Quick Fire 0.3.0 "Here and Now"

0.3.0 is finally out! It's taken quite a while, but the changes are significant and completely change how the game is played, add tons of new content, and make it look much nicer. 

This devlog will be as comprehensive as possible, but not every single change to weapon stats and such will be listed unlike previous devlogs.

CONTENT

+ MAP "New Age". A large map featuring several buildings within a crater, flanked on the edge by fencing, a factory, and some small outposts. Features large outdoor areas, an underground tunnel area, and a few secrets around the map.

+ MAP "Steel Mill". A seemingly abandoned steel mill, featuring open indoor areas and a broken rail network stretching across the whole map. Playing low to the ground or up on rooftops are both viable strategies. There are plenty of routes to get around and areas to catch a breath in.

+ CLASS "Mage". This magic user has harnessed the power of "Ability Points", and uses them to power their three unique weapons: Lifestealer Crossbow, Frost Wand, and Meteor Staff. Their health and speed isn't great, but they make up for it with unique and powerful weapons. But be careful - Ability points also power your abilities, and using all your weapons will leave you vulnerable.

+ ITEM "Chainsaw". This wood- and flesh-cutting tool has found good use in the hands of the Mage, Medium, and Heavy. While quite heavy, it deals significant damage up close and allows the user to lunge towards enemies when landing successful attacks. Or, use it on walls to quick climb them and appear from unexpected areas.

+ ITEMS "Gas Grenade", "Slow Grenade". Throw these to instantly detonate them on contact with the ground. The Gas Grenade inflicts poison around it, damaging victims over time. The Slow Grenade creates a "Slow Field", slowing both projectiles and players that come into contact with it. This can create a safe barrier, especially from distant enemies, allowing you to reload or escape. Available on all classes.

+ ITEM "Improvised SMG". This cousin of the SMG is useful for finishing off enemies or providing a slightly longer-range weapon if using something close range. Available on the Mage, Medium, and Heavy.

+ ITEM "N-Foam Launcher". Heavy's exotic tool launches large globs of foam that slow enemies significantly. Use this to discourage enemies from going through certain areas, or fire it directly at them to inflict a devastating slow, allowing you to switch to a primary and finish them off. 

+ ITEM "Meteor Staff". Using fragments of ancient meteorites, the Mage has created a deadly explosive weapon. This fires barrages of meteors that detonate on impact, especially deadly at closer ranges. This is sure to make anyone think twice before getting near Mages.

+ ITEM "Frost Wand". Channelling their ice magic, the Mage can summon super-sonic chilling icicles, this can stop any class in their tracks in the right hands. Perfect accuracy and high projectile speed allow you to inflict a stacking 15% slow from far ranges.

GAMEPLAY

+ DYNAMIC SPREAD. Most ranged weapons now have dynamic spread. When firing, spread increases (and slowly returns back to normal), and scoping decreases spread. This should make scoping a more useful mechanic, especially on weapons that previously had little recoil and had little to gain from scoping's recoil reduction.

+ ABILITIES + ABILITY POINTS. Ability points are a resource required to use abilities and Mage weapons. They slowly regenerate over time. Abilities give new ways to move and avoid enemy fire. "Leap" provides a vertical and horizontal boost that can be used to quickly travel large distances. "Slam" stops all momentum and provides a downwards force, creating a shockwave when landing that knocks enemies back, useful if you have found yourself in an enemy sightline and need to quickly change course.

+ CLASS PASSSIVES. These are special perks given to classes to enhance their signature playstyles. Light gets a +20% speed boost out of combat, Mage gets +25% A.P. regen, and Heavy gets 100 "Defence", a special form of damage-reducing health. Medium doesn't yet have anything though - sorry medium!

+ GUIDES. There are guides and a simple "Onboarding" display that should help in understanding the mechanics of Quick Fire.

BALANCING

* CLASS-LOCKS. Most items are now class-locked, meaning they can only be used on a selection of classes. This now allows classes, such as the Mage, to have their very own defining weaponry.

* LOCKED "Sniper" to Medium primary. Without this, Medium doesn't have any good weapon to define them. Now, hearing those deadly shots, and getting hit for 150 damage means you know you are in the sights of the Medium.

* LOCKED "Oppressor" and "Flamejet" to Heavy primary. This gives Heavy two high-damage, unique weapons that can easily decimate enemies, but come at the cost of a high weight penalty (of course, the Heavy can handle this without too much issue).

*LOCKED "Lifestealer Crossbow" to Mage primary. This gives the Mage an accurate weapon that gives them increases sustain in fights.

*LOCKED "Double Barrel Shotgun" to Light / Heavy primary. Both these classes need a way to deal quick bursts of damage that are effectively only within very close ranges, so this fit the spot perfectly.

VISUAL

*LIGHTING. The entire game's lighting looks much better now. The only real change here was adding a skybox - both the appearance of the skybox and the ambient light it adds to everything make the game look much more vibrant.

*CLASS COSMETICS. Each class has their own cosmetic they wear, making it clear which class a player is so you can decide whether or not to fight them.

*MODEL IMRPOVEMENTS. Weapons like the Double Barrel Shotgun and Oppressor have seen overhauls to their models and are much more in-line with the game's visual style. Some environmental props, like crates, have also gotten a touch-up.

*UI IMPROVEMENTS. This applies to the main menu and in-game UI. Firstly, UI should have a more consistent style across the board. The vitals meters (Health, Ability Points, Defense) have a new 'laboratory equipment' style to them. There is a display that shows every status effect currently active. The crosshair also accurately shows spread, including dynamic spread, and can be customised (in terms of scale and shape).

BUGFIXES

Too many to name, but some notable ones are:

*FIXED: Other player's ammo counts showing up on your screen.

*FIXED: Player death and spawning inconsistencies, such as effects not properly appearing.