Greetings Mercs!
This is a preview post for the upcoming 1.2 update to Dead Grid. The full release patch notes will go into greater detail, so this post is mainly intended as a progress and news update on the current state of development.
After completing the campaign, a new option becomes available at camp: AFTERMATH. This New Game+ mode lets you replay the entire campaign with your existing squad and arsenal. Locations, survivors, and skills must all be rediscovered and relearned. Instead of gaining skills from leveling up mercs, skill points are awarded at the end of each mission (day). Additional rules and modifiers will be revealed in the final patch notes.
A new room is being added to the game that allows players to create reaction-based combos, activated during the enemy's turn. The mechanic is entirely optional and is not required to complete any portion of the game.
You’ll be able to customize up to five combos built around the moves: DODGE, PARRY, BLOCK, and GET HIT. When triggered during combat, these combos will grant a bonus Dojo-specific ability on your next turn. The Dojo system introduces 6 powerful new abilities that grow stronger as you successfully trigger more combos.
Strategic aggro and gear management play a major role in triggering these combos effectively, especially when using shields.
More details on the system and its new skill rewards will be revealed in the final patch notes.
A new merc management screen is now part of the CAMP interface. This screen allows you to rename, mute, retire, and customize the outfits of your mercs.
A total of 48 outfits will be included with the 1.2 update. Revenants are included.
You'll be able to remove mercs from your squad tab. This was a frequently requested feature in feedback.
I’ve done a significant amount of work redrawing the animated gore sprites that spawn when enemies take damage on the board (not the 3D kill cam). This overhaul was not only aimed at improving the memory management of the many effects in combat, but also at adding a much greater variety of hand-drawn pixel animations. A lot of my inspiration comes from older arcade games such as Mortal Kombat 1 and 2, where the sprite based gore effects were intentionally exaggerated.
Brie will now serve as a second trader, offering her stolen goods at a sizable markup. Brie is now discovered earlier in the campaign after completing the Supermarket. While these prices are expensive, her inventory does not refresh, giving you a reliable way to purchase stolen items at any time.
A new fully voiced Commando merc, named Sam. This merc comes with 3 outfits.
This will trigger when an enemy is left standing with a few remaining hit points after an attack. There is a small mechanic tied to the status effect. Discover as you play :)
New gadgets are coming, here is one I can share now.
In addition to the new content, a typical list of bug fixes and performance optimizations will be included in 1.2. I've also been working on localizing the game to different languages, but this is going to take some time (beyond version 1.2) due to the amount of dynamic text in the game tied to skills and items.
I’m now in the final phase of development of 1.2, but need a bit more time to work on fixing various reported bugs. I’ll be announcing the release date in a separate post, so stay tuned.
I’ve seen many of you pick up the cosmetic DLC - Zombie Funeral, thank you for the support! Please consider leaving a short review for both the main game and the DLC. Cheers!
--Paul