Novus Orbis News

[h3]NEW UPDATE[/h3]
I wasn't planning to make any more big changes to the game's visual, at least not before release, but while making the final boss for the Early Access version...one thing led to another, and pushed me to go for it.

I added a bloom effect to many aspects of the game!
I hope you'll like it as much as I do :D

I took the chance to also update a few sprites and lights here and there. Some things were starting to feel outdated compared to the more recent stuff I've been making.

This update will also include a few bug fixes.

Finally (while this actually came with a previous unannounced update), I've also added localization for the Polish language, thanks to the amazing help of aruemaremateu, who graciously offered his help for free.
The language is not 100% implemented, and I still need to find a fix for special characters I'm having for the French language too.

Thank you as always for the support!

[h3]KICKSTARTER[/h3]
We will be running a Kickstarter campaign for Novus Orbis later this year. Please be sure to give that a Follow so you don't miss out on your chance to support the game and earn cool rewards!



[h3]STAY UPDATED[/h3]

I love pixel art games, and I know you do too. So, let’s celebrate together 🎉 I'm super excited to share that Novus Orbis joins PixElated Festival next week! This festival is featuring some of the best pixel art games on Steam. From retro-style classics to contemporary indie gems all in one place!
There will be ✨ discounts ✨ live streams ✨ art contest ✨ demos✨ developer chats ✨ all centered around your favorite games.
Check out the official line-up and more information about the event here: http://pixelatedfest.com/

Hi everyone!
It's been a while since my last update.

I've been hard at work on the Early Access release, and I felt I couldn't keep updating the demo or I'd never get things done. This is also because I was keeping them as two different project files.

I realized this wasn't sustainable tho, and considering that I've added and changed MANY things in the past months, I felt the need to merge everything together into the same project file.

Now I'll be able to bug fix and push important updates to the demo too, in case it will be needed.

Here are the changes that I made to the game, that will now also be present in the demo:

• Added portal modifiers. You will sometimes see little "ghosts" over the portals, that will have an effect once you enter that portal. I decided to make this addition to spice things up, and make the portal choice less obvious. Portals now also look prettier than before.
  
• The firepit now has its own room, instead of being treated as an event.
  
• Most events now will require you to interact with them before you can access portals.
  
• Reworked the shop. I felt that it was one of the weakest elements of the gameplay loop, so I opted to go for a more classical solution. Interacting with the shop will now give you 4 things to buy (with variable prices depending on type and rarity), and you'll be able to reroll the goods a few times (before it gets angry). Together with this I also re balanced the amount of Monster Blood you get from enemies.
  
• The Map icon will now show an overview of the current level when interacted with. No more guessing when the boss or shop are going to come.
  
• There is now a map between levels (instead of automatically going to the next level). In Early Access I have planned one path with four levels, but the full game will have a total of 9 levels and branching paths. For the demo, you'll only be able to choose the 4 different "Lands" versions.
  
• Added a trail behind the cursor. I think it looks pretty, I hope it won't be too distracting. I added it mostly to help visualize the game when playing with a pad.
  

I made some changes to the overall game balance, including changes to some statuses. The 4 levels in the demo now also have a different structure between each other. The game may now be a little more difficult than before, especially during normal fights. It should be less forgiving, both in and out of fight. I haven't played this new version too many times, but the demo is still beatable.
To elaborate on the most important changes:

• The statuses "great strength" and "great defense" now cannot stack anymore. I felt it was too easy in some cases to simply become too powerful. Instead, the statuses will now only consider the highest (or lowest) value they receive. For example, if you have "great strength" x3 and then use a card that would give you x2, you will stay at x3. On the other hand, if you have x2 and next get x3, the result will be x3. Positive and negative values will cancel out.
  
• I added a new "Fragile" status. With this status, the entity will get double damage. This status doesn't stack.
  
• To account for these changes, I changed how the "Fire" status for the mage behaves when charged up. I will probably need to re balance this in the future.
  

Considering the many changes, and limited ability to test everything, please report if you find any bug!

While I wasn't planning on updating the demo anymore, I realized there were a few issues/things that needed to be addressed.

No new content here, but a few changes and additions that should make everyone's experience a little more enjoyable.

• Some cards now contain keywords instead of whole sentences (like AOE instead of "to all enemies", with relative tooltip).
  
• Added a new setting to make cards and tooltips bigger, especially useful on smaller devices like Steam Deck.
  
• French language added (as well as placeholder flags for future languages).
  
• Settings are now saved between sessions.
  
• Added cloud saves support.
  
• Added a button that can be used to take you out of softlock (it may or may not solve your issue depending on the cause).
  
• You can now access the menu using the Esc keyboard key.
  

I will probably add more languages, hopefully before Steam Next Fest in June.

A reminder that I will give Kickstarter a second try in June, around the same time as Next Fest (haven't decided on a specific day yet).

Follow the project here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/seizogames/novus-orbis-0


As always, thank you very much for the support!

Not a huge update, but I'm trying to address a few issues (both with bugs and balance), especially considering I'm getting a lot of new users lately!

• The Dummy won't give you Special Cards you already currently own.
  
• The Mage class will now start with a random Grimoire.
  
• Reworked Cards: Sword Fracture, Rewind, Random Page, Tonic.
  

Let me use this chance to thank all the new players who seem to be enjoying the game!
And of course, all the existing players who keep supporting me.

Finally, a reminder about the ongoing Kickstarter!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/seizogames/novus-orbis

While things are still moving slowly, at this pace I won't be able to reach the goal.
Deckbuilder Fest was pretty useless for Novus Orbis (it was difficult to find the game EVEN when I actively tried lol), so I didn't manage to use it to redirect traffic to Kickstarter as I planned.
If things don't get VERY good, I will probably cancel the Kickstarter in about a week, and retry in June during Next Fest.