Version 1.9.9 Beta (Major Update 5)

Steel Gear is Back!

    After a year long break from game dev due to busy work seasons, Steel Gear is back with another major update! There's a bunch of fixes, some new content, and most importantly, a save system has finally been introduced! I'm pretty happy about the save system. I had never coded a save system before. It was a major hurdle, but I think it turned out pretty good! 

    This version of Steel Gear is still in Early Access beta. Even though Steel Gear now has a save/load system, it's still not quite ready for a full release. Some good news though, this should be the last leg of the beta version roadmap. My plan is to have a full release ready for v2.0.0. This isn't set in stone though. There's still quite a bit of touch ups to do.

    Also worth mentioning, an artist has volunteered to create some promotional art work for Steel Gear! This will spice up the main description page, and any download links pertaining to Steel Gear. Crossing my fingers everything works out as planned. I want to release the new promo art at the same time as the first full release. 

    That's basically it for a quick summary. See below for more complete details on the new save system, bug fixes, changes, additions, performance/optimizations, and future plans. Check it out! And I hope you enjoy this newest version of Steel Gear!

New Save/Load System

    I wanted to go into a bit more detail on how the new save/load system works. I have placed Save Icons throughout the game world. Both exterior and interior locations have places to save now.  To use them, you simply walk over the Save Icon. It will then automatically recognize the player and turn from white, to red, then yellow, then green. When it turns green, you're good to save. All this will happen within a few seconds, then a save screen will pop up asking if you want to save. The cool thing about this system, is that the player can just run through the save icons without it bringing up the save screen. You will actually have to stop and let the icon turn to green before use. This way, if you're in the middle of a battle with enemies, the save screen won't pop up and interfere with the battle.

    A very important note: Save the game often! Save points are now where the player will respawn after death. The old respawn system is now gone. The game now reloads the game from the last save point after the player dies.  

    From the main menu there is now an option to "Continue". After a game gets saved, and you start up the game , the "Continue" button becomes enabled, and you can start the game from where you left off.

    To begin a new game simply press "New Game" on the title screen. A warning will pop up saying the current progress will be deleted. You can then choose to accept or cancel the new game request.

Created save games go here:  

Users\YourPC\AppData\Local\SteelGear\Saved\SaveGames. You can delete save games and game setting saves from that location. 

Fixes

• Fixed weapons disappearing from inventory screen on respawn.
• Fixed textures not showing up on weapon models.
• Fixed prop objects collision on Arnolds level.
• Fixed screen resolution being automatically set to 1920x1080(full screen) every time you start the game.
• Fixed black screen on game start up. Game now starts up instantly after double clicking the .exe file.
• Improved parachute cut scene frame rate.
• Fixed laser sight showing on screen when it's equipped while playing the upright arcade.
• Fixed EMP locations so you don't have to press the "F" key to activate.
• Fixed grenade arc line trace, and grenade damage zone. They now show up in a packaged build.
• Fixed laser sight so it turns off while throwing a grenade. (It will turn back on again after the grenade throw animation completes.)
• Fixed enemy dogs from disappearing if the player runs away from them when they're attacking.
• Fixed player not returning to the arcade cabinet after pressing the "Close" button after finishing playing Spaced Invaders.
• Fixed player from pointing equipped weapon upward towards guard towers when near them.(Jungle areas.)
• Fixed music so it stops completely when a player dies and the death screen pops up.
• Fixed Grenades, TNT, and Mines. They now will automatically unequip within a couple seconds, if the inventory count reaches zero.
• Fixed Rank up indicator in the backpack menu. It will now show up when ranking up to Star Rank 4 and 5 now.
• Fixed transceiver from showing the wrong portrait during the last few end game incoming transceiver calls.
• Fixed player from being able to move the Arnolds simply by pushing them. This was knocking them off of their nav mesh area, and then they would get stuck.

Changes/Improvements

• Changed teleport cheat codes. They no longer teleport to the bosses. They now teleport the player to buildings 1, 2, 3, and 4, and also the desert.
• Set Esc and Tab keys to disable while readying a grenade. This is to ensure the grenade animation follows through to the finish. Otherwise pressing either Esc or Tab during a throw was freeze framing the animation.
• Changed color of the "CALL" indicator to red to resemble the MSX version.
• Minor adjustment to lighting in cell room when the player gets captured.
• Changed Shotgunner room by adding a barrier that blocks the exit until the shotgunner is dead.
• Changed how respawning works. Respawn points have been removed, and replaced with Save game points. Now when the player respawns, the game reloads, and the player spawns at a save game point.
• Changed Death Screen buttons. "Respawn" button is now a "Load" button, and the "Restart" button is now a "Menu" button.
• Moved a couple zebra spawn points so the player can't reach them. Zebras are just cosmetic jungle life and they have no collision, so the player can walk through them. So the zebras needed moved.
• Changed/Improved EMP placement markers so they are more visible.
• Changed/Improved the "Escape" marker at the end of the game where the player gets in the escape helicopter.
• Changed exit door from the end game Computer room to be blocked off. Once the player reaches this point in the end game they can't go back. A save game point was placed in the room prior, so if the player dies they will respawn there.
• Changed the way the Bomb blast suit works just a little. Now when wearing the suit the player kicking action is disabled. (This change is due to a rare game freeze up when the player is kicking an enemy while wearing the Bomb Blast suit, and takes damage from the enemy at the same time.) The Bomb Blast suit Tooltip in the equipment menu has also been updated to give the player a heads up on this.

Additions

• Added Save/Load system.
• Added "Press Tab" indicator when "CALL" flashes on screen.
• Added new sewer area that replicates the start scene in the MSX version. After making your way through the first jungle area, you can still take the truck to building 1, or you can go down a well to the sewers to get access.
• Added new mini boss "Hind-D" helicopter from the MSX version. (This does not replace "Twin Shot" mini bosses. The Hind-D is now on a different rooftop.) It's optional to fight it, but winning the battle can earn the player some valuable rewards.
• Added a propulsion effect to rockets. Now they have a bit of flame coming out the back when fired.
• Added warning signs in the jungle areas where mines may be planted. (Just a heads up to use the mine detector!)
• Added a card 5 requirement to go down the elevator from the rooftop where the Hind-D is located.( This is to prevent being stuck when going down the elevator to the first level, and not having card 5 in the inventory. This is a down elevator only so if you missed picking up card 5 the player was stuck and could not progress.)
• Added a "Star Rank Up, Press Tab" warning when the player levels up. It will show on the bottom of the screen like the "Call" warning. It disables after the "Rank Up" button is pressed from the "Backpack" menu.
• Added missing door markers for the Bull Tank room and the room that exits the Arnolds room.

Performance/Optimizations 

• Removed overhead birds(crows). They were just a cosmetic, and the game was taking a slight performance hit when they were spawned.
  
• Merged some meshes to reduce material draw calls.
• Reduced some texture sizes to reduce memory usage. This also reduced the data size of the game significantly.
• Removed some over used particle effects such as fog and mist.(This improved the framerate in many areas)
• Major framerate increase when entering the furthest north building 4 entrance.(It was pretty bad, but now the area runs way better.)

Future Plans/The Next Step

    Steel Gear is very close to the end of Early Access beta! The next step is some polish. Possibly a full release is on the horizon. What I'm going to focus on next is game performance and optimization. Both can be improved a bit more. I just need to dig deep into some old code to tidy things up. 

    I'm super excited for the full release of Steel Gear! It has been a few years in the making, I can't wait to see it in it's full released glory! In the meantime, I hope you enjoy version 1.9.9 beta. The new save system is a game changer! Have fun!

-clintmich