Savagepocalypse – From the (1.X) Ashes

⚔ HAIL Barbarians! ⚔

This update is a complicated one, and while it does not contain a massive amount of new content, it changes a massive amount of stuff under the hood thanks to a necessary move to GMS2 (I was developing on GMS 1.X).

Ticking Time Bomb

It recently came to my attention that games made with GMS 1.X were behaving strangely, ir not refusing to even load, thanks to the recent batch of Windows 10 updates. Some developers still using that version of GameMaker weren’t even able to open GameMaker due to said Windows 10 updates. This sort of made the decision to move to GMS2 for me, as it is now definitely a ticking time bomb!

This has been a bit of a frustrating move (like any leap to a new development environment), and has felt largely like a step backward, but I think I’ve got things relatively under control now. There are a handful of things that still need to be updated for Savage to fully play nice with GMS2, which are listed below. The new move brings some positive new things, too, like GMS2’s wicked fast/mega optimized tile system, and a much better compile using their “YYC” compiler to produce builds of the game. Sprites actually also now scale and look better and more “correct” on the 3D overworld map.

New Launch Options

The game now uses a new installer, and I have tested saves from GMS 1 versions of the game with updated GMS2 builds, and I didn’t run into any issues. That doesn’t mean you won’t though – so, very sorry if you do, and it might mean you need to start a new game.

To test some of this, I added a Beta branch via Steam, so if you want to opt into it, you will be able to play some of the more wacky and unstable stuff before it’s cleaned up. To access this, go to your Steam library, right click on Savage. Find “Properties”, go to the “Betas” tab to the left in the new window that pops up, then select the “savagebetabranch” option from the dropdown menu. Enter the beta access code “goremonger17” in the field below, and click “Check Code”. From now on, you should have the option of running the beta branch when launching the game.

Other New Stuff

I’ve managed to squeeze in a few other improvements, fixes, and new bits of content in this update as well. Highlights include several new weapons, new rooms and save locations in existing stages, and an update to combat related collisions, especially making parrying more forgiving (it behaves more like how I think it should) and generally feeling better.

It won’t be long now til I can get back on track with proper content updates. Until then, here are the patch notes, have a great weekend, and thanks very much for your support! ⚔

-  Matt

SAVAGE 2.6.1 Patch Notes – First GMS2 Build

BUG FIXES

·         Dozens of fixes to things that were broken because of the move to GMS2, like:

o    Crashes

o   Visual issues

o   Strange and incorrect timings across things like alarms and frame counts

o   Incorrect math causing strange behavior

o   Events now triggering in a different order

o   Overworld map visual issues

o   etc.

o   Some of the above have a happy coincidence of improving or fixing things that I didn’t realize were already janky/broken in some way

·         Changed certain item names and quest descriptions to be less confusing/more informative

·         Fixed Hurlbats spawning when they should not be from containers and other breakables (AGAIN)

·         Fixed player melee interacting with enemy shields strangely, especially when colliding with both an enemy shield and an enemy

·         Fixed Kuchvek’s Crossing platforms not being destroyed when they should

·         Fixed wrong armor sprite drawing on player when using certain types of consumables

·         Fixed having X amount of Ore, then using a forge and your Ore dropping (or increasing) to 4

·         Fixed snowfall drawing incorrectly on worldmap

·         Fixed a very old floating coordinate problem for moveable/grabbable blocks and solids

·         Fixed moveable solids not moving correctly when stacked

·         Fixed several bad enemy corpse hitboxes across several enemy types that were incorrect

·         Fixed and cleaned up a few sprite errors

·         Fixed exiting water when swimming making it very difficult (sometimes impossible) to grab a nearby ledge

·         Continued to fix certain items not respawning after they have been collected (treasure chests, Tribute Pieces, etc.)

NEW STUFF

·         Added several new weapons

·         New drop and treasure locations

·         Updated loot tables for certain enemies

·         Certain unique items will only drop from unique enemies

·         New save rooms and save spots in certain locations

·         New gear that can be “REFORGED”

·         Started work on a “Gosen Wiki” which I will post soon, organizing locations, characters, enemies, gear, items, etc.

IMPROVEMENTS

·         Savage now supports 64 bit OS

·         Added a “Beta Branch” via Steam

·         The game now compiles in the much more optimized and powerful “YoYo Compiler”

·         Savage now uses a more stable Installer (with nice crispy Savage graphics)

·         Light tuning to a few rooms as far as enemy locations and item locations

CATCHUP WORK FOR GMS2

·         Rooms need to be rebuilt thanks to the change from old tile system to new tyle/sprite/asset system

·         Remove old “depth” system and update to the new “layer” system

·         Remove/change old instance creation code and update it to the new functions to play nice with the new GMS2 layer system

·         Remove certain textures from old tilesets and make them their own sprites so they can be placed freely in rooms (GMS2 now only allows grid placement with tiles)

·         3D Worldmap transparency issues (objects and water not drawing if semi-transparent cloud is in front of them)