South African, Yellow Lab Games have provided an update into their upcoming rock and roguelite – Metavoidal, which has seen a massive revision to its combat systems.

The Cape Town based developers saw their game take home the Best game to watch when somebody is playing it accolade at the Indie Arena Booth at Gamescom 2023. and shared a post labelled – Drumming for beginners on the Steam community forum:

If you came here expecting a breakdown on ‘how to get into drumming’, then I must unfortunately disappoint you. Instead, we’ll be taking a closer look at our new combat system!

At Gamescom, and at events as far back as BitSummit, there were a few comments made about the ‘lack of variety’ in attacks in Metavoidal. These remarks were more than fair, since there’s more to a drummer than simply banging sticks against things, right?

While we were initially planning on adding some spice to the move sets, we decided that a mere dash wouldn’t suffice. That’s why we’ve added new attacks & items altogether to put a bit more beat meat on the bones of each run.

ATTACKS:

A drummer has more up their hoodie’s sleeve than just hitting things with sticks. That’s exactly why, instead of delaying it in-lieu of doing something less important (like music) we’ve gone and actually added the new moves & fighting mechanics.

So apart from the old reliable down stroke and fling a stick, we’ve added 7 new drumming techniques to your repertoire:

  • Hi-Hat Tap
  • Crash Cymbal
  • Stick Trick
  • Drum Kick
  • Flam (a double whammy)
  • Blast Beat (jump attack)
  • Up Stroke

Not forgetting about the Double Time spin attack that has been in the game since August. So there’s about 7 already in, or in the process of being added.

MECHANICS:

OK great, new things are coming. Whoo. But does it play well with the systems already in-place? Well, about that…

In the pursuit of giving variety, we’ve opted for a more customisable option! You start out with the basics, but as you explore and defeat challenge rooms, you will unlock new techniques.
You can then chop & change your configuration at the end of each level with the new moves you’ve nabbed, or try out a new playstyle with what you have by changing the sequence of attacks.

How it works

Your drummer has 4 open attack slots, like this o > o > o > o.
Initially, 3 of them are filled with the basic* left-right-double attack move combo, with a pause at the end, to get you started. Like this Left > Right > Double > Pause.

*You’re a fresh drummer, you gotta work your way up to the cool moves, you know?

As you progress through the levels, you’ll unlock new moves that you’ll be able to access through the drum set at the end of each level. Riiiight before you head into the next area.

Customise your sequence, try out what flows more with your style, or just select a new move as you please and get back to it!

It takes a second to get use to the new rhythm, but once you have it you’ll be beating down baddies in no time!

Outro

This new combat system, coupled with the Trinkets (more on those SOON) you can unlock during a run, is sure to put the “Fun” in ‘Funeral for a Friend’. But we’d love to hear what you think about this change!

If you have any questions, pop them in the comments, or find us on Discord to have a chat about it.
https://discord.gg/XhK7fNpH8N

Metavoidal is being published by Astrolabe Games – a global video game publisher with a focus on indie titles and is scheduled for a 2024 launch.