More Mission Mode Overhauls! Version 0.8.5 is Live!

Heya, Duelists!

We've released another "between characters" update, this time focused primarily on improving the experience of playing through Mission Mode.

While we were fixing some bugs related to certain Missions, we decided on a whim to take the time to go through each Mission and evaluate their relative difficulty and overall quality, and we ended up tweaking a large number of Missions as a result. Some Missions have seen an increase in their challenge or complexity, others have had their more frustrating elements toned down, and others still have just been spiced up in some way to make them more fun and interesting!

Even though the list of changes is already INCREDIBLY long, we still didn’t quite have time to make all the additions and adjustments we wanted to. We’re hoping we’ll be able to fit in the rest of these changes in the next major update alongside the 20th playable fighter, Lance Marshall. While we can't 100% promise anything, said update is currently on track to release later this month!

Here are the full patch notes for this update:



CPU Opponents

• CPU opponents are now less likely to successfully Throw Break by default. However, their chance to Throw Break will increase the more times you throw them. The base chance is still affected by AI difficulty

Getup Rolls

• Fixed an issue where getup rolls would go the opposite direction from the direction you were holding, if you landed on the opposite side of the opponent from the side you got hit on
• Fixed an issue where you could not perform a getup roll if you started holding a direction after you had already hit the ground

Projectiles

• Fixed an issue where low-hitting projectiles couldn’t break Armour like other low attacks can

Grabs

• Fixed an issue where, if any grabbing attack was interrupted by certain means, the grabbed player would be stuck floating slowly downward

Lore Journal

• Fixed an error in Joel’s lore entry, which mistakenly labelled his species as “Mutant”
• Updated Warrez and Joseph’s lore entries to mention their body-altering Aspects as part of their species, for consistency with previous lore entries

Character Select

• Added placeholder slots for upcoming characters

Boxing Ring

• Made some adjustments to the stage hazard
  • Adjusted the ropes’ collision to be less janky and more predictable
  • The ropes now propel you at a fixed angle, depending on which side of them you land on. Any attack animation you’re doing will now be interrupted when you bounce off the ropes
  • The ropes now play a sound effect when bounced off of

Penny Avenue

• Removed a stage hazard symbol that was mistakenly present when selecting Penny Avenue

Meteor Shower Town

• With stage hazards enabled, made it easier to see the shadows of the meteors when they first spawn in

Horde Battles

• Horde enemies now always have their Burst meter crossed out, as they cannot Burst. This is mainly to help with clarity in the Reverse Horde missions
• All horde enemies can now crouch, allowing them to properly block low attacks (particularly in Reverse Horde missions). They have also all been given new crouching attacks
• Made a potential fix for an issue where Missions involving horde enemies would very rarely softlock the game upon retrying them
• Changes for specific Horde Battle enemies:
  • Grunt Skeleton
    • Jumping Medium - Now has a bit of vertical bounce
    • Swapped standing Medium and standing Heavy attacks
  • Brute Skeleton
    • Jumping Medium - Now has a bit of vertical bounce
  • Coffin Skeleton
    • Slightly updated the coffin model
  • Starling
    • Reduced startup on Jumping Heavy, and made it hit multiple times
  • Star Sentry
    • Added a new back Heavy attack
    • Reduced startup on standing Medium and standing Heavy attacks

Mission Mode

• Added a new Mission to Page 3: Warrior of Cleanliness
• Swapped the placements of Imposter Showdown and The Fight Before Crimbo. The Fight Before Crimbo is now on page 1, while Imposter Showdown is now on page 2
• Swapped the placements of Ayall Brawl and Bad Slime Day. Bad Slime Day is now on page 2, while Ayall Brawl is now on page 3
• Swapped the placements of Buff Boi Bodyguard and All the King’s (Stick)Men. All the King’s (Stick)Men is now on page 3, while Buff Boi Bodyguard is now on page 2
• Rearranged some Missions on page 2 so that the Boss Missions are in the same places as pages 1 and 3
• Fixed an issue where mashing the confirm button when selecting a Mission would cause a softlock
• Fixed an issue where locked Missions were briefly displayed as unlocked when switching pages, allowing you to view the descriptions and even select them
• Updated the graphic for the Boss Mission difficulty selection to be a bit more eye-catching, as it could easily be overlooked
• Fixed an issue in Missions with falling objects, where said objects would begin falling before the round started
• Fixed an issue in Missions with falling objects, where restarting or retrying the Mission would not properly remove any existing objects
• Fixed an issue where, in Missions where you could select any character, deselecting and then reselecting the same character could result in the character being automatically selected without being allowed to choose a colour or costume
• Fixed a very minor visual issue where a small vertical line was visible on the Mission Mode progress bar
• Changes for specific Missions:
  • Bug Fixing
    • Reduced the CPU ERROR’s max HP
  • Fabulous Flex Off
    • Increased the required number of taunts from 5 to 10
  • Zero Gravity
    • Increased the CPU Black Heart’s max HP
  • Turbulence
    • Adjusted the unique wind hazard so that it changes direction at random intervals
  • Gambling Addiction
    • The slot machines now play an animation and sound effect to signify when they can be hit again
    • Fixed an issue where rolling Cheat on one of the pre-placed slot machines would not grant Sylvan the effect
  • Hard Boiled Havoc
    • Increased the startup of Bad Egg’s Yolk Blaster attack
  • Acid Rain
    • Increased the damage dealt by the rain, as it was previously not much of a threat
  • Reverse Horde
    • Fixed an issue where, if you lost the Mission and the final skeleton that got KO’d was the Grunt Skeleton, the scream sound effect would continue to play forever
  • Recon Gone Wrong
    • Added a sound effect for when a ship part spawns in, so you can tell even if they’re offscreen
  • A Touch of Death
    • Lowered the timer for this Mission from 99 seconds to 60 seconds
    • The player’s Burst is now disabled for this Mission, as it was very easy to cheese with any Blast Burst combo
  • Old Friends, New Forms
    • The CPU Doodle is now permanently in Ultimate Form
  • Face Your Fears
    • The boss of this Mission,  , has received some changes. See the Bosses section at the bottom of the patch notes for details
  • All the King's (Stick)men
    • Now takes place on a unique stage
    • Added a new hazard to the Mission, in which pencils and erasers will fall from above
    • Increased the number of horde enemies from 3 to 5
    • Updated the fire particles used by the horde enemies
  • Special Request
    • Lowered the timer for this Mission from 99 seconds to 60 seconds
  • It's ALIIIIIVE!!
    • Reduced the player’s maximum HP
    • Fixed an issue where the damaging electric field around Franken-Man could be destroyed by projectile clashes
  • Sibling Rivalry
    • Changed the Mission to be just 1 round instead of 2
    • Reduced the player’s maximum HP
    • Adjusted the CPU opponent Chip
      • No longer blocks the player's attacks, choosing to instead take the hits like a champ
      • Is now more aggressive from long range
      • Added a new crouch animation, as well as crouching attacks
      • Added a new attack which Chip will use rarely, where he stops moving for a few seconds before releasing a large explosion of soul energy
      • Reduced recovery time of Timber
      • Reduced startup and recovery time of Chip-Saw
      • Reduced the startup and recovery time of Deadbolt, and fixed an issue where the projectile would face the wrong direction
  • Faceless Face Off
    • Fixed an issue where Rattlebone’s Kingbone Slicer attack couldn’t be properly Trigger Cancelled
  • Overclocked
    • The CPU Annie’s Gizmo now attacks randomly, instead of his attacks corresponding to Annie’s, making him more of an active threat
  • Neon Nightmares
    • Fixed an issue where the stage hazards were not enabled during this Mission
    • Fixed an issue where the SFX of the key pieces spawning would ignore audio settings
  • Heavy Blizzard
    • Reduced both the player and CPU’s maximum HP
    • Made it easier to see the shadows of the icicles when they first spawn in
    • Improved the collision boxes of the icicles, making it harder to get stuck on them
    • Fixed an issue where falling icicles could clash with projectiles
    • Fixed an issue where destroying an icicle while it was still falling would result in the floor shadow lingering indefinitely
    • Fixed the character portrait in the Mission select to show the correct Black Heart costume instead of the default
  • The Ascended AI
    • The mini-boss of this Mission, AI Annie , has received some changes. See the Bosses section at the bottom of the patch notes for details
  • When the Lightning Strikes
    • Fixed the Euterpe’s Cradle rain effect being mistakenly set inactive during this Mission
  • Stop Right There!
    • Fixed an issue where the Mission was completely unbeatable due to a bug (oops)
  • Animated Atrocity
    • Lowered the timer for this Mission from 99 seconds to 80 seconds, making the player have to deal a bit more damage earlier on when their moveset is smaller
  • Potassium Power
    • The CPU Banana Derrick now almost exclusively pulls bananas, and will occasionally pull a mini-Derrick (which is still functionally a banana)
  • Overtime
    • Guy now has no briefcase for this Mission, making it generally much harder
    • Increased the number of test results required to beat the Mission from 3 to 10. The items will now respawn to accommodate this
  • Royal Entertainment
    • You can no longer hit the cards with a Burst
    • Fixed an issue where the cards wouldn’t reveal themselves properly after a retry
  • Beach Bully
    • Slightly reduced the sandcastles’ health, and added a health bar above each sandcastle. However, the CPU opponent can no longer damage the sandcastles at all
    • Fixed an issue where the beach ball stage hazard was enabled when it shouldn’t have been
    • Fixed an issue where retrying while the CPU Sylvan was at low health would cause the visual effects of his slot machine rain attack to occur at the start of the rematch
  • The Naughty List
    • The CPU Shiverskull now has a shield that appears every so often that reflects projectiles, including the coal. Keep your eyes open!
    • Reduced the player’s maximum HP
  • Lord of Lightning
    • The mini-boss of this Mission, Thunder God Shoto , has received some changes. See the Bosses section at the bottom of the patch notes for details
  • Pumpkin Patch Match
    • Added a health bar above each pumpkin
  • Shady Business
    • The boss of this Mission, Shade , has received some changes. See the Bosses section at the bottom of the patch notes for details
  • The Tiny Terror
    • The boss of this Mission, Tiny Evil Clyde , has received some changes. See the Bosses section at the bottom of the patch notes for details
  • Snowday Showdown
    • If the snowball gets wedged in the corner of the stage, it will now roll itself out
    • Fixed an issue where the snowball would sometimes teleport to the center of the stage after the round ended
    • Fixed an issue where it was possible for both the player and the CPU to get stuck on the snowball while it was smaller. Its collision has now been improved
  • Reverse Horde 3
    • Slightly reduced the CPU Callowman’s maximum HP, and made his AI a bit less aggressive
  • A Tough Pill to Swallow
    • The boss of this Mission, The Pill , has received some changes. See the Bosses section at the bottom of the patch notes for details

Guard Reversal

• Adjusted the size and knockback of the initial hitboxes so that the final hit lands more consistently

Throw

• Fixed an issue where Baron’s throw could be cancelled into Grand Brightstar Bomber on hit

Slot Machine (Down Special)

• After rolling Poison, the slot machine now properly disappears as soon as the poison effect ends instead of lingering around longer than it should
• Shortened the sound effect that plays when rolling any effect
• Fixed an issue where the slot machine would continue rolling during Super cinematics
• Fixed an issue where the slot machine would get locked up and become unusable if hit by a boss character’s minion

Restraining Order (Down Super)

• Fixed an issue where attempting to use a throw or Reversal after landing this Super would cause the throw/Reversal to immediately play its on-hit animations, skipping the startup entirely

Crouching Medium

• Removed a collision box that this move had for some reason, which caused it to have strange interactions with certain physics objects

Crouching Medium

• Slightly reduced horizontal knockback

Boolean (Back Special)

• Fixed an issue where the move would become completely unusable if ERROR was hit while the projectile was active (oops x2)

WARNING: The following section contains spoilers for Mission Mode boss battles and mini-bosses

AI Annie (Boss Mode)

• A CPU-controlled AI Annie  now only has a chance  to use her eye laser attack whenever you are airborne, instead of doing so every time. Chance scales with AI difficulty level

Thunder God Shoto (Boss Mode)

• Increased the startup of Thunder God’s  automatic low-HP attack

The Mask

GOAL: This was already one of the easiest bosses in the game, so its changes are minimal. The changes are aimed at slightly toning down some of the more potentially frustrating aspects of the fight.

• Reduced the HP of the Toy summon from 2000 to 1200
• Reduced the HP of the Eye summon from 1000 to 500
• Reduced the HP of the Candle summon from 1000 to 750
• Increased the knockback inflicted by the Candle summon, to prevent the player getting stuck in its hitbox for a long time
• Adjusted the Mask’s  hitbox and hurtbox during its advancing Super
• If the player gains the Marked status effect (from picking up the map), it can now be removed by dealing enough damage to the boss before it hits you
• Reduced the amount of time it takes for the map to disappear on its own
• Fixed an oversight where the Mask’s  map could spawn right on top of the player if they were in the corner
• Fixed an issue where the Marked status effect (from picking up the map) would continue to count down during Super cinematics, and would break completely if it reached 0 during a cinematic
• Fixed an issue where the boss could cancel its own Burst animations
• The jumpscare Super now correctly changes its graphic if the boss has entered its Golden form
• Fixed an issue where, when caught in Azutron's Holo-Jail, the jail would rotate with the Mask’s  body

Shade

GOAL: Slow characters like Baron struggled extremely hard with this fight, as it was much harder (even outright impossible at times) for them to dodge certain attacks in the second phase. These changes should help ease that pain, and make the second phase feel a bit more fair in general.

• The crumpling attack in phase 1 no longer hits overhead
• Made the phase 2 eye laser attack travel faster, making it last for less time and and have fewer hits
• Fixed an issue where the phase 2 eye laser attack drained the player’s Burst meter on hit or block, due to an oversight with the Burst meter calculation
• Increased the startup of the phase 2 punch attacks. The upward-angled punch will also now whiff if you are crouching, regardless of range
• Increased the startup of the phase 2 Super

Tiny Evil Clyde

GOAL: This boss had very little strategic counterplay, and it could sometimes feel like you just had to get lucky to win. These changes, combined with the changes made to the Boxing Ring stage hazard, are designed to reduce the likelihood of dying off a single hit from the boss, and create more openings where it is safe to attack him. This should ideally reward a patient approach to the fight.

• Increased recovery time of the rapid punching attack
• Reduced the knockback and hitstun of the uppercut attack, making it so you are no longer practically guaranteed to be rung out if hit by it
• Increased recovery time of the lunging grab attack, and made it so the move will always whiff if you are crouching
• Increased recovery time of the teleport Super
• If the boss gets rung out too many times, it will now have a chance to quickly teleport back onto the stage instead of slowly floating back, which can catch the player off-guard and prevent them from cheesing the fight by looping ringouts

The Pill

GOAL: Don't worry, this boss is still stupid. It's just plain funny for a boss like this to be so absurdly difficult. However, there was some unintended behaviour with the boss that made it a bit more stupid than it was actually supposed to be, so that has now been corrected.

• Increased the window the player has to Throw Break the Pill’s throw
• Reduced the blockstun of all gunshot attacks
• Fixed an issue where a CPU-controlled The Pill  could use an anti-air shot to cancel its neutral getup, getup roll, or air recovery animations
• Fixed an issue where The Pill  could combo off its Break Burst
  • In exchange, the Break Burst now deals damage