Electoral Carnage news & patch notes

Leader of the Silent Majority, Richard Nixon needs no introduction. Infamous for the part he played in the Watergate Scandal, we’ve leaned into his villainous character with a final-boss worthy moveset that get stronger as you fight.

The (legally distinct) Infinity Guantlet

Nixon’s gimmick is the Manifest Destiny Guantlet. As Nixon deals damage he’ll collect stones which upgrade your attacks.

Stars Stone

The Stars Stone extends the range of Nixon’s primary projectile, allowing him to go toe-to-toe with the toughest zoners.

Stripes Stone

The Stripes Stone adds a projectile to Nixon’s jab. While the jab itself is mediocre, it’s startup is lightning-fast for a projectile, making it a versatile tool when enhanced.

Nation Stone

The Nation Stone empowers Nixon’s Executive Slam, creating a devastating shockwave.

Frontier Stone

The Frontier Stone grants access to a short range teleport, perfect for surprising your enemies.

Spirit Stone

The Spirit Stone supercharges Nixon’s Elec-Trick attack, forcing your opponent to jump.

Dream Stone

The Dream Stone fully unlocks the power of Nixon’s gauntlet, allowing you to unleash our newest jaw-dropping super animation.

What’s Next?

The plan for the foreseeable future is to grind out characters as fast as I can until we get up to 12. This is my full-time job now and I think I can get a three week turnaround on all of them. The next character is gonna be free to play (non-DLC), and no spoilers, but the release is gonna be huge.

God Bless America gamers.

Quick update for y'all. We've had to delay Nixon do to a store issue where everyone was granted access to the DLC for free. In the meantime, you may see that you have access to the DLC, but he will NOT be available in game. Sorry for any inconvenience.

It's not a meme, Electoral Carnage officially has Rollback Netcode

You asked, and we delivered. I have spent over 300 hours over the last two month to rework the game from the ground up to bring you better netcode. However there are some caveats:

Please note that online is still very much a work in progress. There's going to be some new bugs, but trust that I'm working every update to squash as many as I can. As it stands this update should still be a marked improvement over the previous online and I'm pretty proud of it.

New and Improved Washington!

This update also brings the long awaited Washington rework! Your shotgun is no longer on a cooldown, instead you'll have limited ammo that refills when you get a hit. This means that if you run out, you're a sitting duck -- but if you can maintain a lead, there's all kinds of multi-shotgun outplays at your disposal.

With this massive buff we've also increased the cost of America Forever to be more in-line with other comboable supers. (Sorry Washington mains but you can't have EVERYTHING).

Mac Build

I finally got off my ass and made a mac build. Shout outs to my mom for letting me use her computer.

Taunts

Surprise! Even the discord didn't know about this one. We are adding taunts to the game. To activate, press down and super while standing on the ground.

This update acts as a preview, with just Obama's taunt added. Taunts are spammable, ridiculous, and Obama's has a Vine boom sound effect everytime you do it.

Why are we adding taunts now? Well, it's time for the announcement some of you aren't going to like...

We need to start making money

I'm not exaggerating when I said rollback took over 300 hours to complete. If I was still working a 9 to five, this easily could've taken 6+ months to finish, but two months ago, the two of us quit our jobs to work on this game full-time.

In an effort to keep the lights on, we are going to start releasing paid DLC characters. Character 8 will be the first of these characters.

This is in no way the end of free content for the game (our goal for the final roster is 20 free and 10 dlc characters), but I wanted to get everyone mentally prepared for Nixon's release.

And on that note:

We started a Patreon

If you really want to help us continue to do this full time, consider supporting us on our newly formed Patreon. You'll get early access to the new taunts that we're adding, discord perks, and other cool stuff.

That's it for this update. The goal is to get Nixon done in under a month, so hopefully you guys will be hearing from us again soon. Until then, thanks for your support and God Bless America.

Our seventh character is once again Teddy Roosevelt -- but it's not what you might think.

More than a Clone

Robo Roosevelt is NOT a reskin for Teddy Roosevelt, he's a brand new character with an entirely different moveset. While Teddy is a lightning fast rushdown brawler, Robosevelt is a precise, midrange zoner with a ridiculously cinematic super. 

The Grapple

Robo Teddy’s signature move is an omnidirectional tether grab that can snipe opponents out of just about anything.

But that's not all! Grapple onto the walls of the stage or the floor to unlock tricky movement options!

Finally, you can grapple onto projectiles to parry them, granting a short movement buff and making your next grapple even faster.

If you wanna get really flashy you can even parry your OWN projectiles.

Speaking of your projectiles...

Panama Pulsar

What's a smash-like without a charge shot? Teddy's projectile is a ball of energy that inflicts a stun on hit. The more you charge, the more the stun.

At max charge, it's the perfect move to combo into:

A man, a plan, a canal...

The Panama Punch is our longest super yet (don't worry, there's a skip button). 

A word on future characters -- and future "clones." 

I already made a longer post about this on our discord, but the TL;DR is: we want to do more of these "variant" characters, but rest assured, the next three characters will ALL be new presidents. 

Our goal with variant characters is to open up new game design and comedy possibilities that might be otherwise limited by just having one version of a character. It might be really interesting to introduce a "base" Obama or "Dark Brandon" Biden at some point, for example.

Other Updates:

I think I fixed a good amount of the online bugs that have been present since the supers update (sorry about that one). I also gave Washington's rifle a small nerf, it's become obvious that he is too strong, and we plan to address that with a small rework at some point. I still aim for him to be high tier, but maybe not "the best character in every matchup" tier. 

What's next?

I can't make any promises, but I've decided to take the leap and ATTEMPT (emphasis on attempt) to add rollback netcode to the game. For those unfamiliar, rollback netcode is the good kind -- the "it's like we're in the same room" kind.

The bad news is, you kind of have to redo your entire game to get it to work. So I hope y'all will bear with me if the next roster update takes a bit longer than usual. 

I don't want to get overly sentimental in a Steam update post, but for real, the fact that the player base has grown large enough for it to make sense to even attempt this is humbling. 

Thank you for your support (seriously), and God Bless America.

Customizable Super Are Here!

Plus a new stage and some QOL changes.

The Super Update

In a game where every super one-shots you, a character's super is often their most defining attribute --- defining their game plan and single-handedly determine their place in the meta.

Allowing you to choose between different supers should alleviate the balance issues of overly-situational supers, while still keeping the gameplay super-focused.

Now when you select your character, you'll be presented with a new panel, allowing you to pick between multiple super options:

PLEASE NOTE: We're going to be adding additional supers on a "when/if we feel like it basis." Not all characters will be getting additional supers. Some, like JFK, will always have only one super.

As for this update, we've got two new supers coming your way that we're pretty excited about.

Big Stick Diplomacy

Teddy Roosevelt's signature domestic policy makes it's way to Electoral Carnage in the form of the world's largest stick. The more you mash the bigger it gets!

Revolutionary Rain

Washington's new super is our take on a Smash Bros style "drop a bunch of hitboxes on the screen and see what sticks" super. Washington will call on his troops for a volley of deadly explosives, that the opponent will have to dodge.

Gameplay continues while this super is active, meaning Washington is free to attempt to stun or knock his opponent back into the hitbox. If the initial volley misses, additional bombardments will fall on the battlefield until Washington is hit.

A New Stage...(and a teaser?!)

We've added a fourth stage to the mix, featuring an all new music! This new battlefield brings you to a mysterious bunker hidden beneath the once thriving metropolis of Panama City. Home to illegal experiments, strange machines, and world dominating technology, it represents the next step in the ongoing story of Electoral Carnage (the two people who care about the character descriptions I've been writing are gonna have a field day with this one).

Who would create such an imposing base? You'll find out in the next update!

What's Next?

The art for characters 7, 8, and 9 are already completed, all we have to do is get them coded and shipped out. Expect these updates to be faster than usual. I'm excited for you guys to see what we've been cooking up. In the meantime, don't forget to join the Discord to chat with us, get access to beta builds, and find people to play with. The support we've been getting on the game the last month has been nothing short of inspirational. Thanks to everyone following the project, and I promise we're doing everything we can to bring even crazier ideas to you in the near future. Thanks for your support, and God Bless America.

Online!!!!!!!!

I did it! Built-in online is finally finally here. It supports both private matches and public lobbies. It is likely still buggy and it's far from lagless, but it's playable and that's good enough for me.

Tournaments! Fight the developers!

With online ready, I think it'd be fun to host an official Electoral Carnage online tournament, probably next weekend. If you're interested, be sure to join our discord server so you'll hear about it when we set it up.

Additionally, if anyone is seeing this the day it goes up (March 8th), I'm going to be online for the rest of the evening ready to play against anyone who hops on. If you want to test you skills versus the devs, nows your chance.

What's next?

I'm so so excited to get back to working on our next characters, expect updates on that this summer. For the immediate future, we're going to shift our focus to making videos on social media to try an expand the game's player base. Be sure to drop us a follow on our socials to help spread the word.

I hope to face some of you online! Until next time, thanks for the support and God Bless America

Wake up sleepy heads, we've just sworn in a new fighter, and he might be our most dangerous yet.

Yes we can...again?

Like Obama, Biden is a practitioner of the Yeswikan fighting style. While his moveset of fireballs, uppercuts, and kicks will certainly be familiar, Biden puts his own spin on his specials with a flashier Biden Kick and farther reaching Biden Punch.

To the Extreme!

Biden's signature technique lies in his ability to enhance his techniques with Extreme Energy. By holding down the Unique button, you'll gain access to EX moves, downright overpowered attacks that force your opponents to stay on their toes.

The Blast

Biden's super is a powerful discharge of energy known as the Biden Blast. Its unique angle makes it tricky to land, but it's also one of the cheapest supers in the game, giving you plenty of chances to land it in a match.

The Empowered Blast

The Biden Blast is unique in that it gets stronger as the match progresses. Every time you land an EX move on your opponent, Biden will gain a point of "Blast Charge." The more charge you have, the larger your next Biden Blast will become.

The Ultimate Blast

At full charge, the Biden Blast becomes so powerful it threatens to destroy America itself. Biden enters a gratuitously long cinematic animation, and annihilates everything on-screen--even the stage!

We're proud of this one.

New Music, New Stages, and Minor Balance 

We've updated the stage list and finally added an original track to the character select screen. We'll be replacing the "main battle" theme as soon as we can, but enjoy all the new sights and sounds until then!

We're also nerfing Washington again. We've increased the startup of his blunderbuss and increased the cooldowns on his shotguns. We're hoping these changes will make it a little harder to camp, while maintaining his dominance at long range.

What's Next?

Character seven's artwork is just about finished, but I'm actually going to hold off on working on him while I attempt to add online matchmaking to the game. I say "attempt" because I have no idea if this is going to be possible, but I'm optimistic enough to spend the next few weeks teaching myself Unity Netcode and giving it my best shot. 

If you want to keep up to date with the game's development, find remote play opponents, or just hang out, join our discord. The discord gets advanced access to all of the major updates, and assuming I get online off the ground, I'll need all the help I can get to test out matchmaking in the coming weeks.

And that's about it for this update, I hope you guys enjoy it! Thanks again for all your support, and God Bless America.

New Character Alert!

Synonymous with freedom, unity, and America as an idea, Abraham Lincoln makes his presence known with an off-beat playstyle, unique movement options, and giant hitboxes.

BIG moves

At 6'4, Lincoln was the tallest president in American history. We decided that wasn't tall enough. Lincoln is twice the size of some of our fighters and he's got the special moves to match.

Neutral Special: Hat throw

Lincoln's neutral special is a simple projectile with a short travel time. While it might seem unimpressive at first, it can be charged over time, transforming it into a veritable full-screen laser.

Side Special: Charge + Proclamation Punch

As our resident heavy (at least for now), Lincoln has the slowest move speed out of the current roster. However he makes up for it with his side special: Charge. After a short delay, Lincoln will launch forward with impressive speed. 

But what's even more impressive is the charge's follow up, a massive dash punch that has projectile invulnerability. That's right, you can run right at a zoner without worrying about any of those annoying fireballs. You can thank us later.

Up Special: Log Spin

Lincoln rounds out his bag of tricks with a massive spinning attack that makes use of his eponymous log. 

Anything but honest...

If there's one move that defines our rendition of Lincoln, it's his unique ability "Lucky Penny." This move is on a four second cool down, and upon activation Lincoln will flip a penny into the air. The penny has no hitbox, but after a second, you'll be teleported to the penny's location, preserving your animation before the teleport.

You can aim the coin with the control stick, or input the coin with no direction to automatically lock-on to your opponent's location. Oh and did we mention that you teleport with an extra active hitbox? We put everything into this move.

And if that wasn't enough, pressing the input again will cancel the teleport allowing you to mix up your movement and subject your opponents to tricky mind games!

...Enshrined Forever

Lincoln's super is a blink-and-you'll-miss-it transformation that obliterates any foes unfortunate enough to be trapped beneath it. Punish opponents foolish enough to get too close, or throw yourself through the air and carry your momentum for a full screen punish! It's also the perfect move to initiate out of a teleport, allowing you to get creative and finish off your enemies with style! 

Other features: Two Players, One Keyboard

The game now supports two players playing on the same keyboard. While a controller is always still recommended (many keyboards can't handle inputs from two players at once), the option will now be available for anyone attempting to play locally with a single keyboard.

What's next?

Character six is fully drawn, but it'll be a bit before we have him coded. In the meantime, we'll likely drop a smaller update with some qol features and maybe a few gameplay modifications for existing characters (no promises there though). We may also take a week or two off to make some more social media content for the game, so make sure you give us a follow if you haven't to help us grow.

Until then, enjoy the newly expanded roster, thanks for the support and God Bless America.

Obama Picks Up The Pace

The Speeeeed!

Obama has a new move! Press Special 2 (right trigger by default) to channel your ki into a speed boost!

Upon activation, Obama's max speed is increased by 66% for two seconds, giving him downright oppressive grounded and aerial presence.

Like Washington's shotgun, this speed boost is on a cooldown (8 seconds).

The Cancel

Speed isn't the only thing this new move does. It also lets you cancel the endlag of any move.

This not only makes his options safer, it allows you to preserve your momentum from your up-special, leading to explosive new movement techniques. Get creative and dominate your opponents with stylish outplays!

New Mechanic: Turnarounds

Fans of Super Smash Brothers Melee will be familiar with this one. All characters can now switch the direction of their attacks during a jump by quickly flicking the stick in the opposite direction.

It takes a bit getting used to, but it ultimately allows for vastly superior control over crucial tools like Washington's blunderbuss and Obama's fireball (since Obama Kick has been moved to side-special).

Balance Updates

This update's changes have shifted the power level of some of the cast, and we've also had a lot more time to gather informal data from playtesters. We've tried to target the most egregious moves in this patch to balance options we felt were over-centralizing or over-powered.

Obama

Our design philosophy for Obama has always been to make a forgiving character for beginners who's biggest strength is his super. As we add more characters, we still want Obamahameha to remain one of the best supers in the game, but with the buffs he received to the rest of his kit this patch, we felt like it might be time to reign it in (if only slightly).

We also made the decision to increase the endlag on Teddy and Obama's uppercuts to make them easier to punish.

• New move: Speed up!

• Obama Kick input moved to side-special

• Obamahameha super startup increased very slightly.

• Obama Punch endlag increased

Washington

We feel like Washington is one of our best executed characters, but he's also the character who benefits the most from the addition of turnaround specials. We've nerfed the effectiveness of his neutral special to compensate.

Additionally, we felt as though his blunderbuss into super combo was a bit to consistent for a finisher that only costs 5 super charge. We've increased the startup (before the super flash) to make the combo harder to hit, but we're aware that it may still be too strong. We'll have our eye on this going forward.

• Blunderbuss stun duration lowered

• Super start up increased.

Teddy

Teddy is intended to be a frame data monster, but right now his command inputs are so good we see no reason to use a regular punch (even when close range). Hopefully these changes will make playing him feel a bit more intentional.

• Uppercut endlag increased

• Ground slam endlag increased

• Ground slam can now be used on the ground with a down special input (it's not very good, and I kinda made it on accident, but I left it in cuz it's fun).

JFK

Jfk has not been changed as he is literally perfect.

What's Next?

Lincoln is well on his way to being release-ready, and our artist has already started spritework on president #6 (no spoilers). If you want to stay up to date with the development (and maybe check out some pre-release content), join our discord for updates and more! That's all for this update. Thanks for playing, and God Bless America.

WHAT'S NEXT:

We're really pumped to see all the positive reception for our first demo. It's super encouraging. Thanks so much to everyone leaving reviews.

We've got some exciting stuff on the way, but for today we just have a small patch and a few miscellaneous updates.

DISCORD

-We made a discord! Drop by and say hi: https://discord.gg/wmuGcdMCN8

QUALITY OF LIFE CHANGES:

-JFK's non-lethal super (the one that plays when you hit obama) is now skippable.

BUG FIXES:

-Washington's AI now properly uses the bite attack on hit.

-Fixed bugs related to mashing the start button after round completion.

WHAT'S NEXT

We've been experimenting with an Obama rework that will likely go live this weekend (just need to playtest it for a bit). After that, we'll start working on our next full character (Lincoln).