Golden Krone Hotel

[jere]

Yea, the game is built around each form not attacking its own kind. It's definitely something people point out a lot. At this point, I'll do what I can to handwave it away with plot reasons, but it's core to the gameplay.

In particular, the idea of having neutral monsters that you can attack is directly opposed to streamlining the UI. Because then I have to have some weird button combination that lets you attack neutral monsters.

[jere]

Well, I didn't see anything about it elsewhere on the forums, so here's a bit about STHC:

Stop the Hunger Clock

• Donate $10 locally in the next couple days
• Send in proof
• Get a key for a sweet roguelike (or several)

Awesome idea for a charity event. Please consider pitching in. If you haven't already picked up GKH, it'd be a good opportunity to grab it along with two other games.

http://dungeonmans.com/hungerclock/

[jere]

The first big update for Golden Krone Hotel has been released! Version 0.6 includes several content additions, control enhancements, and a save system.



Changelog

• Save system added
• Renown System added - Unlock disguises (classes) by leveling up your renown level
• The game is now fully playable with mouse: mouse can be used for all actions including movement and selecting magic directions
• Sharpshooter class added
• New branch: The Grotto. Stairs to this branch will appear much earlier than others.
• Two new monsters: Electric Eel and Crocodile
• Auto-run has been added. Hold down shift and a direction to move up to 7 tiles.
• Mouse movement and auto-running is cancelled when taking damage or when first seeing a monster
• All magic damage has been toned down by about 15%
• Fire damage now has a chance to cause Burning
• Monsters now attempt to get closer even if they don't have a direct path to the player
• Reduced the number of gold coins and bullets generated
• Clicking outside of a menu closes it
• The class table has been refactored to prevent erroneous descriptions and several typos were fixed as a result
• Death menu improved
• Fixed the issue where the last few seconds of your death weren't shown
• Fixed a bug with the throw ability
• Fixed an issue with 0 damage attacks not being logged
• Fixed an issue with the tile selector flickering
• Added some additional error handling functionality

A note on the save system:
It was quite complex to write, so there's currently no bells and whistles. You're allowed one save at a time, for now. Given how complex the code is, there may be bugs lurking in there. If you want to totally avoid the system, then don't save or exit a run before it ends. If you run into any problems with loading a current save, there's a button to delete your save in the options menu.

[jere]

Version 0.7 is here! There's a tutorial, a new branch (the Gallery), new monsters, a new boss, and level generation has been rewritten completely.



Changelog

• A tutorial has been added.
• New branch: The Gallery.
• Gorgons have been added. Their combination of GAZE and BLAST is quite deadly....
• A new boss, the Gorgon Queen. There's now 5 rings to collect, meaning one is optional.
• New class: warp mage
• The level generation system has support for "prefabs" (hand drawn templates that are combined procedurally)  - each branch now feels a lot more unique and the regular floors are more interesting too. Hopefully fewer pointless loops and wacky dead ends.
• Pits. They can be a great escape, but be careful not to fall into them accidentally
• Since spells were still quite overpowered (and too safe), spell failure has been added. Failing to cast a spell can cost both HP and MP
• Double doors that open simultaneously
• Monsters refuse to swap places with you if doing so would hurt them
• The summoning ability of the Strigoi has been reworked to use mana, so that he can't endlessly summon enemies
• Fixed a bug with eels climbing stairs (thanks bozar!)
• Water is brighter on the mini map, chests now show up as green
• Minimap rendering has been optimized
• Jack 'o lanterns have been turned off for now. In several Let's Plays, it seemed that people had confusedly started with them on even though they were intended to be off by default.
• Soul elixir wording clarified
• Compressed saves were removed as there was a major bug with them and they were quite slow anyway
• Some more music for different branches
• Fixed a game ruining bug that could happen if a boss died in water

The tutorial was a challenge. Hard to script all those events without anything built in the engine yet to do it. As a prerequisite, I decided the entire level generation needed to be rewritten to handle prefabs. That would make it easier to construct the tutorial levels precisely. We'll see how well it actually teaches people the game. It's supposed to briefly touch on resting, walking around, bump combat, magic, potions (and food), sneaking, and sunlight.

[jere]

Due to popular demand, Golden Krone Hotel now has morgue files and an online leaderboard. This update also brings 3 new monsters, a new class and branch as usual, and...  bounciness?!?




While testing some jumping behavior for the Toad, I realized the animation looks a lot more lively by having all characters bounce around like they're all on pogo sticks. This is something you see in games like Crypt of the Necrodancer, but it makes a lot more sense there. Even so, other games like Dungeonmans have used it in place of a walk animation. It seems to work well with a game that doesn't take itself too seriously... and my certainly doesn't.

I've made the "bounciness factor" an option, but by default I'm going to add in at least a little bounce. It'll be interesting to see how people like it!



The River should be an interesting challenge, since it's completely dark and mostly water filled. The darkness obviously poses an issue for humans but in vampire form, water is your biggest enemy. For now, there's not much reason to go to this branch. Eventually it'll lead to the Maelstrom and then the Underworld, which will be the hardest branch in the game.




Changelog:

• Morgue files have been added, which can (optionally) be uploaded to http://www.goldenkronehotel.com/morgue.php, shared with friends, and ranked acording to score.
  
• A new branch: The River, which sits below the Grotto.
  
• A new disguise: Alchemist. Start as a vampire holding several unread books.
  
• Three new monsters: Wolves hunt in packs, Toads jump around and attack from range, and Goblins are a plain old monster.
  
• Monsters have been reshuffled to make the first floor much easier and less annoying! The standard monsters on Floor 1 are now Grunts (weak vampire), Rats, Bats, and Goblins. Baby Spiders should be less common.
  
• Bounciness. All characters bounce around. This can be increased or turned off completely in the Options menu.
  
• All characters also have shadows. This can also be turned off if desired.
  
• Pharmacopoeia and Mausoleum have each been extended to 2 floors.
  
• Some late game bosses and monsters have increased in difficulty to match the extra XP now available.
  
• The Varcolac is now always in werewolf form at night.
  
• Moroi were way too weak. They now have a ranged attack, which can't be dodged. It can't reduce you below 50% health though.
  
• Wooden wall sprites have been redrawn and darkened to enhance contrast and readability.
  
• Potion tooltips added to unidentified potions in Primer and Hawker menus.
  
• Book sprites have been made clearer to distinguish.
  
• Options menu now remembers your previous spot.
  
• Pressing escape during the logo/title screen jumps straight to the Start menu.
  
• Fix a bug that allowed you to save after death and then walk around like an invisible ghost spraying blood everywhere.
  
• Credits and Help moved to Options menu to reduce title screen clutter
  
• Fixed a scrolling issue with some screens like the Disguise menu.

[jere]

Golden Krone Hotel now has 14 achievements. There's an achievement for beating the game with each disguise and an achievement for killing each boss. I might add a few more over time.

[jere]

Here we go with a pretty huge update!



The newest branch is THE MAELSTROM, an everchanging dimension that spawns portals to random locations throughout the Hotel. Frankly, this branch is heavily inspired by DCSS's Abyss. There's several ways to get to the Maelstrom and not all of them are voluntary...

The Merchant was added, a new disguise that starts with 4 unidentified potions.



Five monsters have been created including Goblin Anarchists, Prismatic Masses, and three kinds of Toadstools (wandering mushrooms that shoot various types of poison).

And there were plenty of small changes. This month, I reviewed dozens of old (and new) Let's Plays with a more critical eye. Polish has been added with the goal of making mechanics easier to learn, easier to understand, and simply more fun.

Changelog:

• The tutorial has been improved with some handholding removed and "blended" right into the game itself.
• A Hints system has been implemented to help explain several crucial mechanics.
• Blue, Yellow, and Red Toadstools added. Green Men turn into "Husks" when dying, which can transform into Toadstools at night.
• Prismatic Masses added. They do all 10 kinds of damage and can only be found in the Maelstrom.
• Goblin Anarchists added
• Merchant disguise and achievement added.
• THE MAELSTROM is the new branch, reachable from the River. It uses a kludgy cellular automata to reorganize itself.
• Monster generation has been corrected. With the introduction of wolves last patch, waaaayy too many monsters were getting spawned. Woops!
• Bats, toads, and baby spiders have all been made a bit less annoying.
• The transition between human/vampire and vice versa has been clarified visually. Previously, it was especially confusing because of unread books.
• A less annoying door sound has been introduced. The old one can still be heard occasionally.
• Fixed a game locking bug that happened when the user clicked on Menu while in another menu. Thanks Mitchfynde!
• Difficulty is now on the character sheet
• Added descriptions to each difficulty mode
• Balaurs have been removed from the Pharmacopoeia
• Fixed Stupefy mouse range indicator
• Pools of blood stick around slightly longer.
• Fixed an issue where music wasn't switched out when teleported, only when taking stairs
• Tooltips show up for identified potion icons on the Potion menu
• Blood potion gives a small HP boost when humans drink it
• Right before turning vampire, regeneration goes up 4x. This should prevent a lot of bad experiences when going vamp
• Vampire disguises get to start at night now.
• The Shapeshifter starts during a full moon and Lycanthropy lasts much longer.
• Reworked disguise menu to use relative rather than absolute stats.
• Animated the key icon on disguise menu to make it clearer when unlocks are available.
• Hawkers weren't actually resistant to sunlight, but that's been fixed.
• Instability effects (resulting from repeated teleport magic) have been softened.
• A nifty teleport animation has been added.
• Moroi have been made much weaker, but now give the Vulnerable status.... which is really scary!
• Examining a sunlight/moonlight tile now says something about the light there.
• Miasma has been buffed a lot, but has a chance to poison now instead of confuse.
• Combustion and particularly Volatile Poison have been made MUCH more useful. Hint hint.
• Added a Confusion icon
• Monsters are now generated away from staircases to discourage a reliance on stairdancing.
• Put in a decent message in case save file loading fails.
• Fixed a common problem where players would fire their revolver in the wrong direction because they moved their mouse when intending to just click.
• Apparently several monsters that shouldn't have been regening health were in fact doing so. That's fixed.
• Lore books are now collected in the Books & Letters menu. The opening letter will no longer be shown by default.
• Drop caps (the super cool huge letters that begin chapters in old books) have been added.
• Some file writes have been made asynchronous, which should prevent some hiccups.
• Stritiba renamed to Cragsbellow to help with pronunciation.
• Death tips font made much bigger.
• Cancel option added when trying to forget a spell.
• Plate and leggings auto-equip wording clearer.
• Beds give a hint about how to rest.
• Input delay added to certain menus to prevent accidental selections.

A couple last housekeeping notes:

The plan is to release by Halloween. so we've gotten well past the halfway point of Early Access. If you have any feedback or ideas for the game, the time when that can make a meaningful impact is quickly running out.

Also, don't forget about the recently added achievements and the Morgue sharing system. Feel free to share your runs in the forums or on the official subreddit.

Enjoy!

[jere]

Starting a series on roguelike design:

Things I Hate About Roguelikes – Part 1: Burden of Knowledge

I love roguelikes. Traditional roguelikes. Turn based, grid based, punch-you-in-the-gut roguelikes.

The complexity, depth, and emergent gameplay in these games rival any other genre out there. The heavyweights like Nethack, Crawl, and ADOM can be played for years without mastering them… or sometimes without a single victory. And in the last decade, roguelikes have proven beyond all doubt how valuable their ideas are. Despite being a genre invented in 1980, new games are constantly borrowing roguelike ideas and even the name itself.

And yet we haven’t seen a big adoption of traditional roguelikes. Roguelite action has done gangbusters of course. Games such as Binding of Isaac sell millions of copies. Nuclear Throne and Spelunky aren’t too far behind. But where’s our Binding of Isaac? Where’s the turn-based dungeon crawler blowing up the Steam charts? Clearly, permadeath is something many gamers are willing to stomach. Games like Civilization are proof positive that they enjoy turn-based stuff too.

I’d argue that there’s nothing inherent in the structure of traditional roguelikes that is holding them back from mainstream success. It’s simply that, for the most part, the genre is still stuck in the 1980s...

[AgingMinotaur]

Starting a series on roguelike design:

Things I Hate About Roguelikes – Part 1: Burden of Knowledge[/url

Loved it Left you a steaming pile of reply on reddit.

As always,
Minotauros

[Tzan]

I skimmed and read some bits and its really good.
I need to reserve some time to read this properly.

[jere]

Steam Trading Cards and Price Increase

Boom goes the dynamite.



Golden Krone Hotel now has Steam Trading Cards. There's 5 cards, a badge, 3 backgrounds, and 10 emoticons to collect. Apparently, I forgot you also have to check a box to tell Valve your game has trading cards and achievements (even though it clearly already knows that). So... I've checked those boxes. Now you can see the features are present on the store page. Woot!

Some of you may have already been awarded cards for your playtime. This is really good, as I was initially concerned that recent changes to Trading Cards might prevent the cards from dropping completely for games like this one. Fortunately that's not the case.

One more thing
I'm putting the game on sale soon, though I can't say exactly when. When that happens, Golden Krone Hotel will be the cheapest it's ever been (and cheaper than it will be for several months).

Shortly after the sale ends, I'm planning on raising the price from $5 to somewhere around $10. This is a really tough decision to make, but I think after adding a tutorial, save system, unlockable classes, morgue files, a bunch of new branches and monsters, and all around polish the game is worth more than it was at launch.

If you have feedback on pricing, I'd be glad to hear it.

http://steamcommunity.com/games/497800/announcements/detail/1341358701085518174

[Avagart]

So, I'm glad that I decided to buy GKH for 5$ It's interesting how price rise will affect sales.

Is 10$ too much? Probably not. It is worth it, for me. But: I know nothing about marketing, also don't know how Steam developers used to work with pricing. Although personally I think it's wrong time for that change. Usually, early access games have different price than fully released titles. I'd wait for 1.0 release for changing the price, because people could think like Look at this, developer didn't even finish his game but he increased price by 100% already.

[jere]

It's interesting how price rise will affect sales.

Definitely. I'm more interested in gaining a bigger audience than I am in a higher sale price. I don't think people invest in and value a game that they got for so cheap. The higher the base price, the higher the perceived value. There was a really good article recently that found that games priced lower than $10 did horrible compared to games price at $10 or higher: http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/LarsDoucet/20170509/297708/What_I_learned_playing_quotSteamProphetquot.php

I'd wait for 1.0 release for changing the price

Well, that's what I'm trying to achieve essentially. I want to increase the price for 1.0, but there's one problem.

I also want a launch discount, which is both extremely common and recommended. Valve prevents you from putting a game on sale for a couple months after you raise the price, for good reason. So I need to raise it a few months before launching.

I figure very few people will be buying it at full price in the last couple months of EA anyway, especially since I'm offering the opportunity to buy for about 1/3 of that price during the next sale.

[Avagart]

Valve prevents you from putting a game on sale for a couple months after you raise the price, for good reason.

I didn't know that, but it makes things more clear, definitely Still I'm not sure if it's good decision but I see you've got positive feedback, so it's gonna be OK, I hope. The truth is, when I'm reading Steam reviews, players think about <=5$ games as a low-budget (ie: simple, ugly, often buggy), so 10$ price tier sounds sensible.

[jere]

As promised, the game is on it's biggest sale yet at $3.50 (30% discount).

The truth is, when I'm reading Steam reviews, players think about <=5$ games as a low-budget (ie: simple, ugly, often buggy), so 10$ price tier sounds sensible.

Yea, true. I feel like there's two sides to it though. The price influences the perception of value. That is certainly the case. At the same time, price is a HUGE factor mentioned often in Steam reviews. Reviewers trash games all the time, not for being bad games, but because they don't think the game is worth the base price (even if they got it at a huge discount). I'm hoping the latter isn't a big factor here.