We're super excited to announce that we have added a Welsh translation to the game! Massive thanks goes out to our composer Jordan for organising this. As a Welsh development studio it is something we have been wanted to do for a while so are glad that we've managed to do it with Captain Contraptions!

[ 2025-01-01 15:05:38 CET ] [ Original post ]

We just pushed the latest free content update for Captain Contraption's Chocolate Factory. It includes a new component, the gravity controller, new gravity changing zones as part of a level, a set of bonus levels showing all those off plus some new tracks in the soundtrack. The gravity controller and gravity changing zones switch the direction of gravity for all objects within their area. This means it's possible to create levels like the one below where some of the entrances and exits are upside down. I've included 5 bonus levels which show off these new components - they are some of the wilder levels I've designed - hope you enjoy them!
As well as a bunch of bug fixes and quality of life improvements we are also super excited to add 4 new tracks to the original soundtrack! These are both in the game and available as part of the OST which you can buy on Steam. As always thanks for all your continued support, please help us by letting your friends know about our games (we are a two person team so any word of mouth really helps us)!

Patch Notes

New Things

• Gravity zones in levels
• New component: Gravity Controller
• Three new tracks in the soundtrack (also part of the OST on Steam)

Changes and Fixes

• Entrance and exits no longer blocked by triggers in the level editor
• Entrances and exits can now be rotated in the level editor
• You can now lock down level components in the level editor which will make testing easier
• The lift is now rotatable
• The bumper can no longer be rotated using hotkeys while a machine is running
• Fixed bug caused when loading machines which contain components not available with the current modifier.
• Slightly improved quality and performance of gallery replay capture
• Fixed issue with volume sliders not saving correctly between sessions

[ 2024-11-10 18:43:28 CET ] [ Original post ]

• Updated to Unity 2022.3.45f
• Added a copy component hot key
• Enabled assignment of mouse and controller buttons to hot keys (should help with steam deck)
• Fixed all the memory leaks introduced by the replay recorder

[ 2024-09-08 13:08:05 CET ] [ Original post ]

Fixed a potential memory leak related to the replay recording.

[ 2024-09-04 16:33:14 CET ] [ Original post ]

Improved performance and resolution of replay capture for gallery.

[ 2024-08-31 09:52:22 CET ] [ Original post ]

It's content update time! I'm going to keep this short and sweet because I just spent all day getting a much requested feature sort of working... but before I get into the details I wanted to say thanks for the support - we can spend time adding useless boxes to our games only with your support.

New Stuff

A Gallery

A certain not to be named real YouTuber (one of the more civil content creators I've had the pleasure to interact with) ended their video with a request to add a gallery. You asked, we listened, and there is now a gallery in game to share pictures and videos of your solutions. The feature is very much in beta and something I rushed a bit to get it into the update for today. When you succeed with a solution you have the option to view a replay then upload a small gif to the steam workshop. From the main menu you can browse other replays and look for the tag "Gallery" on the Steam Workshop. Let me know what you think and what else you would want from this feature! I will try to improve it in some hot fixes between now and the next content update.

Replay All the Levels with Everything Unlocked

This is an obvious mode we didn't think to add at launch for some reason, but now when you have 100% completed an area you will be able to replay each level in that area with all components unlocked. Playing in this mode has different leaderboards than the normal mode since it behaves like a modifier - I'm looking forward to people using this to go crazy with optimisation!

A box!

One person asked for it and here it is. A 1x1 box which costs 2 bucks. Those new to the game might not see much potential here, but those of you who are experienced chocolate engineers will be excited by the prospect of shaving those costs down!

New Levels

I've added a new area which showcases the box and how you might use it. These levels are some of the most challenging I've designed so I look forward to seeing what you think of them. I've also added a level in Area 2 to help teach how button entrances work.

Changes and Bug Fixes

- Upgraded to Unity 2022.3.42f - Delete hotkey now happens on button down - Bumper now rotates 45 degrees when using hotkeys - Less likely for objects to rotate at the end of a drag - Fixed bug where the in game objective indicator for objective 2 was not updating correctly - Added link to Localizor - Updated some of the localisations based on user submitted translations Now stop reading and go play :)

[ 2024-08-26 16:28:58 CET ] [ Original post ]

New Stuff

- Added a useless box to the player items - When you 100% complete an area you can play each of the levels in that area with all the components unlocked. There are new leaderboards for this. - Added a new area with 5 levels - Added a level to Area 2 - Added a gallery to share images and gifs of your machines (this feature is in beta!)

Changes and Bug Fixes

- Upgraded to Unity 2022.3.42f - Delete hotkey now happens on button down - Bumper now rotates 45 degrees when using hotkeys - Less likely for objects to rotate at the end of a drag - Fixed bug where the in game objective indicator for objective 2 was not updating correctly - Added link to Localizor - Updated some of the localisations based on user submitted translations

[ 2024-08-26 16:11:14 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy Chocolatiers! Captain Contraptions Chocolate Factory may be our fourth game but its the first one we have tried to localise. We want as many people as possible to enjoy our game and since we do not have the budget for human translation we thought a Google Translation would be better than nothing. Unfortunately, many of you have fed back that the translations in the game at the moment are less than ideal - frankly a machine will never do as good a job as a human. Our plan was (and still is) to use the income we generate from the game to pay for professionals to complete the translations. Unfortunately the reality of being a small game on Steam is that it will take us a long time to generate the funds we need to do this effectively. This has led us to consider alternative strategies for completing the localisation. To our surprise weve had a number of you offering to translate the game for us - which is incredible - but until today we havent had any tools to allow this or a reasonable way to compensate volunteers for their work. Today we are announcing that we are teaming with Localizor, an online crowd translation tool where players can help translate text in games in exchange for coins that can be redeemed into Steam keys. We are really excited to try Localizor out with you all. This is how it works:

• Head over to Localizor and sign up
• Pick a game you want to help translate (ideally Captain Contraptions Chocolate Factory, but there are lots of other projects you can support)
• Either translate text or vote on suggestions of translations.
• When you have earnt enough coins head to the Localizor shop and redeem them for a Steam key!

If you have any questions, comments or if you want us to add your native language to the list let us know below. We hope you will join us in translating the game together so more people can enjoy the game!

[ 2024-08-09 09:51:05 CET ] [ Original post ]

Steam cloud now works as designed. Fixed a bug in cross platform syncing and now all your saved machines and levels will be uploaded alongside your campaign progress.

[ 2024-07-31 13:45:40 CET ] [ Original post ]

A big thanks to everyone who has bought a copy of Captain Contraption's Chocolate Factory making this one of our biggest launches ever! I thought it was a good time to introduce ourselves to Pill Bug newcomers and give you some rough details of our future plans with Captain Contraption.

Nice to Meet You

We are Pill Bug Interactive, which is made up of myself (Sean) my friend Dave and unofficially Jordan who is the super talented composer behind our games' soundtracks. Both Dave and I are actually full time university lecturers in Wales working on this games thing in our evenings and weekends - I teach game development at Swansea University and Dave teaches creative writing at Cardiff University. Captain Contraption's is our fourth game on Steam and (seeing how we are indie developers with bad business sense) all our games are different genres - but long time fans can spot some tell tale things which make a game a Pill Bug game (even if I'm unsure what those things are). Here is a picture of us at the BAFTA awards where we were nominated for best game made in Wales for our second game Cycle 28 - which is one of my proudest Pill Bug achievements.
We try to be as open as possible about development so please ask any questions and join our discord to chat with us. Which brings me on to the real reason you're reading this...

Future Update Plans for Captain Contraption's Chocolate Factory

Fixes and Improvements

Bugs

Part of our update strategy is going to be making changes based on your feedback. Partly that will be bug fixing and partly that will be things like quality of life improvements. My priority over the past few weeks has been fixing bugs which had the potential to be game breaking. I'm happy to report there were only a small handful I failed to spot before release which have all been fixed. My next bug fix sweep will be issues that have been reported which are not game breaking. For example, there seems to be a few cases where objective indicators don't update correctly and the leader boards sometimes update in the wrong order after you submit a score. If you do find any bugs please report them on the forums or discord.

UI and Quality of Life

The influx of new players from the launch has been valuable in getting a wider range of feedback from people on the UI. I will be carefully watching lets plays and reading your feedback to decide what needs changing and what can be improved.

Localisation

Our in-game localisation kind of sucks right now and I am sorry for that. Our lack of budget forced us to use machine translations which is not ideal - but I felt that it was more accessible to include a half good translation rather than no translation. I'm hoping that if the first month goes well enough in terms of sales we can explore improving things with human translation. We will also look into community driven translations if there is any interest.

New Content

Our plan with new content is to add some new "bonus" areas to the game, each around a theme. I already have an idea for the first bonus area which I will be working on throughout the summer. To help us with that I would love to know which of the levels in the game you have enjoyed the most - this will help get my game design brain working. Also, I would love to add some player created levels as a bonus area - so keep adding your own designs to the workshop and I will contact authors of some of the best levels about adding them to the game. If you have any thoughts or suggestions please let us know - we would love to hear what you think! Finally here is another Let's Play for you to enjoy! [previewyoutube=vGcSBS5ANDg;full][/previewyoutube]

[ 2024-07-29 19:41:27 CET ] [ Original post ]

Three exciting bits of news today. Firstly, yesterday I pushed some sneaky hot fixes to the native Linux build which fixed a nasty bug which meant some people were losing their progress - apologies to anyone who was effected by that. I've also added a launch option which forces Vulkan which should help with a graphic glitch a few people were getting on Steam Deck and Linux. Secondly, we earnt enough Steam reviews to get a Positive score! Thanks so much to everyone for helping us achieve that, I'm going to keep saying this but I'm blown away by how much people are gelling with our game and enjoying it. In the launch stream I said that we make games to give people 30 minute slices of happiness in their day - and I really meant that. Thirdly, and most excitingly, Real Civil Engineer posted a video about our game! I know it's probably not cool to get excited about this, but I am. It's not often that people WhatsApp me saying "Hey, isn't this your game on my YouTube feed?" but that happened today. A quick message to any RCE fans who have come here from that video. We fixed the leaderboards ;) [previewyoutube=g-JD7v3Ng1E;full][/previewyoutube]

[ 2024-07-25 19:15:33 CET ] [ Original post ]

The Captain Contraption's Chocolate Factory launch discount will run out around 24 hours after I post this, so if you are planning to pick up a copy of the game make sure to do it before the discount ends. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/ Thanks so much to everyone who has already picked up a copy, we are a super small team on a tiny budget and every sale makes a huge difference to us. And double thanks to everyone who has been leaving reviews, chatting on our discord and posting levels on the workshop. It is fantastic seeing a new community grow around our little indie game. If you are still unsure if the game is for you, then check out the let's play by Glidercat below. If you prefer reading check out the Steam reviews or this article by PCGamesN. [previewyoutube=jfhenZLLJNQ;full][/previewyoutube]

[ 2024-07-23 13:59:59 CET ] [ Original post ]

So we did it, we launched the game! It's been an exhausting and amazing week. Thank-you so much to everyone who has picked up a copy of the game, and a double thank-you to everyone who has taken the time to leave an honest Steam review - reviews are super important to small teams like ours. Some stuff has happened in the week and I wanted to highlight a few things here... I've pushed two small patches which fixed some bugs people were spotting in the early days. Thanks for everyone who is reporting issues, and if you come across any problems please share them with us and I can try to fix them. The Steam Workshop is starting to come alive and I've spotted some neat player created levels which I'm looking forward to playing once things settle down a bit post launch. Every workshop level also has a leaderboard by the way - and if you like optimising designs for the leaderboard you should join our discord! Finally we've had some people cover the game in one way or another and I wanted to share some of those with you. PCGamesN wrote an article describing the game as a cross between Factorio, Opus Magnum, and World of Goo. Do you agree with that assessment? And here are some lets plays! [previewyoutube=h_IJQgCds1s;full][/previewyoutube] [previewyoutube=jfhenZLLJNQ;full][/previewyoutube] [previewyoutube=IXVR7fK0N9s;full][/previewyoutube]

[ 2024-07-20 16:23:40 CET ] [ Original post ]

Fixed issues with leaderboards in game not hiding correctly.

[ 2024-07-18 20:21:23 CET ] [ Original post ]

• Added browse workshop and refresh items buttons to workshop screen.
• Attempted to fix an issue some players were having with screen resolutions. Added a button to reset resolution to native. If you have had this issue before this update you might need to switch to windowed then back to full screen. This may also fix issues some people have reported with flickering on steam deck - please let me know.

[ 2024-07-18 09:24:59 CET ] [ Original post ]

Captain Contraptions Chocolate Factory launches today! Its a big day for robot chocolatiers around the world. The whole of Captain Contraptions factory is now available to explore, as you experiment with fresh ingredients and automate ever more complex machines. With 40+ levels to unlock, as well as brand new achievements and fiendish modifiers, we cant wait for players to show off their creative solutions to all these puzzles. Its been so much fun developing this game, and weve been so lucky to have the enthusiastic Steam community with us every step of the way. Thank you all.

[ 2024-07-17 18:00:02 CET ] [ Original post ]

Join us for some chocolaty contraption building to celebrate the steam next fest! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/

[ 2024-06-07 20:36:05 CET ] [ Original post ]

Two big announcements today. The first is that we've got the final masters of the full soundtrack for Captain Contraption's Chocolate Factory. I have updated the demo with the new tracks and also made a new trailer which you can watch below and share with your friends. We are super happy with the soundtrack, it's a low-fi beats style with some jazz vibes to pull you back to the 90s midi soundtracks of games which inspired us. [previewyoutube=1fFNf78dX04;full][/previewyoutube] The second announcement is that the release date is now going to be a day earlier on 17th July... ...there were some big releases on the 18th we wanted to avoid and we are getting ahead of ourselves with development. Also, we've started to see some YouTubers cover our demo - please show them some love - in particular check out this video from Angory Tom. If you can think of any YouTubers to contact about the game let us, or them, know! [previewyoutube=h_IJQgCds1s;full][/previewyoutube]

[ 2024-05-16 15:04:02 CET ] [ Original post ]

In the rush of development work and life stuff we forgot to officially make a fuss that we announced the release date! We will be launching Captain Contraption's Chocolate Factory on 18th July 2024 for Windows and Linux. The game will come with 50 puzzles, the full level editor, steam workshop support, steam deck support, steam achievements and whimsy. It's been an incredible journey with this game so far, we have shot past our wishlist target and had so much great feedback from all of you. The next two months we'll be working on some polish whilst also trying to increase our wishlist numbers. So, if you have any friends who you think would enjoy the game we'd appreciate you sharing this with them. We literally would not exist without your support so thank-you! [previewyoutube=sYRrXKvwddc;full][/previewyoutube] https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/

[ 2024-04-21 13:22:46 CET ] [ Original post ]

Join us for some chocolaty contraption building to celebrate the steam next fest! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/

[ 2024-04-21 13:11:17 CET ] [ Original post ]

Join us for some chocolaty contraption building to celebrate the steam next fest! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/

[ 2024-04-21 13:11:06 CET ] [ Original post ]

Good day chocolate fans We are rapidly approaching the finish line with development on Captain Contraption's. We've recently released a bunch of updates to the demo based on your feedback - so do check it out if you haven't recently. A few weeks ago I started working on the final set of levels for the game which I've found super challenging - I really want them to be a culmination of everything that has come before. To avoid doing that I've been spending a lot of time working on the trailer for the game - which is just as difficult and just as important. Here is my latest version... what do you think? I've love to get your feedback! [previewyoutube=sYRrXKvwddc;full][/previewyoutube]

[ 2024-04-13 11:40:30 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy chocolate fans! Its time for another development update for Captain Contraptions Chocolate Factory... https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/ The past few months have been as busy as ever, we've added some more components including a sorter which allows you to catch and sort ingredients and a pipe which allows you to move ingredients through each other. These components move the game a little towards a traditional factory conveyor belt style game - but still with the physics driven madness we want to be at the core. Remember you can watch videos of all these new mechanics in action over on our TikTok.
We have also started work on localising the game, currently the demo is available in Korean, Japanese, Traditional and Simplified Chinese. If you would like us to include your language let us know in the comments.
Perhaps the most exciting news to share is that we have just met our target of 7,000 wishlists so are on track for launching the game in July 2024. Thank-you so much to all of you who have added the game to your wishlist and shared it with friends. We are at the stage now where our focus is on polish and level design, it is going to be an exciting few months!

[ 2024-02-14 18:21:40 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy chocolate fans! Its time for another development update for Captain Contraptions Chocolate Factory... https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/ The biggest development since my last update is that we have completely reworked the meta-game and general progression. Originally we had planned to make an actual factory for you to explore and discover secrets, and although that sounds interesting we decided to cut it because we think our time is better spent designing more levels - which means more content in the final game. Instead of exploring a factory we have opted for a simpler menu system which you can try now in the demo. [previewyoutube=ypZbxNs5KaI;full][/previewyoutube] Speaking of the demo, I've been adding new levels to the first three areas (which is what you get in the demo) which you can download and try now. We are aiming to launch the game after the next Steam Next Fest in June/July and so are going to be working on getting the demo a tight and rewarding experience - so please let us know what you think. We've added a bunch more mechanics and experimented with things which just didn't feel great so we won't be including. The most game changing addition is the lift, which you can try in the sandbox levels in the demo! Thanks again for all the support - please continue to share the game with friends and ask them to wishlist! Remember you can watch all these new mechanics in action over on our TikTok.

[ 2024-01-21 14:30:57 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy chocolate fans! Its time for another development update for Captain Contraptions Chocolate Factory. September and October is always a tricky month for me since my day job, university lecturer, is at its busiest. But there have been some new additions and some exciting developments with our wishlist numbers - let's start with that! https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/

Wishlist Progress

As many of you know, wishlists are really important to ensure we dont sink to the bottom of the steam store page, and normally we are happy if we get between 10 and 20 new wishes a week. Last week we got over 1,500! I have no idea why this happened, all I know is a lot more people are searching for the game on Steam - let me know how you discovered the game and if you are one of those 1,500. Our target number of wishes is 7,000 and we are currently sitting at 3,650 which Im pretty pleased with - thanks to everyone who has wishlisted and shared our game around.

Popcorn

This month we added popcorn to the game. Popcorn mechanically works quite similar to almonds, you start with a kernel and need to heat it up to pop it. Once you have popcorn you might need to cover it in chocolate. But it feels quite different to almonds for a few reasons, firstly the size of the ingredient changes from the small kernel to a large popcorn when you process it. Secondly, the popcorn doesnt weigh much so you can use fans and other things to move it around the level.

Lots of level design

The main thing Ive been spending my time on recently is level design, currently Ive got about 50 levels complete using the ingredients implemented so far. Level design is something I can do in an evening so it is great for this time of year.
Moving forward I need to resist doing level design and adding new ingredients and put a bit of time into the growing list of bugs and other feedback youve given us from playing the demo. Those things are hard to make a TikTok about but super important to get done. Thanks again for all the support - please continue to share the game with friends and ask them to wishlist! Remember you can watch all these new mechanics in action over on our TikTok.

[ 2023-10-15 11:18:39 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello Chocolate Lovers! Here are some updates on the new features weve been working on from inside the development factory Remember you can watch all these new mechanics in action over on our TikTok.

New Component - Portals

We couldn't have a game of ours without portals (well Cycle 28 didn't I guess... lets say all the bad guys used portals to spawn off camera) - they behave just like you expect transporting ingredients from one place to another. There could be some interesting puzzle design using these, weirdly I think levels where you can only use portals might be challenging.

New Component - Bumpers

Bumpers are actually the first component I implemented in the first prototype of the game and we're only just getting them into the game! There is something super satisfying about getting the bouncing just right...

New Ingredient - Popping Candy

Popping candy is an ingredient you'll have to take care to handle. Any slight knock and these things are going to blow! Alongside the popping candy is a new component the force field, something which levitates ingredients and could be useful for more than just popping candy.

Level Design

The other thing I've been working on is just level design. We've settled on aiming for around 100 levels which seems in line with other games like this... it all depends on how many new mechanics and ingredients we add though.

Wishlist Progress

Currently we have 1,981 wishlists and our target for launch is 10,000. Thank-you to everyone who has already added the game to their wishlist. It really helps. Last month was a huge success wishlist wise, we got featured by a pretty big twitter account which drove lots of traffic our way.

[ 2023-09-17 19:01:17 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello Chocolate Lovers! Here are some updates on the new features weve been working on from inside the development factory

New Mechanic - Minecarts

A problem (and also a feature) we have been running up against when designing levels for Captain Contraptions is how do you cross production lines? In a game like Factorio or Satisfactory this is a simple problem, you cross lines in the third dimension - either build a tunnel or a bridge. In our game this isnt possible. One one hand this crossing of production lines is a key challenge we can play with when designing puzzles. It is quite satisfying to get all the timings just right and have your two lines narrowly miss each other. However, without some sort of crossing mechanic the design space for puzzles might become rather limited. Enter minecarts - the main thing we spent the last month working on. Minecarts are self propelled and will exist within levels moving across a fixed path. Youll then need to use these as part of your contraption design. Tunnels will then transport the carts and ingredients they carry behind the play area allowing you to cross production lines. There are also probably going to be some neat physics based puzzles we can create just with the carts themselves.
Watch it in Action

New Look - Backgrounds and Decals

We have also been working on the backgrounds for the game and washed them out a little, to make the quite busy foreground a bit easier to pick out. Also to add a little bit of texture and variety we have added some decals to the containers, you can see the new background and decals in the TikTok video below.
Watch it in action

Wishlist Progress

Currently we have 1,508 wishlists and our target for launch is 10,000. Thank-you to everyone who has already added the game to their wishlist. It really helps. Following the initial bump we received from the demo launch and the puzzle fest things have slowed down a fair bit, so if you have any friends you think might like the game please send them a link. Also if you know any streamers who you think might like the game - let me know in the comments.

[ 2023-08-08 14:32:51 CET ] [ Original post ]

Thanks to everyone who has given us feedback on the Captain Contraption's Chocolate Factory demo. It has been fantastic watching you all have fun with the game and we are starting to work on some changes based on your feedback. Have a play with the new version and let us know what you think in the forums or on discord. The main changes we have made, and the reasons behind them, are explained in this video.

Patch Notes - v0.23

• The order of levels has been changed.
• You no longer need to stick to the budget when building a contraption.
• Removed all scores and metrics other than efficiency and cost.
• Removed all leaderboards other than cost.
• Halved the number of ingredients to reduce the time taken to complete a level's objective.
• Added new tracks to the soundtrack and changed the behaviour and volume of music.
• Changed backgrounds in the main gameplay scene.
• Added various post processing effects.
• Added a delete item hotkey.
• Where possible the rotate button no longer moves when an item is rotated.
• Updated Unity version.

[ 2023-06-05 18:10:49 CET ] [ Original post ]

Thank-you so much for helping make the Captain Contraptions Chocolate Factory playtest such a success. We had some amazing feedback which has really helped us improve the game and now the demo is available to download! The demo has the games second floor with a bunch of new levels for you to check out. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/ For those of you new to the Pill Bug family - first welcome - we are two university lecturers from Wales, UK and have been making games together in our spare time for over 5 years. We've always involved our players in the development process and with Captain's we want to take that even further with this early demo release. I figured there would be some common questions about the playtest and wanted to answer some here, if you have any more questions please ask.

How do I play the demo?

Just hit download on the steam store page.

What's in the demo?

The playtest includes the first two major areas in the game including level modifiers which you'll unlock when you complete each area. It also has the level editor which we use to create levels, which means you can have a play with some of the later game items and share ideas with us and other players. Unfortunately it is not possible to enable the steam workshop for demos, but you can always export your levels and share the files with friends and on our discord.

Will things change much from the demo?

Possibly. The build is quite early which means we will be able to change things based on your feedback. Be sure to join our discord to let us know what you think, report bugs and just generally give us feedback.

How long will the demo last?

We won't be taking the demo down ever, but we might consider removing the second floor and level editor when we launch the full game. When we launch the game will depend on a number of things, but our aim is to use the demo to make sure the game is something people will want to buy and get good value out of when we launch. If enough people wish list the game then we might decide to launch the game before all the content is complete in Early Access, otherwise we will likely launch the game when it is finished. (of course we always add content to our games post release anyway)

Will you be patching the demo build and if so how often?

Yes, absolutely. The frequency will vary, the way we work is to work on the build based on your feedback. When we feel there is enough stuff to write an healthy patch notes post we will ship the update. We are going to spend a bit of time polishing the game as it is before we start adding new content and all those changes will come to the demo.

How can I support you?

There are lots of ways, from giving feedback, reporting bugs and just playing the game. The most direct way you can support us is through wishlisting the game and sharing it with your friends. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/ You can also support us by checking out some of our other games https://store.steampowered.com/app/1098220/Making_it_Home/ https://store.steampowered.com/app/749560/Cycle_28/

[ 2023-04-21 15:09:52 CET ] [ Original post ]

It's happening! The playtest for Captain Contraption's Chocolate Factory is here. For those of you new to the Pill Bug family - first welcome - we are two university lecturers from Wales, UK and have been making games together in our spare time for over 5 years. We've always involved our players in the development process and with Captain's we want to take that even further with this playtest. I figured there would be some common questions about the playtest and wanted to answer some here, if you have any more questions please ask.

How do I join the playtest?

Request access on the steam store page, then a playtest app should be added to your steam library.

What's in the playtest?

The playtest includes the first major area in the game including level modifiers which you'll unlock when you complete every level. It also has the level editor which we use to create levels, which means you can have a play with some of the later game items and share ideas with us and other players.

Is this playtest actually a beta or just one of those marketing things?

This playtest is 100% a beta. The build is quite early which means we will be able to change things significantly based on your feedback. Be sure to join our discord to let us know what you think, report bugs and just generally give us feedback.

How long will the playtest last?

As long as it needs to. This will depend on a number of things, but our aim is to use the playtest to make sure the game is something people will want to buy and get good value out of when we launch. If enough people wish list the game then we might decide to launch the game before all the content is complete in Early Access, otherwise we will likely launch the game when it is finished. (of course we always add content to our games post release anyway)

Will you be adding new levels to the playtest?

Probably not, our aim is to sell the game eventually so we don't want to give everything away right now. However, we will add features and new items which you can use in the level editor. For example, my plan is to implement steam workshop before the end of the playtest so we can really test it.

Will you be patching the playtest build and if so how often?

Yes, absolutely. The frequency will vary, the way we work is to work on the build based on your feedback and new things we want to add. When we feel there is enough stuff to write an healthy patch notes post we will ship the update.

How can I support you?

There are lots of ways, from giving feedback, reporting bugs and just playing the game. The most direct way you can support us is through wishlisting the game and sharing it with your friends. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2166920/Captain_Contraptions_Chocolate_Factory/ You can also support us by checking out some of our other games https://store.steampowered.com/app/1098220/Making_it_Home/ https://store.steampowered.com/app/749560/Cycle_28/

[ 2023-03-15 09:48:00 CET ] [ Original post ]