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Dark Envoy Demo Out Now!

[h2]Dark Envoy Demo is out now thanks to your feedback![/h2]

Over the past two weeks, hundreds of our followers and members of our great Discord community have participated in friends and family tests of the Dark Envoy Demo. Our goal wasn't to fix the bugs because that's what our QA is for, but to find out what your feedback is and what we can improve to bring you more fun during the upcoming Steam Next Fest.



Thank you for joining us on this journey. Here's a list of the latest updates we've implemented based on your valuable comments and observations. Thank you for playing Dark Envoy Demo! Oh, we almost forgot to mention that it is now available for free to all Steam players!

[h2]Patch Notes: Dark Envoy Demo, 3 February 2023[/h2]

General:
  • Added an option for the cursor to be locked to the game window. It can be toggled in settings → display.
  • Multiple small performance improvements, especially on lower tier hardware.
  • Target framerate can no longer be decreased below 30 fps.
  • Added VSync setting.
  • Fixed various problems with loading saves from previous versions.
  • Audio banks loading should take considerably less time.
  • Substantially improved level loading times.
Gameplay:
  • Neutral summoned units no longer reveal fog of war for the player.
  • Re-rolling item modifiers during item crafting now works properly.
  • The player can no longer move the camera during cutscenes.
  • Some unit statistic values have been renamed, and the values shown have been fixed.
  • Custom items with already applied enchantments on them can be found.
  • Cone skill targeting (e.g., Adept’s Frostbolts) had been centered and now show proper range.
  • Fixed a glitch in intro cinematic that caused the first few frames to be rendered incorrectly.
  • Fixed slow time audio effect when opening popups.
  • Fixed face animation in first cutscene.
  • Fixed an issue with enemies getting stuck on covers and other static units.
  • Improved interactions with objects or NPCs when multiple units are selected.
  • Improved line of sight calculations, for both better performance as well as more clarity for players
  • Fixed an issue with player being in combat, despite no enemy being in proximity.
  • AI:
    (1) Threat system had been improved – target switching should now be more obvious to the player.
    (2) Skill casting should now be more reasonable.
    (3) Rats should now behave more like actual rats.
  • Removed excessive party join/leave messages.
  • Fixed an issue where audio positioning wasn’t always properly set.
  • Added new difficulty setting: Story.
  • Hard statuses (Stun, Freeze, Knockdown etc.) now interrupt casting skills.
  • Removed TAA and Motion Blur display options as they tend to glitch too often.
  • NPC units no longer ignore personal space of other characters.
  • Added Edge Panning sensitivity settings.
  • Added Edge Panning and arrow keys movement to World Map.
  • Fixed an issue that caused blurry screen upon entering World Map.
  • Added item comparison when buying from a Merchant.
  • Fixed an issue with Frozen status that caused damage mitigation not to work correctly.
  • Fixed starting camera position on World Map.
  • Healing fountain logic had been improved, as the previous one could have been abused by the player.
  • Multiple balance changes throughout the game, including, but not limited to:
    (1) Items,
    (2) Enchantments,
    (3) Skills and their synergies,
    (4) Enemies stats and skills,
    (5) Resources dropped,
    (6) Crafting prices.
  • Various tweaks to both boss fights:
    BOB:
    (1) Increased range on some of his skills, as they were not feasible to use previously.
    (2) His charge skill had been fixed to have specific interactions with rats.
    (3) First phase of combat had been altered to the correct version.
    ANCIENT GUARDIAN
    (1) Minor tweaks to his balance.
  • Fixed an issue where Bandit Chief could have become invulnerable for an unlimited time.
  • Fixed the issues with missing item icons in inventory.
  • Fixed marking area of effect skill effects that are triggered by projectiles on hit.
  • Fixed an issue with some enchantments that caused units wearing items with them to stop moving.
UI:
  • Input had been blocked on loading screen.
  • Fixed an issue where some skill icons were not loaded.
  • Multiple mini-map fixes:
    (1) Dungeon mini-map is now updated properly when obstacles are removed.
    (2) Fixed mini-map marker rotation.
    (3) Added a setting for disabling mini-map rotation.
    (4) Added labels for map markers in large map view.
    (5) Added dungeon entrance icon.
  • Blocked save button if a save file name is empty.
  • Unit information tooltip will be shown over non-targetable units.
  • Disabled scaling of environment-related overhead messages.
  • Added confirmation popups if a player tries to exit without saving in Settings, Crafting, Skill Tree and Attributes screens.
  • Added icons in Player Menu, when a player has points to distribute remaining.
  • Added sorting inventory by most recent and markings for new looted items.
  • Added warnings when player wants to progress through Class Selection screen without selecting a class.
  • Skill telegraphing UI is now properly removed if a skill is interrupted.
  • Removed unit names over their health bars to decrease screen clutter.
  • Moved Weapon Skill from Skills to Inventory screen.
  • Rearranged multiple settings options as well as added missing descriptions.
  • World Map Location popup is now attached to the edge of the screen.
  • Fixed an issue with Weight modifiers not influencing all shown stats correctly.
  • Fixed an issue where some Attribute modifiers were not shown to the player.
  • Multiple improvements to the quality of background textures in different UI panels.
  • Fixed mouse input problems when trading with a Merchant or using the Journal screen
  • Fixed an issue with cursor rotation image not displaying
  • Character creation panel now explains that the specialization can only be selected at level 5
  • Changed the way Frozen status was shown on units
  • Clicking on the background around the map automatically closes it.
  • New looting popup – “take all” button instead of “close”.
  • Added an option to hide helmets in inventory.
  • Added “continue” button that automatically loads your last save.
  • Multiple changes to tutorial popups, for better clarity.
Visuals:
  • Charged Ground – range is now shown more visibly.
  • Healing Fountain – new 3D model and VFX.
  • Point of Interest icons now have an animated effect.
  • Columns in mines now fade out.
  • Multiple lighting tweaks in mines.
  • Multiple minor item (both weapons and armor) tweaks to the textures and icons.
  • Fixed issues with ocean rendering in City of Bones.
Co-op:
  • Improved automatic region selection.
  • Added connected region and latency info in multiplayer menu.
  • Added latency display per player in multiplayer menu.
  • Online session can be started once the player has at least 2 units in the party.
  • Improved unit synchronization when a client takes control of a newly assigned unit.
  • Fixed skill level synchronization for client.
  • Fixed multiple game breaking errors when loading a saved game.
  • Improved session connectivity and added specific error notifications for easier debugging.
  • Fixed an issue with stats being mismatched between the server and a client.
  • Fixed connectivity errors when a client leaves a co-op session and joins a new one.
  • Fixed client stuck on loading screen when leaving a co-op session.
  • Reduced delay when client is casting skills.


Share your 👉feedback
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Want to play Dark Envoy this week?

If you've been waiting for Dark Envoy, it's closer than you think. Take part in our demo test for friends and family and get a 1.5-hour taste of the game. To participate, fill out this form: https://forms.gle/WR73BFaWdS3KnjBm7.

We’ll contact you in a separate email with further instructions. More info on our Discord.



Join our community: Discord
Follow us on: Twitter | Facebook | TikTok

7 aspects we improved to continue shattering RPG tropes

Tower of Time was a successful experiment for our team, so we want to continue challenging RPG tropes in search of a new, modern identity for the genre.

We gathered a lot of feedback from ToT players and we are going forward with the knowledge that you gave us. Naturally, our next game is based on this feedback showing the impact of our community. We feel that Dark Envoy will be as much yours, as ours.

We want to keep pushing the boundaries of the classic RPG experience, but without abandoning what we love in it. Here are 7 examples of what we are working on to develop memorable and unique RPGs




    [h3]
  1. Co-op Campaign Experience[/h3]
    The main component of Dark Envoy is a story campaign and we wanted to make it possible to complete it alone or in online co-op mode with another player. Games are so much better when you grab a friend to travel the world, seeking out whatever dungeons, challenges, and riches may come your way. Enjoy the story, search for ancient relics and forgotten places together.

    [h3]
  2. Non-Linear RPG Narrative[/h3]
    In RPG your choices should be the backbone of the entire game. So in Dark Envoy, they reshape the conflict that has gripped the world of Jäan. Total war exploded as humans challenge the old balance and traditions of magic with their mana-based technology. As two sibling relic hunters, your actions may change the entire course of this world-splitting conflict.



    [h3]
  3. Replayability Value[/h3]
    In addition to the main and side-quests, there are optional shape-shifting dungeons for players to explore. These are challenging areas where the layouts and enemy patrol routes shift each time you enter. These dungeons yield powerful rewards and players will have to think on their feet if they want to attain what these unique spaces offer.

    [h3]
  4. Dynamic Gameplay Flow[/h3]
    Real-time combat with the ability to slow time or pause as you make important tactical choices where every moment can make the difference between triumph or failure. With a rich collection of companions — from assassins to engineers — and robust RPG systems, players will mold the crew and its two lead characters into something that fits their preferred playstyle.



    [h3]
  5. High-Quality Visuals and Effects[/h3]
    Motion-captured animation, beautiful, scenic locations, and gorgeous combat effects all in 4k

    [h3]
  6. Modernization of Classic RPG Tropes[/h3]
    Dark Envoy takes inspiration from a host of familiar sources but aims to turn RPG conventions on their heads. You can expect well-known structures that we all love, but refined and more dynamic. We want the players to experiment and adapt to various situations: mix skill trees, boost individual abilities, and select classes and specializations that compliment each other.



    [h3]
  7. Exploration of an Intriguing World [/h3]
    Humans, mysterious beings with a far more mysterious past, are new to this world but have risen under the banner of the self-proclaimed emperor to establish a place they can finally call home.
    Orcs and Elves have been pushed off their lands and must fight to protect the natural order of magic.
    Explore this world in your Skyship, hunting for ancient treasures through over 15 different biomes with various gameplay mechanics. A large pool of quests and events are waiting for you to discover them.



Wishlist on Steam HERE and be sure to stay in tune. We’ve got more to show in the very near future.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/945770/Dark_Envoy/

Dark Envoy extended gameplay



If you're interested in our next project - check out Dark Envoy.


https://store.steampowered.com/app/945770/Dark_Envoy/


Here is some extended gameplay from current version - please note that it is still work in progress but should give you a rough idea what we aim to create -- a sleek, modern and smart RPG with heavy combat focus and with no absolutely no RNG, where your tactical awareness and party building skills are the most important.

Also you can get an intro to the world setting, as we think it's quite unique and should be interesting - Humans being a militaristic and seemingly evil faction... but it would be for you to decide as you progress with your adventures.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]


We plan to make demo/beta build available soon, so if you're interested, we invite you to our community discord.


https://discord.gg/c8Wd46s



Cheers,
Event Horizon team

Tower of Time Final Edition

We have done some final polishing work on Tower of Time and we consider it 'Final Edition' now.

Here is the content of the last patch:
  • Fixed achievements on Linux -- now working properly
  • Fixed few very small bugs -- e.g. effect of the fountains not visible immediately
  • Rebalancing of the difficulty -- enemy units, items, skills, battle parameters as number of enemies, spawn frequency, frequency of skills used, etc..

    As a result there shouldn’t be any spikes in difficulty levels when moving between Tower levels. Still – when you outgrow current difficulty level (by building a real kick-ass party) – we highly recommend increasing difficulty during the game. You can do it anytime outside combat.

  • Visual upgrade of some skills -- one example below:



PREVIOUS VFX


IMPROVED VFX

Give it a try if you like fast paced RPGs with heavy focus on party customization and tactical real-time combat with pause or slow time.

Join us on Discord - if you want to chat with us or would be interested in closed beta of our next project (once we are ready with it)

https://discord.gg/FBWCCTb

https://www.facebook.com/eventhorizondev/
https://twitter.com/EventHorizonDev
https://darkenvoy.com/


----------- ### -----------

If you like what we have created, our next game -- Dark Envoy -- should also be fun. It is much bigger in scope and quality of everything is much higher.

Below is the preview of one of our locations - your starting city:
Pillars of Tyr-Mora, aka City of Bones




https://store.steampowered.com/app/945770/Dark_Envoy/


Have a great day.

Cheers,
Event Horizon