Escape: Space News

Hey mercenaries, here is a little hotfix!

Changes:

• Fixed an issue with the progression system not working sometimes depending on the player choices.
  

Happy hunting!

Hello there, mercenaries.

I'm pleased to announce that Escape Space is fully completed and released in this new v1.0.0 build!

Thank you a lot for all of your continuous support and feedback during the Early Access phase, it helped me focus on what's important in bringing this game project to what it is today.

This update mostly adds quality-of-life features, improvements, and polish on top of the previous content build, see the changelog below.

Content creators, I've also published a presskit where you can find any visual you'll need.

[h2]Patch notes[/h2]
Demo build:

• The demo build has been updated to reflect the v1.0.0 of the game.
  
• The new maximum mercenary rank of the demo is 30.
  
• Achievements support has been removed from the demo build because it was too complex and time-consuming to manage two separate achievement trees.
  

New features:

• You can now preview all of the weapons on the loadout screen before purchasing any so that you'll see what their shooting pattern is before spending your credits.
  
• Added power-up notifications & timers on-screen when playing to better understand what you collect during a mission.
  

Improvements:

• Reworked the way the explosion VFXs work, for more boom all over the place.
  
• Reworked some visuals from the Upgrade tree to better understand what is unlocked and what isn't.
  
• The game will now exit smoothly when you click the Exit button.
  

Changes:

• Modified the way the Rampage mod works. Instead of slowing the time down, it now gives a flat % increase in fire rate for a few seconds.
  
• Changed the game's app icon.
  

Accessibility:

• Added an option to turn on/off the screenshakes.
  
• Added an option to turn on/off the flashes.
  
• Added an option to turn on/off the controller vibration.
  

Bug fixes:

• Fixed missing/invalid translations (especially in French).
  
• Fixed Bill-E colors not properly updated in the Hub.
  
• Fixed a navigation issue that could happen when using the keyboard/controller with the frame to confirm a purchase.
  

[h2]What's next?[/h2]
With this update, the game will enter a freeze period. It means that no new features will be added for a few weeks to make sure that everything is working fine and to address hotfixes if necessary.

I may have some plans for the future of Escape Space, especially some end-game content for hardcore players, but I'll see how the game works first to better refine the ideas.

So if any feedback please do not hesitate to reach out to me!

[h2]Thank you for reading![/h2]
Do you want to be featured in the next update announcement? Please send us your videos/articles at shidygames[AT]gmail[DOT]com!

As always, thank you a lot for the support. As a solo developer, it means a lot.

Please continue reporting feedback and/or issues on Discord; it helps me better prioritize the next move for development!

And if you want to follow me on the journey of making this game, I'm streaming the process every Tuesday/Thursday at 9 pm Paris time on Twitch!

Wanna discuss? I'm also on Twitter/X. Come say hi!

See you in space, mercenaries.
ShidyGames.

Hello there, mercenaries.

It's almost time. After weeks without updates, we're pleased to announce that the pre-launch Escape Space update, v0.10.0, is out!

It means that this will be the last content update before the full release of Escape Space. Yes, we're almost there!

[h2]Important note for early access adopters[/h2]

Your save files and Steam achievements will be wiped, and we're very sorry about it. It's the first and last time this will occur, and there are good reasons why it happens now. Read the full patch notes to know more!

As always, thank you for your engagement in playing the game, and reporting feedback and issues.

[h2]Patch notes[/h2]

New features:

• Brand new OST: we've worked with the amazing Scott Hsu, who made all of the new OST for the game! Check out his Twitch channel, the OST will be soon available here.
  
• Brand new story missions and scenarios : the game now has a total of 22 priority contract missions (but 12 are accessible during a single playthrough).
  
• The maximum mercenary rank is now 99, as initially planned!
  
• Added the Hell difficulty scale, for a total of 5 different difficulties.
  
• Added 3 new game modes! You can now play Mayhem, Warfare, and Rush missions in addition to the 4 other game modes.
  
• Added new enemies to every faction .
  
• Added 3 new weapons! Discover them playing the endgame content!
  
• Added a new mod! Discover them playing the scenario missions!
  
• New Steam Achievements: there are now 46 achievements to collect!
  
• New player stats: check the career screen!
  
• Added keyboard rebinding for shoot/use mod: it was one of the most asked features for accessibility reasons, and it's now a thing! And you can now shoot with the left click of the mouse!
  

Improvements:

• Reworked UI! It's now in its final form.
  
• Better/faster progression system, it was way too long before that.
  
• No reputation loss if you fail a priority contract mission, so you can now try hard without destroying your grind.
  
• Bullet colors per faction, so that it's even cooler.
  
• New visual weapon designs, because why not?
  
• Reworked flash effect when entering/leaving a mission, so that it's less disturbing. It was a community request listed here.
  
• Tons of improvements regarding the performance; the game should run even smoother than before!
  

Do you want to be featured in the next update announcement? Send us your videos/articles at shidygames[AT]gmail[DOT]com!

[h2]Thank you for reading![/h2]

As always, thank you a lot for the support. As a solo developer, it means a lot.

Please continue reporting feedback and/or issues on Discord; it helps me to prioritize better what the next move will be in terms of development!

And if you want to follow me on the journey of making this game, I'm streaming the process every Tuesday/Thursday at 9 pm Paris time on Twitch!

Wanna discuss? I'm also on Twitter/X. Come say hi!

See you in space, mercenaries.
ShidyGames.

Hello there, mercenaries.

We gave Bill-E a brain. Yes, with the 0.9 of Escape Space, you will now be able to unlock and purchase new behaviors for Bill-E.
Now, Bill-E is also part of the global customization scheme of the game and can be fine-tuned to match with your own playstyle!

Things might also be a little bit spicier. With the new Mercenary Rank cap set to 50, you will now be able to unlock the Nightmare contract missions!
Beware, they are really hard and not meant to be easily done. So, take your best equipment, make sure you've purchased a ton of upgrades, and get to the fight!

Another balancing? Yes. Based on both personal testing and players' feedback, we made a lot of slight adjustments to all of the weapons available in the game.
But that's not all: we also made some more impactful design modifications that will impact both piercing and homing weapons.

See the full changelog below!

[h2]Patch notes[/h2]

New features:

• Added the customization of behaviors for Bill-E. As soon as you unlock it in the Upgrades menu, you will be able to purchase and equip new behaviors for Bill-E.
  
• Moved the maximum Mercenary Rank from 40 to 50.
  
• Added Nightmare difficulty for contract missions.
  
• Added new enemies to every factions.
  
• Added two new priority missions.
  
• Added a new weapon: Shower (priority mission reward).
  

Improvements:

• Updated the object pooling feature. It will now preload a small amount of important items (bullets, special effects...) and add more into the pools if necessary during runtime. This will dramatically increase the loading time of the game without impacting the in-game performances.
  

Balancing:

• Changed the way piercing weapons are working. It will now be possible for a bullet to be stopped if the enemy it is colliding with is stronger than the damage output of the bullet. In addition, the bullet will lose some damage output potential every time it goes through an enemy.
  
• Changed the way homing weapons are working. Homing bullets will now only track targets that are in front of the player ship when fired.
  
• Vainquisher: slight damage output reduction.
  
• Firestorm: slight damage output increase.
  
• Glory: slight heat generation increase.
  
• Obliterator: slight heat generation reduction.
  
• Oblivion: slight damage output increase but rate of fire reduction.
  
• Seeker: slight heat generation reduction.
  
• Supremacy: slight heat generation increase and rate of fire increase.
  
• Tandem: slight damage output reduction and heat generation reduction.
  

Fixed issues:

• Fixed an issue where, in some cases, enemies shooting in the direction of the player may not be able to aim at the player.
  
• Fixed missing translation: "mission.objective.intro".
  

Wanna be featured in the next update annoucement? Send us your videos/articles at shidygames[AT]gmail[DOT]com!

[h2]Thank you for reading![/h2]

As always, thank you a lot for the support. As a solo developer, it means a lot.

Please continue reporting feedback and/or issues on Discord, it helps me to better prioritize what the next move will be in terms of development!

And if you want to follow me on the journey of making this game, I'm streaming the process every Tuesday/Thursday at 9pm Paris time on Twitch!

Wanna discuss? I'm also on Twitter/X. Come say hi!

See you in space, mercenaries.
ShidyGames.

Hello there, mercenaries.

This week, I was focusing on improving the game feel for Escape Space, while adding more content to make sure you add more things to do!

[h2]Patch notes[/h2]

New features:

• Added new spaceships to escort. Depending on the faction you're fighting for, they won't be the same!
  
• Added new enemies to the game.
  
• Added a new mod: Agility.
  
• Added a new priority mission: Medical Rally.
  
• Added a new priority mission: Big Blow.
  
• Added a new color: Wine Red.
  
• Current level cap has been moved from 30 to 40.
  

Improvements:

• Reworked the map designs. Added a few more designs to the mix!
  
• Reworked the save slots. Now, they display the reputations you're having with the factions.
  
• Reworked the customization menues. Now, press the button to equip something.
  
• Reworked the levelling system. Now locks your max level until you've completed the priority mission.
  

Fixed issues:

• Fixed a small issue with one specific screen's UI not working with a 16:10 display (Steamdeck).
  

[h2]Community spotlight[/h2]

• Check out this awesome review article about Escape Space!
  
• Thanks to Paladin Echo for their Youtube live review of the game!
  
• Thanks to ChaoticFear19 for their Youtube live review of the game!
  

Wanna be featured in the next update annoucement? Send us your videos/articles at shidygames[AT]gmail[DOT]com!

[h2]Thank you for reading![/h2]

As always, thank you a lot for the support. As a solo developer, it means a lot.

Please continue reporting feedback and/or issues on Discord, it helps me to better prioritize what the next move will be in terms of development!

And if you want to follow me on the journey of making this game, I'm streaming the process every Tuesday/Thursday at 9pm Paris time on Twitch!

Wanna discuss? I'm also on Twitter/X. Come say hi!

See you in space, mercenaries.
ShidyGames.