But instead of existential d(r)ead, we’re bringing you gifts! In the spirit of cross-game pollination (and because we thought it would be super cool), we’re sneaking THREE legendary tracks from Crypt of the NecroDancer into Rift:

• Crypteque

• Fungal Funk

• Power Cords

And because looking good is half the battle (especially when facing down a horde of skeletons), these songs feature new Crypt outfits for Cadence and the NecroDancer. Now you can bring that classic Crypt style to your Rift runs.

Thanks for sticking with us through all the beats and bobs. Here’s to another ten years of rhythmic mayhem!

New ALL-TIME LOW discount on the Crypt of the NecroDancer Ultimate Pack for the next 48 hours!

The post Happy 10 years of NecroDancing! 🥳🎂 appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.

This toe-tapping expansion unleashes the iconic virtual diva Hatsune Miku as she navigates the perilous Crypt, battling fearsome foes with rhythm and style. Wielding her trusty leek and decked out in signature outfits, Miku’s dazzling dance moves double as powerful attacks, allowing her to slay clusters of enemies with unmatched flair.

Get the DLC on Steam now!

DLC Key Features:

• Play as Hatsune Miku: Experience Crypt of the NecroDancer as Hatsune Miku, complete with a charming leek, her powerful voice, and eight-directional movement.
• Sing Your Way to Safety: Charm your enemies with a brand new ability: SING!
• Dress to Impress: Unlock and equip official Miku outfits as armor!
• An All New Way to Groove: Dance along to 15 beloved Hatsune Miku songs, including two exclusive new tracks by original Crypt of the NecroDancer composer Danny Baranowsky!

DLC Song List:

1-1 – Too Real by Danny Baranowsky
1-2 –  Wonder Style by colate
1-3 –  SURVIVE (Foxsky Remix) by Umetora
2-1 – Ten Thousand Stars by CircusP
2-2 – Lucky Orb (Clean Tears Remix) by emon(Tes.)
2-3 – UNDERWATER (Rexium Remix) by Hylen
3-1 – Highlight by KIRA
3-2 – Intergalactic Bound by Yunosuke & CircusP
3-3 – Hello Builder by UtsuP
4-1 – Blue Star (yuzen Remix) by Hachioji P
4-2 – Can’t Make A Song!! by beat_shobon
4-3 – Be Furious (Reno Remix) by Ocelot
5-1 – sweety glitch by gaburyu & nyankobrq
5-2 – Thousand Little Voices by Vault Kid & FlangerMoose
5-3 – My One and Oni by Danny Baranowsky

The Hatsune Miku Character DLC for Crypt of the NecroDancer is available now on Steam, GOG, and PlayStation. Coming April 13 to Nintendo Switch.

Listen to the new Danny Baranowsky songs on YouTube.

Too Real

My One and Oni

The post Hatsune Miku Takes on the NecroDancer appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.

Can you tell us how you got started with modding? What kind of projects have you worked on previously?

Synchrony, back when it was a standalone fan project, was actually my first experience modding games; I didn’t even know lua when I started, or really any other code-related stuff. I started by following the helpful tutorials that were provided in Synchrony’s discord server, and from there I kept letting my ideas flow and asked for help as needed until I could, eventually, comfortably code and understand things for modding the game on my own.

The only other coding experience I had was some light block coding I had done for a while through school, and the beginnings of C in college. It was a totally blank slate for me when it comes to modding, though!

Specifically, what drew you to modding Crypt of the NecroDancer?

Ever since I picked up Crypt of the NecroDancer, I fell in love with the game. There’s something very satisfying about fighting and moving to the beat, and as I got better with it, I was completely hooked – even before I got the Amplified DLC. I also really enjoy the game’s world – a setting that blends fantasy and reality in a really smooth way. It opened up a lot of potential for new content, and when I eventually caught wind of the Synchrony fan project, I just knew I had to learn the modding API and put my own creative spin on my favorite game.

Can you walk us through the inspiration behind Biodiversity Plus? What was the idea that sparked it?

I feel like for one reason or another, I’m always drawn to games that have a wide cast of different enemies. Even if it’s the same things you’re fighting throughout hundreds of runs in a dungeon crawler like NecroDancer, it just adds so much to a game when those monsters have that little bit of extra variety and personality. I already really like NecroDancer’s enemy cast, from the skeletons, to the wild animals, to the fantasy creatures all over the place, and I wanted to expand upon it! 

At first it was just some extra tiers of existing enemies, but then I started getting ideas for entirely new ones, and from then on it blossomed into a large group of new monsters blended in with those of the base game’s roster.

Did you face any specific challenges while creating your mod?

I’m honestly a bit surprised that I went for a mod like this as one of my earliest projects. It was only shortly after Synchrony came out as DLC that I started working on it, so my knowledge of the lua API was still quite limited and I used a lot of rough solutions to problems that were, to put it simply, not ideal. I had to ask for help pretty often to get even the basics working, and I had to do a lot of fixes here and there, but thankfully, everyone was very nice and supportive, and over time I was able to smooth out the rough bits and shape it into something I’m happy with!

What’s your favorite feature or element of your mod?

I’m quite proud of the Giant Rat enemies seen in zones 1 and 2. Although their mechanic is simple, just attaching an attack to the front of their movement, it’s something that I feel doesn’t really exist in the main game in any form, so it feels like something that’s truly my own that’s become a staple of BioDiversity Plus. And they’re pretty cute, too!

What other games do you like to play or mod?

As of now, NecroDancer is the only game I actively mod, though I’ve been trying to learn other lua-based modding APIs such as for The Binding of Isaac and Noita. In general, I play a lot of roguelikes – Hades, Have A Nice Death, and the two mentioned are some of my other favorites – as well as metroidvanias and platformers such as Hollow Knight and Rain World.

Besides modding, what are you passionate about?

I’m a storyteller at heart, and I’m passionate about weaving tales through my art, writing, and game design ideas. I usually have a lot of extant lore for the character mods I make for NecroDancer that doesn’t get out much, just because I love writing and worldbuilding! Outside of modding, I spend a lot of my time drawing, playing games, or working on my own game projects; really anything that keeps the creative juices flowing.

Is there a message you’d like to share with aspiring modders in the Crypt of the NecroDancer community?

Even if you don’t have any experience with modding games, Crypt of the NecroDancer is a great place to start. The developers have done an amazing job making Synchrony’s modding API lightweight and easy to understand – plus, there’s a community of wonderfully helpful people that are always willing to answer questions and see new faces in the mod portal! If you’ve got an idea, even if you’re starting from zero, go for it!

Feeling inspired? The Crypt of the NecroDancer modding community welcomes you! With helpful resources, a supportive crowd, and the game’s accessible modding tools, who knows what amazing creations you might bring to life? A big thank you to our featured modder for sharing their story and the awesome Biodiversity Plus mod. Your work enriches the Crypt of the NecroDancer experience for countless players!

You can find Tatters on Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/tatters-the-bat

We’d love to have you join in the conversation in the official Brace Yourself Games Discord as well.

The post Modder Spotlight: TattersTheBat and Biodiversity Plus appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.

Synchronized Serendipity

SYNCHRONY stands as a testament to the power of community creativity. What began as a passionate fan project, led by Adrian Zeyfang, caught the eye of Brace Yourself Games. Recognizing the mod’s extraordinary potential, the studio seized a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, propelling this community vision into an official DLC.

Groove Together, Battle Together

SYNCHRONY adds one of the most requested features to the NecroDancer universe: online multiplayer! Team up with friends in cooperative mode or face off in pulse-pounding PVP matches.

New Characters, New Ways to Play

• Klarinetta: Strike down legions of enemies with swings of your massive Zweihänder.
• Chaunter: Possess your foes and use their own powers against them.
• Suzu: Swift like the wind, this ninja-like oni’s unstoppable dash attack defines this agile fighter.

The Power is in Your Hands

Crypt of the NecroDancer: SYNCHRONY delivers full-fledged mod support and a built-in mod portal. Design all-new levels, and explore the limitless creations of the community.

Key Features

• Online multiplayer: co-op and versus modes
• Three new playable characters
• Full mod support, mod portal, and featured weekly challenges
• New items, weapons, spells, enemies, and more!

Pricing and Availability

Crypt of the NecroDancer: SYNCHRONY is available for $6.99 USD today on:

• Steam (PC, Mac, Linux)
• GOG
• PlayStation
• Nintendo Switch 

Get Ready to Groove

The beat never stops! Join the rhythm revolution and download Crypt of the NecroDancer: SYNCHRONY today!

View the patch notes here.

The post SYNCHRONY Launches on PlayStation and Nintendo Switch appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.

– Zone in on the zones and boss around the bosses to advance and collect points
– Battle Coral Riff, King Conga and more legendary bosses to earn diamonds
– Follow the flow of music with your combos and boost your multiplier
– Freddie has what you need! Spend your diamonds for weapons and hearts
– Face the NecroDancer in a multiball Wizard Mode for the Golden Lute

Try out your pinball wizard skills on:

Steam
Epic Games Store
PlayStation
Xbox

If you ever wanted to try the classic game of pinball – now is the time!

The post Crypt of the NecroDancer Pinball is now available in Pinball FX! appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.

RE-ANIMATE!!!

That’s right everyone, the Crypt has been silent for 5 years, but now the NecroDancer is back from the dead with a huge new DLC! SYNCHRONY adds online multiplayer (co-op and vs), three new characters, full mod support (& built-in mod portal), new items, enemies, & more! Let’s take a look!

New downloadable content – Crypt of the NecroDancer: Synchrony!

New characters

• Klarinetta:
  • Wields the Zweihänder, a heavy sword which occupies a tile diagonally adjacent to her.
  • The Zweihänder follows Klarinetta’s movement, striking any enemies in its way.
  • Diagonal movement buttons swing the Zweihänder around in a quarter-circle or half-circle, attacking enemies on several tiles at once.
    • Rotating the sword takes a full beat and causes Klarinetta to stand still momentarily.
  • When held in place, the Zweihänder acts as a barrier against enemies, preventing them from walking into the tile it occupies.
• Chaunter:
  • A frail, ghostly being who starts with half a heart, which cannot be increased by any means.
  • Wields the Lantern, which has the range of a dagger and provides a small amount of light.
  • Striking enemies with the Lantern gradually takes over their soul, allowing Chaunter to possess them after dealing enough damage!
  • Possessing an enemy lets Chaunter take full control, copying their health, damage and abilities!
  • All enemy abilities are mapped to the action and spell slots.
    • For example, a possessed Red Dragon breathes fire using the two spell buttons.
  • Slow enemies such as Skeletons or Golems can move quickly while possessed.
    • Unlike fast enemies or Chaunter itself, slow enemies are allowed to wield weapons, overriding their usual attack!
    • Attacking, digging or using items forces them to stand still for a few beats.
  • When losing all hearts while transformed into an enemy, Chaunter reverts back to its usual form.
  • Control of an enemy cannot be kept indefinitely – a countdown of 24 beats starts ticking as soon as Chaunter takes possession.
    • Once the timer runs out, the possessed enemy starts taking damage, eventually forcing Chaunter back into its base form.
    • This can also be done manually by performing the “Eject” action (Left+Right).
• Suzu:
  • Wields the Lance of Courage, a melee weapon that unleashes a rapid, powerful dash when killing an enemy!
    • All enemies in a straight line are killed instantly as Suzu dashes through them.
    • The dash attack is only stopped by walls and shielded enemies, letting Suzu travel many tiles in an instant.
    • Bounce traps redirect her dash, altering her attack trajectory and final position!
    • Suzu is fully invincible during her dash, protecting her from any enemies waiting at her destiation.

Online multiplayer

• Play with up to 8 players at once in online co-op and versus modes!
• Rollback multiplayer architecture:
  • Play with friends from around the world without perceptible input/audio/visual lag!
  • High-latency support: two-player sessions are playable up to 300 milliseconds of latency.
• In-game lobby browser and lobby visibility settings (public, friends-only, private).
  • Steam multiplayer integration for creating and joining lobbies – no port forwarding needed.
  • Optional support for direct IP connections and LAN play.
  • Headless dedicated server to allow hosting persistent lobbies and tournament matches.
• Spectator mode:
  • Spectate any individual player, changing targets at any time.
  • “Spectate everyone” mode, splitting the HUD and zooming out the game view to see all players at once.
  • Automatic spectator view upon death or after entering stairs while waiting for other players to finish the level.
    • Ability to return to the level after entering the stairs to rejoin players instead of waiting.
• Late joining and rejoining support for online sessions:
  • Disconnecting automatically enters spectator mode, allowing the player to jump back into the game after reconnecting.
• Health bars and name plates for other players in online sessions and spectator mode.
• In-game text chat with various scaling and visibility options.
• Seamless hosting: an ongoing run can be opened up into a multiplayer session at any time via the “Host online game” menu option.
  • Multiplayer save & quit: restored sessions can be re-opened to the network, allowing other players to rejoin.
• Replays and cutscenes can be watched together online, with the host player having access to the playback controls.
• Per-player resource packs (Workshop mods):
  • Each player can load their own individual set of resource packs, independently of the host or other players.
  • The player character’s appearance can be customized freely by choosing skins from any installed mod.
  • Support for custom beatmaps can be enabled by the host player, allowing players to move at different speeds.
• Hybrid online and local co-op support: up to 4 local players can play together, including in online sessions.
• DLC cross-play support:
  • DLC-only modes, characters, items, enemies and Zone 5 are disabled while the DLC is inactive.
  • Players without the AMPLIFIED DLC can connect to lobbies hosted in non-AMPLIFIED mode.
  • AMPLIFIED players can join non-AMPLIFIED lobbies, automatically turning off DLC content in the process.
  • Online multiplayer is available to all owners of the Synchrony DLC, even if the new gameplay content is disabled.
• Cross-platform multiplayer between Windows, macOS and Linux.
• Networking performance features:
  • Desync detection, automatically resynchronizing players in case of a game state difference.
  • Dynamic input reprioritization, limiting the impact of any one player’s lag spikes on other players in the session.
  • Hybrid peer-to-peer and server-client network code, reducing latency in cross-region multiplayer sessions.
  • Noise control system to gradually lower the volume of any repetitive player-made sounds.

New items

• Shield slot: Faces in the wielder’s movement direction and protects them against damage from that direction.
  • Wooden Shield: Protects against one hit before breaking.
  • Titanium Shield: Protects against two hits before breaking.
  • Heavy Shield: Protects against three hits before breaking, and also grants knockback immunity while active.
  • Obsidian Shield: Shields 1, 2 or 3 hits depending on the wielder’s coin multiplier.
  • Shield of Strength: Protects against one hit before breaking. Grants +1 damage while unbroken!
  • Reflective Shield: Protects against one hit before breaking, deflecting damage back to the enemy in the process.
  • Shield of Shove: Protects against one hit before breaking, and allows the wielder to shove adjacent enemies.
• Onyx weapons:
  • Deals greatly increased damage on consecutive hits, but loses the damage bonus upon moving.
  • Most effective on weapons that hit a broad range of tiles, less so on weapons with dash attacks.
• Trident:
  • Attacks like a broadsword at a higher range, hitting a row of three tiles, or like a dagger at close range.
  • Comes in all common weapon flavors: Basic, Blood, Gold, Titanium, Glass, Obsidian and Onyx!
  • Throwable! When thrown, three lanes are hit at once instead of just one, clearing out a much wider area!
• Throwing Charm:
  • Allows any weapon to be thrown like a Dagger!
  • Once per level: throwing a weapon causes it to return to the wielder, dealing damage on the way back.
  • Stepping sideways after throwing slants the return trajectory, allowing different tiles to be hit!
• Berserk Spell:
  • Starts a berserking charge on the next move, killing any enemies unfortunate enough to stand in the way!
  • Stops upon colliding with a wall or any other obstacle.
  • The Berserk state grants immunity to incoming attacks, but removes the ability to change directions until it ends.
  • Greater Berserk fills the caster with even more blind rage, additionally killing enemies on adjacent tiles!
• Dash Spell:
  • Turns the next move into a long-range dashing attack, dealing 4 hearts of damage to any enemies along its path!
  • If an enemy is killed by the dash, the caster will pass right through.
  • Greater Dash increases the range and damage of the dashing attack!
• Charm Spell:
  • Charm nearby monsters to turn them into temporary allies!
  • Allied monsters will seek out and attack other enemies until the effect wears off.
  • Bumping into an allied monster pushes it out of the way, dealing damage when squished against an obstacle.
  • Greater Charm’s effect does not wear off, turning monsters into allies for the entire duration of the floor!
• Scroll of Duplication:
  • Drops from an activated Shrine of Duplication.
  • Duplicates all items, enemies, crates and chests in 3×3 range around the user.
  • Enemies, crates and chests are only duplicated if there is space behind them.
  • Shop items retain their price tags when duplicated.
  • The Scroll of Duplication itself cannot be duplicated.

New enemies

• Thief:
  • Runs towards the player and tries to steal their items! Weapons and items in locked slots are not stolen.
  • In co-op mode, the Thief takes turns trying to rob different players, and will dodge attacks from any player other than its target.
  • When two items are stolen successfully, the Thief laughs at its victims and quickly disappears.
  • When killed, it drops a random uncommon item, along with any potential stolen goods.
  • The Thief has a low chance of spawning on any level, but is slightly more common in co-op mode.
• Mannequin:
  • Created by the Shrine of Duplication – copies all equipment of the player who activates the shrine.
  • Mirrors the actions the player closest to it – movement, attacks, digging and even using items and spells!
  • Can pick up items and gold from the ground, which are dropped upon death.
• Shock Monkey:
  • While grabbed, deals half a heart of damage to its struggling victim per hit!
  • Each hit also starts an electric arc that damages nearby enemies.
  • Stay away from water!

Stay tuned for more enemies to come during Early Access!

Other gameplay features

• Dice Trap:
  • When stepped on, the Dice Trap spawns a number of completely random enemies from any zone, then disappears.
• Automatic Spike Trap:
  • Alternates between extending and retracting each beat. Inflicts damage only while extended.
• Floor Crack:
  • Guaranteed to spawn exactly once per zone, somewhere on a random level.
  • Creates a trapdoor upon being destroyed by a bomb.
• Spiked Wall:
  • Inflicts damage to the player when dug with a shovel.
  • Spikes are only visible if the corresponding side of the wall is adjacent to a floor tile.
  • Revealed enemies take damage when moving into spiked wall tiles.
• Shrine of Duplication:
  • Spawns a Mannequin wielding copies of all items worn by the player who triggered the shrine.
  • The Mannequin mirrors all actions of the closest player!
  • Defeating the Mannequin will drop its items on the ground, granting a duplicate set of items for other players to pick up.
  • Can only be found in co-op mode.
• Shrine of Binding:
  • When touched by two players at once, their souls are linked together for the rest of the run.
  • Linked players share one and the same inventory, health bar and coin multiplier.
  • If one player takes damage or dies, both players are affected!
  • In online multiplayer, linked players can always see each other, with the view expanding as needed to fit both players.
  • Can only be found in co-op mode.
• Shrine of the Feast:
  • Activates upon eating two food items adjacent to the shrine, granting a choice between three items.
  • Cannot be interacted with directly.
• Shrine of Fire:
  • Activates upon inflicting fire-type damage to the shrine, granting a choice between three items.
  • Cannot be interacted with directly.
• Pawnbroker rework:
  • After two items have been sold to him, the Pawnbroker will present a selection of his finest wares at great prices!
  • He offers a choice between three items at a discount, of which only one can be chosen.
  • Selling more items causes him to re-roll his shop’s contents, presenting a different choice of three items.
  • After purchasing an item, selling more equipment will not cause the shop items to reappear.
  • Selling enough items causes the Pawnbroker to present his Special Offer!
• Equipment sprites:
  • Displays all held and equipped items on the player character’s sprite.
  • The visibility of equipment sprites can be controlled in the “Change Skin” menu.
  • By default, equipment sprites are only visible on the default skin, and hidden when selecting a custom skin.

New game mode: Versus

• Engage in combat with other players in Player versus Player modes:
  • Instead of going through the floors of the crypt together, use various items and strategies to defeat your opponents!
  • Arenas are procedurally generated, combining 2 zones into 1 floor!
  • As the game progresses, various events can happen on the arena. This includes shop travel runes spawning, everyone becoming confused, and… telemonkeys?!
• Versus mode: Deathmatch (default):
  • In this mode, the winner is the player who manages to get the most points, which are earned by defeating others.
  • Getting defeated by taking damage from enemies or floor hazards results is penalized by losing one point.
  • However, if the above happens shortly after taking damage from a player, that player will be considered the killer. In this case, there’s no penalty and the other player gains a point normally.
  • Players respawn shortly after being defeated, so you can get back to the action quickly!
  • To view the list of players and their points, use the “Toggle player list” hotkey (‘Tab’ by default, configurable in menu controls).
  • By default, a deathmatch consists of 3 rounds on different floors. However, this (and many other things) can be changed in the “Custom rules” menu after entering Versus Mode!
• Versus mode: Last One Dancing:
  • The winner is simply the player who manages to survive the longest – no complicated rules here!
  • To enable this mode, change the game mode in the “Custom rules” menu.
• Team up with other players:
  • The modes above can also be played in teams, which can be enabled within “Custom rules”!
  • Players can either be assigned to teams automatically, or choose their teams manually.
• Use never-before-seen items, which appear exclusively in Versus:
  • Wind Tomes: push away nearby enemies and players! It may also be used to suprise your opponents with bombs…
  • Goblin Bomber Charm: makes you drop a lit bomb when defeated.
  • Ring of Gluttony: makes food heal you a bit more.
  • Ring of Whirlwind: casts a greater wind spell which pushes enemies away when you get hit and also prevents the damage, then shatters.
  • Essences: these mysterious items allow you to enchant your weapon to a specific material!
  • Electricity Tomes: temporarily grants electric attack powers (note: this item will only appear if the AMPLIFIED DLC is enabled)
• Versus-specific item tweaks: certain changes have been made to some items to make them work better in PvP. These changes are only applied when in versus mode, and the items function as normal outside of it.
  • Cookies: to prevent excessive invincibility frames, their base quantity has been lowered to 3.
  • Fireball Spell/Tome/Scroll: limited the range to 3 tiles and reduced damage to 2 and 4 for normal fireball and greater fireball respectively. However, the 2-damage version can still be used to open crates.
  • Pulse Spell/Tome/Scroll: reduced damage to 2 and 4 for normal pulse and greater pulse respectively, and similar to fireball, the 2-damage version can still open crates. Pulse now also bypasses shields and armor.
  • Freeze Spell/Tome/Scroll: duration of freezes has been halved.
  • Shield Spell/Tome/Scroll: duration of shields has been halved.
  • Various Spells also received adjustments to their cooldowns and blood cast costs.
  • Grenade Charm: the damage buff has been removed, making grenades deal the same damage as regular bombs.
  • Ring of Regeneration: heals 0.5 hearts every 50 beats.
  • Ring of Peace: makes you invisible to enemies (but not other players).
  • Arc Dagger: replaced the infinite damage when standing on a wire with a +2 damage boost.
  • Rifle/Blunderbuss: piercing effect has been removed, Rifle’s range is now limited to 4 tiles.
  • Rapiers: when lunging, damage is increased by 1 instead of being doubled.
  • Battle Shovel: replaced the infinite damage after digging with a +2 damage boost.
  • Crown of Thorns: heals every 5 kills, removed damage on pickup.
  • Throwing Charm: the effect of making thrown weapons return is restored after 50 beats.
• New weapon material: Jade:
  • Use jade weapons to apply poison to the target of your attack!
  • After becoming poisoned, characters will take damage after 3 beats. This damage cannot be avoided by normal means.
  • However, poison can be healed by consuming food, preventing the damage from happening entirely.
  • Use Jade Essence to enchant your weapon to a jade version.
• New weapon material: Crimson:
  • Crimson weapons heal the user every 5 kills. However, unlike blood weapons, they do not grant a damage boost when on low health.
  • They are also piercing by default, bypassing any armor and shields your opponents may have!
  • Use Crimson Essence to enchant your weapon to a crimson version.
• Other mechanics:
  • When multiple players perform actions on the same beat, they are resolved in the following order:
    • item/spell usage
    • weapon attacks
    • movement
  • This means that you are always able to use a defensive item before getting hit. However, when you are in someone’s range, they will be able to hit you even if you try to move away!
  • When transmogrifying a weapon in Versus, it will keep its current material.

Balance tweaks

Alongside a few quality-of-life changes, many of these tweaks are aimed at improving the game’s balance for speedrun and races, while not affecting casual runs too significantly. All of these changes take effect when the Synchrony DLC is enabled:

• Removed Boots of Lunging, Magic Cookies and Charm of Strength from crates.
• Removed food items from Shrine of Pain’s reward item pool.
• Removed Blood Dagger from Shrine of Blood’s item pool.
• Removed Scrolls from boss reward chests.
• Reduced the number of doorway-blocking Green Slimes on Monk/Coda.
• Reduced chance of crates containing Boots of Leaping and Ring of Pain.
• Reduced the number of enemies removed by Ring of Peace from 8 to 5.
• Changed Shrine of Darkness to increase the tracking distance of enemies from 3 to 5 tiles.
• Changed Mary’s Curse to no longer bypass the Potion.
• Increased the base price of the Map from 25 to 75.
• Increased the base price of the Compass from 6 to 25.
• Increased the base price of the Torch of Walls from 20 to 50.
• Increased minimum spawning distance for enemies summoned by Nocturna’s final boss from 2 to 3 tiles.
• Increased the minimum distance for Skeletons summoned by Death Metal 1 and 2 from 2 to 2.5 tiles.
• Changed Shrine of Glass to convert Heavy Plate Armor into Heavy Glass Armor.
• Changed Shrine of Glass to no longer grant Glass Jaw to Melody, Eli or Tempo.
• Reduced the number of trapdoors appearing in levels, particularly near the spawn point.
• Reduced the maximum number of Skeletons summoned by Death Metal 1 from 3 to 2.
• Reduced the number of upgraded Tentacles in Coral Riff by 2 per zone.
• Reduced the spawn limit of Nocturna’s final boss from 24 to 16 in single-player (unchanged in co-op).
• Reduced the health of the batteries in phase 2 of Nocturna’s final boss fight from 8 to 6.
• Changed the batteries of Nocturna’s final boss to be immune to the player’s bombs.
• Reduced the priority of Electric Orbs to be slightly above barrels, but below all other enemies.
• Changed players to no longer collide with each other or block thrown weapons in co-op mode.
• Changed co-op mode to require all players to finish the level to proceed to the next floor (with at least one player making it to the exit alive).

Throughout Early Access, we intend to make further adjustments and changes to these tweaks based on your feedback! We look forward to hearing your thoughts on these changes!

Modding features

• Full mod support via an extensive Lua modding API.
  • Event-driven game code, allowing most gameplay events to be intercepted and handled by mods.
  • Full live-reloading: mods can be edited and the changes seen in real-time.
    • Mods can be loaded and unloaded in the middle of a run.
  • Ability to load multiple Lua mods at the same time.
  • Automatic multiplayer compatibility for most (deterministic) gameplay mods.
  • Flexible Entity-Component-System architecture, allowing for the extension and modification of all entities in the game.
  • Customization points for tiles, level generation and other gameplay systems.
    • Procedural weapon system to define new weapon materials and shapes and have their combinations generated automatically.
    • Customizable item pools for shops, secret rooms, chests and crates.
  • API reference webpage, listing functions, components, events and classes with descriptions where available.
• Mod Portal for sharing and discovering community-made mods, powered by mod.io!
  • In-game menu to manage, browse and download gameplay mods.
  • Auto-download mods (after a confirmation prompt) when joining a server with mods that are not locally installed.
  • Auto-update system for mods, informing the user on the main menu when a new version of an installed mod is available.
  • Options for mod categorization (favorite/hidden, local/downloaded, active/inactive) and filtering.
  • mod.io upload integration: publish mods directly via the in-game mod menu!
    • mod.io account creation is not required to browse, download and play mods.
    • A log-in via Steam or an e-mail code is only prompted when publishing a mod.

Other changes

• Added leaderboards for No-Beat Mode, tracked separately from the Custom Music leaderboards
• Added leaderboards for Bolt Double Tempo Mode
• Added separate highscore leaderboards for the Gold Duplication exploit

Quirks

The following Quirks that were retained for compatibility with previous versions are now fixed when the Synchrony DLC is enabled:

• Fixed Aria and Coda encountering empty barrels in Zone 4 when a barrel would have contained a monkey
• Fixed Armadillo shields being bypassed by double attacks in co-op mode or via ‘Pain’ items
• Fixed players not dash-attacking into Electric Orbs unless wielding a Rapier
• Fixed Backpacks containing one item sometimes requiring the secondary key combination to be pressed to activate the item
• Fixed explosions causing enemies to act one beat sooner
• Fixed boss fights being skippable by using Earth Spell just below the main arena
• Fixed Pack of Holding not dropping its contents when switching to a regular Backpack
• Fixed gold coins being duplicated if picked up while merging with another gold pile (can be re-enabled to submit to “Duping” leaderboards)
• Fixed Skeleton Knights sometimes taking double knockback when dismounted
• Fixed Waterballs not causing the player to sink into the water if they had previously unsunken themselves on the same tile
• Fixed Earth Spell not creating walls on final story bosses
• Fixed Exploding Mushroom and Pixies being able to damage unrevealed enemies
• Fixed Familiars becoming displaced from the player character when a Warlock is killed via Boots of Pain
• Fixed Nocturna’s penultimate boss being able to telefrag himself, sometimes skipping a phase of the boss fight
• Fixed Heavy Glass Armor being stackable past 3 stacks
• Fixed Boots of Leaping and Boots of Lunging sharing the same toggle state when switching between them
• Fixed Boots of Leaping not stopping in front of walls in Phasing Mode
• Fixed Boots of Lunging allowing Shopkeepers and story boss props to be knocked back
• Fixed Aria’s final boss being taking damage from non-weapon sources while confused
• Fixed Shovemonsters and Gorgons not moving past Mary’s lamb
• Fixed Metrognomes teleporting to the exit stairs instead of the their spawn point
• Fixed Mystery Mode not obscuring the player’s shovel swipe
• Fixed healing not granting invincibility frames on Cadence’s final boss fight
• Fixed Melody’s final boss sometimes standing still near walls
• Fixed Nightmare shadows causing enemies to act one beat sooner after being revealed
• Fixed Eli’s hand not starting an electric arc when attacking a Skull on a wire
• Fixed Nocturna’s minimap continuing to display the locations of enemies after transforming back into human form
• Fixed Nocturna being able to transmogrify her weapon and head slots infinitely while in Bat Form
• Fixed walls interrupting ice slides in Phasing Mode
• Fixed Dagger of Phasing being stopped by chests and shrines when thrown
• Fixed Pixie explosions not destroying items, wires, ice, water or metal doors
• Fixed Vaults containing gold when playing Monk and Coda
• Fixed the player’s previous position not resetting when using a War Drum or other action items, affecting enemy movement
• Fixed the Conjurer’s and Transmogrifier’s price resetting to the minimum after generating enough items using Ring of Shadows
• Fixed Headless Skeletons, Cutlass parries, Ring of Pain, Boots of Lunging, Golden Lute and crate knockback treating diagonal damage as orthogonal
• Fixed Pixies not retaliating against players lunging into them with an Axe
• Fixed exploding Pixies damaging distant players wielding a Rapier
• Fixed some enemies moving immediately after taking knockback in Randomizer Mode, even if they were randomized to be slower
• Fixed Skeletons getting stuck in place when walking into a Rat Familiar
• Fixed Slimes being biased towards bumping into walls
• Fixed spellcasts being treated as movements in some cases, causing the player to start sliding on ice and Clones to move again
• Fixed Ghasts and Ghouls idling for one beat after moving into a Rat Familiar
• Fixed War Drum, Blood Drum, Boots of Leaping and Boots of Lunging causing level transitions to be delayed when used on a staircase
• Fixed unaffordable chests resetting Tempo’s death timer

General changes for all versions

New features and additions

• Enemy outlines:
  • Enemy silhouettes now have a faint outline, making them easier to see against dark floor tiles.
  • The intensity of this effect can be changed in the graphical options.
  • Enemies standing in total darkness or within a Nightmare’s shadow do not have outlines.
• Co-op target indicators:
  • In co-op mode, enemies now indicate which player they are currently following via a small arrow pointing at the player.
  • Whenever an enemy’s target player changes, this arrow appears for a few seconds before fading out.
  • The visibility of these indicators can be configured in the gameplay options.
• Local co-op adjustments:
  • Local co-op players now share their coin multipliers, gold counters and spell inventories.
    • This also applies to Cadence and Dorian in Cadence’s final boss fight in single-player.
  • Local co-op players always teleport together when entering or exiting a secret shop, while online co-op players can enter and leave separately.
• New international font:
  • Crypt of the NecroDancer now uses the Silver pixel font to display international characters.
  • The original vector font from previous versions can be enabled in the language options.
• Workshop mod extraction:
  • The contents of resource packs downloaded from the Steam Workshop can now be explored by using the “open directory” option in the mod browser.
  • In order to use the modified resource pack, it must be copied from the downloaded_mods to mods.
• Level editor improvements:
  • The enemy types spawned by Sarcophagi can now be customized
  • The item dropped by Shopkeepers can now be customized
  • Boss levels can now be resized freely
  • Added a confirmation when trying to leave the level editor when there are unsaved changes
  • Added a setting to mute the music in the level editor (enabled by default)
  • Changed the Ghost Shopkeeper to no longer sing his soothing song while in the level editor
• Game window improvements:
  • Changed Vertical Sync to be controlled by a separate checkbox in the Display Options menu
  • Changed the game window to open at the appropriate resolution immediately, instead of resizing shortly after launch

Bug fixes

Achievements

• Fixed certain all-characters achievements not being granted
• Fixed ‘8-Ball’ achievement not unlocking under the correct conditions
• Fixed ‘Two Can Tango’ achievement not unlocking when playing characters other than Cadence
• Fixed ‘Two Can Tango’ achievement unlocking in Single Zone mode
• Fixed Mode Master achievement sometimes failing to be awarded
• Fixed ‘Polyamorous’ achievement not unlocking immediately
• Fixed some achievements not being unlockable when custom music is enabled
• Fixed some achievements not unlocking immediately upon meeting their condition

Audio

• Fixed liquid splashing sounds being audible when entering a new floor
• Fixed Banshees muffling the music during instant replays
• Fixed some causes of erratic timing behavior when the active audio output device is disconnected

Performance

• Fixed temporary performance drops shortly after starting the game
• Fixed occasional lag spikes due to garbage collection activating mid-level
• Fixed lag spikes when loading certain sprites for the first time
• Fixed lag spike shortly after entering a new level
• Fixed saves for long deathless runs taking a long time to load
• Fixed long deathless runs having increasingly high memory usage

Level editor

• Fixed level editor preview cursor not displaying wires
• Fixed price tag editor preview using the wrong font
• Fixed Mimic contents not being visible in the level editor
• Fixed level editor being affected by Multi-Character Mode setting
• Fixed ‘Quick toggle play mode’ setting in the level editor not working when not using a controller
• Fixed the head of Aria’s final boss not being upscaled when the body is enlarged via the level editor
• Fixed Tar Monsters and Moles being invisible in the editor
• Fixed Eli’s hand showing in the editor as just “Eli”

Menus

• Fixed AMPLIFIED DLC not always automatically loading when starting the game
• Fixed seed entry menu not allowing keyboard shortcuts (Ctrl+A, Ctrl+Backspace, etc.)
• Fixed non-functioning ‘Create package’ option in asset mod config menu
• Fixed ‘Change Soundtrack’ menu not having any noticeable effect when Custom Music is enabled
• Fixed the game window not remembering its maximization state when exiting

Aria

• Fixed trapdoor penalty boxes using the wrong wall tier when playing Aria
• Fixed Earthquake Scroll damaging Aria’s final boss
• Fixed King Conga and Death Metal generating incorrect enemies when playing Aria with AMPLIFIED content disabled
• Fixed Shrine of Phasing taking away Aria’s and Coda’s dagger
• Fixed Aria sometimes getting multiple shrines per zone
• Fixed Aria’s final boss not roaring when the arena is entered

Cadence

• Fixed Cadence’s final boss fight containing an additional, non-controllable helper character when generated in the editor
• Fixed Cadence’s penultimate boss not being affected by knockback during phase 2
• Fixed gold weapons making Cadence’s penultimate boss drop 1 gold when charging into his gong
• Fixed Dorian’s coin multiplier being lost when using items or spells on Cadence’s final boss fight

Diamond

• Fixed Diamond receiving a Holster from the Shrine of Uncertainty
• Fixed Diamond receiving a Bag of Holding when killing the Conjurer

Dove

• Fixed Dove being able to blow up Hard Mode Sarcophagi
• Fixed Dove generating flashes of light when tickling enemies while standing on the Wire

Monk

• Fixed bombs not clearing out boss minion gold on the correct tiles for Monk/Coda
• Fixed Hard Mode Sarcophagi dropping gold for Monk/Coda
• Fixed boss spawns after the 10th one dropping a coin on boss fight end for Monk/Coda

Nocturna

• Fixed Nocturna having a human head in bat form
• Fixed Nocturna’s inventory in Bat Form sometimes displaying an incorrect kill countdown
• Fixed Nocturna staying alive with 0 hearts when transforming with a fully cursed health bar
• Fixed Nocturna’s penultimate boss not dealing directional damage
• Fixed a rare softlock in Nocturna’s penultimate boss fight

Shrines

• Fixed Shrine of War not applying to enemies spawned by Sarcophagi or Skulls
• Fixed Shriner Travel Rune causing nearby shrines to become single-choice
• Fixed Shrine of Space’s other items not being deleted when you pick a shovel while holding Crystal Shovel
• Fixed Shrine of Glass not upgrading janitored items
• Fixed activated shrines in a Shriner continuing to drain money when bumped
• Fixed Shrine of Blood giving unusable blood weapons to weapon-locked characters

Enemies

• Fixed Evil Eyes stopping on the wrong tile when leaping through an Ice Spirit Familiar
• Fixed Evil Eyes not respecting changes to their beat delay in Randomizer Mode
• Fixed Evil Eyes’ charge not being delayed by knockback
• Fixed shop wall mimics leaving floating torches behind
• Fixed Wind Gargoyles sometimes ceasing to push players away
• Fixed some enemies incorrectly delaying their movement after knockback in Randomizer Mode
• Fixed Electric Zombies not receiving knockback from non-shielded hits in Randomizer Mode
• Fixed taking damage when parrying into an Electric Orb
• Fixed Tar Monsters always dealing 3 damage in Randomizer Mode
• Fixed Armadillos being able to start charging immediately after being knocked back
• Fixed clamped Monkeys triggering familiars on move
• Fixed clamped Monkeys being affected by teleports
• Fixed large enemies losing some of their collision tiles when the map is resized
• Fixed enemies not being visible when stepping onto a previously revealed tile
• Fixed enemies moving when quick restarting a custom dungeon as Bard
• Fixed enemies not resetting their activation radius when the confusion status effect expires
• Fixed potential errors when a Training Sarcophagus spawns a spirit while Nazar Charm is equipped

Minibosses

• Fixed Banshee not emitting a “Deafened!” flyaway when attacked by a player
• Fixed Banshee wail sometimes becoming permanent after the Banshee dies
• Fixed Minotaurs and Armadillos not being stunned for the correct amount of time in Randomizer Mode
• Fixed Nightmares having their AI randomized in Randomizer Mode
• Fixed Ogres getting stuck after taking knockback during their upswing
• Fixed the Red/Blue Dragon’s breath cooldown not ticking down while the Dragon is frozen

Bosses

• Fixed Death Metal switching to a faster beat delay at an incorrect time
• Fixed Death Metal’s health thresholds being scaled incorrectly in Randomizer Mode
• Fixed omnidirectional bounce traps triggering on Death Metal when he teleports onto them
• Fixed Death Metal sometimes incorrectly taking double knockback
• Fixed Death Metal sometimes dropping a shield particle without losing his shield
• Fixed inputs after King Conga’s pause sometimes being incorrectly treated as missed beats
• Fixed King Conga not teleporting back to his throne when hit while frozen
• Fixed King Conga’s introduction text intersecting with walls on some non-English languages
• Fixed King Conga refusing to sit on a partially pickaxed throne

Items

• Fixed Ring of Shadows, Ring of Pain and Ring of Might being too common in the Conjurer and Transmogrifier
• Fixed Cutlass parries being orthogonalized even if the corresponding quirk is disabled
• Fixed lobby upgrades being scattered out of the player’s inventory under rare circumstances
• Fixed Boots of Lunging knocking back other players
• Fixed lobby items being destructible by bombs
• Fixed Dove Familiar not teleporting frozen enemies
• Fixed Shopkeeper Familiar triggering on teleports
• Fixed Backpack Quirk not preserving order when swapping to another bag item

NPCs

• Fixed Transaction Panels causing the No Return Tile to inflict damage
• Fixed price tags not being removed immediately when the Shopkeeper dies
• Fixed ‘Item Generation: Racing’ mode sometimes still inducing seed variance between runs with alive or dead shopkeepers

Lobby

• Fixed Diamond Dealer generating items that are not usable by the selected character
• Fixed diamonds from single-zone boss completions sometimes getting lost when returning to the lobby
• Fixed weapon-locked characters being unable to unlock weapons in the lobby

Co-op

• Fixed cut-off movement tweens when bumping into another co-op player who moves after a short time
• Fixed “Beat skipped” message appearing in co-op mode
• Fixed asymmetric elements in reflected co-op HUD
• Fixed local co-op players sometimes dying to ranged attacks before getting a chance to act
• Fixed dead local co-op players causing ranged enemy attacks to be delayed
• Fixed auto-latency calibration differing between local co-op players

Hazards

• Fixed hot coals inflicting damage while falling down a trapdoor

Modding

• Fixed Workshop mods not applying custom beatmaps by default
• Fixed Workshop Mods sometimes failing to load at startup, leading to frozen player sprites
• Fixed newline-separated beatmaps not always being parsed correctly
• Fixed item removals via necrodancer.xml mods not working correctly

Visual fixes

• Fixed Monocle revealing wall gold on the main floor while in the secret shop
• Fixed particles from the main level being visible while in the secret room
• Fixed bombs displaying the player name in the kill message, instead of “Bomb”
• Fixed Zone 5’s disco floor pattern not lining up correctly with other zones when occurring in the same level
• Fixed tile brightness not updating correctly at high framerates
• Fixed disco floor flickering when Bard steps on or off an ice tile
• Fixed resolution scaling behavior on MacOS

The post NecroDancer: SYNCHRONY DLC Available Now! (v3.1.0) appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.

You might be saying, “Brace Yourself Games, it’s been 5 years. Why are you updating now?” 

Well, let’s just say this is a precursor to something bigger coming your way, and we want to make sure that we address some of the community’s most significant feedback before we get there.

From your feedback, here are some of the biggest things you wanted us to address:

1. Loading times
2. Difficulty spike
3. Custom music
4. Controller support/control inputs

Good news – we’ve got something in the bank for all of these points today and SO much more, including improved co-op and mod support. We’ve got a lot of changes to go through, so strap in.

Read the full patch notes here.

The post Crypt of the NecroDancer Gets its First Update in Over Five Years (v3.0.0) appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.

See you around,

Maddie and the Brace Yourself Games team

The post Happy 7th NecroDanciversary! appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.

• SRP Standard Edition: $29.99/£29.99/34.99€
• SRP Collector´s Edition: $49.99/£49.99/54.99€
• Release Date: February 12, 2021
• Preorders: Available now on our store: merch.braceyourselfgames.com
• Languages: Voices: English; Subtitles: Japanese, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Chinese

“Wonderfully hectic, exquisitely manic, we love this little jewel of a game.  It’s also jam-packed with content and a marvelous soundtrack.”
85/100 – Meristation

Along with the game and Amplified DLC, the Collector’s Edition includes:

• Illustrated steelbook case
• Full-color manual
• Exclusive 100% cotton printed “Cadence” bandana
• Enamel pin of “Bucky”, an unused pet familiar by original NecroDancer artist, Jesse Turner.
• Mini-CD of the original NecroDancer and “AMPLIFIED” DLC OSTs, with music by Danny Baranowsky feat. FamilyJules and guest artists, and art by the talented Anailis Dorta.

“You’re gonna love it”
5/5 – The Guardian

Along with the game and Amplified DLC, the Standard Edition contains:

• Full-color manual
• Mini-CD of the original NecroDancer and “AMPLIFIED” DLC OSTs, with music by Danny Baranowsky feat. FamilyJules and guest artists, and art by the talented Anailis Dorta.

Join Cadence once again as you move to the beat through this rhythm-based roguelike adventure! Find your enemies’ weaknesses and unlock new characters while plunging further into the depths of the Crypt of the NecroDancer to reclaim your heart – or be doomed to dance forever in this dungeon.

Players must move on the beat to navigate randomly generated dungeons while battling dancing skeletons, zombies, dragons, and more, while grooving to the game’s award winning Danny Baranowsky soundtrack. You can even team up with a friend in local co-op mode!

The post Crypt of the NecroDancer Physical and Collector’s Edition appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.

Crypt of the NecroDancer’s AMPLIFIED DLC will be coming to PS4, Vita, Xbox One, and iOS later this year!

The post Crypt of the NecroDancer on the Nintendo Switch! appeared first on Brace Yourself Games.