iamisom
03-21-2012, 11:27 PM
3/21/12
Laughter.
I hadn’t heard it in months, but all the familiar signs are there: the repetition of vocal sounds, the strange way it falters and dies at the end. From the high pitch and echo, I’d say it sounds like kids. Why would there be kids in the desert?
I stopped and scanned the horizon. There it is. A village. Or at least a dark, wavering mass that looks like a village. That must be where it came from.
I might find other people there. Perhaps the parents of the children. Or more of those vile Djinns. Either way, it beats getting my joints sandblasted in this wasteland.
As I walk closer, I detect shapes moving toward me. Indistinct at first, their features stabilize. One person is wearing a large hat. Another one has a rather flat head.
My brain buzzed. I found them! And here in the desert of all places.
I walk slowly to prevent unwanted aggression. I expected this journey to last longer. They’ve been gone for almost a year, and now I find them on a random chance in the desert. The odds of such an occurrence is a fraction of a percent.
Laughter again. This time it’s closer than the last. That’s peculiar.
And something looks wrong. These people seem shorter than the picture in my brain.
Is this not them after all?
As the five of us emerged from the desert’s veil, I was confused. Their attire and features were similar, but they were kids. Pre-teens at the oldest.
What sorcery does this desert hold? The realms of magic are unpredictable. Incalculable. The stuff that haunts my hibernation times.
I looked down. The kids gave me a collective cold look. They’re tainted with the reality of battle. Now I was sure of my unsupported conclusion. These four must be their kids.
The Knight’s child stepped forward.
“Who are you?” he asked. Who? That’s an interesting question. I’ve never been asked that before.
“I am Series EV,” I answered. “I have traveled many miles to be here. I have been looking for you.”
Not entirely true, but close enough.
The group glanced at each other, no doubt questioning the validity of my statement. Smart kids. The young Apprentice kept staring at me, like he was fearful to take his eyes off me.
“I mean you no harm,” I replied. “Please, let me tell you more about myself.”
Series EV
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SeriesEv2-e1332384164238.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SeriesEv21.jpg)
Built for the military and recommissioned for civilian protection, the Series EV has a host of defensive capabilities. Have an arms cache in a narrow hallway or a large entryway to cover? No worries! The EV uses nodes to create adjustable Proton Beams and Physical Beams to suit the needs of the space. Just remember: the longer the defensive line, the more units it costs!
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SeriesEv1-e1332384145310.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SeriesEv11.jpg)
Sometimes the foe is cowardly. Hiding behind their more ferocious peers, they’ll shoot at you from afar. Fear no more! Lay down a Projectile Reflect wall, and watch as their attacks come flying right back at them. Brilliant!
Other times, the enemy is too large to be brought down by beams and energy walls alone. Plant a Shock Beam to stun it, and then, using your Assimilable Ranged Cannon (A.R.C.), blast the little guy to oblivion.
And if someone’s towers need a boost, plant a Tower Buff Beam to shoot ‘em with energy and make them stronger.
So when can you get your hands on a Series EV? The street date is March 29. The estimated retail value is $3.99, but for one week only, it’ll be on sale for $2.99!
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/happyseries-e1332386050725.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/happyseries1.jpg)
Welcome to the Jungle
We have a surprise for you this week.
If you paid attention to our Barbarian trailer, you’ll have noticed an unrevealed map. Today, we’re pulling back the curtain.
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/karathiki-e1332370271462.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/karathiki1.jpg)
Venture into the ancient ruins of the Karathiki Jungles to discover Dungeon Defenders first 6-player co-op map, the Amazon Barbarian tribe and a new challenge -- Rumble in the Jungle, the successor to our War of the Djinns challenge. Converted Djinns will be sent to nearby tiki lamps, and each successive wave will require more converted Djinns to proceed.
Be warned: From what our beta testers tell us, this jungle is no pushover.
Of course, that’s not all that awaits you in the jungle.
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Screenshot1-e1332386088607.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Screenshot11.jpg)
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Screenshot3-e1332386074332.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Screenshot31.jpg)
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/monkey-e1332384181837.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/monkey1.jpg)
The Amazon Barbarian outfit and Monkey familiar come with the pack, too!
If you own the Eternia Shards Complete DLC, you can unlock this content for free on Friday. This will be available the same day as a standalone purchase for $1.99.
At the Penny Arcade
As you may have gathered from Twitter, we’re hitting the road again. This time, we’re going to the city of Boston, home of the Celtics, baked beans and patriot/beer icon Samuel Adams. We’re going to be there Easter weekend, which we hear is also conveniently the days a certain expo will be there. And by certain expo, I mean PAX East. Sometimes I like to throw subtly out the window.
Why are we going to be there? We’ll roll out those details as we get closer to April 6.
Meet our Esteemed Composer
Some of you have asked me on Twitter and Facebook about our elusive composer, Afshin Toufighian. I’ve managed to track him down to answer a few questions for you. Enjoy!
How did you get into music?
I started playing the piano around age 9. I started mostly on Classical music, playing composers like Mozart, Beethoven, and Bach. I became fascinated by the tonalities of their music and soon decided to try a hand at composition myself. I went through school studying music and having a blast because I knew I was doing what I really loved.
How did you get involved with Dungeon Defenders and Trendy?
Well I've had a working relationship with our brilliant director, Jeremy Stieglitz, for several years. We started back in 2005 on Monster Madness and have continued working on games together ever since.
http://youtu.be/4YkxlauL2Nk
How did you and Jeremy meet?
I was working in Los Angeles at the time, and wanted to branch out a little bit and get into games. It only made sense to start getting into that field because I knew I had a passion for games and felt I wasn't doing much on that side. So one day as I was looking through the web at some different game companies to see what was out there, Artificial Studios (the company Jeremy was running at the time) caught my eye, and I immediately sent out a few samples of my music to see if there was any interest in collaboration. The answer was yes, and the rest is history.
What were you doing in Los Angeles before that?
I was doing some freelance work on short films, performing music, working with various film composers (William Goldstein, Ron Jones from the Family Guy), as well as teaching music, building studios, and going around 'climbing the ladder' as they say.
Can you describe your planning and creation process for the Dungeon Defenders soundtrack?
Sure. The thematic or musical idea most usually starts on the piano. After viewing some visual content, whatever is available, whether still images or motion picture, I get the basic idea and get the 'juices' flowing. I sketch out the basic idea roughly within a few minutes. That's the fun part. But then comes the long and hard part of actually composing and orchestrating all the details. It's like painting a picture and trying to decide what colors to use basically. I do all of this in Steinberg Cubase, my audio software, along with tons of audio plugins and instruments. The editing, tweaking, mixing, and mastering process comes after that - that's where I polish it up and make it shine a bit more.
The combat phase of the game lasts considerably longer than the build phase. Is your process different for combat phase music?
Well, the composition process ... is the same for both build up and combat phases, but the combat phase usually requires more time and attention to create, due to its greater intensity than the build phase. It needs to give that extra punch so that you feel you're in the middle of the action, more instruments need to be used, and the music is usually faster which means more bars of music need to be written. It's a fun challenge.
http://youtu.be/KR2xiIeqglc
The second Lost Eternia Shards DLC just came out, and people are really enjoying the music. Can you describe the basic idea you had for these tracks?
Well Jeremy mentioned to me the idea that the music in the level should be more in the direction, for example, of the soundtrack from the film "Gladiator," which is a fantastic piece of work. Coupled with the beautiful visuals the art guys at Trendy came up with, it didn't take long for my head to explode with imagination for what to write for this DLC. I really wanted to use some traditional Middle Eastern instruments in this segment of the game. You'll hear instruments like the Duduk, Oud, Ney, and Zourna. I then tied those in with the traditional orchestral instruments to complete the picture, a mix of Eastern and Western tonalities, I guess you could say.
What was the most challenging part of making the Moraggo tracks? Did you run into any unique issues?
Nothing particularly challenging or different on this one… I don't think… I mean as far as the music, Middle Eastern tones make up a different scale than Western tones. So I just had to be careful enough to make it sound true to that genre.
Do you use live instruments? And if so, do you play them all, or do you get other people to help out?
Due to the efficiency required on scoring the soundtrack for Dungeon Defenders and also often because of the time constraints, I took the approach of scoring with virtual instruments. I think it was mainly a practical decision. In a sense, however, the virtual instruments I used were, in fact, recorded live, but I've tweaked them up here and there with midi programming. So they get their "live" sound, but just programmed into the sequencer in a 'non-live' way.
It is my hope, however, that soon we'll hear more actual live performers on the soundtracks.
What’s your favorite track you’ve written for Dungeon Defenders?
Probably Mistymire Build Phase, because I think it draws on my early influences from the music of Zelda and Final Fantasy, two games I loved playing endlessly when I was a child.
http://youtu.be/7cQerg45Ah8
Who or what influences your music?
I'm a big fan of many things written by Nubuo Uematsu (Final Fantasy) and Koji Kondo (Zelda), as well as film composers such as John Williams and Danny Elfman. These guys helped stretch my imagination of what can be explored on the harmonic spectrum. I think my brain rewired itself and grew a little larger after hearing what these guys did.
The Valentine’s Day DLC music is a marked departure from what we’ve come to expect from the soundtrack. What was your inspiration for that piece?
Yeah, I wanted to change the pace a little with that one because everything up until then was pretty much orchestral. I'm actually a pretty big fan of electronic music and thought I could try something out for that particular DLC. I don't know, I think those pretty pink fluffy clouds sparked that idea for me.
What electronic bands/musicians are you into right now?
Well I like a mixture of stuff… Tiesto, Bjork, Matmos, I loved Aphex Twin back in the day, and there's this new kid on the block by the name of Madeon who does some truly excellent stuff.
Do you have anything special in mind for Quest for Lost Eternia Shards Part 3?
Oh yes. I'd rather keep it in the bag for now, but I can't wait for you to hear what's coming up for it. I'm taking somewhat of a different approach on this one. I hope it doesn't get too outside-the-box, but maybe that's a good thing. I am using some more piano on these tracks, which seems to blend really beautifully with some of the other instruments. I'm looking forward to contributing the soundtrack to this beautiful new DLC.
That sounds fantastic. I can't wait to hear it! Thank you so much for your time.
Thank you too, Josh.
If you’d like to hear Afshin’s work (including Dungeon Defenders), check out his Bandcamp page (http://afshin.bandcamp.com/album/dungeon-defenders-ost)!
Beta Team Update: 3/21/12
Release week, when all Trendy and our work is shown to the public! It was quite a week and spurred a lot of discussion on the forums. Our team coordinator, Skott, shared some insights into the beta testing process here (http://forums.trendyent.com/showthread.php?49870-The-beta-process-%28answering-a-few-questions%29).
Here are some additional thoughts the team wanted to share: “We approach new content with the assumption that it’s going to be hard, but possible. With the Djinn, we got exactly what we expected. At the start they totally kicked our butts. But, as a team we never give up. We took our unworkable strategies and changed them. We started working more on playing multiplayer. And in the end, we found strategies that worked. We managed to do the vast majority of the NM content with the kind of gear you find in HC NM Endless Spires. It was quite a rush!“
Here is a short list of the most commonly suggested items that we received on our focus topic regarding Endgame Variety:
1. Only one map - The only realistic place to advance in the game was Mistymire. With the addition of Moraggo, this changes some. Additional maps are definitely in the works, but a few enterprising suggestioneers mentioned the idea of making some/all campaign maps work more like Misty.
2. Only one mode - Another frequent point is that survival is the only way to progress. Most of them mentioned adding armor as rewards to challenges as a solution. Additionally, campaign map rewards could include armor.
3. Make more towers/classes viable in Nightmare - For many endgamers, shoring up the weaknesses of certain towers and classes would help spur a bit more creativity in layouts.
Thanks again to each person who responded!
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/notenoughwalls-e1332372518804.png (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/notenoughwalls1.png)
Reflective walls are awesome. Wait, what does #3 do?!
Screenshots of the Week
Check out this week's screenshots!
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/renendaru-sotw-3_21_12-e1332370347361.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/renendaru-sotw-3_21_121.jpg)
Courtesy of Renendaru
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/thefirechief-sotw-3_21_12-e1332372135946.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/thefirechief-sotw-3_21_121.jpg)
Courtesy of The Fire Chief
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ada309-sotw-3_21_121.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ada309-sotw-3_21_121.jpg)
Courtesy of ada309
Have a cool photo you'd like to share? Send it cool to contest[at]trendyent.com with the subject "DunDef Screenshot"! Be sure to include your forum username or Steam username in the email. Our favorites will appear in future Digests!
Ode to the Monk
Closing out this week is a video from one of our community veterans, Junbao. His monk pride is known far and wide around these parts, and to show it to everyone else, he’s put together this wicked tribute to the kid who won’t let anything get in his way.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iR1fxHg_Aw8#!
Until next time,
Hitmonchan
Discuss this Digest here! (http://forums.trendyent.com/showthread.php?50867-DunDef-Digest-3-21-12-Discussion-Thread&p=381376#post381376)
Laughter.
I hadn’t heard it in months, but all the familiar signs are there: the repetition of vocal sounds, the strange way it falters and dies at the end. From the high pitch and echo, I’d say it sounds like kids. Why would there be kids in the desert?
I stopped and scanned the horizon. There it is. A village. Or at least a dark, wavering mass that looks like a village. That must be where it came from.
I might find other people there. Perhaps the parents of the children. Or more of those vile Djinns. Either way, it beats getting my joints sandblasted in this wasteland.
As I walk closer, I detect shapes moving toward me. Indistinct at first, their features stabilize. One person is wearing a large hat. Another one has a rather flat head.
My brain buzzed. I found them! And here in the desert of all places.
I walk slowly to prevent unwanted aggression. I expected this journey to last longer. They’ve been gone for almost a year, and now I find them on a random chance in the desert. The odds of such an occurrence is a fraction of a percent.
Laughter again. This time it’s closer than the last. That’s peculiar.
And something looks wrong. These people seem shorter than the picture in my brain.
Is this not them after all?
As the five of us emerged from the desert’s veil, I was confused. Their attire and features were similar, but they were kids. Pre-teens at the oldest.
What sorcery does this desert hold? The realms of magic are unpredictable. Incalculable. The stuff that haunts my hibernation times.
I looked down. The kids gave me a collective cold look. They’re tainted with the reality of battle. Now I was sure of my unsupported conclusion. These four must be their kids.
The Knight’s child stepped forward.
“Who are you?” he asked. Who? That’s an interesting question. I’ve never been asked that before.
“I am Series EV,” I answered. “I have traveled many miles to be here. I have been looking for you.”
Not entirely true, but close enough.
The group glanced at each other, no doubt questioning the validity of my statement. Smart kids. The young Apprentice kept staring at me, like he was fearful to take his eyes off me.
“I mean you no harm,” I replied. “Please, let me tell you more about myself.”
Series EV
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SeriesEv2-e1332384164238.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SeriesEv21.jpg)
Built for the military and recommissioned for civilian protection, the Series EV has a host of defensive capabilities. Have an arms cache in a narrow hallway or a large entryway to cover? No worries! The EV uses nodes to create adjustable Proton Beams and Physical Beams to suit the needs of the space. Just remember: the longer the defensive line, the more units it costs!
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SeriesEv1-e1332384145310.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SeriesEv11.jpg)
Sometimes the foe is cowardly. Hiding behind their more ferocious peers, they’ll shoot at you from afar. Fear no more! Lay down a Projectile Reflect wall, and watch as their attacks come flying right back at them. Brilliant!
Other times, the enemy is too large to be brought down by beams and energy walls alone. Plant a Shock Beam to stun it, and then, using your Assimilable Ranged Cannon (A.R.C.), blast the little guy to oblivion.
And if someone’s towers need a boost, plant a Tower Buff Beam to shoot ‘em with energy and make them stronger.
So when can you get your hands on a Series EV? The street date is March 29. The estimated retail value is $3.99, but for one week only, it’ll be on sale for $2.99!
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/happyseries-e1332386050725.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/happyseries1.jpg)
Welcome to the Jungle
We have a surprise for you this week.
If you paid attention to our Barbarian trailer, you’ll have noticed an unrevealed map. Today, we’re pulling back the curtain.
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/karathiki-e1332370271462.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/karathiki1.jpg)
Venture into the ancient ruins of the Karathiki Jungles to discover Dungeon Defenders first 6-player co-op map, the Amazon Barbarian tribe and a new challenge -- Rumble in the Jungle, the successor to our War of the Djinns challenge. Converted Djinns will be sent to nearby tiki lamps, and each successive wave will require more converted Djinns to proceed.
Be warned: From what our beta testers tell us, this jungle is no pushover.
Of course, that’s not all that awaits you in the jungle.
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Screenshot1-e1332386088607.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Screenshot11.jpg)
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Screenshot3-e1332386074332.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Screenshot31.jpg)
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/monkey-e1332384181837.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/monkey1.jpg)
The Amazon Barbarian outfit and Monkey familiar come with the pack, too!
If you own the Eternia Shards Complete DLC, you can unlock this content for free on Friday. This will be available the same day as a standalone purchase for $1.99.
At the Penny Arcade
As you may have gathered from Twitter, we’re hitting the road again. This time, we’re going to the city of Boston, home of the Celtics, baked beans and patriot/beer icon Samuel Adams. We’re going to be there Easter weekend, which we hear is also conveniently the days a certain expo will be there. And by certain expo, I mean PAX East. Sometimes I like to throw subtly out the window.
Why are we going to be there? We’ll roll out those details as we get closer to April 6.
Meet our Esteemed Composer
Some of you have asked me on Twitter and Facebook about our elusive composer, Afshin Toufighian. I’ve managed to track him down to answer a few questions for you. Enjoy!
How did you get into music?
I started playing the piano around age 9. I started mostly on Classical music, playing composers like Mozart, Beethoven, and Bach. I became fascinated by the tonalities of their music and soon decided to try a hand at composition myself. I went through school studying music and having a blast because I knew I was doing what I really loved.
How did you get involved with Dungeon Defenders and Trendy?
Well I've had a working relationship with our brilliant director, Jeremy Stieglitz, for several years. We started back in 2005 on Monster Madness and have continued working on games together ever since.
http://youtu.be/4YkxlauL2Nk
How did you and Jeremy meet?
I was working in Los Angeles at the time, and wanted to branch out a little bit and get into games. It only made sense to start getting into that field because I knew I had a passion for games and felt I wasn't doing much on that side. So one day as I was looking through the web at some different game companies to see what was out there, Artificial Studios (the company Jeremy was running at the time) caught my eye, and I immediately sent out a few samples of my music to see if there was any interest in collaboration. The answer was yes, and the rest is history.
What were you doing in Los Angeles before that?
I was doing some freelance work on short films, performing music, working with various film composers (William Goldstein, Ron Jones from the Family Guy), as well as teaching music, building studios, and going around 'climbing the ladder' as they say.
Can you describe your planning and creation process for the Dungeon Defenders soundtrack?
Sure. The thematic or musical idea most usually starts on the piano. After viewing some visual content, whatever is available, whether still images or motion picture, I get the basic idea and get the 'juices' flowing. I sketch out the basic idea roughly within a few minutes. That's the fun part. But then comes the long and hard part of actually composing and orchestrating all the details. It's like painting a picture and trying to decide what colors to use basically. I do all of this in Steinberg Cubase, my audio software, along with tons of audio plugins and instruments. The editing, tweaking, mixing, and mastering process comes after that - that's where I polish it up and make it shine a bit more.
The combat phase of the game lasts considerably longer than the build phase. Is your process different for combat phase music?
Well, the composition process ... is the same for both build up and combat phases, but the combat phase usually requires more time and attention to create, due to its greater intensity than the build phase. It needs to give that extra punch so that you feel you're in the middle of the action, more instruments need to be used, and the music is usually faster which means more bars of music need to be written. It's a fun challenge.
http://youtu.be/KR2xiIeqglc
The second Lost Eternia Shards DLC just came out, and people are really enjoying the music. Can you describe the basic idea you had for these tracks?
Well Jeremy mentioned to me the idea that the music in the level should be more in the direction, for example, of the soundtrack from the film "Gladiator," which is a fantastic piece of work. Coupled with the beautiful visuals the art guys at Trendy came up with, it didn't take long for my head to explode with imagination for what to write for this DLC. I really wanted to use some traditional Middle Eastern instruments in this segment of the game. You'll hear instruments like the Duduk, Oud, Ney, and Zourna. I then tied those in with the traditional orchestral instruments to complete the picture, a mix of Eastern and Western tonalities, I guess you could say.
What was the most challenging part of making the Moraggo tracks? Did you run into any unique issues?
Nothing particularly challenging or different on this one… I don't think… I mean as far as the music, Middle Eastern tones make up a different scale than Western tones. So I just had to be careful enough to make it sound true to that genre.
Do you use live instruments? And if so, do you play them all, or do you get other people to help out?
Due to the efficiency required on scoring the soundtrack for Dungeon Defenders and also often because of the time constraints, I took the approach of scoring with virtual instruments. I think it was mainly a practical decision. In a sense, however, the virtual instruments I used were, in fact, recorded live, but I've tweaked them up here and there with midi programming. So they get their "live" sound, but just programmed into the sequencer in a 'non-live' way.
It is my hope, however, that soon we'll hear more actual live performers on the soundtracks.
What’s your favorite track you’ve written for Dungeon Defenders?
Probably Mistymire Build Phase, because I think it draws on my early influences from the music of Zelda and Final Fantasy, two games I loved playing endlessly when I was a child.
http://youtu.be/7cQerg45Ah8
Who or what influences your music?
I'm a big fan of many things written by Nubuo Uematsu (Final Fantasy) and Koji Kondo (Zelda), as well as film composers such as John Williams and Danny Elfman. These guys helped stretch my imagination of what can be explored on the harmonic spectrum. I think my brain rewired itself and grew a little larger after hearing what these guys did.
The Valentine’s Day DLC music is a marked departure from what we’ve come to expect from the soundtrack. What was your inspiration for that piece?
Yeah, I wanted to change the pace a little with that one because everything up until then was pretty much orchestral. I'm actually a pretty big fan of electronic music and thought I could try something out for that particular DLC. I don't know, I think those pretty pink fluffy clouds sparked that idea for me.
What electronic bands/musicians are you into right now?
Well I like a mixture of stuff… Tiesto, Bjork, Matmos, I loved Aphex Twin back in the day, and there's this new kid on the block by the name of Madeon who does some truly excellent stuff.
Do you have anything special in mind for Quest for Lost Eternia Shards Part 3?
Oh yes. I'd rather keep it in the bag for now, but I can't wait for you to hear what's coming up for it. I'm taking somewhat of a different approach on this one. I hope it doesn't get too outside-the-box, but maybe that's a good thing. I am using some more piano on these tracks, which seems to blend really beautifully with some of the other instruments. I'm looking forward to contributing the soundtrack to this beautiful new DLC.
That sounds fantastic. I can't wait to hear it! Thank you so much for your time.
Thank you too, Josh.
If you’d like to hear Afshin’s work (including Dungeon Defenders), check out his Bandcamp page (http://afshin.bandcamp.com/album/dungeon-defenders-ost)!
Beta Team Update: 3/21/12
Release week, when all Trendy and our work is shown to the public! It was quite a week and spurred a lot of discussion on the forums. Our team coordinator, Skott, shared some insights into the beta testing process here (http://forums.trendyent.com/showthread.php?49870-The-beta-process-%28answering-a-few-questions%29).
Here are some additional thoughts the team wanted to share: “We approach new content with the assumption that it’s going to be hard, but possible. With the Djinn, we got exactly what we expected. At the start they totally kicked our butts. But, as a team we never give up. We took our unworkable strategies and changed them. We started working more on playing multiplayer. And in the end, we found strategies that worked. We managed to do the vast majority of the NM content with the kind of gear you find in HC NM Endless Spires. It was quite a rush!“
Here is a short list of the most commonly suggested items that we received on our focus topic regarding Endgame Variety:
1. Only one map - The only realistic place to advance in the game was Mistymire. With the addition of Moraggo, this changes some. Additional maps are definitely in the works, but a few enterprising suggestioneers mentioned the idea of making some/all campaign maps work more like Misty.
2. Only one mode - Another frequent point is that survival is the only way to progress. Most of them mentioned adding armor as rewards to challenges as a solution. Additionally, campaign map rewards could include armor.
3. Make more towers/classes viable in Nightmare - For many endgamers, shoring up the weaknesses of certain towers and classes would help spur a bit more creativity in layouts.
Thanks again to each person who responded!
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/notenoughwalls-e1332372518804.png (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/notenoughwalls1.png)
Reflective walls are awesome. Wait, what does #3 do?!
Screenshots of the Week
Check out this week's screenshots!
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/renendaru-sotw-3_21_12-e1332370347361.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/renendaru-sotw-3_21_121.jpg)
Courtesy of Renendaru
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/thefirechief-sotw-3_21_12-e1332372135946.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/thefirechief-sotw-3_21_121.jpg)
Courtesy of The Fire Chief
http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ada309-sotw-3_21_121.jpg (http://dungeondefenders.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ada309-sotw-3_21_121.jpg)
Courtesy of ada309
Have a cool photo you'd like to share? Send it cool to contest[at]trendyent.com with the subject "DunDef Screenshot"! Be sure to include your forum username or Steam username in the email. Our favorites will appear in future Digests!
Ode to the Monk
Closing out this week is a video from one of our community veterans, Junbao. His monk pride is known far and wide around these parts, and to show it to everyone else, he’s put together this wicked tribute to the kid who won’t let anything get in his way.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=iR1fxHg_Aw8#!
Until next time,
Hitmonchan
Discuss this Digest here! (http://forums.trendyent.com/showthread.php?50867-DunDef-Digest-3-21-12-Discussion-Thread&p=381376#post381376)