VALHALL: Harbinger News

Hey guys,

We hope you are staying healthy and safe through these challenging times.



With great excitement, today we want to share that Blackrose Arts is being awarded a MegaGrant!

Our team reached out to Epic back in the summer. This is a huge honor for us to have been selected.

We're incredibly grateful to Epic Games for supporting independent developers at the stage when it is really necessary.

The grant doesn't limit us in any way, we remain ownership and the ability to publish on any platform. Soon we will place a nice badge in the rewards section of our Steam page.



We also thank you guys for your support from the beginning of our journey, we achieved it together.



In the previous update we wrote about the negotiation with investors. They are ongoing, we are considering current proposals and are waiting for several others. This is still necessary for the scale of our plans, but we emphasize that we consider only those options that remain our independence.

Meanwhile, thanks to the grant, we connect more devs to active work and the game state where players can have fun from the full expereince of fighting will be achieved faster.

Grant funds will arrive in May. You will see more frequent patches adding playable content.

Also now we are preparing an evolved official website. It will have detailed info about the game and a short term roadmap. We will publish it in the update.



The patch will be uploaded the next week!

- Improved fighting dynamics.



- Offline mode. Kills score in the end. Timer doesn't break after reload. Fixed respawn loop.

- Bots added.



It's their the first coming, don't surprise if some of these guys lose interest to you during the battle.

They can do combo attacks.

- Mjolnir added.



We got many requests to try the hammer asap even if it is not fully finished - you can smash, but you'll see what what we wrote earlier about the need for animations.



A new bonus is based on your suggestions shared with us through the form in the previous update. Special thanks to @novax for such cordial suggestions and wishes.

There were a lot of interesting ideas. We would like to mention that you will continue to receive new bonuses during the next stages too, as surprises.

The most we liked the concept of making testers feel valued by other players on the battlefield - a new bonus item will have organic glowing elements making you look different. This item is a special one-handed axe. We don't share its name now, but in the next updates we will show how this powerful weapon looks and you will be able to read about its lore on our new website.

Indiegogo backers and Steam tester both will receive this axe. We remind that all rewards will be available in your Armory from the Early Access launch.

In the future updates and on our website you will see new special bonuses announcement and completion

We are sincerely grateful for all the words of support you added to the form.


If you want to support the game now
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1154320/VALHALL_Tests/

Best wishes,
Blackrose Arts

Hey guys,

We have news about the state and progress of development.

After the previous update with body angle replication fix and adding new basis for directional attack system, two things left before we can start actually playing during the tests. They are body physics for advanced interaction with Mjölnir/other weapons and animations.
 
Most of the old animations look not good enough for the quality level we raised and you are waiting for. Some testers can remember the look of the game and the weapon animations in pre-alpha. The combat system core was reworked from scratch, but it still doesn't have all the necessary animations set up.
 
We wanted to do it the best way - do motion capture in specialized studio and surprise you with the quality. The animations in games like VALHALL play essential gameplay role.
The amount of animations we need at that level has high costs. We had to let some of the devs pause the work for this period until we increase the budget and make the animations to work with.
However the income to the budget for the previous months was not enough and we were looking for another way.

The good news is that we have a solution. From the beginning of our journey the independence was its important part, we don't want to loose it. When we were talking about investors before it meant that our team and the community won't have full control of the game. However, by the end of 2019 VALHALL became very interesting for investors and private funding, that allowed us to discuss the conditions where we keep game independence and full control of the development.

Getting additional funding this way will boost the speed of progress and with the top quality animations we will reach the necessary state. That's why during this period we worked on the preparation and there is no big patch today.

Advanced body interaction, which is the second thing before the fun begins, is in process and while not completely finished can't be used. Mainly this system is responsible for the way how the hammer turns the enemy into ragdoll, also it will fix the issue that you could see with the common ragdolls and camera twitching. Once it's done it will be possible to play with Mjölnir because the attacks system is ready.  Also parkour over any obstacle is coming.



We have several potential investors with whom we are currently negotiating and expect to have the news to share this or the next month.

Some of you can be upset with how long it takes and we more than understand it. As it happens in indie development our path wasn't easy, we did some mistakes and we are sorry for making you wait more. However, it is important where it is eventually going.
Starting with non viking looking characters and combat prototype, after the game got attention it comes closer to that true viking experience people were looking for.

Two left points are milestone. After the new animations are set up and Wield Mjölnir is available we also will let you fight each other with weapons in a simple deathmatch in tests build while we will be finishing full Siege for Beta.
We want to increase emphasis on combat with shields to provide realistic tactic in Siege. We understand you need not just an improved version of something available, but a different experience.

With additional funding more devs will join the team and certain elements which we could await only at the late stages will become possible earlier. For example, production of female warriors and their animations will be in process in parallel with the main work after the first motion capture sessions.

We sincerely thank you for the support and understanding! 



This bonus is special, you can suggest your own idea of an exclusive item and after reviewing the answers we will publish the results with the chosen one in the next update. It can be a mythological weapon or a creative piece of armor.

It goes in addition to all the existing rewards. This bonus is for all VALHALL backers and Steam testers who joined us before Beta.

Form
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfovbUSKfu-tk7biEAhQGlmnNLjnMdPQ7We1bV5TSIsCwrd1w/viewform

Here is previous Indiegogo backers bonus table for those who could missed it.



If you want to support the game now
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1154320/VALHALL_Tests/

Thank you,
Blackrose Arts team

This year was crucial for VALHALL.

To begin with,  thank you all, dear community! We said it before, but let us repeat - our team appreciates everything you have done for the game. 


The major issues that did not allow to launch the tests were solved, Alpha stage, global overhaul began, combat system foundation reworked from scratch, the game quility standards raise, it is no longer limited to one game mode, Pre-Beta tests were launched and an unlisted page was provided by Steam for closed tests in the current state.

VALHALL got much more attention from the gaming community this year, we showed some numbers in the previous updates, so we expect the servers will be populated at the next stages.

The coming year will be a key time for VALHALL. We are going to finish and release a full version of Wield Mjolnir game mode at first and pass the Beta stage reaching the release state.

We keep working hard, also we see how the progress can be significantly accelerated in the future. At this moment you can check Trello board for Wield Mjolnir. Later detailed boards for Beta and Early access stages will become available.


You were with us from the beginning of the journey, it was the hardest period. We hope when the time comes you will be proud of being the first to participate in the VALHALL development.

Our Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign ends 31th of Decemeber, we are moving to the next stage.

What will be with Indiegogo exclusives: Bear Armor, Odin’s Helmet, Personal Set?
- As we promised they will not be available for purchase after the end of InDemand (this Indiegogo campaign). These items are exclusive.


*This is the only one helmet that has hornes in the game at the moment.


The new patch has arrived. We were working on the deep code of core elements, so there weren't patches unless it was something you can interact within the game.

• There was a combat system issue, which concerned both fists/weapons and which fix was essential - body angle replication.
  
  
  
  Before today's patch you couldn't see an angle of the enemy's body during attacks. Now vertical body movements work well and visible to the players.
  
  
  
  
• Improved directional attacks system. Added new angles. 360 will become available soon.
  
  
  
  
• Fixed not working sliding delay.
   
  
• Fixed footstep sounds persist during a jump. 
  
  
• Footsteps on the water surface now work.
   
  
• Attack is cancelled on landing.
   
  
• Fixed not working lower body animations. Previously legs didn't play animations that are connected to the performed attacks. Now the overall look of the movements is more lively.
  
  
  
  
• Fixed sliding upwards.
  
  
• Fixed repeating sliding sound.
  
  
• Added song "Ragnarök" from Gealdýr to Wield Mjolnir while waiting for players.
  
  
• Character randomizer at the start of the session.
  
  
• Added 3 playable characters.
  
  
• Improved cloth/mesh physics collision.
  
  
  
  
• Code optimization. Faster map loading.
  
  
• New reflections. For example, on water surface.
  

We will be cooperating with Gealdýr - Nordic folk/Viking inspired project created by talanted Dutch Singer-Songwriter Jonathan Barendsma.

Listen to songs

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
Special thanks for providing VALHALL with amazing song "Ragnarök" at this stage!


Brothers, let's meet the holidays and see what is awaiting us in the upcoming year!

Best wishes from all of us, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Blackrose Arts

Guys, here is a gameplay trailer of Wield Mjolnir game mode
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
We hope you like it! Please share it with someone who can be interested in the game, you are our only and the greatest power - we focus on the development and don't use paid promotion.

There weren't patches during this period as we have been working on the core updates.

The next patch will come out once they are finished and Trello board will be updated. Community Trello is different from development board due to back-end details.

Thor's hammer features are in process. We're going to lift NDA after the next game updates, earlier than a full launch of Wield Mjolnir.

Join Testers chat on Discord

- be a member of our Discord

- be a backer with Beta access

- fill the form (for backers only)

After that, during 24 hours you will receive a "Alpha tester" role on our Discord server which will reveal the channels.

Best wishes,
Blackrose Arts

This is a part of Indiegogo update which we are posting here for our Steam community to make sure you don't miss it. You can read full update in the Indiegogo updates section.

Check full update

First of all, thanks to all the testers for participation in the development and providing your logs. It helped us a lot to fix many major bugs.

Improvements we make and test in Wield Mjolnir apply to the whole game including Siege, Battle Royale and the future game modes.

Since the start of its tests several patches have been uploaded:

Visuals

• Changed beards.
  
• Changed eyes.
  
• Changed hair materials.
  
• Improved hands material. Hammer lifting effects.
  

• Improved Mjolnir materials.
  
• Improved wet cloth materials.
  
• Added hair physics.
  
• Added cloth physics.
  

Gameplay

• Improved character collision capsule. Better distance for attacks.
  
• Improved FOV.
  
• Improved turn cap, easier aiming, attacks feel better.
  
• Fixed issues with first person mode switch.
  
• New sensitivity.
  
• Added a light switch between dynamic and static. Use the "L" key. Later to appear in settings.
  
• More stable character movement.
  
• Improved hit reactions.
  
• Fixed first person crouching.
  
• Implemented new HUD.
  

* The third bar is rage.

• UI improvements. Pause menu options button fix.
  
• Fixed some crashes.
  
• Lower RAM consumption.
  
• Multiplayer optimization.
  

Animations

• Reinstated locomotion system features.
  
• Added smoother transitions.
  
• Added more gravity to the jumps.
  
• Fixed jittering while jump on both perspectives.
  
• Created many new animations which include.
  
• Fists TFP idle.
  
• Fists FPP idle.
  
• Uppercut left & right.
  
• Left & right jabs.
  
• Left & right hooks.
  
• Angle hooks (40,140,220,320 degrees).
  
• Hammer TFP idl.
  
• Actions for hammer TFP idle.
  

The animations are a WIP since we're still adding new ones and testing them out. There will be a new locomotion system full of new animations.


Here is Wield Mjolnir Trello with detailed development progress. It doesn't contain confidential back-end of course but gives a bigger picture of what's in process.

Link to Wield Mjolnir community Trello

There are diverse time intervals between patches because some of them include visual improvements and the others a complex backend rework.

Current work is focused on the most interesting part - Mjolnir features. We need to implement them before the full launch of the game mod without NDA.

Also, we're remaking rig for the other characters. When it's done they will appear as playable in one of the future patches.


A ragdoll system is being reworked to make physics feel much better. Imagine like you swing the hammer and in a second a row of enemies are scattered around the map. We want each body part to react in the right way.

More news, according to the Steam platform requirements we have to make a store page for Beta as well. You get its content automatically. This page will not be searchable in Steam, its a hidden link for direct follow which you may see on our website sometime later.

Also, there was an update to the game branches, now you can download & test Wield Mjolnir right away after adding to library. The game is still under NDA that's why for now the only one place to discuss, upload screenshots and videos are "Closed Alpha" channels for testers on our Discord server.

For the access need:

• be a member of our Discord server Discord.
  
• be a backer with Beta access
  
• accept NDA
  

After that, you will receive a "Tester" role on our Discord server which will reveal the test channels.

In case you missed early backers bonuses, here you are! We updated the bonus table:

After the release we will continue to supplement this list.

If you're an Early backer and haven't choose between additional Silver chest or extra Early Access key yet, you can do it here


We would like to inform you that your name will appear not only in credits but somewhere in a game too.

It is one more surprise (not from the bonus table) we are preparing for backers. If you want to change the name entered when backed the game just feel this form with a new one:
Put your name/nickname

Guys, we would like to say it one more time for those who could miss this info before. The first announced game mode of VALHALL was Battle Royale, and we will make sure it will be a great experience. However, it's only a small part of what we want for this game.

A huge amount of feedback was received during the development saying people wanted much more than a Battle Royale.

The way how players see the game for the first time matters. We are doing the necessary analysis and act in a way we consider will lead the game to success. It means a much better playing experience upon release for you than was intended.

There was no word about Siege game mode at the beginning however, it will be included in Beta. And that is important to understand that it is not about taking more time to set up a new game mode. It is about leveling up the whole game standards and taking time to overhaul all the elements. By improving core mechanics for Siege and Wield mjolnir, Battle Royale becomes better. We are very grateful for the time you have given us to achieve a better future for VALHALL.


After current Wield Mjolnir bug fixing process and launch without NDA other game modes will move much faster to their release state.


Currently VALHALL has 90,000+ Steam users added the game to their wishlist, after release we predict that our community and player base will grow. We do our best to make the game enjoyable the way there will be stable online after the launch.


Your viking friends,
Blackrose Arts