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TIGSource ForumsDeveloperPlaytestingEmerge: Cities of the Apocalypse
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vdweller
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« on: February 03, 2016, 09:03:25 AM »

Okay so I've been developing a game since 2012. There's some info below, please give the demo a whirl, tell me what you think. It would mean a lot. Specific feedback info is below.


A post-apocalyptic strategy/defense game

DOWNLOAD DEMO (version 0.9 b2):
Mediafire Link, 66.31 MP .zip, no install, no fullscreen

System Requirements: System Requirements: Pentium 4 3.4 MHz or better, 1 MB RAM, 256 MB Graphics card (nVidia GeForce 8800 GT / ATi Radeon HD 3870 or better)
OS: Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8 / 10
Warning! Do not play the game with a slower CPU! Likewise, playing with not enough RAM/VRAM will throw you "trying to draw non-existing surface" etc. errors. Pay attention to the Requirements!

Vote for the Game in Steam Greenlight! Click the logo below to go to the game's page!


TRAILER




Candidate Trailer for Steam Greenlight




KEY FEATURES:
EXPLORE AND EXPAND: Restore derelict metropolises, one turn at a time! How will you spend your Action Points this turn? Will you scout a nearby sector, then clean your weapons and check out a new recruit? Or will you patch the hole in your defenses and then blindly move into unexplored territory?

REDISCOVER LOST TECH: Plot your course over an expansive, multi-branched research tree! Bring forth scientific marvels, or start a second industrial revolution! Or perhaps, build a strong economy and make powerful alliances with merchants and mercenaries!

MANAGE YOUR TEAM: Choose your character class and find or recruit survivors. Gain experience and improve your team's skills and equipment. Find and buy tons of weapons, mods and usable items! But beware, for fighting the undead can be deadly...

BUILD AND FORTIFY: The Apocalypse has ravaged cities' infrastructure, and it's up to you to restore them. Construct improvements in captured sectors to empower your cause. Produce automated defenses to help you weaken or eliminate invading undead armies!

FIGHT THE UNDEAD ARMIES: As turns pass, more dangerous undead appear. From acid-spitting zombies to undead, armored soldiers, there are no limits to the horrors you will face. Set your snipers to aim for the head, have a bunch of grenades ready, and pray they don't reach your barricade in numbers!

UNLOCK THE FUTURE: Relieve the world from undeath in campaign or skirmish mode! Meet mysterious survivors and determine the outcome of random events! Unlock new areas, enemies, classes, bonuses and challenges and lots of extra content as you play!

SCREENSHOTS:


WEBSITE:
Official Website

SOCIAL:
Facebook
Twitter
IndieDB

BETA TESTERS AND SPECIFIC FEEDBACK WANTED!
1) You liked the demo? You like hunting for bugs and testing stuff? Want a free copy of the game when it gets out? Consider registering here and report the bug! Mantis Bug Tracking is a great system and it would really help to keep all reports in one place instead of reading lots of stuff in forums - it might help you too, since you can check if an issue has already been reported!

2) What about the game balance? A mission was too easy/hard? OP skills? Please let me know!


PERSONAL INFO
As of the time of writing this, I am 31 years old and live in the Post-Apocalypse that is Athens, Greece, hoping that things will take a turn for the better.
Known some years ago for Metal Venture, this is my first attempt at a full-fledged, commercial game. This game has been in development since 2012 and it's a solo effort. I even had to learn to draw/paint with a graphics tablet to make in-game pictures!
« Last Edit: February 19, 2016, 06:42:25 AM by vdweller » Logged

vdweller
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« Reply #1 on: February 11, 2016, 03:44:41 AM »

An overview of the game's main character classes and their abilities
 
When a new game is started, three classes are immediately available: The Engineer, the Scientist and the Bounty Hunter. Each class focuses on a specific aspect of the game.
 
There is a huge variety of names and portraits for every character. Players can choose their portrait and enter their own name. Additionally, there are over 4,000 female and 1,200 male names available, either for naming your character or for the game to randomly name characters you find!
 

Male portraits
 

Female portraits
 
 
Below is a description of each one of the starting classes.
 
Raising steam

 
Engineers are skilled individuals who understand how things work and have put their expertise towards rebuilding their environment. A solid class with a defensive orientation.
 
LEADER SPECIAL ABILITY: Repair items have +50% effectiveness.
 
CLASS SPECIAL ABILITY: +10% defense power and toughness.
 
Engineers are trained in Small Guns, Big Guns and Shotguns.
 
Other Skills: Targeting, Debilitator, Knockback, Defender, Last stand, Readiness, Steady, Dangerous bullet, Harden defense, Empower defense, Salvager, Thorough, Repairman, Overtime, Weaponsmith, Engineering, Piercer
 
Class overview: Some people believe that the best offense is a good defense. At some point things in combat may get out of control, with lots and lots of undead dealing damage to the barricade quickly. Engineer's special ability of extra repairing during combat can save your skin! Also, automated defenses can play a critical role in the game: Based on your Production, each turn you manufacture defenses that you have researched. At the end of each turn, if an enemy army moves into territory you own, your automated defenses engage them first. They can cause major casualties in the undead ranks, or completely eradicate them! Engineers have production-boosting skills and defense empowering skills, making them masters of this particular style of gameplay.
 

A male and female engineer in combat
 
 
At 1.21 gigawatts

 
The future of mankind dwells inside the brilliant minds of scientists. Though not as combat-oriented as other classes, scientists posess a slew of practical skills and can contribute to rapid technological advancements.
 
LEADER SPECIAL ABILITY: Breakthrough: +10 research for 1 turn for 2 AP.
 
CLASS SPECIAL ABILITY: +4-8 crystals each turn.
 
Scientists are trained in Small Guns and Energy Weapons.
 
Other Skills: Leadership, Eagle eye, Presence, Readiness, Dangerous bullet, Harden defense, Empower defense, Tech hunter, Crystal farmer, Diplomat, Thorough, Prodigy, Scavenger, Estates, Treasure hunter, Intuition, Salvager
 
Class overview: If you want to carve through the tech tree like you learned all that stuff in the Apocalypse High School, scientists are your type of hero. Their Breakthrough ability makes early-game research projects trivial, and their research-boosting skills further enhance their potential. Also, the steady income of crystals as well as their Crystal Farmer skill help speed up crystal production. Crystals are essential for unlocking more team slots, can be converted to money and can also be used as currency in certain special events. And last but not least, their expertise in Energy Weapons makes armored enemies much less of an issue later in the game.
 

A male and female scientist in combat
 
 
Let the hunt begin

 
Since the Apocalypse, most bounty hunters have had trouble with the "dead" part of "dead or alive" contracts. But those few who persevered are now known as legendary undead exterminators. A powerful combat class complemented with wealth-boosting skills.
 
LEADER SPECIAL ABILITY: Double bonus from Corpse Loot skill.
 
CLASS SPECIAL ABILITY: On a critical/weak spot hit, +10% damage and reload speed for 5 seconds.
 
Bounty hunters are trained in Crossbows, Rifles and Big Guns.
 
Other Skills: Targeting, Critical strike, Critical damage, Debilitator, Sharpshooter, Eagle eye, Farshot, Steady, Hand of death, Piercer, Crossbow training, Bazaar child, Scavenger, Agile, Treasure hunter, Intuition, Corpse loot
 
Class overview: Extra damage AND money-making skills? Count me in! In combat, almost every undead type has a weak spot (usually the head but do expect surprises). Also the Critical Strike skill grants a chance to score a devastating hit even when not targeting a weak spot! When Bounty hunters score a critical or a weak spot hit, mayhem ensues. Subsequent critical/weak spot hits can preserve this bonus indefinitely! Also, bounty hunters come with skills enhancing your Economy (the amount of credits you gain each turn) and other skills influencing merchant prices, money from capturing sectors and many more! Finally, their enhanced Corpse loot skill makes them gain even more credits from killing zombies in combat!
 

A male and female bounty hunter in combat
 
 
These are the starting classes. Each one makes you plan ahead in different ways, and even recruiting them in your team can alter the way you progress!
 
As players get deeper into the game, more classes are unlocked. From the half-crazy but resourceful Wastelander to the hideous, time-slowing Touched, you can never predict who you will have at your side in the next city!
 
Would you like a sneak peek of more classes and their abilities? Leave a post below!
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« Reply #2 on: February 18, 2016, 02:25:44 AM »

A new, shorter game trailer is ready. Depending on its reception, this will probably be the featuring video in the upcoming Steam Greenlight submission. If you think it's OK for that purpose, let me know!



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« Reply #3 on: February 19, 2016, 06:42:40 AM »

HUGE UPDATE!

The game has been submitted to Steam Greenlight! Please show your support and vote for it! Clicking the logo below will take you to the game's Greenlight page!

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« Reply #4 on: February 23, 2016, 10:33:55 PM »

Heya!

I tried the demo, it's presented very professionally and was enjoyable. Here's a few scattered thoughts about the game I had:

* I liked that random events occurred when exploring. Would it be possible to give the player choices with randomized outcomes when they happen? I started the tutorial and got an event where I encountered some kids gambling near a pigeon head, and shooed them away/took their money without having a say in the matter. I understand that it might be late in the game's development to revamp that though, so no worries if so.

* At one point one of my sectors with a defense turret automatically stopped a zombie attack. Would it be possible to maybe have an "auto-resolve" choice that does the same thing, just in case I want to manually enter combat in those situations in an attempt to minimize damages?

* I was a little confused how the defense turrets worked. Would it maybe be easier to have slots for them on each sector like buildings, where you can equip them to needed sectors?

EDIT: after playing for a bit longer, I understood how they worked. I guess the previous suggestion wouldn't be ideal, since they're spread throughout all your sectors. Maybe instead have "sector mods", like weapon mods, that are attached to buildings? They could do offensive/defensive things like: increase your barricade strength, cause enemies who attack your barricades to flinch if they're above 45 strength, cause shots that miss weak points to occasionally stun enemies, boost damage per the first 5 enemies onscreen, etc.
 
* Being able to recruit and manage my own team of survivors is a great feature. Would it be possible to maybe expand the roster up to 8 or so, provided they stand behind/next to other members on each "section" of the battlefield barricades? I thought it would give more of an end-game economic goal to work for.

* Just throwing this out there, but the music was really good and relaxing. I liked how ambient it was, and the varied instruments did a good job of conveying a somber mood while still prodding you to go on.

Hopefully that helps, good luck getting your game greenlit!
« Last Edit: February 23, 2016, 11:54:47 PM by Tyro » Logged

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« Reply #5 on: February 24, 2016, 04:27:38 AM »

Thanks! Youve got some good points there, lemme see if I can adress them.

Quote
* I liked that random events occurred when exploring. Would it be possible to give the player choices with randomized outcomes when they happen? I started the tutorial and got an event where I encountered some kids gambling near a pigeon head, and shooed them away/took their money without having a say in the matter. I understand that it might be late in the game's development to revamp that though, so no worries if so.

There are many random events that can appear every new turn. In these events, you get to choose what to do. They are different from exploration events.



Quote
Maybe instead have "sector mods", like weapon mods, that are attached to buildings? They could do offensive/defensive things like: increase your barricade strength, cause enemies who attack your barricades to flinch if they're above 45 strength, cause shots that miss weak points to occasionally stun enemies, boost damage per the first 5 enemies onscreen, etc.

New content is added even now. While "sector mods" are unlikely to be implemented, there are many new items/abilities to alter how battles are played, like stealth detector items for revealing stealthed enemies. Also, there is already an improvement (Basic and Advanced Reinforcement) that does strengthen your barricades permanently all over your territory, as well as many technologies focusing on defense.

Quote
* Being able to recruit and manage my own team of survivors is a great feature. Would it be possible to maybe expand the roster up to 8 or so, provided they stand behind/next to other members on each "section" of the battlefield barricades? I thought it would give more of an end-game economic goal to work for.

The maximum amount of team members in a battle is 4 plus a mercenary that can be summoned for 6 Action Points for 1 turn (you need to research this ability). I think it's a good number. Members not currently in your team sitting in the recruit pool can be of use in case a team member dies, or if some ability they have is sorely needed. In addition, the Populist character class offers bonuses depending on your "inactive" member pool size.

Quote
* Just throwing this out there, but the music was really good and relaxing. I liked how ambient it was, and the varied instruments did a good job of conveying a somber mood while still prodding you to go on.

Glad you liked the music! I am currently collaborating with a composer for adding dynamic combat music. The more the zombies, the more tense the music will be.

Also, I took a look at your Greenlight project and voted Yes. Good luck!
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« Reply #6 on: February 29, 2016, 09:13:46 AM »

The game was featured in an article at Rock paper Shotgun! yay!
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« Reply #7 on: March 09, 2016, 08:20:16 AM »

PRESS REVIEW ROUNDUP #1
 
(English language Websites/Youtube channels) 
 
Rock, Paper, Shotgun 
"I know what you’re thinking: that you’ve seen some free flash games that do the same thing. And you’re not entirely wrong, but I haven’t seen one myself that does it this well, or that has this much going on." 
 
Games Ring
"It’s quite clear that Emilios Manolidis has put a lot of effort into this project [...] After all, solo development projects are by no means an easy task, but it’s clear that this guy has worked his butt off to provide a finished product worthy of being played." 
 



"It's greater than the sum of its parts" 
 
(Non-English language Websites - don't expect quotes here Smiley
 
GREECE: 
GameWorld
Toprazer
 
SLOVAKIA: 
Sector
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« Reply #8 on: March 12, 2016, 01:50:31 AM »

The game was Greenlit just Yesterday. Once again, thanks to all who supported it during the Greenlight campaign.
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« Reply #9 on: April 13, 2016, 01:23:52 PM »

Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse will be released in Steam on April 27 2016. Trading Cards, Cloud Saves, Stats & Achievements are supported.
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