Friday, July 12, 2013

[Press Release] Announcing Shoy Schot! nui


          I am proud to announce Shoy Schot! nui [Shoy Schot! Stand-Alone Edition Version 3.0.0.0 nui], the third and final major release of Shoy Schot! Stand-Alone Edition (SS! SAE).

          Shoy Schot! is an additive, console-based strategic card game created in C#. Starting out as a simple mini game about flipping cards and gaining ownership over the game board it soon blossomed into a full fledged card game with a mega ton of customization options and gameplay modes. And with Shoy Schot! nui, it has finally reached its ultimate form!

          Shoy Schot! nui retains all the features of the previous release (SS! SAE v2.0.1.9) which included (but limited to): 5 main Rule Sets to play in their own Free Play modes; An Arcade-like mode called Unlimited Deck Mode; Best Of… Mode, where players can play best of X matches; a robust Tournament Mode for serious play; 22 Accomplishments; Stats pages that kept over 80 stats; Personal Rank Card to share and compare with other players; 8 profiles for same computer use; and Virtual Gaia Games Matching!, a completely separate matching mini-game.

          New features to Shoy Schot! nui include (but not limited to): Custom Rule Set Mode, where players can build their own custom Rule Sets; Endless Tower, which is a survival mode-type gameplay mode; A Score Attack Mode; Arcade Challenges where players can try to conquer all 40 challenges; A Tutorial Mode, where players can learn the basics of the card game in new, more interactive way; a new mini-game called Clementine; 22 more Accomplishments; more stats; and slew of secrets and tweaks.

          In the year since Shoy Schot! was first released as hidden mini-game in my text-based, horror-adventure game, Still Here After Wednesday Night; it has seen 13 updates, two of which were major updates in terms of improving efficiency and adding new content, but this is by far its biggest update—going as far as rewriting and overhauling large sections of the code and spending more man-hour working on it than any previous release at over 70 days in counting. Previous major release took around 30 days to complete (give or take a week and a day), minor releases taking about a week or two.

          Again, this will be the Final Version of Shoy Schot! What that means is that once Shoy Schot! nui is released, there will be no more features added to the game periodically like with Version 2’s tenure. However, I will continue to support Shoy Schot! nui and release new updates for bug and error fixes, but that is all. Shoy Schot! nui will also be Virtual Gaia’s final game made in this way—without real sound and graphics. The next game project I do will be on a new engine and utilize sound and 3 dimensions!

          Shoy Schot! nui is a PC only game Coming Soon (later this summer) from Virtual Gaia Games. It will be downloadable from http://virtualgaiagames.blogspot.com/ for free when available.

          For those who have yet to experience Shoy Schot!, they can download it latest release, SS! SAE v2.0.19 here: http://virtualgaiagames.blogspot.com/2012/09/shoy-schot-stand-alone-edition-update.html, before Shoy Schot! nui releases.

          If you would like to help test Shoy Schot! nui before it releases please leave a comment saying so below.

           A complete list of returning features, changes, improvements, and new features along with screenshots are listed after the jump below.


Game: Shoy Schot! nui
Genre: Electronic Card Game
Company: Virtual Gaia Games
Release Date: Summer 2013
Price: Economical Priced [Read: FREE!]
Download Site: http://virtualgaiagames.blogspot.com/2012/09/shoy-schot-stand-alone-edition-update.html
Website: http://virtualgaiagames.blogspot.com/



Returning Features
  • All Of Them
    • World Tour Mode
      • Includes Arizona, Roppongi, Ohio, England, and Yorkshire Free Play Modes
    • Best Of… Mode
    • Unlimited Deck Mode
    • Tournament Mode
    • CPU vs. CPU Modes
    • The Mini-Game Virtual Gaia Games Matching!
      • 10 unlockable modes (11 in all)
    • 22 Accomplishments
      • Shoy Schot!’s Trophy/Achievement System (Not Online-Based)
    • Ability to Create Up to 8 Profiles
    • Rank Card
      • Including features to share your with friends and upload and compare theirs
    • Multitude of Customization Option for almost every mode
    • 2 Versions of the Game Deck
      • Classica and Version 2 (add 4 more card types)
    • 3 Different CPU Players to play against
    • 3 Game Boards to Play On
    • Alternative Panel Names Option
      • For more optimal 2 Player matches
    • 80+ Stats
    • Auto-Saving
    • Back-up System Data
      • For when a new update coming out. Back-up your save data and load it into the new version.
    • Cheatcodes
    • Secrets
    • And the rest of the minor and background feature

Changes
  • World Tour Mode renamed World Tour
    • Moved to first spot on Select Mode Menu
  • Best Of… renamed Two Out Of Three
    • Moved to second spot on Select Mode Menu
  • Unlimited Deck Mode renamed Arcade Free Play
    • Removed from Select Mode Menu
    • Added to The BluMatch Arcade
  • Unlimited Deck renamed Arcade Deck
  • Tournament Mode moved fifth spot on Select Mode Menu
  • Rule Set Order Change
    • Arizona > Roppongi > Ohio > England > Yorkshire
  • Mini-Game: Virtual Gaia Games Matching!
    • Removed from Options Menu
    • Added to The BluMatch Arcade
  • Rank Calculation for Draws back to its original .25
  • Slight change some of the original 22 Accomplishments

Improvements
  • Match Interface Improvements
    • Shows the current Rule Set and Hand Rule that is in play
    • Also, shows if a one of the Monarch’s Rule is in play or not
  • The Menu system have been overhauled
    • Changed from All Caps to Start Cap to improve readability
    • More than a cosmetic change. The code inside has been rewritten be more efficient and consistent
  • Overhauled Match Setup For Most Modes
    • Improved Efficiency
    • Improved Consistency
  • Two Out Of Three
    • Goes up to Best of 19 matches
    • Can choose whether or not draws will count on the 4x4 Game Board
  • All Hand Rules now follows a standard, recognizable order
  • Standard Deck Builder Tweaks
    • Improved Efficiency
    • Ability to handle Custom Rule Sets
  • Arcade Deck Builder Overhaul
    • Improved Efficiency
  • Tournament Mode
    • Now shows Current Score and Round Points in Standings as well as at the completion of a tournament
    • Now remembers what profiles started the tournament to give proper stats to
  • The Stat Pages
    • Reformatted to be more orderly
    • Navigation controls added to help moving along the 4 pages of stats!
  • Improved Auto-Saving
    • Improved Efficiency
    • Improved Error Handling
  • Improved Error Handling
    • Creates secondary back-up save every 10, 25, or 50 saves to alleviate any load error problems (Can be turned off)
    • Logs Method Accessed
  • A Ton of Minor Fixes and Additions

New Feature/Mode
  • New Logo/ Icon
  • Accomplishments and Settings are now individual to the Profile and not global
    • Have a roommate or use a shared computer and you all play Shoy Schot!?  Now Profile 1’s setting stays the same when Profile 2’s changes them
  • 22 new Accomplishments to go along with the original 22 for a whooping 44 Accomplishments!!
  • Standard and Arcade Deck
    • 7 new Hand Rules Added to the Standard Deck
    • 17 new Hand Rules Added to the Arcade Deck
  • Custom Rule Set
    • Create, Share, and Play your and your friend’s custom made Rule Sets!
  • Endless Tower
    • Try to reach the highest floor you can with limited lives or play continuous
    • 3 modes with unique styles of play: Standard, Arcade, and Endless Play
    • Keep A Record of Your Top 20 Highest Floor Reaches (Standard and Arcade only)
  • The BluMatch Arcade
    • Want to just mess around without fear of ruining your Performance Stats? Here’s your place.
  • Score Attack
    • Aim for the highest score against Friends or the CPU
    • View Top 20 Hi-Scores for each category
  • Arcade Challenges
    • Do you have want it takes to complete all 40 challenges
  • Tutorial Mode
    • Learn the ropes in Prof. Nomura classroom
    • A More Interactive way to learn the Basics of Shoy Schot!
  • A New Mini-Game Added: Clementine
    • Want to play a card effect-driven, strategic card game? Try this new mini game!
  • Even more Stats to go with all the new features
    • Over 120 Stats
  • Deck Refill
  • A Slew of new secrets to find and discover!!

Screenshots (Click to Enlarge)



























1 comment:

  1. Again, if anyone wants to help test the game please let me know here. You'll be credited as part of the QA team.

    ReplyDelete