Skyward Collapse 1.903 Beta "Release Candidate 4" Released!

[x4000]

Original: http://arcengames.blogspot.com/2013/08/skyward-collapse-1903-beta-release.html

If you've not yet read about the general changes in the 1.4 beta line, now is a good time to do so. It's expected that we'll stay in beta for the new features until we release the 2.0 version of the game in late August, alongside the new Nihon no Mura expansion.  A lot is different in the base game since 1.4, so we want to make sure and give this time to mature before we put this out to everyone.

This one just more last-minute tuning prior to the upcoming 2.0 release.  There was one exploit with cultural victories, but aside from that nothing serious.  Things are looking good!

This release is the fourth "release candidate," which basically means we're into fine-tuning-only mode until this launches this week.  Probably Wednesday, but we'll keep you posted!

Enjoy!

This is a standard update that you can download through the  in-game updater itself, if you already have any version of the game.  When you  launch the game, you'll see the notice of the update having been found if you're connected to the Internet at the time.

[Misery]

Okay!  Here's one final bit of feedback from me before the expansion goes live.

From what I've seen, everything looks fine.  didn't run into any bugs in the game I just finished, and the costs of the god units arent insane anymore.  The Hamlet system also is pretty well balanced now, except for one little thing, which I'll get to in a moment.   

I went for a cultural victory this time, and I have to say, the Tower was a little easy to make.  Or, at least, it was easy to make with the strategy I used. The main thing was that the culture cost honestly seems too low, particularly considering some of the huge bonuses you can get if you set up the hamlets  right, and it only takes one wrecked town worth of hamlet space to do it rather quickly.   A ring of 8 nobles makes it so that Mayors or Temples give you 1000+ culture when placed (if they're at level 5).   Switch out that center tile when you can, either back and forth from temple and mayor, or drop some random thing like a rice field on top of the old one so you can drop a new one there of the same type.    Though I was also getting points from other things as well, but that was still a huge boost.  I ended up with some 7000 culture, which didn't take too long to get.  And this was AFTER having spent 4000 to stop a particularly nasty woe that had appeared.

The Sunstone, now, that part of the cost isnt trivial.  I had a large town that was almost entirely moon/sun buildings.  Lost count of how many of these I placed.

But yeah, I think the culture cost could do with being upped.  It wasnt too tough to simply defend the cities... not worrying about generating points or anything... while I built up the Sunstone farms and the hamlet.

A satisfying way to win, though, and very different from the military victory.


Other than that.... there's not much to say.   Though there are a couple of Japanese units that appear frequently out of bandit forts.  That's the only issue I encountered. 

And it sounds like you guys are just about to launch the expansion now?  A big congrats to you for that    It was one heck of a beta, that's for sure.   Here's hoping you get some good sales numbers offa this, as I think it came out being definitely worth it.  Good luck with that!

And then next up is Bionic Dues, that should be interesting, looking forward to that.

[nas1m]

From what I've seen, everything looks fine.  didn't run into any bugs in the game I just finished, and the costs of the god units arent insane anymore.  The Hamlet system also is pretty well balanced now, except for one little thing, which I'll get to in a moment.   

Seconded .

I went for a cultural victory this time, and I have to say, the Tower was a little easy to make.  Or, at least, it was easy to make with the strategy I used. The main thing was that the culture cost honestly seems too low, particularly considering some of the huge bonuses you can get if you set up the hamlets  right, and it only takes one wrecked town worth of hamlet space to do it rather quickly.   A ring of 8 nobles makes it so that Mayors or Temples give you 1000+ culture when placed (if they're at level 5).   Switch out that center tile when you can, either back and forth from temple and mayor, or drop some random thing like a rice field on top of the old one so you can drop a new one there of the same type.    Though I was also getting points from other things as well, but that was still a huge boost.  I ended up with some 7000 culture, which didn't take too long to get.  And this was AFTER having spent 4000 to stop a particularly nasty woe that had appeared.

The Sunstone, now, that part of the cost isnt trivial.  I had a large town that was almost entirely moon/sun buildings.  Lost count of how many of these I placed.

But yeah, I think the culture cost could do with being upped.  It wasnt too tough to simply defend the cities... not worrying about generating points or anything... while I built up the Sunstone farms and the hamlet.

A satisfying way to win, though, and very different from the military victory.

I noticed the fact that the culture part of the cost can be gathered fairly easy as well, although I figured that to be not much of an issue.
As I see it, Hamlets are supposed to be some kind of side quest and keeping the culture cost where it is now allows for two things (imho):

1. Keeping cultural victory an option requires the player to only meddle in Hamlets a reasonable bit instead of having to dedicate the whole game to it, which is cool I think
2. It allows the player to use some amount of the remaining culture stuff (i.e. large towns, super smite etc.) even if going for cultural victory

If cultural victory turns out to be too easy increasing the sun stone cost further (or adding another late game resource to the costs for that matter) would be a preferable solution (for the reasons given above)...

[x4000]

Thanks folks!  The 2.001 version is actually live, but I haven't posted about it because I'm waiting on Valve.  But in terms of ongoing balance with things like the cultural victory, obviously that won't end just because the expansion is out.  I only have so much time to dedicate to Skyward at the moment, but once there is some sort of consensus then we can start trying shifts.

Thanks again -- for everything.

[Teal_Blue]

Skyward is looking very very nice and the expansion i am liking alot, haha, although i  am not always getting the Japanese Gods right, or i should say the right one at the right time, my fault, i am more casual player than analyst and am not strategizing quite properly.     But still loads of fun!!

Also played my first Hamlet Idyll game and it was interesting to see how to add up the highest numbers and see if i could make the goal. I did and was relieved because at first i really didn't think i was going to get it. But was trying to think of some mechanism, or change that would make it a little (halfway?) more difficult and more enjoyable for that, but not too much. Randomize the numbers that come up and they're placement on which tile they apply to?  Have high counts push a chance of keeping higher counts, but having a lower count blow part of that and increase the chance of a low count? So that it would be good chance of keeping momentum, but not quite assured, that way good players can still make mistakes, or have them happen to them, and casual players can have luck fall in their laps, even if they are not making all the right choices.    Just some thoughts, you guys and gals know how to do this better than i can tell you, but i was thinking of just making it a little, a touch more difficult but not too hard. 

Really enjoying this expansion alot!! It really makes the game play very differently!!!
Looking forward to Bionic!!! 

-Teal


 

[Teal_Blue]

I will have to go back and look to see who said this, but someone brought up in connection with the Hamlet Idyll Mode that perhaps taking the numbers off the screen and having the game calculate the same as it does now, but it would mean a certain pattern building in the mind of the player, perhaps like chess players remember combinations.    Anyway, i thought they had a pretty good idea and thought i would second it if you think its worth looking at.

Of course there are lots of other ways to get there depending on what you feel is best and fits. 

-Teal