Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

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vdweller
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Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by vdweller »

Brace yourselves, fellow Drunken Lizard pub patrons, for it's SHAMELESS PLUUUUUUG TIIIIIIME!
Okay so I've been developing a game since 2012. There's some info below, please give the demo a whirl, tell me what you think. It would mean a lot.

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A post-apocalyptic strategy/defense game

DOWNLOAD DEMO (version 0.9 b2):
Mediafire Link, 66.31 MP .zip, no install, no fullscreen

System Requirements: System Requirements: Pentium 4 3.4 MHz or better, 1 MB RAM, 256 MB Graphics card (nVidia GeForce 8800 GT / ATi Radeon HD 3870 or better)
OS: Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8 / 10
Warning! Do not play the game with a slower CPU! Likewise, playing with not enough RAM/VRAM will throw you "trying to draw non-existing surface" etc. errors. Pay attention to the Requirements!

Vote for the Game in Steam Greenlight! Click the logo below to go to the game's page!
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TRAILER
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jy8-DBePg6I

Candidate Trailer for Steam Greenlight
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t594lfUEA_U

KEY FEATURES:
EXPLORE AND EXPAND: Restore derelict metropolises, one turn at a time! How will you spend your Action Points this turn? Will you scout a nearby sector, then clean your weapons and check out a new recruit? Or will you patch the hole in your defenses and then blindly move into unexplored territory?

REDISCOVER LOST TECH: Plot your course over an expansive, multi-branched research tree! Bring forth scientific marvels, or start a second industrial revolution! Or perhaps, build a strong economy and make powerful alliances with merchants and mercenaries!

MANAGE YOUR TEAM: Choose your character class and find or recruit survivors. Gain experience and improve your team's skills and equipment. Find and buy tons of weapons, mods and usable items! But beware, for fighting the undead can be deadly...

BUILD AND FORTIFY: The Apocalypse has ravaged cities' infrastructure, and it's up to you to restore them. Construct improvements in captured sectors to empower your cause. Produce automated defenses to help you weaken or eliminate invading undead armies!

FIGHT THE UNDEAD ARMIES: As turns pass, more dangerous undead appear. From acid-spitting zombies to undead, armored soldiers, there are no limits to the horrors you will face. Set your snipers to aim for the head, have a bunch of grenades ready, and pray they don't reach your barricade in numbers!

UNLOCK THE FUTURE: Relieve the world from undeath in campaign or skirmish mode! Meet mysterious survivors and determine the outcome of random events! Unlock new areas, enemies, classes, bonuses and challenges and lots of extra content as you play!

SCREENSHOTS:
Image Image Image Image Image Image Image Image Image Image

WEBSITE:
Official Website

SOCIAL:
Facebook
Twitter
IndieDB

BETA TESTERS AND SPECIFIC FEEDBACK WANTED!
1) You liked the demo? You like hunting for bugs and testing stuff? Want a free copy of the game when it gets out? Consider registering here and report the bug! Mantis Bug Tracking is a great system and it would really help to keep all reports in one place instead of reading lots of stuff in forums - it might help you too, since you can check if an issue has already been reported!

2) What about the game balance? A mission was too easy/hard? OP skills? Please let me know!

3) Does the game run in Windows 8/10 ?Please let me know!
Last edited by vdweller on February 19th, 2016, 9:44 am, edited 5 times in total.
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Prismatic Maelstrom
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by Prismatic Maelstrom »

vdweller wrote:You liked the demo? You like hunting for bugs and testing stuff? Want a free copy of the game when it gets out? Consider registering here and report the bug! Mantis Bug Tracking is a great system and it would really help to keep all reports in one place instead of reading lots of stuff in forums - it might help you too, since you can check if an issue has already been reported!
Is there a link missing from this paragraph? I'll give the demo a whirl after work tonight.
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by vdweller »

Yup, missing link. Fixed. Thanks a lot! :D
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blatherbeard
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by blatherbeard »

Just downloaded it. Looks neat!

Ill also give it a whirl tonight after work!
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So they all went home.---Story knots within blatherbeards Beard.
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by Prismatic Maelstrom »

I've played a couple of hours and only noticed a handful of grammar mistakes during the tutorial which I've posted below. Unless something disastrous happens while playing more I'll be buying the game when it comes out. I'll make a more detailed post in a few days.

How much will this game be on sale for vdweller and are you aiming to be on Steam?
Scout the sector by clicking this action button. You will consume 2 Action Points.
Scouting a sector requires 4 action points, not 2.
You also have the grenades! Aim you mouse somewhere and press the corresponding key to throw them.
Should be "your".
Survivors greatly increase your odds. Not only do they assist you in combat, but the have their own class and skills, like your starting character.
Should be "they".
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by blatherbeard »

I got home late so i didnt see the errors like PM did, and im usually a grammar nazi! But i have to say, for a game thats not my usual cup of tea, im definitely liking it. And id definitely buy it even on the less than an hour ive played.

I definitely think you have something good on your hands my friend.
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So they all went home.---Story knots within blatherbeards Beard.
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by vdweller »

@ Prismatic Maelstrom and Blatherbeard:

Thank you so much for your input! Heh, I'm a grammar nazi too, but one can only detect so many slips only by themselves :oops:
blatherbeard wrote:for a game thats not my usual cup of tea
That's quite interesting, because I have a knack for making games belonging to genres I don't like.

Two old games of mine were Tetris clones -> don't like/play Tetris.

Another was a top-down shooter -> never played top-down shooters

Now it's a zombie game -> don't really like zombie stuff, but it's easy to accumulate material/ideas/assets for dystopian/sci-fi themes.

So you can see the pattern here :)

As George Lucas said about the prequels, "Hopefully it will work".

As a system/OS feedback, what OS did you run the game on? Apparently there were people who ran it OK on Windows 8/10, which is good news.

Edit: About Greenlight/price: Yes, I have plans about submitting the game to Greenlight soon. I was thinking of a price around $4-5. Does this sound good for this game?
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by Prismatic Maelstrom »

vdweller wrote:As a system/OS feedback, what OS did you run the game on?
Windows Vista 64-bit. No problems and smooth gameplay. If any bugs come up I'll report them.
vdweller wrote:I was thinking of a price around $4-5. Does this sound good for this game?
I played the tutorial again last night after making my post and secured the 16 sectors required. From what I've played I would pay more but it is ultimately your call. I don't see how anyone could complain about the $4-5 price tag though. A fun game so far for me.
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by blatherbeard »

Again i agree with PM.

Id pay 5 dollars in a hot second and if anyone complained about that id say they just like to complain.

Windows 7 64 pro for my OS, downgraded from 10 when it corrupted and i reinstalled my SSD.


i say downgraded but it was more like a huge re upgrade lol, 10 fubared my whole pc.
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So they all went home.---Story knots within blatherbeards Beard.
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by Prismatic Maelstrom »

Have you posted a topic about this game at RPG Codex vdweller? I'm sure you could get some good impressions and feedback there.
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

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Prismatic Maelstrom wrote:Have you posted a topic about this game at RPG Codex vdweller? I'm sure you could get some good impressions and feedback there.
You sure? Codexia seems a bit cranky at times (the undertale thread was priceless). Plus, I might be stoned to death because the moniker Vdweller (which I adopted many many years ago as a reference to Fallout's Vault Dweller) is used by some hotshot Codexia guy who also made The Age of Decadence!
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by Prismatic Maelstrom »

I'd probably leave it for now then. :P

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I think the mission "crowdfunding" in agdam might be a bit unforgiving. Building structures and finding infrastructure while exploring is the only way to obtain it? I never lost a sector and if I did I wouldn't have finished the mission. Perhaps change it to 45 or so turns since this is early in the game?

I've also been playing with the sniper rifle and it is very powerful when you target the weak points. I'd probably make the reloading just a little bit longer. How much content is in the demo? I've noticed one mission you won't be able to complete because the class is unavailable.
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

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Yeeees! That's exactly the kind of feedback I want!

Noted about the crowdfunding mission. Some missions could be a bit more difficult because players can unlock a bonus in another mission and return to the more challenging ones with a handicap. Or at least that's the plan. But since Agdam is one of the very first areas there's no reason to be sadistic.

About the sniper rifle. Some enemies who spawn in later turns/areas may prove difficult for a sniper. There is an enemy for example in the game (not the demo) who expels gases that make accurate targeting very difficult, which is what being a sniper is all about. So I'm paying attention to your point but I'll put it in reserve for the time being unless there is a general consensus that sniper rifles are OP all the way down :D

I'd say roughly 30-35% of total missions are in the demo. However the full version will have even more classes, items and unlockable stuff (challenges etc).

The unavailable class can be unlocked in the demo and you may return to that mission later.
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by Prismatic Maelstrom »

Image

On the mission "fresh air" in agdam the red button has appeared when I reached the required sectors. I haven't reached sixteen advanced workshops though so I'm afraid to press the button and fail the mission. :P
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Re: Emerge: Cities of the Apocalypse

Post by vdweller »

Okay yeah this calls for some clarification.

Much like Desktop Dungeons (shout out to http://www.rsclegacy.com, Securing an area and Completing a Quest is two different things.

>Securing an area occurs if you have captured the required amount of sectors. M'kay.
What do you get from securing an area?
1) New enemies of the area become unlocked and you may encounter them in other areas too. This is not always good so this is why one shouldn't just try to secure an area ignoring mission objectives.
2) You can transfer an item to your war assets and use it anywhere.

>When you secure the area, your misson objective is evaluated. If you've completed it, then you get whatever bonus this mission unlocks (a new area or a new class/bonus/whatever).

So people who fudged up a mission but are close to securing an area can do so and transfer an item or two to their assets and replay said mission with a handicap.

Aside from that, how's playing with scientists and what do you think about energy weapons? Their usefulness is more pronounced later in the game when armored enemies appear, but so far what do you think?

EDIT: Put the game up in RPG Codex Forums! I'll keep you posted for any Great Moments (like being called a SJW because female portraits are more than the male ones)
Last edited by vdweller on October 16th, 2017, 8:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
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