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Update #44 - January update
Hello dear Nanobackers!
January was a very productive month for Nanolith. We are working flat out every day to finish the game and are making good progress. Let’s take a look at what we’ve been up to in the last three weeks. This update is about:
- Game design
- Testgames
- Layout progress
- Living prototype
- TWITCH test games
- Production update
- pledgemanager
Game Design
Max and I are currently designing the final scenarios for Nanolith and getting them ready for test play. I don’t want to spoil you, so I’ll keep it a bit vague.
These scenarios really pack a punch. From the beginning, we had the idea that the end of Nanolith would be a series of exciting boss fights. And we’re sticking to that plan. The scenarios are wildly different because we want each boss fight to be as unique an experience as possible. Our system just proves again that there are excellent tools in it to design varied fights. The possibilities are very tempting and we are taking advantage of them. That much is said
new enemy art by Alexandro Oukino
The final chapter will also add a whole new mechanic to the game, which is very exciting. We don’t want to give too much away, but this much can be said:
Players’ decisions will result in completely different consequences. Both in terms of game content and mechanics, as well as concerning the story. You can look forward to that. But before that, you’ll have to fight your way through some extra tough boss battles
In short: We are almost done with the scenario design. By mid-February, everything should be designed and can be tested until mid-May. Meanwhile we will work on the arena mode. We will probably be able to tell you more about it in the next update.
Testgames
Testgame of the Myamato encounter. Always fun and very hard earned victories
We are currently running four testgames per week. Four evenings where three to four players take apart our scenarios. During the testgames, the main focus is on three things:
- Checking special rules
- Balancing
- General critique
Special rules: Each scenario in Nanolith is unique. This also means that each scenario introduces a certain amount of special rules that manipulate the basic gameplay. Especially boss fights (the last fight of a chapter and the side missions) therefore have a whole lot of rules that need to be checked. Our test groups do an excellent job at this and we usually find the biggest loopholes for misunderstandings very quickly. Fine-tuning then takes another dozen test games.
new enemy art by Alaxandro Oukino
Balancing: Scaling the difficulty is not an exact science, but a process in which the expertise of many players is taken as the basis for decisions. It’s really fascinating how differently the testplay-groups approach the tactical problems of our battles. And it’s also always surprising how many solutions there are for certain problems
Basically for our balancing: We want to create challenges especially in the boss fights that make efficient and intelligent play necessary. In the regular scenarios, mistakes in the game can be easily compensated for, but when Mymamto wants to squash you flat in his giant bulletproof construct, then you really have to be on your guard. that means that you can definitely fail in the boss fights sometimes. But the expertise gained in the failed run-through and the knowledge of the boss’s behavior patterns is a huge advantage for your second attempt.
General critique: At the end of the scenario there is always a short debrief where we ask the players to share their feelings and impressions about the scenario. We want to know if and when they were frustrated or totally happy with their plans, how the overall flow of the scenario felt, if they were interested in the map and the enemy selection, etc.
Testgame moment of the year. Five ones in a row
All feedback will be taken into account by us in one way or another. In discussions between the two of us, Max and I will determine the changes for the scenario based on the players’ impressions and our own design ideas. Thank you for your constructive criticism, praise and exciting moments in the tabletop simulator!
One last word: We are super happy about the regular testing games, because without proper testing Nanolith can’t become the game we want it to be. You, the test players, are one of the most important parts of this project and we are grateful and very happy that so many intelligent and kind people are helping us to make Nanolith a reality.
MORE TEST MATCHES!
Therefore, here again the call: We always need test players. In some groups there is still a place free, now and then players have to take a break due to their job etc… So approach us, write us on Facebook, or on discord if you want to be part of the testgame community. We explain all the rules, the other players are super nice and you can just try it out and then quit again if you have other things coming in your way
Click here for the discord:
Click the image to join our discord!
From February we will also need an English test group to check the English version. So also the call to all english native speakers: get in touch if you are interested!
Layout
The layout process is well on its way, but there are an incredible amount of details that need to be checked, critiqued and changed, so we decided to bring another person on board as layouter. This will also give us the opportunity to print samples through LongPack earlier than originally planned. We hope this will ease the burden of the May deadline so that as many potential bugs are found and corrected before May.
The second lobby. Layout not finished but on a great way
Katherine is currently laying out the second chapter of Nanolith and our plan is to finish one chapter each month. Katherine’s layout looks fantastic as always and we are pleased with the quick progress. If everything continues like this, May is still realistic as a month for the print deadline
YEAAH!
Living Prototype
We decided to review each stage of the layout process by printing a prototype. Because as we have seen in the last years, some projects were a bit handicapped by their pure digital creation when it came to the physical creation of the game.
With Nanolith we don’t want this to happen to us, we want to make sure that all maps are readable and functional, that the ring binder doesn’t mess up lobbies, or make texts illegible etc…
Checking out the components and the pizza
We’ve also noticed that content corrections are much easier to make on physical components than on digital documents. That’s just how our brain works. Pick up cards, open corresponding sections in the book, checking paragraphs etc. All of that has to be done on physical components and that leads to Max now standing in the copy store for hours (like he did a year ago when making the first prototype) and having insider talks with the fantastic owner of our favorite copy store about paper thicknesses, Chinese color schemes and shot and pressed ring bindings. Pretty cool if you’re a nerd
mmmh, yummy cyberpunk boardgame!
Our first review of the German 1st chapter also took place right away - as befits a Woodpecker meeting - over beer and pizza. The Osteria in Esslingen has a extra large table which was perfect for our project. It was super nice to see the printed materials and we both went home with pages and pages of critique. Next week we have the 2nd chapter coming up … We are excited.
TWITCH test games
Because the test games are so much fun we decided to stream some of them in the next weeks. We will start streaming the first game on 07.02.23 at 20:00 (Berlin time).
Of course you have the possibility to give us critique while watching via chat, so you can participate live as a test player without much responsibility for the games’ outcome. We are looking forward to your input. Here’s our super small - only for you founded - channel
Click the image to get to our new twitch channel
Here is the link again:
So 7.2.23 at 20:00 (Berlin time)/2 pm (New York time) the first stream will take place. Come by!
That’s it from my side, I’ll give the stage free for Fabian, who will tell you some more things regarding the production and the communication with LongPack.
See you next time or on Facebook, discord, Instagram!
Production update
Hello dear Nanobacker, this is Fabian from Woodpecker-Games
So far everything is going according to plan with the production. That means we will try to have the print data completely submitted to LongPack by May and that should give us enough time to have the game in the central warehouses by mid-September and start the final delivery.
Fortunately, we are able to receive samples of the individual components from Longpack before the deadline, so that we can check them for any errors etc. before May. This includes the standees, punchboards, stickersheets, tuckboxes and most importantly the minis!
We are very excited about the components and look forward to receiving the sample components from China.
Pledgemanager
There are still some non-finalized pledges in our pledgemanager. Please check your emails for the individual links to finalize your pledge. The pledge manager will probably remain open until the end of March. If you haven’t received an email or are not sure how this all works, please feel free to contact us.
We also made a short video in the last update explaining how to use the manager here:
click the image to get to the video
That’s it from my side we wish you a nice rest of january!
Best regards,
Marc, Max and Fabian from Woodpecker-Games
BIZARRO BABEL 
BIZZZZAAAAAARO BABEL!!! 
