Another Reflex Roundup, another slate of updates on all fronts of the community including the two duel tournaments that were completed, the new duel tournaments that was announced, a massive update on the development front including some solid information about CTF, and a bunch of cool community content. As the usual procedure, we'll cover the competitive happenings first, then slowly make our way through the other topics.
Unfortunately I was out for both of these tournaments and did not get a chance to watch either one of them so I can't provide any meaningful commentary, however, it's becoming a bit concerning that the European community is getting swept by AZK, who himself went on to place behind sane in his SANETOPIA 2 tournament. On top of this, other contenders in the North American community, including voltran did not participate in the event, and there's the sleeping giant in CPM great gellehsak, who hasn't even started to take the game up. It will be interesting to see if these sort of lop-sided event results continue, or if a European player will be able to beat away the North American dominance of their community. Ground control to gaiia. Please check in.
Upcoming Tournaments
Even though we just got through two weekends of back-to-back tournaments, there is an even already planned for the not so distant future. To many people's anticipated dismay, the next iteration of def's #DP series will be an invite only tournament, and the details are still a bit murky.
Now, now, I guess we get into the meat of things and go over the new art-style which has been adopted by Turbo Pixel Studios, a style which focuses on clear visuals, and minimizing aesthetic clutter.
New rocket launcher model, in a claustrophobic red armor room.
As we can see in the image above, the developers have forgone the futuristic, science-fiction, look they had initially conceived, as well as the more recent "tesla-punk" theme. Citing development concerns1 with the aforementioned visuals, they have moved on to what they consider a more effective, and efficient way of developing the game. They have opted for a very clean, texture-less style, ideal for an fast moving action arena first person shooter, allowing players to easily spot each other without having to squint their eyes. A knock-on effect of a lower-poly style is that it will allow them to produce a wider range of assets for level designers, and focus on other aspects of the game.
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New weapon models.
The weapons have been given a low-poly overhaul, with a focus on shape, colour, and animation to help players easily identify which weapon they, or their enemies, are carrying.
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Editor improvements.
I had a quick chat with newborn recently and he indicated that players would still be able to make fairly detailed maps with the new style they are pressing forward with. Static meshes will replace the current textures, and players will be able to apply a material to them, add colour to it, and change the size as is required for their map.
Resist Bubble
What was also recently "leaked" to the general public was a new effect for the Resist power-up -- an item which significantly reduces incoming damage.
Resist power-up.
Capture The Flag
Now, we've been speculating about Capture The Flag for a long time, but it looks there is some solid news on that front. A recent post on reddit newborn indicated that CTF is in the works, and has been scheduled to be released in the 0.37 patch. 2
Community Content
In this final segment I'd like to point out a few things which have been created by the community.
Input List
This first of these is apheleon's input list widget. This widget was inspired by fighting games, where in training modes all button presses would be displayed on the screen in a scrolling fashion.
Oldschool gamer KovaaK, known for his in-depth QuakeWorld tutorials, has begun working on some preliminary guides to introduce new players into Reflex. These guides cover a series of different aspects of the game, and offer great insights to new, and old players. I highly recommend you check them out regardless of your skill level.
mad_jihad recently released his "castlerun" map, a specially designed level for players to race on. The map is quite challenging as it offer a plenitude of ways to reach to the end, as well as endless amount of perils attempting to impede your way before you can make it.
More good stuff! I dig the new art style and I know some other people will too.
It's just a shame reflex is a group of dudes who just sat down and are making a game. They could really use some help to get it advertised and marketed properly. I still think it went "public" too soon, but I also still won't write the game off the list of potential future FPS games. It may just be a small group of people making a game without massive funding or marketing expertise, but you can tell these people love the game they are making!
AZK
memphis
HAL_9000
It's just a shame reflex is a group of dudes who just sat down and are making a game. They could really use some help to get it advertised and marketed properly. I still think it went "public" too soon, but I also still won't write the game off the list of potential future FPS games. It may just be a small group of people making a game without massive funding or marketing expertise, but you can tell these people love the game they are making!