Broken Roads - turn-based Australian post-apocalyptic RPG with "unique morality system"

[Infinitron]

Somewhat Less Broken Roads: https://www.brokenroadsgame.com/dev-blog/our-may-patch-is-now-live

THE BROKEN ROADS MAY 2024 PATCH IS NOW LIVE​

Hi everyone,
Thank you for your patience while we worked on this major update to get the Broken Roads 1.2 patch live.

We've taken on board the feedback from your reviews to add features, make changes, include new options, completely open up the early game, and greatly expand on companion reactions.
The work is not at all done and there is much more still to come, but we hope you enjoy this first big patch which focuses on all four origin stories through to the gates of Merredin.

We did also tackle some mid and late game moments that players requested, so take note that THERE ARE SPOILERS IN THE NOTES BELOW.

Have fun, and as always please let us know your feedback!
- The team at Drop Bear Bytes

You can now pet dogs, cats, (some) dingoes, and KOALAS. But not drop bears.

WARNING: MID AND LATE-GAME SPOILERS INCLUDED IN THE PATCH NOTES:​

FEATURES​

• All origin stories now allow you to access the overworld map and explore the opening areas of the game world.
• Added a Fast mode to increase movement speed while exploring
• You can now target enemies in combat by clicking on their portrait in the turn queue
• Added much more companion reactivity in the origin stories through to completing the Plane Crash.
• Sue and Norm now appear during the Aldersyde during the origin stories and can be spoken to after unlocking the overworld map.
• Added many more gestures and animations to characters throughout the game.
• The Overworld travel icon is now your character’s portrait.
• Added multiple new cyclopedia entries, including essential terms such as Woop Woop, Tucker and Sex Trophies.
• Added the ability to hide the moral impact of choices for the morality quiz during character creation (and this can be turned on/off in the settings menu at any time)
• You can now pet dogs, cats, (some) dingoes, and KOALAS. But not drop bears.
• You can now rebind the keyboard controls
• Added support for 32:9 aspect ratio

The Overworld travel icon is now your character’s portrait.

You can now rebind the keyboard controls

COMPANIONS AND CONVOY​

• Companions react to players killing the dingoes or fleeing from the dingoes
• Mick reacts if players speak to people in Brookton before he arrives back in town
• During the chat with Mick in Brookton Pub, he will acknowledge if the player fled combat more than once, or point out specific prelude combats the player fled from and comment accordingly.
• Ella and Dreamer have a lot more to say in the various origin story interactions.
• Added additional dialogue, companion interjections and reactions when rescuing Cole from Aldersyde.
• Party members now respond to Nathaniel Blacke's plan to rescue Cole.
• Added additional dialogue with Cole once he has joined the convoy after Aldersyde, with different reactivity depending on if the player rescued him or not.
• There is now a poster on the job board in Hunters and Collectors about Gut Wound
• Players are now properly warned that Mick will be hung for his crimes if the player tells Hunter, Angela Smith or Malcolm Hogan about Mick being Gut Wound.
• When players tell Malcolm or Angela about Mick being Gut Wound, he spawns in the convoy as usual (and no longer spawns in the Flaming Galah, thus making it easier to find him)
• Mick will also warn players not to go around saying his name to others if the player has confronted him about it.
• Mick’s responses in the pub when talking about Ian Mason's death are now more consistent with his personality.
• When Mick is given medicine, he now instantly appears in the convoy instead of having to wait 3 days
• Adjusted party-related variables surrounding their like counters of the player to allow for more variety in the final conversation in The Pit.

When Mick is given medicine, he now instantly appears in the convoy instead of having to wait 3 days

QUESTS​

• All origins can now collect books for Nathaniel Blacke and return in later chapters to return any books they didn’t hand in during the prelude
• All origins can now help Charlie Evans in Aldersyde
• Players now have multiple dialogue options that allow them to take Sid with them in the ambulance during Brookton Under Attack to ensure he survives
• New objectives and quest text written for Brookton Under Attack to tell players what they can do and who needs help
• Players can definitively choose who they want to escape Brookton with after they’ve spoken to both parties
• Numerous new objectives and journal text written to assist players in navigating the added content
• Prose of the World and General Will in Lake Deborah are now marked as main quests
• Mira now tells you to check Southern Cross and Koorda for suitable books
• Additional objectives to gain entry for Southern Cross and Koorda have been added and visiting them is now part of the critical path for Lake Deborah
• Surveyors can also ‘take care of Tina’s pest problem' in Kokeby.
• Added additional lines for Mira after the showdown if she is leader of Lake Deborah.
• Made multiple logic fixes to Use of Spies to fix Uncle Koya’s responses for when you deliver items to him.
• Upped the XP reward for The Use of Spies to 6000XP.

Mira now tells you to check Southern Cross and Koorda for suitable books

COMBAT​

Players can now engage in dingo combat in Bally Bally during the prelude

• Added multiple random encounter combat events to the origin stories
• Added two combat encounters in the plane crash scene
• Added new raider enemies
• Jackaroo players can now fight Sue and Norm in Avon River (cannot retreat) with reactions from Sean, Mick, John, and Franklin Ames
• Other origin stories can now enter the same Orkney Heights combat from the Barter Crew origin story
• The player can choose to enter the battle when Brookton is being raided. This combat is unwinnable, and if players choose to ignore the warnings from their companions, this will lead to one of the canon endings of the game.

Companions react to players killing the dingoes or fleeing from the dingoes

ADDED NEW TUTORIALS​

• Retreating from combat during the origin stories
• Using punt to flee from random encounters in the Overworld Map

Using punt to flee from random encounters in the Overworld Map

LOCALISATION​

• Improved Russian and Chinese translations throughout the game
• Over 10,000 words added in this patch

There is now a poster on the job board in Hunters and Collectors about Gut Wound

AUDIO​

• Added more VO for Frida Lamm, Angela Smith, Mad, Sean, and Mick
• Added emu and dog SFX
• Added and improved melee SFX
• Made mixing fixes for Ambient SFX
• Adjusted some interaction icons from the magnifying glass to the audio icon

Added a Fast mode to increase movement speed while exploring

BUGS​

• Fixed a potential blocker that purely nihilist characters could encounter when discussing Jonesy’s death with Mick.
• Fixed an issue where characters could sometimes get unlimited AP after using the Vigilance skill.
• Fixed missing collision on a fence in Merredin.
• Fixed an issue with Scott Measure’s walking animation when he is at the plane crash.
• Adjusted how objectives display for when meeting Ruben at the plane crash.
• Fixed an issue where Ki Road would not load properly during ‘The Disciple at Second Hand’ quest.
• Adjusted the animation used when collecting possums in Merredin.
• Fixed the achievement BIG BADDA BOOM not being completable.
• Fixed the counter's texture flickering inside Hunters and Collectors.
• Dreamer's shooting animation now matches her weapon during Brookton Under Attack.
• Solved a possible soft-lock when interacting with the Rift during the final encounter with Kev.
• Solved issues with Jason clipping with the merchant, Felix, in Kalgoorlie.
• Fixed a rare combat soft lock that could occur where the game would not proceed after attacks of opportunity.
• The Kalgoorlie Jail barrier and their NPCs no longer have their positions reset after detonating the bomb with Ruby.
• Solved an issue where the mouse would sometimes not pan downwards while in combat.
• Fixed an issue where you cannot ask Angela for the phone after helping her in Chapter 2.
• The game no longer gets stuck on ‘Main menu' screen when selecting the ‘Back to Main Menu' option at start of combat.
• It is no longer possible to exploit handing in books to Talia during Prose of the World in order to gain unlimited XP.
• The player no longer sees the ‘gather your mates’ dialogue when leaving Rusty the Wandering Trader’s random encounter.
• Fixed an issue where it was hard to click on Gwen Gold’s file in the archives.
• $300 is now correctly deducted from the player’s inventory when establishing a trade route with Kane during ‘Revenues and Their Sources’.
• Fixed an issue where a Cleaver taken from a Kalgoorlie Guard during The Struggle Between Worker and Machine quest could be sold unlimited times.
• Fixed a possible bug with the Long Distance Relationship achievement not triggering properly.
• Fixed numerous save game issues where saving in certain places could cause a crash.
• Fixed an issue where the skills level up notification would pop up when entering a new location for the first time.

Added the ability to hide the moral impact of choices for the morality quiz during character creation

 

[Rahdulan]

So, this apparently bombed like a motherfucker. Still those are some oddly low peak figures no matter how you cut it.

 

[Jarmaro]

5-9k copies is absolutely fucking brutal. I hope they didn't put too much of themselves into the project (fool's hope). Low sales are one thing, bad ratings alongside it...

I believe people passionate about games should straight up cut everything that they are not feeling exceedingly confident about, downsize & focus on exactly what they want to make. Because these 'little projects' keep growing too big for their own good.

 

[HoboForEternity]

5-9k copies is absolutely fucking brutal. I hope they didn't put too much of themselves into the project (fool's hope). Low sales are one thing, bad ratings alongside it...

I believe people passionate about games should straight up cut everything that they are not feeling exceedingly confident about, downsize & focus on exactly what they want to make. Because these 'little projects' keep growing too big for their own good.

It's always a matter of scope. Take space wreck, which i think the devs was pretty good in managing scope. They set out to do what they can and in 4-6 hours playtrough i didnt feel being blueballed, didnt feel rushed because rhey don't oversell the game either. I ended up playing 3 playtroughs but if i had to stop at one playtrough i'd feel satisfied for what i paid and i expected.

Compare it to something like tyranny where i mostly enjoy the experience but the end came and like "wtf" i got blueballed. another example is numanuma where there are chunk of good content but the game is very uneven in term of tonality, content spread and quality. It's both feel rushed and drawn out at the same time, ultimately resulting in absolutely mediocre experience overall.

 

[Baron Tahn]

It's just advertising. Hardly matters what the game is, good or bad, as long as all the influencers are paid off and the awareness is high, advertising bux all changed hands, then you'll make a million sales in two days and jobs done.

Make is as pretty as possible and shallow as a puddle with a two hour tutorial. You're already laughing all the way to the bank before people realise you are a conman. Homeworld 3 comes to mind.

Make a real gaem? That's for suckers.

 

[quixotic]

They set everybody’s expectations high with their marketing and that pricepoint, and the game evidently failed to meet those expectations.
The thing that sells niche games more than anything is word of mouth, but that’s a double edged sword. If your game’s not good enough, it’s not going to sell enough.

 

[Cohesion]

You're already laughing all the way to the bank before people realise you are a conman. Homeworld 3 comes to mind.

Chris Roberts and Todd Howard: "hold my beer!"

 

[Vulpes]

Hasn't this game been in nonstop development for 5 years? How do you make something that's this short and shit with such a long development cycle and with government funding on top of it? Since it was their first project, I could've understood most of it's shortcomings and lack of polish if it was at least 40 hours, but it took me longer to beat ATOM Trudograd (a standalone expansion, not even a full game) than this puddle of disappointment

 

[jackofshadows]

Hasn't this game been in nonstop development for 5 years? How do you make something that's this short and shit with such a long development cycle and with government funding on top of it? Since it was their first project, I could've understood most of it's shortcomings and lack of polish if it was at least 40 hours, but it took me longer to beat ATOM Trudograd (a standalone expansion, not even a full game) than this puddle of disappointment

I think the answer is they're a bunch of talentless amateurs', that easy. Especially by taking your comparison with ATOM team, who were also a bunch of amateurs basically (although with a few guys who actually can code).

As for patches and such - I'm scratching my head at that because the product just doesn't seem to be "fixable".

 

[.Pixote.]

I was hoping for a Mad Max world with slavers and carnage, instead you're getting your shit kicked in by koala bears.

 

[Infinitron]

Never give up, never surrender. Craig has hired Digimancy to help improve the game: https://www.brokenroadsgame.com/dev...new-narrative-consultants-big-hotfix-and-more

JUNE 2024 UPDATE - NEW NARRATIVE CONSULTANTS, BIG HOTFIX AND MORE!​

G’day all!
We’re very happy to be bringing you our second major update since launch. This should be considered more of a hotfix than a major content update (although that is in the works) as it addresses many small bugs, quest logic fixes, a late-game issue that could cause a soft lock for some players, item and container fixes to vendor inventories, tweaks to certain skill checks, and more.
We’re also very excited to announce two additional Narrative Consultants who are now working with us to make Broken Roads the best game it can be, and you’ll start seeing their changes in our next content updates.
So, without further ado…

GEORGE ZIETS AND OLGA MOSKVINA HAVE JOINED THE TEAM!​

We’re extremely pleased to announce that two very experienced RPG writers and designers are now working on Broken Roads. George Ziets, whose titles include Fallout New Vegas, Neverwinter Nights 2 and more recently Wasteland 3, and Olga Moskvina, who worked on Disco Elysium and Stasis: Bone Totem, are on board as Narrative Consultants.

George Ziets and Olga Moskvina have joined the team as Narrative Consultants
George and Olga are examining every part of the narrative and quest design from origin story through to the end of the game and we’ve already started making numerous small tweaks and improvements throughout.
We’ll share much more in the coming months, with full breakdowns (we’ll try avoid the spoilery stuff as much as possible!) of the edits and additions for those interested. We’re unsure of the exact word count we’ll be adding, but our last patch introduced over 10,000 words for the origin stories alone (and some small mid-game tweaks and changes), so expect much more to come.

STEAM USER REVIEWS HAVE NOW REACHED VERY POSITIVE​

We wanted to send a huge thank you to everyone who has taken the time to post a review on Steam. Nothing helps indie developers before launch as much as wishlists, and nothing helps indie developers after launch as much as posting a review.
Over the last month our user reviews have gone from Mixed to Mostly Positive to Very Positive, and at the time of writing we’re at 86%. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the work that the team have put into improving the game since launch paying off. We know it takes players time to write reviews, so every single one of them is appreciated!

STEAM SUMMER SALE DISCOUNT​

The Steam Summer Sale has just begun, and we have discounted Broken Roads on Steam by 20%. If you’ve been waiting for a sale or a new patch, now’s the time!

AUTO-ASSIGNING COMPANIONS ON LEVEL UP​

At launch, companions in Broken Roads would level up automatically. We received feedback from players that they would rather manually level up everyone in their party, so added the ability to do so.

Auto-assigning companions on level up if you still prefer to do so
Those who still prefer to focus on their player character only can use Auto Assign on each level up (and can do so in Merredin even if your companions are not in the party). Look out for the exclamation mark over your player character or any companions which indicates that you can them up.
We’ve also added a dialogue option, shown below, to back out of assembling your companions before departing Merredin. A small quality of life improvement if players happen to accidentally access the Overworld Map without meaning to.

Backing out of assembling your companions if you don’t want to access the Overworld Map.

VERSION NUMBERS​

We’ve had some players point out that the version numbers between the various PC platforms are not always the same. That’s just a part of the build process we have in Unity, and can assure you the contents are identical. Here’s where we are at the moment with regards to the different PC version numbers:

• Steam: 1.2.8883
• GOG: 1.2.8884
• Epic: 1.2.8886

PATCH NOTES​

Details of what you can expect in this update are below, split between general fixes and origin story changes up top, with mid/late game spoiler fixes in their own section afterwards.
Thanks and have fun playing!
- The team at Drop Bear Bytes

There are now more goats on things.

FULL PATCH NOTES (EARLY GAME AND NON-SPOILER FIXES):​

• Cats once again meow when you pet them.
• There are now more goats on things.
• Adjusted pricing of certain items.
• Changed some skill check and attribute check values.
• Some vendor inventories have general and junk items removed.
• Some vendor inventories now contain more items used for different quests across the game.
• The Greater Good and Dignity for All moral traits now checks if the targeted enemy is directly between the player character and the allied combatant, and no longer prevents attacking if so.
• Fixed an issue where setting keybindings would not sometimes persist when reloading.
• Fixed an issue where the SR98 +1 variant needed 4AP to instead of 3AP to fire.
• Fixed an issue where a death container had the wrong name for the Jackaroo Origin Story.
• Alanna now spawns inside of Taylor’s Farm during the Jackaroo Origin Story to reduce load times.
• Fixed an issue where Sean would be holding the wrong weapon model during the Jackaroo Origin Story combat.
• Fixed where the player and their party stand when speaking to Charlie Evans during the Prelude.
• Fixed an issue where an incorrect voice line played for Tina in Kokeby.
• Added titles to death containers that were previously empty.

Alanna now spawns inside of Taylor’s Farm during the Jackaroo Origin Story to reduce load times.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS BELOW:​

Fixed an issue where The Sickness Unto Death quest would not fail after the attack on Brookton.

• The Sickness Unto Death quest is now marked as abandoned if players do not complete “Talk to Damo Lane in the marketplace about his sick friend“ before Jess puts Sid in the camel cart.
• Fixed an issue where an objective during The Sickness Unto Death quest would not complete at the appropriate time.
• Fixed an issue where Cole could be asked how he felt about Ian Mason being killed in Kokeby even though the player is of Surveyor origin.
• Mick and the player stand closer when speaking after fleeing the attack on Brookton combat.
• The medkit Sarah asks you to collect during the attack on Brookton now disappears if you tell her to leave before collecting it.
• Fixed an issue where Alanna would spawn in Merredin even if she was left behind in Brookton.
• Fixed an issue where Sid would spawn in Merredin even if he was killed or left behind in Brookton.
• Fixed an issue where retreating from the kangaroo combat in the Plane Crash scene could lead to a soft lock.
• Cleared more Fog of War when the Plane Crash tyre tracks combat is about to start.
• Removed a tree that was making it hard to see what was happening during the kangaroo combat in the Plane Crash.
• Fixed an issue where players had to walk all the way to a character during the Plane Crash just to see their bark.
• Players can now select “(Don’t leave just yet)” at the start of the party selection process in Merredin.
• Matty Opik’s name is now revealed much sooner when you meet him in Southern Cross.
• Fixed an issue where Numbat would spawn in her home in Merredin at night even if she didn’t live in Merredin anymore.
• Fixed an issue where players could not give Uncle Koya the necessary items to complete The Use Of Spies.
• Fixed an error that would appear when speaking to Dead Ringer in Ardath.
• Added a camera pan so players can see the sprinkler Denny is having issues with in Lake Deborah.
• Denny now gives a reward when you fix the sprinkler for him in Lake Deborah.
• Fixed an issue where players were not allowed into Kalgoorlie if they had fired the Device even though they had done the requisite number of jobs.
• The objectives “Enter Kalgoorlie as a Scientist” and “Enter Kalgoorlie as a Trader” now close if players lose access to Southern Cross or Koorda respectively while Of A Future State is active.
• Djet can also be considered sent to Kalgoorlie if Julianne Wakefield keeps her in Aldersyde during The Attack by Fire quest.
• Fixed a bug where it was possible for Machiavellian players to get the gold nugget from Ruben more than once.
• Fixed a possible softlock where Ruby Squier would not spawn at the Ingot in Kalgoorlie.
• Adjusted visual FX timings when using Sally’s Leg as a weapon so enemy is not shown as hit earlier than they should be.
• Fixed an issue where Kev’s model and portrait did not change to be the opposite moral quadrant of the player.
• Players now get arrested right after saying no to planting bombs for Ruby Squier in Kalgoorlie.
• The skeletons you can loot during an Overworld encounter now use the correct SFX.
• Pan speed during Fast Mode when using a controller has now been normalised.
• SFX has been added to Auto Assign when using a controller.
• Revealed some of the Fog of War near the Flaming Galah and Hunters and Collectors after you first speak to Holly and first enter HnC.

 

[Tyranicon]

Wow, really surprising and actual bold move. Probably not a good business decision unless this is for a sequel. But good on them for trying.

Although... it doesn't reflect well on your current writing team if you make a big fuss about adding big name writers.

Also, bro. Recent reviews does not equal overall reviews.

 

[Cohesion]

Too late for damage control. This "game" is a flop.

 

[Litmanen]

Wow, really surprising and actual bold move. Probably not a good business decision unless this is for a sequel. But good on them for trying.

Although... it doesn't reflect well on your current writing team if you make a big fuss about adding big name writers.

Also, bro. Recent reviews does not equal overall reviews.

View attachment 51749

View attachment 51750

Do you know that your game needs something more than introductory videos with AI voice?

 

[Baron Tahn]

Zeits? Ive actually heard that name. Interesting development.

 

[Tyranicon]

Do you know that your game needs something more than introductory videos with AI voice?

1. I don't see what this has to do with the topic at all.

2. I already have released games that are easily findable.

 

[Litmanen]

Do you know that your game needs something more than introductory videos with AI voice?

1. I don't see what this has to do with the topic at all.

2. I already have released games that are easily findable.

View attachment 51757

I know you have already some games released but, again and again, if you spend your days criticising other games, at some point you have to show something better/same level.



And you haven't. Because your games have a late '80 level. And for you AND PEOPLE LIKE YOU ONLY, your level of porn is good. But beside that?

 

[Tyranicon]

Because your games have a late '80 level.

Thanks for the... compliment? I'd hate for my games to appear to be modern.

If you want to troll me, I do have a profile page. That way we can stop mucking up these threads. Better yet, if you're a dev, start a public feud with me and we'll both get some attention.

FWIW, most gamedevs have no problem throwing shit at each other on twitter over the stupidist things. But god forbid someone actually talk about the games they make.

 

[Harthwain]

I know you have already some games released but, again and again, if you spend your days criticising other games, at some point you have to show something better/same level.

I guess you can't criticize video games if you aren't a developer. And if you are, you have to "show something better/same level".

...

That's a retarded argument.

 

[just]

everything zeits touches is cancelled
but this is already released so im interested to see whats going to happen

 

[ERYFKRAD]

everything zeits touches is cancelled
but this is already released so im interested to see whats going to happen

Yeah it's not like he can effect a retroactive cancellation right?
Right?

 

[just]

some predestination shit
it was cancelled this whole time

 

[Infinitron]

Welcome to another exciting episode of Matt Chat! We're joined by Craig Ritchie from Drop Bear Bytes to delve into the captivating world of their game, Broken Roads.

Craig gives us an exclusive look at the BTS of this unique post-apocalyptic RPG set in Australia. Of prime interest is the moral decision-making system that sets Broken Roads apart from other games. Oh, and if you're still worried about the bugs, the team has patched the heck out of it. I've yet to encounter any in my 6+ hour playthrough!

Topics Covered:

The origins of Broken Roads
Unique features and gameplay mechanics
The Australian setting and its impact on the game's design
Insights into the development process and team dynamics
Craig’s vision for the future of Drop Bear Bytes

 

[Phinx]

Wow, really surprising and actual bold move. Probably not a good business decision unless this is for a sequel. But good on them for trying.

Although... it doesn't reflect well on your current writing team if you make a big fuss about adding big name writers.

Also, bro. Recent reviews does not equal overall reviews.

View attachment 51749

View attachment 51750

You know what's the worst part in regards to the writing? Somebody on their steam sub-forums made a thread called Show, don't tell. Then spoke about animated action scenes and voice acting, and the developer agreed with him and spoke about budget constraints.

Neither the consumer, nor the developer knows the meaning of show, don't tell.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Wow, really surprising and actual bold move. Probably not a good business decision unless this is for a sequel. But good on them for trying.

Although... it doesn't reflect well on your current writing team if you make a big fuss about adding big name writers.

Also, bro. Recent reviews does not equal overall reviews.

View attachment 51749

View attachment 51750

You know what's the worst part in regards to the writing? Somebody on their steam sub-forums made a thread called Show, don't tell. Then spoke about animated action scenes and voice acting, and the developer agreed with him and spoke about budget constraints.

Neither the consumer, nor the developer knows the meaning of show, don't tell.

Nobody knows, because anyone talking about it is telling, not showing.