Research Update

The main focuses of this update were on improving the Research system, the Building Blueprint system, and improving the overall balance of the game.

Old Research System

The old Research system was a bit tedious and unsatisfying to use. It had over 120 different Research that could be completed, but many of them felt underwhelming and some were very repetitive (i.e. Markets generate 15/30/45/60% more gold), making them sometimes less exciting. The old Research system was also tied directly to the buildings, limiting the scope of what Research could do.

New Research System

My aim on the new Research system was to make it less tedious and also more exciting to use. The new system behaves a bit more like modern talent systems, but with less restriction. The Researches are broken into 3 categories: Defense, Resources, and Heroes. But unlike some talent systems, you are not restricted in how you spread your mana between the different categories. 

These Researches are generally much more powerful and meaningful than the old system. New tiers of Research will unlock as you complete Research and upgrade your Main Keep. As you complete more Research, the mana cost will continue to increase. It is not realistic to complete all Research in a single run, so each choice you make will be more meaningful .

A few new Research examples:

Undying Loyalty - Whenever a worker or guard dies, they will rise from the ground as a skeleton and fight nearby enemies.

Treasure Hunter's Bounty - Grants 50 gold to the kingdom anytime a hero opens a chest.

Dungeon Master - Increases damage and healing by 25% for heroes while they are in a dungeon.

Building Blueprints

Building Blueprints have been moved to their own menu, but the core functionality remains the same. However, many buildings now have increased benefits from being upgraded. The most notable improvements would be to the shops. The Alchemist, Blacksmith, Enchanting Tower, and Library used to require Research to be completed to improve the wares they sold, but they will now gain those improved wares simply by being upgraded to a higher rank.  This should cause upgrading buildings to feel more meaningful and satisfying.

Balance Changes

My goal with this demo in terms of difficulty has been to keep it relatively easy so that difficulty was not preventing people from trying the game. However, I believe the previous version of the game was easy to the point that it didn't feel especially satisfying to beat. I have increased the difficulty significantly, which should hopefully give people a little bit of a challenge, but shouldn't feel too overwhelming. 

Final Thoughts

Many other small changes and improvements have also been made, too many to name here. I am always working my hardest to try and improve the quality of the game. Thank you so much for reading and playing, and feel free to share your thoughts on the game in a comment!

My next update to the demo will focus on workers. I plan on making the control over them less tedious and more meaningful, while also bringing a bit of fresh life to the kingdom. The functionality with Settlements is also planned to be expanded upon and improved.