Protoball News

If you ask the Discord old-school players they'll tell you that the devs listen to the players! We've squashed a few bugs, made some changes, and implemented a couple features.

We also added more skins for the Sports Bra and the PB Jersey! Check them out in the store. If you love Protoball the best way to support the devs and servers is to get styled out in-game! Much love and gratitude to everyone that has helped us out so far. Oh, and thanks for helping us hit Top 10 on Steam's trending list, you are awesome!

• Fixed Join In Progress - Click Join, then CHOOSE A TEAM, and you'll spawn in properly!
  
• Over-time is back - No more Draws, first to score in OT wins. You might end up in a triple-OT...
  
• Removed Bots - many new players mistook the bot's movement/logic as the game being "janky" so we took them out until we can make them more friendly. They were either brutal or terrible, so we'll work on the bots and bring them back later.
  
• Removed Instant Replay - Instant Replay was amazing and awesome but it was very experimental and it didn't make for a smooth game flow experience, it confused some people when it wasn't working properly and we're also removing it until we can get it perfect. Sorry for all you folks making trick videos! It'll be back soonTM we promise!
  
• Dunk Mode - Removed the ability to shoot the ball in Dunk Mode. Hit F to go into dunk mode and start flipping out. Chain jumps and hitting CTRL on the ground to stay flippin' and dash into the goal for a slam dunk! More moves and animations and flips (and flip kicks?) are coming your way!
  
• Grinding Adjustment - This one is a big deal to us as Grinding basically is the icing on top of all the great things Protoball is. Grinding is the way. Now it looks super ridiculously buttery smooth! Use Grinds to rotate faster and look cool as hell.
  
• In-Game Music Player - Our lead dev also makes music and those jams that some of you are raving about were made by him! That horn is sick I know. You can hit P in game to bring up the music player, choose a song or playlist and hit play, then press P again to hide the player and start ballin'
  
• DISABLE CHAT - There are a lot of types of human beings in the world and if you don't want to hear what someone has to say just hold CTRL and press ENTER to disable chat! Silence the trolls.
  
• Join the discord! You'll find awesome people, cool plays/videos, and fun times no doubt about it.
  

The Studio Z 3D developers are 5 gamers that are achieving our dream and passion of making an amazing video game. This game has adapted and evolved over time with the help of our amazing player base and their feedback.

Studio Z is truly an indie studio, we aren't backed by major publishers or investors, we're backed by each other and our passion for games. This is why you, the player, are so important to us. Having this direct line with our fans and playerbase is an invaluable asset and we're grateful that you share your game time with us.

You are all the reason Protoball is so awesome. Thank you.

Changed bots around so theymove better, fixed some menu item's designs, and ensured bots don't join us in Dodgeball!

The biggest update since Protoball's conception! We’re a small indie studio 5 gamers that decided to make a game and achieve the dream. Today is a benchmark on journey of ours : we have finally released a game! Protoball's Early Access is now Released!
If you want to talk to the devs please join the discord.gg/protoball! We're always updating the game and taking the player's feedback and criticisms to heart. We appreciate your help and hope you enjoy Protoball as much as we enjoyed making it!

Stats/Leaderboard reset – With the launch of Early Access, we’ve reset all statistics – let the Preseason Games begin!

Instant replay – After each point you can watch the score as it happened, as well as move the camera around for your own clips. Go into Free Cam by tapping the right mouse button and move with WASD keys. Hold Middle Mouse to make the replay a slow-mo (The replay won't be longer, you may cut part of the replay off if you slow-mo too long)

In-game purchasing system is now live! – We’ve added dozens of emotes, ball skins, character outfits and much more! These purchases directly support the devs & server costs!

Challenges – You don’t have to spend money in Protoball. Daily and weekly challenges are now live, earn points that will be redeemable for in game loot as well.

Random loot drops – You don’t need to pay for a key to open a loot box, they are 100% random and cost nothing.

TheProLeagues.com built in tournament system integration – The automatic tournament system is here! Create & manage your team from either inside Protoball or from TheProleagues.com. Join tournaments with your team all from within the game.
New game modes – We’ve added many game modes and will be releasing more as we move out of Early Access to Protoball version 1.0 launch. Keep your game updated and checking back so you don’t miss the limited access of game modes!

Dodgeball mode changes – we’re constantly enhancing Dodgeball to play better; the ball speed has been decreased and switched to a round based style of play.

Shield blast radius increase – We’ve made the shield blast radius even larger! Use this to your advantage for making big saves, clearing the ball or players from goal or even use it to help retrieve the ball before the opponents can.

UI – We’re constantly changing the HUD and Menu visual aesthetics.

Friend party system – use the tab button in the main menu to invites to your party so they can follow you into a server.

New Servers – EU and Brasil! Tokyo coming soon!

Upcoming
New trailers – we’re in the process of creating new trailers

Twitch Integration – coupon codes for streamers to give out and track progress via the TheProLeagues.com

Multiple language support – we are currently working on supporting many languages, the foundation is in place and should be coming soon.
More cosmetics

Tournaments
Bug fixes with spectator and Join in progress

Visual effects improvements

More characters

Cryptocurrency integration?

STAY TUNED AND JOIN THE DISCORD! Discord.gg/protoball

We truly believe we have the best player base and discord community out there! Since the last patch we've added quite a lot, and most of it was based on YOUR feedback! If you're not in the discord yet then hurry up and get in the Protoball Discord!

Dodgeball Mode:

• Walls now close in - at the 4 minute mark the rear walls come in closer (more changes to come).
  
• Middle barrier comes down - at the 3 minute mark the middle barrier comes down!
  
• Jumps limited to 1 in Dodgeball.
  
• Bots have been kicked out of Dodgeball - you must have a human opponent to play dodgeball.
  
• Shot speed increased by Fibonacci's 1.618 - the Golden Ratio! Because Nature is always right.
  

Sport mode:

• Street hoops map (Early Development/Unfinished) got a little makeover.
  
• Start of a new trick shot system! EXPERIMENTAL!
  Curves shots have been added. This might be a little complicated...
  First - when you have the ball in possession you must hold RMB to initiate a curve shot.
  Use WASD to choose the curve direction, then release your shot while still holding down RMB. Holding A+D will give the ball backspin, causing it to rise in the air.
  This works with charge shots(Click and hold) and Quick Shots (single click)
  
• Ball brightness has been increased slightly to help address some players having issues finding the ball quicker. Also, remember to hit the "R" key if you've lost sight of the ball.

Tutorial Map:

• Color changes.
  
• Blocked out some areas to limit clipping.
  
• Added some more notifications to clarify how to make it through the course.
  
• Added highlight to the balls in the tutorial arena.
  
• Gap in the walls fixed.
  

Bug fixes:

• Fixed an issue where Dodgeballs were getting stuck in player's hands.
  
• Fixed an issue where 'look at ball' and moving the mouse quickly would cause player's camera to rotate.
  
• Fixed an issue where players could switch teams after readying up which caused issues during spawning.
  
• Fixed an event where where players could charge a shot but when the ball was stolen it would leave player with a charged shot and holding ball animation.
  
• Fixed an issue with bots breaking out of the arena (they may be gaining self-awareness...)
  
• Fixed an issue where bots would stay near the arena walls and hug the edges.
  
• Fixed an issue where players had to wait for bots to score in order to spawn, now joining in progress will spawn a player right away instead of waiting.
  
• Enhanced bot behaviors. Good luck!
  
• Fixed a typo in spectator HUD.
  
• Added bots to the player lineup (incoming feature).
  

We want to thank our community again, you're seriously the best!

It has been a hectic and busy dev cycle, and we're excited to present to you our latest update in preparation for Early Access!

Patch Notes :

• DODGEBALL - We've added an early prototype of our Dodgeball Game Mode! The rules are very similar to the Dodgeball we played in school, though there are a couple differences. There are no bots in Dodgeball yet, so you must face off against other humans.
  
• BOTS - Speaking of humans... we've added bots! We believe bots will make casual more fun by turning a 1v1 into a 2v2. Bots will leave the server in place of a human. The bots are configured for 2v2 game play.
  
• STREET HOOPS - We've added a smaller map! This is VERY early in development, and instead of keeping it secret until release... we're letting you play it now! The map is a WIP (Work in Progress) and you can help us in the development process by including feed back in the discord.gg/protoball. The map is roughly half the size of the Olympic sized Callisto. Enjoy!
  
• Loot Drops - We're testing our back-end system for giving out loot-drops. There aren't any great items being dropped just yet, but the system seems to be working well. Please help us test it!
  
• New Outfits - We've added new outfits and skins for old outfits. The Steam marketplace and Protocoins are implemented, and we're now testing. The purchasing system is still in sandbox mode, so you're not spending real money just yet.
  
• Gameplay Adjustments - We've changed the "Catch" radius for your character, it should now be easier to catch the ball.
  
• Bug Fixes - A few minor bug fixes have been implemented. If you find anything that you think is a bug please join the discord and let us know!
  

We'll be hosting a tournament with our built-in system this month. Stay tuned for more information.

Thanks for everything, friends!

See you in the arena...