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Urban Strife News

Urban Strife - October 2020 Dev Update

After the big announcement of our partnership with MicroProse and all the buzz in the media, yesterday we saw Urban Strife enter Steam Top Wishlists! And we want to extend you all a big THANK YOU! But there is still a lot more work to be done, so distractions aside, here's what we have been busy with in the last two months since the August update:

[h3]Character Customization[/h3]
We are expanding the choices for the player avatar by adding new skins for the Asian and African races. And yes, there will be more haircuts too. A female hero is planned, also.



As for player’s apparel, we decided to add a couple of sets of tight clothing, but without going overboard. Instead you will be able to add more diversity where it counts, using various body armor pieces for that crazy post-apoc look and with the added bonus of personal protection.




[h3]Shelter (Base Upgrades)[/h3]
There are about 30 base upgrades planned and currently under development. Each of them satisfies one or more shelter needs:
  • Defence
  • Electric Power
  • Food
  • Health / Hygiene
  • Morale Boosting
  • Vehicle & Vehicle Upgrades
  • Equipment & Equipment Upgrades




[h3]New Campaign Maps[/h3]
Three new maps are in advanced stages of production (a new gas station, a hardware store & a motel map). Another three maps are in incipient stages. These are locations where story critical events will take place and where you will be able to influence the faction war directly, either by going against or helping the current owner.


A new gas station map


A hardware store map


A motel map

[h3]RPG - Story[/h3]
The script for the first major faction conflict is nearly done, pending gameplay testing. It follows the player while he/she is engaging in negotiations with Army and Biker factions to attack a Cultist camp in the Urban suburbs. Led by a madman, the cultists went rogue, robbing the passers-by and killing those who do not pay up.
Now a friend of the Shelter is in on their hitlist and you cannot sit on the side-lines anymore. You can confront them alone or befriend the bikers or the army patrol in the nearby sectors. With a bit of legwork, you might get under their skin. And being their buddy comes with several advantages, specific to each faction.

[h3]RPG – Dialogue system[/h3]
Some of the NPCs that can be recruited in the player’s party already belong to a faction, as part of their biography. This means that engaging in dialogue with them as a speaker gives an affinity bonus if the target is of the same faction. We have modified the dialogue system to allow any member of the player’s party to be the speaker and have his/her personal bio and skills influence the outcome. Even if the dialogue has been initiated by another NPC, if a party member has a faction affinity and is in proximity, he/she can intervene in the dialogue flow and take over.



[h3]Body Armour[/h3]
We have introduced body armour, an element very much needed to balance the combat, especially when high powered guns come into play. The armour comes with specific resistances to bullet, blunt and slash damage and varies in quality, with options such as additional throw-away plates that you can loot and/or manufacture.



[h3]Cripple Effects, Pain & Bleeding[/h3]
We are separating global health from body parts health, so that a damaged limb will cripple a person while not severely affecting their overall health (the logic being that people have survived losing a limb, but losing the torso is pretty much game over).

Another notable change is that all damages are getting linked to an internal pain meter. This way, a freshly wounded character will have some penalties in combat. Gone are the days when the last enemy will take you down with his very last HP left.

Finally, bleeding & heals are receiving an update. You will need to bandage each source of bleeding and doing this will start the process to recover health over time. How fast or how slow you regain full health depends both on the severity of the wounds, your perks but also on how advanced the medical treatment is. For example, a sterile bandage is the slowest boost to health regen, while receiving medical aid from a qualified nurse/medic equipped with a medkit is one of the fastest way to get on your feet.

UNTIL NEXT TIME!

PS: Thank you for the continued support and if you have made it this far down the text, why not add Urban Strife to your wishlist? And get more people to do it, it really helps!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/710230/

Urban Strife looks to channel the spirit of Jagged Alliance 2, with zombies

There's a new tactical RPG slated for release next year. Urban Strife is what happens if you throw zombies at something like the iconic turn-based strategy game Jagged Alliance 2. It's the debut title of White Pond Games and is being published by MicroProse, the legendary strategy and simulation publisher that's in the middle of a comeback.


Urban Strife has strong survival game themes and throws you into backwater America, where you're trying to build up a haven amidst a world that was destroyed by some kind of zombie apocalypse. Apparently it's due to happen all over again, so you need to build up your base and your community in order to survive. To do this you've got to venture out, treat with gangs and rival factions, and collect what resources you can.


While the game is described as an "old school" tactical RPG, it is making some concessions to modern design that players might find interesting. Dealing with 'horde' type enemies in turn-based strategy games can be especially laborious, and the devs have mentioned they've created a special 'Zombie AI' to allow simultaneous movement and independent actions. Similar to how The Lost work in XCOM 2: War of the Chosen.


Read the rest of the story...

Urban Strife looks to channel the spirit of Jagged Alliance 2, with zombies

There's a new tactical RPG slated for release next year. Urban Strife is what happens if you throw zombies at something like the iconic turn-based strategy game Jagged Alliance 2. It's the debut title of White Pond Games and is being published by MicroProse, the legendary strategy and simulation publisher that's in the middle of a comeback.


Urban Strife has strong survival game themes and throws you into backwater America, where you're trying to build up a haven amidst a world that was destroyed by some kind of zombie apocalypse. Apparently it's due to happen all over again, so you need to build up your base and your community in order to survive. To do this you've got to venture out, treat with gangs and rival factions, and collect what resources you can.


While the game is described as an "old school" tactical RPG, it is making some concessions to modern design that players might find interesting. Dealing with 'horde' type enemies in turn-based strategy games can be especially laborious, and the devs have mentioned they've created a special 'Zombie AI' to allow simultaneous movement and independent actions. Similar to how The Lost work in XCOM 2: War of the Chosen.


Read the rest of the story...

Urban Strife has joined the MicroProse family!




We have been biting our lips for a month or so but today we can finally reveal the details about the publishing deal we have signed: Urban Strife is now part of the MicroProse family!

This is a huge step for us, putting development on a solid path and we wanted to announcement to be done properly. Including a preview article by PC Gamer here (and a new trailer as bonus inside):

https://www.pcgamer.com/uk/urban-strife-sounds-like-jagged-alliance-2-but-its-infested-with-zombies

Urban Strife - August 2020 Dev Update

First the BIG NEWS some of you might be aware of, some not. Urban Strife now has a PUBLISHER! Yep, we’re in high gear now. More on this after the big reveal party (soon). Hang around, we got cake. This of course takes the development plans on a whole new orbit and comes with a brand new road map, to be announced soon. But before we get settled in the new home and we can reveal all the surprises, we decided it would be nice to give a round-up of what has been going on with the game development since Alpha. Hopefully we can make this development update a monthly post, fingers crossed. So here we go:

  • You can now initiate trade using any RPC from your party. Previously only the player’s avatar was able to initiate these, so he complained to NPC union because all that running was exhausting and he was the only one doing it. So now everyone works for a living in Urban.

  • Now any RPC in your party that’s in close proximity can be switched to and can take part in looting, crafting or trade. Previously this was a single NPC affair, so a lot of “let me take this hammer and I will later pass it to you” was annoyingly getting in the way of enjoying the game. Not to mention how much easier is now to trade your junk emptying everyone’s pockets, instead of using a mule to hold everything.


  • Dialogue wise, any RPC from your party can now be the active speaker, opening the the possibility that each of them uses specific skill checks in conversations. They can also have dynamic banters with NPCs or among themselves, for that classic vibe.
  • The RPG scripting and dialogues for the first big excursion out of the Shelter (the one that takes you out in the surrounding neighborhood and opens up the main campaign) is almost done, with multiple factions trying to lure you into accepting their help versus a demented cult leader. Nothing special, just a normal day in Urban.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

  • We switched from baked exterior lights to a fully dynamic light source (aka a sun). Rejoice now, you got moving shadows, beside day/night succession. And a lot of other nice things dynamic lights make possible but too technical to mention here.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

  • The level design team has expanded and is cranking up the production of both critical zones and scenic encounter/transit areas.




  • Lots of other technical updates and fixes, such as a much requested known enemy marker (check out the chevrons in the image below).


Thank you for the continued support and if you have made it this far down the text, why not add Urban Strife to your wishlist? And get more people to do it, it really helps!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/710230/