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Vox Machinae News

Big Bang Update

[h2]Big Bang Update[/h2]

With 2022 slowly coming to an end, team Space Bullet have decided to kick things up with a bang. Today we’re releasing our Big Bang Update for Vox Machinae, and boy-oh-boy it’s a doozie. First of all we got 5 new weapons, yes indeed it’s the most new arsenal we’ve ever crammed into a single content update. Next we’ve overhauled our grinder and weapon selection menus to provide useful info and stats for your decision-making convenience. Finally we took some time to rework our physics interaction systems as well as solving some of the odd network connectivity issues folks were seeing. Here’s a more detailed breakdown of what’s shiny and new today in Vox Machinae:

[h2]Weapons[/h2]



            

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Aftershock
Rain hellfire on unsuspecting campers. They better run once they start hearing the coming onslaught of boom.




Splitfire
This close cousin of the minigun trades spread for range, to provide a low-heat suppression option for lighter grinders.




Chainstorm
Say hello to the minigun's big brother. Slow to get going but if you're anywhere near it, watch out once it does!




Skythorn
Lay down aerial mines that trigger with the slightest movement within their proximity.




Mallet
This big beauty is like the dumbfire, hard-hitting and precise version of Hammer you never knew you needed.



[h2]Improved[/h2]



            

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Physics
Ever since our V1.0 release back in March, Physics has behaved a bit differently from what it was in Early Access. While we feel it has mostly maintained the spirit of the game, it’s essentially a different physics engine and this switch was necessary for Quest 2. Simply put there were areas where we knew we’d have to live with concessions because of time constraints. With our Big Bang Update we’ve basically reworked most of how grinders interact, diving into the weeds of all the values, interactions, damage models and coming out the other end with a much sturdier simulation.




Menu Changes
With great new weapons come great menu responsibilities! We’ve refreshed both the grinder and weapon selection menus in an effort to provide much needed info and stats to both. In addition to general fuzzy bar graphs comparing stats, we endeavored to include some pros/cons for each kit to help newer players make informed decisions. We also added category corner icons to denote grinder classes as well as weapon categories in their respective menus.



[h2]In Conclusion[/h2]

Rounding out this year, we’re thrilled to keep being able to bring you folks the evolving state of play within Vox Machinae. We’re grateful for all your support, and we’re excited to get started on the next evolutionary steps our stompy bot game will make in the coming year!

Hoverbrawl Content Update

Hoverbrawl 2.0 is Here Today.


June 29, 2022

Our latest content update is out now so let’s talk about it's main feature; Hoverbrawl 2.0. Yeah you read right, we’ve taken our frustrating soccer-style game mode and are making it tolerable great! Heck, even the bots weren't quite sure how to play the old one. That’s why we’re building out a whole new core concept to hoverbrawl and unifying the mechanics in an all-hands effort to make it the most fun mode in VOX. In the old version of hoverbrawl the ball wasn’t exactly the easiest thing to bat around. Not only did it hover frustratingly too high to interact with terrain/players, it was also difficult to get going in the direction it needed to go. How is hoverbrawl 2.0 different/better? Read on to find out!

[h2]Key Improvements:[/h2]

[h3]The Carrier[/h3]

To put it simply, we’re going to let players carry the ball around by tethering to it. Any player who gets close enough to a loose ball will tether to it and be able to pull it wherever they go. As a carrier you’ll need to stay close to it as you travel, otherwise the tether will break. You’ll also need to manage all the extra heat that tethering draws which increases the farther from the ball you are.

[h3]New objective[/h3]

Players must now take the ball/mine to the enemy’s factory and destroy it with the mine to score. Not only will this allow players to keep a forward momentum rather than backtracking, it will also encourage defensive roles to keep enemy balls away.

[h3]2 Balls are better than 1[/h3]

We decided this mode needed more chaos and less players crammed into the same exact spot. Keeping track of loose balls and sneaky tactics is now a thing, so players stay vigilant!

[h3]Loose Balls[/h3]

Only captured balls with carriers are able to float gently in the breeze. loose balls just kinda roll around which allows for more emergent opportunities to punt, shoot and redirect the ball to glory.

[h3]Shoot the balls[/h3]

Shooting loose and carried balls will affect both differently depending on the weapon used. This was a thing in ye-old hoverbrawl, though tbh we kinda broke a bunch of that with our campaign update. Now, not only do they all actually work; we also tuned those effects tightly and added a unique wrinkle to our most underused weapon.

[h3]Scoring[/h3]

Carrying the ball into the enemy’s factory will net your team the traditional 5 points. Loose balls can be blasted into an enemy’s factory at range, which will award all teams 3 points except the team who’s factory just exploded to bits.

[h3]And much more![/h3]

Check out our previous announcement to read up on all the other exciting improvements coming along with this release. In fact here's a handy dandy link that will take you right there

[h2]In Conclusion[/h2]

So there ya have it. Lots of very deep changes to hoverbrawl, out now with this latest content update. We’ve been playing around with this mode for well over a month now internally, and honestly it’s some of the most fun we’ve had with the game in a long time. We keep discovering new tactics, wrinkles, possibilities, loadout cheats, counters, the list goes on. We’re stoked to finally be releasing it to all you excellent folks, and we look forward to seeing where you take it.

Vox Machinae is out of Early Access!

[h2]We've Finally Arrived at V1.0[/h2]

Well, we’re finally out of early access and can now truly be called a V1.0 product on Steam’s storefront. Even though our campaign update was released well over a month ago, we took our time pushing the button for several reasons: We wanted to include trading cards as well as releasing several patch updates that helped iron out some of the rougher edges. So here it is, out there for all to bask in its final glory.

[h2]What’s Coming Next?[/h2]

Though the game has finally received its stamp of v1.0 finality, we’re really only just getting started with our post-release roadmap. Our first content update is coming soon, and here’s just a few sneak peak highlights of what to expect when that drops:



            

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HoverBrawl 2.0
- Think of this as a brand new take on the concept; featuring completely redesigned gameplay mechanics driven by a renewed focus on making it the most fun mode of the game. Teams will now be able to tether to the ball and become carriers, hauling it with them to destroy rival factories with its payload.




Robo Avatars
- No longer confined to the shackles of a human body, skilled players who’ve completed either the campaign or several key components of Multiplayer will be granted the joys of embodying the robo lifestyle. Bragging rights - > guaranteed.




New A.I Buddy
- A familiar face from the campaign is coming over to Multiplayer. Those who’ve completed the campaign will get to experience the new boss in town, complete with its own unique dialogue for all things multiplayer. What’s more, all contextual dialog from your assistants has been expanded with new dialog variety.




Quality-of-Life Extras
- Small but handy updates and fixes litter all the best corners of this content update, as per usual of a quality VOX release. Of particular note, intermission shortcuts have been added to further streamline gameplay flow for those folks looking to get into the next bit of action quickly without sacrificing storyline.



[h2]… And after that?[/h2]

Woah there, slow down, partner! We can’t just go spilling the proverbial beans all over the counter like some cheap… beans. We got a lot of new and interesting stuff coming to VOX as we continue to expand and improve the game well beyond its V1.0 badging, now’s just not the time to get into that. We’ll be working to improve communicating new and interesting changes more transparently going forward, so all you wonderful people can start to appreciate a more consistent stream of info from us.

Update notes for patch 1.0.6

  • Added Instructions on how to exit a seat for the first time a player sits.
  • It is now possible to skip to the next Mission when in an intermission from the in-game menu.
  • Default Smooth turning speed increased from Slowest to Medium. For in ship movement
  • Remapping you aim settings no longer makes it not possible to turn in the ship
  • Movement Input blocked while operating the floating menu in the ship
  • The stampcard in "Clocking Out" is held less weird by the player.
  • Fixed Issue where Neberu would be holding her hand out for the stampcard early after bringing the watch to Hans.
  • Fixed a issue in "Bump in the Night" where interacting with a vent while a character was speaking could block progression
  • Characters Lipsync correctly for words with 's in them
  • Fixed floating rocks appearing in the hole of some launch tunnels in campaign missions
  • Removed many floating rocks from the final tunnel in "Dissolution"
  • Fixed AI Controlled grinders in hoverbrawl being unable to move after respawning in hoverbrawl
  • Fixed some lighting issues with the voxyball in Hoverbrawl
  • Fixed an issue where a grinders arm would get stuck in a specific rotation after getting damaged
  • Fixed an issue where your grinder in the hangar would display as missing all limbs despite not losing all limbs.
  • Added support for L-VPC Throttle MT-50CM3

Patch Notes - 1.0.5 release

- Fixed a case where Donny could become stuck while jumping in Mission 1.
- Diesel's diary no longer appears invisible when handing it to him in Intermission 1.
- Added controller prompt for going to sleep in Intermission 1.
- Added visual guide towards the briefing in Mission 2.
- Changed default grinder in Mission 3.
- Fixed incorrect default weapon grouping on Dredge loadout in Mission 4.
- Fixed some AI oddities in friendly grinders in Mission 5.
- Moved final checkpoint in Mission 5 to after the dialogue, to get back to the action quicker.
- Added visual indicators to vents in Intermission 5 when they should be interacted with, and remove vents that have already been used.
- Fixed case of two characters standing in the same location in Intermission 6.
- Fixed some cases where controller prompts and mission instructions could overlap each other.
- Battle damage now visible on your grinder while riding the elevator out of the hangar.
- Loadouts and health now persist when continuing from a mission checkpoint. Health is restored gradually on each successive failure.
- Increased health of hammer missile.
- Various adjustments to Intermissions to improve confusing elements.
- Fixed some subtitles that did not match dialogue.
- Multiplayer briefings now play correctly when joining a match that is already in progress.
- BLUE now correctly says Vehicle destroyed instead of Grinder when destroying a vehicle.
- Add support for T.Flight Stick X joystick.
- Add support for L-VPC ThrottleMT-50CM3 throttle.
- Add support for VPC Rudder Pedals.
- Add Support for R-VPC Stick WarBRD.