Aground Full Version
Leola
The next update will include a bunch more improvements and features (like fishing, familiar/pet system, building placement and a day/night cycle), finishing up the improvements we wanted to make for the starting island. We'll begin work on additional content (quests/dungeons/bosses for the starting island, and future islands) after that update!
This makes the gameplay a lot smoother, and is a big step towards the next update which will include new content and bosses (which will be bigger than a single tile, making the per pixel movement more valuable).
The big new feature here is the Mountain, which will appear now on the right side of the island. It's all stone, so you won't be able to enter it with starting equipment, and it's a good thing too, because there are much tougher enemies and new loot here.
The quests have not been updated yet, so exploring the mountain is just for fun for now (and to have more to mine), but it's eventually going to expand the storyline with the Alchemist and the history of the island. And there will be something special deep in the mountain eventually - those ranged enemies guarding that space aren't there for nothing!
The Fire Gem is intentionally unusable, un-trashable and un-sellable. This is so you don't get rid of it, as it'll be very important in the next update. While it'll take some time to get all the quest changes and new features in, I'm really excited about where this is going!
The next major update will focus on raising your baby dragons into ones as large as the boss in the mountain - and yes, you'll be able to fly on it off to new islands (although, when I first add this update, it will just show an animation and roll credits like sailing). Going off left for science and right for magic is definitely a thing we're going to continue with in this game. I might include a smaller update before that with general improvements and bugfixes.
The equipment system was needed for the pets/familiars, so you have a way to select who you want following you. That'll be the next update unless there are high priority bugs that need fixing, along with growing (and flying on) your dragon!
There will be one more major update including new islands (and perhaps a few minor updates) for the free version of the game. After that, we are now planning to run a Kickstarter at the end of this month and fund development for an Early Access version of the game - we hope you'll support us when it is live!
In other news, we're preparing for our Kickstarter, which you can read about (and other plans) here: _kickstarter_plans/. This will probably be the last update until we launch the Kickstarter on January 31st - which will include at least one of the next islands!
Unlike on the starting island, you will be an outsider in this new town, and you'll get a lot less help and supplies for free. Make sure to stock up on food before you sail away from home, or you might find yourself having to buy from the market extravagantly just to have enough food to eat!
We still plan to add the first magic island to the east, but this update is getting close to the end of the planned content for the free version. After that, we'll be working hard on new content for the early access version!
In other news, our Kickstarter is now over 100% funded! Thank you to everyone who backed! We're still hoping for some stretch goals (especially the multiplayer one which will add co-op multiplayer support), so check out the Kickstarter page, and if you don't have a credit card, you can now back via PayPal on our website and that will count towards the stretch goals too!
Now that the Kickstarter has reached 100%, we'll be working on finishing the entire first planet for release on Steam Early Access (and other platforms). We'll also continue to update the free version with bugfixes and improvements as we go. And from there - we'll be launching into space!
For those who haven't heard, our Kickstarter completed successfully, and we're moving forward with the full first planet to post on Steam Early Access (and other platforms like Itch.io). You can read more about that and our plans here: Kickstarter Success! What's Next?. If you want to see Aground on GOG as well, you'll have to convince them that it's worth adding by voting here.
The next update will be another one like this, and will include a day/night cycle, lighting, and possibly character customization and sailing/flying between islands (along with several other improvements from player suggestions). After that, we'll finish up the Science island, followed by the Magic island!
I don't want to spoil too much, but you can now confront the Mirrows (and complete the innkeeper's quest for an amazing reward), and there's also a way to negotiate with the Mirrows without fighting them. It's a tough fight - so be prepared with a shotgun, chainsaw, and titanium armor (or better).
While we'll probably do a few more minor edits and improvements to the science island, this update represents the end of the major content updates along the science path for the free version. In our next update, we'll finish up the magic island (and the boss fight there), and then move on to the next islands for the paid only releases.
Finally, for those of you who didn't figure it out, in the last update the random character customization was an april fools joke. If you load a game now, you'll be able to customize your character's appearance.
We'll probably have one more free update that finishes off the Science path (it doesn't really have an ending right now) and adds Blueprints (a feature we've been wanting to add for a while). After that, we'll start work on the rest of the islands on the first planet - we have a lot of work to do if we want to finish the first planet on time for backers! The free version will still get updated with improvements and bugfixes, but it will no longer get content updates after the next one.
We'll also be presenting the game at Phoenix Comic Fest, May 24-27! If you're nearby, come say hi - we'll be in Hall 1 with the Southwest Videogame Showcase. There may even be some exclusive giveaways!
From now until June/July, we'll be working on finishing the first planet for the Early Access release! We have some pretty exciting things planned, and if you want to see where we go with the game, you can pre-order the full version here: (it will include all future updates)! We'll also continue to post bugfixes and non-content updates to the free version (you won't get new islands, but you will see some new features, including some relatively large ones like seafaring).
Speaking of pre-ordering, we are now only a little over $500 away from the Co-op Multiplayer stretch goal (you can see our continued funding progress here)! Can we make it before the early access launch when pre-orders close?!? Be sure to spread the word, and pre-order/back the game above if you want to help us reach that goal!
At the end of May, we had a blast showcasing Aground at Phoenix Comic Fest! Over the 4-day weekend, our stations were almost never empty. We received amazing enthusiasm for the game, met a few fans who had already played on Kongregate, and got a lot of helpful feedback and ideas for making the game even better (many of the improvements were from this feedback). It was an excellent experience overall, and while we were exhausted by Sunday evening, we were so pleased to have been at the event! We uploaded some photos of the event here: !
It has been a wild ride getting to this point - from the initial prototype over a year ago, an underwhelming reception to the early versions, to an incredibly enthusiastic response to the browser version, an amazing crowdfunding campaign, and update after update of new content and improvements.
As we mentioned before, Aground now also has support for mods with the help of mod.io! While we haven't written a guide yet, there are already a few mods uploaded, so feel free to subscribe to them or join the #modding channel on Discord for help making your own!
We are also pleased to share that a new member has been added to the Aground team! Megan has joined us to help out with social media and marketing. Together we're working hard to spread the word about the game!
This update includes lots of new content for the early access version (see above), but we also included an update to the free version too! This update includes swimming and many small improvements and tweaks to the game. As a big thank you to Armor Games, Kongregate and Newgrounds who helped us get to this point, we also added a few secrets and specials on those sites - can you find them all?
If you haven't seen it yet, we've also added a roadmap which details all our plans for Early Access Updates up through the full release. We will be working on the magic path to space next. You can expect it to be complete by the end of September. But first, we'll be heading off to PAX West in Seattle to show off the game! If you're going to be there, be sure to stop by at booth 663 (with the Indie Megabooth)! There will be goodies to be had! And Aground cosplay!
I don't want to spoil everything this update adds, but there are many new items including power cables (for connecting generators to buildings), new blueprints, higher tech upgrades, a new skill, a new vehicle, craftable robot NPCs and many tweaks and minor improvements (including the ability to change your appearance at the surgery lab). As mentioned above, be sure to talk to the Fisherman, and check out the factory for new stuff!
There are still more things we wanted to add for the science path (like starting island upgrades, which you can see in the above gif), but we needed to prepare for PAX. We might post it with a bugfix update after PAX, but we also want to get cracking on the magic path update!
Alongside this major update to the game, we have a very exciting new trailer to share with you! Made by the talented M. Joshua and scored by our very own Chase Bethea, we are thrilled with how it came out!
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