Game version 126: End of Early Access

MAIN CHANGES

END OF EARLY ACCESS! Unbelievable. And it only took four years and 126 versions. Looking back at version 1, it’s hard to believe that this is still the same game at its core. Everything is familiar, yet everything has changed.

Let’s take a whirlwind tour of these past four years. Please keep your hands, arms, legs and feet inside the ride at all times, and remain seated in the ride until it comes to a complete stop and you are instructed to exit. Thank you.

But before we even get started, it must be underlined that the game as it stands today is **almost exclusively **the product of the player community. It has been **your **feedback, **your **ideas, and **your **bug reports that have shaped the game into the flawless masterpiece incomparably superior experience that it is today. Thank you to everyone who has ever contributed in any way – this is your game. Numbers don’t lie: **1148 **idea medals and **812 **bug medals awarded (so far) must certainly count for something. And that’s not even taking into account the years’ worth of ideas (**565 **currently) already in the to-do list, which are waiting for their chance to be realized one day.

So, here we go:

• **Remastered content**: A lot of content from the previous episodes (CI2, CI3, CI4, and CI5) has been reworked, remastered, and re-designed, and incorporated into CIU.
  

• **Waves**: CIU currently has 261 unique waves (not including variations), 104 of which are new. The overwhelming majority of these waves are the result of the **incessant creative output of the CIU community of players**, and the game is much better for it. Well done, players!
  

• **Weapons**: Although new weapons have of course been added (Absolver Beam, Clucker Bombs), the significant thing is that the **main weapon roster has been re-designed **and re-balanced from the ground up. This is also the result of a massive community effort and a lot of (presumably) sleepless nights tweaking, un-tweaking, and re-tweaking weapon characteristics. To support and facilitate this effort, weapon data was made externally controllable through an Excel file.
  

• **Spacecraft**: New families of spacecraft have been added (Heavy bombers, Space Supremacy fighters) to enable each player to find their ideal style of play. Boosters provide an extra level of firepower customization.
  

• **Mission types**: Mission types from previous episodes have been added (Comet Chase, Supernova, Feather Fields, Meteor Storm), but also brand new ones (Boss Rush, Squawk Block, Key Rush, Ironman, Double Team, Budget Constraint, Pot Luck).
  

• **Enemies**: Certain enemies from previous episodes have been added (Balloon Chicken) , as well as a host of new enemies with unique mechanics (Toxic, Berserk, Chiller, Phoenix, Slob, Alchemist, Coward, Assassin, Fester)
  

• **Bosses**: The bigger they are, the louder they cluck. New bosses include Bossa Nova, Henlley's Comet, Magnetic Manipulator, Master/Crazy Squawker, Feather Brain, Thundercluck, Dr. Beaker, and Egg Cannon Cannon Cannon Cannonade (inspired by the community, no less).
  

• **Mission Environments**: Frozen, Electric, Hot, and Massive environments affect mission rules and flight performance of your spacecraft.
  

• **Galaxy**: New galactic landmarks and features not originally present have been added (Asteroid belts, Supply Droids, Shady Dealers), and even the entire galaxy was re-generated at one point.
  

• **Translations**: CIU is the first game in the series (and probably one of the few games in existence) to support **community translations by the player themselves directly from within the game in real time**. This came with significant technical complexity (not to mention QA and abuse issues), but it was clearly worth it because it now allows players to experience the game in their native language, regardless of how uncommon it might be.
  

• **Multiplayer**: It’s hard to believe that CIU originally **did not ship with multiplayer missions**. Technically speaking, the original game was already too complex, and adding multiplayer from day one was sadly not possible. Still, fast-forward three short years, and multiplayer became a thing. And it’s not just a rehash of previous episodes’ multiplayer: this is **full 99-player, cross-platform multiplayer **with double the network rate, improved ping, better host control of game, and chat and player “kick” feature.
  

• **League**: A ladder of player rankings, where you gain (or lose) ranks by daring other players to beat your score.
  

• **Galactic Cup**: Players periodically compete through the Qualification, Group, and Knockout Phases in order to win the coveted Galactic Cup trophy.
  

• **Quests**: A comparatively recent addition, quests offer yet another way to advance through the United Hero Force ranks until you are “Supreme Admiral of the UHF Fleet”.
  

• **Customization**: A lot of additional customization options for spacecraft (spawn shields, paintjobs, ghost trails, strobe lights, pixie dust, exhausts), new cuisines (Burgers, Sweets, Vegetarian, Fried Chicken, Pizza, Popcorn, +secret?), Color Themes and Config Presets, Music & Starfield Backgrounds, HUD insights and other equipment (Pecking Order Revealer, Power Preserver, Speedy Recovery, and more).
  

• **Music**: New original orchestral music from 2dB! Enough said.
  

• **Seasonal editions**: Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving.
  

• **Platforms**: Initially a Windows-only stand-alone release, CIU has now expanded to more platforms (Steam, Android), with more coming in the future (iOS, macOS).
  

FUTURE PLANS

Leaving Early Access will have practically **no impact on the game’s continued development. **Nevertheless, over the coming couple of months there won’t be any major content additions, because all effort will be concentrated on getting the mobile versions released. After the mobile versions are done, the development branch will most likely be split off into “stable” and “beta” branches for logistical reasons (or, alternatively, “rapid release” and “long-term support”). The details of this have still not been finalized, expect more soon.

So, what else is there is store ? Hmm, let’s see…

SOUNDTRACK

Let’s face it: Chicken Invaders music is simply too good to only be heard inside the game. To this end, 2dB is preparing a monster quadruple album containing all original music from Chicken Invaders episodes (Revenge of the Yolk, Ultimate Omelette, Cluck of the Dark Side), as well as Chicken Invaders Universe itself. He’s even thrown a few bonus tracks in there. The soundtrack will become available on Steam sometime in January 2023. More news will come nearer that time.

MOBILE

The Android version is already in the experimental stages. Over the coming few months, a version for iOS will initially become available, followed by the finalized Android version. Or perhaps the other way around. It’s still all a mystery.

PARTY LIKE IT’S 2002

To commemorate the 20th anniversary from the initial release of “Chicken Invaders: The Next Wave” (a.k.a. Chicken Invaders 2) on 22 December 2002, CIU’s “2002 party” mode simulates an (approximately) authentic 2002 experience: graphics have been reduced in color and resolution, music has been replaced with era-appropriate tracks, and certain special effects have been disabled.

This mode is still present in v.126, however it’s not the default and you need to manually enable it from the main menu (restart your game to turn it off again).

MULTIPLAYER PARTY

A series of multiplayer games will be hosted on Saturday, December 17th 2022. The details of these matches are still being worked out, and a schedule will be posted tomorrow. Footage from these multiplayer missions may be used in upcoming CIU trailers and promo videos on YouTube, so make sure you touch up your paintjobs and polish those exhaust nozzles before you join.

More information about this update can be found here: https://forum.chickeninvaders.com/t/ciu-version-126-2/25623