What We're Working On, November 2018

Hey folks, I wanted to put out a quick announcement and let you know what we've been up to since the last one. Originally we were going to put out a smaller update next, but along the way we ended up deciding to go ahead and finish up the intro/tutorial for the next update as well. The intro/tutorial will help introduce players to the world, as well as introduce many of the gameplay mechanics that you'll be using for the rest of the game. Signs of Life does some things a bit different than other games, so we feel like it is super important to make sure that players understand how the game functions before they get dropped on the planet that they'll spend the majority of their time on.

Before I get too far into the details of what we've been working on, I want to let you know that we've set up an official Discord channel for Signs of Life, which you can get to by clicking this link. We'll of course still be using the Steam discussion forums, but Discord is probably where we'll be easier to reach and Discord makes it easier for us to drop in-progress screenshots and gifs.

Here is what we've been working on for the intro/tutorial, but keep in mind that much of it is still a work in progress:

You'll start the intro in your room, aboard the U.N. Hephaestus, a massive colony ship designed to travel to a new earth-like planet many lightyears from home. You'll wake up and find out that while en-route to the new planet, some signs of life were detected on a nearby asteroid and you've been tasked with investigating.


Once you get dressed, you'll take a grav lift down to the main Barracks corridor, and then an elevator to the Supply Room.



While on the Hephaestus, you'll get your wrist mounted MEG tool installed, and run through a series of diagnostics which will teach you how to use the various functions.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GrT8keCMeE&feature=youtu.be

One of the gameplay mechanics we want to make sure players understand by the end of the tutorial is the way ammo works, so as part of the tutorial you'll need to use a new tool we've created called the Thermo-Thrower. As part of the tutorial, you'll need to put out a fire as well as melt some ice on an airlock door.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Stgzed6plyY&feature=youtu.be


But of course the Thermo-Thrower isn't only a tool, and it can be used for more... destructive purposes. However, because the U.N. Hephaestus frowns upon violence and destruction, you might want to avoid causing too much trouble with it.
https://youtu.be/xtAmHdhd8Eo

This is just some of what we've been working on, and in the next announcement we'll cover a bit about what happens once you leave the Hephaestus and start scouting for signs of life on the nearby asteroid... As always, we love to hear from you folks, so don't be shy. Let us know what you think in the comments, the Steam discussion forums and on the official Discord channel.