1. Section 13
  2. News

Section 13 News

Your Demo Feedback

Agents,

Congratulations for getting through part of Section 13 successfully (or not) during the demo! We hope you enjoyed fighting off some QTs while getting more insight into how the game has been progressing throughout the months.

As you already know, we’ll be launching Early Access for Blackout Protocol on July 19th at 4PM PT! Before we head into what to expect the week leading up to Early Access, let’s take a step back and review what our team has learned from the demo feedback.

[h3]Re: Agents[/h3]
We saw many new players try out Blackout Protocol during the demo, and many of them heard about our game through Steam’s featuring and recommendations! Thank you Steam Next Fest and the push for indie games!


[h3]Re: Combat[/h3]
As many of the Agents were new to the game and spent less time playing the demo–there were so many games to try in this summer’s Steam Next Fest!–we saw that some Agents weren’t able to pick up on the various combat mechanics in Blackout Protocol as previous Agents had in our Closed Betas. We are exploring different ways to help Agents notice these nuances as they continue to play Blackout Protocol.


We received feedback largely similar to previous CBs, focusing around character movement speed, difficulty, friendly fire, and reload mechanics. Combat balance is something we are constantly monitoring and reviewing, so we will continue to make adjustments throughout Early Access.

[h3]Re: Permanent Growth and Roguelite Elements[/h3]
Less agents found permanent enhancements and unlocks to be helpful compared to previous betas, most likely due to the limited content of the demo and Agents spending less time playing. Also only 3 tiers of Permanent Upgrades were available through the DNS Defragmenter. We will continue to monitor Agents’ feedback regarding permanent growth during Early Access and ensure that Agents feel a difference in their growth as they progress.


[h3]Re: Key Art[/h3]
We saw that many Agents found our current key art to be a good representation of the game. When presented with multiple images, the current key art was clearly the favorite with 45.3% of the votes, with a distant second coming in with 17.3%. Lore and immersion was incorporated into the demo with the addition of voice acting and we hope to bring even more throughout Early Access and beyond!


[h3]Re: Early Access[/h3]
Don’t forget that Early Access starts on July 19th at 4PM PT! We know that all of you cannot wait to get playing, so in order to help with the wait, we’ll be starting a daily blog series tomorrow! We’ll be launching a blog post every single day until Early Access release day with in-depth information regarding Blackout Protocol that you may or may not have known previously!

We hope you all enjoyed playing the demo of Blackout Protocol and are looking forward to Early Access and more! See you all in Section 13 soon.

- ODS Kangaroo

DISCORD | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | TWITCH

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2111870/Blackout_Protocol/

Thanks for Playing the Demo!

Agents,

With Steam Next Fest ending, we are wrapping up the demo period for Blackout Protocol as well. It was great to see you enjoy Blackout Protocol–in some cases, playing with ODS staff. As we continue working on the game for Early Access and beyond, telling us about your gameplay experience and feedback will give us a better idea on how the game can be improved.

We will keep the Steam Next Fest demo feedback survey open for a couple more days. The survey includes questions that help us determine what type of art style we want to explore for Blackout Protocol’s key art in the future.



We will share our learnings from the demo in the near future, and we hope to find opportunities to share what you can expect in Early Access. Please stay tuned to hear more from us in the future! Also, don't forget to wishlist us on Steam to be notified when we enter Early Access on July 19, 2023.


- ODS Team

DISCORD | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | TWITCH

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2111870/Blackout_Protocol/

Blackout Protocol Developer Interview

Agents,

We ask the masterminds behind Blackout Protocol (Jaeeun Park & Dongsoo Oh) about what we should expect during Early Access phase and beyond! We'll get some insights on the origins of Blackout Protocol development and perhaps a deep dive on game mechanics not yet seen in the game!

Of course, we'll be playing Blackout Protocol and hope we don't accidentally shoot each other in the back! Come join and watch the chaos!

  • PDT: June 24th 4 PM
  • EDT: June 24th 7 PM
  • CEST: June 25th 1 AM
  • ICT: June 25th 6 AM
  • KST: June 25th 8 AM



- ODS Orbit

DISCORD | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | TWITCH

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2111870/Blackout_Protocol/

Blackout Protocol in Next Fest & Let's Play Stream!

Agents,

Welcome to Steam Next Fest June 2023! We are doubly excited for this one--Blackout Protocol demo will be available until the end of Next Fest with an updated build (details can be found here), and we're excited to play demos of other cool indie games!

Join Ocean Drive Games as we feature our new Roguelite, Twinstick Shooter with Multiplayer Co-op!
ODS Orbit, Kangaroo, and Geek will talk about basic gameplay fundamentals and talk about unique aspects of Blackout Protocol. Friendly fire is always on, so watch some friendships end during the stream!

  • PDT: June 19th 1 PM
  • EDT: June 19th 4 PM
  • CEST: June 19th 10 PM
  • ICT: June 10th 3 AM
  • KST: June 20th 5 AM



- ODS GeeK and ODS Orbit

DISCORD | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | TWITCH

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2111870/Blackout_Protocol/

[UPDATED] Blackout Protocol Demo in Steam Next Fest June 2023

[June 19, 2023 at 9:45 AM PT - Added the detailed list of changes with the updated demo build]

Agents,

Blackout Protocol is part of Steam Next Fest June 2023. While the demo has been available for some time, we updated the build with additional changes for Steam Next Fest. Please note that the demo will no longer be available once Steam Next Fest ends.

We also have a new feedback survey to make further improvements to the game. Please make sure you fill it out and help shape the future of Blackout Protocol!

Below are some changes from CB3 that you will find in the Steam Next Fest demo. Some features you may have already noticed in the previous demo build, but we would like to use this opportunity to go over them altogether.

[h2]Changes Since Closed Beta 3[/h2]

[h3]Bug Fixes[/h3]
  • Fixed some untranslated text showing in the game
  • Fixed the issue where Scalpel was unable to fire weapons after reloading, if she used her active skill while wielding a Sawed-Off Shotgun with an empty mag (Reported on Discord)
  • Fixed the issue where the damage reduction modifier was not consistently applied under certain conditions on Intern (Easy) difficulty
  • Fixed the issue where some room names and Agent names were showing as question marks

[h3]New Features[/h3]
  • Added the S2P Archives menu that provides a better sense of growth in a lore-friendly way
    • The Armory shows all weapons and tactical equipment you unlocked
    • The Nethersphere shows all permanent enhancements you unlocked
  • Added visual/sound effects for unlocking new weapons with blueprints
  • Added VO/sound effects for combat barks, pings/quick chats, and UI interactions
  • Added difficulty selection in the Lobby screen, and updated the names to Intern (Easy) and Full-Time (Normal)
    • Added UI for providing details for each difficulty
    • Intern (Easy) Difficulty Overview
      • Reduced friendly fire damage: 60% on Full-Time (Normal) difficulty → 20% on Intern (Easy) difficulty
      • Removed Panic Gauge loss when taking physical damage while in the dark: 100% → 0%
      • We plan to continue monitoring the Intern (Easy) difficulty and make further adjustments as necessary
  • Added ways to invite Steam friends, change characters, and swap weapons while waiting outside the Section 13 base entrance
    • To invite friends or change characters, interact with the telephone booth outside the base
    • To swap weapons, interact with the frunk of the trusty ride that brought you to your mission
  • Added text chat for better communication with other Agents

[h3]Changes[/h3]
  • New character selection screen that shows both the general S2P lore and character backgrounds better
  • Revamped the Synaptic Enhancement selection UI so that it is easier to see how certain card choices will affect proficiency points and weapon perks
    • Information on the left shows the 4 categories (Firearms, Psionic, Bionic, and R&D) and proficiency points
    • Information on the right (expanded when you press Tab) shows how the currently highlighted Synaptic Enhancement may affect the weapon perks of your loadout
  • Combined the “Quick Start” and the “Lobby” buttons into the “Start” button in the title screen
    • “Start” button will take Agents to the Lobby menu where they can create/join rooms
  • Lobby menu will now show all rooms regardless of the region
  • Changed so that weapons you haven’t unlocked show only as silhouettes in the weapon selection menu

Don’t forget to wishlist the game on Steam to be the first to get notified once we start Early Access on July 19, 2023 PT! The team continues to work hard for Early Access to bring you even more content and changes, including menu navigation using the mouse. All the more reason to look forward to Early Access!


- ODS Team

DISCORD | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | YOUTUBE | TWITCH

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2111870/Blackout_Protocol/