Hello maidens! It's almost halfway through the year now. I hope that news doesn't bring you dread! If you're the kind of person who would click into this announcement, you might be aware that the [url=discord.gg/mns]Maiden & Spell Discord[/url] has been doing a bit of a balance thingamajig. That has now ended; thanks everyone for your feedback! I think we've gotten the game to a place where it's pretty okay. There are still a few difficult matchups here and there, but characters got some desperately needed buffs and nerfs. Also, thanks to a very generous member of the Discord (thank you Alec!), the game has been translated into Brazilian Portuguese. First, patch notes! Then some other things. -------------------------------------------------------- [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/3c6ee826bc6be1c0232a123fdadf462b37acef8a.png[/img] Wide Attack -Number of bullets 22 > 20 -Attack lock 425ms > 550ms -Takes an additional 75ms to gain a hitbox -Added a visual effect to indicate direction of bullets [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/4744e148e5bceaf6e7d5264a5df7539319e87a6d.png[/img] Basic Attack -Unfocused bullet speed 12 > 10 Wide Attack -Movespeed Mult x.85 > x.75 -Movespeed Mult duration 800ms > 1100ms -Attacklock duration 700ms > 1000ms -Time bullets are active 750ms > 650ms -Range decreased Stun Wave -Stun time increased 1200ms > 1400ms [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/1c24917faa143c1946add491a7f0d328933f1c71.png[/img] Basic Attack -Spell lock decreased by 300ms (previously went from 700ms > 400ms based on charge, now goes from 400ms > 100ms) -Angle now decreases from 90 > 4 (was previously 90 > 10) -Movespeed Mult while casting .3 > .5 Knife Throw -Focused move color adjusted -Focus knives now fan at an angle of 9 degrees between each shot (36 total) [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/880b61dbfe64eaaf3a93218bd1d2281dedc31665.png[/img] Basic Attack -Hitbox linger time 600ms > 850ms -Spawns 10% faster when focused Wide Attack -Attack lock reduced by 100ms (before it was 1000ms > 300ms based on charge, now it is 900ms > 200ms) -Spell lock reduced by 100ms (same as attack lock) -Time until hitbox is active is now a flat 500ms (up from 400ms-500ms based on charge) Offensive Special -Number of bullets on tap 24 > 28 -Attack lock reduced by 100ms (before it was 1000ms > 300ms based on charge, now it is 900ms > 200ms) -Spell lock reduced by 100ms (same as attack lock) -Cooldown reduced 5s > 4.5s -Movespeed mult on tap increased 1.2x > 1.3x [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/f6e1ac31b80eb05978e061e06e3a28a1c6b2487d.png[/img] Wide Attack -Spawn delay increases 600ms > 700ms > 800ms with combo (was previously a flat 600ms) [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/09cdf89994d219029ebc034cc5c6a0cc17e4f099.png[/img] Basic Attack -Speed increased from 3.5 > 3.75 -Rate at which size increases matches speed increase [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/1e5929847d88e3f0e63111606b42dbda2e17dd90.png[/img] Time Stop -Cast time reduced 550ms > 475ms [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/f16b39104bd731719b134ee70776d303bc815838.png[/img] Basic Attack -Bullet speed at maximum charge decreased 6.5 > 4.5 Wide Attack -Order in which bullets appear has been reversed (shallower angle appears first now) -------------------------------------------------------- [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/1ded5b81f00be8537f2cab20dd19b3fa0e9e5d96.png[/img] Now that's out of the way... How have you all been spending your year so far? I've been working hard on my next game. ...Uh, I know that I said I would be doing extra character costumes for Maiden & Spell in the past but, unfortunately, I'm not sure that's happening anymore. Maybe in the sequel (my next game is not a Maiden & Spell sequel). [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/04cb41ba4b784638968cbf2f9f8b4356e452df04.png[/img] If I'm being honest, I've not done a great job of managing my time and priorities this past year. It's caused me to fall behind on a lot of things, the care and maintenance of Maiden & Spell just being one of them. It's been over a year since I launched Maiden & Spell, and after a number of game prototypes that I threw out, a personal break that went on a bit longer than it should have, and some Switch port troubles, I have only just semi-recently cobbled together a solid direction and plan for the next game. It's a roguelike! Featuring cute girls. Cute [i]rabbit-y[/i] girls. Also the gameplay is pretty unique, if I do say so myself. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/050821c4ac38665d3894f2efa6ed09e11338e8f4.gif[/img][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/3e0608ea5fc4f6d6b8443898c21567d44d21d4c6.gif[/img][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/34270977/2fef2e65cb2eb4481f9eb3df9a4e44fb4e70cec6.gif[/img] I'm not [i]quite[/i] ready to show the game to the world. I'll put out an official announcement a bit closer to when it's actually ready to play this time around. Maybe around 6-8 months out from launch or so! If I've at all piqued your interest, consider joining either [url=https://mailchi.mp/2516536f5292/mino_dev]my mailing list[/url] or the [url=discord.gg/mns]Maiden & Spell Discord[/url]. You'll get a notification one way or another (and maybe a sneak preview or two...?). And the Maiden & Spell Discord is still the best place to find a great community and battle people online! In case you need something to pass the time. Hope to see you again soon!