, and some can increase the damage to enemies in certain debuff. In the current developing version, you can also unlock the Weapon Recast Room at the NPC ‘Mr. Xie’ to refresh the weapon attributes, crafting the most suitable weapon for yourself.



In our future dev blogs, we will continue to share more about weapon optimizations, as well as a little more sneak peek into some new weapons in development. If you have any suggestions for the game, please leave a comment below or join our official Discord server to discuss together with fellow adventurers!

Offical Discord: https://discord.gg/TDHs4MPRXu

Next Fest Demo Will Close Soon & Feedback Collection

Dear Adventurers,

With the Steam Next Fest coming to end at 10 AM on Feb 13th, PST, Oblivion Override demo will also be closed at the same time. We hope you enjoyed the exciting battles with various mechanical enemies under the Dulce Base. Players who haven't completed the levels yet are welcome to explore before the portal expires and wishlist the game to get more latest updates:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1952370/_Oblivion_Override/
During the Next Fest, we are tremendously thankful for the recommendation from Steam and the community content created by players worldwide. In the meantime, our scheduled livestreams received over 12,000 real-time concurrent viewers, which we hadn't expected before! We want to sincerely thank you all for watching!



[h2]Player Feedback[/h2]
To receive demo feedback and valuable suggestions from you guys, we have also prepared a demo feedback survey:

QUESTIONNAIRE LINK: https://forms.gle/SK1sBMoqycvDqpb28

We will work on optimizing the combat experience based on your suggestions, along with bringing richer content and upcoming dev blogs (Stay tuned!). You are also welcome to join our official Discord and engage with the dev team at: https://discord.gg/TDHs4MPRXu

Demo Patch Update 02.10

Hi Adventurers,

The Steam Next Fest is in full swing. We have been continuously receiving your valuable suggestions and support for the demo and cannot be more than thankful. For some recent bugs and other issues, we just updated the following patch:

[h2]DEMO Update Patch - February 10[/h2]

Please note: If the player is currently playing a round of the game, this update will reset the unfinished progress/save of this round, while the previously completed progress will not be affected.

[h3]BugFix[/h3]
- Tried to fix the stuck issue when returning to the base;
- Fixed the stuck issue when trading with Mr. Xie failed;
- Fixed the issue where the terrain of the level might have errors after exiting and re-entering the game;
- Fixed the issue where no special effects were displayed when DNA features were unlocked.

[h3]Optimization[/h3]
- If the number of entries of a weapon at the current level has not reached the upper limit, there is a probability of adding new entries when upgrading;
- Most weapon skills can be interrupted by sprinting during release;
*Special Note: After the successful block of Swift Blade counter and Rising Dragon Fist, you can use sprint to interrupt the release of skills;
- You can get off the platform when attacking;
- Optimized some resources, which may help solve the crash problem due to integrated graphics;
- Optimized the strike sound effects of some weapons;
- Added controller layout settings for NS and PS.

If players encounter any problems with the patch, please join our official discord to report the issues:



Demo Patch Update 02.06

Hi adventurers!

Thank you for trying the demo of Oblivion Override last weekend! With the approaching of
Steam Next Fest, we’ll keep collecting your feedback to optimize the demo. If you have any suggestions, please join our official Discord server for further discussion.



[h2]Demo Patch Note - Feb. 6th[/h2]

- Fixed a bug where you might stuck in the battle room because the flying enemies left the screen.
- Fixed a UI issue when you leave the Base.
- Fixed an issue of music and sound effects glitch.
* About the issue where you pressed R and C but couldn't enter the Evolution system and Role Info page, we added a log in the backend so that you can report it in-game to help us locate and fix it.