Dev Entry #6 - Patch 2.1 Info Round 2 news - Rise of the East mod for C&C: Yuri's Revenge

Hi all, another day another update.. I've been delaying 2.1 because I want to make sure it's polished - it's still on track but real life matters this week will press me short for time. Hopefully I find the time to finish it off and pack it for release so I can start working on new features and additions.

It's been a busy 2 weeks, we have a discord now which has been full of contributions and multiplayer testing, which I encourage everyone joins as it's been great fun so far. The 2.1 beta is currently up on discord so if you want to test it out before the release make sure to hit that button at the top of this article.

Going over the last article, everything is ingame and good to go. I have delayed the snow and rain effects until the next release as I need to run more performance tests. 2.1 will come with 2 maps with these effects in place if you want to test them out, more details on the release post.

What's New

I'm excited to take you through the new features I've been working on with the help of our contributors.

On top of everything detailed on the previous Dev Entry #5, 2.1 is also going to include the following:

• Permanent Upgrades
• Asian Structures Update
• ReShade Support (optional)
• Balance & Unit Roles Overhaul
• New Support Powers
• Much More

Permanent Upgrades

Upgrades have been in the mod's code for a while, but due to how unreliable they work in vanilla RA2 (if the building is destroyed you lose the upgrade) I had them disabled. After a lot of testing, I came across a very solid logic, which will be implemented in 2.1.

The following upgrades have been added:

1. Spectrum Shield Upgrade
   1. Exclusive to Germany, this upgrade gives a 15% HP boost to majority of their laser/prism unit roster.
2. Nuclear Tanks
   1. Exclusive to Iraq, this upgrade improves the speed of the Scorpion Tank and Demolition Truck, as well as make both of them nuclear upon death.

Units that can be upgraded have their cameo changed with an indicator. Once upgraded the indicator will change, as seen below:

As we progress into future versions I'll continue to add more upgrades. The aim is to diversify and improve units without making others redundant at their roles.

Another form of upgrade being implemented after 2.1 will be optional upgrades, e.g. where you are given the option of 2 upgrades, one giving your units a power boost and the other giving them a speed boost. The catch is that you have to pick one, upon completing the upgrade no more optional upgrades will be available for the rest of the match.

These optional upgrades may also present you with T3 (and possibly T4) unit choices to pick from.

Asian Structures Update

CalmishPhill has been working on new concept art for the Asian structures, some have already made their way ingame and are fully functional. Here's a look at some of his awesome work:

Had to include a damage frame in there as well for show. The buildings displayed in order: Hack Centre > Power Plant > Supply Drop Zone > Battle Lab > Barracks > Bunker

ReShade

For those not familiar with ReShade, it's a post-processing effects injector which allows the user to add and create all kinds of visual filters which go over the game. I made it optional because it can be GPU intensive depending on how you customize it, so I've left it there for those who are curious. Make sure you read the txt file I included as it contains instructions etc.

Here are a few shader profiles I made which will be shipped with 2.1:

• RotE_Xtended (bottom right)
  • The default, all rounter filter with a focus on image sharpening and color improvements. Bloom effect on bright objects and explosions. A 'Lite' version is also included for those looking for less oomph.
• RotE_Xtra_ScorchingDesert
  • As the name suggests, this filter is aimed at improving desert maps. It comes with a heat haze effect which is disabled by default.
• RotE_Xtra_CoolWinter
  • This filter uses ambient lighting to bring cooler tones to objects based on the more dominant tone, which is the snow terrain in this case
• RotE_OG
  • This filter tones everything back down to default RA2 levels.

Balance & Unit Roles Overhaul

This was probably the most welcome change so far judging from the multiplayer feedback (of those playing 2.1 beta).

Although I thought 2.0.3 was at a good spot, some units felt redundant and some outshone others at their own roles. With 2.1 comes a complete overhaul, which significantly changes what each unit is good at, making for more interesting battles.

This process is ongoing so more fine tuning will be applied before 2.1 is shipped out, but the state of balance is at a very good place right now.

Over the next few days I'll be working on the wiki and will post a detailed unit/role description article here on ModDB as well.

Check out some of our new gameplay videos here:

New Support Powers

This section is nice and short. 2.1 is bringing some new support powers to aid you in the battlefield.

Here's a sneak peek into some of the new powers:

Field Bunker
• New Soviet Support Power - 4 minute cooldown
• Comes with 2 Conscripts and 1 Flak Trooper
• Costs $750 and can only be placed within 30 cells from your base

Obelisk of Life
• New Yuri Support Power - 4 minute cooldown
• Deploys a support tower anywhere on the map that heals/repairs your units
• The heal comes in bursts of 3 and will select units at random in a small area around it
• Costs $750 and the ability goes into cooldown only when the Obelisk is sold or destroyed

Bunker Mines
• New Asian Support Power - 2.5 minute cooldown
• Deploys 4 EMP anti-tank mines around the target Fortified Bunker
• Costs $500 and can only be deployed around Bunkers, including Soviet Bunkers and Neutral Civilian Bunkers

Much More

To close this article here's a glimpse of what else is to come in 2.1:

• Unit Remakes
• Performance Optimizations
• New Ingame Font
• Naval Defensive Structures
• And more!

Until next time,

Cheers,