Welcome to the third BATTLEMENTS devlog! This officially marks our first update of 2024. BATTLEMENTS is a 2.5D top down shooter centered around building vending machines that grant you perks, protecting said machines from mutants that attack in waves, and slowly unlocking new rooms to reach the end of a map with all the machines intact, you know the drill.

It's been around 100 days since devlog 2 released, and boatloads of stuff has happened in-between then and now (well, maybe that's hyperbole but don't think about it!) This devlog won't delve too much into gameplay changes as we've pretty much finalized our plans with the exception of some minor mechanics, but that doesn't mean we don't have other neat stuff in the backburner.

I haven't made any keyart since last devlog's, but I still wanted to show off this poster I made for a friend. (full rez available here)

UI RENOVATIONS!

Last devlog I showed off a work in progress version of the HUD. In the months since I've improved on the design and eventually landed on something I actually really enjoy (full rez here)

(If you wanna compare it to the devlog 2 version, check out the old one here)

Improvements from the old version include drop shadows on the icons, more unique and stylized boxes, a more readable ammo icon, a more readable font, and the removal of your active perks at the bottom (the vending machine status indicator on the top left now displays your active perks with colored emblems)

CUSTOMIZATION

Another UI element that's been given a facelift is the customization menu. I'll touch on the changes done to the customization system later, as you'll notice that guns are no longer included as an option (full rez here)

I also made another card pack. If you aren't caught up with what these are, these will show up at the end of a succesful round and contain rewards based on how well you performed and what goals you achieved (usually trooper and turret skins)

UPGRADE AND BUILD MENUS

In devlog 2 I showcased the cover for the in-game upgrade menu, I also mentioned that I was working on the build menu too. Recently I finalized both, and we've been working on implementing them into the game to finally get turrets and upgrades working!

They should be mostly finished and operational in the next devlogs, but I think it'd be nicer to show off the concept video I made instead of the nasty work in progress ones.

MORE MUTANTS!

Yet another 2 mutants enter the battlefield! These two are some of the most unique we've had so far, and their designs are also really neat in my opinion.

THE NEPTUNIAN

The Neptunian is an octopus-like extraterrestrial haling from Neptune, closely related to his distant cousins the Martians. The Neptunian can use his tentacles to grab you from far away, and once at his mercy he can choose to launch you or smash you into a nearby wall depending on location. The Neptunian can also negate some damage by sheilding himself with his tentacles, or throw weak punches when up close.

THE REBREATHER

A slow moving robotically enhanced Mutant that can heal his teammates when in close range. He can also shoot out electricity from his recharger, and occasionally one big projectile which deals double his normal damage if he sacrifices 15% of his Turbo charge. He also spawns with a shield that must be broken to deal damage.

The Rebreather can build up a Turbo charge using his recharger gun (turbo builds whenever he's healing another mutant). Once he activates the Turbo charge, it will buff every mutant in his close range, increasing their speed, strength and durability for 8 seconds. 

This guy originally looked completely different when I teased him in devlog 2, his Turbo charge was also a bit useless since he could only charge one Mutant at a time. I wasn't really satisfied with this design and I wanted something more tanky and robotic.

GUNS A BLAZING!

Since last devlog I've made two new guns and one new turret, alongside 3 turret skins. Check out this showcase video to see every gun and turret we've made so far, and stay till the end for an exclusive look at the first turret skin collection!

Devlog 2 teased that gun skins where being planned as the main collectable. I decided to scrap that idea because while they might look pretty in the customization menu, your guns basically turn into sticks from the top-down, so complex gun skins would ultimately be a waste. Since turrets are gonna be 3D anyways, I think they work better as the main collectable.

MEET THE HOTHEAD

This is the HOTHEAD! A deadly turret with a limited range that can melt enemies in an instant! If it's napalm bombardment isn't enough to finish the job, the afterburn it applies to mutants most certainly will. This beauty was inspired by the Dragon's Fury from TF2 and a couple of other miscellaneous stuff from that game as well, I think it came out fantastic and it's honestly one of my favorite designs from this game so far.

Here's its work in progress in-game model, made by our modeler Craity

GAME UPDATES? FINALLY?

Alot of stuff has changed since we first showed off that prototype in devlog 1, including massive updates to the game's code and huge reworks of a bunch of the game's assets and mechanics. In our current indev build we've implemented the updated HUD, building vending machines, and the visualizer. It's still very primitive, but hopefully with the introduction of the build and upgrade menus we can get some more progress on weapons.

Here's a very crusty look at vending machines, the wave counter, the new HUD and the build menu!

Here's a pack of wild visualizers mauling an innocent trooper to death. (featuring a buggy health icon that's already been fixed)



Here's a look at some WIP textures! I'm pretty happy with most of these but there's still some small tweaks I'd like to do.

WRAPPING UP.

Thanks for tuning into devlog 3! Even if development has been relatively slow, we've been making substantial work either way. I'm extremely proud of what we've made for this game so far, and I think it has the potential to be really fun if we pull it off right. My goal for 2024 is to have a mostly functional build up and running, with one or two maps and a mostly finished gameplay loop. 

Next devlog we're aiming to have a proper map to showcase now that we have some textures and assets ready, alongside updates on the build and upgrade systems. Catch you later!

If you wanna follow development on BATTLEMENTS closer, I'd advise following our Twitter and YouTube for "daily" updates and news! Check out our site too.