Major Development Update (v.40.1)

Steam Changelog

# A note from the developers

The long-awaited arrival of a new Mejai is finally here with the **FOREWARNED: Abominations** major development update! In addition to the introduction of the 6th Mejai, this update is brimming with new content, including two new maps, a new tomb variation, updates to the afterlife mechanics, an increased ritual challenge, completely revamped phenomena, qualify of life fixes, and more. This update also focuses on making the starting experience smoother in all regards, allowing new players to become acquainted with the core gameplay more quickly while still enjoying the process of discovery.

As always, we look forward to hearing your feedback and suggestions in our official Discord. We hope you enjoy the update!

# Changes

## New Mejai: Ataimon the Abominable

Discover the horror that is Ataimon the Abominable as the latest Mejai to haunt the ruins. Known to his enemies as "the Fleshwelder," Ataimon possesses unique strengths that make him a challenging - and terrifying - adversary to overcome. Utilize your research notes to learn how to exploit his weakness, but be warned - when desperate, Ataimon will reveal his true power...

* Ataimon is now an option to select when entering all ruins' inner tomb
* The PDA has been updated to include Ataimon's research notes as well as selection in the Evidence tab
* 10 new lore pages are available for collection which tell the story of how Ataimon came to be
* New inner tomb notes are available specific to Ataimon's behavior
* A new achievement is available when Ataimon is banished for the first time

## New Maps

Two new maps have been added to the game.

* Thought to have been lost to time, the tomb hidden within the sun-scorched Dread Valley has emerged from the shadows and is ready for you to explore.
* After significant excavation efforts, the entrance to a new ruin has been unearthed. Watch your step as you descend into Nekhbet Chasm.

## New Tomb Variation

A new procedurally generated tomb variation - **Underground Palace** - has been added. This new tomb style can be found within the Dread Valley and Nekhbet Chasm maps.

* Over 30 new rooms, including several dangerous trap rooms
* New tomb door style and lighting within the ruins
* New variations of the existing ushabti puzzles fitting to the Underground Palace theme
* New, thrilling ritual chamber with unique effects and challenges
* New ambience and sound effects
* New enemy type lurking throughout
* New objectives unique to the ruins

## New Afterlife Mechanic

* **Spectator Mode** has been removed from the game. Instead, mummy players who have perished can return again to roam the halls after a short duration
* A new experience will now present itself for players that die, transitioning them from death to the "afterlife room" where players choose their path. The afterlife room itself has also been redesigned and revamped with new graphics, sounds, and overall atmosphere changes
* **Death Recaps** have been added to the game, informing players how they died with tips to avoid such a death in the future. Note that these are optional; by default, recaps will only appear once per cause of death, but this can be set to always show in Gameplay settings if desired

## Ritual Update

* More enemies will now spawn during the banishment ritual, with both difficulty and the number of players in the expedition affecting the total number
* Enemies will now attempt to disrupt the banishment ritual, striking the altar. As the altar takes damage, pieces of the canopic box will break off. Once the box is completely destroyed, the ritual will fail, dooming your soul to an eternity trapped in the Mejai's tomb...

## Revamped Phenomena

Further excitement has been added to the evidence gathering phase of the investigation through the revamping of all phenomena, improving upon existing functionality as well as introducing brand new mechanics. These changes, while making things feel more fresh and thrilling, will also allow certain tools to feel more effective, rewarding, and fun to gather evidence with.

### Destruction

* The Mejai's spirit has grown more powerful and can now destroy more than just pots and vases. Players may now experience pillars, columns, statues, and other objects get destroyed when this phenomenon occurs

### Disturbed Tombs

* After a sarcophagus has been disturbed, scratch marks left by the spirit can be found in a random spot inside. However, these scratch marks are only visible through the Tablet tool and will expire after a duration. This will provide players an added opportunity to confirm whether or not a tomb was disturbed in case they missed experiencing it firsthand
* This phenomenon has also received additional visual and audio enhancements when it occurs, including a chance that the spirit will emit an aura around a sarcophagus before interacting with it

### Electronic Disturbance

* This phenomenon now also affects the Radio tool, altering and distorting the audio
* Flashlights and headlamps now rapidly fluctuate in intensity rather than turning on and off
* New sound effects have been added to affected tools while this phenomenon takes place

### Extinguished Flames

* A visible gust of wind will often accompany this phenomenon when it occurs

### Footsteps

* New footstep sounds have been added for greater variety during this phenomenon

### Magnetic Distortion

* When this phenomenon occurs, the compass needle will now spin for a longer duration and the compass itself will rapidly shake

### Metallic Signature/Radioactivity

* Ancient Egyptians believed the soul comprised of several parts, one of which was referred to as Sekhem, or the life force of the soul in raw, spiritual-energy form. While roaming the ruins in its spiritual form, the Mejai will now occasionally exude a portion of this energy in the form of ectoplasm. This viscous substance can emit certain energy readings depending on the Mejai’s associated phenomena, such as radioactivity, metallic signature, or both. This energy will fade away after some time however, so be sure to keep an eye out and have the necessary tools ready before it disappears
* Note that this is an additional means of gathering the radioactivity/metallic signature phenomena and it’s still possible to pick up readings in the air near the Mejai’s spirit as before
* The chance that the Mejai’s spirit produces ectoplasm increases the closer the player is to the spirit. When playing in a group, the chance increases even further when the team is grouped close to one another
* Buffed the radioactive sensitivity for levels 1-4 of the Geiger Counter tool

### Radar Detection

* Radar System
	+ The Radar System leveling system has been reworked to no longer be map zoom-level based. Instead, further upgrades will now unlock icons that will display on the radar map to help players better map out the ruins. Icons for more room types will be added in future updates.
		- Level I: Displays the Mejai other threats (within a radar sensor), and the tomb entrance
		- Level II: Displays the inner tomb on its map once discovered
		- Level III: Displays treasuries and prison chambers on its map once discovered
		- Level IV: Displays the entrance to the tomb's lower level on its map once discovered. Red levers will now appear on the map as well once explorers are within range
		- Level V: Displays the blue escape lever on its map once explorers are within range
	+ The Mejai will no longer appear as a red dot on the radar map display and will now instead appear as a red skull
	+ Slightly increased the duration of time that the Mejai will appear on the radar system when detected by the radar sensor tool
	+ A radar sensor is still required to detect movement of the Mejai and other threats, but all other icons will remain on the map display once discovered for the first time
	+ Players now have the ability to change the color of their radar arrows that display on the Radar System Display, allowing for observers to more easily distinguish and guide players as they traverse the ruins.
	+ Players also now have the ability to zoom in and out of the radar system map display
	+ The Radar System will now display its current level via a new module added to the device itself
	+ Fixed issues in which spiders, snakes, and crocodiles were not appearing on the radar system map when within the range of a Radar Sensor
* Radar Sensor
	+ Players can now keep the Radar Sensor tool active while holding it to allow for exploration while a teammate observes the Radar System display from above. Observers can now properly warn of nearby threats as well as keep an eye out for the Mejai’s radar detection evidence. Note that this tool can still be placed on the ground as well
	+ Added additional upgrade functionality to the Radar Sensor that increases the detection speed per level:
		- Level I: 0%+ bonus speed
		- Level II: 10%+ bonus speed
		- Level III: 20%+ bonus speed
		- Level IV: 30%+ bonus speed
		- Level V: 40%+ bonus speed
	+ Updated the item shop’s descriptions of the Radar Sensor to indicate the specific radius increases and detection speed bonuses that come with each upgrade level
	+ Fixed desync issues in which the activation of a Radar Sensor could fail to reflect for all players in some cases
	+ Improved the sound quality of the radar sensor when it is active

### Reanimation

* Mummies will now have a more realistic reaction when being burned and will no longer disappear, but instead collapse into charred remains.

### Tremors

* Sand/debris now falls from the ceiling in addition to the existing effects that occur when a tremor is discovered using the seismometer
* Lowered the cooldown for the tremor effects when the phenomenon occurs
* Slightly reduced the calibration recurrence rate of the seismometer per level
* Adjusted the verbiage on the screen of the seismometer for clarity

### Vocal Response

* Added 30+ new phrases/questions/commands the Transmitter tool will recognize as well as new responses the Mejai can vocally reply with
* Slightly decreased the minimum spiritual rage required for the Mejai to respond
* Slightly increased the base vocal response chance
* Increased the maximum number of times a Mejai can vocally respond
* Optimized the vocal response audio clips for better performance
* The “INCOMING…” UI text on the Transmitter will now come immediately after the Mejai vocally responds rather than right before
* The "LISTENING…" UI text on the Transmitter has been reworded to "ASK A QUESTION..." for clarity

## Additional New Content

* The PDA’s Research tab has been redesigned to include a new “Tools” section, which outlines how to utilize each piece of equipment. This redesign also simplifies the means of examining the traits of different Mejai, including helpful clarifying information for new players
* Tomb variation #3 (housed in the Hidden City of the Sahara and Sunken Dune Shrine maps) has received an overhaul, improving the visual quality of the ruins with more detailed floors, walls, columns, and more
* Added decorative Egyptian boxes throughout tomb variations #1 and #2, which can also be smashed by the Mejai's spirit during the Destruction phenomenon
* The particular evidence types each Mejai invokes has been rebalanced to be a maximum of 8 phenomena instead of 9. This ensures all six Mejai have the same number of possible phenomena
* Updated tooltips when hovering over evidence in the PDA to reflect the new phenomena changes
* The inner tomb door button will now be inactive unless a Mejai’s name has been selected
* A usage hint will appear when picking up a tool for the first time for players who haven’t completed the tutorial or are below level 25
* Items in the Shop will now list the player level required to unlock the tool’s next upgrade if the player has yet to prestige. The Shop has also received various design improvements, additions for clarity, and updated item descriptions where necessary
* When a tool is turned on and then put away in your inventory, it will turn back on when re-equipped instead of being off
* Player movement now has a smooth damping effect applied
* Added right-hand idle animations when players aren’t moving but holding a tool
* Added hand animation when holding a tool and looking left/right
* Added 20 additional hints to the loading screens
* Implemented audio occlusion for all Mejai
* Updated the tutorial where applicable to reflect the new phenomena changes
* Added rewards for first-time tutorial completion, including 200 gold and a Steam achievement
* The Heka Amulet has received an additional charge per level
* Additional precision has been added to player mic volume sliders
* Added Halloween decorations to the lobby area
* The map selection UI flow has been improved for a smoother experience
* Player footsteps will now sound muffled when walking on carpeted surfaces
* Improved the visuals when focusing on a document, including a depth of field background blur as well as better positioning/lighting
* The Torch tool has received an additional 1m range of illumination.
* PDA-related popups will now display the actual keybind selected by the player instead of "Default: L"
* Volume normalization of global chat has been tuned in to help reduce cases of players with loud global chat volume input
* Implemented a particle system performance optimizer for the more intense effects
* New players who begin their first expedition without completing the tutorial will receive additional starting tips for a smoother initial experience
* Improved the performance of VR raycasts when interacting with menus
* When respawning as a human through Osiris' gate, the ground torch will be pre-lit for easier visibility. Note that the torch will remain unlit if the Mejai is Necreph and he has already physically manifested
* Further accuracy and sensitivity has been added to the player volume bars

# Fixes

* Added logic to help prevent players from being stuck on a black screen as the round ends
* Fixed an issue that could cause players to fall through the floor during the lightning-cage ritual
* Fixed an issue that would cause tools to turn off when taking out the PDA
* Fixed an issue that allowed the Tablet to enter “selfie mode” while zoomed in one case
* Fixed an issue that caused the radio to restart itself instead of continuing playback like a real radio when turned on / off
* Fixed an issue in which the Golden Water Pot treasure could extinguish torches
* Fixed an issue that allowed tools to bypass being turned off when being placed away in one’s inventory
* Fixed an issue preventing VR players from prestiging
* Fixed an issue that allowed for collectibles such as rare artifacts to spawn below the floor of tomb variation #3
* Fixed an issue with the coloring of certain phenomena icons in the Evidence tab
* Fixed an issue in which the Bloom effect would remain on while viewing menus
* Fixed an issue in which flames from firestands, torches, and the lighter would ramp up too slowly
* Fixed an issue where the sound of player footsteps would continue to play even when stopped moving
* Fixed an issue that prevented players from being heard over global chat while their PDA was out
* Fixed an issue in which large white blobs would appear at the water drains during the oasis tomb variation rituals
* Fixed an issue that could result in canopic jars floating in the middle of a room when spawning in
* Fixed an issue in which the player smart watch arm could remain out after death if active while dying
* Fixed an issue with AI pathing related to the player's Y position
* Fixed an issue in which the VR headlamp would audibly click off on death
* Fixed an issue in which certain lore pages were out of order
* Fixed an issue with VR players falling through the map when returning from the ritual room portal
* Fixed an issue in which Ouphris would not flee to the correct location after being warded away with a Heka Amulet
* Fixed an issue that caused mummies to be burned by ritual altar candles
* Fixed an issue related to the out of bounds respawn point for the oasis maps