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Devlog #50 - Bank Tabs, CoD, Str T1, Steam, Blog
Wow, that was a busy two weeks! We all got a ton done and also didn't get enough done, but that's how most sprints are when working on a game.
Patch Notes #44 - Cave of Despair Pt. 1
First we got 5 extra bank tabs and the first mobs and drops for Cave of Despair.
The we got guild items and the ability to buy guild items with guild points.
Patch Notes #46 - Str T1
And finally we got the amazing Knight set which is Str T1! That means all T1 sets are now in-game, craftable, and wearable! Great job Perseus!
While we didn't launch groups/parties yet, I did get a lot of the code done for managing groups server side. I also turned on switching targets while fighting as that will be key for groups. By the next devlog groups/parties will be implemented, working, and live.
The other big news for this sprint is that I got Fantasy Online 2 setup and working on Steam! Let's dive into how the macOS/Windows/Linux builds of FO2 work as it's really interesting.
First, FO2 Steam edition is an https://www.electronjs.org/ app. What does this mean?
"Electron is a framework for building desktop applications using JavaScript, HTML, and CSS. By embedding Chromium and Node.js into its binary, Electron allows you to maintain one JavaScript codebase and create cross-platform apps that work on Windows, macOS, and Linux — no native development experience required."
So essentially it's the open source version of Chrome running a Node.js website. Chrome is probably one of the best multi-platform applications ever to exist and FO2 is HTML5 so ElectronJS is the perfect choice for launching on Steam.
Second, the Pixel Games LLC Steam Partner account was approved! This means I've been filling out a million forms for the upcoming Steam page for FO2. We're currently working on designing a logo and once that is done, the page will be ready to launch.
Third, access to Steamworks gave me access to the Steam SDK! That means I was able to implement authentication, which means you won't have to login to any other service when playing on Steam. It just logs in automatically and is tied to your steam account and id. Implementing this auth took quite awhile as https://github.com/ceifa/steamworks.js hasn't been updated in awhile. Thankfully someone forked it and added the function I needed to https://github.com/ai-zen/steamworks.js which was GetAuthTicketForWebApi.
Here is a screenshot of the development macOS build of FO2 which has logged into my Steam account and is showing my Steam account's characters that I have created. Next up we'll add auth to the game server, fix any bugs with that, and then move on to implementing the microtransaction API. Steam has probably the best controller support of any game/launcher built into their Steamworks SDK so I'm really excited to get controller support working too. We'll need it for Steamdecks.
Stay tuned for more Steam info coming soon!
I also spent about 3 days learning and implementing v1 of https://blog.fantasyonline2.com/ and you might be asking, why would you do that, you have so much other stuff to do!?
There are a few reasons.
1. This creates an automated backup of all Patreon posts.
2. It adds a huge amount of webpages to https://fantasyonline2.com/ which then get indexed in Google and will eventually lead to more organic traffic to the website.
3. I needed to learn a few code bases like https://contentlayer.dev/ and https://github.com/timlrx/pliny which I will eventually be using to create an item/skill/etc database website for FO2 that's something like https://www.wowhead.com/database which should also be useful and help people on Google find FO2 easier.
So, I went ahead and used https://github.com/timlrx/tailwind-nextjs-starter-blog along with the Patreon API and a new Vercel project and voila we have the start of https://blog.fantasyonline2.com/ which still needs better styling, logo, etc but holy moly is it fast.
On the Kongregate front, I'm not convinced it's going to be worth it to launch there. Recently the developer relations person I was emailing with was let go and no other rep has reached out to me. I then took a tour around https://www.kongregate.com/ and realized not only is their login with Facebook button broken, but there seems to be no chat on most (all?) games, and the comments on games are mostly from 2017 and earlier. These are not good signs.
According to https://www.semrush.com/ kong and armor games have been in decline for a very long time, but they have more recent competitors that are doing great such as...
So I've reached out to crazygames.com as they have an approval process for games that use in-app transaction apis. I considered piko.com and itch.io as well but both of them don't have a microtransaction api.
In the upcoming two weeks we'll be working on groups/parties, CoD mobs/drops/quests, MC quests, the logo, Steam stuff, and more. FO2 is really coming together nicely! I personally can't wait for the Market to launch near the end of June.
See you next patch notes!
Have Fun & Keep Gaming!
P.S. - I have removed the Double Ultra Gamer tier and added the Super Supporter Club tier on Patreon. I will make a post about this soon. SSC's are now officially back!