It's been just under a week since launch and we've been hard at work keeping things rolling with the huge influx of players. This is our first patch that's a little larger than a quick hotfix so we thought we'd list out some proper notes. We've been happily following your feedback on our [url=https://rivals-of-aether-ii-launch.nolt.io/]nolt board[/url], [url=https://linktr.ee/studiosofaether]socials[/url], and anywhere else people have been shouting about Rivals on the internet - so don't be afraid to tell us what you think. You'll see a lot of fixes people have asked for already on here, and we've got [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiDM6Sk40Ac]even more on our roadmap[/url]. We are also VERY aware of feature requests like tutorials, and are actively working towards them. This was something we knew going into launch that we'd definitely want, but simply couldn't fit in with our budget and resources before release. With that in mind we are working on cooking up content and features for new players. It's touching to see this being one of the most submitted feedbacks, since it's clear what everyone wants is for more people to love the game and be able to get into it as much as themselves. While we work on tutorials and other features, keep doing your part by being welcoming to new players, and giving them a chance to see how awesome our community is. More players = more games and a win win all around! [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/43889344/bd541e16cccd7c5e8897dbce83eb6871377435f8.png[/img] [h1]Patch Notes[/h1] [h2]UI, Controls, and Other Polish[/h2] [list] [*] Ranked now has blind character select, meaning you'll only see your own character selection until all players are readied up and the match is proceeding to stage select. [list] [*] [i]Per popular request. Prevents game 1 counterpick shenanigans.[/i] [/list] [*] Stage Select now shows each player's character choice along the bottom. [list] [*] [i]We couldn't bother to remember that from 5 seconds ago either.[/i] [/list] [*] Added a sound effect for when a match is found during matchmaking. [*] The store now refreshes after a purchase so new currency & items are present immediately. [*] Added mouse-click functionality to some main menu UI buttons that were missing them. [*] Added loading spinner after purchases to safeguard against duplicate purchases. [*] Added "Confirm Email Address" prompt during account creation. [*] FFA now always selects a random stage and skips stage select. [*] Casual Singles no longer has stage bans. Instead the loser picks stage for game 2 & 3 from the full set of 10 stages. [list] [*] [i]Changed based on good feedback from a lot of players that striking and bans just wasn't something they were interested in for casual matches.[/i] [/list] [*] Can no longer quit back to CSS in Casual Singles/Doubles/FFA. [list] [*] [i]Players now properly suffer the consequences of their actions.[/i] [/list] [*] Ranno bubble achievement damage requirement adjusted. [list] [*] [i]While this achievement was possible to do, we thought it was unintentionally much too hard. If you got it before today you are Ahead of the Curve![/i] [/list] [*] Added Target Test music. [*] Capped replay storage at 128 replays, if you have more than 128 replays older replays will be deleted as new replays are added. [list] [*] [i]Replay file size is not negligible, so we've implemented this system so the game doesn't eat up all of your storage space. If you would like to save additional replays manually, you can copy replay files from "%localappdata%/Rivals2/Saved/Replays".[/i] [/list] [*] Store bundles and item previews now include Item Type. [*] Removed placeholder "default guy" icons from featured store display when the store is loading. [list] [*] [i]RIP "default guy".[/i] [/list] [*] Returning to the main menu now puts you on the expected main menu tab based on where you're coming from. [*] Better currency formatting across regions. [list] [*] [i]Decimal markers are now more worldly and stuff like that.[/i] [/list] [/list] [h3]A Note on Regional Pricing[/h3] There's a short note on currency formatting above, so we wanted to also share a little bit of our thoughts on regional pricing in these notes. The people at Aether Studios and Offbrand games all really believe in fair regional pricing. We understand it's not as simple as making it for sale in another region at the usual exchange rate, because those rates often don't reflect the reality of purchasing power around the world. When Rivals II launched, we had regional pricing set up for the game purchase itself, but our in-game bundles/other purchases weren't reflecting our currency rates for non-US regions. We are very pleased to say we worked hard to get this in ASAP and updated it in the game about one day after launch. If you're noticing that prices are lower in your region now and you did make a purchase in-game day 1, [url=https://discord.gg/RoA]please open up a ticket on our discord[/url] and we can help get you the difference in Aether Bucks so you're getting a fair price. [h1]Bugfixes[/h1] [list] [*] Added a fix for side taunts not working. [*] Save / load state sound effects should no longer play when they shouldn't. [*] Fixed an alignment issue with right player display on versus screen. [*] Added a bugfix for a Forsburn Clone SD issue. [*] Fixed a rare version check crash. [*] "Match Cancelled" / "Match Forfeit" messsages should properly display after being sent back to the main menu to help provide context on why you're no longer on the server. [*] Players should no longer get stuck in a ranked lobby if the other player connected & disconnected while in the "Players Joining" phase. If not all players are present at the end of the "Players Joining" phase the match will be cancelled properly. [*] Local tourney mode no longer shows incorrect button prompt glyphs. [*] Fixed a bug that caused issues in the local tourney mode menu after going back to the character select screen from Stage Select or by Quitting. [*] Implemented fix for Casual FFA hanging on initial ready up. [/list] [h1]What's Next[/h1] Our first event is coming up soon! These are monthly progression tracks with free unlockables plus a new themed bundle each month. Stay tuned for more info on that soon.