BEAST: False Prophet - turn-based isometric RPG set in a grimdark medieval world - now available on Early Access

[Infinitron]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1145630/view/3900742181579244326

We've been hard at work readying up things for today.
This is
our biggest update so far
and it brings a wealth of changes to improve your time in BEAST and give you lots of new content and variety. While some may seem overdue, it was very important to us that we take our time with aspects that may alter the core gameplay. We have added
new missions, enemies, weapons, companions, camps
, and so much more.

We've also worked on a ton of fixes and improvements largely based on your fantastic feedback
received on Discord and forums. If you haven't played in a while, please pick it up again and try things and let us know what you think. As always with indie titles,
we're eternally grateful for your support in caring and sharing BEAST to your friends
. If you haven't given us a review yet, we would love for you to do so as we read all of them! Lastly if you believe in our work,
feel free to nominate us for the Steam Awards and help spread the word about the game
. It would mean so much!

Don't forget to Join & Talk to us on Discord


Thank you again dear community!

~ False Prophet Team

New Features

• Added 17 new missions on 13 new maps
• Added 10 new enemy types and 5 new enemy classes
• Added 19 new weapons
• Added 9 new companions
• Added 11 new cutscenes
• Added 17 new camps
• Added NVIDIA DLSS support
• Added Nudity mode toggle to settings
  
  Community Patch #1,2,3 and 4 are included in this major update as well as additional fixes:
• Added difficulty options when starting a new campaign
  - 3 difficulty options: Easy, Normal, Hard
• Added an Ironman mode option when starting a new campaign
  - In Ironman mode you only have one autosave slot
• Added a Hardcore mode option when starting a new campaign
  - In Hardcore mode, allied characters don't go into a downed state when their Health reaches 0 but die instantly
• Added Overwatch ability for Igor the Coachman
• Added Tutorial skipping option
• Added Permadeath Mode toggle in difficulty options

Cutscenes

• Updated visuals for most cutscenes
• Updated audio for cutscenes
• Updated subtitles for cutscenes
• Updated subtitles for level intros
• Updated subtitles for character responses in gameplay

SFX/Audio

• Audio volume rebalance
• Added voiceovers to Commanders’ abilities to increase the clarity of their actions
• Added SFX to Accelerate ability

Graphics

• Visual improvements on levels
• Visual improvements for Ruined Tower: Carriage
• Visual improvements for Camp Chase Wagon
• Updated high Insanity and Beast Mode environment for Plague Town: Hopeless map
• Updated lighting on most maps
• Visual improvements to Verchovne
• Visual improvements to Camp after Verchovne
• Visual improvements to the Cemetery map and moved enemy introduction accordingly

UX/UI

• Added showing hit chance overhead infobox on hovering over a potential target
• Removed the confirmation step for reloading weapons
• Removed the confirmation step from using consumables
• Added functionality to open the weapon selection menu when clicking on a weapon (additionally to clicking the “+” over the weapon
• Added information on current character level to character examination screen
• Added possibility to switch characters while in the character examination screen
• Added confirmation popups to Restart Mission and Exit to Menu
• Added a warning screen on trying to start a mission without maximum characters selected in party selection
• Changed the character level icon background to yellow, for it to be more easily distinguished from the Action Points icon
• Updated icons for consumable items and retreat info
• Updated useful links
• Added tooltip status text for downed/retreat/death characters
• General UX/UI improvements
• Updated armor names from “+1/+2” to “Reinforced/Masterwork”
• Added new companion responses to completing or failing their side objectives

Animation

• Improved blending animations between getting hit and being defeated
• Improved timing of gameplay animations, especially the "supporting" ones, like reloading or getting into cover, and other abilities
• Minor animation updates and fixes
• Improved characters rotations in place - turning between 90 - 180 degrees rotation are faster (characters doing one step instead of two)
• Multiple animation updates
• Balance
• Updated gameplay in Cemetery mission to adapt to the environment changes
• Increased the amount of ammo through the levels (nearly doubled)
• Stress actions should now properly reduce Action Points for the affected companion’s next turn
• Removed Stress and Insanity features from Prince and his companions
• It’s no longer possible to stack multiple armors in the character’s equipment
• Ferocious Strike ability nerf - increased cooldown and reduced hit chance in order to reduce its efficiency when combined with Rampage, Rush, and Key Moment abilities
• Characters encountered on Cemetery mission are present during combat instead of recruiting them after the mission
• Increased the range of Now! The ability from 2m to 10m

Fixes

• Fixed an issue with Landsknecht: Reputation ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with Vengeful ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with Rage ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with Second Wind ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with companion bios not displaying properly in Camps and Character Examination
• Fixed an issue with enemy Overwatch cones not displaying properly
• Fixed an issue with ability descriptions persisting on screen after moving the mouse pointer away from the ability bar
• Fixed an issue with the item count not being reduced after using a consumable
• Fixed an issue with stress triggers not working properly
• Fixed an issue with wrong animations being played during finishers
• Fixed multiple issues with characters briefly dipping into the ground during animations
• Replaced the generic Unreal Engine application icon with our custom BEAST one
• Fixed an issue with Health bars not showing for all characters targeted by area of effect abilities
• Fixed an issue with the player not being able to close Options or Load Game menus while in Pause Menu
• Fixed a potential issue with Overwatch being triggered by characters behind the attacker (outside of the visible cone)
• Fixed a potential issue with VFX not being displayed when applying various bonuses to characters via abilities
• Fixed a potential blocker with fear action triggered on Igor preventing the round from ending
• Fixed potential blockers on levels caused by object collisions
• Fixed some issues with Bullet Hell's ability
• Fixed some issues with the grenade targeting system not working properly
• Fixed an issue with “missing string table” in visual options
• Fixed an issue with using the "Execute" ability on downed companion not generating enough insanity to enter Beast mode in the following turn
• Fixed an issue with an empty loot chest that can be interacted with for the purpose of the mission's side objective
• Fixed a potential issue with the player causing Igor to move by hovering over different movement destinations
• Fixed a potential blocker with auto leveling characters feature after Plague Town: Market
• Fixed a potential blocker with a main objective not completing properly during Plague Town: Hopeless mission
• Fixed a potential blocker with the game soft locking after Townsfolk enemy triggers an Ambush attack
• Fixed an issue with characters not staying in cover properly after crouching
• Fixed an issue with Prince party and Igor’s XP level not being displayed properly on the Result Screen
• Fixed an issue with Christoff and Alfred only leaving footprints with their left feet
• Fixed an issue with the sound of the horse wagon still being heard in the Result Screen
• Fixed a potential issue with enemies running up too close to player characters when attacking
• Fixed a typo with the Increased Defense status name
• Optimized AI planning phase
• Fixed a potential blocker with game soft locking during the enemy turn
• Fixed an issue with the camera not working properly in Ruined Tower: Rescue
• Fixed an issue with objective requirements during a side quest in Verchovne
• Fixed an issue with some enemy abilities during the Adrianople part of the game not showing properly
• Fixed an issue with not being able to attack an enemy after it was attacked by another character who got downed during the attack
• Fixed an issue with the Stress counter still being visible on the portraits of dead companions
• Fixed an issue with Accelerate ability reducing Insanity twice
• Fixed an issue with critical hits from Devil’s Claws ability not finishing off the enemy instantly (if enough damage has been dealt)
• Fixed an issue with the bottom toolbar disappearing after selecting Options in the pause menu
• Fixed an issue with Defender’s Distractor ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with Patricians and Banner Bearers not using Impassable ability properly
• Fixed multiple issues with attacking a companion inside a burning area
• Fixed some issues with UI scaling
• Fixed a discrepancy between the Ritual dagger description and actual use effects
• Fixed a potential issue with Anton dying during the ending cutscene of the first boss fight
• Minor ability description updates
• Multiple minor bug fixes

 

[Konjad]

Any Codex impressions? It looks like a game that I might be interested in, but it looks rough around the edges.

Just got it on Steam, will play it soon and write my impressions, maybe in a week or so.

 

[Konjad]

I just started playing and got killed at the beginning of the tutorial on normal difficulty.

This game might be good.

 

[Konjad]

I will write a small review when I finish it, so probably after another weekend, but if you're curious these are my impressions so far after about 3h of gameplay:

- This is not RPG at all! It's a tactical game. Very linear, you basically go from combat area to combat area, interrupted by cutscenes (quite decent tbh).
- Levels are linear too, this limits possible tactics.
- Combat is fun and can be challenging on normal difficulty, but I wish I started on hard (so far the only time I've failed was during the training, heh)
- Graphics and atmosphere are good
- Audio still needs some work, same with animations. Nevertheless, they are fine even if a bit unfinished and rough
- There is a fairly unique mechanic to make you decide whether you prefer to stay human or become a demon in combat but tbh I'm not sure if it really makes a significant difference except combat style
- The story is so far interesting enough. It's not great, but it's good enough to serve as a good background.
- There are multiple character builds, including fully customized one (you actually make your build after a few missions)

Overall my first impression is surprise, because despite devs saying on the Steam page that it's a "tactical RPG" this is not an RPG at all. Nonetheless, that aside, I have plenty of fun with the combat, which is basically 100% of the gameplay.

It's kinda like Dungeon Rats, I guess?

 

[Harthwain]

Overall my first impression is surprise, because despite devs saying on the Steam page that it's a "tactical RPG" this is not an RPG at all. Nonetheless, that aside, I have plenty of fun with the combat, which is basically 100% of the gameplay.

It's kinda like Dungeon Rats, I guess?

I am not surprised. This is giving me strong King Arthur: Knight's Tale vibes.

 

[Konjad]

- Combat is fun and can be challenging on normal difficulty, but I wish I started on hard (so far the only time I've failed was during the training, heh

Nevermind, next mission after writing this I'm getting rekt all the time

 

[Konjad]

Combat:

cutscene

3GB VRAM is not enough so I get very low resolution textures, but the game otherwise plays smooth 60 FPS.

 

[Grunker]

Is the game the ugliest piece of shit ever coded or is your computer made of tar and twine?

EDIT: ah, i c

 

[Konjad]

Finished the game just now. It's quite a decent but linear turn-based tactical game with focus on the story.

The combat is fun and combines melee and gun fights, and you get a party of up to 4 members (excluding additional storyline NPC). On normal difficulty the game is not too easy and provided challenge plenty of times, though if you've played a lot of tactical games before I'd suggest playing on hard after all, especially if you plan on doing side missions that provide additional items and experience. There are multiple character builds possible, and other team members have their own abilities depending on their class. There are plenty of supplementary items to assist combat: poison or oil you can put on blades, various granades, different kinds of ammunition for bows or guns. You get to manage party and choose who you take on a mission, although it seems to open only half-way through, the first half of the game had essentially set characters. The gameplay overall makes me think of a mix between the new XCOM series and Dungeon Rats, but unfortunately with more linear levels where you basically move from one point to another with occassional minor side task.

The story seems interesting enough, serves well as the background during gameplay. However, at the time of writing this the final missions seem not to be in the game yet. Cutscenes appear between most of missions, and the game's atmosphere is quite unique and intruguing. I won't comment on graphics because I had to play it on low, but while the game looked like a total turd on GTX 1060 3 GB it still run in 60 FPS without major graphical issues, so I can't complain. Audio needs a lot of work yet, there's plenty of issues with audio not fitting dialogues etc, it's a clear work in progress. Music is okay but extremely repetitive, I eventually turned it off, but from what I understand the final version is supposed to have new music and artists.

If you like tactical games then BEAST is certainly worth checking out, I had plenty of fun playing even the unfinished version. At this time in the beta the game is a bit rough around the edges, but the combat is appealing and I got absorbed to complete the game in a week (about 18h of gameplay). However, be aware that it is not an RPG, in spite of what Steam store page says - it's a pure turn based tactical game.

 

[Infinitron]

https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1145630/view/6142410974098300375

Major Update #2
A message from the Devs

Greetings Travellers

We hope this update will find you well, surrounded by joy & warmth, and ready for a new year.

Allow us to present our final update for this year and final game name,
BEAST: False Prophet
.

In the spirit of giving, we are excited to introduce you to our Major Update #2! Besides all new missions, enemies, and enhanced visuals, you can now finally play the game from start to finish and see our first ending!

We've left no stone unturned in our quest to make BEAST an unforgettable adventure. We now hope current and future players will see the kind of game we want to finish developing.

As we stand on the edge of finalizing our game, we recognize that our journey has one more chapter of polishing and bugfixing to be done.

We now turn to our amazing community for help in spreading the word and ask your friends to support future development by buying this early-access version.

Your continued support is the key to making BEAST the masterpiece it deserves to be. Together, let's bring this chapter to a close and set the stage for even more thrilling adventures ahead.

At the end thank you for your amazing support and wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!


➼ join our amazing community on Discord and connect with other players and the BEAST Dev Team!

• 

Enjoy
~BEAST Dev Team




Major Update #2 notes

New Features

• Added 5 new missions on 3 new maps
• Added 6 new enemy types and 2 new enemy classes
• Added 8 new cutscenes, including 2 new travel cutscenes
• Added 1 new camp
• Added 22 new models for existing enemy classes for an increased variety
• Added 49 achievements
• Added alternative Beast Mode transformation for the players who invest in Exercise Beast Tree
• Added Credits to the Main Menu
• Added custom concept art to loading screens before each mission
• Added a Loyalty/Treason feature that makes your companion leave the Warband if their Treason stat is maxed out before their Loyalty.

Cutscenes

• Updated meshing for most cutscenes
• Updated lighting for multiple cutscenes

SFX/Audio

• Added multiple SFX and sounds to animations, dialogues, and cutscenes
• Added multiple ambiance SFX
• Added multiple missing level SFX
• Updated footstep sounds over multiple levels

Graphics

• Updated Cyril transformation model during the boss fight
• Updated mesh for a horse wagon
• Updated visuals of multiple Camps
• Updated visuals of the Liakhyan Hospitality mission
• Updated Beast Mode visuals of the Monastery Must Pay mission

UX/UI

• Added information about weapon attack effects in camp and ability bar
• Updated icons for Sharpshooter abilities
• Added a tutorial step that teaches the player how to decide what spot they perform an ability from when attacking
• Updated UI in Camp view
• Updated icons for Defender’s, and Anton’s Exercise abilities
• Updated icons for enemy commanders
• Updated ability icons for the Duelist class
• Added missing character bios

Animation

• Updated multiple movement and combat animations

Balance

• When entering Beast Mode involuntarily (after staying on max Insanity for 3 turns) Anton will now go berserk for his following turn and attack the closest character
• Reduced enemy damage and defensive stats during the boss fight in the Roadside Inn mission
• Added additional enemies for both phases of the boss fight in the Roadside Inn mission
• Rebalanced Stress triggers to increase their impact if Anton is the reason for the change

Fixes

• Fixed an issue with Grenadier: Far Throw ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with Onslaught ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with Offensive ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with Trickster ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with the Sword and Cloak ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with enemies using Bloody Sacrifice being able to instantly kill downed companions
• Fixed an issue with companions being able to leave the party before the first boss fight
• Fixed an issue with enemies hit by Barrage Fire ability cannot being targeted by other party members until the end of the turn
• Fixed an issue with the weapon disappearing after using the Pressing Offense ability
• Fixed an issue with Anton in Beast mode not hugging the wall while in full cover
• Fixed an issue with Rudolf recruited in Camp Monastery not having the proper model
• Fixed an issue with Alfred not auto-leveling properly
• Fixed an issue with Cyril not having proper abilities available during Plague Town: Main Street and Plague Town: Exit missions
• Fixed an issue with completing the mission on the turn when either The Day is Ours! or Now Is The Time! abilities were used permanently increasing the total AP pool of affected characters
• Fixed multiple issues with buildings not occluding properly in the Suburbs map
• Multiple fixes for localization
• Fixed a potential blocker with the camera being stuck after a kill-cam
• Fixed an issue with the camera not returning to the team after showing the mission objective after the level intro
• Fixed an issue with Insanity not changing properly during Roadside Inn mission
• Fixed an issue with the player not being able to take part in Verchovne and Graverobbers side missions
• Fixed an issue with the improper order of portraits in camps
• Fixed an issue with sliders in Options unnecessarily displaying decimals
• Fixed an issue with Cyril surname (Sone) not displaying properly
• Fixed an issue with En garde ability not working properly
• Fixed an issue with Horseman’s Axe weapon’s mesh not displaying properly
• Fixed an issue with the player not being able to increase any Trait to 5
• Fixed an issue with Pierre (Prince’s companion) having the wrong abilities
• Fixed an issue with critical hits performed with 2-handed weapons forcing defending characters to play animation of dying, despite them not being dead
• Fixed an issue with holding down A on a gamepad while selecting attack direction not working properly
• Fixed an issue with the player not being able to scroll tutorial messages on a gamepad. It’s now possible with the right stick
• Fixed an issue with the Quit popup not being navigable on a gamepad
• Fixed an issue with the player not being able to confirm setting up Overwatch during the tutorial sequence on a gamepad
• Fixed multiple issues with navigation of the pause menu on a gamepad
• Fixed multiple issues with tracking and handling UI on a gamepad
• Fixed multiple issues with loss of focus while navigating UI on a gamepad
• Fixed multiple issues with missing voiceovers during combat
• Fixed multiple issues with missing translations (still work in progress)
• Fixed a potential issue with loading saved games leading to a black screen
• Multiple ability descriptions fixes
• Fixed a crash after using Devil's Claws ability on a wooden barrel
• Fixed a blocker with not being able to move the camera after using Canvas during tutorial when using a gamepad
• Fixed a potential blocker during finisher animation when the enemy holds a gun
• Fixed a potential blocker with the Unlawful Execution mission not ending after the rescued NPC dies
• Fixed a potential blocker with the escorted NPC during the Unlawful Execution mission ignoring navmesh boundaries and falling off the map
• Fixed an issue with enemies during the Unlawful Execution mission respawning indefinitely
• Fixed an issue with the NPC during Plague Town: Rescue mission not having proper equipment, stats, and abilities
• Fixed an issue with released prisoners playing the wrong animations during Molfar’s Sacrifice
• Fixed an issue with destructible elements not blocking horse-wagon movement
• Fixed an issue with the tutorial widget in the first camp overlapping a part of the UI
• Fixed an issue with Zygmas and Bohdan disappearing from Warband if they’re not selected to participate in Plague Town: Plaza mission
• Fixed multiple issues with the player not receiving experience after completing some side missions
• Fixed multiple issues with missing translations, especially with character responses during combat, and conversations in camps (still work in progress)
• Fixed multiple issues with companions not having some abilities displayed on the ability bar
• Multiple collision and visual bug fixes
• Multiple smaller fixes

 

[Harthwain]

-45% off on the game until 10.05.2024.



It would be a lie for me to say I am not tempted by that, but at the same time I am not comfortable buying Early Access game, even though developers claim they aim to release it this year (2024).