Stellar Monarch version 1.29

Version 1.29 released

November version focuses on two things. Making native alien population actually provide some in-game effect and replacing remaining icons with the new pixel perfect style. Also many icons/buttons were fine tuned and improved in terms of consistency, intuitiveness and visibility.

– [feature] Native alien population provide bonus to Farms and Mines output proportional to the number of natives.
– [feature] Advanced Customization option for extra native alien population.

– [balance] Presence of native population chance and quantity redone. Natives are never present on Terra (since Terrans are the original natives of this planet). Never on Barren and Lava, unlikely on Ice. Abundant (both chance and quantity of natives) on Jungle, Swamp, Terran planet types. Note this does not affect old saves since native population is generated on game start.
– [balance] Overall native population is more abundant in the galaxy. Note this does not affect old saves since native population is generated on game start.

– [interface] Faction symbols replaced with hand crafted pixel perfect art.
– [interface] Population icons (Terran, Civilized Aliens, Hostile Aliens, Natives) redone. Now it shows “heads” and overall is more intuitive (hostile aliens not only are marked red but also have vicious faces which should incite your natural urge to exterminate them on sight which is consistent with game effects :D). Also done used pixel perfect art.
– [interface] Interface elements (scroller, close, help) adjusted.
– [interface] Improved population display on planets (no 0m Terrans listed if there are no Terrans, which means a less cluttered interface).

Stellar Monarch version 1.28

Version 1.28 released

October version got improved graphics and interface. The small stuff that was considered too low priority until now. Also a new nameset (Eastern ethnic group).

– [interface] Top menu icons redone (credits, upkeep, stormtroopers, minerals, food, gas, etc). These were redone by a proper pixelartist.
– [interface] Scroller up/down icon buttons, close button icon, help button icon redone.
– [interface] Adjusted minimap bottom buttons sizes and position.

– [misc] Eastern ethnic group got a new nameset (Czech-like sounding). This nameset will be put in to courtier random name generator when Eastern ethnic group is selected (Ethnic Customization option available upon game start).

Stellar Monarch version 1.27

Version 1.27 released

September version introduced ethnic groups. A purely cosmetic feature which allows you to choose the feel of the names for your courtiers and other imperial officials. All namesets have been divided into 3 ethnic groups. Western group which holds names typical for Western Europe and North America, Eastern group which holds names typical for Eastern Europe and Oriental group which holds names typical to Asia. Also, if you want all of them at once you can use Mixed group. It allows you to adjust the feel of the game and it has no impact on the gameplay. In addition there are traditional small improvements, fixes, etc.

– [feature] Ethnic customization button added to the new game screen which holds cosmetic adjustments options.
– [feature] Ethnic groups introduced (Ethnic customization button). Now you can select Western, Eastern or Oriental ethnic group for your empire which determine the names for all characters. You can also select Mixed ethnic group which will use all those at once.

– [misc] Better names for characters (name generator prefers shorter first name + last name combinations so those fit better and a bigger font can be used in most cases).

– [balance] Different starting stats based on courtier’s faction (Economists tend te be less corrupted, Cancellists more loyal, Traditionalists more competent; Warlords and Genetechnologists no changes). It should add a bit of immersion (like Traditionalists who are the descendants of the old aristocracy being more apt to rule but not so loyal while Cancellists being bureaucrats who want no trouble and therefore being more loyal). It also allows you to predict slightly what to expect when you look at the faction affiliation of a courtier.

– [interface] Additional accessories for males (goggles, monocles).

– [fix] Emperor’s genetic makeup list in the chancellor screen not matching the genetic picks (it was a cosmetic problem only since the perks were accounted properly, so this fix just repairs the list of perks display).
– [fix] Small fixes.

Automobile Tycoon version 1.00

Version 1.00 released

Today Automobile Tycoon leaves Early Access with the release of the final version 1.00. All bugs and issues reported during the EA have been fixed and the game is ready to be played by regular players now. I would like to thank all players who participated in the EA for their reports and comments and for trying the game of course.

The game is getting a standard post release support, like my other games, for the upcoming years. It means especially critical bug fixes.

– [misc] Polish and cleanup preparing for the final release (upgraded engine, removed remaining testers notices and options, minor alterations of the interface, final testing)

Stellar Monarch version 1.26

Version 1.26 released

August version is all about interface. Numerous small changes aimed to make it more consistent, intuitive and easier to use. There is also a new “find planet” option on the list of planets screen, useful if you remember only the planet name and wish to find it quickly.

– [misc] default names for all fleets (a small thing but it’s more consistent for all fleets to have a default name upon game start).

– [interface] Reports tabs remember their position (requested by players).
– [interface] Find planet by name input box on list planets screen.
– [interface] New input text boxes (rename planet, rename fleet, save filename, etc). More intuitive and consistent with the one you have in your OS.
– [interface] Mouse cursor changes when hovering over a hyperlink. More intuitive and consistent with the one you have in your OS.

Legends of Amberland: The Forgotten Crown

I would like to announce a new game I’m working on. It’s a classic, old-school, party-based RPG for PC.

Inspiration:
The game is a classic western RPG inspired by the games from the 90s. Basically, it’s the kind of game I personally find missing nowadays. Light, fairy tale, epic, heroic and slightly humorous. One that does not take tons of hours to complete or require endless grind to progress. Something that caters to players like me who don’t have 40 hours to beat one game but still like to play and have a sort of nostalgia for the way games were made in the old days.

It was inspired by Dungeon Master, Eye of The Beholder 2, Might & Magic 3-5, Crystals of Arborea (a not so well known prequel to Ishar series), GoldBox series (Champions of Krynn, Dark Queen of Krynn, etc).

Core design choices:
1) Classic, 90 degree rotation, FPP, turn-based, tile movement RPG.
2) Party-based (7 party members assembled upon start).
3) Open world with a big overworld to explore.
4) Fast paced combat. Quick travel. Easy inventory management. No grind.
5) Light, fairy tale like fantasy, epic story about heroes on a noble quest.

Mechanics:
Mechanically it’s 100% turn based (so you can go and make tea in the middle of a fight) with grid movement and 90 degree rotation. All this very fast paced, both combat and travel is really fast. The goal was to cut down the boring parts and flesh out the fun parts. Also, there is no loading screen when changing locations or other slowdowns 🙂
Overall, the mechanics are pretty traditional and straightforward with modern additions like equipment encumbrance system.

World and Storyline:
Storyline is a fairy tale, mythical heroic fantasy. You are the good guys on a quest to fight the forces of evil (no moral choices). The world is non linear, with very few locked areas. You basically can go anywhere and do things in different order. In addition you can choose a different set of quests to finish the game (but those are not mutually exclusive, so you can finish all quests if you like). It’s more like a world driven than a story driven. The priority was to make the world feel alive and let you explore it as you wish than follow a linear list of quests.

The game starts when the royal wizard finds out about an old crown that belonged to the royal family since generations. Yet, strangely no one ever heard about the crown and there was just a single mention of it in the royal annals. Upon further study he discovered that there has been cast a powerful spell of forgetfulness of unknown origin which caused everyone in the whole land to forget the crown ever existed. Without knowing who or why went into such trouble to conceal the existence of the crown he decided to investigate it. He summoned a party of noble heroes and tasked them with finding whereabouts of the mysterious crown and the origin of the spell.

Release date:
The game is planned to be released around 2018 – 2019.