Major Update Incoming
Hey everyone!
Marty here! I'm very excited to announce the release date for the upcoming major update for The Night Shift, but before I get to that, let's talk about what's in store for you (I didn't even mean to do that pun!).
I have been working hard fine tuning and polishing the build, so when you all play it is a great experience for you.
This update includes the first level, but showcases all of the features that will be expanded on in the future. Here you will experience the narrative, task, inventory and inspection systems. Some, if not all, of these systems will evolve over the course of development but give an indication of the direction I am taking The Night Shift.
The biggest focus was to have more freedom with the current tasks, here you have that freedom. The ability to finish the tasks in any order you want, allows for different experiences for each playthrough. The tasks themselves are displayed by UI, but can also been seen in your inventory continuing the diegetic gameplay from the Unity version. You may need to inspect notes to get hints of where your next task can be found or additional narrative.
There are also optional tasks that can be completed, these require a bit more exploration but will reward you with a fancy new Steam Achievement.
I have been testing these for a while, but the game will include 15 Steam Achievements. These were a focus for me, as I personally love achievements, but they also add extra value and replayability to games.
The biggest thing to note, is that whilst this update only contains one level, it won't be the last - there will be much more to come (more below).
[h2]TRAILER + UPDATE RELEASE[/h2]
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
Well there it is, the trailer for the new update! Now for the release date of the update.
*drum roll*
15th March 2024!
[h2]PRICING[/h2]
With this update comes an update to the pricing, starting on the 15th March 2024 the price will be increasing to AUS$10 (US$6.50). I haven't made this change lightly, however, this new price will fund the future of The Night Shift. The price will not change when The Night Shift leaves Early Access.
For those that already own The Night Shift, nothing will change.
In saying that, there will be a couple of knock-on effects.
- Anyone who acquired a game for free won't receive trading cards.
- Existing reviews will no longer count toward the review score.
This change won't be immediate, so between now and the release date, the game will be free.
[h2]FEEDBACK AND COMMUNITY[/h2]
The community has been great in giving feedback, so I have been made sure to address as much as I could. If there is any feedback, bugs or suggestions please post them in either the Steam Discussions or the Discord. I plan to be more active in both, moving forward.
The community's feedback is both appreciated and invaluable, to me and the project.
[h2]THE FUTURE[/h2]
Now what's next?
There are a number of features I want to implement, and have already laid the foundation for a couple of them.
- I plan to add more shifts in a variety of areas of the store, where the player has to complete new unique tasks and is challenged with new types of mannequins.
- Flashing out the narrative is a big one too, expanding on both the immediate story and environmental storytelling, as well as giving dialogue a voice to enhance the experience.
- The ability to save and load is necessary, especially for when more levels are implemented. I have the foundation for this already, but will ned more time to get it saving the right things. When I am happy with this, I am planning on integrating Steam Cloud.
- Controller Support for a variety of controllers, including Xbox and PS4/5.
- I would like to add localisation for text, as it looks like a number of players are from non-English speaking countries. However, this will take some time.
That's it for now!
I would love to hear your thoughts, and if there are any questions you have.
Very excited for you all to get your hands on The Night Shift.
Keep up to date by joining the Discord or following the game on Twitter.
Thanks for reading, chat soon!
Marty
Marty here! I'm very excited to announce the release date for the upcoming major update for The Night Shift, but before I get to that, let's talk about what's in store for you (I didn't even mean to do that pun!).
I have been working hard fine tuning and polishing the build, so when you all play it is a great experience for you.
THE NIGHT SHIFT
This update includes the first level, but showcases all of the features that will be expanded on in the future. Here you will experience the narrative, task, inventory and inspection systems. Some, if not all, of these systems will evolve over the course of development but give an indication of the direction I am taking The Night Shift.
The biggest focus was to have more freedom with the current tasks, here you have that freedom. The ability to finish the tasks in any order you want, allows for different experiences for each playthrough. The tasks themselves are displayed by UI, but can also been seen in your inventory continuing the diegetic gameplay from the Unity version. You may need to inspect notes to get hints of where your next task can be found or additional narrative.
There are also optional tasks that can be completed, these require a bit more exploration but will reward you with a fancy new Steam Achievement.
I have been testing these for a while, but the game will include 15 Steam Achievements. These were a focus for me, as I personally love achievements, but they also add extra value and replayability to games.
The biggest thing to note, is that whilst this update only contains one level, it won't be the last - there will be much more to come (more below).
[h2]TRAILER + UPDATE RELEASE[/h2]
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
Well there it is, the trailer for the new update! Now for the release date of the update.
*drum roll*
15th March 2024!
[h2]PRICING[/h2]
With this update comes an update to the pricing, starting on the 15th March 2024 the price will be increasing to AUS$10 (US$6.50). I haven't made this change lightly, however, this new price will fund the future of The Night Shift. The price will not change when The Night Shift leaves Early Access.
For those that already own The Night Shift, nothing will change.
In saying that, there will be a couple of knock-on effects.
- Anyone who acquired a game for free won't receive trading cards.
- Existing reviews will no longer count toward the review score.
This change won't be immediate, so between now and the release date, the game will be free.
[h2]FEEDBACK AND COMMUNITY[/h2]
The community has been great in giving feedback, so I have been made sure to address as much as I could. If there is any feedback, bugs or suggestions please post them in either the Steam Discussions or the Discord. I plan to be more active in both, moving forward.
The community's feedback is both appreciated and invaluable, to me and the project.
[h2]THE FUTURE[/h2]
Now what's next?
There are a number of features I want to implement, and have already laid the foundation for a couple of them.
- I plan to add more shifts in a variety of areas of the store, where the player has to complete new unique tasks and is challenged with new types of mannequins.
- Flashing out the narrative is a big one too, expanding on both the immediate story and environmental storytelling, as well as giving dialogue a voice to enhance the experience.
- The ability to save and load is necessary, especially for when more levels are implemented. I have the foundation for this already, but will ned more time to get it saving the right things. When I am happy with this, I am planning on integrating Steam Cloud.
- Controller Support for a variety of controllers, including Xbox and PS4/5.
- I would like to add localisation for text, as it looks like a number of players are from non-English speaking countries. However, this will take some time.
That's it for now!
I would love to hear your thoughts, and if there are any questions you have.
Very excited for you all to get your hands on The Night Shift.
Keep up to date by joining the Discord or following the game on Twitter.
Thanks for reading, chat soon!
Marty