Colony Ship: A Post-Earth Role-playing Game Update #39

The upcoming combat demo for Iron Tower Studio’s Colony Ship RPG is still missing some animations. And while those are being sorted out, the developers are working on various miscellaneous improvements. You can check out some demo screenshots in this forum thread, along with a quick overview of the new stuff:

As you probably know, we’re waiting for the missing animations (the once long list has been reduced to two-handed weapons and grenades), portraits (8 NPC portraits to go), and armor (all vests, boots and leggings, helmets, goggles, and gas masks are done; waiting for the jackets and coats, which will be done after all animations are in). While we’re waiting, we made some changes and improvements.

• removed all caps from the textbox, added a corresponding skill and level to the weapon slots, the character level, plus replaced words like DMG and AMMO with icons to reduce clutter, added a reaction chance, resized the overhead portraits.
• replaced the disco floor with the movement range but if you prefer the grid you can bring it back via Options.
• still working on the firing range as we need to show both the effective and maximum ranges
• added proper cursors for all occasions (pointer, examine, target, interact, open, climb, etc)
• replaced the old targeting info with a new one (blue – critical, green – hit, yellow – graze, red – miss; pressing ALT gives you a full breakdown of each value)
• replaced the old overhead icons with new ones (the eye shows the effect of your cover, its effect on the enemy’s THC; the shield shows the enemy’s cover, its effect on your THC)

And if you’re wondering why the animations for the demo are taking so long, this announcement brings us the sad news of the passing of Ivan Soloviov, Iron Tower’s talented 3D animator. Before sharing the actual announcement we would like to use this opportunity to extend our condolences to the team.

We have terrible news that we can’t fully comprehend ourselves. Yesterday, on the 5th of September, our friend, 3D animator and wonderful person, Ivan Soloviov, has passed away. He was only 39, battling hemophilia and related complications.

He was a quiet and reserved person who didn’t post much, but role-playing games were his true passion and he was excited to work on The Age of Decadence, Dungeon Rats, Dead State, and Colony Ship. Hopefully, players will appreciate his work – his digital footprint – for many years to come. He was also the one who came up with the name Iron Tower Studio years ago. We’ve lost a good friend and team member. While he worked closely with all of us, he was my closest friend. Whenever I needed help or support, he was always there, honest and generous.

He will be missed.