Hey Everyone!

First off, thanks for all the support. We're sorry we haven't released an update recently but we have both been super busy with our personal and professional lives. That being said we are super excited to finally bring local multiplayer to our game. Not only can you play against people locally but you can join other servers as well. Don't forget that this is in the Feature Test Branch where we do testing before moving it over to the full release branch. For instructions on how to get over to the feature test branch follow the directions here[www.abgamestudios.com]. Don't forget to restart your steam client because sometimes it doesn't pick up the latest release of a game.

Also, we are going to be at Orlando iX[www.orlandoix.com] this weekend. We have a booth so stop by and play our game, you might just get a surprise ;). Lastly, we are celebrating by discounting are game by 25% this weekend so if you haven't picked it up or your friend hasn't picked it up, now is the time!

• Added support for local multiplayer (press f6 to add players locally up to 4 players, make sure you have the same amount of controllers as players e.g. if there are 2 players locally make sure to have 2 controllers, we have only tested with xbox controllers)
  
• Only allowed to select from 3 modifiers
  
• Modifier permanent slip - doesn't affect jump height, not as slippery
  
• Modifier spawn random attacks - random attacks will appear on the level
  
• Added tooltips to modifiers
  
• Added icons for each modifier to the upper right corner

• Fixed bug where ready button got out of sync
  
• Fixed issue where dropped attacks have trails and a particle system
  
• Fixed issue where players joining greed CTF couldn't ready up
  
• Fixed issue where Danger still shows on tiles after a round

• Added bubble around player after they fall off the level
  
• Redid maps to have better lighting
  
• Changed look and feel of obstacles to increase framerate
  
• Started to experiment with different player models for future customization

Hey everyone!

As you may have noticed, things have been quiet on our side as of the last couple of weeks. That's because I'm a dad again! My son Alek was born on the 3rd and has been my primary focus. That said, we're getting to a point where we are settling into a nice routine and getting more sleep. Things will pick back up again soon, so you'll be seeing more updates in the coming weeks. Speaking of the future, we have an event coming that I hope I'll see some of you at!

Orlando ix is happening from October 14th to the 16th this year and looks like it's going to be exciting! Well, I mean, of COURSE it'll be exciting, I'll be there. ;) ...Ahem... If you or anyone you know will be attending please be sure to stop by and say hi and play a round of two of The Concourse! :D

As I mentioned earlier, we will get back to a regular update schedule shortly and will be keeping you posted! Stay tuned!

Alvin

This branch has some very bold additions including but not limited to the beginning of character customization! Granted... you won't be able to customize anything yet. It's us testing out a new system, you'll see a new player model and the direction we're heading in.

Also included in this version are 40+ modifiers and a new modifier selection system! We've decided to make it so you can choose from 3 randomly selected modifiers at a time! Meaning OF the 40+ modifiers available you'll have the hard choice of playing the hand you're dealt. This has changed the whole dynamic of the game for the best in our opinion!

(In case you forgot how to access the feature test, go HERE [www.abgamestudios.com] )

• Added Random Maze Size Modifier
  
• Added One Attack Type Modifiers ( Only Drift, Only Chaos, etc )
  
• Added Victim Becomes Attacker ( Hitting another player with an attack applies it to you not them )
  
• Added Remove Walls Modifier
  
• Addressed glitch where a streamer fell through the walls once ( before us adding this deliberate remove walls modifier)
  
• Added Melee Modifier - Speed up tile drop rate
  
• Added Melee Modifier - Fewer Battery packs ( Spawns fewer batteries forcing players to fight harder for points and the ability to fire attacks)
  
• Added Fire Random Attacks Modifier - Fires a random attack based on the amount of energy you have.
  
• Added Modifiers to remove specific obstacles ( No Doors, No Slides, No Gates, etc)
  
• Added Survival Modifier - Increase rate of track destruction
  
• Added Energy Attacks cost +1 (Energy Attacks cost 1 more energy to fire up to a max of 3 energy)
  
• Added Energy Attacks cost -1 (Energy Attacks cost 1 less energy to fire with a minimum cost of 1 energy)
  
• Added Certain Obstacles Modifier (Doors Only, Gates Only, etc)
  
• Chaos Energy attack has now been split into 4 different attacks (Dizzy - Inverts look controls only, Chaos - inverts movement controls (W,A,S,D) only, Confuse - inverts Jump and Slide controls (these first 3 attacks cost 1 energy each) and finally Flabbergast - does all 3 of the previously mentioned attacks at once. Note: Flabbergast is ranked as devastating, meaning that the attacker will also have an attack applied to them)
  
• Changed the cost of Drift (Ice attack) to 2 energy

• Created energy patterns for player suit for upcoming customization options
  
• Added new player model

• Added sounds for players falling during Survival mode

As you saw, it's a big update and there are bound to be errors / glitches. As always if you find any bugs let us know here in the steam community or by emailing: theconcoursegame@gmail.com Also, as I mentioned in a previous announcement, our upgrade to Unreal Engine version 4.12 has messed up the bots. We're going to be working on that for our next update. Thanks for your understanding, patience and continued support! ːsteamhappyː

Cheers!

That's right folks! We've been invited back to play with the Stream Team! I am personally looking forward to this as some of the features they requested will be present in this stream. I'm excited to get their feedback on what we've done and to see whether or not they feel we've made great strides since our last stream a while ago. If you're around keep your eyes peeled and feel free to join in on the fun!

Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/nerdyshow

**For those of you who aren't familiar with the Nerdy Show....

Nerdy Show Network: http://nerdyshow.com/

If you like what you see, throw these guys a bone! They work really hard and from my experience they're cool people, support them here:

http://nerdyshow.com/support/

Thanks! See you all at 5pm!

We have upgraded The Concourse to the newest (stable) version of Unreal Engine (4.12). With all upgrades, things are bound to be knocked loose. In this case, the bots were that casualty. Their performance was stable with the maze mode but now they have tremendous trouble completing even that. Not to worry though, we are making them a priority in our next update. Please stay tuned and thanks for your patience!

We've got quite a few things in store for you this week! We've made GreedCTF and Melee modes both official in this release as well as some other goodies! Check out below for more information!

• Merged Feature test into the main branch
  
• Added GamePad Controls to Default Controls
  
• Added Defaults button to control setup screen

• Survival Mode - Increased the spawn rate of obstacles as each lap is completed.
  
• Game modes in general - Filtered modifiers for each mode based on relevancy (for example: Hidden Flag isn't necessary for Survival as it does not use a flag at all)
  
• Melee - Tiles are accurately replicated to the client. Also, we clean up any left over "falling tile" indicators so they don't mislead players.
  
• New Attack - Chancla (a modifier created based on jokes with Leshkee) Hit your opponent with the Chancla to slow them down.
  
• Added a free flying spectator mode. If you finish a race and are waiting for other players, simply Right-Click to switch to that mode. Left click to re-enter chase cam.
  
• Added Chat for spectator mode. Players can also chat with spectators
  
• Added the ability to see what attack is selected and how much energy a player has as you follow them in spectator mode.

• Added Models that represent most of the attacks. (Chancla - Slipper, Drift - Spikey Ice ball, Containment - Pad Lock, etc)
  
• Added an indicator to GreedCTF to make it obvious that a flag was captured and by whom.
  
• Added visuals to indicate what modifiers are in play
  
• Certain menus have been resized and updated for ease of use

• Added sounds for all attacks
  
• Added "Get Ready", "Go" and Cage lifting sounds
  
• Added UI button sounds (hover and confirm)
  
• Added a grunt to players when they are hit

There's been a lot done but we have even more exciting things coming in the future. Please stay tuned and spread the word about our work!

Hey guys we created a Trello board so we can better keep track of our dev items. The cool thing is, YOU can track our progress as well! We've enabled the voting feature so click on items that you like to vote for them. This will give us a gauge on what's important to you! NOTE: You MAY need to sign up for a (free) Trello account in order to do this.

https://trello.com/b/ePBT5TAk

Check out some of the things we knocked out this week! As always, let us know about any cool ideas you may have for The Concourse and we'll try to get them up on the board!

We had such an awesome experience with Resync that we're doing it again! Live stream on Twitch with Leshkee, RSQViper and HeroOfGaming at 8pm. Join for a chance to win your own copy of The Concourse!

https://www.twitch.tv/leshkee
https://www.twitch.tv/heroofgaming
https://www.twitch.tv/RSQViper

This week has been a hectic one for both Bryan and I, so there's no software update. Regardless of that, we've been working hard behind the scenes to get some great new features and improvement in. I'll give you a sneak peek at some of them here:

Check out that screenshot! Admittedly a little dark, so I'll have to tweak the lighting a bit overall. It shows that up to 4 players can play against one another. So if you've got up to 4 gamepads you can play together on one screen against bots. In addition to this, you can take your 4 players and play online against other players! :D


This is a feature that we think will be SUPER COOL for streamers. We want to give their audiences the ability to interact with (read: TROLL) their favorite streaming personality. So far we've thought of giving the ability to fire attacks from the crowd, vote on modfiers to apply after each round as well as others that we'll leave for a future suprise. >=]

We got some recent feedback from Leshkee's ( twitch.tv/leshkee ) and HeroOfGaming's ( twitch.tv/HeroOfGaming ) Twitch streams, suggesting a "hot potato" style game mode. Bryan and I LOVE this idea and have already started planning out how it will play. We'll have more on this in the coming weeks.

We know, we know, videos might not be enough to get you up to speed with all of the cool features and gameplay of the Concourse so we've decided to get an interactive training course up and running. We plan on making it modular so we can explain any future game mode or any new functionality with ease. :)

Besides the aforementioned features we are working on improvements under the hood and with the UI. As always, stay tuned and throw suggestions our way to help us improve! :D

I want to also thank everyone who has given us the time of day to check it out. We hope to continue bringing you more than your money's worth in gameplay over time and make you proud to support us on our game dev adventure.

Cheers and thanks again!

Alvin