Rack and Slay News

Hey folks! Huge thanks to everyone who checked out the demo during Steam Next Fest! Please leave your feedback on the forums or the Discord. Much appreciated!
[h2]Patch notes (v0.81)[/h2]
The new demo update focuses on making things "more fun" by changing how some things in the game interact and introducing a few quality-of-life improvements.

• Keys are now carried around by enemies (like coins or gems) instead of getting consumed.
  ➡️ Fewer missed keys, more item picks, more options to pick up a key indirectly → FUN!
  
• When you defeat an enemy that is carrying a coin, gem or key, you now collect the item as if you had touched it.
  
  ➡️ More coins and gems, plus sometimes enemies hand gems around between each other until one dies and you get all the goods → FUN!
  
• Mini balls do not collide with spikes rotating around the player anymore.
  ➡️ Combine “Impaler” and “The Gang” for ultimate self-surrounding mayhem → FUN!
  
• Mini balls now collide with swords rotating around enemies, i.e. can be used as “protection” from those (if you’re cruel enough).
  ➡️ More counterplay against sword enemies and bosses, secret buff to “The Gang” too → FUN!
  
• There’s now a small indicator above the player ball when you have 3 or fewer shots remaining at the start of your turn.
  ➡️ No more confusion about being out of shots, enter “focus mode” and really try to make those last few shots count → FUN!
  
• Added “light quality” setting to the advanced options. Setting it to “low” will disable a few shaders, particles and the pulse effect on circular lights in the game.
  ➡️ Better performance on low-end devices → FUN?!
  
• Various minor fixes (always FUN!)

[h3]NEXT FEST[/h3]
Join me (Graeme) for a Steam Next Fest livestream to show off more of the Rack and Slay demo.

An up to date demo is live now for you to play for yourself.
Your feedback is greatly appreciated, and if you like the game please be sure to add it to your Wishlist!

[h3]PRE-RECORDED VIDEOS[/h3]
You can also watch several pre-recorded videos of me playing around in Rack and Slay over on Graeme Games.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

It’s Steam Next Fest and Rack and Slay is participating to bring billiard roguelike wackiness to the event! The demo comes with 60 items featuring all kinds of fun combinations to explore, and full access to the 10-levels Crawl Mode through 20 difficulty levels.


As a reminder, here's what's coming to the full version on top:

• Many additional items to unlock for more complex effects and synergies.
  
• The shorter Delve Mode with double the item rewards.
  
• The one-level Raid Mode with random items for a quick burst of mayhem.
  
• Daily Mode featuring a unique set of game-changing run modifiers every day.
  
• Wild Mode for random (and sometimes pretty crazy) sets modifiers.
  
• Plus, obviously, all kinds of tweaks, fixes and polish all around.

If you like what the demo has to offer, please consider wishlisting the game. You probably have heard it quite a bit already, but it’s true that for a tiny indie dev project like this every single wishlist makes a big difference! So seriously, thank you so much for checking out the game! ❤️

Finally, if you have suggestions for what could be added to the game, want to provide feedback, or you found a bug, please drop by the Steam forums, the Discord or let me know via Twitter! Your feedback has played a critical role in shaping the game the ever since the first version of the demo was released.
Just some of the things that happened the past couple months:

• Replaced all item art in the game with shiny new graphics.
  
• Added a variety of 8-ball boss enemies to shake up your runs.
  
• Added many new objects, obstacles and collectibles for more variety.
  
• Lots of item reworks, balancing and new items for the full version.
  
• Improved difficulty scaling and more transparent difficulty selection.
  
• Quality-of-life improvements such as effect indicators and a new shot gauge.
  
• A new run-progression map so you can plan ahead for upcoming bosses.
  
• UI and look-and-feel improvements, including new sounds and visual effects
  
• Improved physics and stability even in extremely crazy combo situations.
  
• Hugely improved gamepad / Steam Deck controls.
  
• Countless bugfixes.

All this wouldn’t have been possible without your feedback, so THANK YOU! All the best everyone and I hope you have an awesome Next Fest!

P.S. You can catch a live stream showcase of the game by Graeme of 2 Left Thumbs this Tuesday and Thursday (both 8 PM UTC).

[h2]Patch notes (v0.8)[/h2]

• Added a “level map” to the shop screen displaying your current progress throughout a run and reminding you of when boss levels come up.
  
• Additionally, boss variants are now rolled when you start a new run, so you will be able to see a preview of which type of boss you’ll be facing in levels 5 and 10.
  
• Made some performance optimizations regarding physics, shot predictions and level generation.
  
• Fixed “restart” button to restart the same mode you’re in instead of a default run.
  
• Other minor fixes and tweaks.

With this patch I consider the demo ready for Next Fest (Feb 5 - Feb 12)! Looking forward to receiving your feedback via the Steam forums or Discord! And please consider leaving a wishlist if you like what you see so far. Every bit helps! ❤️

[h2]Patch notes (v0.79)[/h2]

• Added many additional item-specific effect indicators and sound effects.
  
• Added a few safer “bridged hole” variants with multiple planks.
  
• Gave keys a small point light so they’re not as easy to miss.
  
• Fixed active teleporters sometimes looking as if they were inactive.
  
• Fixed temporary power bonus not being considered for the shot gauge and a couple items if you had a 0% permanent power bonus.
  
• A few other minor fixes and tweaks.