TOP DOG News

[h3]The big stuff[/h3]

• Added 'Stick Mode' option (menu > controls): this one is for gamepad/stick players, it will allow to play with the classic flight-sim 'roll & pull' kind of controls, which is now the default setting (if you prefer the simpler scheme, you can set it back to 'yaw & roll'). That is something that was already in the game but I decided to disable for silly reasons
  
• Bumped bullet thickness: so guns are a bit easier to aim and more fun in general
  
• AI is now limited by ceiling altitude the same as the player
  
• Added overheating mechanic to GAU-20 and AC-60: this is another feature I had dormant in the game
  

[h3]Tweaks[/h3]

• Plane turning rates got bumped a bit
  
• 'Supersonic' variant has better strafing: it's now in the middle between base plane and the 'Vector'
• GAU-20 spread decreased a little (but same as before during overheating)
  

[h3]Bugfixes[/h3]

• Some AI navigation bugs
  
• Frigates now attempt some obstacle avoidance
  
• Mouse sensitivity adjusted when zooming
  

[h3]That's it![/h3]

First small update to get the ball rolling.

[h3]Changelog:[/h3]

• Fixed random seed issue: first run seed was not "random" enough
  
• Leaderboard tweaking: adjusted score plates so personal score stays around the top
  

I will get into more details about the random seed in one of the next updates, now I need to go to sleep.

Thanks for playing!

This is the first static type of enemy you'll encounter in the game, it will appear in the second stage of the game: the Clouds.



When you get close enough, it will launch drones from the hangar, which can be damaged only for a few seconds while the doors are open. And each time you damage it, a repair pick-up will immediately replenish on top (which currently has a cycle of 30 sec).



[h2]What's next?[/h2]
I'm planning to have at least 3 stages for the (Early Access) release: each introducing something new. First two stages (Desert and Clouds) are pretty much complete and so I'll be working on the third stage.

[h3]That's it![/h3]

Apologies for the late SITREP, I wanted to finish the Frigate before making an update but there's so much work to do.

Here we go with an "almost finished" version:

• Enemy 'Warship' type: basically a boss
  
• Single 360° heavy turret on top
  
• Fire missiles from the sides
  
• Drop mines when you get close enough
  
• A bunch of critical points to destroy before killing it
  

What's left to do is to remodel the sides (at first I redesigned them with vertical mounted turrets but they got scrapped in favor of the missiles) and tweak some more the behaviour: like activating the missiles only after getting damaged.

[h2]Release Date Shift[/h2]
As you might have noticed the release date got postponed to early 2023. I underestimated the amount of work needed for the boss-like enemies and these few extra months ahead will hopefully be enough to get a solid Early Access release.

[h3]That's it![/h3]

SITREP > 'Situation Report' > Development Report: I will post a quick selection of what has been done in the last development sprint.



[h2]'Wing Leader' first pass[/h2]

• Enemy 'ace' (exagon icon): you should give priority to them over fighters (triangle icon)
  
• Transforms into a 'legs down' VTOL pose when strafing
  
• 'Wing' because it is supposed to come escorted by 2 'Vipers' (the basic enemy fighter)
  

[h2]What's next?[/h2]

• More enemy related work
  
• Having a functional start screen is currently my highest priority: work in progress below 👇
  

[h2]That's it![/h2]
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