Cogmind (now at Beta 14)

[Kyzrati]

Beta Access available now!

Cogmind is a science fiction-themed traditional roguelike in which you play a robot that builds itself from components found or salvaged from other robots.

Various destructive scenes... (hundreds of particle effects with accompanying audio)

Some inventory management with ASCII art and... destruction and repair

Gameplay

• While exploring the world you find (or take) power sources, propulsion units, utilities, and weapons, and attach them to yourself to create a slow tank bristling with weapons, or a fast-moving flyer zipping past enemies before they even have time to react, or a stealthy sword-wielding assassin bot, or whatever else you can come up with from the salvage you find. The game can quickly change as you lose components and your loadout changes.
• Action is turn-based but you don't have "action points" per se; instead, every action takes a certain amount of time, and robots that can perform actions more quickly can continue to due so until another robot is ready to act.
• Combat is optional if you can avoid it, and there is no grinding for XP since the game rewards you for simply reaching new areas.
• While not fighting/sneaking, you can find/construct allies, hack machines, manipulate your enemies, and explore the story through terminals spread throughout the complex.

Parts

• Power Sources: Engines, power cores, and reactors supply the power necessary to run other systems.
• Propulsion: Treads, legs, wheels, and hover/flight units enable a robot to move more quickly (multiple types can be attached, though only a single category can be active at a time).
• Utilities: Special devices, processors, storage units, and protective gear that provide a wide range of benefits.
• Weapons: Guns, cannons, launchers, and a variety of melee weapons.

Resources

• Energy: Generated by the core and power sources; necessary for moving, firing energy-based weapons, and sustaining the operation of some utility systems.
• Matter: Salvaged from robot remains; used to fuse components, and consumed by ballistic weapons and launchers as ammunition.

Notable Features

• Dynamic character development without XP/grinding
• Animated interface
• Thousands of ASCII particle and sound effects
• Nine different animated endings to uncover
• Full mouse and keyboard support for all commands
• Drag-drop support for mouse
• Fully destructible terrain
• ASCII art

General Feature List
Many of these are a given for anyone familiar with roguelikes, but I'll list them here for completeness.

• Resource management
• Inventory and equipment system
• Item identification system (for a subset of powerful items)
• Fog of war
• Several damage types each with unique properties/effects
• Simple yet dynamic combat system
• Multiple AI behaviors
• Numerous items, special abilities, and enemies
• Permadeath
• Autosave/load on exit/startup
• Large randomly generated maps
• Turn-based action
• Single player
• All units use the same ruleset as the player
• Score output to an external file, with detailed statistics

More Information

• Website
• Steam
• FAQ and Roadmap
• Dev Blog
• Forums
• Wiki
• Indie DB
• Reddit
• YouTube
• Discord
• Twitter
• Patreon

[getter77]

Fantastic.   

[Nikolai]

This looks fantastic!  I'll certainly be wanting to get a copy as soon as the budget clears for it.

Your wallpaper links are broken, though.

[akeley]

Congratulations on getting the alpha out. 30$ is a lot but then it looks like a true high-level roguelike and your track record speaks for itself. So hopefully will join in sooner then later (though similarly priced Rimworld is first in cue).

I recall reading somewhere the game world is governed by an AI overseeing things not only on local, player`s level. This sounds very interesting - is this correct? A feature planned or already in?

[Samildanach]

This looks fantastic!  I'll certainly be wanting to get a copy as soon as the budget clears for it.

Same here. $30 is a lot to throw around so I have to wait until after payday.

[Kyzrati]

Hey guys, really sorry for not having dropped by earlier--Slash once had a problem with spam being mailed out of the official temple account and I'd been marking some emails as spam in Gmail, so some of my temple emails were being thrown in the spam bucket automatically and I didn't see them, oops :/.

Thanks for the notice on the wallpaper links Nikolai; I fixed them. There was some last minute craziness right before launch and I failed to copy over the wallpaper data from the old site to the new one.

Congratulations on getting the alpha out. 30$ is a lot but then it looks like a true high-level roguelike and your track record speaks for itself. So hopefully will join in sooner then later (though similarly priced Rimworld is first in cue).

I actually based some of my planning on Rimworld's model! And if you notice, my forums are based on the Rimworld forum theme as well because I really like it .

I recall reading somewhere the game world is governed by an AI overseeing things not only on local, player`s level. This sounds very interesting - is this correct? A feature planned or already in?

This is absolutely correct, and absolutely in there.

And thanks, Samildanach! Looking forward to having some RT folks playing .

[Kyzrati]

And we have our first update!

This is a minor release aimed at fixing all known bugs, and adding any feature requests that were either extremely high priority or could be implemented with minimal fuss.

(Note: Supporter names are not yet in game--that happens in major versions, so expect to see them Alpha 2. If you haven't already, remember to use the form linked in your original download email to provide the name you want to use in game.)

To get the new version, use the download link provided in your original purchase email, and copy over your old settings files as indicated in the migration guide.

The full Alpha 1b (0.10.150610) changelog:
* NEW: Exit labels now explicitly indicate which lead to currently unavailabe branches, even when unidentified
* NEW: Currently inaccessible exits are now shown in red, and also differentiated in scan window
* NEW: Discovered exits now report the map name in the log as well, if known
* NEW: Interactive machines have color effects to indicate locked/processing/tracing status
* NEW: Machine trace resets are reported to log
* NEW: Active Structral Scanners detect machines destabilized by collateral damage and color them differently
* NEW: Allied Operators within 20 spaces of you identify hidden doors in your field of vision
* NEW: Ally transfer range highlighted on map when followed by allies and at or adjacent to an exit
* NEW: Entering fire mode via mouse quickly highlights the previously attacked target as a reminder
* NEW: Robot motion trails which can be toggled and tweaked in the options (off by default)
* NEW: While motion trails are active, hostiles spotting Cogmind indicated by flashing exclamation points rather than background colors
* NEW: Path to cursor set to persistent highlighting when not in keyboard mode (can toggle in options)
* NEW: If not in keyboard mode, cursor-based movement direction is highlighted while hostiles in sight
* NEW: Added 2 new fonts at size 20 (equivalent to doubling the size 10 cased and all caps styles)
* NEW: Added 8 new fonts to enable larger images on resolutions above 1440p
* NEW: Manually set world seeds are reported in the log on starting a new game
* NEW: Escape key now accesses help/game menu when no other windows are active
* NEW: Adjacent space highlighted red for mouse users if moving in that direction will ram a robot (i.e. not flying and no melee weapon)
* NEW: Score sheet now records whether using keyboard mode
* NEW: Winning the game awards an additional 2000 bonus points to score
* NEW: Schematic info windows now indicate number of robots/items simultaneously produced, and required Fabricator level
* NEW: Successful indirect "database" hacks (queries/schematics/analysis/prototypes) may cause map-wide lockout of database access (hack evasion)
* NEW: Permanently locked machines are not added to intel data
* NEW: Option to use ASCII item type-based coloring style for sprites (cogmind.cfg only: see ratingBasedItemSpriteColors)
* NEW: Option to disable mouse wheel scrolling to wait (cogmind.cfg only: see noMouseWheelWait)
* NEW: Added several more tutorial messages
* MOD: Swapping is default behavior for drag-and-drop from inventory to parts list (no shift keypress required)
* MOD: "Auto-label on Examine" config setting defaults to true
* MOD: Robot hacking PARSE command results now display "N/A" for modules if none found
* MOD: Increased size of help/options button in bottom right corner of main UI
* MOD: Darkened path higlighting color (hold Ctrl-Alt to temporarily brighten it)
* MOD: Path visualization no longer shows while in a targeting mode
* MOD: Path-to-cursor highlighting not displayed when hostiles in sight and movements are in single-space increments
* MOD: Updated some utility effect descriptions to indicate whether they work in parallel, and can be paused/resumed
* MOD: Reduced rate of map data loss due to system corruption
* MOD: Reduced Repair Station part repair times by 25 turns
* MOD: Fabricators simultaneously produce more than one part at a time for certain schematics
* MOD: Data Core expiry raised from 20 to 30 turns
* MOD: Indirect robot analysis hacks limited by rating; must be <= current floor level, +1 per Terminal tier above the basic type
* MOD: Indirect item/robot schematic hacks limited by normal distribution rules
* MOD: Increased Fabricator level requirements for some robots
* MOD: Stepping on branch access points with Auto-Ascend active will enter them automatically (like stairs)
* MOD: Core-based hover movement benefits from Maneuvering Thrusters in the same way external hover propulsion does
* MOD: Being dug out of a Mine cave-in is now guaranteed
* MOD: Changed Recycling Unit manual hack commands from Report(Matter)/Retrieve(Matter) to Matter(Report)/Matter(Retrieve)
* FIX: Crash on opening context help while item window closing [Draxis]
* FIX: Crash on dying to a grenade fired from around a corner under certain circumstances [db48x]
* FIX: Crash on pressing a non-ESC key in robot hacking PARSE window [dragagon, PoorFredNoonan, Deliz Seemack]
* FIX: Crash on manual Build/Repair/Scanalyze hack command with no target set [biomatter]
* FIX: Crash on RMB on item selection menu at Scanalyzers (RMB for info works now) [Darkening Kaos, strings, Vherid]
* FIX: Delete Save & Quit wasn't deleting save data [Danny Perski, zill]
* FIX: Map cursor position restored when exiting item/robot info into examine mode after using context help in keyboard mode [Deliz Seemack]
* FIX: World seeding did not result in the same world [nsg21, Binary Gambit]
* FIX: World seed description in the options menu shortened to fit available space [Sylverone]
* FIX: Machines could be placed over stairs in rooms [boomblip]
* FIX: Operators could summon reinforcements from damaged Terminals [biomatter]
* FIX: FOV wasn't recalculated on ramming a target [Karlito, AGlassOfMilk]
* FIX: Map view wasn't recentered on player after ramming/impact displacement [ironpotato]
* FIX: Ramming a robot off the stairs with Auto-Ascend enabled on will ascend the stairs immediately [Draxis]
* FIX: Hit chance shown on for scan and map popups is capped to match actual value [infectedm, biomatter]
* FIX: Cogmind was not DPI aware, and Win8 scaled the UI greater than the desktop on high-DPI monitors unless manually disabled [db48x, daviwil]
* FIX: "Slowest Speed" in score sheet always reported 0 [nsg21]
* FIX: Initial startup from default config in sub-720p resolution wasn't forcing ASCII mode [Tuxedo-Knight]
* FIX: Alt-tabbing out of game in fullscreen keyboard mode was locking the cursor to the top-left of the screen [Maurog]
* FIX: Windows IME hotkey was interfering with swapping a part in inventory slot 0 while in keyboard mode [fonetikli]
* FIX: Screenshake was leaving artifacts around the window edges in letterboxed fullscreen mode [Maurog, bjartr]
* FIX: Remote Datajack schematic info didn't fit in the schematic examination window [Arseface]
* FIX: Schematic info for prototype parts could show as faulty
* FIX: Reconnecting to the same machine with a system analysis utility for a second session would not reward any familiarity bonus [E.I.G.]
* FIX: Month value in score sheet filename was off by 1
* FIX: Score sheet for a win now shows location as "Surface" rather than "-1/Access"
* FIX: Item name typo: "Mni. Assault Cannnon" [infectedm]
* FIX: While inventory auto-sorting active, window was scrolling to end when opening item info rather than beginning [Deliz Seemack]
* FIX: Part list order was not always maintained between map transitions and when continuing a previous game [biomatter]
* FIX: Temporarily inactive allied Operators could still provide hacking bonuses
* FIX: Escorted tunnelers sent to clear Mine cave-ins had overwritten their assigned AI and never excavated

[chooseusername]

And we have our first update!

This is a minor release aimed at fixing all known bugs, and adding any feature requests that were either extremely high priority or could be implemented with minimal fuss.

Nice!

I like how all the changes are clearly described, the iron will and focus it must have taken to compile that list, and keep the descriptions useful to players is admirable.  Too often I go back and look at my own and wonder what it all means, and have to do source code archaeology.

[Kyzrati]

Hehe, I can imagine. I wouldn't be able to do it so easily if I had to go back, either! What I do is maintain two changelogs, a private one and a public one, and add to both simultaneously as each feature/bug is worked on. (In fact, I often even add the changelog entries before I start working on a given feature/fix, as that helps make my goal more explicit.)

The private one of course includes all the technical jargon and variable names, for future reference, and is also longer than the public one since some changes players don't need to know about.

For each change players do need to know about, I rewrite that log entry with them as the audience in mind.

So when it comes time to release, the changelog is already ready and waiting!

About attribution of bug finds, this is good for both the players, who like to see their name in there and that they'd contributed to development, and myself, since I'll know who to contact (and where to look up old bug reports) if any more information is necessary down the line.

[Nikolai]

This is one reason among many, Kyzrati, why you are awesome.  Some of us became software developers because we wanted to make games, but had to give up that dream for one practical reason or another.  Seeing development blogs like this lets me, for one, enjoy the experience vicariously, which I can't thank you enough for.

[Kyzrati]

Wow Nikolai, thanks

I do get that occasionally, support from other professional software devs who dabble in RLs as a hobby, and I'm really glad I can be that somebody to you guys

It's true, in the long run making games is rarely practical since it's certainly tough to make money compared to a "real" job. I can't say how long I'll be able to continue doing it full time (beyond Cogmind), but I did at least promise myself that I'd take this last opportunity to try going full indie, otherwise I know I'd regret it one day

[chooseusername]

Wow Nikolai, thanks

I do get that occasionally, support from other professional software devs who dabble in RLs as a hobby, and I'm really glad I can be that somebody to you guys

It's true, in the long run making games is rarely practical since it's certainly tough to make money compared to a "real" job. I can't say how long I'll be able to continue doing it full time (beyond Cogmind), but I did at least promise myself that I'd take this last opportunity to try going full indie, otherwise I know I'd regret it one day

I was thinking about you saying that you thought you might break even.  The way I see it, is that what you've done is an investment.

You've made a game which will age well, because it will always be part of a genre that is pretty much timeless.  We now live in a gaming culture where games not only get second lifes, but they live endlessly on places like gog and steam.  System Shock 2 and so on.  These are sold indefinitely.  An System Shock 2 is a game that looks somewhat dated.  Your better than state of the art roguelike, will age better, and you should continually be able to benefit from the investment.

For each game you make where you at least break even, from that point on there should be residual income.  And if the second game is closely inspired by a game that many more people already look back on with rose coloured glasses, something that should be more appealing because of it, and it's to the same quality that Cogmind is - I'd be surprised if it didn't work out well for you.

Disclaimer: Not an indie developer, and not placed to tell you how to risk your life, just sharing loose thoughts.  Very inspiring to hobbyist dabblers.

[Kyzrati]

I was thinking about you saying that you thought you might break even.  The way I see it, is that what you've done is an investment.
...
For each game you make where you at least break even, from that point on there should be residual income.

I did say that, and it's quite likely. We'll know in a year with 1.0

I'd much prefer to work from a position where I have profits to reinvest rather than having to invest tons of my own savings and be in the red for years, but maybe a Cogmind launch on Steam with greater media exposure will be able to solve that bit.

Either way a long-term strategy could theoretically see compounding revenue from more and more "timeless" games over the years. This route would be much easier if I made games with shorter development cycles .

[Kyzrati]

Alpha 2 is ready! (full release notes here)

* NEW: Added 34 new fonts from 4 typefaces: Terminus, X11, Proggy, Dina
* NEW: All registered supporter names added to new in-game list (see Credits menu)
* NEW: All registered item-attribution names added to the item collection gallery
* NEW: Option to display item attributions directly below item info for every item (cogmind.cfg only: see labelSupporterItems)
* NEW: Gallery access button now also appears on top bar of game menu when sufficient room (widescreen resolutions)
* NEW: Buffered manual hacking commands saved between runs, even after program restart
* NEW: Consecutively opening item info windows automatically shows relative stat changes from the previous item
* NEW: Collision warning and request for movement confirmation prevents accidental unarmed ramming of robots
* NEW: Ramming robots collects a small random amount of matter from the debris for each collision
* NEW: Right-clicking on a map object opens its info window even while status or other another info window already open
* NEW: Left-clicking anywhere outside modal windows closes them
* NEW: Select parts listed under robot loadout to examine details (also works with ally inventories and even robot schematics)
* NEW: "Floor Gamma" option increases brightness of open floor and debris in tileset mode
* NEW: Keyboard examine mode capable of displaying labels for objects outside FOV
* NEW: If not in keyboard mode, "Auto-label on Examine" option now determines whether to display object label while cursor hovering
* NEW: Allied Operators within 20 spaces of you report changes in floor-wide security level
* NEW: Active treads reduce recoil for all weapons by 10
* NEW: Active treads immune to knockback from impact damage
* NEW: Repair Stations can directly scan and accept even currently attached parts
* NEW: Score sheet explicitly records whether a world seed manually set or randomly generated
* NEW: Score sheet filename appends a "_w" to denote a win
* NEW: Part rejection caused by system corruption stops in-progress run/path
* NEW: Sound played on taking screenshot
* NEW: Robot armament list shows individual coverage percentages when examined with proper scanner (as with other components)
* NEW: Tactical HUD mode option for advanced players is more meaningful (off by default unless migrating from a previous configuration)
* NEW: HUD displays predicted energy and heat change per turn if stationary, and per move if mobile (tactical HUD mode only)
* NEW: Item ratings shown directly in on-map item labels (tactical HUD mode only)
* NEW: Option to disable ESC access to game menu (cogmind.cfg only: see disableEscMenuAccess)
* NEW: Press ESC/Spacebar to cancel a run/path in progress
* NEW: Advanced commands list explicitly indicates how to cancel a run/path in progress
* MOD: Respecced all shotguns to dual projectiles, shorter ranges; some have lower accuracy and other tweaks
* MOD: Security level is reduced as you lose allies, and when Complex 0b10 AI believes you are being adequately dealt with and pose less of a threat
* MOD: Higher "value destroyed" score awarded for machine destruction and sabotage, comparative to effect on security level
* MOD: Manually called map object labels stay visible for a much longer period, or until toggled off
* MOD: LOAD setting can be used to fill matter/energy containers detached directly to the ground
* MOD: Item/robot schematic lists accessed from status window open info via RMB and close via LMB (anywhere)
* MOD: Context help windows close automatically on moving the cursor a certain distance
* MOD: Expanded context help text for item "durability" stat
* MOD: Clarified context help text for energy/heat movement costs in status window
* MOD: Optimized font loading speed on startup
* MOD: Map object quick labels blocked while item/status windows open
* MOD: Ramming robots increases the potential for salvage
* MOD: Pressing ESC while extended log is open shrinks it instead of immediately opening help/game menu
* MOD: Pressing ESC prioritizes removing any map labels over opening help/game menu
* MOD: Motion trail fade duration capped at 2000ms
* MOD: Pressing lower/upper-case letters and LMB/RMB on a schematics list all have the same result--display object info
* MOD: Data Core expiry raised from 30 to 40 turns
* MOD: Increased score reward for prototype identification, from 5 to 20
* FIX: Re-pressing 'r' now stops a run in progress [Sylverone]
* FIX: Quitting from gameover screen after loss was autosaving a dead Cogmind [zill, Gaspard]
* FIX: Katana and Scythe shared the same stats (now differentiated by making the latter more unique) [Gaspard]
* FIX: Opening help/game menu while unfinished log text still typing continued looping the sound until exit to game [Ghost73]
* FIX: Quick labels shown for robots standing on an item could overlap
* FIX: Closing OS window during ongoing dialogue was autosaving and could invalidate dialogue results
* FIX: Closing info, list, and dialogue windows while close animation still playing would restart the animation
* FIX: Sprite for multi-cell robots displayed properly in schematics info window
* FIX: Fullscreen setting changed through Alt-Enter wasn't saving to config file
* FIX: Typing a grave character at the end of a text entry crashed the font renderer
* FIX: Typo in basic help text for parts list: "Essental"

[getter77]

The streak of finely wrought, meaty changelogs continues I see.