The following is an official news post, originally available here.
In this letter, we want to talk about the upcoming test at the end of May and our plans going forward. Naturally, all of this is related to game design.
First, we want to mention that we messed up with the video. We've picked up a great pace and are working diligently, but unfortunately, we simply ran out of time for the video. However, there are two pieces of good news: in just over two weeks, you will be able to test everything yourself, and we are also presenting all the passive talents of each archetype in this update, so you can familiarize yourself with the upcoming mechanics and possibly leave your feedback and suggestions in the comments to this post.
Over the last few months, we've been working hard on delivering various progression systems, including endgame content, two of which will be presented in the upcoming test—8 branches of passive talents and 6 branches of weapon specialization upgrades.
Passive talents can be upgraded using passive talent points, which will be given one per level starting from the 5th level.
Weapon specializations will need to be charged with energy from consumables, which players can earn from quests and find in the world as loot. We aim to showcase these at the end of next week.
In this test, players will be able to level up to level 15 and will be able to combine any 2 branches. The ability to combine 3 branches will be unlocked in early access.
We want players to play around with different talent combinations, look for broken (fun) builds, and experience what the combat feels like with these systems in place.
We are also working hard on the world itself. For this test we decided not to extend it but to make it much more dense, packed with new settlements, NPC's and points of interest to explore.
We are working on balancing, and although the main adjustments will be made after the test before early access, we will mention some that will be included in this test.
Food regeneration has been significantly enhanced, and now players can regenerate effectively with food without a campfire, while consuming food at a campfire will provide a bonus to food regeneration and buffs if the food has any. We feel the system has become more tactile and logical to use. We'll be waiting for your feedback on that.
We will revamp crafting, but we will not release a more advanced version of crafting and itemization to the test. It will enter early access. However, a significant number of new items will be added to the test, including 5 very cool weapons for each hero. The logic of profession bonuses and efficiency systems will be revised at this test. In short, the main change is that profession bonuses will no longer be tied to professions but will be universal capabilities for all. That is, every player, regardless of profession, will have the ability to apply 3 alchemy buffs and 3 mystic runes, etc.
Also, we want to see the PvP activity of players in this test, how the world with new points of interest with loot will be perceived, and whether the contest for interesting points will be balanced and fair.
This is a rough focus of what we hope players will enjoy and have fun with during the test.
Let's move on to our plans and a small roadmap for the near future. If the May test is successful, by which we mean that people have fun and enjoy the game, our next step will be early access. Technically and content-wise, we will be ready for early access about 2 months after the May test. Considering that we are now delivering several key endgame progression systems for testing, and you will provide us with feedback for adjustments, we will have time and resources to focus on other tasks necessary for early access, many of which are almost ready.
First is localization. We want as many people around the world as possible to try Corepunk, but our capabilities have always been limited, and we could only afford English localization for objective market reasons before release. So to make Corepunk more accessible while we're still developing it we'll enable autogenerated localization of text and voiceovers. Our voice generation provider supports up to 26 languages. Next, we will improve the localization to a high standard, step by step for each language.
The maximum level for characters in early access will be level 20. Level 20 will be the endgame content throughout early access until the full release. There will also be the opportunity to upgrade and combine 3 branches of passive talents. Crafting of new types of items and overall itemization will be expanded in terms of possibilities and combinations significantly. For example, the full functionality of the synthesis machine will be implemented, which will balance the randomness of itemization and add a huge number of variations and combinations of crafting.
Early access will receive 2 new large settlements with new biomes and NPCs inhabiting them. All new locations will be level 20 locations.
And the most pleasant bonus there will be mounts on the early access and much more! :)
Overall, to summarize, we work actively and a lot. With great pleasure, the team is very motivated because we are now at a stage of production when there is an opportunity for interaction with the community through tests. Everyone can see their work by watching how people play. This is our magic, and with each test, the desire to do more and show more grows, to entertain our community with content, demonstrate our creativity, and receive feedback on it to become better.
Friends, thank you for reading us, watching, and being interested. Thank you for your trust!
Your Corepunk team.
The following is an official news post, originally available here.
Let's get right to business - last week we decided to postpone the public alpha 2 test by one month, from the end of April to the end of May. The test will run from May 27 to June 2. After some thought and reviewing our deliverables schedule, we concluded that we wouldn't be able to fully implement all progression systems by April 23 as we wished, and we really didn't want to cut any systems or talents. Therefore, we decided to conduct the test in the last week of May. We also want to use this extra month to show you some of the systems and what we're preparing for the test in various videos. So you can get acquainted with the upcoming gameplay in advance.
Our plan for the test is to unlock enough systems for you to have fun, test builds, new items, weapons, and heroes' gameplay in a complete progression logic. And we'll get a lot of fun from watching your gameplay and feedback. At this stage, this is the main goal of the test for us. Even though Corepunk has some ideas and systems inspired by various top MMORPGs, playing Corepunk feels different. Maybe it's not a game for everyone. But it's definitely a standalone game in the genre. And we really want to get your feedback on how it feels.
We want to sincerely thank you all once again for your patience, faith, and support of Corepunk and Artificial Core studio. All these years, your energy has motivated us to continue create this beautiful game and its atmospheric world. Friends, we are very close, just a little bit more, and we will burst into the world of Kwalat!
In the ever-evolving landscape of Corepunk, the balance between PvE (Player vs. Environment) and PvP (Player vs. Player) gameplay continues to be a topic of rich discussion and speculation among the game's community. Recent insights from an AMA (Ask Me Anything) have shed light on the current direction for PvE content and the integration of PvP elements, offering clarity to those who haven't kept up with the game's progress.
Corepunk introduces PvE zones as areas where players can engage in quests, explore, and battle against game-controlled enemies. These zones focus on providing a player-versus-environment experience, where the thrill of exploration and combat against AI opponents takes center stage. However, these PvE zones do not entirely exclude player interaction in the form of combat. Players have the opportunity to duel each other in these areas, allowing for controlled PvP encounters without the free-for-all open-world PvP that characterizes other sections of the game.
The question of dedicated PvE servers has been a point of interest for the community. While the development team has sought opinions on this matter, their stance remains that, as of now, there are no plans to implement PvE-only servers. The game is primarily designed around PvP servers, with PvE content being integrated within this framework. However, the possibility of revisiting this decision in the future has not been completely dismissed, indicating that the developers are open to community feedback and the evolving needs of their player base.
One of the unique aspects of Corepunk is how it naturally guides players from PvE zones towards PvP areas, especially for those aiming to complete certain quests or engage in high-tier resource gathering. PvP zones, typically located further from towns, offer lucrative opportunities but come with the risk of player confrontation. Despite this, the vastness of the game world, combined with mechanics like automatic sharding and fog of war, suggests that encounters with other players in these areas may be less frequent than some might expect. This design aims to support both playstyles, allowing players to choose their level of engagement with PvP content while still navigating a cohesive and expansive world.
An intriguing aspect of Corepunk's gameplay dynamics is the potential for criminal actions within PvE zones. While the exact mechanics and intentions behind this feature remain somewhat ambiguous, it has been suggested that players with a criminal status might be able to attack others in PvE areas. This possibility, observed during past alpha testing, comes with significant risks and penalties for the aggressor, such as heightened aggression from town guards. Whether this functionality will remain in the game or was part of a testing phase anomaly is yet to be clarified, adding an element of uncertainty and anticipation regarding how PvP interactions will be regulated within PvE settings.
Corepunk's approach to balancing PvE and PvP content reflects a desire to accommodate diverse playstyles while maintaining a dynamic and interconnected game world. As the game continues to develop, the feedback and preferences of the community will undoubtedly play a crucial role in shaping the future of PvE and PvP interactions within Corepunk. Whether you're a fan of immersive PvE exploration, the thrill of PvP combat, or a mix of both, Corepunk aims to offer a rich and engaging experience that caters to a wide range of players.
Today we kick off the year with an exciting AMA featuring Eugene Kiver, Game Producer of Corepunk. This interactive session was hosted live on the official Discord server. If you haven't joined yet, now's the perfect opportunity! Below, you'll find a compilation of all the questions and answers from the event.
Q: Since the chests in PvE areas go to the party that did the most damage, what happens if 1 person who is a Tank, is competing with 1 person who is a DPS, will there be any measure being thought of to reward/help players in classes with low damage?
A: The result will be based not only on damage but also on agro points
Q: Is it possible to play every passive skill tree with every hero? So, for example, play the passive skill tree "Mage" with the Destroyer?
A: Hey, each hero can pick any combination of passive trees, no limitations here
Q: Is the playstyle of using only drugs/pain killers, by constantly buying them from NPCs, to replace the need of using food/campfires (like some people did in the last alpha test) something that you guys want to support as a possibility, or will you try to balance this so that this approach is not that convenient?
A: Hey, we'll be balancing it, it wasn't how we would want it to be on the last test.
Q: What are your current and future plans for keeping classes interesting. Do you feel there are enough abilities to keep people from getting bored of a class too quickly (edited)
A: In our view weapon mastery, passive skill trees and itemization will allow you to create a lot of unique variations of the same hero. So we'll see it in the upcoming test. We're excited to see how players will interact with all those systems.
Q: Are you able to eventually have all of the (Q,W,E,Special Skill) specialisation skilltree upgrades?
A: You won't be able to unlock all the talents in a specialization tree. Player will get the special resources in drop from loot in the world to upgrade specialization.
Q: What are the + steps in the specialisation skill tree, do they give you anything, and do they also cost mastery points?
A: This steps give a little bonus to an ability it relates to (ex. lowers cooldown, a bit better damage and so on)
Q: You have stated that you guys have a lot of content already and you just need to package it (or something to that effect). This is a bit vague could you please elaborate on how finished is this content (is it just artwork?) and what this packaging entails.
A: by packaging I meant releasing content. For example we have a lot of 3d assets, we sometimes need 10% more just to make location a bit more believable, then we need to finish location, decide which monsters we want there, work on quests and stories. So it's not like we're starting every deliverable from scratch. But to make it look as good as the rest of the game it needs some work. I've see some people speculate that we just share concept art in our updates that means we're only on concept stage. But we just share what looks better and faster to present and concept art is usually more fun to watch then the finished assets (outside of the world they were supposed to be placed into) plus we seldom share the assets we've been working a few years ago that are used in the content we're focusing on right now.
Q: I think the most important question for all of us: Is an early access or release this year 2024 really realistic? In your opinion, what current percentage is the games process?
A: I think that EA is very realistic if the next test goes well. We're working on a big chunk of content for the test. If people will enjoy it we'll take a month to fix bugs and do a little polish and will go to EA, if they won't, we'll do another test. After EA we'll continue improving game and releasing updates of content, when we release all the pack for Elaniens, we'll go for a full release and will switch to expansion on one of the other cultures.
Q: There was a common feeling that i saw being shared that quests rewards in general were just not worth to focus on, specially the hard ones to do, versus just grinding mobs and such.
Is the intention in Corepunk that quests are just fun guiding points to fill up the world or send the player in new directions and not really the intended way for people to level?
A: we'll improve it, rewards should correspond to the difficulty of the content.
Q: Will EA wipe or not?
A: There are pros and cons, sure we don't want people to loose progress, but from a tech standpoint it makes more sense. So we're not sure about it yet.
Q: Corepunk has been in development for over 8 years now and in that time the MMO landscape has definitely changed a lot. Players, design philosophies and so on. Have some of your concepts changed significantly because they no longer fit today's standard?
A: Hey, some things have actually changed over the years but the core gameplay idea is still the same, if you like MOBA controls but want an MMO experience in open world with fog of war, theres nothing that really scratches that itch. But sure we try to stay up to date and listen to our community, it's the most powerful input for us.
Q: Have the 3 new classes any major changes since their announcement on website? (Infiltrator, Shaman, Ranger)
A: yes you should expect updated design for the classes, we'll update info on them after making them available, because we iterate a lot we prioritize to make them fun and balanced, and then will update the docs.
Q: do you still think that the b2p system (which I like very much) is still suitable for the game? are you considering other approaches? thank you
A: We're still going with b2p and in-game shop with cosmetics and other non-gameplay affecting customizations like UI and so on.
Q: Can you tell us about the method for obtaining universal abilities? Will they all be available from the very beginning of the game or will be unlocked by leveling or exploring the world?
A: You'll get them from an NPC for gold starting at level 5.
Q: How many people do you plan to invite to the Test this time? You wrote earlier about 10k, is this possible?
A: 10k is probably what we'll go for this one, but we can scale much more, that was an issue on firsts tests, but not anymore. Although we still need to test that.
Q: I have only one question, that I've seen asked by others too. Do you plan getting cinematic at the start of the game ? We kind of came out of nowhere and fall into the game without any intro, also if yes is that possible that we get other cinematic through the game ?
A: we also believe that the good intro would add a lot, but not as much as the content we're working on right now, so it's just higher on our priorities list, but we'll get to that
Q: will there be any changes in the stash/bank because the space is very limited?
A: we also agree that the bank is too small right now, eventually you'll be able to extend storage for gold, if we won't do it by the next test we'll just extend the storage with additional pages.
Q: can you tell us about some of the cool mounts we can get and how we can acquire them?
A: we want to have mounts on EA, the more locations we release the more you need one, we have a lot of them done, from animals to vehicles, mech spiders and exo-skeletons
Q: How can I share my Map Marks? Will they be displayed on my teammate's map or can they be placed at the specified coordinates?
A: you can share it to current chat
Q: Please tell us everything you can about the lore of the game, what will be the motivation for us and our character in the world of Kvalat?
A: We want to show various aspects of Elaniens. Their good and dark sides. But the main story line is their combat with the valley of sins. There's bastion, a huge fortress and walls that protect Elan from monsters of the valley. And players will help them to hold the line and keep Leithana safe. We've already did the monsters, several years ago. But they are still waiting their turn.
The following is an official news post, originally available here.
It has been a while since our last update, so here we go.
We've been focused on getting Corepunk ready for the next meaningful test phase. Once again, we want to thank all the participants of our first public alpha. Much of what we are working on is inspired by feedback from our community.
Due to the end-of-year crunch we experienced in December, we wanted to take more time to recuperate and enhance the game. Our initial target for the next test phase was the end of winter. However, upon delving deeper into all the issues we've encountered, it became clear that we're going to need more time to ensure a successful test phase. Therefore, we will host the second alpha from April 23rd until April 30th.
Although most of you enjoyed the first alpha, there were several annoyances that detracted from the fun. So, first and foremost, we're addressing those.
We're enhancing the map and quest interface based on community feedback.
Every NPC you've met will continue to be marked on the map as before. However, quests will now feature an NPC location pointer for handover. You'll be able to view rewards and a full quest log. We've also introduced filtering for points of interest and the ability to add your own markers on the map and share them with others.
We're enhancing the leveling experience from levels 1 to 5 by improving the balance in early gameplay. This includes the addition of more tutorials, modifications to some quests, among other changes.
Furthermore, the starting location has been upgraded to include more concentrated gathering spots for valuable resources.
We're relocating the crafting tables closer together. While having them spread out added to the game's immersion by making the town feel more natural, we acknowledge your feedback: moving back and forth, particularly with mounts disabled, was inconvenient.
In response to your feedback on the randomness in gathering, we're dialing it back slightly by diversifying the gathering spots. Where previously there were three categories of gathering spots, we've expanded this to nine. Furthermore, we're adjusting the distribution of resources obtained through butchering, so you'll hunt particular mobs for particular resources.
We're introducing chest mechanics to camps. Now, some camps you come across will feature a chest. To unlock this chest, you must eliminate all the mobs in the camp first.
In PvE locations, the chest will be accessible to the party that inflicts the most damage to the camp's inhabitants.
In PvP areas, once all the mobs are defeated, the chest can be opened by any player through a 10-second casting process.
Merchants will periodically update their inventory, offering you the chance to snag a great deal or a rare item if you check an NPC's inventory at the right moment and place. Once you purchase an item, it will no longer be available in the shop.
Additionally, we're enhancing the game by adding a wealth of searchable items to abandoned locations throughout the wilderness, inviting you to explore and discover valuable loot.
In Alpha 2, we're expanding your crafting capabilities to include tier 3 items. This means a broader range of artifacts, runes, weapons, chips, and consumables will be at your disposal to customize your hero further.
With all these enhancements to early gameplay, economy, gathering, and crafting, we believe that the overall game experience will be significantly improved this time around.
We don't want you to do daily quests and grind all the time. We want you to enjoy Corepunk as an event, we think of our content updates as seasons in a TV show. Every two to three months there's a big update, new location a few settlements, new types of mobs, npc's from new worlds with their stories to tell. Plus new heroes and weapon specializations.
One of our goals for this year is to release new content every 2-3 months and be very consistent about it. We've created a lot of assets over these last 8 years. But we need to learn to package them right, i.e. high quality, fun and fast. So during this year we'll be working on this. We want to do several content updates this year and hopefully release the first part of Corepunk: God bless the king, the story of Elan.
So with this test we're working on streamlining release of new locations and settlements.
Probably the biggest changes gameplay-wise are coming for hero builds. We want to test the full set of features we've planned originally for making your hero feel and play unique and gameplay more interesting.
We'll unlock 3 more specializations: Ranger, Shaman, Infiltrator.
Also weapon specialization talents will be available for Destroyer, Legionary, Blast medic + Ranger, Shaman, Infiltrator.
We also want to test 8 (of 10) passive skill trees: Warrior, Assassin, Hunter, Tank, Medic, Mage, Pathfinder, Support.
We'll also enable universal abilities, they will allow even better customization of your play-style.
Though it is a small section in this post, this is actually where the bulk of our technical team's work is focused. We're improving security, making connections not only safer but also faster, which leads to improved tactility (although we still have a long list of improvements to make in that area), more players per shard, and overall enhanced scaling, observability, and tactility.
Chat and groups are among the earliest features we implemented, so they had a lot of bugs and limitations. For this test, we're finally rewriting them. Expect much better functionality and stability.
The first alpha revealed many bugs that we are now fixing for the test.
As always, we're producing more assets to fine-tune the content under test and make the whole experience more vibrant and handcrafted. Here are some screenshots.
That's just a part of what we're working on for Alpha 2. We may share more updates closer to the test.
The first Alpha was very positively received, thanks to feedback from our community based on "first look" tests. There might be good and bad iterations, but what's important is that we align our vision with what's actually fun and works. Our goal, like that of most developers, is to build a fun and successful game. We appreciate your input in this process, thank you for your feedback.
Join our AMA on Feb 22 CET 19:00 on Discord
Register an account for a better chance to test for yourself.
See you in Corepunk alpha 2!
Your Corepunk team.
The following is an official news post, originally available here.
We've successfully hosted our first public alpha! This is a huge milestone for us.
We are grateful to all participants for your time spent playing, streaming, sharing your experiences, highlighting bugs, suggesting improvements, and searching for security flaws. This was the primary goal of the test, and it provided us with valuable insights and data that we're still analyzing.
We're reading your comments on YouTube videos, posts on our forum, Discord discussions, and watching videos. Please continue to share your feedback in any medium you're comfortable with. It's extremely helpful.
The test went very well. We received a lot of positive and critical feedback, both of which are crucial. The most important observation is that, at its core, the game has potential. There were aspects you loved and some you disliked, but most of you want Corepunk to succeed.
We're still sifting through your feedback, but we've already identified some key areas to focus on:
That's a substantial workload. We aim to address these issues by the next test, which we plan to host around the end of February. Based on the results of the next test, we'll determine early access dates or whether more tests are necessary before that.
Thank you very much for your support and energy. Watching you play and chat was incredible; our entire team spent a lot of time on Twitch and YouTube during those days, making numerous notes on player interactions with their work. We're ready to take the next step for Corepunk and are already working on it.
Your Corepunk team.
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