The final HOSAF EA developer diary? Road to 1.0!
Hi everybody! With the finish line in sight, let us give you one more detailed update about our progress towards the full release of Heroes of Science of Fiction! Apologies you have not heard from us much in the last few weeks, but everybody is now focusing on getting the game out as soon and as polished as possible.
In a way it's hard to believe the project has been 6 years in the making, but it's great to see the game finally so close to the original vision and the planned scope!
We also know a lot of you are eager to learn the official release date, it should get announced soon with a little video teaser.
But, in the meantime, let's have a look at what the team has been up to and what you can look forward to in 1.0!
[h3]The final campaign[/h3]
The fourth campaign will bring a conclusion to the main storyline, with new heroes and perspectives! Once again, it will consist of four levels with a healthy dose of dialog in each.
[h3]Multiplayer[/h3]
Has this been the most requested feature over the years? :) I'm happy to report some good progress, the plan is to have online peer-to-peer multiplayer using Steam (as in "no servers you would have to connect to", not "only 2 players").
There may also be LAN support as a backup as we're using it during testing - feel free to let me know if LAN is something you find important!
We'd also like to run a short beta test maybe in a month, so we can catch some of the issues we might miss when only testing among the team and make the multiplayer experience better in general.
[h3]AI and difficulty[/h3]
While the focus of one of our two programmers (myself in this case) has been multiplayer, it's been mostly AI for the other one. :) As we'd like the AI players to bring a proper challenge when choosing one of the harder difficulties, it should be a bit faster, a bit smarter, a bit stronger. :)
[h3]Maps[/h3]
A new planet with more skirmish maps is on its way - and we might also take the opportunity to reorganize the maps a bit, so please don't get alarmed! :)
[h3]Objects and items[/h3]
A few more unique buildings on the map, defensive structures and items are in the works too!
[h3]Achievements[/h3]
The achievement hunters among you will be delighted to see how many little challenges we have prepared for you (as this is not the final number yet)!
[h3]And after the game is out?[/h3]
While we need to focus on the mountain of work the full release is, we also have a list of ideas for smaller additions and improvements that could be included in updates after release or compiled into a DLC or two, so stay tuned for the release day announcement and details about future updates!
As always, big thanks to everybody who bought or wishlisted the game during Early Access and especially those who helped with translations or provided us with feedback on the Steam forums or on the discord server!
Now, to end on a lighter note, this is how we remember ourselves in 2020!
In a way it's hard to believe the project has been 6 years in the making, but it's great to see the game finally so close to the original vision and the planned scope!
We also know a lot of you are eager to learn the official release date, it should get announced soon with a little video teaser.
But, in the meantime, let's have a look at what the team has been up to and what you can look forward to in 1.0!
[h3]The final campaign[/h3]
The fourth campaign will bring a conclusion to the main storyline, with new heroes and perspectives! Once again, it will consist of four levels with a healthy dose of dialog in each.
[h3]Multiplayer[/h3]
Has this been the most requested feature over the years? :) I'm happy to report some good progress, the plan is to have online peer-to-peer multiplayer using Steam (as in "no servers you would have to connect to", not "only 2 players").
There may also be LAN support as a backup as we're using it during testing - feel free to let me know if LAN is something you find important!
We'd also like to run a short beta test maybe in a month, so we can catch some of the issues we might miss when only testing among the team and make the multiplayer experience better in general.
[h3]AI and difficulty[/h3]
While the focus of one of our two programmers (myself in this case) has been multiplayer, it's been mostly AI for the other one. :) As we'd like the AI players to bring a proper challenge when choosing one of the harder difficulties, it should be a bit faster, a bit smarter, a bit stronger. :)
[h3]Maps[/h3]
A new planet with more skirmish maps is on its way - and we might also take the opportunity to reorganize the maps a bit, so please don't get alarmed! :)
[h3]Objects and items[/h3]
A few more unique buildings on the map, defensive structures and items are in the works too!
[h3]Achievements[/h3]
The achievement hunters among you will be delighted to see how many little challenges we have prepared for you (as this is not the final number yet)!
[h3]And after the game is out?[/h3]
While we need to focus on the mountain of work the full release is, we also have a list of ideas for smaller additions and improvements that could be included in updates after release or compiled into a DLC or two, so stay tuned for the release day announcement and details about future updates!
As always, big thanks to everybody who bought or wishlisted the game during Early Access and especially those who helped with translations or provided us with feedback on the Steam forums or on the discord server!
Now, to end on a lighter note, this is how we remember ourselves in 2020!