PARKSIDE: DECAYED SOUL MANIPULATION

Hello again, friends!

Welcome to yet another PARKSIDE dev blog. A bunch of stuff has happened since the last one, and even since the 2024 dev montage video. I’m getting closer to being able to consider the game to be in a “Beta” state now, and I’ll explain what I mean by this (every game has a different definition for this it seems!) and I’ll talk about what I’m currently working on as of writing and what’s to come.

What will “Beta” be for Parkside?

Simply, I will consider the game to be in Beta when I have finished all the playable maps. This excludes any cutscenes between maps and ending cutscenes, which will be added alongside some other polishing to be done when I’m at that stage. Parkside Beta will then be, in theory, a “complete” game, playable from start to end, just missing some story content and cutscenes.

So how far away is Parkside Beta?

It’s closer than you might think. Since the last devblog, I have reached many milestones with gameplay, mechanics, and content.

If you are the kind of person who prefers to “do” rather than read – you can see a lot of the recent progress for yourself in the brand new Steam demo that released during Steam Nextfest!

Play the new demo by clicking here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2549340/PARKSIDE_DECAYED_SOUL_MANIPULATION_Demo/

Aside from the occasional new quest item I have to add while making maps, every single inventory item and weapon I originally planned to implement is finished. A while back I put out an arsenal showcase on YouTube, you can watch it here:

Most of the weapons in the game cater to a “lethal” playstyle, but there is now nonlethal functionality for some including the police baton, and tranquilizer rifle.

Also catering to stealth are several “headgear” types, such as night-vision goggles and “Corner Commander” goggles, which let you see enemies through walls. There’s also a rebreather!

I’m also proud to say that all of the character’s abilities and upgrades are fully implemented. There are just shy of 50 total upgrades that the player can purchase with XP – some are just add-ons that make your abilities better, and others add totally new features. Some examples are:

“Glass Destabilizer” – every time you get near a glass window, you expend some energy to silently disintegrate the window, allowing you to stall pass through any glass surface.

“Neck Breaker” – gives you the option to silently break a person’s neck while crouched behind them.

“Aqua Agent” – allows the player to swim faster underwater without ever drowning, at the expense of not being able to use weapons while submerged.

“Brethren Slave” – prevents the player from ever speaking again, becoming more obedient to the Brethren, while gaining extra armour at the start of every mission.

The eagle-eyed among you might be interested in the “aqua agent” ability, as it implies there’s now swimming in the game – a feature that I was working on around the time of the last devblog. Of course, what is an immersive sim without aquatic routes to explore?

Many places to visit…

Exploration is a good segue… I’ve been hard at work on maps with plenty of routes and secrets to uncover. Since the last devblog, my idea for the story arc over the last half of the game has changed (for the better) and so my ideas for the environments the player will explore has changed as well. There are still going to be some that are the same from my previous list of upcoming maps – in fact some of these have been completed. The recently completed environments include:

The Cincuenta y Uno Casino and Hotel

Abbotsford’s premier destination for accommodation and gambling!

The Abbotsford Metro

Long abandoned due to negligence, corruption, and cost. New residents have taken up the nooks and crannies below.

The Cathedral

At the heart of the Spanish Quarter – now inhabited by a secretive cult of monks who are pushing the limits of human augmentation with their sick experiments.

And as of writing this, I’m halfway done with the next location: Gasworks Row, a district that bridges together two parts of the city from previous missions, and you will have to traverse this dark and winding area while the city is under martial law.

Other new stuff!

Alongside the big things, here’s some of the other stuff that’s been made for the game, or has made it into the game over previous months!

The Ability Wheel: Select your desired ability, or use a medpack at a glance!

The Perma-Technician: A brainwashed maintenance man on rails. Sprays acid to dissolve fleshy growths in his tunnels. It also hurts you, too.

New vehicle models! Aren’t they cute?

The Abomination: You don’t want to cross paths with her… She tends to scream!

No monk-ey business!

Ladies and gentlemen, the United States Military!

Don’t get in the way of this bad boy…

Persuasion: No longer is the National Archives mission a matter of life and death. You can now bullshit your way to victory.

Last but not least: food.

So, there you have it! A LOT has been happenin’. It feels like we’re on the home stretch to Beta now, folks. That also means that I’ll need MORE PLAYTESTERS!

But first: A lot of stuff still needs to get done. After “Gasworks Row”, I will still need to make several more maps before the game enters Beta, including an underground lab, a second wilderness map, and two variants of a large portion of Abbotsford, which will be different depending on the player’s choices – not to mention a kind of final boss “battle”.

Thankfully, with the game’s mechanics, equipment, and enemies largely complete, the only thing slowing me down is my ability to crank out maps. Some days are better than others, that’s what every mapper will tell you.

If you want to stay more up-to-date with the game, consider following on X/Twitter, BlueSky, or joining the Banana Hardsoft Discord server!

You can find all the links for these and more on my Linktree: https://linktr.ee/bananahardsoft

Stay cool,

-BananaH