Armaphract
A downloadable game for Windows
Command a mercenary tank company in deadly urban warfare through a shattered desert megacity. Outmatched and outgunned, you'll survive through superior tactics and cunning maneuvers against intelligent enemy forces.
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--> Discord https://discord.gg/9z7qfffzBN
0.D UPDATE DEVLOG: https://aeoriii.itch.io/ironmirage/devlog/1099307/0d-surblinde
Inspired by games like Doorkickers, Brigador, Highfleet, and Warno, this is a slow paced tactical tank sim with bursts of action. You can choose to be methodical, pausing and planning out every move, or advance violently and adapt on the fly.
This game is still very early in development.
Minor Updates:
- 0.D rc4 (Performance fix)
- 0.D rc3 (UI adjustments, some bug fixes)
- 0.D rc2 (first public build)
Feedback of any kind is very welcome! Add a comment below or use the google form if you don't have an itch account.
| Updated | 5 days ago |
| Status | In development |
| Platforms | Windows |
| Rating | Rated 4.8 out of 5 stars (31 total ratings) |
| Author | aeoriii |
| Genre | Strategy, Simulation |
| Tags | 3D, Real time strategy, Tactical, Tanks, Top-Down |
| Links | Steam |
Download
Development log
- 0.D "SURBLINDE"31 days ago
- Update 0.C94 days ago
- Update 0.BJul 01, 2025








Comments
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it would be good if we could use the old tanks.
I've been trying the dev build. So far this game is chewing me up and spitting me out! ATGMs are brutal, and I can't even make it through Tutorial 3 without taking casualties
That artwork of the K-115 on the game page is so peak, an armaphract art or lore book would be awesome. Love the game!
does anyone else know that you can control enemy launchers by clicking on them, hovering your mouse over one of your own troops and press Q like you normally do on your friendly tanks? its pretty funny and game breaking making an enemy launch an r8 infront of them
oops, lol good catch
...what if we had a watchdogs style module that let us hack into enemy systems and let us temporarily control them? Maybe a bit far-fetched but would be very sci-fi.
wait for real? that is some messed up mind trick stuff xD
Wish there was a discord or something
can u make it available for mac?
I'll look into it for later builds.
For reference, shift + hold rmb drag is how you aim at point.
Anyhow, really nice update, lots of cool stuff keep up the good work.
There are some things I've noticed, lots probably just from the core gameplay and not necessarily the new update.
Infantry get stuck on other infantry bodies really hard, and thinking about it bodies probably shouldn't block movement since they can just step over.
Infantry small arms might also be a bit overtuned, they kinda chew up externals, even ERA/Applique, and I'm not sure how much that makes sense. I also saw an orlina c1b2 get suppressed endlessly by a squad and get softlocked, was pretty funny.
Ammo also seems to get eaten up pretty fast sometimes, in general, but especially with some infantry weapons, and the agl3, also not sure how resupplying infantry works, just putting them back in the vehicle doesn't seem to work, and they also seem to struggle with getting back in vehicles sometimes.
Sometimes AI seems to get stuck driving into walls, only noticed when watching orlina and bloc fight, though can't comment on why because the cases are occasional and inconsistent.
Infantry rpgs are sometimes deceiving, as they seeming always explode at the edge of the unit's own view range, while the firing line implies that it could be fired much further assuming you have a spotter to see the target.
A few questions too:
Does applique armor provide protection against kinetic rounds too unlike era/aera?
How does equipping two types of ammo decide which one to be actually used?
Are AT fireteams not supposed to have any small arms at all?
Anyhow lots of peak, very good
Thanks for playing!
Will fix the the infantry collision bug, and adjust small arms fire vs armor, the way attached armor works is a lot simpler than the more complex internal armor calculation and needs to be aligned. Infantry recoilless rifles should be able to damage those though
Infantry should be able to take from a vehicle's supply source (not RPGs however), but the supply/ammo system overall is being reworked
I'll take a look just to be sure, but I *think* the infantry RPGs are detonating at the edge of vision because it just so happens the rocket's fuel, velocity, and arc causes it to hit the ground around that range. In the future I would like to add actual arcs and estimated range to ordnance as well.
Yes, applique armor is more effective against kinetic and provide a little protection against HEAT/warheads too
Currently only the first equipped ammo with the caliber for that gun is used
Yeah AT teams don't have small arms, They're like a dedicated atgm team, though I forgot to give them the ARCOS-2M instead of an rpg. I might also give them light smgs or something
On mission 2, is this platoon supposed to just camp near the exit? Seems kind of odd since you're not encouraged to exit until you kill these guys, at the exit :/ I'd naturally they were supposed to be reinforcements or something.
Also I still can't get infantry to resupply in their vehicles, they just don't seem to replenish the supply bar, unless the time to do so is just extremely long.
Oh yeah, also the ordnance # and base reload seem to be swapped.
Looks like that squad on mission 2 might be broken. I'll take a look, the resupply mechanic is probably not working.
Good catch on the ordnance
Hm, speaking of broken squads, are the coalition squads on mission 5 on the left side also broken? The mission indicates as if they would be pincering the bloc convoy from both sides, yet the left side units don't seem to move unless provoked.
tbh I changed them so that they'd needed to be provoked since both sides attacking had inconsistent results, sometimes the bloc force would be wiped out for you. But it seems like most people thought it was a bug
im making this post to see who can get the highest score in simulator:
here is my best score yet
got 990 very painfully with aspera and mahiri's tanks
The random mission generator always seems to place the extraction zone in the same location - just to the left of the top corner of the map.
This can result in some strange layouts - I could barely access this one.
Thanks for reporting this bug!
feedback and alot of question on 0.d_rc4 "SURBLINDÉ" update:
INFANTRY:
infantry feels really powerful but its balanced because infantry can quickly get taken out or get tools damaged, they also can't hit fast moving armored targets well.
saw that there was a "satchel" that infantry could throw for close range,
i can't figure out how to use it, do they throw it automatically when in range ? can it be thrown at building for demolition purpose ?
the new recon team has thermal aswell as some tanks, what does it do ?
does it see enemy through smoke ?
TANKS/VEHICULES:
i used the new c1b2 more than the c1 and they are really good, the c1b2 got a insane range, not much else to say
tank fell really inacurrate while moving (i think this what you wanted right ? its not a complaint i think it make the game balanced)
when using the armory and inspecting any vehicule the 2 images on the top right (for vehicule armor and vehicules details) always show a image of k-115a1, even for the b30-d who clearly doesn't look like that, even wheeled vehicules have the image.
on mission 5, a vehicule spawn inside a building: at the start of the road where 1 orlina spawn, inside the first industrial building to the right.
For some reason it seem to only attack infantry.
in the dev log for this update you called the c1b2(ingame name) "c1v2"(devlog name). I do not know which is wrong.
it look like we lost some vehivules like the k-115 replaced by the k-115v and k-115a1, aswell as the k-50a.
can't use the "look at point" feature, there is no control for it in the controls menu.
MORE GENERAL FEEDBACK:
while the controls menu is open you can't exit the game but you can exit when the option menu is open
question time (my favorite):
will it be possible to loot supplies from dead vehicules ? (could have alot of uses for longer battles)
since you are adding a mortar b-20, will there be a mortar team added ?
seeing as you are adding the b-20 combat engi, will it be able to destroy building ? will we get more building demolition tools ?
the description the applique armor talk about reinforced crew hatches to prevent prying open, is it foreshadowing for for tank hijacking ?
will there be multiplayer or co-op (i predict that it might be added for the steam release)
could we get a bigger module storage to store all of the modules on all vehicules (i have been putting the era from tanks i won't use ingame onto tanks i will use but i always need to equip the tank and remove the era by hand, you could do the same thing you did with crew where they automatticly get added back but for tank parts ?).
COMMENTS:
you exceded my expectation both for infantry and vehicules, i cant wait to see what you will add next.
thank you for fixing extraction point spawning inside buidlings on simulator
sorry i kinda rushed this feedback
also, do take time to develop your game properly (you seemed like you didn't have enough time to finalize the update when talking about the "countless bugs you forgot" in the devlog)
> i can't figure out how to use it, do they throw it automatically when in range ? can it be thrown at building for demolition purpose ?
They do it automatically at close range. I've seen them throw it. The projectile is very hard to spot - look for the small triangle with a smoke trail, just like the grenades.
> the new recon team has thermal aswell as some tanks, what does it do ?
does it see enemy through smoke ?
Thermal only lets you see further/ID faster, I think.
> it look like we lost some vehivules like the k-115 replaced by the k-115v and k-115a1, aswell as the k-50a.
The K115A1 is exactly the same as the old K115. The K50a does seem to be gone from the player's inventory, but I've encountered some in game so I'm assuming it's just not being made available to the player at the moment. (Like the variants of the K75)
Well... I've noticed, that the K115 had 8 R8 (High-Explosive) rockets instead of the K115a1's (I think) 4 acros-2 (Anti-Tank) missiles. I personally liked the old one way more, but whatever. Also, to anyone that reads this, did you like the old, or the new hangar music more? (For me it's the old one.)
At first glance, this game looks very promising, and it is definitely worth the wait. The graphics are nice, and the gameplay mechanics are both interesting and good. Overall, the game is peak, and I'm looking forward to more content from you, so keep it up 🥳✨✨
UPDATE LETS G
Armor = Cringe.
Infantry = Based
Really hope they get more ammo or are able to resupply on the IFV.
The game has a lot of potential.
Lovely game, I love the atmosphere, the gameplay and the premise. Do you think you could add moddability / Original names for the vehicles? Asking mostly because this kind of "tank dorrkickers" would feel great if you could also play with the vehicles that the in-game ones were clearly based on (like abrams and t72). You should also think about a steam release! They take a hefty cut but You get more people to see the game, and I for one would gladly buy it!
I recently added a page up on steam where you can wishlist the game! steam workshop/mods is one of those things that I'd really want to include but it might end up being a post-release sort of thing...
As for vehicle types, I ended up not going with real tanks/weapons since I wanted to explore a different setting and come up with some designs that we don't have in real life. plus balancing would be trickier haha.
Immediately wishlisted! I understand the balancing being tricky, lots of games have tried in the end. I do hope you'll decide to spend time on proper modding integration as it helps games last a LOT longer, without the timesink of waiting until somebody finds a way to mod regardless.
That being said, please keep working on it! It has immense potential within a niche that's not covered at all!
Hello aeoriii, I have sent you a message on X. I would love to chat and learn more about the project and see if we could support your work.
Been loving this game, the visuals, the gameplay, the ost are all great, very excited to see what the next version has.
Hull facing would be very nice to have, and since armor angling isn't a thing, you really want to be dead on to the enemy. ctrl + rmb is probably good, to mirror ctrl + lmb for reversing.
I will note that rmb facing towards enemies isn't very 'sticky', like I'd want a vehicle to hold an angle on an obstructed enemy, but since it sees another obstructed enemy closer it always shifts off. Would much rather they just hold the angle I told, rather than shifting off constantly at inopportune times and losing the first shot.
Infantry are pretty neat, but some of their pathing is rather unintuitive, gaps that seem wide enough aren't passable, and the slightly off camera angle blocks potential alleyways. And they get sticky on doorframes, walls, and collasped buildings, though vehicles also seem to get slowed/stopped by collapsed buildings as if they're still there.
Would also be neat if infantry could have smokes, and if they don't destroy obstacles and only push them, that way I have an option for moving cover around and such.
Noticed some weird visual bugs in the 'armory', lots of flickering shadows sometimes, might be a me problem.
I cannot express how much I'd love for the ost to be uploaded so I could listen to it all the time.
Glad you enjoyed the build! Hull facing is being added, Ctrl+rmb is a good suggestion. As for holding an angle, I do want to prioritize player agency and I'll try to play around with overriding unit behaviors.
The upcoming infantry improvements should iron out some of those problems. Some of them are getting handheld smoke grenades too!Pathfinding should be somewhat better across the board too.
Dude, absolutely fantastic game--especially for a very early alpha build! I gotta ask though, are you planning to release the OSTs for the game? If so, where? Spotify? Youtube? Because the tracks in game are quite good.
Thank you! Music is the one thing I don't create, so for releasing OSTs, I can't really say right now.
question and feedback on the game:
i played on version 0.C_rc4 as of this commment and my loadout where most of the time 2 k-75A 1 k-115 and a b-30D with the most troop bay i could fit. I have not used all the k-50 variants tanks.
i will talk about infantry first:
I have read alot of the comment here and checked out the twitter/x dev page and its clear that you want the game to stay about the tanks. But i feel that infantry is a bit useless (this might just be me using them wrong ,i mostly did scouting with them)
my complaint:
they are not that good at scouting:
Their range of view is way less than a tank (due to modules) making them way less efficient at scouting, especially on the long main roads you get alot in the simulator where the ennemy armors often is. Also peeking out of corners or windows is 50/50 chance of the whole squad dying before they can even spot the ennemy
why not make it so 1 person in the squad peek the corner
they lack variety:
since you can't customize infantry like armor
also, the 3 men "scout" team and 5 men squad have the same vision range, meaning that the scout team is nothing but a downgraded version of the squad with slightly more speed which isn't that useful/make a difference to scout
Moving them is painfull:
the isometric view make finding walkable path hard
there is a automatic pathfinding but it often get squad stuck or make the path longer
when trying to modify the path of a squad you don't get the filter that show building in red and entry point in yellow
here some ideas i got to give them more uses while keeping tanks the powerhouse of the game:
give them equipement:
smoke grenade to throw at the ennemy or anywhere (unlike tanks who can only smoke infront of them)
explosives to destroy buildings or make holes
mines
mounted guns/emplacement, powerful guns for ambush at the cost of speed (slow setup and move speed due to weigth of gun)
binoculars, more range (does not have to be gun range just more vision can do aswell)
barricades (either big ones to block road or smaller to block entry points on buildings)
make more specialized infantry: (like the scout team)
(having infantry with certain weapons or gadget would mean not having a whole infantry modification menu and keep the squares system you have in the armory)
AT team (most infantry already have AT weapons so give them a mounted one maybe ?)
demolition team (explosives for diverse function: blow a building/hole/tank maybe if you get close enough)
enginneer squad (i saw another comment talking about hijacking and repairing tanks)
tank crew (its a extra tank crew to man the hijacked tanks or replace dead tank members )
medic team
one last thing for infantry, maybe add verticality to buildings
being able to go on roof for better vision at the cost of being more vulnerable and slower to exit building and only for certain building
sorry i went on a rant about infantry for too long, remember that this is your game not mine and you decide what is best for it.
for tanks:
i know you already got this complaint but please add some line to visualise the path of ordonnance
for the questions:
what does the supply bar do ? is it just ammo ? is it used to repair the tank when they get derailed and everything ? could there be a way to replenish it ?
what others weapons (the red modules) do you plan to add ?
are we always gonna be limited to 4 vehicules no matter the deploymenet points
Is there gonna be multiplayer ?
could vehicules like humvees or jeep with mounted gun ever be a thing ?
could unarmed vehicules like trucks with more modules space exist ?
why do ordonnance sometimes go flying away ? is it because i was too close to the ennemy tanks ?
thats it for now, keep doing what you do, its really good and will stay on the lookout for the steam release
also please add the possibilty to ram ennemy infantry
I honestly found infantry to be really useful. If you're tactical and plan ahead, every map has multiple good routes to move infantry through cover and if you minimize exposure you can get close enough to enemies to scout them. They're also expendable so if you mess up, you can just use their (kinda bad) APC carrier to do the scouting instead, for the same reason. The extra movement speed of the recon platoon meant I pretty much always brought them instead of normal infantry, since they all die basically instantly and so I'd rather move faster to break line of sight faster as well as speed up the boring wait for the infantry to reach the enemy.
They aren't as good at scouting long sightlines, but are a lot better at scouting areas like factories or city blocks because they can just walk through 50% of the buildings. The trick I used was sending the squad out of a building just a little bit, seeing if they get shot at; if they don't, move into the street. If they still don't, move the tanks up. If they do, pause and move them not just inside the building but out of the back door to break sight and they usually survive. Sometimes I could even use this to bait enemy tanks to chase and they would drive straight into my pre-set firing line of tanks! (This method trivialized the final defense mission) The infantry pathing does need a lot of work though, they always get stuck whether I use automatic or manual pathing.
I do hope infantry does get better vision though, or maybe a directional vision one like tanks so they can scout in one direction farther. Maybe save it for a future "sniper team" squad that's great against infantry and hard to spot but really bad versus tanks. It's fine if we don't, though... It seems like the idea was that the terrible environment reduces visibility for everyone, so high-powered optics are A. hard to come by and B. really strong. It's nice having atmosphere affect gameplay for immersion.
Thanks for playing and for your thoughts about infantry. Infantry and its pathfinding will be reworked/updated for the next build, feedback is really helpful.
Seems like people would like a recon/sniper team, which is a cool idea!
The scout team is lacking distinction right now but it can be loaded on vehicles with a smaller bay. maybe I could make them the long range team.
Specialized infantry is planned, but probably will be a later addition.
Answers for your questions:
- supply is primarily a pool for using weapons, so tank rounds would use maybe 1-2 supply whereas a .50cal would use very little. The ammo system will probably be expanded on in the future so this might change.
- There are some more interesting weapons planned down the line!
- Perhaps upgrades to your convoy will allow you to bring more units in a battle but it's not decided.
- More light vehicles like Humvees are planned! plus trucks, they'll probably have big space for logistic modules. Mostly on hold while I wrap up implementing wheeled vehicles.
- Ordnance usually has an arming time, so firing too close or grazing something a weird angle might send it flying.
Also, vehicles should be able to run over infantry already, I'll check if I broke it or something
how to play
do the tutorial missions
heard about this game a few hours ago and is already my new favorite game. This has alot of great potential to be well known.
While the game is great i've had trouble with the pixelated theme of it, its a bit too pixelated for me that is all the feedback i could give i expect most of my other feedback to be already in mind to develop.
I definitely second this. It was very hard to tell the difference between my vehicles and the ground because of that. Some pixelation is probably fine, and the game's aesthetic is great, but maybe a screen filter or smth would be easier on the eyes than pixelation. If the game looked half as clear as that final screenshot does, it would be 100x better. Imagine being able to visually see ERA detonate or a shot ricochet, rather than just being a bunch of vague pixels.
Also, I don't know if this will help anyone, but use ctrl + left click in order to order your units to move backwards. I don't know if you can chain reverse and forward gears in the same line, but it would be a cool feature.
edit: also, a mode that lets you switch between infantry view and tank view would be good in order to see what pathways your tanks/infantry can take at a glance, without needing to dismount first.
What resolution is your monitor at? currently there is a graphical bug where the pixelation shader "pixelizes" way more at lower resolutions like 1980p, compared to 2560 or 4K, this is on my todo. And at the end of the day, the stylization does lower the amount of work it takes for me to create VFX, textures, and effects.
A mode to toggle or show views without selecting infantry is a good idea!
I run two monitors, 1920x1080 and 1600x900. It's hyper-pixelated on both. If necessary I could get pictures/video of the problem if you need.
I do hope you are able to go into more detail in the future, when the game is more complete; definitely focus on playability, content, and anime waifus first!
I also have one more suggestion, add a Stryker APC to the game. I was a little sad not being able to take off main armament and switch them around, but with the Stryker it was designed to be "easily" converted between APC, IFV, ARV, MGS, and other configs. Would be awesome with the modularity of the game! Also probably best to wait for later.
edit: one more: map editor
Swappable weapons for certain vehicles is one of those things that I'm still hashing out in terms of game design/balance, but there'll definitely be more wheeled gun systems! one coming soon
I found this game on tiktok, its actually very fun ngl. Its kinda stuttery for me (prolly becuz of my ass PC) but still very playable, currently larping in a full tank crewman suit.
11/10 peak
Keep up the good work!!
Thanks for playing! gunner, sabot, tank! hopefully future performance improvements will make your experience better
Additional feedback on the gameplay: Im guessing the vehicles the IFVs somehow are garrisoned inside the building....I thought it was intentional during the random spawns but i guess it turns out to be a bug where enemy IFVs are settled inside the building for an ambush thanks to the walls being cleared out by explosions or what not, sometimes a hangar-like warehouse that are open in both ends for infantry (IFV Tutorial for example, down the alleyway towards the end, a building that looked like a warehouse and its visible from the infantry's pov to see a tank on the other side).
Think this bug would turn to a tricky ambush spot for enemy armor? Could also be a decent defensive spot for defense missions
Turning that bug into a mechanic seems interesting, I can see it in defense missions like you said, or maybe you catch the enemy base off guard in a mission and hit their hangars!
Would need to think it through however, since there will probably be lots of pathfinding and gameplay work. I will consider it in the future when buildings will get reworked.
Maybe go for buildings that are a little more accessible (wider) for tanks to fit in like a warehouse from the Tutorial mission where the infantry can easily see? some designs that could help it a little easier on your load before you would refine them once the major ones are dealt with.
Also it may be more dangerous since its often on the enemy's perspective during our offensive operations so its like a PEEK-A-BOO thats often used by them rather than us in defensive missions. but then again you can always make a new mission that involves alot of garrisoned tanks, also what are the chances of a HULL DOWN enemy tank during our sweep?
An excellent game so far - very excited about seeing more content for it. Two questions:
- Is there a way to report bugs?
- Are there plans to make the soundtrack available for download?
Fun game, but infantry movement needs some work, especially when they are trying to painfully slow tank thru wrecks. Maybe just make them noclip it?
Also in tutorial 4 enemy apc spawned inside (or moved into) building and was invincible until i rocketed it, not sure if it was intentional
I don't have a ton of new feedback on this game, other than the common "holy crap this is really fun", however, the performance isn't great. Take this with a grain of salt, however, as the computer I usually play it on is a 7 year old laptop that could probably use an upgrade. It runs at roughly 10ish fps (maybe), and it can take a few seconds for my inputs to register. A small bug I noticed, however only on this laptop, is that sometimes, when I use smoke, it will obstruct view for far longer than it probably should, usually taking around 10 seconds for the view obscuration to clear after the actual visible smoke is gone. Otherwise, really good game, I quite like it
Thank you for your note. I'm always trying to improve performance. Can you share (roughly) what generation your CPU and GPU is from?
I've got an i5-8265U CPU and a 8th gen UHD 620 GPU. As I said, old and kina bottom of the line, but otherwise runs great on more powerful computers!
All feedback i could give has been said by others. This game has AWESOME potential and i will be sticking around to see it, absolutely incredible work so far Aeoriii! Keep up the good work! if you ever make this game multiplayer, I will tie my friends up in chairs and make them play this. Either the stockholm syndrome or the fact that they are playing a awesome game will make them keep playing. Seriously tho GREAT JOB KEEP IT UP!
This is a really cool game. Door kickers never grabbed me, but this feels like a better fit for the system they made. It is very obvious you are on to something and I'm excited to see where this goes.
Some thoughts (ok I wrote a little more than I thought I would, sorry for the wall of text)
It isn't super clear how damage works or how/where a tank is damaged. I assume this just hasn't been added yet, but I think it will be really cool to do things like point the side of the tank that still has ERA at oncoming fire.
I think you should experiment with different turret traverse speeds. Right now, it feels very zippy. This means you can react faster to being flanked, but also that enemies react faster to being flanked. Ultimately, it makes out maneuvering enemy tanks with good recon and positioning less rewarding since you only get one maybe two shots before they return fire. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, idk what your vision is, but it might be interesting if tanks were less able to whip around and getting out maneuvered was more of a death sentence. Or maybe fast turret traverse could require a module while normal traverse is much slower but you can have something else in that slot.
I'm not sure what to say about this exactly, but be careful about how you implement missiles? It is cool to fire off a thermobaric missile and damage/destroy large groups of enemies. However, I found myself stacking missiles on everything I could so I could use them constantly. I'd either recon with infantry or more often send a tank forward until it made contact, pop smoke, then fire missiles through the smoke. It kinda detracts from (what I think is) the core tactical elements of the game, or at least it has the potential to do that. Might be interesting to balance it by having a chance the thermobarics cookoff under fire, so you don't attach them to everything but they can still be really devastating without breaking the game.
Also, it isn't super clear what obstructs a missile or not. I'm still not sure how it works tbh. Having the line on the missile targeting UI be obstructed would be a nice way to communicate it.
BTW I did see a missile curve hard to the right by around 90 degrees. If this is an intentional chance of the missile malfunctioning, that is very cool, but I thought I should mention it in case it's a bug. And yes, it was unguided.
Just in general, I think indirect fire might detract from the core gameplay. Needing to get an angle to fire directly requires a lot of thought that calling in artillery just doesn't. I say this because I'm sure a lot of people will suggest indirect fire options without understanding the gameplay ramifications. But do what you think is right.
Recon is dangerous. I like this. I hope it stays this way. I'm sure people will ask for drones (or whatever other piece of equipment they love) but be vary careful about anything that makes recon less deadly. Or don't. Your vision your game.
There is no way for the player to develop a sense of how accurate a gun is. I get that there is a penalty for shooting and moving, but I have no clue what that penalty is or in what circumstances it would matter. To this end, I'd like to suggest something a little radical. Have the full hit chance for the current target displayed on the UI and constantly be updated. In other words, give the player perfect information. This way, the player would be able to develop a sense of how accurate a gun is at a given range, how much of a penalty moving is, and any other factors that impact accuracy. Otherwise, the player just has to guess when building their tank.
Smoke. Smoke is neat. I like smoke. But sometimes, I want to get past an intersection without having to deal with the threats on either side. Smoke, if properly coordinated, can accomplish this. Sometimes. But I found myself really wanting an option for more of a long thin line of smoke instead of a blob. I think it would allow for some interesting maneuvers.
I assume troops aren't supposed to destroy obstacles by walking into them. That's a thing. Also troops spawn inside the tank if you have the compartment.
Now for the "I think it would be cool ifs"
Blowing holes in building that tanks can shoot through. This would allow for interesting ambush opportunities. Maybe it could be limited to infantry precisely planting explosives while everything else still destroys the whole building. There is some historical precedent for this if you care.
Walls. Walls that can be more easily blown up and traversed than buildings but that still block sight. Maybe make it so tanks can just run through them.
I think some missions having restrictions on what vehicles you can bring would be interesting. Maybe the local infrastructure can't handle more than x weight so you have to either not bring your heavier tanks or really strip them down. I imagine most players will just find a comp they like and use it for all missions otherwise (which would probably get old faster).
In that same vein, sandstorms could be an interesting modifier. Maybe a storm starts 5 minutes into a mission so you either have to rush the mission to avoid the greatly reduced visibility, or try to take advantage of it and wait for the sandstorm to hit before you start.
I assume you aren't super concerned about realism as long as it's fun. While this seems very rooted in cold-war-like tech, MBTs can be a little bland. I think it would be neat to draw some inspiration from the oddities of WWII. Some casemate SPGs with limited traverse might be interesting. Having to deal with some super heavy (if completely impractical) abomination as a sort of pseudo-boss could be pretty cool too.
More than anything though, I think anti-tank guns could add a lot. They'd be stationary and only cover a limited traverse, but I think that would make for interesting ambushes. Tanks are very flexible, so I think having some less flexible enemies in some cases could add some depth and variety. It would also be nice to have an enemy that infantry can reliably take on without getting obliterated.
I think greater specialization would be fun. Being able to have a tank that sacrifices traverse, speed, and any FOW for extreme range and a massive gun would be interesting. It would be extremely good in some situations, while being totally useless in others. That could be used to encourage players to only take it on certain missions, or to do everything they can to keep a favorable position for that tank. This might add depth. Or be really easy to abuse. Idk.
Anyway, you seem to really know what you are doing. I didn't know I wanted what this game offered until I played it. I'm sure I will be the same when I play the next update. Us players don't always know what we want, so if you take none of my suggestions and make a game better than I could imagine I will be very happy.
Sorry I forgot to post this reply earlier. Thank your for your feedback!
I'm working on improving the ui in combat for damage especially for modules, the side overlay shows the condition of armor for each side on the vehicle.
Thanks for bringing up turret traverse speeds, I'll play around with lowering them since as you mentioned, flanking should be deadly and maneuverability/positioning should be key. I like the idea of improving turret speeds with a module too.
Rockets are overtuned in the current build, they will be less powerful in the next build. They'll might also be limited in how much you can attach, in a similar way to guns as well. Especially since enemies will fire ordnance back at you soon, and they also sometimes fire when they see you smoke ;)
Good point, targeting UI is being improved to show better where the missile can go.
Guided munitions can lose tracking or get interrupted, but if a unguided missile is going haywire it's usually if a rocket smacks against the side of a wall/another tank and slides off before the fuse is armed.
You brought up a good point about indirect fire, I will consider how to implement it in a way which doesn't subtract from the main gameplay.
More types/shapes of smoke should be coming soon!
I might make the troop compartment(s) take up more slots, but if players can fit the compartment somehow into a tank then it'll be allowed.
Thanks for the suggestions, lots of cool ideas here. Partial destruction of buildings may not be doable, although I'll take a look when I rework the building destruction system. Walls/barriers are a good suggestion!
I do hope to add some anti-tank guns, tank destroyer type tanks, and more specialized tanks soon!
Absolutely wonderstriking
First things out of the way, I found this by Twitter. I downloaded it because I was curious, and I played this on a MacBook, so many of my performance criticisms will need to be taken with a bit of skepticism, but may be applicable universally.
My thoughts will also be extremely general and first-in-mind kind of deal, so if you want me to clarify on anything specific, I'll do my best.
GAMEPLAY -
Tank combat is very responsive. I don't think I've ever had a moment where I've said to myself "damn this sucks." But occasionally, tanks will run over heavy obstacles (gas trucks, destroyed vehicles). Maybe this is intentional, maybe not, but it'd be a bit convenient for the player to have them navigate around it themselves rather than me having to babysit Aspera when I notice she's moving too slow. Like, c'mon woman, I know you have eyes.
UI serves its purpose. Aesthetically, I don't have any complaints, but it'd be neat to have a section titled "model viewer" within our armory. Not a huge deal, but I like seeing with my own eyes the detail of the vehicles.
Okay, let's head a little deeper.
Infantry is fairly wack. I don't mean to say they're useless, but I've cleared almost every level in the game with 3 medals using only tanks. All I had to do was cycle the first two tanks, then when they fire, bring the rear row forward to quickly deliver the next volley, repeat (like musketmen or some other generic tank tactic). The only time I ever found myself considering not using this maneuver was when enemy armor started moving to flank me-- or if I was too far out of range. I heavily suggest playing around way more with infantry with longer, more obtuse angles with better armor support.
Not saying it wasn't fun or a bit of a brain teaser. The game did make me think. But not a single point in the game made me go into the pause menu for more than 3 minutes, and then nab 3 medals.
PERFORMANCE -
Mmm. My favorite. I've only included the one's I've been able to repeat (so no one-off glitches.) Okay, so I've noticed a few things you might want to take a look at.
When issuing multiple orders simultaneously (moving forward, rearing, queuing smoke or supplemental rounds, turret direction and infantry movements), usually if you queue four of these, the game dips into 4 FPS for a brief second, then reset to normal.
Occasionally switching to freecam will launch your camera into orbit. I see it happen the most when my units are in combat, but I've seen it happen when nothing's happening (albeit, once).
Other than those two, no major complaints on performance. It runs well.
WORLDBUILDING -
At the end of the day, this game has what? Lore. What kind of lore? Anime women tank lore. How exciting.
The one thing that bothered me a lot was that the descriptions for some of these items cut off, and when I try to select them-- oh, what do you know, they only appear when my mouse is hovering over it.
I'm trying to read and Aspera snatches my dossiers away lol
But truthfully, much of your worldbuilding will have to come from the briefings and your commanders. Unless you want to include cutscenes, and I'm fairly certain that's not coming anytime soon.
The game by itself is super fun, and there's not much for me to say on the lore. But what I do know is the world seems to be established on an alternate Earth (assuming it's Earth, some folk like it to be Not-Earth-but-kinda) where people accidentally-on-purpose destroyed the ozone layer. The factions with the most power seem to be akin to mercenary militia groups that run under countries. Or these countries subsidize said militia in order to maintain territory. I dunno.
There's many super fun and equally (super) exciting ways to exposit your world without vomiting it into my ear (or eyes if you like typing as much as I do). But I'm not the one making the game, so that's none of my business.
SUGGESTIONS -
Hi.
Okay, so some things I'd like to suggest are the following:
* Queuing firing commands.
I mean like, firing the turret when they reach a certain location- like how you did with queuing turret turns. I'm super annoyed when I see someone there, but they have an angle on me. So I want to tell my commander "Hey, the second you peek that corner, drive a round through that motherfucker." But Aspera's brain is on airplane mode, so she's like "aye sir" and now I have to throw in another tank to cope with the damage she sustained and her ass is on fire.
* Purchasing units and modules.
Ditto.
* Sickbay/Medical center.
Certain characters may survive being blasted by armor-piercing discarding-sabot fin-stabilized rounds. I wouldn't, but let's pretend I did and I live in this god-forsaken world known as Armaphract. First, we'd need to requisition medical supplies, personnel, then therapy (as required). But oh no! What if we're broke-as-fuck and we need to perform a mission ASAP? (There are no limited time missions so who cares) Now we have supply missions! Rob those mean foreign motherfuckers for all of their money and medical supplies and give them to that one woman who refuses to speak our language, but can somehow communicate her status to us in-real time and we just kinda understand her.
* Logistics
Y'know, speaking about wounds is making me hungry. That reminds me, we need to feed and take care of our troops! But wait, what happens if we idle on main missions for too long? Some additional missions may appear that we can only tackle on a limited time-frame. Say, protecting persons, buildings or vital routes. Losing or failing these missions apply significant debuffs on our future campaigns. What a thrill... In darkness and silence through the night... Also food animations mmm delicious. Anyways, you get the idea.
* F-16 Fighting Falcon
Wouldn't it be cool if we had air support aha aha nooo don't drop that thousand-pounder danger-close your so sexy aha aha
I'm actually super biased because I work on military fighter aircraft but y'know if you wanted to add air support I think that'd be jackpot frfr no cap
* Interaction with named characters
Why wouldn't I want to talk to Aspera about uhm uhh uhmmm uhh idk how's the weather
Or maybe more interaction with each other depending on how long they've spent together in battle.
1-3 missions Aspera might say "We've lost armor. Recommend vacating the area." But say 6-7 (67 mmm sexy number) missions with the same commander and they die, she might mourn the loss, complimenting their competence in battle. Or perhaps 10 missions down the line, she'll comment on their personality, suggesting that they've begun interacting on friendly terms outside of firefights.
* Elevation
This simple change (and its inevitable accompanying changes to angles and range by introducing another dimension to ground combat) will give you significant leeway to play around with the map, unit movement and maybe even utilizing the destructible environment in order to prevent enemy movement while helping your own objective. (Destroying bridges, hiding in trees and the ilk. All that fun stuff.)
Ok im tired goodnight
Thank you for your thoughts and suggestions! Did you get this running though wine or a parallel desktop app?
Yeah, pathfinding needs to be improved in the future. A model viewer would be cool.
I'd say tanks remain the focus on the game design, and I want infantry to be more of a specialist tool for dense areas. I'll definitely continue to finetune how they play, and test some long range infantry too.
With improved enemy AI I hope this shakes up the gameplay and tactics, although I don't want it to become too pause-heavy.
I'll take a look at the bugs, the freecam is sort of a debug/screenshot which I hope to improve.
Like you mentioned, I want to keep the mandatory lore on the lighter side and exposit through the experience, and allow players to read more if they want. Hope to add better descriptions and UI stuff.
On the suggestions:
- Queuing fire commands: will consider, what may be happening is that the enemy tank has fully aimed and is just waiting for a clear firing solution, whereas yours still needs to aim?
- Purchasing/sickbay/logistics: Lots of interesting ideas here. The campaign/worldmap is still being developed and lots of the above is planned! especially with side/optional missions to "acquire" supplies. Character interaction will probably come with base/convoy management.
- Off-map support is planned too.
Bro please keep developing it! i love your work!
Found this game in one of your recent posts in Twitter.(2 or 3 days ago after the latest build was uploaded)
Very promising, took the 0.C build, operating tanks felt like Company of Heroes 2 but modern and in a alt. universe like Forever Winter just by the world build alone and i actually thought this was based on the middle eastern wars featuring USA tanks and Soviet tanks till i realize the names and tank design were different other than the older models.
Lots of stuff going on in just a few seconds either a win or i lose a tank despite angled and facing its front armor (some cases ammo rack kill mostly on Marrow and Aspera) but that's armor degrading for you (although im a little disappointed the ANGLED armor doesn't seem to stop that being getting my tank destroyed sometimes the integrity was down to 1 more shot before it eventually cracks and cause heavy damage...)
Tried using a set of old tank models boy i tend to forget how slow the reload is compared to our two named tankers so i have to make to reverse after each shot.
lots of trial and error on the game mechanics but i had fun.
Feedback and suggestions:
2 Player COOP:
Think there's a possibility of a COOP mode probably a YEAR after releasing the full game? somehow i wanna see how this works out when playing with a friend in the future. (2 player ONLY)
Character Perma-death and crew mount & dismount, Hi-jacking abandoned tanks:
Theres a chance of character perma-death being implemented? in cases like Aspera was KIA but the story goes on, similar to DEAD STATE 1 after our supposed MC was taken by the infected but the other survivors that are playable will continue on. Incase the tank was knocked out maybe showing some survivors climbing out of it and retreat to safety. (Purely AI)
maybe hijacking enemy tanks incase of a SUDDEN RAID or let troopers to move around while the tank is oblivious or too busy fighting our tanks. Other suggestion RISKY, surviving crews from a destroyed tank would interact with the wrecks of the enemies, see if the tank is still intact despite its armor being compromised but once the crew gets it working on field repairs on critical modules it'll be in a crippling state or its armor is compromised based on where its mainly hit, if its the other side then it should be fine.
Infantry vs tanks:
In cases of being too close to an enemy tank, maybe we would set a COMMAND for infantry only to lob a nade through the tank hatch to neutralize the threat, this also applies to enemy troops if our tank gets too close and stationary for too long while under fire they will do the same.
FPS:
Im not sure how others deal with this but how HEAVY is the current game setting suppose to be? i just realized my GPU was running 60-90% for a game thats mostly pixelated with details during the most intense battles when theres a HUGE explosion by a tank (ammo rack) causing FPS drop, runs very smooth in the tutorial missions.
Running 1650 for this, most cases of just a quick skirmish its often 30-40, for tutorial missions its 50-70+ fps considering how small it was, INTENSE missions like mission 4 really rocked the FPS between 20-60 whenever explosions, smoke and multiple units are involved and the battle escalating very quickly.
More than 1 platoon:
I was wondering how will this work out IF the 4 vehicle limit was extended for certain operations in larger maps (to the point that we deploy all available vehicles in the motor pool) and we get to command 2 or 3 platoons considering WE COULD have a Support the Frontline type of mission and take over command, similar cases of Mission 4 we get to command the Rear Guard Units that were already in the map rather than us deploying our spare vehicles.
Command Panels:
I would like to suggest some additional commands
Stop and Fire (Hotkey Suggestion:G or Mouse 4 or 5 if possible?) once setting a pathway, any target on sight they will stop and fire and drive off for cases of crossing narrow streets but with alleyways to quickly disengage or when you wanna try to cross the street in a form of convoy, one unit keeps going the one following stops and fire before moving out. Im aware that we can just use the TACTICAL PAUSE but i was wondering if that's a possible option for the ones that are gonna challenge themselves with REAL TIME scenarios than relying on the PAUSE.
FULL DIRECT CONTROL: (Hotkey suggestion: H)
While WE DO have direct control, its mostly on the steering while leaving the aim to our gunner, i was thinking how difficult is it to implement both movement and our aim, considering we are mostly top down aiming with either mouse or ARROW KEYS (LEFT AND RIGHT) to aim our shot, maybe in a way to FIRE BEYOND our range and the enemies as well? (Infantry scouts ahead or a spare tank gets closer from a different angle as a diversion, player tank stays back out of range and sight but line of fire is there, just not within our optic range)
Hull direction: (Suggested default Hotkey:R)
Its a little pain to use the path way mechanic to adjust our tanks or make it U-TURN unless it doesn't have neutral steering? Just a quick command to R for rotation of the hull to adjust its armor or quickly facing a threat from behind but turns in place. This is only for tracked vehicles.
SQUAD CONTROL: (Hot key suggestion: Ctrl+1-2)
In cases of fast pace action, maybe we could apply the HOTKEY SQUAD CONTROL?
Just like Company of Heroes, we select multiple units (in my case of 4 units ill just go by DUO so one team is 2 tanks under team 1 and the other half is team 2) and then CTRL 1 to form a new squad rather than individual units to make use of quick selection of units, again im aware of TACTICAL PAUSE but this one is just a suggestion for those that wants a raw RTS of tank combat and not using the pause mechanic to react on the fly.
If we are to return to DEFAULT individual unit, maybe a quick hotkey or command to disband the team and return to individual 1,2,3,4 selection commands (Hotkey for Disband squad: J)
Generic chat boxes (Mostly minor details but nothing wrong with a little more impressiveness right??):
Similar to Aspera and Marrow when they REACT in combat but this one is for tankers that didnt have a name yet or just simple Generic characters (RNG avatars but faces are covered or eyes not revealed but their outfits and body shape tells their identity in the matter)
OFF MAP CALL INS & Logistic Units or Engineers for salvaging parts from wrecks:(Hotkey Suggestion: Holding T and the Panel appears, release and it will retract and go hidden)
I red a comment suggesting this mechanic about salvaging spoils of war mid game and not AFTER, maybe we can take a piece from Company of Heroes 3 and implement a panel that offers support whether calling in back up (reserves from our motor pool so its VERY LIMITED), airstrike if available (im still thinking whats the COST of this and then theres the LONG COOLDOWN) , off map barrage (if we bought an mobile artillery piece like an M109 or MLRS vehicles regardless of how old they are) or just simply RECOVERY UNITS to salvage the wrecks by tow or just take it apart on site while our fighting forces will guard the area for awhile (considering we don't have a time limit here unless its a URGENT MISSION) i did thought about a support truck to bring in the tools and maybe armor replacement (ERA and other add-ons from our storage) to fix up our battered units while its good and all it only repairs and replaces the ADD-ON and not our tank's armor, lets not forget the AI can make a counter attack and catching us with our backs exposed so its rather a RISKY FACTOR time to time unless the player guarantees a STRONG DEFENSE while the supports work (20-50s at best in terms of action?) or make it realistic and turn it to a SUB OBJECTIVE of "DEFEND THE ENGINEERS" for 2-3 minutes during the counter attack scenario whether the already spawned enemies on the map or off screen spawn from various entry points of their territory. (Mostly in missions where we have to fight 2-3 groups of squads or the large amount when we tried to escape the encirclement mission but it might be too much)
Side missions (Claiming spoils and other missions):
Continuation of the Support units, maybe a mission where this time we secure each site full of wrecks that we destroyed last mission but we are just claiming our spoils (mostly the smaller maps) with two simple objectives: Secure the Site and Defend the Engineers from a possible counter attack or survivors that were left unchecked.
probably some quick missions randomly turned disasters because of a unfortunate encounter with a battalion or facing a large group of heavy tanks, ATGMs, heavy infantry with ATs or an elite group (the hardest AI you can create) thats a BIG threat to the current line up.
Maybe also a MISSION MODE in completed campaigns. particularly side mission in claiming wrecks can vary from a simple scavenge run (RNG map sizes vary as a DIFFICULTY) to unfortunate encounter of a massive group of reinforcements enemies or patrol. and only have to defend against an incoming wave for 2-4 minutes depending on the wreckage whether the already destroyed tanks from the previous mission or RNG wreck sites (RNG feels like an easier option)
Purchase of units, crew and parts:
Still wondering if a store and depot for buy and sell are already planned but not yet READY. Im curious if you got it all planned already once game currency is now established on the future builds.
Crafting/improvised modification and repairs of battered tanks after a mission if auto-repair is not an option:
Similar to what the tankers did in WW2, they would grab parts from a wrecked tank, weapons, intact armor skirts, modules, etc., strip a piece of armor and just slap it on our tanks for extra protection or extra firepower if we cannot afford a proper protection in the store for the older models or maybe in cases of QUICK REPAIR and not the standard if you decided to make it more of a semi-management when we are not in a mission.
Lots of stuff in mind but that might be too ambitious for this game at the moment. so ill just keep it like this for now.
I played this more often despite completing everything. A bit of suggestion when doing REPLAYS. maybe make the Enemy spawns RANDOM or is this story BASED?
Overall best Indie game ive had since Pacific Drive, mix of RTS Company Of Heroes 2 & 3, War Thunder for its modular damage, armor mechanics.
Looking forward to this dream game of an RTS i wished to play. :D
Awesome, I love detailed feedback and ideas! Here are some of my thoughts:
On angling tanks: I briefly experimented with tank angling adding more penetration resistance before, but I believe angling has little effectiveness against modern tank ammunition like sabot rounds. I don't think it's a bad system though, and I'll probably revisit the idea in the future.
Permadeath: In the campaign, crew losses will likely be permanent, although "special" characters may be able to survive a tank losses, similar to like what you said.
Hijacking tanks or scavenging abandoned ones during combat was planned before but I decided to scrap the idea due to high complexity. I might revisit in the future.
Infantry close quarters: I really like your idea for infantry to use grenades and be really effective against tanks in close quarters!
Performance: the game is not very optimized right now unfortunately. My goal is to have 60 fps on a card like yours.
Platoons: In the campaign, upgrades will probably let you deploy more units. Otherwise I also plan to add more missions where you can use some temporary units, or maybe there's an allied faction there too.
Commands
Generic chat boxes: I like this idea, will have to finetune it to prevent overloading the screen. Probably when i finish the portraits for the generic guys
Support/offmap: There's a lot of good ideas here, and I am planning to add recovery units/artillery/logistics in the future! Especially with the campaign and salvaging stuff.
As for campaign stuff, I appreciate the ideas, a lot of it is being worked out atm. The campaign will have an overworld with exploration/management, and mix of thematic story-ish missions, side missions, and procedural/randomized encounters too
Thanks for playing!!
Cheers man! Looking forward to the new build to test out the new stuff in offer :D
Extra:
As for the armor effectiveness at this time im guessing regardless of angle the impact will be the same as FLAT armor correct?
Regarding salvaging or "repairing" abandoned tanks mid-game. I think having two types of scenarios would go for this, IF it is plausible for your workload once its prioritized.
The usual scenario is when we call in some engineers or crew men that are just standing by the barracks during the mission after securing the area where the tank is sitting while our active forces will press on or leave some vehicles to make security while the crew and engineers work on the partially destroyed tanks to either take parts or fix it but the armor where it was mostly damage is permanent until its brought back to base so in simple terms that tank will be VERY vulnerable on that side of the armor. (after being bombarded by shells from us or when we used our rockets and missiles at it where it blew a hole on the armor) of course you can order engineers to slap on a spare add-on armor or a piece of armor from a wrecked vehicle thats beyond repair (ones that were ammo racked and their turret flew up in the sky) to cover that up for the time being but im sure that would cause some sparks into compartment, injuring the crew near the hole. Just a thought since the main objective is either to quickly put that tank into our forces to finish the mission OR bring it back to base to work it back to its glorious condition.
The other scenario would be occasional SIDE MISSIONS where we decided to send a small force or just the usual 4 tank team to secure the area (this will be RNG if its either patrol or a unfortunate encounter of a large platoon that could overwhelm you) while the logistics work on the tank to either make it working again under its own power OR if we are to call in a HEAVY TOW to move it back to base. this is just my opinion on the matter since i think im getting a little bit too realistic for this mechanic. but either way this is a RISKY objective when you try to salvage vehicles to save up your money than buying a new replacement (in this case being the K-115 AND K-75 since they have the toughest armor and most up to date tank in service) if its the older models like K-50 i guess thats also an alternative in saving money.
For infantry, considering majority of the time its Penal or droids, i believe these troops can be a bit creative when it comes to penal troops while droids, i believe they have the super strength to breach doors with their build in your universe of this game? so why not let them by the STRAIGHT TO THE POINT type of trooper to just climb up the hatch, force open and casually drop a nade inside, ingame it would be like 3-4 seconds to break open the hatch while penal would take a little longer to creek open depending on the tank they are on (cases like K-75 with newer designs against infantry or hi-jack scenarios) if its a K-50 and its variants thats a little easier to break open the access.
Thoroughly enjoyed this. The core gameplay is already solidified if you ask me, it only just needs polishing and more content.
So I will be starting this section with suggestions for the armory.
QOL
- Allow dragging of vehicle order in the armory instead of trying to figure out the click order. (This is for comfortably setting vehicles to the 1-4 shortcut hotkey)
- Lots of dragging in the armory if I want to extensively play around with crew and modules, maybe a hotkey like Ctrl+Click to instantly bring crew/modules into the storage would help?
- A "Set to default" button: When I swap around modules too much and just want to reset
- A "View vehicle" button: It's a shame I can only see the vehicles only from a top down view, or the limited camera angles the armory screen provides.
- Saving and loading squads: It's not a big deal now since there's not many vehicles and modules to change but definitely would save a lot of trouble in the future.
Information
Some mechanics don't explain much and some elaboration on them would be great. Ideally all information should be easily accessible from the game itself
- What do different armor types do? Does internal ceramic composite give me 30% more damage resistance compared to hardened metal?
- The 120mm APFSDS has a "Sabot" tag, what does this mean against a 120mm AP shell? (generally the people playing would know what a sabot means in real life but it would helps players if they knew what the sabot tag does ingame)
- What happens when I load both HE and AP for my 30mms? Does it fire in an alternating belt or switch ammo depending on target?
Overall most of the stats and mechanics are self explanatory so this isn't exactly a big issue. This might be quite nitpicky but if you don't mind, it's a suggestion nonetheless haha
Categorising/Filters
Currently there's a limited selection of vehicles/modules/crew so browsing through all of them isn't so bad now. I can imagine it will get very tedious when more content gets added so I suggest making filters to make finding specific things easier. Maybe a search bar? Idk.
- Vehicles could be filtered by roles/tags (Heavy, light, MBT, IFV, etc)
- Modules could be filtered by colours (Grey, Red, Blue, White)
VEHICLES
K-50 Series
Personally I am not a fan of "variants", or at least when they're fairly similar. Think of games where you have 4 guns but in actuality the guns are only like +-1 damage/accuracy/reload speed from one another. Usually this results in the one "meta" choice to be picked by the majority and the rest would basically be ignored. It's fine to have a few variants but I think it would be better to lean into very distinct and unique hulls and let the modules do the smaller tweaks in stats.
K-75A
Love this thing, big front and back module space, and the only hull with both front and back spaces available for engines. One thing I like to do is to remove the front modules and replace it with a small troop bay with the tradeoff of making it sluggish, turning it into a Merkava of sorts. My ideal squad is just a pair of these. This is a prime example of the module system's potential, allowing a vehicle to go through very significant changes through modules rather than just picking a different vehicle altogether. I hope to see more vehicles designed with this level of customisation in mind.
K-115
In-built launchers at the back.. It's really nice when you put a spin on an existing design, personally I feel it would great to see more unique designs like these or even completely original vehicles.
B-30D/B-26
Not much to say other than they're good and servicable IFVs.
Some throwaway vehicle suggestions
You seem to be leaning into the US vs Soviet equipment theme but I hope you would branch out and maybe have some from the other nations? Maybe some Leopards (bias towards 2A4s haha), Merkavas, etc?
- Wheeled fire support vehicles (AMX-10, Styker variants)
- Coaxial gun based vehicles (STRV 103)
- Something completely original
COMBAT
Amazing gameplay, nothing bad particularly sticks out other than a few things that need ironing out + a few suggestions.
- Markers/Flags: Allow markers to be put on the map, it would be helpful in keeping track of vehicles I spot with infantry and running back afterwards. Maybe even have different types of markers such as ATK/DEF/etc?
- ROE indicator: A small icon hovering somewhere over my units (maybe a crossed out target) would be nice to show ROE is turned off. Would help me over checking each unit individually whether I forgot to turn it on/off.
The rockets.. might be too strong? It's quite the get out of jail card and I've been surprised by how big the AoE is, it's strength amplified by the AI liking to bunch up at times. When my tanks enter an unfavourable duel ideally I would pop smoke, fall back and reposition to a better firing spot. But the rockets kinda just bring out an "I win" when i'm outnumbered 2 to 4 provided the rocket doesn't miss. It's launchers also reload fairly quick and coming in sets of 4 or 6 is pretty plenty.
I think it's alright if it's
strong
has a high magazine
reloads fast
But it can't be all 3.
Infantry
So apparently this is the update where infantry were added. I cannot imagine what the game was like before that, they are an amazing addition. Moving infantry through the building blocks and peeking out the narrow alleys and windows scout out tanks for your armor, supporting fire from said windows. It's all great.
Improvements can be made, such as the imperfect pathfinding. Running into corners and not properly curving around them, refusing to go through a certain alleyway and just go completely around the block.
Enemy infantry sometimes tends to stand in the middle of the road when their vehicle dies, would be better if they scurry to the nearest building instead of waiting to be finished off
Other comments:
I enjoy flavor text on the modules/vehicles/etc. Not much to say other than can't wait to see more of it.
Full replay when completing a game? I get that it's a pretty big feature to work on I'm not expecting much to come out of it haha
Maybe some pattern camos on the vehicles? idk
Bugs:
Hotkey 7 and 8 are not working (I brought 4 vehicles with all of them having infantry)
Overall, loved it and still playing on occasion trying to do the missions with different squads. I will be following the game's development very closely. C:
Thanks for taking the time to provide feedback!
I agree with a lot of the armory QOL ideas, will add to my todo list. Tooltips which specify effect details and mechanics will be added in the future as well. There's no system for switching between multiple ammo types in combat yet.
I wanted to add a bit more flavor to the rather old K-50 with the variants, and they're mostly the same tank but with different/better installed modules, so barring armor material I can manually upgrade a K-50A to a UM. Later vehicles likely will have less straight upgrade variants. My plan for progression/campaign is to have a limited supply of units, and create choices where I might prefer having cannon fodder or more expendable units for some battles.
As for the units, I'm modeling a wheeled gun vehicle so maybe that'll show up in the next build :D but yes I'm planning to add more interesting vehicles with compelling gameplay benefits/challenges.
As you've pointed out, the rockets are quite overtuned and I've reduced their armor penetration for the next build. Especially since the enemy gets to shoot them back now. Glad you like the infantry gameplay so far, they're going to be continuously improved as well.
Replay is a good feature but going to be a bit tricky, perhaps in the far future. Thanks again for your detailed thoughts!
This is a surprisingly quick reply, appreciate it.
Admittedly I do not have a clear picture of what the final picture of the unit system would be. But since they're apparently part of a progression/upgrade tree that kinda makes my point about useless variants basically void, since it's less about picking between them and trying to change an existing hull into a better version.
In fact, if you're interested in another line of modernization kits for an old tank I suggest looking at the M60 from counties like Iran and Turkey. (Confessing that i'm trying to feature more designs generally less presented in media rather than the usual Abrams and Soviet tanks right now haha 😛)
Looking forward to the new unit, hopefully in the next build
Nice to see rockets are getting tweaks, I saw the latest post on twitter as well. Looking forward to APS and ATGMs for both sides to play with.
I don't have a ton of useful feedback to give, but I do have lots of praises (lol). I guess I kind of just love everything about this game? I played the whole thing today, and the art direction is just wonderful. Apart from some slight readability issues when things get heated, you've definitely nailed something special here, and of course the lovable characters breathe even more life into it, (pretty please add more of them xD). The only thing that comes to mind as I'm sure you've thought of already is filling the void out of bounds with some terrain to make it nice and seamless. There are even already little bits of worldbuilding in place, so seeing where that goes will be neat. All this plus the moody soundtrack make it feel deceivingly complete.
Playing the game, the first thing I notice is that you've got a pretty clear idea of what you want it to be; it's confident in itself. It lacks content in its current state of course, but it's obvious you've got a lot of that sorted out ahead of time, with what looks to be the foundations for a campaign mode and a story line. I saw there was footage on your twitter showing off ATGMs and APS, massive W and a clear next addition.
I would like to mention some difficulties with planning maneuvers around vehicles in a formation that have different speeds, and it might be worth looking into a way to order vehicles to move together at the pace of the slowest in the group.
Very cool game, very promising, I would support this any way I can in a heartbeat.
Thank you for trying the game and for your kind words :)) I like the idea of having squads moving as one, perhaps when moving multiple units at the same time. I'll keep working on improving the ui and readability as well.
Any chance of the player being able to use more than 1 tank of the same type? e.g. Have 2 K-50UMs alongside 2 B-30s
Yes, once I start working on the campaign you'll have more freedom in picking your vehicles. For now in the next update I can add a couple of duplicates
Ran into some issue with the amount of modules, where it is very hard to switch around what i want. Turns out if you cancel out of the module edit screen while you have a module in hand, it will deposit into the inventory, even over other items.
Can you explain the problem a bit? If a module is compatible, you can pick it up and click on the other module and it will swap the two. If I'm understanding correctly, the second behavior is intended, when you remove a module and try to exit module edit while holding it, it'll put it back into storage
edit: I think I know what you mean, fixed a related bug in the rc4 version.
Still running well on the Steam Deck and on desktop, The only issue interface wise is that the left and right sides of the UI get cut off and at 1280x800 and other 16:9 aspect ratios with the interface text being a bit small on a desktop monitor. No crashes or slowdowns observed.
I like the addition of infantry, it makes buildings much more dangerous to your armor and opens new avenues of attack. Really only two observations:
- Infantry pathfinding can occasionally get the squad stuck between buildings or the building transparency doesn’t reappear leaving them stuck inside.
- A “Hold Fire” toggle could be useful so that infantry could scout ahead and continue to observe without immediately being seen.
The defense mission was fun, I really appreciate Aspera’s briefing mentioning that we are to hold the area, but we’re not under orders to hold the exact starting position, taking up a more defensible one is suggested, and we’re not under contract to ensure the rear guard make it out.
I gave it a go and I will say that the new tutorial for infantry is... Kinda unfair and somewhat overwhelming for a tutorial mission? I understand that you're trying to show information about visibility for vehicles, but as soon as that section of the tutorial ends, immediately several enemy vehicles pop out and open fire on my IFV's, which was rather surprising since I wasn't able to react fast enough to get smokes or move the tank ahead before I pretty much lost one IFV and infantry in less than a couple of seconds, and the other infantry getting damaged when I panick unloaded. It doesn't feel good that this is what is happening in a tutorial. Obivously on the second attempt I was more prepared but I feel like that probably isn't the intended effect.
As for the rest of the tutorial mission, I found it to be rather jarring as the enemy infantry were always pretty close together and I ended up just basically using my own infantry as scouts whilst my vehicles destroyed buildings.
I get the concept, but I do think it'd make more sense to have the 4th tutorial mission focused around the IFV and infantry by themselves rather than have the tank be a component in the mission, as otherwise it feels a bit like there's a lot to juggle (Managing Tanks, IFV's, and Infantry all at once can be a hassle, especially if you throw in enemy vehicles and infantry into the mix, which I feel should be left for the game itself, like in mission 2).
I think it'd be a good way to demonstrate the firepower of IFV's and infantry, and allow you to better demonstrate how they work offensively (attacking infantry in buildings), and defensively (setting up in buildings to counter enemy vehicles), and more easily demonstrate visibility and engagement by having the IFV act as more of a scout unit that can detect units at range (and focus on ROE) and allow infantry to move between buildings to engage in ambush. Am I saying that's how it should be? No, I'm not a game designer. But I just feel in my head this makes more sense.
Also, I confess I preferred the older versions 'top down' style in the customisation menu where it was at an angle, I initially got confused in this version and mistook the IFV for the Tank a couple of times, despite the spotlight, due to the Tank being in the center. I know, a really minor and petty thing, but I just think it looked better in the old version.
I also found a visual bug: I discovered press M automatically completes your mission, however, if you press N and M together at the same time, you get a combination of both screens (See image) - I thought if I pressed M, it might open a map for some reason, so I must've accidentally discovered a dev command there.
Thank you for the extensive feedback, appreciate the time you took to write out your thoughts.
Tutorial 4: Yeah there's a pretty unfair jump in difficulty for a tutorial, I'll adjust the difficulty. The first group of enemies shouldn't immediately attack and that will be fixed.
I kept the tank as I do want the focus to stay on armored warfare, especially when IFVs and infantry can be fragile and unpredictably wiped out in seconds, but the balance of infantry will definitely be worked on.
I really like the point about demonstrating ambush and defensive potential, gonna see if I can work that into the tutorial. Also thanks for voicing your thoughts on the armory angle.
M is a dev command haha, good catch! will fix that.
Happy to help! I really do think this is a lovely game and it scratches some itches for me, so I'm eager to see how it develops over time! I would love to support more in any way if possible since I do think this has potential! :)
I do fully understand the tank being a focus, it is a game about tanks after all and I am not ignorant of that, I just figured maybe it wouldn't hurt for one tutorial mission it demonstrates how to use IFV's and Infantry by themselves, since up until that point you were using multiple tanks anyway and you'd be using them together in the future anyway.
If you want extra feedback about how the tutorial missions would go with ambushes, I actually tried Mission 2 again and found using the Rules of Engagement button quite helpful as I could catch glimpses of vehicles using the infantry by slipping them into buildings whilst the vehicles couldn't see them.
It might be worth using the ROE mechanic to have infantry scout behind forces (which ties in well with visibility) that are aiming away at a certain road, and allowing the IFV to perform a flanking maneuver, or if the tank should be a crucial point, have the IFV be used to support infantry against opposing infantry, and have the tank be used to ambush vehicles.
As for defensive tutorials in that same mission, you can have the player do ambushes, then swap it into a psuedo-defense mission (Which would actually tie in well for missions like Mission 4 which is about standing your ground) where they have to move their units into alleys and buildings and attack as vehicles pass by.
Again, by no means am I saying this is how it should be done, I am merely throwing an idea out about how this could potentially work, it is your game and I 100% respect that my ideas could be ludricous or just might be out of scope for your game. :)
My only real complaint is the lack of a simple and easy way to adjust facing without hoping I've moved the tank far enough to adjust itself; other than that it's quite enjoyable.
Very exciting game! Can't wait to see another update. I would like to ask will there be more tanks to be used at the player side, like the K-75UM and K-50BM.
Another issue i would like to say is about the camera setting. would it be possible to have a camera position that is on the commander's cupola on a tank? this would be an immersing experience.
I second both of these
I've messed around with adding a camera feed on the vehicles before, and it'll need a lot of work to make it good. Maybe in the future!
Thanks for the reply! I had played the game a couple times again, and I had came out of an idea of a test drive or something. That let us to shoot at tanks that wont fight back.