[Game Update] - 410162

[Kevin]

Hey Grifters,

Today adds some new features to brawl, some general fixes, and some new sal grafts. Brawls currently feel a bit relentless / attrition-focused, so I think we'll probably add some brawl-equivalent of the main game's orange oppos tomorrow. 

How is the difficulty feeling, currently? We got some feedback from the Kashio fight (where she was missing her auction loot :), so I know that at least some players have made it that far.

 

• The Replace-Grafts screen wasn't updating its scroll panel size after aligning contents, which meant the scroll bar wouldn't show sometimes
• Nerve Strike no longer applies cripple if evaded
• add pet seller to the brawl
• new brawl quests: sal_brawl_undermine, sal_brawl_make_peace
• Fixed issue where cards duplicated by Muscle Memory weren't counted as having been improvised (for effects such as backstab)
• Added three new improvise focuses grafts for Sal 
• adjust the backup/oppo generators for sal_brawl_group_battle
• add difficult quests to the brawl
• Fixed incorrect desc on Boosted Masochist
• Added nil-check to turnabout
• Fixed bug where Sealed Admiralty Envelope wasn't giving the right amount of influence
• Increased defend gained from Zig Zag by 1
• Fixed bug where Nadan's debuff application ignored evade
• Marked the Zealot's attack as a debuff
• Added upgrade highlight to Improve Accuracy
• Fan The Hammer now requires charge and attacks once per charge
• Calcifier now works with Adrenaline instead of Temporary Power
• Gunslinger now correctly previews its hit count
• remove wreet from the rando name pile, because wreet is a real person now
• fix end of day screen filling up each day of the brawl
• Make kashio have her tricks at the end of brawl
• mark brawl boss fights as combat encounters
• Fix Eccentricity descriptive text showing the wrong cost range.
   

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[matshazi]

Yeah, it's definitely difficult. It would be good to have more optional tools that provides benefits.

[Snortlepig]

I didn't really find it much harder then the standard game.

Is there any point to diplomacy? I tended to avoid it most the time unless the reward was much better than combat. I was lucky to get a few healing cards that worked really well with my discard build.

I also felt like I was swimming in money but it took ages to get grafts that I liked. I think I had about 1500 shills at one point. You get a useless graft draw and it seemed like a very long time before you got the chance to buy again.

[Maniafig]

Doing a few negotiations is still worth it to get enough EXP and random card drafts to have a deck capable of dealing provoking hateful NPCs. I've noticed the odds of hateful characters appearing in the bar is pretty high, so in most of my runs I get to do around three or so provocations.

During my last run I didn't get any shopkeepers for all of days 4 and 5, I'm not sure whether that was because the game updated in the middle of the run. Generally the ones that remove cards are good early in the run, but on later days I'd much rather see the one that specializes in Grafts. Upgrading the amount of graft slots is a big priority, since there's a lot of boss graft drops.

Speaking of boss graft drops, I don't think they need to drop from every boss fight, but only from the end of day boss battles. During days 3 through 5 you fight two bosses per day, which means you can wind up with seven boss grafts by the time you fight Kashio, which is kind of overkill. Last run I had like 7 energy per turn because I rolled a lot of +1 energy battle grafts.

[Smife]

23 hours ago, Kevin said:

Hey Grifters,

Today adds some new features to brawl, some general fixes, and some new sal grafts. Brawls currently feel a bit relentless / attrition-focused, so I think we'll probably add some brawl-equivalent of the main game's orange oppos tomorrow. 

How is the difficulty feeling, currently? We got some feedback from the Kashio fight (where she was missing her auction loot :), so I know that at least some players have made it that far.

 

I remember recently you asked in one of the posts is there anything that we think is missing in the game. While I think the card play was nailed (negotiations feel very unique and the combat is satisfying), there's not much to say about the whole experience on the macro (not sure if using the right term) level.

There's no real replayability to begin with. If you take every individual player's run they won't differ a lot I'm sure. And I think the game's overly focus on character story is bringing down the true potential. Side quests, activities, exploration, the world you've built is complex and interesting enough for all that. Every time I come back to Griftlands after a few updates it's just exciting enough to beat Rook's and Sal's stories. After that I don't really feel the need for another run, because I know it will be more of the same.

Friends, characters I helped don't feel special. There's no attachment there because it will all be over soon. Enemies mechanic is not immersive. I killed a dude's friend and now they hate me. Well, hate all you like, I don't feel very threatened, not by your social nerfs that's for sure. Why couldn't they gather some friends and ambush you in like a bar while you're busy having a chat with YOUR friends, totally clueless. Such an event can make all the difference in a player's personal experience, and that's just one example out of countless possibilities.

The map, lifeless. Its existence shows that Griftlands could be more than just a card game and moving from point A to point B (or C if you need a drink). It might as well be a simple menu to click where you want to teleport next...out of 2-3 destinations...choose wisely. Why not expand on that, create a new fun mechanic? Going on your mission and expecting a single encounter on your way there (or not) got stale pretty fast, not to mention predictable. I noticed how character bubbles use some sort of predetermined "invisible" roads while moving around the map. Why not let us actually use them and plan our journey. Create an actual dynamic world with zones of control (factions), paths and overlays that you can influence. "Ok, should I take a risky shortcut through these woods full of dangerous wildlife or use the other road and deal with the admiralty checkpoint. Uh, but my character is not stealthy enough, 30% chance to get spotted, and a bad reputation. Well, if that happens I can always make an excuse negotiating...or fight my way through". Huh, how cool is that? Create ambushes on said roads and rob caravans, or guard them. Anyways, you get the picture, the potential is real.

Also I don't get the idea of splitting the whole experience into three smaller games. That creates limits imo (after playing in Grout Bog Sal's run feels lacking). Devs built the world, know how all the pieces work, there's lore. Why tear it apart? We could pick a character depending on their strengths, weaknesses and our own play style and go wherever we want to go. Klei have their reasons I guess, they make great games after all.

Guys, I probably went overboard with ambitious suggestions here, but decided to go for it while Griftlands is still in alpha. I like the game a lot and want it to keep getting better. I know this post lacks structure, but I hope the message is clear. Feel free to respond if you have similar thoughts