This is a small update to the game which adds support for game controllers. Currently the game only supports the Xbox 360 controller (and 3rd party compatible controllers) on Windows but on OS X and Linux it supports a wide variety of controllers including the PS3 and PS4 ones.

Controls
Xbox Style Game Controllers

• Left Stick: Moves the cursor
  
• Right Stick: (Iin-game) Moves the camera around
  
• Triggers: (in-game) Zooms the camera in and out
  
• A Button: Left mouse click/(in-game) places a waypoint
  
• B Button: (in-game) Delete waypoint
  
• X Button: (in-game) Rewind to start of turn
  
• Y Button: (in-game) Play preview
  
• Bumpers: (in-game) Switch between players
  
• Start Button: (in-game) Prime turn
  
• Dpad Up/Down: (in-game) Switch between waypoints
  
• Dpad Left/Right: (in-game) Add/remove time from waypoint
  

• Left Stick: Moves the cursor
  
• Right Stick: (Iin-game) Moves the camera around
  
• R2/L2 Buttons: (in-game) Zooms the camera in and out
  
• Button: Left mouse click/(in-game) places a waypoint
  
• Button: (in-game) Delete waypoint
  
• Button: (in-game) Rewind to start of turn
  
• Button: (in-game) Play preview
  
• R1/L1 buttons: (in-game) Switch between players
  
• Start/Options Button: (in-game) Prime turn
  
• Dpad Up/Down: (in-game) Switch between waypoints
  
• Dpad Left/Right: (in-game) Add/remove time from waypoint
  

This is a small update to the game which adds support for game controllers. Currently the game only supports the Xbox 360 controller (and 3rd party compatible controllers) on Windows but on OS X and Linux it supports a wide variety of controllers including the PS3 and PS4 ones.

Controls
Xbox Style Game Controllers

• Left Stick: Moves the cursor
  
• Right Stick: (Iin-game) Moves the camera around
  
• Triggers: (in-game) Zooms the camera in and out
  
• A Button: Left mouse click/(in-game) places a waypoint
  
• B Button: (in-game) Delete waypoint
  
• X Button: (in-game) Rewind to start of turn
  
• Y Button: (in-game) Play preview
  
• Bumpers: (in-game) Switch between players
  
• Start Button: (in-game) Prime turn
  
• Dpad Up/Down: (in-game) Switch between waypoints
  
• Dpad Left/Right: (in-game) Add/remove time from waypoint
  

• Left Stick: Moves the cursor
  
• Right Stick: (Iin-game) Moves the camera around
  
• R2/L2 Buttons: (in-game) Zooms the camera in and out
  
• ✖ Button: Left mouse click/(in-game) places a waypoint
  
• ◯ Button: (in-game) Delete waypoint
  
• ◼ Button: (in-game) Rewind to start of turn
  
• ▲ Button: (in-game) Play preview
  
• R1/L1 buttons: (in-game) Switch between players
  
• Start/Options Button: (in-game) Prime turn
  
• Dpad Up/Down: (in-game) Switch between waypoints
  
• Dpad Left/Right: (in-game) Add/remove time from waypoint
  

Two important things to point out from the Manager Update:

- There's now an Easy Mode which lets you see the AI's plans before they are committed. This is a great way to help new players learn the game, so if you see anyone struggling to get started then point them in that direction.

- The previous League modes which were available from the Single Player Menu are STILL THERE! They're now available by clicking "Basic Leagues" on the right-hand side of the Single Player menu.

Two important things to point out from the Manager Update:

- There's now an Easy Mode which lets you see the AI's plans before they are committed. This is a great way to help new players learn the game, so if you see anyone struggling to get started then point them in that direction.

- The previous League modes which were available from the Single Player Menu are STILL THERE! They're now available by clicking "Basic Leagues" on the right-hand side of the Single Player menu.

Hello,

Were happy to announce that Frozen Cortex Manager is launching today: its a free update to the game.

Its effectively a new league mode which has a much more in-depth simulation to the other modes. Heres a breakdown:

• Simulate games with full AI in a convenient top-down view
  
• Players have mechanical failures and injuries! My favourite is serious head disconnection
  
• Lots and lots and lots of stats for individual matches and the entire season
  
• Manage your team and jiggle your salary cap
  
• Bid against other teams for free agents
  
• 90-team college league, college draft and end-of-season megatournament
  
• New betting options; bet on the C.O.L.L.E.G.E. league and on the GCL
  
• Spend your gambling winnings on visual customisation for your team
  
• Boost your salary cap with good performance and try to become a dynasty team
  
• We also fixed a load of bugs and put in a couple of little features: the biggest one is allowing you to skip the 3D outcomes - we listened!
  

Hello,

We’re happy to announce that Frozen Cortex Manager is launching today: it’s a free update to the game.

It’s effectively a new league mode which has a much more in-depth simulation to the other modes. Here’s a breakdown:

• Simulate games with full AI in a convenient top-down view
  
• Players have mechanical failures and injuries! My favourite is “serious head disconnection”
  
• Lots and lots and lots of stats for individual matches and the entire season
  
• Manage your team and jiggle your salary cap
  
• Bid against other teams for free agents
  
• 90-team college league, college draft and end-of-season megatournament
  
• New betting options; bet on the C.O.L.L.E.G.E. league and on the GCL
  
• Spend your gambling winnings on visual customisation for your team
  
• Boost your salary cap with good performance and try to become a dynasty team
  
• We also fixed a load of bugs and put in a couple of little features: the biggest one is allowing you to skip the 3D outcomes - we listened!
  

Here's a note from our Lead Designer and Programmer Ian...

Hey guys.

Our big single player update has been released on the "staging2" branch on Steam on Windows - (right click the game, properties, betas, then select staging2).

It's pretty big - it has full AI simming of other matches, a salary cap, player bidding, injuries, player stats, AI strategy stettings, a 90 team college league with players leaving for a GCL draft, and more.

Please play it and give lots of feedback so we can polish it up nicely for proper release.

To get there, choose the middle Single player option (Global Cortex League) and then either choose Manager Easy or Manager from the next menu. (Right now easy only allows you to see AI plans in matches.)

Thanks,
Ian

Here's a note from our Lead Designer and Programmer Ian...

Hey guys.

Our big single player update has been released on the "staging2" branch on Steam on Windows - (right click the game, properties, betas, then select staging2).

It's pretty big - it has full AI simming of other matches, a salary cap, player bidding, injuries, player stats, AI strategy stettings, a 90 team college league with players leaving for a GCL draft, and more.

Please play it and give lots of feedback so we can polish it up nicely for proper release.

To get there, choose the middle Single player option (Global Cortex League) and then either choose Manager Easy or Manager from the next menu. (Right now easy only allows you to see AI plans in matches.)

Thanks,
Ian

We've put out a patch that will hopefully fix the crashes people have been experiencing on OS X.

We also put out another patch earlier today which fixed the issues some people had with their saves on Knockout Easy.

We've put out a patch that will hopefully fix the crashes people have been experiencing on OS X.

We also put out another patch earlier today which fixed the issues some people had with their saves on Knockout Easy.

Many apologies to those of you who have experienced crashes when loading games in this mode - we are uploading a fix now for Windows and other platforms will get this later today.

You will need to start a new Knockout Easy game once the patch is installed.

Once again, sorry about this. If you have any other issues with the game please contact support@mode7games.com

Many apologies to those of you who have experienced crashes when loading games in this mode - we are uploading a fix now for Windows and other platforms will get this later today.

You will need to start a new Knockout Easy game once the patch is installed.

Once again, sorry about this. If you have any other issues with the game please contact support@mode7games.com

"Hey guys - thanks for buying and playing Frozen Cortex.

We've got a couple of major issues that we're addressing right now. The most major is the OSX crash which a lot of you are seeing - we should have a patch for this by tomorrow evening. My apologies that this one got through. Those affected should crash much less/not at all on "low" graphics settings, but that's not really any kind of fix - just letting you know. We'll have this sorted out within 48 hours.

I've also seen a couple of single player crashes reported - we will release an update later this week (as early as tuesday if possible but I'll see how easy it is to replicate those reports) solving those issues.

After that there are a couple of more minor gameplay annoyances that have been reported - I'll try to get those addressed this week as well.

One that has been reported a couple of times is the AI illegally throwing over a high block. I'm almost certain this is how it looks in the Outcome but not what's actually happened - but I will be addressing all reports.

When reporting a bug please follow the instructions here:

http://forums.mode7games.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=10494

Thanks again,
Ian"

"Hey guys - thanks for buying and playing Frozen Cortex.

We've got a couple of major issues that we're addressing right now. The most major is the OSX crash which a lot of you are seeing - we should have a patch for this by tomorrow evening. My apologies that this one got through. Those affected should crash much less/not at all on "low" graphics settings, but that's not really any kind of fix - just letting you know. We'll have this sorted out within 48 hours.

I've also seen a couple of single player crashes reported - we will release an update later this week (as early as tuesday if possible but I'll see how easy it is to replicate those reports) solving those issues.

After that there are a couple of more minor gameplay annoyances that have been reported - I'll try to get those addressed this week as well.

One that has been reported a couple of times is the AI illegally throwing over a high block. I'm almost certain this is how it looks in the Outcome but not what's actually happened - but I will be addressing all reports.

When reporting a bug please follow the instructions here:

http://forums.mode7games.com/viewtopic.php?f=39&t=10494

Thanks again,
Ian"

Firstly, thanks so much for your support of Frozen Cortex during our launch. We have heard a lot of positive feedback from the community and this means a huge amount to us.

We're aware that some players are having crashes in the OSX version of the game: we have a good idea of what is causing this and a patch will be issued on Monday. Many, many apologies for this issue - please bear with us until we get it fixed.

If you have any other problems with the game please contact support@mode7games.com and someone will try and get back to you as quickly as possible.

Thanks

Paul

Mode 7

Hello,

The biggest update to Frozen Cortex is finally here!

Here's a trailer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VelA3W5DxQ4

This update adds Knockout, a kind of rogue-likey-likey permadeath type mode. Get as far as you can without losing a single match, using only limited (and somewhat randomised) player upgrades each week. Rewards will come for doing specific things in matches: it’s up to you to figure out what those are. It’s pretty hard, but a lot less annoying than a kind of massive, vague flaccid league mode.

Also available is the somewhat-less-hardcore Global Cortex League mode, a more traditional league where the aim of the game is simply to do as well as you can in a season. Earn cash to buy new shiny robot players.

Finally, there’s the Random League mode which pits you against a vast array of randomly-generated teams. This is the Wild West of Cortex. If you happen to like massive vague flaccid league modes...then this is for you! Except it’s really good. Yes.

Each one of these modes has sub-modes with various difficulty settings and rule variants, including Timed Turns: think speed chess with more robot punching. There’s also Killer where you can knock your opponent’s robots out of the game with a single hit.

A vast number of unique players have been added: you receive these players as upgrades in Knockout, or you can purchase them with your winnings from matches (or in-game gambling) in the League modes.

Story Things

Also featured for the first time is Frozen Cortex’s narrative. A scandal in the Global Cortex League threatens to undermine the entire game and might just be connected to the fate of the entire country…

The narrative develops as the player plays their matches, persisting between playthroughs and between Knockout and Global Cortex League mode. We’ve tried to tell an involving story while still allowing the player to dip in and out of whichever mode they wish.

Every team has its own AI coach, from Colonel Ruth Levine of the Armed Forces to Administrator Nomura from the media conglomerate SXT Vision. Each coach has their own unique set of hundreds of in-game barks which are tied into the game’s AI calculations: the AI will complain when it knows you’re going to score; mock you when you’ve boxed yourself into a corner; carefully explain that there was a better direction you could have chosen…

Customisation Things

Robot faces, robot armour, robot hats (yes, really), loads of unique stadiums, massive statue trophy things to adorn said stadiums (stadia? Probably.) These are available in both single player and multiplayer, so you can intimidate your opponents online with your giant pink holographic trousers.

Tweaks and Stuff

There’s a whole host of little things in this build: one of our favourites is the “full replay” which enables you to watch your entire match back in the 3D Outcome Mode.

What's Happening Now

We're now working hard on bug-fixing so that we can get the game ready for release. Please do continue to post bugs on the forums http://forums.mode7games.com/ here and also email support@mode7games.com

We really want the game to be polished and perfect for release do please do flag anything, especially any game-breaking issues.

Thanks so much for supporting Frozen Cortex through its development and for bearing with us during this final push!

We have a big update to the game including new single player stuff arriving next week. Soon we'll be into final bug fixing in earnest as we move towards launch - thanks so much for your support so far - we're working hard on getting the game finished.

Hi,

We're altering the behaviour of the camera based on user feedback.

Here are our current plans:

- Camera starts in the same place as it does now

- Rolling the mouse-wheel forwards interpolates between this and a top-down, quite-far-away camera that provides more of an overview, as opposed to a top-down closer camera

- POSSIBLY after that point has been reached, rolling the mouse wheel forwards moves the camera closer to the pitch

- POSSIBLY zoom controls are available on a modifier key

I'd appreciate any thoughts you have on this issue.

We've been quiet for a while on Cortex as a huge amount of stuff is happening behind the scenes.

Here's what we're currently working on:

- Main bug list
- Making and implementing GUI assets for single player
- Additional "hologram" player armour
- Variable player faces
- Single player story mode narrative content
- In-game character-specific text content

We've recently completed:

- Single player "story mode" structure, gameplay implementation and early balance pass

- Single and multiplayer league mode structure, options and GUI stuff (this was a mammoth task)

A lot of this stuff will be wrapped up into a large update for the beta: no specific timeframe on that yet.

Here's a sneaky bit of concept art which gives away some team and character names in the single player: http://imgur.com/8lQu28Z

Also a screenshot showing off randomly generated "greebles" and circuits on blocks, plus block combination that makes the playfield look a lot nicer: http://i.imgur.com/istETnQ.jpg

Thanks for sticking with the game - we like to update slowly and in big chunks which I know can be annoying. There's a lot happening though and I hope you like this new stuff when it's released into the beta.

We've renamed the game and changed some elements of the aesthetic: it's still the same gameplay but we've made a few tweaks!

You can read about the decision here and I hope you like the new update which is hitting later today. Here's what's coming:

Here’s what’s in the update:

- OSX and Linux versions
- New pitch, ball and animations
- Completely overhauled AI including much faster performance and much more intelligent play
- Five new stadiums
- Significant performance improvements: frame rate should be 50-100% improved on most hardware
- Big loading time improvements

UI improvements:

- Throwing UI improved
- Intelligent interception-radius rendering
- indicator for whether a move location is “safe” or not
- Minor rules changes to reduce the need to “keep playing when the match is clearly over”; other gameplay improvements
- Quite a few new gameplay options to play around with in the Custom Game editor.
- Significantly updated in-game commentary text
- Other minor changes