Hey, I've worked out a solution for the long existing scaling issues. To be honest: The code I've written is shit, but I've found out a solution to calculate the correct viewport size more precisely. This should finally fix all the scaling issues. Sadly I don't have a monitor that has a bigger resolution than 1080p, but I stretched the game across 3 monitors (side by side) and it's working as expected now (the graphics keep their aspect ratio though). I also improved the player controls a little bit, due to a better method for setting the players position. I hope it works :)!

Several minor fixes and QoL changes.

Today, on 24.05.2024, I have released the Community Update v1.1. In the course of this, there is also a one-week discount of 30% on the game! So if you haven't grabbed it yet, now would be a great time to do so.

What happened

Ideas that didn't make it:

• Revise leaderboards
  • Originally it was planned that the leaderboards would get an extra page, as well as "season" mechanics, so that there are various effects per season.
  • In my opinion, the effort was not worth it here, as it would have required a major rebuild of the codebase to accomplish this. Nevertheless, the idea is obvious and cool!
• Steam avatar image as boss graphic
  • Absolutely cool idea, especially if it's your own Steam image, because then no silly content can be displayed to other players. The codebase is also the problem here, the effort would have been too high for the benefit.
• Skin packs for enemies/players/background/upgrade graphics
  • If then I would have implemented the feature as part of a modability, otherwise it would certainly be feasible, whereby it would always be important that the skins are all square so that the CollisionShape still fits.
• Enemy impulses announce movement
  • Also a nice idea, especially for suddenly appearing enemies that could indicate a forewarning. Unfortunately, I use a single enemy class for all enemy types and the lifecycle is pretty hardcoded in, making it difficult to implement an advance cue where the enemy needs to know it will get a pulse in X frames/seconds. This would also require major refactoring. In addition, it is questionable whether this does not immensely impair the "look & feel" if there are many opponents on the screen and then a part is additionally highlighted in color.
• Modability
  • Modability was a big wish of mine that unfortunately didn't make it into the finished game. I only found out about the easy modability with the help of the Godot Engine much too late. The class hierarchy is a drag here, as are the folder structures for dynamically loading content into the game. Steam Workshop support would of course also be desirable here, but it is always important that submissions are also moderated. It is also difficult to ensure that all mods can be deleted again and that the original state can be restored without any problems.
• "Bug Hunter" Incentive
  • The idea here was to give people an individual "title" or "player" skin if they found a bug. The problem here was the moderation effort and also the fact that some people didn't necessarily want this "extra sausage". Again, the effort was not worth it

Ideas that made it

• Challenge mode
  • This was an idea that K1ngKapra came up with quite spontaneously. I actually think it's a pretty good idea, which is why it made it into the game. Only one boss was initially planned here, with a special behavior that is very difficult to master and is adapted to the length of the song. The second boss was only created because the good K1ngKapra designed an extra boss song, which I naturally wanted to include in the game. Unfortunately, the second boss didn't turn out the way I wanted it to. I still hope that it will add something to the challenge mode.
• Bereichs-Spawner
  • Actually really the coolest feature for v1.1, but the idea came from another game (Ball-it Hell). The idea is that the player gets a "bonus" when he is inside the areas. There are various effects for this, ranging from "double damage" to "time is frozen".
• Tutorial mode
  • To make it easier for beginners to get started with the game, a tutorial has also been integrated into the game. This shows all the important features of the game and at the same time (hopefully) doesn't anticipate too much of the game's discovery. Here the biggest thanks also go to K1ngKapra, as well as Cille.
• Controller Support
  • Controller support was also implemented on a spontaneous impulse. It was also about creating the basis for moving the player with inputs other than the mouse. Originally, the idea of the game was to focus directly and exclusively on the movement of the mouse. I hadn't thought about controller support at the beginning. However, when I received a picture of someone playing the game on the Steam Deck, I thought to myself "it's a good fit". And poof, I sat down and implemented controller support. This also has an effect on the mouse controls, which I will discuss later.
• Colorblind support
  • Unfortunately, many people suffer from some form of color blindness. And since the enemy concept focuses a lot on the color difference, it is very difficult to enjoy the game in its entirety. Therefore, with the help of McBlubb's assessments, I have implemented a setting that should make it easier to play under such circumstances. An individual letter per enemy type is displayed above the enemy so that the shape is unique.
• Hall of Fame
  • Last but not least, the Hall of Fame has also made it into the game. Due to the numerous entries in the leaderboard (41 in total), I didn't want to "offend" the eager players and simply "nullify" their successes, but rather immortalize the top 5 in the Hall of Fame. I hope the players are happy about it :)!
• Multipliers
  • Multipliers are always cool in arcade games. After the release of version 1.0, I noticed that the "level bar" was really "sinking", because it no longer had a meaningful and/or visible function. It was originally intended to display a level-up screen and to link various enemies and upgrades to the player's level. Over time, I made less and less use of the level up mechanic (although it's still in the game) because I felt it didn't really fit into the pacing of the game. So now I've repurposed the level bar as an indicator for the multiplier and it works surprisingly well, I think!

Mouse control

Thanks to Shizzy and Ooze, I've found some minor issues with the new community patch v1.1.

• Fixed Mouse Sensitivity for values > 0.0 and < 1.0
• Fixed Multiplier, insane highscores shouldn't be possible now. -> Leaderboard Reset!

This is a huge (and probably the last) step for A Void Shaper! This is the release of v1.1, the "long awaited" community update. It adds several features to the game and most of them were your ideas. This are the new additions:

• A new Boss Soundtrack, as well as a revised track that fits way better now, thanks to K1ngKapra!
• Challenge Mode with 2 Bosses and an unique leaderboard!
• Area Spawner that provides a more unique gameplay experience, use the new areas to your advantage! (inspired by Ball-it Hell, a similar game to AVS, released on the same day)
• Tutorial Mode: Thanks to Cille and K1ngKapra, this game features a small, but hopefully helpful, tutorial (I'm not a fan of it myself, but I'm glad for any feedback)
• Controller Support: The game should be way better playable with the controller or Steam Deck now.
• Multipliers: The most awesome feature this update! Collect points to gain score multipliers for lots of thrill!
• Colorblindness support: If you suffer from colorblindness you can now enable an Accessibility setting in the options that will show a letter on top of each enemy, this way each Enemy should be better distinguishable for you! Thanks to McBlubb for that!
• Hall of Fame - Of course! I promised that and the Top 5 is now part of the Hall of Fame. Additionally the leaderboards will be reset, as soon as I publish this post.

Hello everyone, I would like to solemnly announce that v1.1, the community update, will be released on the 24.05. (upcoming friday)! Make sure to immortalize yourself in the Hall of Fame! The current placements are: [olist]

Hello everyone, I would like to solemnly announce that v1.1, the community update, is in the starting blocks! You have not only made this update possible, but also filled it with life. Almost all of the implemented features came from you and I hope I was able to capture your "vision" appropriately.

What can you expect in v1.1?

• A brand new challenge mode!
• Area spawner: if you are in one of the new areas, a special effect will be activated!
• Tutorial: Get to know the game in a safe environment!
• Controller Support: The game is now much more comfortable to play with the controller or Steam Deck!
• Multipliers: Collect points quickly and you will be rewarded with a score multiplier! Higher multiplier, higher high score!
• Colorblind support: For colorblind players there is now the option to display a letter on each opponent to better distinguish the opponents!
• Revised leaderboards: A new leaderboard for the challenge mode, a Hall of Fame and a fresh lifetime leaderboard!

What do you mean with Hall of Fame?

When?

What's missing?

After that?

I hope the unlockables are finally fixed for everyone now !

Fixed a bug, where the bosses got slower on each run.

v1.0c fixes several issues.

• Added VSync Checkbox (Enable/Disable) to Settings Menu
• Added Mouse Sensivity Slider (0.0 to 1.0) to Settings Menu
• Auto-Save: Settings get automatically saved, it is not mandatory anymore to press the "Apply Settings" button.
• Fixed an issue with the unlockables, these WERE NOT saved properly prior this patch. Unlockables should work as intended now!

Minor fix that fixes some upgrades, because they had a scuffed behaviour. "PIERCE+" should work properly now. It wasn't possible to unlock that upgrade before.

v1.0b fixes one bigger issue: The Leaderboard sorting in the Main Menu was broken today (I still don't know why it happens now...). I refactored that part and I'm using the Steam sorting directly, so no manual sorting happens. Bumped the version from 1.0a to 1.0b, because it's a more integral part of the code that is (re)used in several parts of the game. IF you still have issues with the leaderboard, consider deleting the "Leaderboard.tres" file in your %AppData%/A Void Shaper directory!

This is just a minor fix. The Leaderboard in the main menu gets refreshed after each round (on Player Death to be precise), so you don't have to restart the game to get updated highscores :).

v1.0a fixes several issues listed below:

• Small Music issues with the playlist (some songs were looping)
• Fixed Collection (removed PAM Upgrade, because it's currently unused)
• Lowered Default Volume
• Fixed Steam Achievements based on Global Statistics, Statistics get saved properly now
• Bumped version from 1.0 to 1.0a

It should be the correct DLL now.

This patch could possibily and hopefully fix the steam integration :c

The time has finally come! The long-awaited release of "A Void Shaper" is here. You can buy and play the game from today. Take advantage of the initial phase and immortalise yourself in the high score list. I hope you enjoy the game and get a good impression. It may look like a simple game, but there is always a lot of work involved in games like this. I hope that "A Void Shaper" is as playable for you as it is for me. Of course, it can never be ruled out that there are still critical bugs in the game. Let's just keep our fingers crossed that everything runs smoothly for everyone. If not, please feel free to contact me by e-mail: support@avoidshaper.de and give me as many details as possible so that I can recreate and fix the error in the best case. Otherwise, feel free to use the review function here on Steam! I wish you all a lot of fun with "A Void Shaper" and I am sure that we can make the game even better with your help. If there is enough feedback, I am planning a kind of "community version" as version 1.1 after the release. For this version, I would like to respond to your feedback and expand the game according to your wishes. The following is conceivable:

• New enemies
• New boss
• New feature (a new mechanic or similar)
• New upgrade
• Balancing changes
• New enemy behaviour
• ...

I would like to solemnly announce that the release date for "A Void Shaper" is fixed! Provided nothing serious intervenes, "A Void Shaper" will see the light of day on February 14th 2024. I'm more than excited to see how the release will go. I am also looking forward to your reactions and hope that you will enjoy my first work. The development of the game was very exciting. I got to know and love the Godot Engine in the course of development. Of course, there were also moments when I racked my brains and other moments when everything just worked straight away. You were also able to follow a large part of the development live on my Twitch channel. I was able to incorporate your feedback directly into the game and received a lot of support. Without your active support, "A Void Shaper" would certainly look different now. [Many thanks to everyone who put the game through its paces in advance, left feedback (both positive and negative) and accompanied me along the way. "A Void Shaper" is the first commercial product I'm releasing. A few months ago, I considered the game as a pure "learning project" and never thought I would release the game on Steam. This is of course a big step for me and I hope that the release goes smoothly. To ensure this, I teamed up with the publisher Dream-Studios, who accompanied me throughout the development and always had an open ear when I had problems or questions regarding the release on Steam. But the support didn't stop there. The trailer was also customised for me and the result is really impressive! Fortunately, the numerous testers were also able to find a few bugs, which I was able to fix in time. Nevertheless, it is certain that you will still come across errors. "Unfortunately" I have not built in any tools that allow me to read your error messages or anything similar. In "A Void Shaper" I have completely dispensed with logging and tracking options. Of course, this may make it more difficult for me to find the exact cause of the error. I would therefore ask you to send me an e-mail with as many details as possible if something unexpected should happen so that I can look into it as quickly as possible. Of course I will also keep an eye on the reviews :). My E-Mail: support@avoidshaper.de Of course, I don't want to end this announcement on a somewhat "negative note". Here is the new gameplay trailer: [previewyoutube=bITuDSf7p_0;full][/previewyoutube]