Hey Bungos! 🙌 So recently I've been working on a pretty major overhaul leading up to CEO. We felt it was necessary based on watching playtests and our own feelings that the gameplay wasn't at the level we wanted it to be at.
We felt it was feeling too chaotic and noisy because of how overwhelmingly fast it was.
The air combat was too dominant and safe due to high air mobility
Limited combo potential
So these and some other points were leading to some gameplay that we felt wasn't really good for a higher or casual level.
we've expanded a lot on the combat system and simplified / slowed it down (mainly air mobility) in other ways.
we've also simplified the menus so they are easier to navigate and the game is the most stable its ever been.
Here's the full breakdown of the overhaul:
Jump
Jumping now has more start up to make it more of a committal option / leave room for the riser input.
Riser * New Attack
Hold jump button for this additional attack which attacks as a great anti air / combo starter.
Mantle * Replaces Ledge Jump
Instant ledge option that instantly mantels you over ledges or tall platforms.
Can be canceled into a Mantle Attack
Can be exit early into jump
More consistent option now, less janky
Dive Jump
Universal Get back to stage / Recovery option
Opens up each fighters kit for a new air special that better serves their kit
Shield Bash
Universal get off me tool
Reflects projectiles
10 frame startup
Air Movement
Air acceleration across the board is severely nerfed to support a greater readability and more grounded combat.
Knockback
Less speed reduction per frame
Easier for the fighter in advantage stage to follow up with additional attacks aka "Combos"
Slopes / Moving Surfaces
Support for moving platforms
Fighters adapt to sloped surfaces
Clearer Respawning
Simplifying respawning helped people track their fighter in a fast paced environment
Pogo
Pogos entire kit leads into itself way better now and he feels way more cohesive.
With the addition of the Riser / Mantle Kick, the combo routes you can take are more interesting and there is a lot more room for creativity / adaptability.
Ground Light -> 3 hit combo
Air Special -> airborne pretzel toss
Mantle Kick -> new move
Riser Spin -> new move
Shield Bash -> new move
Camera
The camera now adapts better to get more interesting / helpful angles of the stage that make better use of the 3D environments.
Stages
Closer blast zones.
Visually separated into left, right, center compositions.
Much more intentional heights for platforms that make use of mantling.
Camera changes bring a new level of immersion
Popsicle Peaks * new stage
Avalanche / skiing penguin gimmick
Magsala
Now has raising and lowering lava gimmick
Bogwell
Made main bread platform smaller
Medium Castle Outpost platform to the Left
Small Pipe platform to the right
Salty Seas
Pickle squid now makes use of a state machine for more dynamic behaviours
More details added to ship