EPISODE 6 DEVELOPMENT BLOG [UPDATED 15/01/2023] (2024)

~ These are excerpts from a post on ourPatreon- you can find the full post there~

~ The Last Stretch ~

Sheesh, this last month really flew by, huh?

It's been another very busy month for the team, but this time round it feels super rewarding since the majority of the work and grind is now out of the way.

That's right - all major pre-E6 remasters/changes have been completed and tested, finally giving us the runway to finish things off for E6. In fact, as most of you are aware, E6 is almost entirely finished anyway - meaning that I've been able to test all of that too.

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Pokemon Desolation Episode 6 Development Progress

Ờ̴̩͐͐l̵̼̥͉̒ͅd̸̡̫̜̼́̀ ̶̡͙̫̒C̶̢̖̩͇̬͇̄̋̏̍ȍ̶̯̭̙̞͆̿͆͘ͅͅñ̴̺̭̩̥̐͑͋̀͘t̵̰̔̃͜é̴̢͖͉̭̙n̶͉͔̝͉͙͊̌̓͘t̶̲͎̟͕̮̼͒͐̎͗
̸̱͔̹͉͋̒̿̎#̶̧̨̱̗͇̓̈#̷͙͈̣͇̀̊͑̇#̶͙̅̕#̴̧̨͕̳̍̍̒͘#̵̻̑̾͗̐̈́̒#̵̧̅̔̈̆#̷̼̆͋̑͘͝#̶̨̲̲͍̘̩̃̽̅͋̾͂#̴̬̖̀̊̔#̸̲̤̮̿#̵͇̿̌#̵͍͈̈̓͊̕#̴̨̹̣̌͛̋͘#̴͇̭̗̦̯̭̓͗́̒͛#̷̱̤̱̀̋̉#̴̛̤͖́̄#̸̰̜̘̱̤̆̇̃̕#̷͉͔̚#̵̡̯̼̗̳͇̂̄̋̈̈͝#̷̷̩̼̖͓͌̑͋͛̉̂̈́͂͊̈|̶̮͛̽͘ ̷͇̤̩͐̈́̃͗M̷̢̼̫̗̂͊̎̀̕ͅa̴̬̣͌ṕ̶̙̜̻̣̜̂́͛͝ ̵̼̩͊͒̈́Ừ̷͈̮̇͛͊͝p̵̗̰̎̎̈́̚͘͜d̴̫̣̤̭̬͒́a̸̲͕͉̝͇̚ţ̸̠͐̍̿͆͝͠é̴̩̯̕s̷͎̤͛̕ ̴̱̟̳̅͑̏̋(̶͚̫́̍̊̂%̷͉̃̃̏̎̑)̸̤͉͍̑͐̆̈́̽́
̷͍̪̉̆̈́͝#̸̦͎̦̿̈#̴͕̒̚ͅ#̸̤̮͒̒̆̍#̸̲̺̞͂̀̿̊#̴̡̨̮̗̣͎͑͒̚#̸̛̹̏̋͘#̸̩͇̹͕̓#̶̜̗̙̃̈͑͊͊#̶̢̨̛͖̣̜ͅ#̸̨̙̟̱̹̫͂̏̈́̓#̸̮͚̺̙́͝#̸̰̼̗͒#̶̛̝͆́͗̕#̵͓̯͖͖̌ͅ#̴̨̯̋#̴̢̰̯̮̇#̴̧̱̼͈̍̋̈#̸̯͂̇̀͝ͅ#̶͓̹̻͆͐̈̂̀̕#̶̥͖͎͇̿̉͑ ̴̧̒|̷̡̱̲͕̙̉ ̴̧̠̫̝̠̏̏̇S̴̩͇͔̱͌c̵͙̙̍͜r̸̢̭̠̥̼̮̿i̷͓͓͎̿̇͛̍́̊p̶̛̜̟͙̱̩̔́͂̊t̵͔̘̥̔̊̃ ̶̡͈̻̙̽U̸̧̡̐p̷͇͙̟͖̘̃́͂d̷̨̙͉̙̦̈́͌͐͌͝a̶͇̺̼̎́̔̾͌͘t̴̥̐͊͠ḛ̷̡̦̽s̴̹̤̳̝̝͂̏ ̵̞͇̮̩͙̞̇̆%̷̡̡͊̉)̵͈͂͠
̴̫͈͓̈̂̈́̔͛͝#̸̦͇͕̟͆̋͛̔̆̄#̵̬̠̯͆#̸̛̤̝̩̮̞͗͂̍̀͛͜#̵̖͖̲͔͈̭̅͊̚#̴̨̡̈́́̈́̈́̈́̚#̶̫͍̚#̵͙͈̈́#̶̝͚̣̫͆̓͗̊#̸͓͈̥̘̊̈́#̷̩̹̿̀͜#̴̹̘̥̙̥͊̌̇̂͊͜#̸̧̜͕͎̪̊͜͝#̸̘͍̺̻́#̶̢͔̪̪̟̞͊̾́#̴̡̯̃́̀̃#̴͎̓̿̈́͝͝#̸͉̰́#̵̪̾͂#̷̭͇̯̋͝ͅ#̴̶̧̬͍͖̗̻͖̤͍̞̓̔͆̇͆̎̃̕|̷̪̞̈́̈́̾̈́͠ ̷̧͚̱͍͕̜͝Ṗ̷͉̼̠͈͖͂a̸̜̩̪͈̱͐̃͆̄s̶̤͊̈́̃͘t̵̩̗̦̩̥̺͐̂͒ ̶̝̭̻͚͇̊͊ͅË̸͙͓́p̵̭̘̔̀i̷͉̬̙̘͍̓̃ŝ̶͈̓͋ȯ̶̘̜̍̃̑̈́͘ͅd̷̛̰͍̙̆̈ẹ̶̛̉̏͗ ̶̨͎͈͗̂̽R̴̡̞͚̩̦̀̊̍e̵̤̯̟̻̫͛͝ͅm̷̪̗̱̼̂̄͐͑ä̴͎́̅͗͝s̵͎͎͑ť̵̙̮̆̇̓ě̸̺͇͋͐̌́̚r̴̫͙͉̟̱̒͌͆͐̉͘s̷̬͙̻͉̰̦̉ ̶̯̽͋͋̄̀́(̸̛̞̙%̴͖̥̽)̷̘͈͚̟̒̀
̶̡̛̙̙͎̹́̀̐̏͝#̵̢̺͎͒̀́̂̔#̵̧̭̞̳͕͆#̶̢̟̖̬̒̎͒͌͌͐ͅ#̸̢̪̦͚̻͑̏̈́#̴̲̘͙̒̔̈͐̃̍#̴̟̾#̶͚̥̺̭͒̔̏̔#̵̬͛̑̆̄͜͝#̶͙̂̃̄͑̅#̶̖̝̘̝͇̈̅̋̋#̵͓͈͗̿̌͒#̸͕̰̯͉̪͗#̴̲̞̜̞̙̱̓̏̈́̇͐̀#̸̣͖̍̌̌#̴̹̦̻̖̇̌̈́̿̚#̵̨̯̟͚͉͌̀̆̀̄͘#̵̤̻̪͚͇̖͑̍̏̎̽͘#̸̻̞̺͎̈̅#̵̺̪́#̷̠̭̣̉͐͛̅̈ ̸̯̃̀̏̂̈|̸͙̯͔̃̽́͗̈́ ̸͓̜͔͗̉̕͜M̶̹̆͌̐͗i̵͓̍s̴̨̛̛̤̑̈́̋c̷̘̟̹̗̩͝ ̵̼̘̤͈͙̆̈́̍̓́̍ͅ(̶̗͂͌̂̃%̷͌̅ͅ)̵̨̪̠̣̋̈̿͒̚͜
̷̺̠̣̪͐̏̒͊͜͝͝-̸̬͒-̷̫̗̅͂-̴̦̞̞̜͎̐̅ͅ-̷̠́̽͝͠-̴̣̗̝̈́̈́͆͋-̶̠̀͜-̶̟̣͗-̵̝̦̫̹̎̀̄̾͝-̷̖͉̲̖̭͍͋̌͘-̵͉̍̀̆̚-̷̘̦̖̹͂͘-̵͈̖̠͈̀-̶̱͇͓̹̘̐͝-̷̮͖̤̙̘̗͋̃̊͌̎-̶̗̜̣̟͊̌͗͊͛͜͜-̸̛̭̈́-̴̪̹͈̘͚̒̈̓̚-̷̡̛̛͖̈́̉̀̃-̸̥̗̘̦̻́͘͘ͅ-̵̝̳̽̓̌-̵̝̗̒̎̒̿͠-̴̟͙͋̚-̴̧̧̭̫̪̬̍̆̐́́͝-̷̳͒-̴̡̻̬͌̀͆̐̂͝-̷̨̡̼̭̂͛̂͌̊̈́-̴̧̛̘͎̺͑͆̽̊-̶͚͙̝̚-̵̧̜̺́̍̓̂́-̴͇̳̜͗-̶̞̳̼̺̬̪͌̏-̶̠̻͈̥̖̀̈̊̆͆-̵̫̟͔̹̆̇-̵͎͍̗̼̟͐-̵͚̝͕̖̣̦̿̉͒-̵́͜-̸͈̥̠͉͇́-̸̱̼̝̫̳̪̐̄̂̿̀-̵̗̃̏̓̕͝-̷̜̱͑̀̄̇͋-̵̰̘̗́͐-̸̮̼̂̉-̷̧̻̝͋̓-̸̞̥̳̀-̸̪̻̦̱͍̑-̶̬̺͈̣̣͝-̸̧̣͕̘͙̰̃͐͒-̵̟͔͎̋̄͊̈́͘͜͝-̵̧̻͚̪̪̋̾̄̿͐͜-̴͔̩̣̒͐͗
̴̗͉̜̙̐̒Ǹ̷̛͚̯̭̌͑̽͊ë̸̘̞̘͈͊̀̉w̵̡̤͇̙̮̄͋̓͜ ̷̲̟̑̌́͝ͅC̵̨̧̛͖̮̖̯̈́̈̅o̷̺̱͎̒̈́̂̓̒̕n̷̡̯̄t̵̬͔̝̰̿̀̅͛͝ę̶̧̻̳͕͖̀̚n̶̖͂̏̓͝t̴̞͙͚̫̙͋̉̓̈́͌ͅ:̸̷̺̭͙̒̑͂͜͝͝
̶̣̱̣̬̲̇̌̍̑̕͝#̴̖͕̳̭̓̀#̵̛̲͕͔̫̗̫͊̀̑͠#̵̨̼̞̒́̾ͅ#̸̮͈̺͖̘́͊#̷̗̟̠̼̜̿̉͌ͅ#̸͍̭͇͕̃̏̂͗ͅ#̵̬̦̝̓͐̈́̌ͅ#̸̛̗͋̀͗#̵̨̮̩͕̗͓̉̉̈́͝͝͝#̴̪͍͇̝̎̓͘͝#̵̨̯̪̽̾͌#̴̛͔̱͓͈̠̈́̄̈́͠#̸̹̘͔̰̮͑̑͋̾̚̚#̸̡̛̛̑#̸͕̎͒ͅ#̵͖̦͗#̸͎̮̳̯͛́̀̃́#̴̗͙͚̭̺͌͐͊́͂#̸̤̬͈̼̃͛#̸̧̥͔̓̀̾͗ ̸̻͉̪̐̅͂͗̑̉|̴͙̺̼͐͛̏̚ ̶͍̐̽̋̈́S̴̗̼̪̪̣͉͗̀̾͝ț̷̥̦̹̟̰́ǫ̷͉̺̟̂̒r̸̠̮̖̫͚̓͘͜y̶̯͎͎̼̱̾ ̸̢̖͂̒́(̶̙̲̝̘͈͇̑̆̑̄̕%̵͙͚̘̀͝)̶̡̧̧̠̦̑͊
̴͈̿#̴͍̳͚̳̬͈̓#̶̙̇͒#̶͎̬̘̞͇̪̽̏̌̕#̶̝̺̤̂͛̄͋#̴̯̗͕̺͔͉͑̈#̷̀̊͜#̶̛̻̩͇͉̄̋̂̿͠#̵̧̬̯̰͓̒̆̉͒̈͝#̴͇̩͐#̷̮́̇͛͋̕̚#̵̱̰̽̍̿̕#̵̝̅̏̌̚#̸̱͓͛̅̑̾͠#̸̨̦̻̖̈́̽̒̍͗#̸̰̺̥̞̐̅#̵̯̭̟̆̀̆̽̀͑#̶̡̻̎͆̎̀#̶̟͉̭̙̘͛̍#̴͖̖͇̹͒̇̂͂͊#̷̥̼̿̏́ ̵̨̺̯̍̀͑̕͝|̴͓̦̀̈́̄́̚͠ ̴̢̫͓̬̟͂͐̀͛̏͝M̶̨̪͕̮̋ả̴̜̯͊p̷̰̭̯̘̰̊ͅṗ̶̧̻̼̈́̉̈́̆͝ī̴̡͇̳n̸̝̺̼͊̎̍̓̊̔g̴̢̳̝͉̫̏̚ ̸̨̤͙̘̖̀̐͂̔͘̕(̶̞̝̿̌͌̀̀̋%̴̩̟̦͌̂̋̽)̴͉̣̀̈͜
̴̥̥̰͚͓̹̈̆̀̀#̵̛̘̣̥̪̿̎̿͑̐#̴̢̫̪͍͈̺̌#̷͕͙̬͈͖̈̿̈̒͒͛#̶̡͔̰̰̜̞̍̉̿̄͝#̸̨̢̫̲͇̲̇͊#̶̟̬́#̶̰̘͊̒#̴̨͉̯̼͒#̵̖̏̔͆́̔͠#̷̲̰́̀̈́#̴̙̪̹͊͒̐͒͒͠ͅ#̸͔̖̰̫͖̣̓̾̓̅̇#̸̢̞̱̖̖̹͋̿̐̆#̷̛̫̪̠̩̓̈̈͒͠#̶̢̨͈̺͈̈́̆#̷̹̜̱̚#̶̼̳͔͝#̵̧̛̟͚͉̞̍̓͑͠#̴̲́#̴̖̮̆̈́̇͌͘ ̵̲̘͔͌̐͊̌̎̅|̷̤̣͆͐ ̶̧̞͖̠̹̖̽Ṡ̷̺̘͊̆͗c̴̟̖̬̐́r̶̡̛͕̗̰̫̈̈́̅̕i̸̗͉̜̫͝p̸͈͙̞͈̔̓͒̈́t̵͙͑̈̏̕i̸̛̱̎̎ṋ̴̢̙͈͊̂̓͘͜ǵ̵͎͚̫̦̣̞̾́͝ ̷̨̺̯̖̾̆̂̒̈́͜(̴͙͓̬͈́%̷̗̱́̀̕̚)̷̨͇͚̺̽̓͂
̴̧̖̗͍̪̏̈́̃̋ͅ#̷͙̰̠͙͒͜#̴̞̹̪̀#̵̫͕̝̽̓#̸̣͖̗̻͒̃̒͋̎#̷͈́̆̈́͂#̵̡̫͈̒̈#̴̼̟͚̥̇͆̓͜#̴̛̥̯̻̫͙̬#̴͔̜̣̻̌͊̄̿͑̔#̷̨͈̤̤̅̉̀́̓͘#̶̟̞́͛̏̈́#̴̛̟͎̬͖#̴̹̒̈ͅͅ#̷̝͖͔͚̈̏̑ͅ#̸͎̉̚#̶̢̬̼͈̥̿̓̎͆̾̓#̸̨̜̘̘̫̈́͜#̵͎̫͖̎̂̅̾͘#̸̨͉̫̩̜̉̾ͅ#̷̵̫̣̗̘͚͎͂͆̒͐̽͘̚|̶̖̩̫̱̋͝ ̴̞̰̖͔̎̿͑Ṣ̶̉̃̎͐i̷̧̛̠̲̱͗d̶̦̮̲͖̻̐́̈́̇͜e̸̼̝̪̤̝̔̈́͊̾̀q̷͍̝̞̻͔̕͝͝u̵͎̒̈̓̐͘e̶̩̮̲͎͒̍ṡ̷̗̎̌̿͊͘t̴̳̙͓͚͌s̸̹͗ ̶͇̠̙̳̻̯̓(̶̳̫͎͌͜%̵̹͔͋̊͛̕)̷̲̆̐͠
̵̠̞̻͛̀̎-̶̺́́-̷̡͍̖̽-̸̟̺̘̦͗̃-̵͔̭̣͌̾̕-̶̡̥̜̥͒͂͗́̆-̸͈̮͙͑̑͌͒͠-̶̰̗̞̈́́͗-̶̖̯͓͇͓̞̀̚-̸̡̡̨̭̞̭̿͗-̴̲̫̈́-̸̬̭͖̥̓̃-̸̱̒́̊-̸̺̯̃-̶̡̗͔̲͕͓̉̐-̷̨̲̯͎̏͝-̷̮̝̻͠-̴̟̳̼̠̩̃̏̌͝-̵̗̯̅͆̿͊̋̄-̸̬͎̗̗̒-̵͕̥̮̣̺̾͋̒̕͘͜͝-̵̨̜̞̈́͜-̴̛͇̮͔̒̉̈́̑͒-̵̻̺̪̑̅-̶̟́͑̔̅̚-̴̢̜̺̙̩͋̇̐-̷͙̙͔͋-̴̨̠̳͕̟̬̎́̔̉̀-̵͍̳͓́̂̕͝-̴̟͆͗̓͘-̸̢͂́̀̍͆̄ͅ-̵̡̗̞͗̈̈́̈̄͐-̷̨͓̟͈̩͌̌̾́͜-̸̝̻͖̫͈̣̍́̐͐̌̕-̸͚̿͐͊̇̽̊-̵̼͆͗̿̔͘-̷͇̝͇̖͒́ͅ-̵̥͚̒͘-̷̱͒̾̾̅͘-̶̢͇̼̙̹͆́̚-̵̙͓̹͚̫̪̇̍-̸̘̟̻̰͘-̴̦͚͈̟̆̿-̷̘̲̞̥̩̖́́̅͘-̶͈̦̘͚͂̾͗̃̈-̷̦̜̻̪̬̈͛̀-̵̖̳̹͈̀̂-̵̝͎̣̓̈́́́͊̆-̶̤͈͓̉͊̃̒̓̔-̶̤̥͓̰̠̓͋̂-̴̣̥̼̦̓
̸̩̘͉̫̌͑͗̑̉̋#̴̰͗̃͒̕#̸̠̞͖̱͋̌͠#̴̧̣̩̈́͒͆̓͊͜#̷̘̓̄͗̓̕#̸̨̥̓#̶̫̺̜̄͊̏͂̆#̸̡̛̣̠̲̏ͅ#̴̢̛̫̤̘͕̈#̴͖̣̖͓̤̦̏̏̾̈́#̴̰̀̈́̀̕͝#̴̜̭̠̍̓̓͆͘#̷̨̨̞̿ͅ#̶͉̗̉͋̏#̶̫̖̪̱̃́̉͜#̷͚̲̻̩̀̒̔͠#̶̼̋#̵̖͚̲̫̻̄̈́̉̿̌͝#̴̳̯̤͓͊̾̚͠#̷̣̳̓͑̚͝#̴̛̠̩̟͚͎͑̈́̚ ̶̡̟͙͗̅̈́͒͝͠|̶̛̜̹ ̶̤̫́̓̐T̵̮̽̊ò̵̭̯̀͂ț̴̬͝a̷̭̝͓͆l̶̼̐̎̓ ̵̧̜̮̖̉̄͌̇(̸̯͓̺̪́̍̉̎͜ͅ%̶̤̲̋)̷̮̺̞̪̉

It's almost done ok.

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- Meeting the bestest boy in Cellia again -

So... what's left, Caz?

Well, not much, actually... but more than I can easily explain. Nevertheless, I'll try my best by separating content into the bits and pieces that remain.

1) Old content: all that really remains here is the completion, testing, and balancing of new fields, as well as internal testing to rule out significant bugs.

2) New content: Asides from a chunk of plot at the end of the episode, all sidequests and main story content are complete. After the last few bits of plot are done, the team will need to internally test new content for balancing and significant bugs.

3) Miscellaneous tasks left to complete (things like bug fixing, items, reflections, map icons, etc.). THIS is the part that is difficult to quantify.

4) Testing testing testing testing - we're running this bad boy on a new engine that is a combined effort from Reborn, Rejuv, and ReDeso teams. There are many bugs yet to iron out - but it's starting to look pretty polished.

5) Closed testing and finally Patreon testing: these are self-explanatory - Patreon testing will occur immediately after closed testing.

- Development-wise, it's safe to say that the nightmare has finally passed... -

Long story short - our workload is quite manageable now (the worst has certainly passed) so we're in a good place, and we're almost there! The content remakes took FAR longer than I originally planned (as I had never gone to such lengths to update past content), but I absolutely know it was worth it. So if there's anything to apologize for - it's my poor estimation of how long that content would take to complete!

Whatever the case - we're on the home run, now. Or the final stretch, whatever you want to call it. Let's get it yo~

Cellia East does not support or condone gambling... right?

So Desolation doesn't have its own arcade yet, apparently. It almost didn't in this episode either... but then I realized that the arcade was literally MADE for Cellia East. It had to make it into E6, no matter what.

So... we pulled some strings, and Ruby got to work, along with a super helpful member of the community, Ace, on making sure we got our own arcade up and running!

Here's a sneak peek at the arcade, including our own graphics for the Slot Machine and Voltorb Flip!

Once again, a round of applause for every member of the team who got involved to make sure that players could still go gambling in the place where it made the most sense... Cellia East. Can't wait for you guys to see this spot for yourselves.

The last wee screenshot dump, I swear...

Alright, without much more to personally add in this update... I present to you the last official screenshot dump from my own internal testing ventures. After that, you'll get to hear a long awaited update from the Post Man himself!

-Cellia Manor Glow-up, courtesy of Ruby-

- A fiery situation down in the Undercity... -

- Another look at the direction we've taken the Grid... -

- Me squaring up for the first time in Cellia East... -

- Visiting the Cellia Prison to find the true faces of crime... -

- Absolutely NYOOMING... -

- And finally, taking a much-needed break. -

Now that I'm all caught up... it's time to finish the deed. The game's almost there, folks. Anyway, that's all from me. Let's hear what Posty's been up to over the last few months, shall we?

Postman, dropping some fresh mail at your door

Howdy folks, your local postman here! It’s been a good bit since I’ve written up something like this for our development updates, but besides being in the midst of job hunting and wishing for a certain cryo archer to come home (spoiler alert: she didn’t.), I’ve been hard at work on one of the core elements of Desolation.

Gameplay and Balance

When I originally joined the team during EP5 development, my main task on the team was updating and overhauling trainer’s teams, redoing the concepts of important fights, and adjusting encounters to accommodate for Gen 7 at the time, as well as giving the player more options throughout (also axing Scyther, lol.). Since then, not only has my role in the team expanded, but I’ve improved along the way in all aspects.

Where am I going with this?

Well, once again I’ve gone through and updated every fight in the game, introduced Gen 8 into the mix, changed up my formula on how I conduct fights, and made a few somewhat big changes. Also Fields, I’ll get into that in a bit.

Encounters

Gen 8 has been introduced to the region of Ayrith. I worked alongside Crim to place these new friends across the map, sorting out some events for a few of them… And ofc adjusting teams now that we have these new lil creatures on our beautiful islands! (Caz absolutely loves Gen 8, also Wiglett).

Alongside Gen 8, there will be some new faces at some points in the game, and some familiar faces have either been moved back or axed… or jailed.

Pokemon availability is an important part to the game, I want to make sure we give out a reasonable amount of Pokemon for players to build unique teams in each playthrough, so I hope that these changes lead to some fun team building!

Seeds

Yes, you heard that right. Like Reborn and Rejuvenation, Desolation now has Seeds.

They had always been in the files, but why were they never implemented? Honestly? No Idea, heck I forgot about their existence in EP5 and didn’t want to go around shoving Seeds across the map for the player to obtain when we mainly just wanted to get EP5 out to the public. So now you’ll notice a bunch of battles will utilize them! Which should shape up the overall gameplay and make things a little bit spicier!

Level Curve

This is a short note but, we have decided to adjust the level curve to help with balance:

Old Curve - 20, 35, 45, 50, 60, 65, 70

New Curve - 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 65, 70

This new curve should help with some of the earlier game fights and mainly, the overall flow of the game.

The Overhaul

Moving onto the next topic of conversation, the actual overhaul. Some of you may remember a google form I put out a while back that asked the community (you guys!) which fights you felt were a bit too strong, too weak, or felt they were just right. This was extremely useful to go through so thank you to everyone who took the time to fill that out! With this in mind, there were some individuals who were clearly a bit too strong for that point in the game.

Yes, I’m looking at you, Aderyn.

Honestly? I don’t know what happened! If you saw her EP4 team and compared it, you would genuinely think that she was nerfed! Nope! Aderyn has been a problem child for the longest time now. Who would have thought somehow removing Honchkrow’s Life Orb would make it even more of a menace… That fight pains me and I’m sorry for everyone who struggled with her. I have changed her up, in more ways than one. This leads me to the main point. Fields.

Desolation has a few “custom” fields, however, to be personally honest, in EP5, these fields were quite unfinished. Giving a few buffs here and there and overall, not having much impact. It made some fights feel a bit… weird? Let's go with that. So alongside these updates, I have finished these fields. I sat down, wrote out a bunch of notes, and made these fields, well actual fields! (don’t worry, I will be including a field manual in some form so you all know how to use them to your own advantage!), big shout out to Yumil for doing the scripting side of things and giving me feedback on it.

Let me go in depth a bit about one of the more used fields in important fights:

Darkness Field

As of EP5, to put it bluntly, Darkness Field has been essentially a carbon copy of Dark Crystal Cavern from Reborn but removing some of the buffed moves and adding a few of our own. For EP6, this is not the case. Instead, it is now its own unique field… with stages!

The concept behind this field is well, the more the field is consumed in the shadows, the more and stronger buffs Dark types will get.

Seeds will work differently depending on which stage of the field you are on. In the battles that take place on this field, you will have to think about whether or not you want to advance the field to the highest stage. There will be moves to push the field to the next stage, and some moves that will move it back a stage, some abilities, status effects, and moves will all vary in power depending on the stage the field is currently in.

Fights that take place on this field will really take advantage of this so you’ll have to come up with a strategy in order to get past them.

Sometimes brute force won’t be enough…

New Fields

EP6 will be introducing some new fields into the mix! In the last update, we showcased this screenshot and hinted at new field effects to go alongside optimized gym battles.

Well… we are proud to introduce the Crowd Field!

The concept behind this field? Well, you gotta impress the crowd! It’s in the name… Crowds like this tend to like a good all-out brawl, so make sure you put up one while fighting on this field. Using physical contact moves will benefit you a lot more than trying to control the opponent’s mind with some psychic attacks. Think of this like a boxing match, the more punches you land, the more the crowd will cheer you on. And sometimes, crowds don’t like seeing a one-sided match, so I hope you weren’t planning on a quick sweep in this fight... if you are, then all I will say is good luck!

Some of you might have guessed who we fight here (I would imagine the majority of you aha), especially since said trainer didn’t have a field prior to this update. And that’s all I’ll say on that front.

Summary

Boy that was a wall of text, for a quick TL;DR summary:

- Overhauls to important fights, and also every trainer in the game.

- Encounters have been updated, including Gen 8.

- Seeds are now in the Game!

- Level Curve was slightly adjusted.

- Fields have been updated, including new fields (Crowd Field and others).

Well, that just about wraps up what I have for this update, a good amount of text on what has been both fun and painful to do! So I do hope that you all find enjoyment in these changes, in both an “oh boy I hope Aderyn doesn’t kick my ass so bad that I need to grab a fast electric type to win” way and in a challenging way. I will continue to balance the game to hopefully ensure a fun experience for all! That’s all for me, now I will return to the depths of Dota and Dev Hell.

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I hope Posty's update has got you excited for what's coming gameplay-wise to Desolation!

Normally, Darius would show off a track at this point in the update, but we only decided to feature one on Patreon this month, and as such, we won't be featuring any here this month. I hope Posty's words were more than enough to keep you on your toes. If you're keen to hear Darius' track (Baron's Theme), you can find it on ourPatreon.

Final Thoughts

Boy, oh, boy... it's been a wild few months for the team working on Desolation. I'm super grateful that we've made it through that grind, with the lot of us finally being able to envision that light at the end of the tunnel. Personally, seeing the fruits of our labor has made it all worth it... and soon, you'll be able to see them too!

This is, ultimately, a whole new game, and the foundation for all of our future work. Development for the next episode, E7, will, as a result, be certainly more streamlined. However, we've gotta finish the job here first, so let's keep at it.

We'll be in touch.

Caz