Rivals of Aether - Official Thread

[zman804]

So, me and Burnsy found another crazy Kragg glitch. Infinite Up B, all you have too do is parry.

This isn't a glitch as much as a really cool trick, you can do a smash or tilt onto a falling rock, break it, and start up am aerial. Crazy coverage.

 

[akf09]

that glitch is funny but it really wouldnt matter much in competitive play, still cool i have found that too

 

[4nace]

Definitely going to fix the rock pull glitch. Not intended at all! Not sure about that pillar glitch since you need to cooperate to make a ton.

The hitbox one seems kinda cool but shouldn't break anything now.

Also I have gotten a ton more playtester requests. I'd like to make some fixes and do a knock back pass before sending out more links. Something like early January for more people most likely.

-Dan

 

[AbbiDood]

That "Kragg rock trick" video is really cool haha, hoping that stays. Love little tricks like that.

 

[JayTheUnseen]

Definitely going to fix the rock pull glitch. Not intended at all! Not sure about that pillar glitch since you need to cooperate to make a ton.

The hitbox one seems kinda cool but shouldn't break anything now.

Also I have gotten a ton more playtester requests. I'd like to make some fixes and do a knock back pass before sending out more links. Something like early January for more people most likely.

-Dan

Can you confirm @ T00nbink 's email was received?I plan to send my email the same way he did.His email was sent around 17 days ago.

 

[RoA_Zam]

Thing is, if you dont have fire on the enemy you're plain bad. All of his specials cause burn, so there really isn't much reason to NOT have fire on the enemy. Plus, not into specials? Use Bair. I have Reverse Aerial'd so much with Zetts so much, unlike with the others, which I rarely reverse aerial. But yeah, without fire he becomes somewhat useless.

Spacing. Against a smart opponent, spacing specials and bair becomes harder. At higher level, more thought-intensive play it becomes easy for an opponent to be consciously aware of a zetterburns need to spam fire and will find ways to avoid it.

When a player learns how good parry is and how easy it is to consistently pull it off, that's how zetterburns specials become useless.

His bair has garbage range also if you haven't noticed. It can easily be outranged by any character's jab, ftilt, fsmash, dsmash (w/ exception of wrastor), projectile move, etc. Landing one properly is the result of incorporating it into a combo. I you land one on an opponent, they've made a mistake in their approaching or countering.

Spamming side B is a much safer option, but against wrastor and kragg, their neutral game dominates. If kragg makes an up B wall to force an opponent to either break it down or jump over it, fire is virtually useless as Kragg rock bests all. With wrastor, the end lag on side B gives wrastor plenty of time to side B against it, or dodge it and approach with an aerial.

Once you get a combo going, fire is easy to get off. But it's not a good tool for using in neutral as far as I've seen. Zetterburn has great combos and easily kills with smash attacks as long as the opponent is on fire, but setting up for that situation is not easy in high level competitive play.

 

[DrMister]

Spacing. Against a smart opponent, spacing specials and bair becomes harder. At higher level, more thought-intensive play it becomes easy for an opponent to be consciously aware of a zetterburns need to spam fire and will find ways to avoid it.

When a player learns how good parry is and how easy it is to consistently pull it off, that's how zetterburns specials become useless.

His bair has garbage range also if you haven't noticed. It can easily be outranged by any character's jab, ftilt, fsmash, dsmash (w/ exception of wrastor), projectile move, etc. Landing one properly is the result of incorporating it into a combo. I you land one on an opponent, they've made a mistake in their approaching or countering.

Spamming side B is a much safer option, but against wrastor and kragg, their neutral game dominates. If kragg makes an up B wall to force an opponent to either break it down or jump over it, fire is virtually useless as Kragg rock bests all. With wrastor, the end lag on side B gives wrastor plenty of time to side B against it, or dodge it and approach with an aerial.

Once you get a combo going, fire is easy to get off. But it's not a good tool for using in neutral as far as I've seen. Zetterburn has great combos and easily kills with smash attacks as long as the opponent is on fire, but setting up for that situation is not easy in high level competitive play.

Haha, all your points are extremely valid, especially the whole special part. His side-special has really crap priority as well. We can agree on one thing tough, Zetterburn is the worst of the five.

 

[RoA_Zam]

Haha, all your points are extremely valid, especially the whole special part. His side-special has really crap priority as well. We can agree on one thing tough, Zetterburn is the worst of the five.

Of the 4. And I'm experimenting with him more against my friends. I'm likely going to main Zetterburn unless the next fire element Dan's coming up with is a lot Hotter.

 

[DrMister]

Of the 4. And I'm experimenting with him more against my friends. I'm likely going to main Zetterburn unless the next fire element Dan's coming up with is a lot Hotter.

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

 

[Xanthus]

You guys are tripping if you think 50percenterburn is the worst. $5 money match zetterburn will win

 

[T00nbink]

You guys are tripping if you think 50percenterburn is the worst. $5 money match zetterburn will win

I am not a play tester so I can't really have a opinion on this. But for observation from watching many of the video's the playtesters made. I think Kragg is for now the highest tier. But I really don't know.

 

[JayTheUnseen]

@ 4nace
Apologies,in my application I forgot to mention whether I possess two Xinput controllers usable with PC:
Not currently,but if I am accepted I will purchase the necessary equipment promptly.

 

[RoA_Zam]

I'm experimenting with getting the wii U GC adapter to work properly with RoA, but unfortunately my PC isn't picking up X/Y-axis inputs from my controller. So i'm stuck on that for now. I DO have the drivers for the adapter installed though, just need to work on a fix for them.

 

[JCOnyx]

Hopefully you can find a way. I couldn't configure it past the control stick (had to recalibrate it from the device properties from the control panel). Changing which axis does what probably requires editing the drivers themselves, which is what causes the problem with the shoulder buttons and C-Stick being inverted for RoA.

 

[TOGOpuff]

could i please have this game resend to my e-mail ( it's roquelamenza@yahoo.com.br) i had some issues with my inbox and it got deleted in the process. I'll highly appreaciate it since i'm in the urge to do more vids

thanks in advance (:

 

[Bakuryu]

Definitely going to fix the rock pull glitch. Not intended at all! Not sure about that pillar glitch since you need to cooperate to make a ton.
-Dan

Even if its only one or two its still probably not a good idea to keep in as it will happen every time an opponent parries a pillar. Just saiyan.

 

[JayTheUnseen]

Hey,to all you have not played the game-who is your most wanted character to try out?Mine's Orcane.
I love water element,versatile (and trick,often ) characters,and he fits the bill.His personality description also sounds quite likable to me.

 

[T00nbink]

Hey,to all you have not played the game-who is your most wanted character to try out?Mine's Orcane.
I love water element,versatile (and trick,often ) characters,and he fits the bill.His personality description also sounds quite likable to me.

Well I think orcane is really cool. But there is a character in Super Smash Land who has similar moves (Vaporeon). So I am going with Kragg! He looks amazing and has a great moveset in my opinion! But I have to wait and see who I really like the best.

 

[RoA_Zam]

Well I think orcane is really cool. But there is a character in Super Smash Land who has similar moves (Vaporeon). So I am going with Kragg! He looks amazing and has a great moveset in my opinion! But I have to wait and see who I really like the best.

It's fairly easy to get into enjoying every character as far as I know. I've played all of them and I love them all. Switching between them constantly gets a bit difficult but you could pick any of them and really just love playing them.

Of all the people I've shown off the game to and let them play, Kragg seems to be the most popular choice right now, with Wrastor as a close second.

 

[Rossuizan]

I feel Zetta's Side B is more of poke and should be used as you retreat with a wavedash. Zetta's Side B isn't that quick to which you can zone someone out with it, its more of a fireball to control space. If you're spamming Side B, then you're just asking to get punished. If Side B had a bit more priority, then people would respect it more.

 

[RoA_Zam]

I'm going to be streaming today around 5:30 - 6:00 EST.
The link is http://twitch.tv/earthBones

Please drop in to ask questions about characters, match ups, thoughts for upcoming characters/stages, or anything!

I'll be using a new version (12.20.14 build) of RoA that Dan was working on, so you all can get a glimpse of what he has in store for the next mini update!

 

[Rossuizan]

lol I tried to switch up my character icons from all foxes like your's and you still manage to have something similar. I'll be sure to follow and tune into your stream.

 

[JayTheUnseen]

It's fairly easy to get into enjoying every character as far as I know. I've played all of them and I love them all. Switching between them constantly gets a bit difficult but you could pick any of them and really just love playing them.

Of all the people I've shown off the game to and let them play, Kragg seems to be the most popular choice right now, with Wrastor as a close second.

Hm,I thought for sure Wrastor would be the super popular guy.He uses wind,he's aggressive,and he's got a bad boy persona.
I do expect to mildly enjoy all the 4 characters.Kragg is probably my second most wanted to play.

 

[DrMister]

Hm,I thought for sure Wrastor would be the super popular guy.He uses wind,he's aggressive,and he's got a bad boy persona.
I do expect to mildly enjoy all the 4 characters.Kragg is probably my second most wanted to play.

All characters are equally enjoyable! Wrastor's my favorite, tho. Then he's followed by Orcane, Zetts and Kragg. Just cuz I don't think Zett is best doesnt mean I dont like him

 

[RoA_Zam]

Hm,I thought for sure Wrastor would be the super popular guy.He uses wind,he's aggressive,and he's got a bad boy persona.
I do expect to mildly enjoy all the 4 characters.Kragg is probably my second most wanted to play.

Personally Zetterburn is my favorite right now.

Stream will go live in a few minutes, but nothing will be happening while I'm setting up. I'll offically start to do something around 5:30 EST!

 

[RoA_Zam]

Stream is over!

Also post #666 hype

 

[Hatninja]

Hm,I thought for sure Wrastor would be the super popular guy.He uses wind,he's aggressive,and he's got a bad boy persona.
I do expect to mildly enjoy all the 4 characters.Kragg is probably my second most wanted to play.

I'd say they're all fun to play. But Kragg is definitely my favorite.

 

[Rossuizan]

Would you guys be down for a skype group? This would probably generate more discussion about RoA besides the forums. Link to Skype Group.

 

[Xanthus]

Streaming and doing some RoA ! http://www.twitch.tv/xanthus1

 

[RoA_Zam]

Would you guys be down for a skype group? This would probably generate more discussion about RoA besides the forums. Link to Skype Group.

Really guys! Anyone is able to join, whether a playtester or NAWW. Join to discuss or ask questions about RoA or just chill and talk about anything. We're trying to make a community of friends for the game, and we'd love for you to join us. Click the word link in his post to automatically join the skype group

 

[howbadisbad]

Would you guys be down for a skype group? This would probably generate more discussion about RoA besides the forums. Link to Skype Group.

Do you need a plugin of some sort to use this? Clicking it gives page not found, and putting into skype does nothing.

Edit: nevermind you just have to remove the HTTP so the link starts as skype:?

 

[RoA_Zam]

Do you need a plugin of some sort to use this? Clicking it gives page not found, and putting into skype does nothing.

Edit: nevermind you just have to remove the HTTP so the link starts as skype:?

yeah that's right. it shouldn't have HTTP in the link

 

[TOGOpuff]

my personal favorite is Kragg. I love those damn combos !! (still haven't got the e-mail )

 

[DrMister]

yeah that's right. it shouldn't have HTTP in the link

Awesome, I'll join today as soon as possible

 

[RoA_Zam]

Awesome, I'll join today as soon as possible

If the link doesn't work, then add either me or Rossuizan's skype and we can add you to the group.

My skype: clay.redmon
His: saltykitz

Anyone is welcome.

---------------------------------

On another note, anyone who missed my stream, here's a link to watch it. I play mostly with kragg at the start, but switch to mainly Zetterburn and Wrastor and experiment with AT. Give it a watch!

http://www.twitch.tv/earthbones/c/5771591

 

[4nace]

could i please have this game resend to my e-mail ( it's roquelamenza@yahoo.com.br) i had some issues with my inbox and it got deleted in the process. I'll highly appreaciate it since i'm in the urge to do more vids

thanks in advance (:

Hey. I was going to wait until Jan when i am back home to send this out, but I will send to you as well as @ T00nbink and @ JayTheUnseen since you guys are active in this thread.

For all others who have applied recently, I will be expanding to more players once I get home from Holiday travels (this coming weekend)

Also, in my free time I have been working on animations and designs for the 5th character. The gameplay design is all finished up and I am excited to see how it plays out. The character is based on deception and illusion. It is something I feel can be very unique while fitting well with the other Rivals.

-Dan

 

[JayTheUnseen]

Oh no!Deception and illusion!
Stop making cool characters that fall in to categories I like!
How can I choose one at this rate?

Seriously though,looking forward to seeing him or her in action.

 

[FadeAmmo]

Man, Im Hyped for your new char.
By the way I sent a playtester application a bit of a time ago, but i dont really care about the wait.
I wont be able the get the full release, my mom doesnt let me pay for things.

 

[RoA_Zam]

Gonna do a report on the Decemeber 20th Build I've played for a while now.

The main problem I've had that bothered me a bit was occasionally when you pause, the character moves up a couple of pixels off the ground. When you unpause, you go back to your original spot a couple of pixels below though, so it's not anything game breaking, but a minor aesthetic thing that probably needs a change. I noticed this happening more with Kragg after he'd use one of his special moves more often than any other character.

There's still those debug hitbox's that are glitchy also and lag behind the animation of the character themselves.

Zetterburn fire is still absolutely ridiculous IMO. 4 hits to a KO at 55% is absolutely busted as far as I see. What kind of increase in knockback does being on fire give? because if it's anything more than 1.5x original, I think it probably needs a nerf. Once a player knows how to use fire then Zetterburn is way too easy to play as.

Zetterburn recovery is still garbage. mainly because the fire around Zetterburn doesn't stop a Kragg rock, an Orcane puddle, or a Wrastor side B. That probably needs to change in some way to allow Zetterburn to recover more easily, while keeping it from being spammable while on stage.

Something about throwing a Kragg rock in this build causes rocks to occasionally float a pixel or two off of the ground, since gamemaker determines that there isn't space there below it for the rock to move down the extra pixels when it checks if space is available at Y+n pixels (I assume).

Kragg new up B mechanic has saved me many times. It's a very nice addiction that fits his playstyle.

For those that don't know, in this newer build, Kragg is able to pick up rocks from the side, as well as his shorthop height being changed so that he could jump ontop of the rock with a shorthop. I believe that how many hits it takes for the rock to break from ANY character has been lowered also it seems. Wrastor sometimes has a hard time still with breaking it but otherwise, it's much easier to break and won't be lasting as long out on the field as it normally does in a match. I still think that the rock should break upon impact with Zetterburn's upB so that he can't be as easily gimped.

Orcane still has a glitch with being able to place down 2 puddles at once. I personally don't know how to recreate it, but CPU's do it like 1/50 matches when I'm playing against them.

I'm pretty sure orcane had the least changed about him between the 12.11 and 12.20 versions, so I hardly played him at all myself. The CPU's need to learn how to use sideB > walljump > sideB to recover though. They suck terribly and would be much better if they could.

Orcane Fsmash on puddle needs to have something changed about it. The hitbox extends more than half of a character length beyond where the actual sprite ends.

A lot of hitboxes got segmented, and Dan made many moves have sweetspots (Which I first noticed with Zetterburn, then with Wrastor). Most (if not all) moves probably need to have segmented hitboxes about them. Ones that vary by a % or two, or in how much knockback they have. Many moves have ridiculous hitboxes, like Zetterburn uair being able to hit from below himself practically. Orcane fsmash on puddle could probably be segmented to where the further the opponent is away, the less KB and slightly less % the opponent receives. Something to that effect. Wrastor nair for example needs a change also.

Wrastor seems pretty broken again once I started to play him more. His aerials have some disjointed range on them now. if you space it correctly, he can kill very early with upB, Fsmash, and Usmash sweetspots. He plays so much better when you're playing without "Strong Hold" on. I found it ridiculously easy now to go out and gimp with upB against zetterburn. If sweetspotted, it can kill at as low as ~70%, but without a sweetspot it kills off the ceiling at ~200% roughly. The fact the the sideB out prioritizes everything in the game is also kind of busted in itself. Having it go through orcane's puddle move and zetterburn's side B make it way too good.

That's about all I can think of right now to type about. Will probably have more soon.

 

[4nace]

@ RoA_Zam

Yup, I've been watching balance lately and have noticed Wrastor is an issue so will be looking at his Side Special in particular as something that can be hit.

I'll address some of your points though! Thanks for the feedback!

Hurtboxes being off - will look into those. If you see any that lag let me know. Hurtboxes are currently shared between air versions and ground versions of specials to make my life easier so on some specials they don't line up exactly but it was close enough that I did not feel the need to make a new one.

Zetterburn fire consume is actually a new hitbox with its own data, so its not a straight modifier. Damage, knockback angle, base knockback and knockback scaling are all set independently. Right now the scaling does pretty much double (.5 - 1.0) and the base knockback is almost double too. I can hit them individually though. I actually still consider Zetterburn to be balanced against Kragg and Orcane as of now, so won't be hitting his burnboxes unless I buff him in other areas (recovery for example)

The floating pixel thing for both rocks and characters is disconcerting and I have seen it before. I don't think its the characters themselves having the issue as the collisions are pixel perfect and I have tested that to confirm. I believe the issue is on where characters are drawn. I am doing some rounding to snap both characters and the ground pieces so pixels are retained but I think they are rounding in different ways and it is causing issues. I will solve it before ship but haven't squashed it yet.

I think I know the Orcane 2 puddle glitch. Get attacked out of an up special on the ground. . 2 puddles. Its on my bug list.

I'd have to buff Zetterburn's up b damage while moving damage to make that break a rock but its probably a good idea to do that. Will mark it as something to try.

Hitbox sweet spots were actually in the older builds too. They are just hard to see. I plan on giving wrastor some hitbox separation on his lingering hitboxes when I do a knockback pass. (Example: Nair being stronger and bigger on the first frame then reducing in size a bit and knockback on later frames). I want to get attacks across all characters scaling a bit more while still keeping the combo game intact. I will likely do that early next week as I don't feel super comfortable in GM Studio on my laptop and instead just work in Photoshop while traveling.

Here is a picture of some of my immediate tasks from my Trello. I picked out some of the easier ones from the feedback from here as part of my "Next Playtester Build" tasks:

Will try do a few more things for next update too but I am balancing stomping bugs and working on balance while also creating new content :D

-Dan