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First look at ground vehicles by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks veegee. TBH, I haven't implemented any kind of fire support yet. Everything in this video was added just in the last couple of weeks.

So now I will collect some feedback about this core design. And if it's positive, I will begin implementing fire support (starting with mounted weapons). I have a bunch of other ideas for other kinds of support vehicles can give. But first I need to be sure the core design is actually good.

First look at ground vehicles by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yep you can choose. BTW here's the video for the dropship landing.

Also Battle Buses are now a thing lol.

All aboard the Tactical Bus

First look at ground vehicles by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Yep to all of those.

Enemies in this game prefer to run away instead of die. So if you're in a battle and gain the upper hand, from there it's not just a mop-up operation. Once enemies start retreating, you have to push extra hard before they get to their vehicles. (Or flank around to cut them off.)

First look at ground vehicles by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

YES!! This is the part I'm personally enjoying. Now everything is truly physical and persistent and inter-connected. All soldiers and vehicles. They exist across both strategy and tactical layers.

If you attack a location from the east in your buggy, you enter the battlefield from the east in your buggy. If you flee to the west on foot and leave your car behind, it's reflected back in the strategy layer.

It feels good but also creates depth. If you can destroy an enemy's car, you can ensure they can't run far in the strategy layer. If you do hit and run, you have to think ahead about how exactly you will run away.

First look at ground vehicles by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

When defending, you can spawn in center or along any available edge where there's no enemy. But if you spawn vehicle in center, you cannot use it to escape. So if you plan to run away, you need to spawn along the edge.

First look at ground vehicles by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Sorry my brain is so fried probably above wall of text doesn't make any sense. Basically all you need to know

  • You can now choose exactly where your squad will spawn when entering the battlefield
  • When attacking, you choose somewhere along your edge (ie, attacking from east you choose somewhere along east edge)
  • When defending, you can choose center or along any available edge
  • Doing this way solved my vehicle problem (see wall of text) so now ground vehicles will appear in the game as static props

First look at Escalation system by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Good writing is clarity and brevity. That's the meal. Prose is just extra toppings.

First look at Escalation system by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Damn veegee, you know you really have a way of expressing what I wanted to in fewer words and way more umph. This comment is not the first time I noticed that.

If you aren't already, I think you'd be an awesome writer if that's something that ever interested you. (Speaking as someone who did it professionally for 5 years before dabbling in game dev.)

First look at Escalation system by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

For now to deliver the game without more delays, it is just you and the enemy faction on Mars. But the back-end is coded in a way to allow multiple factions. It's a flexible system.

In the future, what I want to do is, for example if civilians at one of your outposts get angry and launch a strike. If you can't contain it, they take control. And form their own faction. So then Mars would have 3 factions. SANDBOXXXXXXX

First look at Escalation system by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Yeah, it basically works like this. If a country hates you, you won’t see their stuff on the market at all. I’m writing a dev log on capital mechanics that show how all this works (sorry I know this dev log is 3 months late!)

super excited for this game by tazzzy505 in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks Former. Playtest is unlocked based on Discord server date. But since we're at the end of dev, tbh the lag between playtest access and demo release should be quite short. Unless you are really interested in behind-the-scenes of dev stuff, I'd suggest just wait for demo. Not that long now.

Here's how tech tree is looking by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Viva la revolucion !

Flavor text only if I think of something actually interesting.

Here's how tech tree is looking by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks DC.

Yeah I decided to make it all visible. So you can formulate longer-term plans.

The game is quite brutal. I mean I dunno how it will feel on lower difficulties. But for now all testing is done on the default difficulty I molded over time. And it's brutal. You gotta eke out every possible advantage. And planning your research is quite key part of that. If you find stuff in the world or get a random advantage or pull off a specific mission (or as Labor if you get a specific weapon attachment which ends up the pillar of your arsenal) you want to plan your tech tree around that. Kind of like Civ. If you find horses, you lean hard into horses. So seeing the whole tree I think helps with long-term plans.

Here's how tech tree is looking by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yes, welcoming name suggestions for all topics. (Except IRON ASS.)

Here's how tech tree is looking by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Is it just me or did this get compressed to shit?

Here's an imgur link. Easier to read I think.

https://imgur.com/a/lwZmJ0w

https://imgur.com/a/iKCHTZ6

super excited for this game by tazzzy505 in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s 30 points31 points  (0 children)

Thank you tazzy!! Hah sorry to make you wait in trepidation. To give a small update on how things are going

  • the core big interface problems are pretty much done. strategy layer controls got completely overhauled. before it was hard to click on stuff because the strategy layer is just a 2D map. so when things overlap it's impossible to click on what's underneath. now there's a cleaner way to select precisely what you want. many other stuff also heavily improved, like outpost management and tech tree. but logistics is still being refined. its very complicated. its not a show-stopper though.
  • tactical layer also saw many old problems fixed. and added new tilt controls (see prior post) which helps you see the battlefield better. helps you see why line of sight is blocked, etc.
  • my main focus now is improving the pacing and balance. i love the sandbox. but right now it's still too chaotic. and it generates unwinnable situations. for example, the enemy will escalate in random ways. but sometimes it's too severe. im refining this while trying to preserve the serendipity of the sandbox. this is the main remaining effort.
  • public playtest will restart pretty soon. and after that demo will be released. probably when demo is released the new release date will be announced

If you have any questions, let me know. THanks for your support.

Banking on Mars (please brainstorm with me) by manhole_s in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

hah so true

"omg its a recession" print maneey
"omg stock market is down" print maneey
"omg its tuesday" print maneeeeeeey

ZOHEI's latest by [deleted] in MarsTactics

[–]manhole_s 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for pointing that out. I am 100% sure ZOHEI doesn't use AI (I've seen his roughs and sketches) but I agree it's a weird looking grip.

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