Cyclopean News

[h3]Quickload Seems to be Working Again[/h3][p]The game would crash if you used quickload inside a dungeon. Now you will see the main menu turn on and off again when you use quickload, otherwise it works the same way as before. To be honest I am not sure if it ever worked inside dungeons, I am pretty sure I tested it, but knowing me I may have forgotten to do that![/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p]

[h3]Dholes or Bholes?[/h3][p]Lovecraft described the creatures as "Bholes" in his original draft of the Dreamquest of Unknown Kadath. However, when it was first published, the editor (most likely August Derleth) had changed the name to "Dholes" and this was pointed out much later by S.T. Joshi, in his well known commentary on Lovecraft's works.[/p][p]Well, I have always been in the "Dhole" camp, since that was the name I learned as a young Lovecraft reader back in the 1980s. I personally think that the editor was right to change it, and had enough authority to do so, seeing as Lovecraft himself had shoved the manuscript in a desk and had all but forgotten about it. [/p][p]But others argue that it is important to preserve the author's original intent, and I guess I can see that perspective too. [/p][p]So I have updated the game to have optional text that says "Bholes" instead of "Dholes" for players who want the original, Lovecraftian experience. You will need to manually reset the configuration file to do this, because there is no room left in the options menu![/p][p]Read about changing your configuration file here: https://steamcommunity.com/app/2958790/discussions/0/594029764724978672/[/p][p]Note: The variable will not be shown in the file until you run the game and apply the Options menu. Once you do that, go into the file, as described in the link, and change the last line:

DHOLES OR BHOLES, 0

to [/p][p]
DHOLES OR BHOLES, 1
[/p][p][/p][h3]
Bholes or Dholes?[/h3][p]In addition to this, I have also given the Dholes (or Bholes) a new power! I always wanted them to be special in some way, but I could not think of a trait unique enough to give them. But as always, I went back to the source material for inspiration, and found it! It was right there in the text, "...it would be better to meet a ghoul, which one can see, than a bhole (or dhole), which one cannot see..."[/p][p]So now Bholes (or Dholes) will promptly extinguish your torch if you happen to have it burning when you meet them :) They will also hide under the bones when they are out in the open, so while it's not quite impossible to see a dhole (or bhole) it is a little trickier then most monsters![/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Demo[/p][p]I have also updated the Demo to the latest build. So if you had a demo game going, you will want to read about updating your game here: https://steamcommunity.com/app/2958790/discussions/0/594031066432577954/?snr=1_5_9_[/p][p][/p][p][/p]

[h3]Testing Branch has been Made Default[/h3][p]The recent changes to the testing branch have been made to the default version. This has two major changes. First, you have an optional new lighting system which allows players to see distant lights in dungeons.
[/p][p][/p][p]
I decided it does not really match the feel I really wanted for the game, even though it is neat. But I made it available as an option in the ...[/p][h3]
Brand New Options Menu![/h3][p]Many players have been asking about the options menu, and incorporating some of the latest features there, instead of having to manually change the configuration file. Well, it was a struggle, but I managed to fit everything I felt was necessary, and even a little bit of the unnecessary stuff. [/p][p][/p][p]It's rather jam packed with options now, don't you think?[/p][h3]
The Bad News[/h3][p]Unfortunately, if you want to participate in the new version, you have to start a new game. Don't worry, if you want to complete your current game, I have some instructions for how to do that, here: https://steamcommunity.com/app/2958790/discussions/0/594031066432577954/[/p][p][/p][p]


[/p]

[h3]Complex Lighting[/h3][p]The new lighting engine has been included as an optional feature in the options menu. I like it, and it adds a certain atmosphere, but ultimately I decided it does not look as good as the original version in most settings. The lights being tile based instead of a gradual fog make it look a bit weird to me. But if you like that, you can use it.
[/p][h3]Updated Options Menu[/h3][p]I've been putting this off for a while, but the time has come. I added all the main configuration changes right into the game's options menu. This includes keybinds for Quicksave and Quickload, the new Complex Lighting system, hiding Scan Lines and more, all things players have requested over the months of early access, and since the game's full release. Have a look at the comparison between the old menu and the new one...
[/p][p]Old Options Menu:

New Options Menu:
[/p][p]Everything is a bit more jam packed in there now, and one could make an argument that the old one is better ... or that I could have just made a bigger menu, or spread the options over several screens ... but I didn't. It's all here on one, super concentrated little menu. Enjoy![/p][h3]
Testing[/h3][p]I will be testing this out a bit more, before I decide to upload it to the default branch. Unfortunately it will still require starting a new game. So I will put in a little message about how players can access the older version of the game when they try to load an old save. The game itself has not really changed, no new "content" has been added, but I had to modify a few of the dungeons to accommodate the the old saved files will break the game if loaded into the new version. [/p][p][/p][p][/p]

[h2]Brand New Lighting![/h2][p]Based on player feedback, I have decided to overhaul the whole lighting system. The previous version just used fog to show darkness. But this meant that any distant lights would not be visible until you got pretty close to them. It was not realistic at all in this sense. [/p][p] While the game never really set out to have realistic rendering, I felt being able to see far away lights in dungeons could add some interesting atmosphere to the game. So there have been a few, cool differences that have been introduced as a result, as well as what I would call disadvantages. [/p][p][/p][p]The first improvement is obviously, that you can see lit areas from far away. Another side effect of this is that in one level (shown above), you can see that there is an open sky, which was hidden by the fog previously.[/p][h3]Disadvantages[/h3][p]A disadvantage is that the lighting is based on each tile's position, so you can see a rather sharp distinction from one tile to the next. Another thing I see as a disadvantage is that the levels do not get completely dark as they did before. Here is a scene demonstrating this, where the player has no torch, nor any night vision, as they approach the entrance to the Crag.



I also don't quite like how the background color gets so much darker than it used to. I did not mind this in the optional, high contrast mode, but I feel like the main game should maintain the distinct monochrome style that I have in mind. I am still working on tweaking this a bit. It was easy to do with the fog effect, but it is a bit trickier to color the actual tiles in the exact shade I want. When I give them too much color they no longer appear dark, and you can see the whole dungeon, which is not what I want at all. [/p][p]Another disadvantage is that I had to adjust the dungeons to allow for all this to work, so old saved games will not work properly with the new system. So I am releasing this under the "testing" branch until I am sure it will work well, and people are ready for this next phase. [/p][h3]What Say You?[/h3][p]So if you like this idea, or hate it, let me know in the comments. [/p][p]To try it, go to "Cyclopean > Properties > Betas" and select "testing" from the drop down menu. Make sure you don't save over your current game if you want to play it again. [/p][p]I have also fixed a few outstanding bugs in this version. Once I am 100% sure I like this, and I get it to look just right, I will make it the default. For any players who want to continue their current game, I will, as always, make the current version available as a legacy beta branch. [/p]