v0.36.2 Alpha: Combat Overhaul

This is a major update for Hellrifters. Combat has been rebuilt around what the game does best: commanding a squad through overwhelming hordes. You move, aim the squad, and carve through enemies while four Hellrifters keep up a steady stream of fire.

Several systems have been removed or simplified so fights flow faster, with less micromanagement between you and the action. Hellrifters now leans harder into its identity as a twin-stick squad roguelite with horde survival combat: you steer the mayhem, your squad brings the firepower.

Major Changes:

Streamlined core combat. Less management overhead, more focus on movement, positioning, and aiming your squad into the horde. The details are below.

• Unlimited main weapon reserve. Your squad no longer runs dry in the middle of a horde or gets forced onto sidearms at the worst possible moment. Magazines still empty and reload as before, so the firing rhythm stays intact. Ammo reserve pickups, drops, and related upgrades have been removed or reworked to match.

• Jetpack reworked into a single Mobility action. Holding the mobility button now always draws pistols and moves the squad the best way it can: flying with pistols out, or sprinting on foot with a 30% speed boost when flight is unavailable.

• Aiming is now Directional only. The separate Auto and Manual shooting modes have been removed. You no longer need to pull the trigger manually: point your squad toward the threat and they fire automatically.

• Tighter aim cone. Aiming is now more precise and intentional toward your crosshair, helping your squad engage threats from farther away.

• Removed formation switching and tactical mode toggles. The squad now holds its default formation, cutting down on button and menu overhead so the focus stays on movement, aim, and squad combat.

Notable Changes:

• Reworked objective HUD arrows. Your on-screen radar is much easier to spot now: the arrows pulse with a synchronized heartbeat so they stand out better against the chaos.

Minor Changes:

• Player characters are 5% larger for better readability.
• Scaled up the core loadout slots in the squad UI so equipped gear is easier to read at a glance.
• Added a bobbing call-to-action arrow on the Rewards button (game over screen) and the Claim button (module popup).
• Lowered default camera shake (60%) and controller vibration (30%) for a calmer out-of-the-box feel. Both stay fully adjustable in the options.
• Health pickups drop a little more rarely, and a rare large fuel pickup can now drop from enemies.
• Increased the default cooldown between kick highlight slow-mo moments from 5 to 10 seconds, so they feel like a treat rather than constant. Still adjustable in the options.

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed a brief hitch the first time a squad materialized into a level and the first time the teleport range ring appeared. These effects are now warmed up ahead of time.
• Fixed music sometimes fading out and staying silent or muffled after overlapping moments such as pausing during a random event or leveling up. Music now always returns to full once every menu and event is closed.
• Fixed main weapons sometimes reloading only a few rounds and then looping the reload, especially when switching to mobility mode during a reload. Magazines now refill completely every time.
• Body pieces can now be destroyed by fire hazards like the pillars of destruction. Explosions still leave pieces intact so you can keep kicking them.
• In co-op, a player's aim crosshair no longer lingers after their whole squad has fallen. It hides while they are down and returns the moment one of their characters revives.

Thanks for playing, and as always, jump into the in-game feedback panel (F11) to tell us what you think.Whether you survive or fall, Hell remembers.