Hi folks,

We've been doing lots of iteration with the game this summer. Let's share one of the lessons from our process!

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Complexity and Depth

For any new lane-pushing game to find success in the market, we believe it must satisfy three properties:

1. Be fresh — enough to attract new players
2. Be accessible — enough that they'll bring their friends
3. Be deep — enough that expert players stick around

This is the minimum requirement to "sit at the table" in our genre. There are many other ingredients to success — but today I want to touch on "depth".

In terms of philosophy, achieving depth in Causeway can be done most elegantly through well-crafted complexity. (For more on that topic, do check out my favourite article on the internet.)

We feel that on our imaginary ruler📏, Causeway's complexity (the number of mechanisms, and how tightly they interact) should rest a notch or two above that of Heroes of the Storm, and a few notches below Dota 2. This is intended to let us stay accessible, while also allowing for a rich level of mastery.

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Tailoring for a 'Medium' Fit

Knowing where we want to arrive — I have generally added "medium complexity" mechanisms to the game, in anticipation that their combination would produce the right result.

It came as a surprise that this hasn't worked out so well!

For an example, one mechanism in Causeway's alpha is 🍟Chips. A Chip is a semi-permanent debuff. It stacks up to 3 times, increases damage taken by 5% per stack, and is only cleared when visiting your base. 

It's hard to apply them quickly, so they're part of a longer-term attrition game. Several Counsels (our twist on items) have bonus effects when the target has 3 Chips. One character has a permanent Chip on their shoulder (yes, it's a term we use playfully!)

However, Chips aren't quite a big enough part of gameplay that players wanted to allocate attention to them. Since the underlying idea is "a long-term debuff whose impact you can shape with your build", we didn't want to simply buff them into relevance.

Perhaps more importantly, they were tied in with another medium-complexity mechanism. We were giving players competing priorities before they might even begin to think about Chips. 

Personally I enjoy designing a medium-complexity armour system and shaping characters to fit it. But sometimes a 'neat idea' is really a solution looking for a problem! We are learning, slowly, that starting simple and building up seems to be the better approach.

As one of our community members reflected...

“The way to build a complex system that works is to build it from very simple systems that work.”
— Kevin Kelly

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Stay tuned,
Softmints

Greetings all!

We've had Causeway in alpha for some time now. It really has been a blessing to gather so much feedback; our approaches and thinking sure get challenged a lot!

The game is so early in many ways. Still, we feel it's important to keep you in the loop about the kind of game this is shaping up to be, so today we'll share a feature about which we're particularly excited.

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All Aboard!!

Many lane-pushing games give players a global mobility tool, such as the Teleport Scroll from DotA. This usually works by targeting a friendly building, and activates after a few seconds of channel time.

In Causeway, all player characters have the Teleport ability as baseline. We don't ask you to buy it or choose it among other options, it's just part of everyone's kit.

The interesting part is that our take on Teleport includes one extra rule: "you bring a friendly player along with you".

Maybe this does not seem the most glamorous or ground-breaking change! However, what's exciting for us is how our players respond.

Everyone starts each match with the same tools... yet players can accomplish so much more if they invite others to participate.

Picture this situation...

That's powerful. If one team starts coordinating their Teleports and the other does not... you can see the impact on each team's winning chances.

In our alpha tests, we devs don't have to tell new players about Teleport. Our testers explain how it works to each-other because they want the efficiency.

We feel this take on Teleport is great for the game because it's consentful and reciprocal and gets people involved and feeling like they're in a team. It represents a very "Causeway" way of doing things.

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Respecting our Roots

The inspiration for this tweak is an old lane-pushing game called Tides of Blood (2003). It allowed players to buy a transport unit, hop inside it with teammates, and the transport itself had a Teleport ability.

This led to a lot of cooperative play as teams would delicately position their transport units out of harm's way, yet close enough to act as an escape vehicle, or to relocate the team across the map if necessary.

We didn't want to reintroduce extra units to control, but their spirit is hopefully alive and well.

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Whispering of Advisors

Last time, we mentioned that the Advisor system (our twist on items) was in a tricky place. We're pleased to say that we've found some interesting directions to explore — and yes it did involve creating a new "equipment" — one I haven't seen in any previous lane-pushing game.

I'm happy with our new direction for this feature. More on that when it's ready :)

Until next time,
Softmints

Hi everyone,

We've had a busy summer working on the game, stabilising a few key features, and preparing to revisit some others.

We also spent time to develop some of our long term plans for the game and our studio. It is amazing what introspection and conversations with the right people can reveal! We're very excited about what's to come.

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Forks in the Road

In the past, we've shared that Causeway's in-match progression is called the "Advisor" system. It's our twist on items. While we won't dive into much detail about it yet, we do have a lesson or two to share from development.

One of the goals of the Advisor system is to be a "minimum inventory, maximum diversity" system. This describes the tricky balance of having as little content as possible (less tooltips to read and internalise) while allowing a large number of (viable) possibilities and choices.

We have an implementation of this system, and we discovered that while had potential, it also came with a major shortcoming...

Players don't find it fun to calculate a large number of (viable) possibilities in the short timespan of a match.

Every time they opened the menu — there were too many options! There was also not a strong enough thread of progression through those options to narrow them down.

The system had so much freedom that players experienced choice paralysis. We saw people return to familiar options, rather than face the frustration of trying to optimise under time pressure.

That is a pretty big problem!

The Advisor system will need revisiting to address this issue. We plan to explore whether better UX can make a difference. Dawngate did a great job of concealing lots of choices in a cleverly designed menu.

Dividing progression into different equipments is usually a show of confidence from game designers, so that is another option we'll consider (though there are reasons we haven't pursued it yet).

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Steps of the Giants

As some of you will remember, our game is named after the Giant's Causeway, which is a landmark in Northern Ireland. It also happens to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its stunning natural beauty.

During the summer, I had the opportunity to visit it for the first time. (Yes, we chose the name before visiting!)

Even though I'd seen plenty of photos online, I wasn't sure what to expect. Now I understand why I couldn't get a feel from just photos.

The area has a huge amount of variation in the size, shape, colour, erosion, and formation of the rocks. I don't think one picture or angle can really capture it. So here's a few samples I took...

When I mention that I work on a game called 'Causeway', people sometimes guess it might involve a hexagonal grid of some kind — a rigid structure often used in turn-based games.

I felt much more inspired by the natural variations that appear all around this landscape. I hope Causeway's gameplay can be known for giving players the same organic feeling!

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Finally, we're very grateful for the time our testers have contributed to help improve the game this year.

Despite our website not having pretty artwork (or much detail generally) we've somehow managed to attract a consistently lovely group of people. Running games and tests has been made so easy because of the open and friendly attitudes that our testers bring with them every week.

We look forward to welcoming more of you on this journey before the end of the year :)

Thanks for reading,
Softmints

Hello all,

Since our previous update, most of our development work has targeted small, incremental improvements.

Some have made their way into the game: like better cursor targeting and tidying up the counsel "shop" interface (we mentioned this was a pain point for players last year).

Others, like being able to attack or cast while moving, are still being finalised. They'll be fun additions when they're ready!

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Decorating the Lobby

In December, we added a small showcase of micro-modding to the game. This is our term for players being able to make small additions to the game which can significantly alter gameplay, usually done from the lobby settings.

This feature needs a lot of work, but initial reactions were promising. We definitely got some discussion going!

We value this addition because it helps our iteration process too. When we're examining a topic like "how does laning feel?", it's great to be able to explore variations without deploying a new patch.

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Thinking Fundamentals

The rules of "Causeway" haven't changed much over the last year. Yes, we've added content and features — these were safe changes to a base game which was already working and fun.

This approach served us well. It allowed us to focus on fixing bugs and achieving stability, while also being comfortable to introduce people to the game at any time. We knew they'd arrive to a good build.

Also, we know that in the mountain range of fun, we are not already atop the highest peak. The new mechanics we've introduced could be interacting more, the systems made more elegant... and we do love emergent surprises.

We don't want to let cool opportunities escape the net!

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Changing Seasons

Since we now have infrastructure for micro-modding and tweaking game modes, we can support rich alternative modes that co-exist with the base game.

Taking advantage of this, we're adding a new game mode to the alpha called 'Weekly'.

Our plan is to spend 12 weeks testing assumptions about the game — trying risky, even wacky changes that would have previously been destabilising. Our purpose is exploration; we expect most ideas won't be for keeps. That's okay, because we're comfortable failing forward!

As well as our own collection of ideas, we're inviting suggestions from our alpha testers. At the end of the 12 weeks, we've hopefully had some fun, created a few stories, and learned a thing or two more about the game.

Until next time,
Softmints

Hey everyone,

We have been busy in many directions over the past two months, from fixing bugs in the alpha client to exploring new and potential partnerships that will shape the future of our studio.

I'm pleased to say that our internal footage of the game has come a long way and it has really felt like a milestone — something we as developers can look at and say: "hey – we have a game!"

Today, I'd like to share one specific thing we've been working on, which you might have already noticed somewhere...

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Making a Mark

Over the past three months, we've been working with the talented graphic designer Lurinzu on a new logo for the game. Our previous logos were made by me, and while I enjoy typography — I don't have much talent for it! ?

We were keen to do this because we won't be ready to show game art for quite a while. In the meantime, a logo makes a great "anchor" for the visual identity of the project.

Here's our new logo as it now appears on our front page:

We set out to craft a logo that feels organic, bespoke, and "refined, yet accessible" — and I think the result does a great job at communicating these qualities of the game.

As with many creative processes, we used lots of reference material. Some was already hoarded for general game art direction, some was specific to typography, and some was added during our explorations.

Above, you can see some of the Victorian type that was referenced for parts of the 'C', with some softening applied to better suit our style.

It's worth saying that game logos are quite different to logos for print or even other digital products, and we learned a lot from reflecting on how other games brand themselves.

For example, games in the Fantasy/Strategy genres often use metallic colours and shapes, or gems to communicate progression through gathering of wealth. We first had to understand that rule, before deciding to deviate because it wouldn't be a fit for Causeway's lore and world-building.

You can now enjoy the new logo across our socials, and if you'd like to see more work from Lurinzu — go check out their instagram.

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If you particularly like the new visuals, do feel free to share them with a friend!

We'll remain busy on our side working on the game, and look forward to updating you again in the new year.

Until next time,
Softmints

Hello everyone!

We hope you've all had a pleasant summer. Ours was an industrious one!

Lets dive into a few topics we've been thinking about...

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Communicating Causeway

It's hard to explain our game!

Internally, we have a very clear picture of the kind of game Causeway should be. We try to communicate that externally, through pages like our Design Principles. But reading through all that... what does it mean for players?

I've been told that our website describes more of a vision than a game. I think that's true.

Of course vision is important, but a great game description usually has a key mechanic that hooks people in. We've been reflecting on how to help a first-time visitor quickly understand: "why Causeway?"

Our conclusion is that if there's one theme that's really present in Causeway, it's exchange of opportunities.

This is a large part of what you will do in the game. Here's what it means.

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Invitation to Participate

As you play, you will be making choices. Initially it's character select, then it's counsels (our twist on items) and choices on lane and around objectives.

The way Causeway frames them, each choice you make is like advancing an idea, and each of these ideas is something your team can build upon. You don't have to ask or even want them to do that — they can just see what you did, and follow along if they like.

An idea that several players are building upon tends to become exponentially stronger. This means someone else's choice presents you with an opportunity to build towards something interesting and cool. Similarly, your choices introduce opportunities for others, and this process repeats throughout the match.

We design for this "exchange of opportunities" because it accelerates players connecting with each-other and collaborating on shared ideas. Choices become conversation-starters, ice-breakers, and focal points for working together.

We don't rely on any specific mechanic for this, though many contribute. Instead, we have a philosophy that for a choice to be in the game, it must feed into this cycle of exchange.

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A New Character

It's time to introduce another Causeway character.

Meet Jasper — our meddlesome dealer in bootleg jewellery!

Jasper has been in the alpha for quite a while. We initially added him as a clone of Geomancer (warning: old http link!), a concept from one of my old games. The character was popular for his interaction of placing obstacles and knocking enemies into them.

For Causeway, we've diversified Jasper with more utility and some very conditional mobility tools. He enjoys his previous strengths, and now has a nice flow thanks to iteration and feedback from our testers.

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Alpha Progress

This summer we made lots of progress with the game. The client is smoother and more stable than ever, and covers most of the basic quality-of-life features players expect.

We've done a major pass on audio, improving on individual sounds as well as levels, music, and implementing some fancier behind-the-scenes features to make the acoustic experience, well, sound great!

Of course, take all this with a pinch of salt. It's still an alpha.

We've also added plenty of content. There are now 50+ counsels in the game, which is enough that most characters have multiple build options to consider.

This is putting pressure on us, because players are having a hard time navigating these 50+ options. It's also an intimidating number to be faced with right from the start of a match!

We know the finished game will have fancy filtering tools and all the modern conveniences that make browsing and discovery easy... and we're going to have to invest in some of that earlier than we'd planned for.

It seems as content scales up, a game's UI really needs to keep pace! We look forward to exploring more in this space over the coming weeks.

Until next time,
Softmints