Hello! ARE YOU EXCITED? You should be. Lair of the Clockwork God is nearly upon you.

Never heard of the game? Here it is, look! It's going to be amazing: https://steamproxy.net/steamstore/app/1060600/Lair_of_the_Clockwork_God/

One final request to please please ADD THE GAME TO YOUR WISHLIST, it really helps Steam recognise it as a "proper" game, and helps visibility at launch.

If you want to see a Swindle sequel, I'm hoping it's going to be my next game, but that will only happen if Clockwork God sells enough to keep the company afloat. So please WISHLIST it now, and BUY it tomorrow!

I sincerely hope you all enjoy the game.

Dan Marshall, Size Five Games

HELLO! Thanks to everyone who helped out with the Beta Test of v1.06. Seems the NEW MOVE is hugely appreciated, and working well.

I'll be continuing to address feedback as it comes in, but I'm hoping 1.06 is the last big patch; the next thing is to look into how feasible a Daily Challenge Mode would be, which is a highly requested feature. It should scratch that 'Endless Mode' itch some of you have as well.

- ADDED: [NEW MOVE] walking over a ledge with SNEAK held will automatically move you safetly to a wall grab
- ADDED: cash from computers is no longer added to the "% stolen" count until you have the appropriate Hack Skill level, so it's now possible to 100% that first level.
- ADDED: bolstered the jump code; seems different systems calculate the distance to ledge edges differently, meaning some jumps could be unresponsive on some setups. I'm unable to test this, so let me know if it's problematic still.
- TWEAKED: some upgrade prices to reflect 100%ing first heist take is now approx £850
- TWEAKED: maps will now always generate a minimum cash pickup amount of £100
- TWEAKED: some physics settings, to see if that's a cause of jumping issues between different PCs.
- TWEAKED: some Linux controller stuff.
- FIXED: guards will no longer fall off ledges when there's a computer beneath them.
- FIXED: tiles below spikes will now also kill the spikes when destroyed.
- FIXED: Tesla bots should no longer kill you via a hacked drone.
- FIXED: hacked drones can now target & destroy WallBots
- REMOVED: legacy mouse controls from Skills UI, as it was interferring with some controllers/ Linux.
FIXED: minor issue on building edges where sneaking in the wrong direction would cause you to embed into a tile
FIXED: Spikes without bases should no longer appear.
TWEAKED: jumping-on-edge code bolstered still further in an attempt to fix unresponsive jumping on some systems
TWEAKED: Linux D-pad controls, some minor Linux bug fixes.

As always, if you have problems do please drop me a line to dan at size five games dot com and I'm on hand to help.

D

HELLO AGAIN. I've still been working hard tweaking and balancing the game, and addressing some of the remaining bugs in The Swindle.

Lots has changed, but most-importantly a NEW MOVE as requested via the forums: you can now safetly move automatically to a WallGrab by sneaking over edges.

One of the main reasons it's been a while since the last update is because I've been made aware that there are still some Jumping issues on some computers. This is the joy of PC development, and a potentially-infinite combination of setups out there, I guess. It's been a nightmare to reproduce and fix up.

Anyway, some computers (as in, very few, now) were calculating distances differently, meaning the game would miscalculate whether or not you were considered "on the ground".

I've done what I can to address it, having read endless boring websites about the issue. I don't have access to a PC with this issue at the moment, so if you're still having problems jumping while standing on a ledge near some spikes, please email dan at size five games dot com so I can really get to the bottom of this.

Here's everything this patch addresses. For now, it's available in Beta only. If you want to use the Beta version, if you right click the game in your Library, go to Properties and the Betas tab, and select betaTesting from the drop-down menu. Download the update, game should appear in your Library as The Swindle [betatesting]



v1.06
- ADDED: [NEW MOVE] walking over a ledge with SNEAK held will automatically move you safetly to a wall grab
- ADDED: cash from computers is no longer added to the "% stolen" count until you have the appropriate Hack Skill level, so it's now possible to 100% that first level.
- ADDED: bolstered the jump code; seems different systems calculate the distance to ledge edges differently, meaning some jumps could be unresponsive on some setups. I'm unable to test this, so let me know if it's problematic still.
- TWEAKED: some upgrade prices to reflect 100%ing first heist take is now approx £850
- TWEAKED: maps will now always generate a minimum cash pickup amount of £100
- TWEAKED: some physics settings, to see if that's a cause of jumping issues between different PCs.
- TWEAKED: some Linux controller stuff.
- FIXED: guards will no longer fall off ledges when there's a computer beneath them.
- FIXED: tiles below spikes will now also kill the spikes when destroyed.
- FIXED: Tesla bots should no longer kill you via a hacked drone.
- FIXED: hacked drones can now target & destroy WallBots
- REMOVED: legacy mouse controls from Skills UI, as it was interferring with some controllers/ Linux.

v1.051 is now available for everyone; here's a list of everything it changes, in case you're still on v1.04

- FIXED: Inconsistent Fall Damage on some systems. If Fall Damage happens and feels wrong, please email your ErrorLog (next to the game's .exe) to dan@sizefivegames.com, thanks!
- FIXED: bolstered further fringe cases of 'jumping near the ground counts as a jump'
- FIXED: game should no longer generate Doors that go nowhere.
- FIXED: it's no longer possible for TurrentDrones to shoot you through a wall if they're *right next* to it
- FIXED: if electrified TeslaBots stepping on hacked mines *did* ever kill you, which looking at the code I'm not sure could ever have been the case, they now definitely won't. - FIXED: the friendly helpful ability to jump when falling & close to the ground, as it's getting reported as a bug ;)
- FIXED: another issue that could prevent the "Stolen Time" achievement unlocking
- FIXED: an issue whereby SpeedyBots could see through doors on systems with a low framerate
- FIXED: Bug Rigging animation continuing to play after changing tools
- FIXED: various OSX input/ controllerissues
- FIXED: various Linux input/ controller issues
- FIXED: Linux Menu Select issue
- TWEAK: Increase to basic Jump Height
- TWEAK: 'Caterpillar' Bot spikes are slightly more forgiving
- TWEAK: it's no longer possible to set off the alarms by attempting to steal the Devil's Basilisk before security is shut down, since that evidently confused one too many people.
- TWEAK: Basilisk Security is slightly more forgiving.
- TWEAK: removed 1.04's inability to open doors near computers, since that annoyed more people than were pleased by it

A quick update that fixes a few things. As always, please do let me know if anything is worse!

v1.051
- FIXED?: bolstered further fringe cases of 'jumping near the ground counts as a jump'
- FIXED: game should no longer generate Doors that go nowhere.
- FIXED: it's no longer possible for TurrentDrones to shoot you through a wall if they're *right next* to it
- FIXED: if electrified TeslaBots stepping on hacked mines *did* ever kill you, which looking at the code I'm not sure could ever have been the case, they now definitely won't.
- TWEAK: it's no longer possible to set off the alarms by attempting to steal the Devil's Basilisk before security is shut down, since that evidently confused one too many people.
- TWEAK: Basilisk Security is slightly more forgiving.
- TWEAK: removed 1.04's inability to open doors near computers, since that annoyed more people than were pleased by it

If you want to use the Beta version, if you right click the game in your Library, go to Properties and the Betas tab, and select betaTesting from the drop-down menu. Download the update, game should appear in your Library as The Swindle [betatesting]

Hello! v1.05 changes a few critical things. I am one man, sitting here on my own, and although I've tested everything to the best of my abilities, there's nothing quite like having hundreds of people playing it to make me suddenly realise something's awry.

So I've made this update an opt-in Beta for now. I'm sure it's fine, but I'd really appreciate some feedback on this version before I make it LIVE to everyone.

If you right click the game in your Library, go to Properties and the Betas tab, and select betaTesting from the drop-down menu. Download the update, game should appear in your Library as The Swindle [betatesting]

If it turns out I've made it so everything's horrible and broken, you can opt out of the beta and back to 1.04 at any time.

Hope you enjoy.

v1.05

- FIXED?: Inconsistent Fall Damage on some systems. If Fall Damage happens and feels wrong, please email your ErrorLog (next to the game's .exe) to dan@sizefivegames.com, thanks!
- FIXED: the friendly helpful ability to jump when falling & close to the ground, as it's getting reported as a bug ;)
- FIXED: another issue that could prevent the "Stolen Time" achievement unlocking
- FIXED: an issue whereby SpeedyBots could see through doors on systems with a low framerate
- FIXED: Bug Rigging animation continuing to play after changing tools
- FIXED: various OSX input/ controllerissues
- FIXED: various Linux input/ controller issues
- FIXED: Linux Menu Select issue
- TWEAKED: Increase to basic Jump Height
- TWEAKED: 'Caterpillar' Bot spikes are slightly more forgiving



If you're on a MAC I'd really appreciate you taking a look, to see if this fixes some of the 360/ xbox One controller issues some people were having. Issues can be left as a comment here, or over on the game's Discussion boards.

Thanks!

d

Hectic week, getting a handle on all the feedback so far and working out what should/ shouldn't be changed. A few tweaks to gameplay (again, mainly to open up those early stages) and several fixes to weirdy-beardy issues. Here's a boring list!

v1.04
- TWEAKED: dropped some entry level prices (bombs, lvl 2 hack) to give more of a sense of progression at the start of the game
- TWEAKED: slightly reduced the number of enemies on your first two heists, to ease newbies in a bit
- TWEAKED: slightly increased default movement speed
- FIXED: an issue where it was possible to collect all the cash but it was reported as 99%
- FIXED: an issue on low framerate machines that could cause unresponsive controls
- FIXED: bomb explosions will no longer set off alarms based on proximity to the bomb/ blast radius, just if the tile itself is hit
- FIXED: an issue that could prevent the Stolen Time achievement unlocking properly (NOTE: if you wer ecruelly denied this achievement, please email dan@sizefivegames.com, and I'll tell you the cheat code to easily activate it)
- FIXED: doors no longer open/ close when there's a computer Hack UI open
- FIXED: some non-360/ xboxone pad controller issues on Main Menus and in-game
- TWEAKED: couple of minor UI issues
- TWEAKED: a few optimisations to make level loading faster and improve overall performance
- LINUX BETA now available. It works fine, but there are a few things that run perfectly on some systems and not others.
-- There's a Linux Beta thread in the Discussion section to let me know what's not working.

As you can see, I've also spent some time getting the Linux version going. It's not official yet, so don't think this is a full release, it's just working and needs significant ironing out.

As always, please keep your feedback coming in. If you're enjoying The Swindle, please leave a nice Positive review. If you're not, email me first, and I'll look into fixing up what ails you: dan@sizefivegames.com

D

Hello! I am aware v1.02 just went live, but it seems sensible to get these to you as frequently as possible!

Here's what you get in v1.03:
- FIXED: an issue where it was possible to fall into spike pits and not die
- FIXED: lag issue on Skills Menu with Dpad controls
- FIXED: Skills UI menu will work with re-configured keys
- FIXED: an issue that Leech ShieldBots could tunnel into scenery on some setups
- TWEAKED: significantly dropped the cost of various basic upgrades, to make them affordable earlier on.
- TWEAKED: range of the 'scramble' move, which lets you scurry up high walls, should make it easier to perform
- TWEAKED: Goggle direction markers have larger fonts for better readability
- TWEAKED: 'Bugs' List font size should be more manageable at high numbers of bugs
- TWEAKED: Upgrades you can't afford are now greyed out of the Skills Menu.


It's difficult changing stuff that I love, and I know other people love, but some people are SO DOWN on some things, and very vocal about that, and I feel I need to do something about it. Some of that is tweaks to 'basic' upgrades, which have been significantly dropped in this update.

We'll see how that goes. I'm not above raising them again, so do let me know if you love/ hate the change!

We've also finally fixed a few niggles with the Skills menu on gamepads, and I've tweaked the Scramble move to be easier to pull off - in the Beta, people generally wanted it to be harder to do, but I'm getting feedback it's too hard, so hopefully this hits a happy medium.

More incoming, including that Linux build!

d

Hello! It's been an amazing, exhausting week, I've been hard at work sifting through all your feedback and looking into some of the odder but more pressing issues people have.

v1.02
- Fixed an issue on some setups where jumping would be unresponsive on the *very edge* of a ledge.
- Cash reward per pickup is now higher on early levels, meaning you should get enough for the hack upgrade sooner.
- Less chance of computers being spawned in locked-off vaults before you can afford bombs (note: not zero chance)
- The game will now automatically deactivate Camera Lens Dirt effects if your framerate falls below 30, as this was a cause of 'muddy' feeling controls
- Tweaks to basic control & movement sensitivity
- Skills menu now displays cost in £x,000 format, for ease of reading

There's still some odd controller goings-on on some setups, sometimes caused by drivers, sometimes caused by ghosts or something I'm not sure. We're getting there on that.

Tweaks are ongoing, I'm still looking into any issues people are having.

Hope you're still enjoying the game. There'll be more updates coming as fast as my big fat fingers can type them.

d