[ UPDATE V19 ] Tutorial, Various changes, Hiatus News. (EDITED July 20th)
This Update was all over the place. It began as about 1 week of intended work but quickly grew into a multi-faceted snowballing living turd from hell.
It happens sometimes.
The tutorial covers controls and should give the player a basic understanding of what things are going to be like. I notice when people first start playing STLD they are trying to take their time to understand a bit and investigate.. too soon do they realize the zombies are already there. The tutorial is different in that it moves at your pace for the most part.
You may feel it's a little short, but then again maybe not. I don't think I've ever heard someone actually say aloud " that tutorial wasn't long enough!" It can be replayed multiple times, and I actually recommend that if you'd like to train a bit. I saw someone do that to learn how to use flash-items. (the down button).
The controls are the same as always, but I've added a little bonus for players who like to play with the "WASD" setup. If you're used to playing games like CSGO or any other fps(s) on your pc then you're used to one hand resting on the Mouse . Well now you can shoot, pick up weapons and drop weapons using just the mouse.
Also, the controls menu on the main screen has been updated so you have a bit more of a visual queue to work with before heading straight in.
There's been many complaints on the controls, mainly weapons and how you find them. I think just about every "lets play" I've seen on STLD touches on this subject. "Touches" might be a nice way of putting it.
Believe it or not I am listening. Amber no longer ever uses the Investigate Button to equip a weapon. Instead every weapon is notably identified with colorful flashing discovery text and a unique sound effect. On top of not equipping newly discovered weapons, it also never disarms them. e.g maybe you want to keep the Revolver in your hands and run around discovering the rest of the weapons without ever dropping it. You can do that now.
This should also completely eliminate that damned bug that occurs for players with a low frame rate. I mean the bug where you pick up certain items like the land mine or bear trap and the character never receives them.
I have a feeling this weapon change might be a bit off putting to vet players. (NEW). You can now toggle the old way back on in the options menu, if you experience issues with weapons disappearing please leave "WEAPON OVERIDE" unchecked in the options menu.
If you get through the tutorial you'll notice the new weapon. Well more of a revival really, but with cleaned and updated animations and sprites. (and a bigger punch too). "The Goblin" (MP5 basically) will be available as a slots reward in the final patch for Episode 02. Meaning you will be able to bring it into the real game for further devastation.
Amber will no longer stay downed for long periods of time after getting struck by a Magic Missile spell or by tripping on a trap.
This was never intended, she should pop back up after tapping sprint multiple times. ( 5-8 )
That damned rock bug. A lot of bugs seem to occur for players with a lower frame rate. This bastard would occur when Amber has a rock equipped. It was funny at first, then I believe it tried to ruin my life. If you don't know what I'm talking about you can see it first hand here, thanks for all your helpful information rooting this out Gladiator. It should be gone now, I don't know. Fuck.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05b5TJ2FbVc&t=25s
Just gonna quickly bullet point the last few.
STLD is a strange beast in itself. Years ago, when I first created Episode 01, and it was known only as "Survivor: the Living Dead " I was young, depressed, and didn't really care. I didn't know what I was doing, I didn't know why I was doing it, and I still don't know how or what drove me to finishing that game. But I did.
I finally released that game on a website my dad had helped me host called RadicalEndeavors(.)com. I was going to make video games and help him sell his comic book collection all in one place. It never really happened that way though. As I said, I was depressed and unfocused but on top of that I began having severe anxiety which eventually manifested as partial blindness in my right eye. I didn't know what I was doing, I was confused , afraid , I certainly didn't believe in myself or the game.
Not long after the website went up it began crashing from an overwhelming amount of traffic. STLD was a hit. People loved it. It was hard and buggy, but intense and rewarding. The Story was brief and grim, but left the player satisfied with Amber's vengeful body count, while also yearning for more. More content, more back story, more characters... But I didn't care.
This was not a happy time for me, I had decided before going live with the game that it would be free, and that it would always remain that way. I didn't know how the game would perform on other peoples PCs', what if they didn't like it? What if it was a waste? What if people thought I'd just completely ripped the story right off of Night of the Living Dead?
My family did not agree with this "free" aspect. And it became an awkward conversation point with anyone I knew. " Why would he do that? " I couldn't answer then. But I know now making it free gave me the confidence to actually finish it. I wasn't hurting anyone, whether it was good or not I wasn't ripping anybody off. It wasn't much of a reason but in the end that's what I ran with...
And now I'm here. People wanted more years ago, and I was too much of a mess to deliver. I didn't know how or where to take it from there, and I certainly didn't have the passion....
Years later, the passion and confidence came back. After becoming dangerously dependent on the drugs I took for my anxiety, ( and eye) I eventually kicked them. And during my long months of recovery I clung to art and exercise like they were oxygen.
..The place I stand these days is somewhere between poetry and irony.
For these last two years I've worked on re-building and redesigning every aspect of the game, while trying my best to stay true to it's core nature and listen to a fluctuating audience. This is easily the hardest I've ever worked on anything. Thousands upon thousands of hours of my life have been put into STLD, and I've honestly never felt more passionate about it than I do now. I've written a 10 episode story Arc with over 20 characters designed, some intended to be playable characters once developed.
Unfortunately this passion doesn't pay the bills. And even with Summer here, this games LIFETIME sales do not add up to enough to pay for 1 months rent of living in California. I don't know what you guys want, I don't know if I'm delivering on my promises or if times have changed and I just waited too long. Regardless I have to tackle real life bills and issues, because as of now STLD is not paying them. I hope it can stand on it's own as of now, and it's worth the 5 dollars to you.
I do love this game, and I love you, the followers and community. But things might be slow around here for a while. I still would like to do a kick-starter for more episodes down the road, but as of now I don't think the following would even be strong enough to support it.
I'm not giving up, I will be adding updates when I can, STLDs been a part of my life for a long time. I don't know where the future goes from here but I do hope we can embark on it together.
P.S.
Thanks for the endless nightmares of inspiration George. Where would I be without you?
Rest in Peace.
It happens sometimes.
Tutorial
The tutorial covers controls and should give the player a basic understanding of what things are going to be like. I notice when people first start playing STLD they are trying to take their time to understand a bit and investigate.. too soon do they realize the zombies are already there. The tutorial is different in that it moves at your pace for the most part.
You may feel it's a little short, but then again maybe not. I don't think I've ever heard someone actually say aloud " that tutorial wasn't long enough!" It can be replayed multiple times, and I actually recommend that if you'd like to train a bit. I saw someone do that to learn how to use flash-items. (the down button).
The controls are the same as always, but I've added a little bonus for players who like to play with the "WASD" setup. If you're used to playing games like CSGO or any other fps(s) on your pc then you're used to one hand resting on the Mouse . Well now you can shoot, pick up weapons and drop weapons using just the mouse.
Also, the controls menu on the main screen has been updated so you have a bit more of a visual queue to work with before heading straight in.
Weapon Interaction
There's been many complaints on the controls, mainly weapons and how you find them. I think just about every "lets play" I've seen on STLD touches on this subject. "Touches" might be a nice way of putting it.
Believe it or not I am listening. Amber no longer ever uses the Investigate Button to equip a weapon. Instead every weapon is notably identified with colorful flashing discovery text and a unique sound effect. On top of not equipping newly discovered weapons, it also never disarms them. e.g maybe you want to keep the Revolver in your hands and run around discovering the rest of the weapons without ever dropping it. You can do that now.
This should also completely eliminate that damned bug that occurs for players with a low frame rate. I mean the bug where you pick up certain items like the land mine or bear trap and the character never receives them.
I have a feeling this weapon change might be a bit off putting to vet players. (NEW). You can now toggle the old way back on in the options menu, if you experience issues with weapons disappearing please leave "WEAPON OVERIDE" unchecked in the options menu.
If you get through the tutorial you'll notice the new weapon. Well more of a revival really, but with cleaned and updated animations and sprites. (and a bigger punch too). "The Goblin" (MP5 basically) will be available as a slots reward in the final patch for Episode 02. Meaning you will be able to bring it into the real game for further devastation.
Changes and Bug Repair
Amber will no longer stay downed for long periods of time after getting struck by a Magic Missile spell or by tripping on a trap.
This was never intended, she should pop back up after tapping sprint multiple times. ( 5-8 )
That damned rock bug. A lot of bugs seem to occur for players with a lower frame rate. This bastard would occur when Amber has a rock equipped. It was funny at first, then I believe it tried to ruin my life. If you don't know what I'm talking about you can see it first hand here, thanks for all your helpful information rooting this out Gladiator. It should be gone now, I don't know. Fuck.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05b5TJ2FbVc&t=25s
Just gonna quickly bullet point the last few.
- Amber remarks less vocally when she gets multiple kills. Her sound files we're playing just a little too often.
- You could skip the game too quickly on the death screen. Players who spammed the button didn't get to see their kills add up before the screen faded in. That should be all better.
- Getting stunned by the Priest cultists stun spell wouldn't remove the aiming cursor for the Sailfish if the player was Aiming at the time of spell impact. That should be better now.
- There might be new bugs with the recent changes, if you experience any, please report them to me. You will have my gratitude!
News/Hiatus
STLD is a strange beast in itself. Years ago, when I first created Episode 01, and it was known only as "Survivor: the Living Dead " I was young, depressed, and didn't really care. I didn't know what I was doing, I didn't know why I was doing it, and I still don't know how or what drove me to finishing that game. But I did.
I finally released that game on a website my dad had helped me host called RadicalEndeavors(.)com. I was going to make video games and help him sell his comic book collection all in one place. It never really happened that way though. As I said, I was depressed and unfocused but on top of that I began having severe anxiety which eventually manifested as partial blindness in my right eye. I didn't know what I was doing, I was confused , afraid , I certainly didn't believe in myself or the game.
Not long after the website went up it began crashing from an overwhelming amount of traffic. STLD was a hit. People loved it. It was hard and buggy, but intense and rewarding. The Story was brief and grim, but left the player satisfied with Amber's vengeful body count, while also yearning for more. More content, more back story, more characters... But I didn't care.
This was not a happy time for me, I had decided before going live with the game that it would be free, and that it would always remain that way. I didn't know how the game would perform on other peoples PCs', what if they didn't like it? What if it was a waste? What if people thought I'd just completely ripped the story right off of Night of the Living Dead?
My family did not agree with this "free" aspect. And it became an awkward conversation point with anyone I knew. " Why would he do that? " I couldn't answer then. But I know now making it free gave me the confidence to actually finish it. I wasn't hurting anyone, whether it was good or not I wasn't ripping anybody off. It wasn't much of a reason but in the end that's what I ran with...
And now I'm here. People wanted more years ago, and I was too much of a mess to deliver. I didn't know how or where to take it from there, and I certainly didn't have the passion....
Years later, the passion and confidence came back. After becoming dangerously dependent on the drugs I took for my anxiety, ( and eye) I eventually kicked them. And during my long months of recovery I clung to art and exercise like they were oxygen.
..The place I stand these days is somewhere between poetry and irony.
For these last two years I've worked on re-building and redesigning every aspect of the game, while trying my best to stay true to it's core nature and listen to a fluctuating audience. This is easily the hardest I've ever worked on anything. Thousands upon thousands of hours of my life have been put into STLD, and I've honestly never felt more passionate about it than I do now. I've written a 10 episode story Arc with over 20 characters designed, some intended to be playable characters once developed.
Unfortunately this passion doesn't pay the bills. And even with Summer here, this games LIFETIME sales do not add up to enough to pay for 1 months rent of living in California. I don't know what you guys want, I don't know if I'm delivering on my promises or if times have changed and I just waited too long. Regardless I have to tackle real life bills and issues, because as of now STLD is not paying them. I hope it can stand on it's own as of now, and it's worth the 5 dollars to you.
I do love this game, and I love you, the followers and community. But things might be slow around here for a while. I still would like to do a kick-starter for more episodes down the road, but as of now I don't think the following would even be strong enough to support it.
I'm not giving up, I will be adding updates when I can, STLDs been a part of my life for a long time. I don't know where the future goes from here but I do hope we can embark on it together.
P.S.
Thanks for the endless nightmares of inspiration George. Where would I be without you?
Rest in Peace.