Agent 165 Release 1.2.0 (Demo)

It's been a long while since I've updated Agent 165 but I'm back with a few bug fixes and some general improvements. Thanks for any suggestions, I think you will find release 1.2.0 addresses most of them.

Brandon Mahon <contact@yeswaygames.com>

Notes for Release 1.2.0 (Demo)

One of the most noticeable gameplay changes is that action now stops (or time freezes) when accessing terminals so there is no longer any undue pressure when reading and selecting from available options. Certain informative "popup" messages will behave similarly, this is intended to give the player a fair chance to absorb what is happening without being penalized. Searching will still remain the same with no suspension of game activity.

Search progress now updates at a finer granularity but the total time required to complete a search is unaffected. This means that if you have to cancel a search several times under pressure you will still be making some (gradual) progress.

Save locations are now conveniently marked on the map once they are discovered.

Certain elevators will accelerate while off screen (or invisible to the player) reducing long tedious wait times.

Empty search results will now display helpful game information instead of the vexing "nothing found" message, which was quite frankly a bummer.

Last but not least, there's a new victory track and some additional fanfare which I won't spoil.

Note on Reporting Bugs or Other Issues

When reporting (non-fatal) bugs, like strange "blinking" tiles or other anomalies, which are quite often invalid level data rather than software bugs, please provide the players current location, if applicable. The coordinates for the players current location can be found on the map screen.

Changes for Release 1.2.0 (Demo)

• Added spiffy new menu screen.
• Added additional fanfare and credits when the demo is successfully completed.
• Discovered save locations are marked on the map.
• Sectors that can't be accessed (i.e. solid areas) are hidden on the map.
• Action stops when the player interfaces terminals and for certain important messages.
• Victory screen no longer allows immediate dismissal, which could potentially cause the player to accidentally miss the fact that they just won the game.
• Victory screen exits to the main menu instead of automatically restarting a new game.
• Game difficulty is selected when a "New Game" is started rather than through the "Options" menu.
• Game difficulty is stored in the save file so it can no longer be changed on-the-fly (from the "Options" menu).
• More fluid movement controls. Taking damage no longer interferes with normal (horizontal) player movement but it will still knock players off ladders and bars and cancel most other actions (including jump).
• More fluid (uninterrupted) controls when dismissing certain popup messages, this is most noticeable when having to quickly cancel a search in order to avoid detection or evade attacks.
• Some elevators will increase speed (by a factor of 2) while off screen reducing long wait times.
• Increased likelihood of finding special items (like cloak) earlier in the game.
• Spider attack recovery time is more consistent and predictable.
• Helpful game tips and information have been substituted for empty search results.
• Increased granularity of progress bar updates while searching, this won't affect search times.
• Search progress messages will display slight transparency when overlapping enemies.
• Several other minor bug fixes and overall improvements that will probably go unnoticed.