Tactical Breach Wizards dev log: Breaks & Burnout

[@CaesarsSalad]

One upside from selecting a save slot in the beginning is that it is clear that there *are* different save slots.

[@1vader]

This. For example, Stacklands has save slots which you can change in the options menu and there are constantly people that ask whether there are save slots and how you can change them or people that ask for save slots to be implemented or that are surprised when they hear somebody talk about it for the first time and deleted their save to start again with different run settings. To be fair, putting them into a more obvious place probably would help but still, showing them first is really clear. It also means if your little brother asks if he can play, maybe even while the game isn't currently running, you immediately already know that save slots are a thing without having to try and find them. While I'm past that age now and my siblings all have their own devices (and live on their own), I'm sure there are still plenty of people that share a device and account with their siblings or kids.

[@Arakus99]

I always forget Ultrakill has save slots be they’re just hidden away at the bottom of the options screen (tho I started playing before they existed so maybe it does show you them at the start if you’re starting nowadays? Idk)

[@Amylrun]

I'd love to hear your talk about writing for games, I didnt expect tactical wizard breach to have such amazing banter between characters, I think i'll remember the optional one between Banks and Rion until I die lol.

[@juliand665]

god this video is deeply relatable to me - additional people being around making it a whole "social thing" that uses up energy - fulfillment fading unreasonably quickly, making the brain seek more validation/stress about it - wanting to work on something but then just... not doing it. "not sure if i couldn't, but i didn't" is so accurate - appointments at random times making it impossible to cram in work around them in the same half-day - having a great time once you finally do work on it and wondering why it was so hard to get there - the back burner subconscious thinking leading to the right decision after like a week of not thinking about it really appreciate you opening up about this and reflecting so clearly!

[@davidjeffries9562]

I haven't watched this yet, but I wanted to tell you what a great time I'm having with tactical breach wizards. Things have been a bit rough for me over the past few months, and the snappy dialogue and satisfying gameplay have been a great distraction from all that. Thank you.

[@flaxenflash]

The press any button to continue thing is often for controller engagement. Depending on the situation, if there are multiple control options available (and in the context of consoles, multiple users assigned to them) then getting the user to hit a button is a simple way to work out what input device they are trying to use and then also what user is trying to play the game because that isn't always obvious on consoles

[@1vader]

Also, most of the logos shown before the menu are there because of contractual obligations. And they definitely can help a ton in building brand awareness, be it of the publisher, the game studio, or something like the engine that was used.

[@dmitritsvetaev129]

Bookmarking nice e-mails is a technique I also do. It's a great reminder of people's gratitude, appreciation and general good vibes. Helps to not overly concentrate on (self-) criticism😅

[@opheliashur]

i adore TBW's sense of humour, and the intricate detail of the cat animations; truly it is excellent to have beheld it. take the time u need to relax!!!

[@rob-rendell]

Regarding the issue with people losing progress: part of the problem I feel is that the "Mission Select" option under "Play" in the main menu is very obvious and easy to access at any time (you can always quit back to the main menu), but the back-at-home "Mission" tab which *does* allow you to replay previous missions without losing your progress is harder to get at, since it only comes up when you're between missions. Even if you have just advanced to the next cut-scene or doorway conversation and then quit, when you come back to resume playing you can't get back to it. Combine that with the fact that (IIRC) the game assures you at some early point that you'll be able to come back and replay missions, it's not too surprising that there's confusion about what the "Mission Select" button does. Anyway, I'm sure you'll come up with a good solution. I hope you get your week off soon! I loved the game, and your success is well-deserved.

[@Arakus99]

This. Tbh I’m kind of confused as to why he isn’t just making mission select function like the mission tab? I’d like to see him explain his reasoning bc I’m sure there’s something

[@rob-rendell]

The Mission Select function does allow players to progress past mission-breaking bugs, which is very kind to the users, but now that the game has had a few patches it might no longer be necessary? Rather than a confirmation dialog (which people apparently aren't understanding), perhaps Mission Select could prompt you, after you've selected the mission, to make a choice: replay the mission with your current perks (like the Mission tab), or reset your game's progress to the selected mission (or Cancel). Requiring the user to choose between two "real" options, rather than just "Ok" and "Cancel" (or whatever the current dialog says), might help folks better understand what they're choosing?

[@Moffen9T]

Thank you for sharing the journey. I really admire your design chops. But through these videos I'm also coming to really appreciate your level of self awareness, and ability to introspect. I find it really valuable. I hope you do get to have some proper R&R soon.

[@latte4159]

I've been hoping to see another video about how things have been post-launch! I really like getting to hear you talk about motivation and validation and stuff because I relate to a lot of it.

[@sonic-factory]

Good luck with the Baftas - if they judges know their stuff, then they should have played TBW already!

[@Carboncluster]

You need a big bathtub, foam bath or good smelling stuff to pour into it, a waterproof bluetooth speaker and an audiobook of all the Sherlock Holmes short stories. Listening to one of these audiobooks in the bathtub on a Saturday is just fantastic and WILL relax you. Whether you want it or not! Get well soon!

[@Yin2Falcon]

this sounds like it's all about control when you do design work, you're in control when you're dealing with appointments, you are very much not (even if they are optional, you don't get to postpone them without consequence)

[@Kenionatus]

AFAIK, the feeling of having not control is one of the factors that cause burnout, so that tracks.

[@JoStro_]

That rant about save slots took me back to when I first played a game with save slots as a kid with my brother. We had no idea what the game was asking of us, though it didn't help that the game we were playing refered to the slots as "Game" 1-4 (which is argluably significantly more confusing). I think we ended up picking "game 2" after a few minutes of deliberation, and only really realised what it meant years after.

[@Arakus99]

Out of curiosity, do you remember what the reasoning was for picking 2?

[@JoStro_]

@@Arakus99 not sure, my best guess is we interpreted it as the number of players.

[@ScarfKat]

I love your cat just chilling next to your shoulder there, super cute! Sounds like such a busy time. I have a feeling I'm going to run into a similar thing once my next game launches, since right after I have to get started on getting into college lol. Not sure where I'll get a break, but I do know that I'll need one. I hope you're able to get a proper week off soon though. I'm glad this release has been so successful for you guys though because it took ages to finish. Acclaim that was well earned for sure. Always glad to chill out to these little talks. Can't wait to give the game a shot myself once I finally have some spare income again lol. EDIT: Also I am *exactly* the same about appointments! It's so nice to know I'm not alone in that lol. I get so much less done in busy weeks because I work best once I get into the flow of things, but if I know that flow will be cut short then it feels like it's not really worth starting at the time.

[@Zorajit]

I really enjoyed Tactical Breach Wizards. It had a lot of the same wit that I expect from Supergiant. It’s great!

[@marsgreekgod]

tactical breach wizards was so good by the way. I uh didn't have time to watch the video fully eyet but wanted to say how cool it was

[@julianxamo7835]

Literally finished the game a few hours ago, amazing, I loved the writing the gameplay, the art, everything, I've laughed out loud several times while playing. I've been hyped for years and it lived up to the hype! Well, I still need to do the dream levels you unlock when you finish the story, looking forward to play those Hope you get a (very well deserved) rest soon!

[@x3axDev]

I had no idea the game was out until I saw this video! 😄 I think I've been waiting for about 4 years. Time to dive in and play!

[@therealtroy8275]

Life happens bro. Make sure you find some time to take for yourself, whatever that means for you.

[@eclipserepeater2466]

I don't really like it when I start a game for the first time and get booted straight to gameplay without a main menu. It feels like some kind of betrayal to make me do gameplay stuff straight away without any chance to pick my options and get used to the fact that it's in fullscreen. I guess a main menu works well as the intermediary state between being in my OS and playing the game.

[@julianxamo7835]

Yeah it's too abrupt

[@Arakus99]

@@bryce7344 tbf this isn’t an inherent feature of games that start like that - iirc Transistor lets you open the pause menu and change settings pretty much immediately (I think you might have to take the transistor first but that’s like a 10 second animation)

[@WizardofWestmarch]

I wonder if the save slot thing goes back to like PS1 and Game cube where saves were shown across games in the save system from save cards.

[@peezieforestem5078]

As a programmer, a constant menu is just the simplest to implement. If you have to vary the behavior depending on whether a person has played the game before, or some other conditions, then it means additional logic and more states, which means more bugs, or at least more testing. And it seems like such a marginal improvement for the end user, that the risk and effort are not worth it.

[@Carboncluster]

I would have loved to have an in-game save slot system! I wish I could've just let my nephew play when he was visiting. He doesn't have his own Steam account and he didn't want to delete my save file, although I offered him the option. It was kinda sad, because we really had a great time with Sonic Mania for example. :(

[@ColinBrislawn]

The sounds quality is super nice now! Does anyone know what kind of mic that is?

[@georgeparkes3863]

UFO 50 is an example of where the lack of guides and instructions has been a barrier to engagement with the great games. I didn’t find that issue with TBW and have been really enjoying it so far, so, for goodness sake take a week off! 😄

[@rich_in_paradise]

The most frustrating save UI thing for me is when you manually save and then go to quit and the game warns you that "unsaved progress will be lost" and you're not sure if there is unsaved progress because you didn't in fact save, or that the warning is just completely superfluous. Again I think this is a console cert thing that should be revisited so that at least the game should only show you that warning if there is actually some unsaved progress.

[@smithface2139]

I always choose save slot #3 😇

[@powerupsoup]

Tom, you're nice and I like you!

[@shrui]

I hate title cards when you start a game and think you're right that its a hold over from arcade days. I'm not a big GTA5 fan but I did appreciate that it would just load straight into the game. Oddly when I've complained about it to friends about title cards that a few people defended them and say they like them as part of the experience of loading the game for the first time. 🤷