dotAGE News

Hello fellow Elders! This is a short update, as I am very, very, busy adding the last touches to the game.

After many months of balancing and bugfixing, I am happy to say that the game is now complete, all text is in, and the different runs balanced! With the help of playtesters, I am squashing the last bugs, so (and I know this feels unreal) expect an announcement soon. ;)

Everything Animated
In the last months, I finished adding all animations to all buildings (and couldn't stop myself from adding a few more buildings, by the way!). The game now has more than 200 different buildings!



All Descriptions!
I finally added all descriptions into the game, so all text is complete now! I hope you'll like the elder's comments.

Hello fellow Elders! It is time for a new update on the development of the game.

But first! These last months have been quite hectic as I became a father! I am so happy! :)

So, in-between one diaper and the next, what have I been up to regarding dotAGE? Let's find out!

An Apocalyptic Story
I finished adding the game's story (oh yeah, there is also some narrative in this game!). I'm happy to finally put an end to this story. I hope you will like it (if you can survive the Apocalypse!)



New Connection Mechanic
While working on the balance of the game, I noticed a few issues with the current village layouts, which led me to add a new mechanic that requires you to connect some buildings together using pavements. This creates very nice villages!

New Resources and buildings
I just can't seem to keep myself from adding some content (I swear they were needed for balance purposes!) ;P



New elders!
As the game's balance gets finished up, I started work on additional Elders you can play! I am not spoiling anything at the time, but know that each elder comes with different maps and with their own special traits, such as having unique buildings, increasing the chance for specific events, or rewarding specific behaviors. The goal is to make each elder's village pretty different. I can't wait to show them all!

Balancing & Bugfixing
Balancing and testing is going smoothly, and I am testing also the different difficulties. The game is in a really nice state now, and I can't wait to announce a release date as soon as I finish working on the balancing!

In the meantime, have a great month!
Michele

Hello fellow Elders! It is time for a new update on the development of the game.
We have some juicy additions!

Boons!
A new system has been added that rewards players for beaing Doom visions at each page in the game. The boons are granted by the Domains, allowing you to choose from a set of predefined bonuses and get a great help in fighting the next events. I'm not spoiling them, however!



The Apocalypse is Coming!
The Apocalypse at the end of the game has been defined and balanced. Expect it to be fierce and relentless! Will you be able to fight it off?



Balacing turns
With the balance being in a good state, I also made sure to tune the number of turns and events that will be encountered to provide a smoother experience.

New difficulty options!
A lot of players of all kinds are interested in playing dotAGE for different reasons.
To make sure that the game is at the right pace for everyone, I added new difficulty options.

Balancing and testing is going smoothly, but there still a few bugs scattered around. Stay tuned for more information.

See you soon,
Michele

Hello wise elders! I am here today with news about the development of the game.

Food Balancing
The focus these months has been on balancing, making sure the game is both fun and challenging at the different difficulty levels. This is quite a hard task, but I am spending a lot of time to make sure it works out.
A lot of thought, test, and math has been put on balancing food in particular. Winter will be quite a challenge, but I'm sure you can survive it.



Label System redone
The Label system has been completely revamped, and a Pip with a Label will now have a (small) impact on the gameplay. You will be able to get Pips that only eat Vegetables, or Coward Pips that increase the probability of Fear events!

Finishing touches
With the final stages of the game being tested, I am making sure that everything is in order and that all events work as they should. Hundreds of events are dying to meet you!
I must say that the new event system I talked about earlier is giving good results, I'm eager to know what you will think of it.

The same is true for the research tree, that is being finalized as well. Here is a sneak peek:



The festival of Turns!
Take a look at the banner at the top of the page of dotAGE, as the game is participating in the first ever #TurnBasedFest. There are a lot of discounts and other demos to try, so go check it out!

A last announcement
Balancing is going smoothly, but there are still some things I need to do before deciding on a release date, as the game is quite complex and, as you know, time is a tyrant. I want to make sure to provide a good experience, so I need some more time!
Unfortunately, this means I won't be releasing the game before the end of the year, but be sure that it is going to be soon enough.

In the meantime, I hope you have a great end of the year... who knows what the new year may bring!

Hello wise elders! Time passes so fast when you are old, but we are not out of energy yet!

I am here today with a little peek behind the curtains, showing what is changing in the current months as I get closer to the release.
As some of you know, I am working on the mid and end-game balancing, making sure everything clicks together. I've been working on a lot of things in the shadows, and I want to show you some of it!

Revised Research Tree
Due to the ongoing work in the beta, the Research Tree has been completely rebalanced, with many new buildings and jobs being added to make sure the flow keeps up during the game.
Want some idea about what is coming? New resources such as Mushrooms, Coal, or Ice. New buildings such as Cellars and new Farms.



The Prophecy Looms
After a lot of testing, I now have the full prophecy setup with all the correct pages and events, paving the way for the end game, and the fulfilling of the Prophecy... What will you find at the last page? Nobody knows!

New VIPs have reached the village
VIPs (Very Important Pips) can affect life in your village. You may have encountered one in the demo, but there are others hidden, waiting for you to find them! Speaking about hiding... one of them really loves to hide. Some VIPs will be a boon to the village, but others... it is yet to be seen.



Now that the start of the game flows correctly, I have also started adding more variation to the start of the game: you may find different fields, or abandoned buildings laying around as you start, and the prophecy changes at each playthrough.



Remember: balance is still undergoing and you will see that the final game will have a lot of tweaks. ;)

The beta is still going strong, but there is still a lot to do to make sure everything is where I want it to be. I know we are getting to the end of the year and you are eager to try the game, but please be patient for a little bit more! I will announce a release date when the game is ready.

In the meantime, be sure to tell your friends to Wishlist the game!