DYSMANTLE News

The Central City is now open for business! You will be dodging turrets, picniccing at Pioneer's Park, visiting the Town Hall, and figuring out how to power up a train. And ultimately acquiring a Sledgehammer. Goodbye walls!

The city is located to the west of Crown Station, and there are three ways of entry to the new area: two from the north, and one from the south. If one of them proves more difficult than the rest, try another way in!





[h2]New Early Access Roadmap[/h2]

We've revised our Early Access Roadmap to reflect the updates we've done so far, and the updates that are planned before the full launch. Minor changes may happen, but that's the big picture. You'll find a nicer scrollable version of the chart inside the game in the Change Log screen. You may also notice that the Summer 2021 full launch has turned into ominous 2021/H2, but we're still hoping to launch closer to July than to December. We've also got some Post-Launch stuff planned, but waay too early to talk about that yet.



[h2]Welcome to the Mighty Mall![/h2]

I'm not sure if it's mandatory to have a mall in a post-apocalyptic ex-human piece of fiction, but we didn't want to take any chances and get the z-police after us. So here you go.



It's not the biggest of the malls, but the customers love it.



Deeper in the city there's also a pub where you can spend some quality time with the fellow patrons. (This is a mockup screenshot though. You are not allowed to stand on tables like that. They'd throw you out if you did.)



[h2]XP Level Cap Hike[/h2]

You can now level up to level 34. That's three levels more than in the previous build. We realised we need to be a bit less prudent with the levels in order to reach the level cap targets we've got planned for the launch version. Instead of our previous plans, we'll probably make it so that you can eventually get all the skills in the skill pool if you level up enough.

So the final cap will be the total amount of skills we'll have. If you want to start a new game and try pick things in a different order, that's fine, but you can also play a looong game where you try and get all the skills at once. This will mean that those XP bonus skills are now worth picking as they don't end up taking one of the finite skill slots.

[h2]New Icon[/h2]

There's a new icon to replace that old red crowbar on a white background which was always meant to be merely a placeholder. You'll be seeing the larger version of that whole box shot in the next update perhaps!



[h2]Total Progress[/h2]

The Collection Total Progress tab now shows your progress towards full completion of the game. Note that the numbers only reflect the current build, so the percentages may change as we add new content. But you can get a feel how much of the Early Access content you've completed at the moment. You can't 100% everything yet.

[h2]New Audio System[/h2]

As those of you playing the beta versions have noticed, we're working on new audio system to replace the old DirectSound based implementation. We're using our XAudio2 sound system that we developed for Xbox One as a base, and adding some new features. We were meaning to include it in this patch, but we not able to fix all the glitches we encountered yet, so we reverted back to the old sound system for now. Hopefully you'll meet the new system in the next update!



[h3]ADDED[/h3]
- Access to 'Central'.
- Level Cap is now 34. Up by THREE levels!
- Sledgehammer! (Unlockable through area progression.)
- Fancier Early Access Roadmap.
- Showing menu text when you can't save game.
- Some Quests have More Info button in Quest menu.
- Autosaving game when storing materials, accessing Myth Tablets, wells, etc if no enemies are near.
- Collection total progress bars.
- New Builder's Kit Quest for the sawmill (located near the original Sawmill).

[h3]CHANGED[/h3]
- You can't save when notifications that would result in save state changes are showing.
- Lighting performance optimizations.
- Rebalanced all wall tile HP and DMG thresholds.
- Changes to multiple other HP and DMG thresholds of objects.
- Chaser spotting animation is now roughly 20% faster.
- Optimized more compact stage format saves almost 0.5GB of space!
- Performance optimizations.
- Vultures drop eggs if somehow killed.
- Raised Proximity Mine Damage by roughly 20%.
- New UI interaction sounds.
- Increased the amount of material actor stacks that can reside in 10 meter radius from 30 to 150.

[h3]FIXED[/h3]
- Fixed world map point of interest clicking outside map borders.
- Fixed world map are information not showing before going to Collection screen.
- Showing Quest reward recipes properly.
- Serpent's Crossing doesn't show 1 extra monster in link tower radar.
- Added additional checks to older quests requiring opening of certain doors for the possibility of the doorway being destroyed.
- Object shadow fixes.
- Island map rendering fixes (showing decals).
- Not stealing mouse cursor multitasking out of the game window with camera rotate button held down.
- Sound panning for sounds playing behind the camera.
- Usual open world fixes regarding floating objects, weird decals, etc.



If everything goes according to the master plan, the Polaris Express will leave from Platform B in three weeks. You know I'm talking about the next update, right?

The level design is progressing nicely, and as you can see in the Roadmap (above), we're planning on launching TWO new areas in the next update. So it will be a big one. Full steam ahead! Choo choo!



🔚

Go see it here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1277500/Skeletal_Avenger/

Continue your expedition deeper into the heart of the jungle. Uncover some of the island's ancient past. Acquire the Hunting Rifle. Chase the Gas Masks. Welcome to Serpent's Crossing! 🐍

So you'll be retracing the steps of Judith Abigail Susan James as she travelled through the jungle decades ago. Maybe you'll find out what happened to her? Did she ever find those eluding Gas Masks? You need to be careful though: the jungle can be a merciless place.

Your journey starts where the previous update ended, near that ring of stone tablets.





[h2]Hunting Rifle[/h2]

You may remember this weapon from the trailer. Yup, the Hunting Rifle is finally here. (Sorry deer, we postponed it as long as we could.)

We've been going back and forth with the control scheme for firearms like this. This isn't a twin-stick shooter like some of our previous games, so we can't use the same kind of systems. Most of the action is melee-based. We tried a few options, but in the end it didn't seem to make sense to have a completely different control scheme for the rifle, so we decided to use the same controls you're (probably) already familiar after using any of the throwing weapons. Quick press just picks up the gun and fires at the locked target, and long press starts free/manual aiming. Releasing the long press fires the rifle, and moving or dodging will cancel the shot.



We've also got a few other firearms like this planned, but more on those later.

[h2]Gas Masks and Toxic Gasses[/h2]

You may also notice there are more toxic gasses blocking your way elsewhere on the island. And some more may be coming in the later updates to areas you may have already explored. So better gear up! They say masks are important, you know.

[h2]Optimizations and Visual Glitch Fixes[/h2]

This new update should fix those half-baked decals you may have been seeing. You should also not see half-loaded map chunks when you rest at the campfire. You may still see occasional misplaced objects and decals on the island though. You can report those in the newly added Visual Glitch category and we'll fix them for the new versions.

The game should also run smoother with less lagging while streaming the open world content -- especially when you've already destroyed a lot of the environment. We'll continue making these optimizations towards the release.





[h3]ADDED[/h3]
- Access to 'Serpent's Crossing'.
- Level Cap is now 31.
- New craftable: Hunting Rifle (level 31).
- New monster type.
- Audio logs can be relistened in Collection.
- New Skill: Doctor (placeholder skill icon).

[h3]CHANGED[/h3]
- Structures you've built yourself reward less XP when destroyed.
- Killed monsters reward more experience.
- Rebalanced monster loot to be more rewarding.
- Object loot balancing with the aim of reducing some bottlenecks regarding rare materials.
- Slowed down mutated hurler attack by 25%.
- Acid pools have higher damage now making standing in them a bad option.
- Tutorial tweaks.
- Unified loading screen background art character to look more like the in-game model.
- Collection UI tweaks.
- Extensive changes to object damage masks to incorporate the rifle.
- Upgrade Gear screen shows the stats at the maximum upgrade level.

[h3]FIXED[/h3]
- Smoother font outlines.
- Cold/hot resistance gear quests don't keep triggering protagonist remarks if quests are completed.
- Pause menu memory usage optimizations.
- Allowing installing other Link Tower transmitters even when max ascension level is reached.
- Performance optimizations.
- Upgrade gear screen material flow animation.



We're working hard on the next area, which will be the central "city" location. Still not 100% sure if it'll be the very next update or the one after that, but you can expect a new update in 2-3 weeks as usual. You'll be likely unlocking the recipe for the Sledgehammer in that update.

I'd say the island is about 62% complete now. This new area and the next one are a bit more complex, and have taken a bit longer to finish than expected, but luckily a few of the remaining areas contain a bit more more wilderness / desert, so they should be slightly faster to develop.

All-in-all we're a bit behind on the schedule, but really have no other option than to just keep pushing through as fast as we reasonably can. Still working remotely, which is definitely taking its toll, but fortunately we're seeing the light at the end of this COVID-19 tunnel as more and more ppl are getting vaccinated here in Finland. None of us yet though. Hoping to return to the office maybe within four months.

Anyway, I hope you like the update!

🐍

The new (sort of intermediary) update is finally here! This one opens up a small new playable area connected to Sunburn Desert, which serves as an entryway to the next area after this one. This one is a bit harder to describe without spoiling too much, but you'll be introduced with the Crown Archaeological Expedition lady (and her audio logs), and start to dig deeper to the island's ancient past.





[h2]Myth Tablets[/h2]

You may remember these previously from the tombs. Well, they have now been relocated above ground. Ultimately we decided we want to have hints about the island's ancient past spread wider and have you encounter them earlier in the game. If you'd start a new game now, you'd be bound to discover one when you follow the main quest line.

If you have already cartographed the spot where a Myth Tablet is located, it's automatically revealed as Point of Interest in your map. You can find the "first" one near one of the four Link Relays you may have activated.

[h2]Tomb Rewind[/h2]

The tombs now have their own physical Rewind button (in the spot where the Myth Tablets previously were). It can be used to reset the tomb. Note that it may still be more convenient to simply use the Restart Tomb button in the System menu. (Also if you're really really stuck that's your only option. That or the tasty Amber Pills.)

[h2]Item Upgrade Levels[/h2]

Item upgrade levels are now shown in the Invent screen, and more items have them in general (mostly trinkets). Some of the items were rebalanced to take this into account, so you may encounter some changed stats. We'll continue tweaking this later as well.

[h2]New Game Options[/h2]

When you're starting a new game, you'll be now presented with some initial options. But if you've already started your journey, don't worry, all of these are configurable in the Options menu later as well. Yes, these options also include whether to show emojis or not.





[h3]ADDED[/h3]
- Access to Fool's Canyon.
- Level Cap is now 30.
- New craftable "Bandolier" (Level 30).
- Myth Tablets are now located all over the island. (If you've fully discovered the area, they should automatically show up as map icons.)
- Tombs have Reset button. (Note that there's also Reset Tomb option in the menu.)
- Initial Game Settings when starting a new game (same settings available in Options screen).
- Upgrade levels are now shown in Invent screen.
- Showing upgrade change effects as unified 'from -> to' text.
- Showing Keys in Collection.

[h3]CHANGED[/h3]
- "Stop Monster Respawning" automatically completes if you have a transmitter installed in Capernaum.
- Wolves are more aggressive and spot the player easier.
- Grenades and throwable bombs are now thrown a bit further with quick tap action.
- Most of the trinkets now have three upgrade levels and their effects have been adjusted accordingly. Generally they start out weaker, but in the end surpass the old effects they used to have.

[h3]FIXED[/h3]
- Music volume updated properly in audio options.
- Enemy AI improvements for cases with supporting actors and ground height differences.
- Tweaks to link tower activation animation.
- Auto-collect checkbox does not have a focus anymore when material info screen is opened with a gamepad.
- Fixed issues with fuel duration calculations in sawmill/smelter.
- Selecting Save & Exit while sitting by campfire does not reset hit points to 20 anymore.
- Fixes and tweaks to how falling works.
- Enemies cannot start to fight with each other mistakenly anymore.
- Exploding slime does not cause damage to thrower's friends anymore.
- Improved Mutated Hurler's throwing direction prediction.
- Fixed a bug where the player could run backwards after pressing a melee attack button.





Next we'll have a very short Easter break, and continue full steam ahead with the next update next week. In the upcoming patch, you'll be continuing your expedition deeper into the jungle east of the Fool's Canyon as shown on the map above.

The next update is expected to be out in two weeks if everything goes well. But, again, do note that these are just estimates: we don't want to push out anything (too) broken etc.

Happy Easter!

🗿

Friday -- what a nice day to drop an update right before everyone working on the game is leaving the (virtual) office!

Hold on to your Cowboy Hats and Ice Brinks, and get ready to embark on the Sunburn Desert! What to expect on your sunny holiday?

☑️ Vultures
☑️ Lots of sand
☑️ Cacti

Among other things, you'll be tracking a Lost Convoy, visiting Mandrake's Diamond Mine, and squatting the Shady Mansion. That's all I can say to avoid further spoilers.

So we're making steady development progress. Over half of the island is now playable, but there's still a lot of work to be done.





[h2]Builder's Kit Improvements[/h2]

We've fixed lots of small things regarding the Builder's Kit. All the things you've built will now show up on your map. We've also added a new Teardown Efficiency invention which enables you to get all the materials back from the stuff you've built.

No new buildables have been added in this patch though, but more stuff coming soon(ish)! We'll want to fix all the issues regarding this before you can unleash your inner builder. You'll also need some context before you can/want build the turrets for example.

[h2]Amber Pills[/h2]

Consider this. You've ran deep into the desert without proper outfits. You've ate all your food items on the way just to stay alive in the sweltering heat, and you've finally managed to reach a distant but safe campfire. Victory? Not really, because you can't really get back out from the desert anymore if you've already eaten all your food items.

Amber Pills to the rescue! These tasty treats now have an additional long press use for swallowing a handful of pills instead of just one. Use this and you will awake near the first campfire at your home shelter. So even after series of bad decisions you can now always return home. (Just don't tell that to your skeleton.)



[h2]The Old Train[/h2]

You may remember this screenshot with the dude wondering what to do with the train. Well, you'll now be introduced with your very first train. Note that this isn't the same one you'll find there near Mandrake's. (Also, to avoid Early Access disappointments, you can't ride the train just yet.)



[h2]Quest for Stopping Respawning Monsters[/h2]

Some players seem to be disappointed when they see the monsters respawning after resting at the campfire. Some see this as a reliable source of certain materials. You can choose how you want to play it, but we'd like to make it clear that you CAN in fact stop the respawnings. It's your only way to get Mana Beads, which will become very important as you venture further.

We've now added a new quest to highlight this, so expect to get a new quest after leaving the campfire the next time. If you've already installed the transmitter to that particular link tower, don't worry, installing it to any new link tower will complete the quest!



[h3]ADDED[/h3]
- Access to new area 'Sunburn Desert'.
- Level Cap is now 29.
- New craftables: Proximity Mines (level 28), Safari Outfit (level 26, same as winter coat).
- New quest: Stop Monster Respawning that's triggered after you leave a campfire when you're at least XP level 3.
- Graphics option: vertical sync.
- Controls option: lock mouse cursor inside window.
- Added fourth main tool inventory slot.
- Added Invention: Teardown Efficienciency which gives back all of the building materials when breaking an object you've built.
- Showing things you've built on the map.
- Amber (Mana) Pills long press action now takes you back to home shelter (for situations where you've managed to get too far and have no other way back).
- Own tooltips for keyboard in some screens.
- If you've disabled auto-collect for some material, now showing auto-collect disabled text when near those materials. (To avoid getting bug reports about this.)

[h3]CHANGED[/h3]
- Dropped material pick up radius is reduced for 10 seconds to prevent accidental pickup.
- Reworked Criticals. Gained bonuses are now additional instead of percentual increases.This should both make the criticals work as intended and make it a lot clearer to the player what their critical chances are.
- Rebalanced numbers for modifiers and trinkets related to critical hits. Affected are Critical Hit Chance, Backstab Critical Chance, Critical Hit Damage, Counterweight and Acupuncture Needles.
- Buffed Machete attack speed by 5%.
- The quests "Preparing For Winter" and "Sweltering Heat" now trigger once the player meets harsh temperatures for the first time. This also unlocks required inventions for the quests. Further, due to this change, "Ice Brick", "Hot Water Bottle", "Fur Hat" and "Cowboy Hat" have had their level requirements removed.
- Moved a number of inventions in the invention tree to more logical places (No effect, if already unlocked).
- Nerfed a number of food recipe effects that were too good for their own right.
- You can't build in Tombs.
- Builder's Kit can't be used if enemies are too near or targeting you.
- Balanced material requirements for smelter products.
- Faster load times.

[h3]FIXED[/h3]
- Sawmill unlocking when crafting Builder's Kit. (To unlock Sawmill, just go and use the Sawmill once more in the north.)
- Some edge cases with wrong temperatures in certain areas.
- Monster scanner now counts stationary monsters too.
- Not showing up new monster slain popups for creatures that don't have a collection entry.
- Usual fixes to graphical glitches and typos.
- More clarifications for some quest descriptions and objective texts.
- Fixed gamepad tooltips showing up in cases where they shouldn't.




The next update will focus on Lore and Ancient Myths. It will contain only a small new area update, but that one will prepare you for your journey into the next area after that. Much excitement!

🌵