I am pleased to announce the release of Bizarre Battles version 1.0. Get it here:
http://we.tl/yYZHlNr1Yq
(419Mb compressed .rar file - good for 1 week)
This file is locked to the DEMO version, but it also contains the FULL GAME. So EVERYONE should download (even those people who have bought, or intend to buy, the Full version).
HOW DO I UNLOCK THE FULL VERSION OF THE GAME?
You now have to buy a license to unlock the "Full" version. A $25.00 payment gets you full access to this version and all future updates. (An exception lies for previous donors, who only need to bring their donation to a minimum of $20.00.)
Please email me at bizarrebattles@hotmail.com for details.
Once I confirm the payment, I will send you a small file called "license.txt" to unlock the full version of the game.
***Install the "license.txt" file in the MAIN "Bizarre Battles" GAME DIRECTORY (the same folder as the big .exe files used to play the game). OVERWRITE the "dummy file" with the same name.***
Because I have to send out the license.txt file manually, there may be a delay. I will get that out to you as soon as I can, but it might take 12-24 hours, depending on my schedule.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE DEMO VERSION AND THE FULL VERSION?
First, the Demo version has a very restricted campaign game -- a campaign is limited to three battles (the normal default is 20, and the maximum is 50). Second, the demo version severely limits the number of maps and female clothing options that are available in the Battle Builder module.
The Battle module is fully-functional, however.
You can quickly tell whether your license key is working: the Demo version says "DEMO VERSION" on the Intro Screen; the Full Version does not.
WHY IS THIS NOW VERSION 1.0?
With the release of this update, all the major features I intend to include in the game are complete. While updates will continue from time-to-time, future updates will simply improve existing game systems -- AI, terrain, graphics, etc. -- rather than add major new game systems.
So the game will evolve; but don't expect to see any major new features.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN VERSION 1.0
Lots and lots of new features...
IMAGE 1 - INTRODUCTORY SCREEN
The Introductory Screen has a few new elements.
"A" = "Death Stare" Toggle.
Set this preference to enable death stares among dead women. If set, 2/3 of women will have a death stare; 1/3 will have a regular closed-eye expression.
"B" = Navigation Buttons.
Quickly jump back-and-forth between game screens. Note that the individual "Build Team" buttons are gone. Use the single Navigation button to start Team Builder.
Note too that the "Clothing Builder" is not operational yet. (When complete, "Clothing Builder" will separate out and expand the "Uniform Designer" aspects of Team Builder, and also allow custom outfits to be saved for use in "Battle Builder."
"C" = Splash Screen Art.
Because I am now charging for the game, I will not use the art of any other artist in our genre. Accordingly, all Splash Screen art is my own, or screen captures from theatrical movies. All others have been deleted.
IMAGE 2 - BATTLE BUILDER SCREEN
This powerful screen allows a nearly-infinite number of battles to be quickly set up with just a few mouse clicks. All selections are automatically saved to the selected campaign ("H").
Use of Battle Builder is strongly recommended for Campaign play.
Column One - Select Combatants.
The "Size," "Difficulty," and "Male/Female" ratio buttons are the same as have long existed on the Intro Screen. No explanation needed.
"D" = "Insufficient Type"
What happens if a Battle requires (for example) 5 mutants but only 2 are available (the rest having been killed, captured or blacklisted)? These buttons determine (separately for each side) how these empty slots are filled.
- 0 dots = no substitutions -- play short.
- 1 dot = missing slots are filled with women, if available.
- 2 dots = missing slots are filled with other types of males, if available.
- 3 dots = missing slots are filled with anyone available, male or female.
"E" = Use of Pre-Built Teams/Stuff.
These buttons import "Teams" that you may have built using Team Builder. If selected, any active (not dead, wounded or captured) members of the team will be included in the upcoming battle, in precedence to any random selection. Selecting the "Team" included the people only -- not their equipment. Team members will receive the same equipment as otherwise generated by Battle Builder. However, if you ALSO select the "Stuff" button, the Team will be imported with all of its pre-selected weapons and clothing (which will override the normal clothing/weapon selection buttons).
"F" = Miscellaneous Settings.
Combatants can be given "coked up" status (high on cocaine). 0 dots = no one under the influence; 3 dots = everyone significantly under the influence. set separately for each side. Combatants who are coked up attack with less accuracy, but have higher morale and greater resistance to injury.
"Assigned Uniforms" sets the probability of importing assigned uniforms set via Team Builder. 0 dots = no chance that assigned uniforms will be used; 3 dots = 100% chance that assigned uniforms will be used. See below for details on Assigned Uniforms. This setting overrides the normal clothing selection buttons.
"G" = Reset/Start.
- Reset all Battle Builder settings (for the selected campaign) here. Start a battle with the indicated settings here.
"H" - Set Campaign.
Four completely independent campaigns that can be played simultaneously. Use these as you see fit. (By way of random example, Campaign 1 might have a WW2 theme, Campaign 2 a post-apocalypse theme, Campaign 3 a space theme, etc.)
Each uses a different campaign save file, Battle Builder settings, and Team Builder favorites settings. Switch among them here.
Column Two - Select Map and Battle Type.
Left Click to set your desired map here. A mini-map will display as you scroll over the buttons.
"I" = Random Map.
The "Random Map" buttons are especially recommended for Campaign play, to inject additional unpredictability into the upcoming battle. Randomly select from all maps, or a subset of the maps (small/medium, or large/very large).
MAP BLACKLIST. It may be that certain maps don't work well for your desired campaign (like the Starship map in a Western-themed campaign), and you want to eliminate them from any chance of random selection, if so, RIGHT CLICK to BLACKLIST a map. Once blacklisted, that map will not be subject to random selection.
"J" = "Campaign Zone Override"
This button is highly-recommended for Campaign play.
The Campaign Map will record (and display) the last tactical map used at that location (see "V" below). For increased continuity and realism, it may be desirable to use that same map whenever fighting for that Zone. Thus, if Zone 5 is the "Strip Club," you may fight for that map repeatedly as the campaign rages back-and-forth. Use of the "Campaign Zone Override" button will this override the normal map selection and use the map for that Zone.
"K" = "Select Battle Type"
For now, only "Meeting Engagement" are available via Battle Builder. (A "Meeting Engagement" is when two relatively-equal forces start in relatively-equal positions, and advance to contact. It is a "fair" battle situation.) NOTE THAT ALL MAPS have been re-worked for Battle Builder to be playable as "Meeting Engagement." Thus, while "Drug Wars" is a "surprise attack" as a Quick Start battle, use of the Drug Wars map in Battle Builder will result in a much more balanced Meeting Engagement with both sides in similar positions.
In the future, "Attacks" and "Surprise Attacks" will be selectable. Also in the future, the game will generate a battle type automatically depending on certain data. Thus, it might be that you expect to fight a meeting engagement, but unexpectedly find your forces on one side or the other of a surprise attack.
Column Three - Select Weapons and Ammunition.
"L" = "Select Weapons"
Select separately for each side. Probabilities here are done differently. The probability of being assigned a particular weapon (or category of weapons) depends on the number of "dots" selected for that side. Here, four (4) dots are selected for the Blue team. Thus, for each combatant, there is a 1-in-4 chance of any dot being selected. Accordingly, 50% (2-in-4) of the combatants should receive an Uzi, etc. You can select an unlimited number of dots; the probabilities will vary with the number of dots selected. At its simplest, 1 dot selected means 100% selection matching that dot.
"M" = Shields and Ammunition.
Only combatants will melee weapons (knives, swords, spears) are eligible for a shield. ) dots = no shields at all; 3 dots = everyone gets a shield.
As to ammunition, the default setting (2 dots) equals a "normal" ammunition load. 1 dot = scare ammo; 3 dots = plentiful ammo.
Column Four - Select Clothing.
Clothing works the same way as weapons; assignment of clothing depends on the number of dots selected.
"N" = Male/Female toggle.
Only female clothing is shown on this page. For male clothing, click this button to switch to the second page.
"O" = Clothing selection.
Here, Blue has selected 4 dots, one of which is "denim miniskirts." Accordingly, blue women have a 1-in-4 chance of wearing a denim miniskirt-based outfit (with matching top and footwear).
"P" = Naked Torso Override.
This applies to women only. Sometimes your girls want to go into battle wearing just their footwear and stockings. For example, an army clad in nothing but black boots, or stockings and high-heeled pumps. If so, these buttons are your friends. The number of dots indicates the probability that a combatant will discard all non-footwear clothing; 0 dots = no chance (keep clothes on); 3 dots = 100% (everyone in footwear only).
IMAGE 3 - POST-BATTLE SUMMARY
This screen appears at the conclusion of a battle, summarizing time-dependent occurrences between battles.
"Q" = "Wound Recovery and Disabling Injuries"
All wounded combatants, except for those who fought in the battle just concluded, will get one battle closer to being completely healed. Note that captured combatants suffer a 1-battle healing penalty, as it is assumed that they are receiving a reduced level of medical care.
Combatants who just fought may, depending on the seriousness of their wounds, suffer a "disabling injury." If so, their "athleticism" rating permanently drops by one point (from a high of "athletic" (1) to a low of "disabled" (-2)). These scores affect physical activity in a battle, especially moving over obstacles.
"R" = "Promotions and Leadership"
The campaign tracks kills and battles fought for each combatant. These factors, with minor adjustments for leadership and initiative, will result in promotions over time. All combatants start as "Recruit" (level 0) and may eventually advance to "Captain" (level 5). Higher ranks have a number of in-game bonuses, including morale, accuracy, action points, etc.
Sometimes, a promotion can also result in a non-leader developing leadership skills (green initiative score). Leaders can rally friendly forces (including themselves), and thereby reduce the impact of negative morale influences.
Combatants who are captured do not receive promotions.
IMAGE 4 - CAMPAIGN MAP
Although most of the information can be found other places, the Campaign Map is a nice visual display of the status of a Campaign.
"S" = Army Status and adjustment buttons.
From here, you can change Army names, and also Army size. Beware of making Armies too big, especially if you have blacklisted lots of hard-wired combatants, because there may not be enough available combatants to complete the Army. The game contains 218 hard-wired women, plus slots for 109 custom women, plus 20 of each type of male combatant.
"Active" combatants are those who have been selected as part of an Army (favorite or conscript), and are healthy and available to fight. "Recruits Remaining" shows how many combatants can still be activated.
"T" = Campaign name change.
Each Campaign can be named, to make them easier to differentiate. "Amazons vs. Mutants," for example.
"U" = Battle Summary and Limit Adjust.
A listing of all battles fought appears here. The maximum number of battles can be adjusted. The default is 20; the maximum is 50. The Demo version allows only 3.
"V" = Zone Status.
Zones change hands with battle wins/losses. The Yellow square is the "front line" where the next battle will be fought.
The name of the last map fought over in that zone will be displayed. If you want to use the same map each time for battles in that Zone (useful for campaign continuity), select the "Campaign Zone Override" button in Battle Builder ("J" above).
Finally, little headstones will appear to show the number of people who have died fighting for that zone (differentiated between friend/enemy, and male/female).
"W" = Prisoner Quick-Reference.
Same as the "captured" statistic for the other Army. This is a reminder that you hold prisoners, which can be released/exchanged via 'P' on team Builder.
"X" = Battle Start.
Once Battle Builder settings have been set at the start of a campaign, you may never need to change them. Thus, you can skip Battle Builder and start the next battle with this button.
"Y" = Campaign Reset.
The selected campaign can be reset here. This cannot be undone, but has no effect on 'Favorites' (which are re-set separately via Team Builder, if desired). (F12 at Team Builder or Battle Builder also works.)
IMAGE 5 - TEAM BUILDER
"Z" = Alternate Campaign Summary.
Toggle with the 'F8' key.
"AA" = Combatant Status.
A combatant can now be both captured and wounded, as here. Also, the indicated combatant is a 'CONSCRIPT', as indicated by the outline star. A 'CONSCRIPT' is any combatant who is not already a "Friendly Favorite" ('D') or an "Enemy Favorite ("G"), and is selected by the computer from the available pool of combatants to complete a force for a battle. Once selected, the Conscript fights loyally for that army (and is selected randomly to the same extent as any 1-star favorite).
"BB" = Prisoners Held.
Another reminder that prisoner exchanges should be considered. Release/Exchange prisoners via the 'P' key on whatever terms you think fair.
"CC" = Combatant Campaign History.
Toggle with the 'F7' key. This displays a brief history of major events for that combatant...
- Rank
- Battles fought
- Kills
- Rapes (suffered or inflicted)
- Status (Dead, Wounded, Captured)
- Time (battles) remaining until healed
- Total battles wounded
Here, Carisha is not currently wounded, but has been wounded (and out of play) for 1 battle total.
"DD" = Rank Indicator.
Carisha's counter, like the dossier, also indicates her rank.
"EE" = Navigation buttons.
Quickly jump between screens.
"FF" = Set Campaign.
These work just like the others. Once again, you can run four completely-independent campaigns simultaneously, each with completely different favorites, campaign maps, battle builder settings and other statistics.
OTHER NEW FEATURES NOT SHOWN
More stuff...
[1] TEAM BUILDER now has a "hotkey" display ('F2') just like Battle.
[2] ADDED a new "hold fire" level ('X') to stop all reactive fire, regardless of hit %. This is useful if you want to avoid shooting prisoners during reactive fire. Access this via "C" (all friendly combatants) or "V" (selected friendly combatant only).
[3] POST-BATTLE SAVE. Once a battle is over (and saved to the campaign), it is often desirable to shoot prisoners, etc. Normally these post-battle atrocities are not saved. However, you can save these post-battle events (and overwrite the existing save) via 'F11.' Note that no credit is given for post-battle kills.
[4] KILLING PRISONERS no longer results in a "kill" credit. Let's be sporting!
[5] If one side is clearly winning, use F11 to end the game. The game will ask if you want to "force" the victory; that is, give credit to one side or the other for the win.
[6] At the end of a battle, all "active" combatants on the losing side automatically escape (and live to fight another day). Also, "panicked" combatants may escape, depending on how close they are to winning team forces (guards) and how badly-wounded they are.
[7] Whatever side moves first in a "meeting engagement" now suffers a 50% AP penalty for the first turn, for play-balance.
[8] ADDED support for 1280x1024 "medium resolution."
[9] ADDED "assigned uniform" campaign option.
An "Assigned Uniform" is clothing that the combatant wears in preference to any clothing assigned by Battle Builder. The idea is that, in the mind of the player, certain combatants may be associated with certain clothing. Perhaps an elite squad, or a boss character. This is faster than building a Team (where you can specify everything); this is just a quick tie to the list Battle Builder clothing.
From Team Builder, scroll over a combatant and press 'A.' The enter a number of the outfit that the combatant is to wear, keyed to the "Clothing" list on Battle Builder (separate lists for men and women). Thus, if you want a particular woman to always wear a "Schoolgirl Uniform," press '5.'
Remember that "Assigned Uniforms" work only to the extent enabled via Battle Builder. ("F")
[10] ADJUSTED AI to assess threats instead of just distance. It used to be that the AI would automatically focus on the closest enemy. Now, the AI computes the "threat level" of each enemy, and reacts accordingly.
[11] TEAMS can now be NAMED via TEAM BUILDER. The name will also appear in Battle Builder. Use "1" through "5" to name a team. "0" clears all team names.
[12] LEADERS may now self-rally. That is, when a leader uses the 'Rally' ('R') command in a battle, resulting morale bonuses snow apply to that leader as well.
[13] The in-game help/documentation (F1) has been significantly re-written and expanded.
[14] UPGRADED about 20 hard-wired women with cuter women, including (for the first time) several non-white women. (The game lacks an "Asian" skin for now, so Asian women still have Caucasian features.)
[15] Battles now have a time limit. 20 turns for "small" maps, and longer (up to 40 turns) for larger maps.
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER.
All of these new features look complex, and may be difficult to know where to start. But they have been designed to be very simply and quickly, and will with a little practice.
WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO START A CAMPAIGN?
Remember that there are now four different campaigns, and you can take totally different approaches to each.
First, you might want to specify a bunch of "Favorites." "D" for friends, "G" for enemies, and "F" if you don't care which. Blacklist anyone you can't stand to see on either side (although don't blacklist so many that insufficient combatants are available to complete each army).
You do NOT have to "favorite" anyone to start. You can jump right in and start a battle, and the game will select enough combatants for the battle. Anyone selected who is not a friendly/enemy favorite is deemed a "Conscript" (denoted by the "hollow star"), and will loyally fight for your army thereafter.
You might also want to build some Teams via Team Builder, and/or set some "Assigned Uniforms" via Team Builder. (In this way you can, for example, build your "Swedish Bikini Team" of elite commandos.) This too is optional.
However, you should carefully review Battle Builder before starting a new Campaign. Although you can change these settings at any time as a Campaign proceeds, it can be rewarding to leave the settings unchanged, so that every battle has the same balance of forces and uniforms. (Once that is done, all future battles can be quickly started from the Campaign Map.)
Also optional at the start are any adjustments you might want to make to the Campaign Map: Campaign name, Army names, Army size, Maximum Number of Battles.
WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO START A BATTLE?
There are now FOUR ways to start a battle, via Quick Start, Battle Builder, and Team Builder (2 ways).
It is STRONGLY recommended that any battle you intend to use in a Campaign be started via Battle Builder. This has been designed specifically to take over virtually all battle-start functions from Team Builder.
If you just want a quick game and don't really care about the Campaign for now, you can still use the "Quick Start" buttons. Some of the Quick Start battles are one-sided massacres or other special situations, so you will need Quick Start to get to those. (You can still save the results to the Campaign if you want.)
Finally, the two methods of starting a battle from Team Builder are still available, but strongly discouraged for campaign play.
OMG - MY FAVORITES JUST GOT WIPED OUT!! ANY WAY TO CHEAT AND BRING THEM BACK TO LIFE?
Well, it's just a game, so go with it and have some fun! But if you really must re-write history, there are several ways to do so...
[1] Simply quit a Battle early (Escape key).
[2] Don't "save to campaign" at the end of a battle. The data is written to the campaign only if you specifically tell it to do so at the end of the battle.
[3] Revive a dead/wounded combatant ("R" via Team Builder) or free a Prisoner ("P" via Team Builder).
CAN I TRANSFER MY OLD DATA FILES?
Yes for custom women (and men). Just copy all files in the Women_Custom folder to the same folder in the newer version (and overwrite the empty files you will be replacing).
No for Preferences and Favorites. These have different architecture, so you will need to re-do those.
Enjoy the game. Please post or e-mail questions or comments. bizarrebattles@hotmail.com
) All those Renderosity gift certificates actually get used...
