Recent Posts
51
Game Updates & News / Re: Daily Updates
« Last post by RossD20Studios on July 17, 2021, 07:42:56 AM »Who needs sleep? 
Been streaming Summoners Fate all night for PAX Online!
Come check it out: https://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/watch/76561198096395883
Been streaming Summoners Fate all night for PAX Online! Come check it out: https://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/watch/76561198096395883
52
Game Updates & News / Re: Daily Updates
« Last post by RossD20Studios on July 14, 2021, 08:32:07 AM »
53
Game Updates & News / Re: Daily Updates
« Last post by KellyD20Studios on July 12, 2021, 04:34:37 PM »We are beginning a Guide to Summoners Fate on our new Steam page. There we will be doing a series of posts on dedicated to introducing you to the lore, characters and mechanics of Summoners Fate. Part 1 of the Guide is called "Why Do We Look Up?"
Head over to our Steam page to check it out!
Head over to our Steam page to check it out!
54
Game Updates & News / Re: Daily Updates
« Last post by KellyD20Studios on July 05, 2021, 08:37:36 AM »Good news! Summoners Fate is now on Steam as Coming Soon. We invite you to Wishlist it now and help us spread the word.
55
Game Updates & News / Re: Daily Updates
« Last post by KellyD20Studios on July 04, 2021, 11:15:29 AM »Happy 4th of July!
Whether you are shooting fireworks or having toasted marshmallows with your friends (even if your friend is a Bear
), we at D20Studios hope you have a great day.
Whether you are shooting fireworks or having toasted marshmallows with your friends (even if your friend is a Bear
), we at D20Studios hope you have a great day.56
Game Updates & News / Re: Daily Updates
« Last post by KellyD20Studios on July 03, 2021, 10:43:36 AM »Hey, friends!
Thanks to our player feedback, Summoners Fate now has new UI optimized for PC. Check it out!
Thanks to our player feedback, Summoners Fate now has new UI optimized for PC. Check it out!
57
Game Updates & News / Release Notes v0.49.1
« Last post by RossD20Studios on June 30, 2021, 06:29:39 PM »Release Notes
Latest Release: v0.49.1
Date Released: 10/19/2021
Changes in v0.48.1
Released: 10/10/2021
Changes in v0.47.1
Released: 8/26/2021
Changes in v0.46.1
Released: 8/4/2021
Changes in v0.45.1
Released: 8/1/2021
Fixed bug where starting a Battle while in Adventure mode could result in advancing to the next chapter with your Battle team and losing your previous adventure progress.
Changes in v0.44.1
Released: 7/30/2021
More updated UI (prompts, victory/defeat, and turn start indicators)
Changes in v0.43.1
Released: 6/30/2021
Single Player Adventures
This build is all about the new single player experience called "Adventures" (also called "Prophecies"). Your goal is defeat three powerful bosses in an ever-changing lands where new encounters are generated each time you play. Adventures are divided into 3 chapters, with each chapter representing a different world (ex: dungeon, forest, desert). For this release, the order of the biomes and the bosses for each world are fixed. In future builds, the plan is to randomize the worlds, enemy and boss themes so you'll never know quite what to expect next. Even still, there is plenty of content in this build to keep you delighted and surprised
New Tutorial
Sylvia's squirrel-hurl staff finding mission has been updated to introduce many of the new mechanics of the game's new open-world, free-roam exploration engine.
New UI and Desktop Layout
The game's UI artwork has been updated and I've added a new layout mode optimized for playing the game on desktop.
Seamless Multiplayer Battles
In previous builds, it was necessary to complete your single player games before you could engage in a multiplayer game. In this build, you can start a multiplayer battle (or quick match against the AI) without disrupting your campaign progress. This build also features an optimized caching system, so game load times after the initial rasterization process should be very fast.
Music
Several new music tracks have been added to compliment exploring during adventures, resting at camp, and the escalation of boss battles.
New Cards
Nearly 50 new cards/characters have been added to the build and are available in both the single player and battle modes.
And More!
Many other game improvements and fixes have also been added in this build.
Latest Release: v0.49.1
Date Released: 10/19/2021
- New Summoner Select Screen - Improved how summoners are selected for adventures based on player feedback. Each summoner now has a curated starting deck and description to make it more clear how their playstyle works.
- Privacy - New account registration no longer requires email.
- Fixed Bug where Battle Mage was showing the Block keyword in his card description.
Changes in v0.48.1
Released: 10/10/2021
- Fast Travel - You can use the world map to fast travel to explored locations.
- Interactive map - You can mouse over (or tap) on map cells to learn about the contents.
- Randomized World Order - The world order is now randomized instead of always being Dungeon, Forest, Desert. Note, because of the difficulty of desert encounters, desert will still only surface on level 2 or 3.
- PC/Mac controls: Added WASD/arrow key movement controls.
- PC/Mac controls: Added M keypress to open/close map.
- PC/Mac controls: Added mouse over controls to view spell cards during combat.
- New animation: Replaced 3 Star Victory/Dance animation with Sword Clash Victory.
- Fixed bug where running on 4K monitor in 4K resolution in Windows would cause the game to lock.
- Fixed bug where multiplayer games weren’t showing opponent’s name.
- Fixed bug where the contents of an explored room were not marked on map after being defeated and retrying.
- Fixed bug with misaligned text in dice roll prompt for caged animal encounter.
- Fixed bug where defeating Cho'Tuk while he is transformed into a bear would lock the game.
- Balance Fix: Orc huntresses controlled by bots will no longer fire arrows at the start of battle.
Changes in v0.47.1
Released: 8/26/2021
- Fixed bug where a multiplayer de-sync could occur as a result of both players using the undo feature on back-to-back turns.
- Spawn Protection System (Smart Procedural Curation) In this first phase of efforts to address player feedback on early-game difficulty, we've implemented a new feature that protects players from being trapped in a world with battles that are too difficult to win. We accomplish this by comparing your characters current battle experience with the difficulty of encounters, and, if necessary, swapping encounter in the world to ensure a better distribution of fights that escalate in difficulty with the resources available.
- Added a tutorial tip to for the retreat command. This should trigger during adventure mode when encountering a battle that might be too difficult to win with your current resources. The retreat command provides a way to safely scout the area and leave the battle.
- Added ultra-widescreen aspect ratio support for Android phones.
- Fixed bug where the Log Out button was being scaled weird on iOS
- Added new card: Siphon Mana
- Added new maps to procedurally generated worlds
Changes in v0.46.1
Released: 8/4/2021
- Fixed bug where starting a multiplayer game, then backing out before a game connected resulted in adventure campaign progress being erased.
- Improved experience for how Adventures are saved to meet player expectations. The game will still auto-save at every step. In addition, there is now a "Save & Exit to Title" button that will allow you to return to the title screen with campfire and tortoise. From here, you can choose to "Continue Adventure" or start "New Game". This way, it's more clear that campaign progress is protected, and you are free to start new battles (multiplayer or vs. AI). If you try to start a new adventure while an existing adventure is in progress, the game will prompt you with a warning, indicating that starting a new adventure will erase the current adventure progress. Player can then choose to start new adventure or cancel and keep existing adventure.
- Fixed bug where the first three cards in deck were not getting shuffled.
- Fixed bug where switching to Desktop UI on mobile would lock the UI in Desktop mode until selecting Mobile UI and restarting the app.
- Fixed bug where attempting to remove a card from deck while the Sort prompt is filtering it out crashes the deck builder.
- Fixed bug where debug code was showing on character during rainstorm.
- UI: Made the magic school buttons in Sort cards prompt consistent with those in the Choose Summoner screen.
- Balance: Reduced the Insectoid card mana discount granted by Mating Season from 2 to 1.
Changes in v0.45.1
Released: 8/1/2021
Fixed bug where starting a Battle while in Adventure mode could result in advancing to the next chapter with your Battle team and losing your previous adventure progress.
Changes in v0.44.1
Released: 7/30/2021
More updated UI (prompts, victory/defeat, and turn start indicators)
Changes in v0.43.1
Released: 6/30/2021
Single Player Adventures
This build is all about the new single player experience called "Adventures" (also called "Prophecies"). Your goal is defeat three powerful bosses in an ever-changing lands where new encounters are generated each time you play. Adventures are divided into 3 chapters, with each chapter representing a different world (ex: dungeon, forest, desert). For this release, the order of the biomes and the bosses for each world are fixed. In future builds, the plan is to randomize the worlds, enemy and boss themes so you'll never know quite what to expect next. Even still, there is plenty of content in this build to keep you delighted and surprised
New Tutorial
Sylvia's squirrel-hurl staff finding mission has been updated to introduce many of the new mechanics of the game's new open-world, free-roam exploration engine.
New UI and Desktop Layout
The game's UI artwork has been updated and I've added a new layout mode optimized for playing the game on desktop.
Seamless Multiplayer Battles
In previous builds, it was necessary to complete your single player games before you could engage in a multiplayer game. In this build, you can start a multiplayer battle (or quick match against the AI) without disrupting your campaign progress. This build also features an optimized caching system, so game load times after the initial rasterization process should be very fast.
Music
Several new music tracks have been added to compliment exploring during adventures, resting at camp, and the escalation of boss battles.
New Cards
Nearly 50 new cards/characters have been added to the build and are available in both the single player and battle modes.
- Animate Plant
- Ant Pheromones
- Arcane Insight
- Bat
- Bonus Attack
- Call to Arms
- Carniflower
- Celestial Blast
- Sir Cheesles/Chronomancer
- Demonic Lash
- Demonic Strength
- Dreadnought Titan
- Dreadnought Warrior
- Dreamstealer
- Dwarven Armor
- Flash Bomb
- Freeze Time
- Giant Crocodile
- Giant Stag Beetle
- Harpy
- Hellhound
- Imprison
- Incubus
- Jungle Cat
- Lightning Storm
- Mating Season
- Meditate
- Necrotic Blast
- Orc champion
- Power Overwhelming
- Rat
- Screaming Skull
- Shadow Bolt
- Shatter
- Shockwave
- Silence
- Skeleton Reaver
- Stolen Dreams
- Succubus
- Shunder Armor
- Tactician
- Three Point Palm
- Time Bomb
- Timekeeper Warrior
- Toxic Spores
- Unusual Size
- Water Drake
- Wooden Buckler
And More!
Many other game improvements and fixes have also been added in this build.
58
Game Updates & News / Re: Daily Updates
« Last post by RossD20Studios on May 19, 2021, 01:12:37 PM »Summoners Fate Wins Big in the Big Indie Pitch Competition
First off, thank you all for being so kind, patient and supportive during our development process. It means so much to get your personal messages of encouragement and know that you're still behind me in this journey we're on together. I hope this update brings a smile and some joy to your day.
Check Out Our Award-Winning Pitch
I'm pleased to share that Summoners Fate just won third place in the Big Indie Pitch competition! Not only did we get a chance to validate our game with veteran game journalists and publishers, we also take away a $3000 prize package in marketing and exposure with Pocket Gamer and 148Apps.
Here's a video of the winning pitch I delivered:
But, the build Ross, what about the build?!
As ecstatic as I am about our recent victory, I am absolutely thrilled to announce the release details for our long-anticipated single-player build.
When to Expect the New Build:
We plan to release the new build to prerelease players next month (June). I've just completed all the content planned for this release, and now it's just a matter of fixing known issues and optimizing the experience. I don't have an exact date. The timing will depend on final testing as well as review process for the Apple submission. My goal is ASAP, and I will commit to delivering before the end of June, whatever state it's in.
What To Expect in the New Build:
The next release of Summoners Fate is all about the single player experience. When you first login, you'll be transported to the forest realm where you'll once again help Sylvia, the Druid save the forest - only this time it will introduce our free-roam, open world mechanics including campsites, lore and fate encounters.
The Cosmic Tortoise invites you to relax by the fire and play Summoners Fate.
Upon completing this mission, you'll be presented with our new Play menu featuring the fan-favorite tortoise who has evolved into a key character within the game, carrying the burden of your growing card collection as well as opening portals to new worlds. From the play menu, you'll be able to choose the new Adventure mode or Battle mode (the gameplay mode you know and love from our earlier builds).
Adventure or Battle? Choose Your Fate
Adventures have three chapters, each featuring a different world. You'll choose a starting Summoner and begin your quest to defeat the three bosses. Worlds are populated with a combination of hand-crafted battles, fate encounters, shops, treasure and camp sites, selected through procedural curation to ensure you'll have a unique experience each time you play.
Note: For the sake of getting this build out to you sooner, there will be 3 different world biomes (dungeon, forest and desert), surfaced in a linear order, and with fixed bosses. For full release, I have plans for at least 2 additional biomes as well as up to 3 potential bosses per biome. For future builds, the biome order will also become dynamic (rather than linear) with the enemies scaling in difficulty according to the number of chapter the world is played on.
Another great feature in the upcoming build: You'll be able to switch between single player and multiplayer/battle mode at will. Battles and deckbuilding for multiplayer can be accessed directly from the settings menu, and upon battle completion, you'll return seamlessly to your current single player world. And with our new asset caching, load times between battles have been virtually eliminated.
Lore - Our Unique Way of Telling Stories
Battles in Summoners Fate are complimented by story presented through fate encounters and lore. In a previous update, I discussed how Fate Encounters will use D20 dice to determine the outcome of light RPG scenarios (ex: freeing a caged bear) to deliver story, activate events and unlock new characters. Lore is a new mechanic to Summoners Fate that I designed to help bridge the gap between these encounters and the story of the world and its characters.
Scrolls containing lore can be dropped by defeated enemies and discovered while searching objects. The text in these scrolls can:
Identify and provide flavor and depth to characters you encounter in the current world you are exploring
Reveal the identify of the world boss and tactics useful for defeating them
Reveal interesting insights about the world of Summoners Fate (this is called "universal lore")
We've found that lore can foster emergent story telling due to the random timings of its reveals with the encounters in the world. I think lore will also help further connect you to the characters you so diligently command in battle.
If nothing else, lore should ease any concerns you may have about the characters looking up at you
Until Next Time
I know you're all super excited to get your hands on the new build, and believe me, I am too! I can't wait to see our Discord and forums ignite with your feedback and ideas for new fate encounters and lore. I have a strong feeling the new adventure mode is going to spark some amazing creativity in our community.
See you next month for the release of Summoners Fate adventures!
First off, thank you all for being so kind, patient and supportive during our development process. It means so much to get your personal messages of encouragement and know that you're still behind me in this journey we're on together. I hope this update brings a smile and some joy to your day.
Check Out Our Award-Winning Pitch
I'm pleased to share that Summoners Fate just won third place in the Big Indie Pitch competition! Not only did we get a chance to validate our game with veteran game journalists and publishers, we also take away a $3000 prize package in marketing and exposure with Pocket Gamer and 148Apps.
Here's a video of the winning pitch I delivered:
But, the build Ross, what about the build?!
As ecstatic as I am about our recent victory, I am absolutely thrilled to announce the release details for our long-anticipated single-player build.
When to Expect the New Build:
We plan to release the new build to prerelease players next month (June). I've just completed all the content planned for this release, and now it's just a matter of fixing known issues and optimizing the experience. I don't have an exact date. The timing will depend on final testing as well as review process for the Apple submission. My goal is ASAP, and I will commit to delivering before the end of June, whatever state it's in.
What To Expect in the New Build:
The next release of Summoners Fate is all about the single player experience. When you first login, you'll be transported to the forest realm where you'll once again help Sylvia, the Druid save the forest - only this time it will introduce our free-roam, open world mechanics including campsites, lore and fate encounters.
The Cosmic Tortoise invites you to relax by the fire and play Summoners Fate.
Upon completing this mission, you'll be presented with our new Play menu featuring the fan-favorite tortoise who has evolved into a key character within the game, carrying the burden of your growing card collection as well as opening portals to new worlds. From the play menu, you'll be able to choose the new Adventure mode or Battle mode (the gameplay mode you know and love from our earlier builds).
Adventure or Battle? Choose Your Fate
Adventures have three chapters, each featuring a different world. You'll choose a starting Summoner and begin your quest to defeat the three bosses. Worlds are populated with a combination of hand-crafted battles, fate encounters, shops, treasure and camp sites, selected through procedural curation to ensure you'll have a unique experience each time you play.
Note: For the sake of getting this build out to you sooner, there will be 3 different world biomes (dungeon, forest and desert), surfaced in a linear order, and with fixed bosses. For full release, I have plans for at least 2 additional biomes as well as up to 3 potential bosses per biome. For future builds, the biome order will also become dynamic (rather than linear) with the enemies scaling in difficulty according to the number of chapter the world is played on.
Another great feature in the upcoming build: You'll be able to switch between single player and multiplayer/battle mode at will. Battles and deckbuilding for multiplayer can be accessed directly from the settings menu, and upon battle completion, you'll return seamlessly to your current single player world. And with our new asset caching, load times between battles have been virtually eliminated.
Lore - Our Unique Way of Telling Stories
Battles in Summoners Fate are complimented by story presented through fate encounters and lore. In a previous update, I discussed how Fate Encounters will use D20 dice to determine the outcome of light RPG scenarios (ex: freeing a caged bear) to deliver story, activate events and unlock new characters. Lore is a new mechanic to Summoners Fate that I designed to help bridge the gap between these encounters and the story of the world and its characters.
Scrolls containing lore can be dropped by defeated enemies and discovered while searching objects. The text in these scrolls can:
Identify and provide flavor and depth to characters you encounter in the current world you are exploring
Reveal the identify of the world boss and tactics useful for defeating them
Reveal interesting insights about the world of Summoners Fate (this is called "universal lore")
We've found that lore can foster emergent story telling due to the random timings of its reveals with the encounters in the world. I think lore will also help further connect you to the characters you so diligently command in battle.
If nothing else, lore should ease any concerns you may have about the characters looking up at you
Until Next Time
I know you're all super excited to get your hands on the new build, and believe me, I am too! I can't wait to see our Discord and forums ignite with your feedback and ideas for new fate encounters and lore. I have a strong feeling the new adventure mode is going to spark some amazing creativity in our community.
See you next month for the release of Summoners Fate adventures!
59
Game Updates & News / Re: Daily Updates
« Last post by RossD20Studios on February 02, 2021, 10:26:23 AM »And so the prophecy foretold, a future generation of D20Studios developers would rise up and do great things... Ross's son Wesley and Peter's son Michael create a game together in their first game jam!
Ancient Blade
For those who aren't familiar, a game jam is an event where participants are challenged to create an entire game over a short period of time (in this case 48 hours) that meets a particular theme. For this year's Global Game Jam, the theme was "Lost and Found". My son Wesley pitched, designed and programmed "Ancient Blade". He worked remotely with a team member (Peter's son Michael) who created artwork for the game per the asset list defined in his game design document. Throughout the event, he took feedback from industry professionals and applied this to improve his game with each iteration.
I was in awe to see how fast his young mind works and how passionately he embraced the challenges he encountered to make his game the best he could. While it's no secret Wesley looks up to me and wants to be a game developer like his daddy, in these moments watching him, he was my inspiration and role-model to aspire to.
Play Ancient Blade at: https://globalgamejam.org/2021/games/ancient-blade-3
Ancient Blade
For those who aren't familiar, a game jam is an event where participants are challenged to create an entire game over a short period of time (in this case 48 hours) that meets a particular theme. For this year's Global Game Jam, the theme was "Lost and Found". My son Wesley pitched, designed and programmed "Ancient Blade". He worked remotely with a team member (Peter's son Michael) who created artwork for the game per the asset list defined in his game design document. Throughout the event, he took feedback from industry professionals and applied this to improve his game with each iteration.
I was in awe to see how fast his young mind works and how passionately he embraced the challenges he encountered to make his game the best he could. While it's no secret Wesley looks up to me and wants to be a game developer like his daddy, in these moments watching him, he was my inspiration and role-model to aspire to.
Play Ancient Blade at: https://globalgamejam.org/2021/games/ancient-blade-3
60
Game Updates & News / Re: Daily Updates
« Last post by RossD20Studios on January 27, 2021, 01:28:00 PM »How Randomness Contributes to Strategic Thinking
Today on Gamasutra, I argue in favor of randomness in strategy games and explain how randomness contributes to the development of strategic thinking. Wanted to share and also thank my community here for all the input over the years on why things like the dice are so important in our games.
https://gamasutra.com/blogs/RossPrzybylski/20210127/376691/How_Randomness_Contributes_to_Strategic_Thinking.php
Today on Gamasutra, I argue in favor of randomness in strategy games and explain how randomness contributes to the development of strategic thinking. Wanted to share and also thank my community here for all the input over the years on why things like the dice are so important in our games.
https://gamasutra.com/blogs/RossPrzybylski/20210127/376691/How_Randomness_Contributes_to_Strategic_Thinking.php