The Haunted: Hells Reach news & patch notes

Dear Hauntedgames Fans!

First of all we hope you had a Merry Cristmas and you have slipped well into the new year. We started 2023 working on the finishing of our promised nice surprise: “SANTA TOWN” is here and it's for FREE. This map is a first gameplay step to "TYA Remaster" since we are going to update SANTA TOWN with a little mission as soon as our quality assurance tell that the prepared fun will work - so updates are to come. All of those who asked us to put some additional mission in the game will in this way get what they wanted. We hope you all will enjoy the plus - it's great! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/14221dc794d5232c0bf7a2d76c576d48adf87d51.png {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/0cdc8fe3a8303696bec445cdcf01bd1b7354f673.png {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/ead94fa858876dd370700202b44da752e2c76c05.png The second piece of good news is - after a long time and undying hope - we are internally free with the trading cards and are happy to announce that the artwork has already been uploaded to Steam for final release - so it's out of our hands to have the community items available to everyone who owns the game - but they should be up and running in a few days. Finally: Don't forget to support us by buying the game and the latest DLC maps Island and Fog only on Steam. CU all as soon as possible back ːsteamhappyː Cheers! Eze & Tom

Dear Hauntedgames Fans!

We wish all our Fans, new and old, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2023 and hope you all have fun with our little Santa-Spot ːsteamhappyː - free to spread wherever you want! Well, we are also close to finish an unexpected nice surprise for all of you for free as a very heartfelt

THANK YOU

for your support and nice words - as well as the Trading Cards are in the last steps of approvalːsteamthisː. CU all as soon as possible back ːsteamhappyː Cheers! Eze & Tom

Dear THHR Fans!

This is the biggest news about the game since its release. As promised in the last news as "coming soon" we clear the "a bit nebolous" of the "much bigger milestone": We are currently overhauling the entire game with new stuff on the actual Unreal Engine!!! The game will be released next year named TYA Remaster! If you haven't seen the brandnew TEASER yet, do NOW and get MORE INFO accompanied by the great music from the band Comedy of Terrors. We don't want to reveal too much, but we grant a many wishes from the community and THUGANATE, Lucifer's second-in-command, will be the toughest opponent of them all and will fight you to death because what has worked so far - he won't mind! However, there is still a lot to do before TYA Remaster can be released, but step by step we are taking it and it will be worth it! Please spread the info and keep supporting our Hauntedgames-Project TYA Remaster by buying THHR only on Steam. Hey there everyone, Ezequiel here: Just in time for Steam's Scream Fest 2022, not only do we want to celebrate the sale with very good news through our awesome teaser, we've also some improvements AND we're adding 4 FREE NEW WEAPONS for immediate use, yes, FREE for everyone! This is our way to say thank you for your support and for being so nice to us. Please have a look at the following statements about the weapons and patches and have fun playing! CU you all next - Cheers! ːsteamhappyː Eze & Tom 1) Axe: Easily chop off enemy’s heads and have a bath with their blood. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/691801d2f378d699578334052eac009cc9b6e128.png 2) Whip: Submit and humilliate the minions by destroying them with this powerful weapon. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/5bc7d3cac179e587f981535598bbb0a3d4d16485.png 3) Colt M1911: low fire rate but very powerful, even stronger when using two at the same time. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/8bf8f05d533cba2a6413ab1f63bde17b7ba7b92e.png 4) Wrecking gun: The most brutal of the new weapons hidden somewhere on each map! Find it and blow-up minions! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/eff4b9175e5eca16df2b33723a709e7add99aa1c.png Axe and Whip changes the way the Melee weapon upgrades work:

Knife

Scythe

Axe

Chainsaw

Whip

Teutonic Mace

Witch Hammer

Typhoon Glaive Colt M1911 changes the way the Pistols weapon upgrades work:

Colt M1911

Handgun

Burst Pistol

Vendetta Revolver

Akimbo Colts

Akimbo Handguns

Akimbo Burst Pistols

Akimbo Vendetta Revolvers Wrecking gun does not change any weapon tier because is a special weapon that can be grabbed on each map just like the Ramm Bow, Enforcer Rifle, Flamethrower, Nitrogen Launcher, RPG and Grenade Launcher. Patch notes: Weapons:

• Added Colt M1911 and Akimbo Colts as new weapons on Pistols tier.
• Added Axe and Whip as new weapons on Melee tier.
• Added Wrecking gun as new weapon on Special tier.
• Changed XP obtained for every kill on the Melee tier, starting from 2.0 with the Knife to 1.3 on the Glaive.
• Changed XP obtained for every kill on the Pistol tier, starting from 1.30 with the Colt to 1 on the Dual Revolvers.

Localization:

• Updated every language due to new weapons addition.

Maps:

• Added Wrecking gun as a pickup on secret areas of the maps. Island:
• Fixed baked lightning issues.
• Removed a broken decal.

Dear THHR Fans!

As most of you know, a new era in the development of our Hauntedgame-levels began last year with the 10th birthday of our action game - internally we call that era "TYA", which stands for "TEN YEARS AFTER". The experience with the bankruptcy of the second largest game distributor in the world, which was once listed on the US-NASDAQ, was an extremely bad thing for years, the disappointments of 2016/17 very similar - for more read > https://hells-reach.fandom.com <. Like SyA once set development milestones with THQ, we set new ones and the TYA development department has been working last month for a year now. After the release of numerous big and small improvements as well as two new Hauntedgame-levels we want to express our HEARTFELT THANKS for the support in the past 13 month that has shown us that our new work pleases so many of you! Keep it up, because that's what kept us going and we want to reveal soon that much bigger milestone, which we needed to state always a bit nebulous. "The Haunted Games" image will give a first impression. Hi to everyone, Ezequiel here: I want to clarify some things that were pending in the discussion forum:

• Steam trading cards:

We’re working on them and they WILL be released, alongside with icons and badges of course. We don’t have a date but we’re still on that.

• Workshop integration:

Sadly, THHR won’t have support for Workshop due to some problems with the engine. I know games out there with a similar version of the engine having workshop but we can't implement it here. Sorry for that, I wish I could do something more.

• Dedicated server:

We’re working to fix the issues everyone had with the dedicated servers, also let people to host dedicated and play the game at the same time (I know this always has been an issue). Finally: The heavy artillery comes with the next news as Tom said above. Thanks to everyone who enjoys the game and supporting our Hauntedgames TYA-Project by buying THHR only on Steam. ːsteamthisː CU all next time ːsteamhappyː Cheers! Eze & Tom

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Dear THHR Fans,

it's been a long journey and it took us a while but we made 2 new dlc maps while fixing minor issues existing ones had, added new achievements, fixed splitscreen (now playable with Steam Remote Play Together) and created the new hardcore mode. First now: Thanx a lot Jean and Rémi, you are great guys supporting us, people see why a bit further down. Here now our next update - a step smaller than last time, but we're working on pretty big things that we want to finish as quickly as possible - step by step:

Map changes:

Fog:

• Fixed a problem where you could get stuck under a bridge without being able to move.
• Fixed a problem where you could get underneath a stair without collision.
• Changed Grenade Launcher position somewhere more easy to access.
• Decreased water physics volume speed.
• Increased special fog speed and area of effect.

Hardcore mode:

• Fixed a bug where players were able to see stone icon indicator while on spectator mode.
• Fixed a problem where the localized text "" would not appear (final encounter and abbadon fight).
• Decreased chronostrone time while on hardcore mode:
  • 1 player: 40s, at 20s it gets stolen.
  • 2 players: 35s, at 20s it gets stolen.
  • 3 players: 30s, at 15s it gets stolen.
  • 4 players: 30s, at 15s it gets stolen.

Added new localization option:

• Portuguese thanks to Jean Trindade Pereira
• More fixes for French thanks to Rémi "Yanka" B.

Thanx to everyone who has supported us by purchasing our work - we're sure you enjoy the game. Please keep it up - the Steam Summer Sale is here and maybe next time you won't get the game and DLC's at that amazing price like you can get it now. See you all next time ːsteamhappyː Cheers, Eze

Dear THHR fans, this is Eze again. One more word about SPLITSCREEN play - check out also "Remote Play Together" ːsteamhappyː Since we have released DLC 2 today on time I hope that many of you also did read PART 1 of this announcement yesterday and are delighted with what we've done - now there's even more to be happy about. So then, after sending a lot ahead with PART 1, let's start directly with PART 2:

Fixes/new content:

Map changes: Island:

• Fixed a bug where loading screen images were blurry.
• Fixed a few spots where ammo/upgrades fall out of bounds (based on user feedback).
• Added missing grenade launcher.
• Fixed some pathing issues.
• Fixed a few spots where shadows were badly baked.
• Fixed church bench that was impossible to destroy with melee attacks/nitrogen launcher.
• Fixed a few spots where blocking volumes where blocking the player more than intended.
• Fixed a few spots where terrain was non-uniform.
• Fixed a few spots where material was incorrect.
• Fixed a place where players would get stuck without any chance of getting out (based on user feedback).

Mine, Forsaken canyon, Steel Town and Stronghold:

• Fixed a few ladders that made the player get stuck when reaching top.

Temple:

• Fixed a ladder that was longer than it was supposed to be.

Night Frontier:

• Fixed a spot where de Environment Event would not reach players.

UI:

• Fixed splitscreen UI scale being too big on 3 player split screen.
• Fixed ammunition not displaying correctly for every player and sometimes getting stuck in the middle of the screen when playing splitscreen.
• Fixed an issue that caused "Demonizer" gamemode to be an empty string when hosting a game.
• Fixed an issue where the hud wouldn't hide for splitscreen players when pausing the game.
• Fixed an issue where if the player leaves a game or the server disconnects splitscreen players would remain active on main menu.
• Player healthbars are now disabled while on splitscreen mode.
• Main menu map list can now filtered as follows:
• All
• Classic
• DLC
• Custom
• DLC maps are now visible by default doesn't matter if you own them or not. If you don't own the map you just wont be able to play.
• Solo play now has "Options" bottom button, you can set Friendly Fire and HARDCORE Mode.

Localization:

• Updated every language, this update adds new UI strings.
• Special thanks to 'Rémi "Yanka" Bourzama' for his contribution with French loc.

Gamemode settings (Singleplayer/Multiplayer):

• Singleplayer: New "Options" menu where you can toggle Friendly fire and HARDCORE Mode.
• Multiplayer: New setting, HARDCORE Mode.

*Dev note: We bet you're asking "Friendly fire for solo gameplay? What?". Yeah, we decided to make it an option - because if you want to play splitscreen, you should be able to increase game difficulty by enabling this option just like multiplayer.

NEW Game setting/mode: "HARDCORE"

This mode disables all hud indicators even the crosshair so the game gets harder even on lower difficulties. The following HUD information is hidden while playing this mode:

• Remaining bullets.
• Remaining mags.
• Weapon upgrade bar.
• Player health indicator.
• Multiplayer player health (the healthbar on top of other players head).
• Ammo drop indicator.
• Weapon upgrade indicator.
• Throwable indicator (grenade, dynamite, etc).
• Hints.
• Demon sense (enemies behind you).
• Weapon icon when switching.
• Weapon crosshair when aiming.
• Weapon crosshair when throwing a grenade.
• Player(s) score.
• Actual game score.
• Game progress bar.
• Damage indicators (where you get damage from).
• Score messages (Killstreak, minion missile, etc).
• Chronostrone indicator.
• Healthstone indicator.
• Soulstone indicator.

Chronostrone: Since this mode hides the indicator we decided to increase the time needed to destroy it and when it gets stolen:

• 1 player: 60s, at 25s it gets stolen.
• 2 players: 50s, at 20s it gets stolen.
• 3 players: 40s, at 20s it gets stolen.
• 4 players: 30s, at 15s it gets stolen.

Friendly fire is always active when this mode is active. *Dev note: We wanted to increase demons damage/rage mode chances and also decrease weapon damage but we decided the mode is hard enough - even on lower difficulties. When a minion stoles a stone (could be health, soul or chrono) the only reference the player had is its hud indicator and without it's pretty hard to find it. So, in order to make this mode not too hard we decided to change the time when a stone is stolen and also increase the time required for it to be destroyed (in the case of the chronostrone). ------------------------ Now, after the many fixes, changes, new additions and two DLC's released, you may know how much work has gone into reviving the game over the past year. We are always open for critic and will do our best to handle the things. If somebody don't like the game and thinks it's necessary to write offensive/unconstructive words, please don't do so - just have a look elsewhere since Steam is full of wonderful games. Last but not least: try everything, have fun, enjoy and don't forget to support us by getting everything only here on the steam store. CHEERS, Eze

Dear THHR fans, the old ones who understand the hard road this game had to go through and the new ones who don't have a clue of the financial catastrophe with THQ. At SyA we've again spared no effort over the past 12 months to bring THHR back to life. Luckily we have seen how well it is when honest work is occuring and when agreements are always honored. Therefore at this point, a special thank you to Ezequiel, the new head of the development and his staff, who are now taking over... Hello, this is Eze and I have to say that we've been working so much on the game that we are telling all the news in two parts. The first part today, the second part with the release planned for tomorrow with the DLC 2 "THE FOG"...and here we go with part one:

New DLC Map: "THE FOG"

This new map brings you to a brand new location, a big open forest. Beware of the dangerous fog. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1964570/The_Haunted_Hells_Reach_DLC_2_The_Fog/

Splitscreen implemented!

We're now able to play splitscreen on the same PC/local. Playable solo, online, and even modes that require more than 1 player like Demonizer or Versus. To play splitscreen, connect a controller to your PC and then through Steam's Big Picture mode assign your controller to 2nd, 3rd or 4th slot and when in-game press "Start" on the controller and you're ready to go! To remove a player go to the pause menu, select "Local Players" and click/select the player you want to remove and that's it! *Dev note: The game has full gamepad support despite only displaying XBOX keys on hints, this was decided because of how the game was previously programmed, we only use XBOX controller type but playstation controller is fully supported as well. You can change gamepad input by going into the game options.

Controller mapping

There are a lot of changes related to the controller keys. Lot's of gamers used to play FPS (warzone) and some third person games so we decided the old default settings were pretty bad related to that. It's changed now - so here we go:

• Cross / A Button: Jump - Fly Up
• Square / X Button: Interact - Grab
• Triange / Y Button: Use CQC-Weapon - Special Attack
• Circle / B Button: Reload Weapon - Leave Minion
• Left Trigger: Aim Weapon
• Right Trigger: Fire Weapon - Spawn/Attack
• Left Shoulder: Melee Attack - Possess/Attack
• Right Shoulder: Use Explosives
• Left Arrow: Previous Weapon - Previous Minion
• Right Arrow: Next Weapon - Next Minion
• Up Arrow: Special Weapon
• Right Stick: Player Movement
• Left Stick: Camera Movement
• R3 / Right Stick Button: Evade - Fly Down
• L3 / Left Stick Button: Sprint

New achievements:

• Salvaged Fog: beat Fog on easy or higher
• HARDCORE Beginner: beat any map on beginner or easy difficulty while HARDCORE Mode is enabled.
• HARDCORE Pro: beat any map on medium difficulty while HARDCORE Mode is enabled.
• HARDCORE Master: beat any map on hard difficulty while HARDCORE Mode is enabled.
• HARDCORE God: beat any map on Nightmare difficulty while HARDCORE Mode is enabled.

*Dev note: If you beat a map playing on high difficulties while HARDCORE Mode is enabled, early difficulty achievements gets unlocked. Ex: beat a map on Hard (hardcore mode enabled) and you'll get "HARDCORE Master, HARDCORE Pro and HARDCORE Beginner" achievements. Another thing to mention is that "The Devil You Know" achievement does NOT require DLC maps to be completed. Keyboard mapping: As you might have noticed we removed the "suicide" key, the good old "Z" key that randomly killed you while you were on the last rounds its gone. It was already gone on previous update (Island update) but I wanted to mention it. Video settings: Fixed a bug where resolution information would not display correctly (for example, set resolution to 1080p and then when you start the game again resolution would still be 1080p but in-settings it will appear as if it was 800x600). Added new resolution options:

• 2560 x 1440 px
• 3840 x 2160 px

Renamed "Back" button to "Back & Apply". We decided this because when we started to play the game (a long time ago) we didn't know that going "back" also applied the new settings and that might be confusing for some players. FPS limit disabled by default, you can enable it back by going into the game instalation folder "UDKGame\Config\DefaultEngine.ini" and change line 50 from FALSE to TRUE. *Dev note: Removing FPS limiter causes the game to have a crazy camera effect when a player dies, this is not something that affects gameplay. That's it for PART 1, folks, be sure to come back for PART 2 and don't forget to get your DLC 2 "THE FOG"-experience as soon as it is released. CHEERS, Eze

Dear THHR Fans, old and new! You'll see the second new level for Easter 2022: THE FOG . Here it is - a brand new level for THHR - a big open forest where you should be aware of the dangerous fog. BUT that's not all!!! We added to that: the much desired and long-awaited SPLITSCREEN. In addition, we're coming up with a surprise: you'll soon be able to play in the totally tough new "HARDCORE Mode"! And even more, we have also checked all the levels and going to publish a complete list of the fixes before Easter 2022 - so be sure to come back before or on April 15th!! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/d7d704371c33bcb85ea199039247e1cd507c6de0.jpg

Dear players,

The promised Special Sale for “The Island” DLC1 is now live! https://store.steampowered.com/app/525170/The_Haunted_Hells_Reach_DLC_1_The_Island/ Thank you for the great support we’re receiving from you, even to the ones who take the time to report bugs. We really appreciate your support. We have something special for you, a sneak peek of the new DLC map: {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/96f03407b74217b2718b9386312ff28de7f62fc3.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/1a7fb5fa64dd5f9d02a1f5c469003253bdcd426a.jpg {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/b56a7ba5d4639dff928bd91432ca5af255faeabd.jpg We are working hard on this map as well on the Splitscreen-Update and some game fixes, we’ll share more details as soon as possible. Cheers!

Dear Fans! As promised, we're gonna launch a 7-day special sale because many people missed the publishing sale for "DLC 1 The Island" for reasons beyond our control when DLC 1 was released Xmas eve 2021. In accordance with the STEAM rules, we are allowed to do so in February and start the week for the

Special Sale beginning Feb. 14, 2022, 10 am PST.

Many heartfelt thanks to the hundreds who appreciate our work and encourages us to continue! We're happy and do so - started working on the Splitscreen-Update as well as on the DLC 2 "The Fog" to release that second DLC. Although, please have in mind that the game is far away from any profit, nevertheless we work as soon as possible. So, keep your eyes open and let yourself be surprised by news about our progress for your game fun. CHEERS !

Dear THHR Fans.

First of all we wish you a Healthy Happy New Year and just the best for everyone of you! Some of you noticed a few issues during the launch with pricing on some regions like Poland, Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Australia etc. and we like to clarify a bit of what happened: Brazil and Australia were without prices on behalf of countryspecifc restrictons. THQ decided by publishing the base game not to accept the Australian application conditions and to use Steam Key's instead the retail process for there - we've joined that. For Brazil we were able to solve it ːsteamhappyː and the DLC 1 became available there. For the rest of the regions that couldn't get our DLC 1 we contacted Steam more than once and, after some time has passed, they found the problem and wrote yesterday "...very unusual circumstances combined with the Christmas holiday caused a delay." So, the issue on their end was fixed and everything is working now, you should be able to see the price everywhere: https://store.steampowered.com/app/525170/The_Haunted_Hells_Reach_DLC_1_The_Island/ Since the affected regions couldn't buy the DLC 1 The Island at the reduced release price, we will be doing a special sale. Unfortunately, according to the rules of Steam we have to wait for that and will inform you when this special sale will take place. Last but not least for today we want to say thank you very much - to everyone who bought the DLC 1, every gameplay, every video and screenshot and every suggestion which makes us know that you really like the work we're doing. So please, keep checking the news because we're on more things right now and announce our above mentioned special sale soon.

Thank you!

Dear Fans!

Today is December 24th, 2021, Christmas Eve and we are starting selling THE ISLAND with a one-week-discount. We wish you a lot of fun with it, kick all the demons off THE ISLAND and get the new achievement!!! Be sure to get your DLC until last day of 2021 - for a lot less than a Big Mac! https://store.steampowered.com/app/525170/

To all new and old THHR Fans out there!

Here are now the best news since S&A released the original game with THQ - after so many years of trouble! And we request everybody to buy the main game here at Steam! Those are the only authorized sales - and you are able to buy it for a special price - RIGHT NOW here at the STEAM WINTER SALE beginning today, 22.12.21 - check it out! Hey, Ezequiel here: When we first started this year we fixed a few old bugs first - some of you noticed it. We also added a new achievement for you to gain - SALVAGED ISLAND. After working hard on the new level and all the gameplay for the quality assurance we are sure you will like it as we do ! Like we said: GIVE IT A TRY!

The new DevCrew and everyone here at S&A wish you all Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2022!

We are going to start the DLC "THE ISLAND" sale this month - that's now for sure! And you will be able to get it here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/525170/

...yes, Ezequiel here. We have some views from the new level, testing is in progress...it's really fun! Let's see - it got symbols - are they really just opened by shooting? Find out when you need it - opening up is a one-time pleasure! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/2666b2729e762051081abb316428a2dd667ae096.jpg "Prison Cell Section" ...be careful not to be cornered despite throwables and special weapons - you don't want to be on higher difficulty levels. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/9e96b6de344a5b5299c6c4c70c98c0e37cea4044.jpg Run through the island garden? Should be done careful in battle mode - and up to...cough...cough...oops, what's that? {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/fe3daef2093dea514b28ff4e1ea4e4b809a48efb.jpg Isn't the church nice and shine? While playing Nightmare or Battle mode we are talking about a place where it's better not to be. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/8d704384257412c208efca8f30c14bfa42c9f0a7.jpg Okay, keep checking the news feed and get the game now! Cheers, Ezequiel

{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/fb564e6a387f5fcd06e47869ebf716d5c640c604.jpg Dear THHR Fans, old and new! We end the year 2021 with the news that none of the last and the original DevCrew are connected to THHR anymore. We are not promising again something like the last time that we can’t keep - after promises made to us and the agreed delivery dates for Data and level 2017 didn’t comply. Nobody was more sorry and angry about this ongoing to that time than us. But we are pleased, and hopefully you too, that we have now been able to make a new agreement far from any old influence and the new head of the DevCrew has its say now: Hi there Fans!{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/ed9243c4fda2f386ad85ca09834964220c37e62b.jpg

The New DevCrew shortly took over and is working on what's been missed since 2017.{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/3952907/683eec4c770b7f28c546a9a0f793c0d522410fad.jpg

Starting Haunted2 workshop (Animation) in a few days and news to DLC Haunted1 coming soon...

Hello to everyone! Let’s start with a small report about 2016: we all had taken no vacation last year, because we aimed (and still aim) on making the DLC1 on UE3 as soon as possible, to compose/record the new music for DLC and Haunted2, to master it and then cut the sequences for the game and have the team for Haunted 2 complete, starting the level design on UE4 plus the work for new characters. Through the following month we saw new team members come and go, because they couldn’t do what they said - or they were much to slow. But professionals who can work faster, prefer to work for large companies with big budget, not for Indie’s. That all wasn’t so funny since our decision to bring Haunted to life again. But, as said in the last announcement, we wanted to have finished the first dlc until christmas, which wasn’t to realize. In addition, there was an accident in november, which still hinders us until April this year. So, we finished 2016 reworked and a bit frustrated. 2017 started with much needed recreation, but also three weeks ago with febrile flu for all plus now shingles for one of us :-( ...and the latest news from the world of justice, aren't constructive, too. Nasty people that still do not give us our money because they think we are dead or they feel safe in their countries and don’t understand why we are still not broke like so many others after our partner THQ has gone bust - which means, the costly lawyer-issues still go on (what the heck costs so much time?). But that all will not bounce us back and to all the guys who owe us money are said at this point: better you’ll get in contact with us and give us the money you made with our game than being prosecuted and sued for damages for selling copies illegal. We’re gonna get you sooner or later! And at this point also a big thank you to all of you, who bought our game legally here at Steam and support us thereby! Please have in mind: since we restarted Haunted 1 (Hells Reach) we sell it only here and exclusively on Steam because of the precise separation of legal from illegal sales with respect to the ongoing investigations and law suits. Okay so far, we are going on with keeping you informed - and now Cedric takes over: Hello! Have you ever built a do-it-yourself furniture only to find out that the last piece doesn't fit? Even if the parts are supposed to fit perfectly, the accumulation of very small mistakes during the construction can sometimes lead to this problem and you have to undo a part of the construction to get things to fit. This also happens when making game levels. http://cdn.edgecast.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/6c1970dc527b6ca0097f8c6c033fffe7093858ef.jpg Like their name implies, modular kits are modular and just like legos, you can build a lot of things with only a few different pieces. This makes the production much faster but there is a big drawback and that is that the things can get a repetitive look very quickly. To avoid art fatigue, I often add a few unique pieces breaking the generic look and that is where problems can arise. Things that should fit no longer fit. In addition, you are at a point where you can not really get back to fix things - since it take a lot of time and could create problems elsewhere. This is the moment when you have to do things differently - let's say by cheating a bit. If you can not fix something, then you can make it invisible, for example by hiding it. How? You've got a little gap between 2 wall parts? Let's cover it with a pillar! You've got two textures which won't connect properly? Let's place a rock on it! May be you’ll find that is a lazy way to fix unexpected things, but it works, nobody will see it, it saves time and that is what counts. Something that has gone wrong, but can not be noticed as wrong simply does not exist as wrong. Of course, there are different ways to solve a problem. You could un-build a part of the level and rebuild it with different parts to make things fit, but that's very slow and there is no guarantee that doing so won't break another part of the level. Creating an unique piece just to connect things properly is also another possible way, but I'm not fond of these solutions. I like to keep my modular kits as simple as possible. What does it mean to have more pieces? Just a higher chance of making errors. Of course, If I want to make something architectural, that means modifying more pieces, but I believe that the most important thing is that if a modular kit is made, it should also be thought of for future potential users. A unique piece which was made to solve a certain situation in ones level used by another artist can become the source of a problem in this artists level. In a team, you can always communicate with your colleagues to come to a name convention, an agreement for such pieces - but, for example, what about mod-enabled games? The external users know nothing of internal agreements on names for unique pieces and will find themselves with a broken kit to work, which gives them a to the highest unsatisfactory modding experience. My recommendation on this topic is: if you are going to build a modular kit, you should make it simple and easy to use, not only for you, but for everyone else who will have to work with it. http://cdn.edgecast.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/3e5b1daaf0bf1d5f397db1d536e01a3557a5697e.jpg

Hello to all friends of The Haunted Games, despite our efforts, we have not been able to complete the DLC before Xmas. So, at KTX, we are somewhat disappointed. However, Cedric today has especially important notes for the production, perhaps the most important so far at all, because dealing with light and shadow is an overwhelming task in the visual arts: Hey guys, time to talk a bit about of one of the most important aspects of a game: lighting. Nature never looks boring because of the unlimited amount of detail it contains - you'll never find two similar rocks or two similar blades of grass. If we simulate nature in games, then we are limited by some facts like: - the average power of game computers, which we can not expand, - the experience of the artist to deal with complicated circumstances, - the extra time the artist is willing to spend to realize his own ideas, which he wants to see in the final version and - the money of the investors, since time is money. As a result, we have to be creative and so lighting in games accomplishes a lot of things: - it defines 90% of the mood of the level (eg. adding an iceberg will not cause a cold feeling, but a good pale blue lighting will do it) - it is used to break the repetitive look of objects and textures - it can provide subtle visual hints for the gamer (eg. where it goes on or what he has to do next) - it can be used to enhance the look of hero pieces in the level and hide pieces that are not so good Unfortunately I wasn’t an expert at it from the beginning, though I learned a few things from my colleagues over the course of the years which also depends on the projects you are working on - as you may see here. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/7a5e6bebf6118822585c386bcac69d53a0451fd5.jpg Since we can’t have the extremely subtles variations that make nature look unique, we have to increase the contrasts between lights and shadows and use colors that look unnatural but make things look more dramatic. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/46fecfa071ddb9790a86972e8a6eb4c9b9dd3305.jpg One of the main feature of the DLC level is that there is a day and a night side to the level. In the night side there is a lighthouse which is casting light in 8 directions. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/1b837c38fe83e4f760a4a068383a9bc326870a47.jpg I designed the lighthouse to make sure that the light from the lighthouse is going to create interesting situations. As you can see here, it is highlighting a path on the cathedral's roof and a fraction of the light inside is shining trough the windows in a specific way. In some case, I had to alter the gameplay slightly to make sure that interesting highlights and shadows would always fall on interesting parts of the level. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/112955b8ef798edc590106785b8f06fd88d99c05.jpg This part is my little reference to one of my favorite games: Final Fantasy 10. This area was designed as a reference to the arrival to Zanarkand, when you start seeing the rooftops of the destroyed city in the horizon, which really blew my mind back then. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/67f6c8b888cc1778169e33cd67c0dea898f73e90.jpg So, I gave the DLC that kind of breathtaking sight that gives mystery, excitement and a clue as to what's coming…by the way, in case you did not notice, I did exactly the same thing with Irithyll from Dark Souls. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/72508a7ec2242065bdf4b5ba371077abcd868dc8.jpg To sum it up for today, a bad lighting can break a level made out of the most beautiful assets, but a good lighting can make average looking assets look really awesome. Lighting itself is far more important than the subject that is being lit, lighting is what brings life to a level. On the other hand and invisible for the gamer - the biggest problem with complex but mostly impressive lighting is: it takes a lot of time to check it out and finish. At that point where we are right now I made a little screenshot to bring you in the position to get a clue of what I am talking about… http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/ffa879962dbbe8ad02207f57cb1295c55808d1e1.jpg Now you can imagine that something else invisible, especially for Indie's, is also very important while these things always lead to the time schedule being disregarded, and that is the understanding of the CEO and the amount of humor and ideas he has to keep the investors in a good mood - since there are many games that have never been finished and/or released because the studio ran out of money for production or marketing or both.

Hi to all friends of The Haunted Games! Before Cedric takes over again…we just waited two days more to give you a very first look at another new aspect of what is also in work at KTX… http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/ad124ad8ac44a30a888a0f649c87cc74c8c9150f.png Hello guys, let's talk a little bit about “foliage” today... Talking generally about vegetation related to the Haunted 1 set of maps you may find it not as fantastic as some other parts of the visual content. In fact, EPIC (the company that created the Unreal Engine) implemented hardware instanced static meshes into Unreal Engine 3 when the maps of the game were close to completion. However, the most exciting thing about "foliage" is that you can turn a boring naked floor into a very detailed area without stumbling into hours and hours of hard work. Have look at that beautiful picture… http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/00b801d7eab6acedf38bb2e70f20f5d16bc7b824.jpg …making a beautiful meadow like this requires a mesh for grass and one for the yellow flowers that you compose with only minor differences in size, rotation and color between each instance of the meshes into the landscape - and it turns into a completely unique appearance - and how unique depends on you. So, what happened lately: the thoughts of making the DLC even better for you, led me to a wrong way, because I thought too much about the appearance as about the game performance, we already talked about. In the end only seven meshes out of a collection of 40 were integrated, without affecting the good appearance recognizeable, but it helped the performance. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/b22470a0304b7f8f43d18da25a5032848ba577c2.jpg With closer look at one of those meshes you will realize: there is not a lot of detail in the geometry, which makes clear that the texture is by far the most important part of a vegetation asset - save time and don’t look elsewhere. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/f50996f2f7cb88a5b75ce1912224f477f5b3691d.jpg The following images are made to give you an impression of how I check the sense of scale, the way my foliage reacts to lighting, as well as performances and how I recognize in which way my meshes fit together best - I just put them in an empty map. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/713bf398e7d049c250bbf54665edc194b9dc4fb0.jpg http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/dc92e29e7314b3653fdfac813be18d3071a2cd86.jpg Finally, see how the assets are used in the upcoming DLC. As you know from the beginning of today’s remarks, Hardware instanced meshes don't work well with lighting in the Unreal Engine 3 - but I'm working on a solution…as much and as soon as I can. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/4129dfa6dc22eddd76c93dbcbc99520eb09096df.jpg http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/ef3755b1c0e8f583afa4419cb2758938bb233af3.jpg http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/5e2c9ad2c874fa33b1266b3c875c3a89a40dca77.jpg http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/8c60c8fd03c529349647a2538394d55da33338de.jpg

Here we are again with the biweekly notes: On January 4th we announced to reactivate the plans for The Haunted 2 and to work on downloadable content (DLC) for The Haunted 1. If you have read that Jan 4th announcement exactly you can imagine how happy we were to be able to present just some month later the first official preview of the DLC in the work process. We had discussions about how to do the DLC since we reactivated the plans for “The Haunted 2” (have a look on announcement Oct 4th) and are now going to finish a DLC in the far improved style on UE3 - heading UE4 ! And while doing that - here is the next “behind the scene” info from Cedric: Hello guys, the last post was about the process to make an asset from start to finish - today I will talk about optimizing of performance. As you know, the PC version of the original game was released at the end of October 2011 and developed until spring 2012, when the lights went out at THQ. Although "The Haunted 1" was not my first game (I also worked on Divine Divinity Ego Draconis, Mini Ninjas, and some Nintendo DS games), I was not as experienced as I am today. The DLC in the work process will now benefit from six years more experience and we gonna have a look at that a bit closer. If I am going to open today the Museum map I made back then, I can see instantly things that negatively impact the performance. Even on my current computer (i5 6600k, Geforce 770gtx 4gb, 64Gb ddr4) I can't even reach the maximum framerate of 120fps allowed by my monitor while playing around with the Unreal Engine Level Editor. Having a look at the following two screenshots (hopefully, Steam won't resize it down too much), you can see that I only get 86fps… http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/da6023902aa05890108e5bfec976094961f7d038.jpg …looking at the entire map, the framerate drops down to 30fps, and the map is not even that big. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/b22da6232b5590c32d917e7e1f01328b027fec4d.jpg The next two screenshots show still a work-in-progress, but most assets are already in there and, much more importantly, the polygons count is nearly 4 times higher than in the museum map above, allowing me to add the details I was talking about (in this case, a very dense vegetation). Lastly we note that - no matter where you are in the level or even looking at the entire level from above - we reach the 120fps and it never drops below! http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/27750fecafb0854ff10f68bb962e9a6709999b26.jpg http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/a40e0f7df8a38534f1d79963cfdc58c79b7c1f68.jpg Besides that, from a gameplay point of view, the level is already done. Most major assets are done, those that are not just need to be properly textured. The vegetation assets are 100% done. The textures are 90% done. The detailing assets are 50% done. What's left to do is the lighting (I think you could guess from the screenshots), the pathfinding, items placement and the level event. I can guarantee you that this DLC will get released before “Half Life 3” ;)

http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/aad8874a2eb59085fc30cf692d7f099783aa32f8.jpg

Did you read last news Oct 4th ? Sooo. today we lift the curtain - Cedric Danneels is back and today he gets directly to you with the promised next "behind the scene" info... ALSO: everyone should now get The Haunted: Hells Reach to play the upcoming DLC, we have reduced the price to 8.99 and will also make special offers. Quite close is the next special sale simply watch our steam store each weekend!! Hello everyone, Cedric talking here... Back in the days, I made the Museum level for THE HAUNTED: HELLS REACH. As announced earlier, some of you may also know me for making in DARK SOULS 3 Irithyll of the Boreal Valley and a part of the Lothric castle. I took over the realisation of upcoming DLC recently and decided to remake things. It may be longer to do things that way, but even if I took my distances with THE HAUNTED: HELLS REACH after the THQ insolvency post-release debacle, I still have some pride and certainly want the players to get a proper product, so that's why I'm here now - to lift the quality step by step until state of the art. Since there was a comment about it, I’m tempted to show you the reason between what appears to be a day lighting - but I feel it's better to keep that part secret until the end since it's the main feature of the level. So - no pretty screenshots today, that will be for the next update...
 Today is going to be a small “making of” an asset where I’ll explain a part of my designing process. It all starts with this… http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/fcbde692ba1cd0aa94e4a7b4ae6a5563e17d94ab.png …a small set of very simple meshes. Those meshes will be used to block out the rough shapes of the level, get a sense of scale and also test the gameplay very early on. As you can see, they follow strict size guidelines, this is meant to make sure that the assets will assemble properly without gap. When using random sizes, everything will need to be adjusted later on, potentially causing new problems in other areas. This step is for me the easiest part but also the most important, if you mess up here, you can easily double or triple your production time. I always keep my set of meshes as small as possible, a wall, a door or two, some pillars and slopes and you're good to go. No need to juggle between a hundred of different assets and spend time wondering if Wall002 would be better than Wall015, simplicity is efficiency. At this point of the production, making changes is extremely easy so I make sure to test the gameplay a lot to make it as fluid as possible. There may still be some changes later on but unless there was a major oversight on my side, the gameplay should be close to final and any change should be minor. The later the change, the harder it is, the longer it takes to fix, taking away some precious time that could be used to polish the level. — So now let's take one of those meshes, for example the pillar and let's proceed to the next step. For every mesh, I gather some references and do some research about the architecture that I want to recreate and then start refining my meshes and diversifying them. http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/a0e52a4f12cfde0405acffb7706531d7408618a3.png The meshes should have enough details to be recognizable but still basic enough to be easily modifiable. Once done, i can start replacing the block meshes by their refined version and see if they fit well. Things like pillars become much thinner when going from a 8sides cylinder to something more refined like on this picture, which may look wrong. Once again, since the meshes are very simple, adjusting the proportions is still very quick and easy at this point so it's better to make sure that the architecture is well balanced rather than having to do fixes later. — Once every mesh has been modeled, placed in the level and adjusted to look correct, it's start to move to the third phase; making the final mesh with all of its details. Well, here it is… http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/57e4ead6901901cdc2debf15e5153045c6281b47.png …and you may notice 2 things: 
1.) The shape of the base changed compared to the previous version. The reason is that in the previous version, it was easy for the player to get stuck while back-walking. This is a part of the work that players don't realize very often but when making an asset, we have not only to care about how it looks - we also have to make sure that it doesn't hinder the player's movements.
When a game advertises itself as "utra realistic", it actually means "ultra believable". The reality is always slightly altered to help the gameplay because even if we know that graphic make a game sell, we also know that players forgive more easily bad graphics than they forgive bad gameplay. 2.) There are some weird shadows and the mesh looks a bit blobby. What should be flat surfaces appear to be slightly convex.
There are two main ways to fix that. First way is, we could make a high poly asset then "bake" a normal map that will correct the surface. This way allows us to make very high quality assets, however it takes a very long time (more than a day for a pillar like this), time that i don't have. Second way is to fix the geometry itself by modifying what we call the vertex normals. This process only takes a few minutes and will also allow me to make the texture without needing a high poly bake. And here is our pillar with its geometry edited. It looks much better than the previous version and has the same memory weight: http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/04fe8cf60a10e846afc243ea0b76e13434baeb7b.png http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/1e86195afdc49e9b712ea43c7dd05d6873fd720c.png A little peak at the wireframe: I kept the geometry relatively light compared to nowaday's standards. Nowaday's graphic cards can digest millions of polygons per frame at 60fps but since the DLC is for a game that was released five years ago, a part of our playersbase may still have a low end computer so I keep the things a bit more simple and light. — We are getting close to the end now. What is left to do now is to make the texture for our asset - and have a look at how nice our pillar mesh looks combined with its texture: http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/55c137af57444ea1ac3c6b2e5680059ed3462fc4.png And then place it in the game… http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/166fddd22db4f6056bcaab91d2fa2402d54ae8db.png Well, that’s from Cedric for today. Now its your turn to say: what would you like to see in the next update ?

...and please remember - get your own copy of THE HAUNTED: HELLS REACH for as low as 8,99 or the four pack or watch special sales !!!

2016 is, like announced in january, an exciting year and we are happy not only to found the base for Haunted 2, we also found solutions for the DLC...The Haunted:Hells Reach was made with UE3 and as we all know that is not state of the art - but we need to make the DLC with UE3 to fit that in the original game. Sooo: Step 3 of the level work is done and we are now improving the DLC1 to bring on those more impressive visuals. Today we show a bit from "behind the scene" with two " before / after " shots to give an idea where we go...direction high quality assets! You´ve checked out our last announcement from Sep 1st ??? http://steamcommunity.com/games/43190/announcements/detail/803152542812095166 The images from Dark Souls 3 made by that former Haunted Team member ? Well, that one joined also back - and since we are now in the final phase of the DLC we are going to inform more often about the ongoing things at The Hauntedgames. Stay tuned - next "behind the scene" info friday, oct 21st 2016 !! http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/a4864836b5740e8e8c2734e6f9d7520b619d7824.jpg http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/cc2ff55f86da60f5e09e967a539442ffd4cc436c.jpg

PRICE LOWERED like promised !!! It´s time to get your copy of Haunted 1: Hells Reach now to be prepared for the DLC to come! Trading cards will follow soon! All meetings on GAMESCOM in Germany some days ago also brought light and good results for future work and publishing on Haunted 2: Back to Hell...and another project!!! AND by the way - are you familiar with the area of these 6 images below? You´re right - this is IRITHYLL of the Boreal Valley from DARK SOULS 3 !!! But did you know also that it was actually made by one of the "The Haunted Team Members"?http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/2bfe3255c55ccb3d469b5bd3a4de67cc459f2508.jpghttp://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/e0e1767c49b85a42951fbeb6b3ba4cfaafdf3868.jpghttp://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/c284d1b586a5710876e560a4eab69037ccab8966.jpghttp://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/b94f4137ca802a4f86ebc42ab93f8f60ae486000.jpghttp://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/d88d912ac752dd9b806dca8dfd97e6b7242cff2d.jpghttp://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/c284d1b586a5710876e560a4eab69037ccab8966.jpg

Hello to everybody… We have given us an overview of the fan-wishes and thank you all for constructive postings and your eMails !!! We want to take that all into account as far as possible. :-) The first wish we are going to fullfill now is the question for DLC…the DLC-work began (see first preview Jun 24) while we are setting up a new team for Haunted 2 (Back to Hell). Then we will see a price reduction for the full game. Thirdly…trading cards. Okay so far…and do not buy the game from any other place than from STEAM (please read announcement from Jan 3, 2016 carefully !!!) we DID NOT authorize any other sale and Cosmi Valusoft do not have any rights to sell our game, not digital like a steam key and not one physical product. Finally, as anybody should know, the development of a game like Haunted usually costs from a million bucks upward - THQ went bankruptcy - we never saw the money that was put into the game and in lawyers, although the game was successful, while THQ sold. We are Indies, lost a lot of money and are right now paying again for new dev. - sooo the DLC’s to come can’t be sold for nothing, but also not expensive…for the new start we want you all to buy it ! :-) Thank you and have fun !!!

Hello to everybody… We have given us an overview of the fan-wishes and thank you all for constructive postings and your eMails !!! We want to take that all into account as far as possible. :-) The first wish we are going to fullfill now is the question for DLC…the DLC-work began (see first preview Jun 24) while we are setting up a new team for Haunted 2 (Back to Hell). Then we will see a price reduction for the full game. Thirdly…trading cards. Okay so far…and do not buy the game from any other place than from STEAM (please read announcement from Jan 3, 2016 carefully !!!) we DID NOT authorize any other sale and Cosmi Valusoft do not have any rights to sell our game, not digital like a steam key and not one physical product. Finally, as anybody should know, the development of a game like Haunted usually costs from a million bucks upward - THQ went bankruptcy - we never saw the money that was put into the game and in lawyers, although the game was successful, while THQ sold. We are Indies, lost a lot of money and are right now paying again for new dev. - sooo the DLC’s to come can’t be sold for nothing, but also not expensive…for the new start we want you all to buy it ! :-) Thank you and have fun !!!

Because images speak louder than words, here the first official preview of the ongoing work on the announced DLC... http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/ca4f6cc920c280cdaae5ed217fd967bb57b66adc.png

Because images speak louder than words, here the first official preview of the ongoing work on the announced DLC... http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steamcommunity/public/images/clans/3952907/ca4f6cc920c280cdaae5ed217fd967bb57b66adc.png