KickStarter Dead State: Reanimated

[Elhoim]

It's just I think that if some storyline was being scrapped, then writers should do more through job of cleaning all reminders of said plotline from the game, that's all.

That's for sure. In any case, it has been cleaned up.

 

[Agesilaus]

I played this game ages ago and thought that it sucked horribly. The dialogue was awful, the interface and ability to interact with the world was lacking, and worst of all the combat system was a total failure.

I call it a total failure because it failed to believably simulate combat between a zombie and a human. If a person is looking square at a zombie, the zombie shouldn't be able to just saunter up and take a bite. The humans are clearly far more agile than the zombies in this game.

There needs to be melee interrupts, the character automatically backing up until they hit an obstruction, and some disengagement move after you swing at a zombie. Or perhaps there are better suggestions; either way, the zombie on human combat was the nail in the coffin for this game.

Have any of these issues been resolved since the game was so widely rejected many months ago?

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/70755535/dead-state-the-zombie-survival-rpg/posts/1220439

Backer Rewards Update

Hey guys - wanted to give you all a bit of an update regarding Kickstarter rewards! First and foremost, we're very sorry it's taken this long to get things arranged: the bummer of physical objects is that we can't create them ourselves, so we're at the mercy of other companies' timelines, not just for the creation of the items, but shipping them as well. Rest assured that money has been set aside for KS rewards since the beginning of the project, so budget isn't related to the delay!

So far, since getting the game out:
* The book had to be finished and edited...
* The launch party had to be arranged...
* The person who was going to format the book for print got insanely busy with another project so we had to do it ourselves...
* The company responsible for making the USB bullets vanished so we had to track down another one who could make what we needed...
* The OTHER person who was going to format the physical rewards ALSO got insanely busy so we had to do THOSE ourselves too...
* We had to find a company to create each of those rewards and ship them out in a reasonable timeframe!

So the tl;dr is - REWARDS ARE COMING. We're locking down production and final price quotes, and we'll do a better job keeping you all in the loop. On a positive note, the digital edition of the book is ready to rumble in .pdf format, so we'll be doing our best to get it out to everyone who ordered it (and if you're interested, once we get the Deluxe Printed Version out to the backers who ordered it, we'll try to get a solid print-on-demand edition up on Amazon or something - we'll let you know!)

We haven't forgotten you, and if there's anything you're concerned about in particular, please give us a shout-out via message here on Kickstarter, and we'll get back to you ASAP.

Thank you all so much for your patience, and we're going to make sure all the rewards get out to you quickly and in the best quality possible!

 

[Ayreos]

Game released with all the failings of a barely play-tested, underdeveloped beta. Interesting mechanics, but bugs and unacceptably low content density. Now, can you polish a turd? Sure! Even turn into a beautiful gourmet dinner? Absolutely! Will it ever happen now that the game is long past release and the devs got paid? Yer dreamin', pal. A couple freelancers fixing your shoddy code ain't no gourmet chef, man.

 

[Crooked Bee]

https://twitter.com/DoubleBearGames/status/598586486338891776

Dead State: Reanimated - a free update - is now live! New levels, rebalanced items, new game modes, and much more!

​

 

[Infinitron]

http://steamcommunity.com/games/239840/announcements/detail/191745769341064695

We’ve spent a couple of months of solid development time making Dead State stronger, smarter, and faster, and we’re happy to say that the results are fantastic. We’ve brought new life - or is it unlife? - to every aspect of the game. This isn’t just Dead State anymore - this is Dead State: Reanimated! DS:R isn’t just an update - it’s our definitive enhanced edition with brand-new content, full of improvements and fixes requested by you, our community!

The Highlights

• Major overhaul of combat balance! Core combat systems have been thoroughly reworked to take advantage of all the data and feedback we’ve gathered over the months since Dead State’s original release. Ranged weapons, melee weapons, armor, special attacks, ally / PC healing, and more have been reworked and carefully tested to create an engaging and challenging combat experience. Even the core combat system has been tweaked so that AC is calculated before damage reduction; this change makes combat more consistent and more fair.
• Smarter AI! Medic, Guard, Grenadier, Sniper, and more - New AI behaviors and schemas exist for human enemies, making them more interesting and more challenging to fight! Enemies will notice your presence more quickly and fully utilize all of their tactical options, thrown weapons, and special attacks.
• New PC Infection option on New Game menu! Create a new game with PC Infection checked and your character will be as susceptible to infection as your allies are. Carefully manage your antibiotics and change your combat strategies to ensure your own survival!
• Hardcore Mode! In Hardcore mode combat becomes more dangerous, allies consume more resources and heal more slowly, and Morale is harder to keep up. Turn on Hardcore, Iron Man, and PC Infection for the ultimate challenge!
• Alarms! That’s right - we’ve added alarms to buildings in several areas. Red, blinking lights warn you that there’s an active alarm on a building. Use your Science skill to deactivate an alarm and prevent a looting distraction from becoming a noisy attraction!
• New areas and random encounters! Several new levels and random encounters have been added. Make sure to keep an eye out for the Chemical Plant, an area with a unique twist…
• New combat sounds and animations! We’ve added new special attack, reloading, and healing animations and sounds. Special attacks feel smoother and more impactful now!
• Stability improvements! We’ve rooted out every crash and progress blocking bug to make sure you have the smoothest possible experience. Several popularly requested usability improvements have been added, such as friendly fire conformation, looting piled up bodies, and an option to toggle Live Shelter movement on and off.
• Pathfinding improvements! Both allies and the undead have received major pathfinding adjustments that will reduce lag some people have experienced as well as make movement more consistent and natural.

Impressive, right? And that doesn’t even cover the many smaller miscellaneous fixes and improvements we’ve made, which I’ll list below (or at least all the ones I can remember - there were just so many!)

We can’t possibly thank our community enough for the thousands of feedback messages, balance suggestions, and bug reports that have been indispensable in getting DS:R into the shape it’s in today. We couldn't have done this without your support, and from everybody on the team we want to give you a sincere Thank You.

We hope that you’ll agree that there’s never been a better time to visit Splendid, Texas.

 

[naossano]

Does that mean that a new codex review is in order ?

 

[Deleted member 7219]

Are there C&Cs/reactivity in this game along the lines of, say, Bloodlines?

 

[Infinitron]

Does that mean that a new codex review is in order ?

It'd be nice if Zombra could re-examine it, but it's a long game and I'm not sure he has the time and inclination to replay it.

 

[Ovplain]

Awesome, been itching to give it another shot for some reason.:S

 

[Zombra]

Does that mean that a new codex review is in order ?

It'd be nice if Zombra could re-examine it, but it's a long game and I'm not sure he has the time and inclination to replay it.

These changes look exciting and I'll definitely replay it, but probably not this year. Would love to read a counter-review of the updated version by some other prestigious Codexer who commands as much respect as myself cough cough

As for those highlights - I'm not sure what they mean about AC and damage reduction exactly, but if most hits will cause at least minor damage now, that's a big deal. Looks like you still need to get knocked down and almost killed to be infected, which is a shame ... but maybe in the new combat system knockdowns will be more common. Hardcore mode looks like it takes care of some much needed changes to the economy. I especially like that part about increased recovery time; I never thought of that. Should make party management a lot more interesting. On paper this looks damn good.

"We’ve rooted out every crash and progress blocking bug" is a pretty bold statement though.

 

[Roguey]

Finally, one of four RPGs I own is ready to play.

Too bad I'm busy with other things.

Prevented dog allies from shouting “Hey, stop that!” when attacking a party member.

Should have left that unfixed.

 

[Elhoim]

As for those highlights - I'm not sure what they mean about AC and damage reduction exactly, but if most hits will cause at least minor damage now, that's a big deal.

Regarding armor, we reduced AC and increased damage reduction a bit... But more importantly, we changed the formula. Before, it was Damage Reduction (%) and then AC. Now it is AC first, then DR.

For example, 40 AC and 60% damage resistance is the top tier of defense, while 5 AC and 20% resistance is a low tier one. Let's put them against 30 and 90 damage points, using the different systems:

Resistance / AC:

30 Damage:

Low Tier: (30 * 0.8) - 5 = 19
High Tier: (30 * 0.4) - 40 = -28

90 Damage:

Low Tier: (90 * 0.8) - 5 = 67
High Tier: (90 * 0.4) - 40 = -4

Here, even with high damage numbers, the high tier defense gets no damage, while the low tier gets blown away.

AC / Resistance:

30 Damage:

Low Tier: (30 - 5) * 0.8 = 20
High Tier: (30 - 40) * 0.4 = -4

90 Damage:

Low Tier: (90 - 5) * 0.8 = 68
High Tier: (90 - 40) * 0.4 = 20

Looks like you still need to get knocked down and almost killed to be infected, which is a shame ... but maybe in the new combat system knockdowns will be more common.

Not sure about needing to be knocked down, but in hardcore the chances and thresholds are higher:

$hp_infection_margin = 30;
$hp_infection_margin_hardcore = 50;
$infection_chance = 50;
$infection_chance_hardcore = 80;

 

[Infinitron]

four RPGs I own

What, really?

 

[Roguey]

four RPGs I own

What, really?

D:OS, Wasteland 2, Pillars, this.

 

[Infinitron]

four RPGs I own

What, really?

D:OS, Wasteland 2, Pillars, this.

So every other RPG you've described playing is pirated?

 

[Zombra]

Regarding armor, we reduced AC and increased damage reduction a bit... But more importantly, we changed the formula. Before, it was Damage Reduction (%) and then AC. Now it is AC first, then DR.

Awesome. That's exactly what I hoped that meant.

Looks like you still need to get knocked down and almost killed to be infected, which is a shame ... but maybe in the new combat system knockdowns will be more common.

Not sure about needing to be knocked down, but in hardcore the chances and thresholds are higher:
$hp_infection_margin = 30;
$hp_infection_margin_hardcore = 50;
$infection_chance = 50;
$infection_chance_hardcore = 80;

I'll have to guess what these mean ... so now if you're below 30% hp, you have a 50% chance to be infected per hit? Or in hardcore mode, below 50%, you're 80% likely to be infected?
That ... that is hard core!

 

[Roguey]

So every other RPG you've described playing is pirated?

That's an awfully literal-minded way of interpreting that statement.

 

[Infinitron]

Well, you could have added "that I Kickstarted and haven't played yet".

 

[Lhynn]

Looks actually p. interesting. Your review ended on a bit of a "dont buy it till its fixed" Zombra, you should at the very least check out the changes.

Anyway, good work Elhoim men

 

[Elhoim]

Regarding armor, we reduced AC and increased damage reduction a bit... But more importantly, we changed the formula. Before, it was Damage Reduction (%) and then AC. Now it is AC first, then DR.

Awesome. That's exactly what I hoped that meant.

Looks like you still need to get knocked down and almost killed to be infected, which is a shame ... but maybe in the new combat system knockdowns will be more common.

Not sure about needing to be knocked down, but in hardcore the chances and thresholds are higher:
$hp_infection_margin = 30;
$hp_infection_margin_hardcore = 50;
$infection_chance = 50;
$infection_chance_hardcore = 80;

I'll have to guess what these mean ... so now if you're below 30% hp, you have a 50% chance to be infected per hit? Or in hardcore mode, below 50%, you're 80% likely to be infected?
That ... that is hard core!

I believe it's 30 HP, not %.

 

[agris]

As for those highlights - I'm not sure what they mean about AC and damage reduction exactly, but if most hits will cause at least minor damage now, that's a big deal.

Regarding armor, we reduced AC and increased damage reduction a bit... But more importantly, we changed the formula. Before, it was Damage Reduction (%) and then AC. Now it is AC first, then DR.

That's great, I didn't realize DS was using the DR and DT (i.e. AC) system for armor. I liked this mechanic a lot from Fallout, and I wish it was used in more games. How does AC fall into the hit resolution system, is a d100 modified by player skill and oponent AC?

I'm actually with Rogue here, except I've played PoE. I was looking forward to DS since the demo, but based on Zombra's review it was pretty clear that this patch was needed. Same with the others.

Without a lot of game time, and lots of great old games, sometimes it's better to wait.

 

[Zed]

Does this mean that the Mitsodas are done with RPGs now?

 

[Lhynn]

I fucking hope not, as flawed as this is, its still miles better than poe.

 

[Curious_Tongue]

Popamolers gorging themselves on zombie games for years somehow thought it was Double Bear's fault they couldn't stomach another zombie game.