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EpicDuel PVP Game Design Notes

Behind the scenes information about EpicDuel's development and releases, a real-time PVP MMO that you can play online in your web browser.
Nightwraith

February 23, 2011

EpicDuel 1.1.3f/g

Character Pages:

After much anticipation, we are happy to introduce character pages to EpicDuel.  Players can now show off their most beastly EpicDuel characters and even share them with friends through Facebook.  We kept it basic for this release, but look for more improvements to this feature in future updates!  To view someone else's character, replace your name in your character page URL with the character name of your choice!  

Character Pages

Please be civil when using the comment tool.  It was easy to add and it's even easier to remove it if it gets out of control. 

Junker Armor:

This awesome credit only armor is available at select Junker robots throught Delta V.  If you can't find them, check the Train Hub!  What makes these armors unique, is that they fit all classes and genders like the Space Warrior Armor, and they actually change your entire head!

Junker Style

That's right!  Nightwraith-bot is still sporting Christmas colors.  I don't think he knows what day it is.  Look to see many more armors like this available throughout Delta V as soon as Friday, with an enhanced varium version of the Junker Armor: The Warbot Armor.

Road to the Bazaar:

The path to the Bazaar is now complete, but there's still one remaining obstacle in your path.  The Bazaar's citizens don't take kindly to outsiders so they've sealed the door leading to their reclusive community.  

Bazaar Path

How much farther is it?

Bazaar Entrance

Finally!  Once opened, the Bazaar will be a hub for many new features in the game, including a much needed marketplace for exotic non-varium items!

1.1.3g Improvements!

WarBot Armor!

WarBot!

The awesome WarBot armor is our latest limit-quantity armor.  Grab one from the Junkers in the Trainhub now before they're gone!

Easier Access to Character Pages!

View your character page or your friends' character pages from their stats page via a handy-dandy "Character Webpage" button.

New Hair Styles!

Need a haircut?  We just added 12 new hairstyles (2 for each gender and class) designed by Charfade!

Security Improvements!

We continue the ongoing battle against hackers by adding enhanced security measures!

Tags: Nightwraith


Nightwraith

February 18, 2011

The Bazaar will open soon!

To answer your question: No, unfortunately there's no update today.  BUT WAIT DON'T GO!  Here's a shot of the Bazaar Entrance to tantalize.

Bazaar Entrance

What is this place, you ask?  Well, stay awhile and listen!  

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During the Great Uprising against Baelius' Legion, one of the sinister despot's plans for locking down the planet was to build a great array of anti-air turrets across Delta V.  These heavy cannons were powerful enough to blast a destroyer-class ship out of orbit with one shot!  This served 2 purposes:

1. To keep all current ships grounded and prevent further escape of the planet's terrified populace.

2. To discourage any outsiders sympathetic to the miner's cause from intervening.

Sometime during the onset of the war, a great fleet of ships descended upon Delta V, many of them converted freighters from nearby asteroid mining operations.  The battle miles above Delta V was as brilliant and violent as it was brief.  Most ships were completely obliterated -- their parts scattered across Delta V or sent adrift into high orbit -- but one ship was different.  Badly damaged, but still operational, the massive freighter "Relentless" fell to Baelius' guns, but was able to land, astonishingly intact but precariously suspended over a deep chasm in the Barrens.

For generations, the survivors of the crew carved out a niche living off the ship's supplies, creating an isolated community within the ship's hull.  It's remote location kept the Marauders and Legion patrols at bay, allowing the survivors to thrive while the outside world crumbled around them.  Great events such as the banishment of the Exiles and their subsequent return were distant evens of little concern to them until they realized the new opportunities such matters presented, especially with regards to commerce!

Rechristened "The Bazaar," the ship's vast cargo holds have been converted into a massive marketplace, offering all manner of goods for those brave and persistent enough to seek them out.  Many have traveled from across the planet to shop at the largest marketplace in all of Delta V -- completely free of Legion control.

Throughout the years, the Bazaar has tried to remain neutral, but the sympathies of its permanent residents have established its reputation as an Exile stronghold.  However, its forbidding location  and distance from the seat of Legion power allow it to remain off of Baelius' radar...for the time being.

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Many of you will likely groan about two weeks without an EpicDuel release (we DID release Battle Fruit last week, thought!).  Well, I guess that's just more pressure on us to make it worth it!

Tags: Nightwraith


Nightwraith

February 11, 2011

Battle Fruit!

It's been one of the most frantic weeks in recent memory, but the AE Game-Tastic contest has finally come to a close.  We'll probably need another week to flush out the caffeine and sugar from all the energy drinks we consumed to finish our game, but it was well worth the produce. We started with a very elaborate game plan for Battle Fruit: a turn-based, multiplayer, tower defense platformer with an advanced physics engine (we don't think small!).  As development progressed, we compromised and limited the scope for today's demo.  The game you will see is a mere taste of what is to come, but what we managed to produce is a pretty tight shooter/platformer.  There are towers and turrets, but you're completely on the offensive and everything is in real-time.  Run, jump, shoot, destroy, collect loot.  Simple, arcade-style bliss.

Support the Classy Badgers with a vote for BattleFruit Now!

Evil Produce!

Hopefully this will not be the last time we visit this concept.  The game has a ton of potential and Titan really did a phenomenal job writing a physics engine and making all of the work from the art team "GO!"

Evil Produce!If we do decide to continue towards a tower defense game, at least we already have some turrets and building materials!  It could even have an editor to let players create and save their own maps! 

Epic Fruit Battle!

You can check out Battle Fruit and the other amazing games produced by Artix Entertainment this week.  It think everyone was impressed by the output, but what else would you expect?  We eat, breathe, and sleep game development, so we never bring anything less then out A-game when a challenge like this arises!  Tune in next week as we return to "normal" will more updates on EpicDuel.

Support the Classy Badgers with a vote for BattleFruit Now!

Tags: Nightwraith


Nightwraith

February 03, 2011

Game-tastic Superbowl Release

After a few major releases, we're finally ready to start something we've been promising players for a long, long time.  What's that?  Quests!  Yeah, you heard me.  Unfortunately, this is not a feature that we can introduce in one update.  I've said in the past that EpicDuel was built backwards from AQW: they always intended to focus on questing, while EpicDuel was founded on PvP.  For this reason, we needed to start from scratch to build the features necessary to support a robust questing system that doesn't detract from the main battle engine.  You can expect this system to be built upon and expanded in the next few releases!

Quest Item Inventory

"You've just collected an ammo clip!"

Actually, you may not see that this release, but it will be built in the background to support our next EpicDuel quest update!  After all, if you're gathering items from opponents and the environment, you'll need a good place to put them.  This opens up TONS of possibilities for future releases and gives real purpose to exploring the world!  I didn't draw all of those screens for nothing!

Bazaar Pathway!

The Bazaar Pathway!

You know that big floaty ship in the Barrens?  The one outside of Mirv's?  Well the pathway is finally complete, and in future updates players will have access to this last bastion of Exile control on the planet.  What new NPCs will you meet?  What new items will you find?  Personally, I've been waiting to tackle the Bazaar since Alpha, so I'm really excited for the opportunity to render it fully!

Superbowl XLV

Superbowl Cheevo!

Oh that's right, the BIG GAME is coming up this weekend isn't it?  I most watch for the commercials, but that doesn't mean we forgot about last year's Superbowl achievement!  We'll be introducing an updated version for those who missed last year's, and for those who already have last year's and want to boost their rating points! 

Home Items

It's been awhile since we added non-rare home items to the game, so this release, you're getting 10-20 brand new items designed by Charfade!  Watch the game from the comfort of your Fortune City loft surrounded by your luxurious new furnishings!

Lastly, I have some exciting news for next week!  This entry is quote from Artix on the AQW Design Notes!

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The ENTIRE AE Team is taking a one week break from making games... TO MAKE GAMES!

Yes my friend, you read that right! Next week, starting on Monday we are having the 1st ever one-week-long AE Game Making Challenge! Sound crazy? ... well, then maybe you should join in too!

WHAT!? You are making 7+ new games next week?
The entire staff (everyone from AdventureQuest, DragonFable, EpicDuel, MechQuest, AdventureQuest worlds) will be forming into small teams of 2 to 3 people. Each team's goal is to create a new game in only 5 days. The rules are: Anything goes & make anything you want! So far there are 7 teams. The competition starts on Monday and ends Friday night... at which time we all get to play everyting that they make! If you can program or draw, you are hereby invited to create teams with other creative players and create games too!

How will the contest be judged?
You and the staff will both judge. We are going to post several polls on the forums which will rate the completed games in different categories (Overall, Fun, Graphics, Sound/Music.)

Is this a good idea?
100% YES. After doing the weekly releases every week, for so many years, the team needs to mix things up and get their creative juices flowing. That is something that all of the big games will benefit from in the following weeks. Also, it will be really interesting to watch and see what happens!

What will the games be like?
Everyone is making whatever they want... so your guess is as good as mine, LOL! But there is only one week to make the finished game so they will likely be mini-game sized or prototypes/alphas for larger game concepts. Teams can create their own artwork, sound, and engine from scratch or are free to use things thay have already made. The goal is to be as creative as possible and have fun, there are no rules... just games!

Can I watch?
We would love for you to watch and help us with ideas while we are working on the games! We are going to post a special design notes for all teams and we are going to periodically stream live video in AdventureQuest Worlds. (A sneak peek into the secret underground lab... about to be 3.14159% less secret.)

What about the normal Big Game releases?
This Friday (just like every week) we have exciting releases coming out for you. Next weekend the games will all be running their special Valentine's Day events. So this really was the perfect time to do this. The best part is... if all team are successful, you could get 7 new games to play next Friday too! Maybe we can add achievements for beating all of them to the Master Account?

AWESOME! I cannot wait!
Enjoy the releases this weekend. Starting Monday... we are making some games! (I cannot believe how much I am looking forward to this. It feels like Christmas.)

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Titan and I are super-excited about this challenge.  We've been working on EpicDuel nonstop since 2008, and a chance to make a new game in the span of a week is awesome!  Not that we're tired of EpicDuel -- it's just that we have so many other game ideas floating around in our heads that don't really "fit" into a PvP MMO so a chance to finally bring one of those concepts into reality is just...well let's just say that I don't plan on getting much sleep at all next week :D

Tags: Nightwraith

 

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