As is a somewhat coincidental tradition, here is a yearly collection of fixes and QOL improvements:

• Implemented a fix that should stabilize performance and framerate on Windows 10. Big thanks for the heads-up in our Steam Community Bug Megathread!
  
• Fixed a bug where a rounding mistake was able to decimate an entire high score table. Sorry about that 💦
  
• Revised [ROCKET TECH] input & timing. Now requires full tilt on analog stick, but can also be suppressed by holding SLOW.
  
• Added settings for fine tuning analog stick sensitivity. (If you were attached to how the analog stick felt in the previous version, the values were 30% for deadzone & 60% for full speed!)
  
• Game now pauses when a gamepad in use disconnects.
  
• Paintjob

That's all fine and dandy, but surely you can share some info about Black Onion?

Until next time!

It's the third anniversary of ZeroRanger's release! For the occasion, we've prepared an update with new features, small QoL improvements and bugfixes:

FEATURES:

• Steam Cloud saves!! Your save files and scores can now transfer between different machines. (NOTE!: if you purposefully had different saves on different machines, turn off Steam Cloud if you wish to retain them!)
  
• Lock-on buff?! Previously an all-offensive tool, Lock-on has gained some defensive properties! Upon releasing a group of locked-on lasers, a bullet-cancelling shockwave is emitted. How this shockwave works exactly depends on the ship.
  
• 3-button combination input leniency: It can now be activated regardless of when each button was pressed, as long as all of them are eventually held down together. The old, stricter input method can be selected from OPTIONS -> CONTROLS if preferred.
  
• Added FPS display option to VISUALS menu. (Previously only available through pressing F2)
  
• Revamped CONTROLS menu a bit for better clarity.
  
• A bunch of visual flair and clarifications.
  
• Masher's Curse

BUGFIXES:

• Executable no longer needs to extract itself: Resolves some cases of the game not running due to machine permissions stopping either the extraction process or the extracted files.
  
• GREEN ORANGE co-op life gain was simultaneously broken in two different ways that somehow cancelled each other out and it kind of worked...? Fixed that (both of them)
  
• Stage 4 SE-bonuses can no longer be collected too early so that they disappear from the SE-bonus tally.
  
• A bunch of small, yet not exactly innocent bugs
  
• As always, your bug reports are being heard, so keep 'em coming if you run into any problems!

Fly high!!

ZeroRanger turns two! Mostly and completely coincidentally, it also gets an update:

FEATURES:

• Your score now gets recorded when facing [????]
  
• A special trial now opens for those who have reached LIGHT...

BUGFIXES:

• Game now properly recognizes your old version's settings file (SETUP.zr / SETUP2.zr) if you don't have the July 2020 version's settings file (SETUP2-2.zr) around.
  
• Fixed some inconsistencies in recognizing achieved challenges
  
• Fixed WHITE VANILLA grades spilling over to GREEN ORANGE in the RESULTS
  
• Fixed some crashes... But there are still some known ones. Your bug reports are being heard, so keep 'em coming!

For endless light!

ZeroRanger expands with a major update: introducing WHITE VANILLA, a new fast-paced gameplay mode which tests your skills against remixed enemy waves and stages. Put your back into it!

This update also tweaks and balances the existing GREEN ORANGE mode, while adding some general quality of life features as well.

Moreover...

ORANGE SOUNDS, the original soundtrack of ZeroRanger, is finally live and available for purchase.
Keep in mind that the soundtrack includes a few new songs introduced in this update. Tread with care if you wish to hear them in their gameplay context firsthand.

Enjoy and stay safe!

-System Erasure


WHITE VANILLA:

• A new mode is LIVE! (Upon first boot, becomes available after playing GREEN ORANGE once)
  
• Destroy enemy waves in rapid succession!
  
• Destroy enemy waves efficiently!
  
• Prove your worth - do not falter!

GREEN ORANGE:

• Small adjustments to enemy behavior and bullet patterns across the mode
  
• A few visual enhancements for better clarity
  
• A lot of bugfixing and polish accumulated along the way

GENERAL:

• Player ship's shot color can now be toggled between GREEN/ORANGE from the options menu
  
• Save data can now be erased from the options menu
  
• Access new EXTRAS after clearing GREEN ORANGE
  
• Just more music
  
• Buffed Rybb

Much anticipated controller update is finally here, with quite a few improvements.

GAMEPAD OVERHAUL:

• Gamepad button remapping supported
  
• Both XInput and DirectInput gamepads supported
  
• The typo that killed player 2 gamepad entirely is fixed - sorry about that!
  
• Additional & optional settings: Analog/digital movement, slow button, 3rd weapon autofire

MISCELLANEOUS:

• Some bugs gone (stingy score salamander, floor prison)
  
• Some crashes gone (being shy about your team name in co-op)
  
• Probably some others too but it's been a while since the last patch

A little bird told us someone wished for a season-appropriate palette, so GREEN+RED has been added! And since it's the worst possible palette regarding colorblindness, we threw in another icy & spicy palette too.

We've also created a new bug megathread in order to more easily catalog any possible bugs/errors that might surface, so feel free to report them there.

This will be our final update for this year (unless something urgent shows up). We're pretty pumped to see what the next year has in store for us - let's make it even better than the last one.

Happy holidays everyone!

-System Erasure

A new patch for ZeroRanger is now out with a handful of fixes and improvements:

• Fixed controls locking up during certain transitions
  
• Fixed some music playback & Sound test inconsistencies
  
• Fixed some crashes
  
• Removed an [unfriendly oversight]

New updates are still coming, so if you happen to have any suggestions or problems you would like see addressed, keep them coming! We may not be able to respond to everyone but we do still read and listen all feedback as we sort out our next plan of attack.

But before that, we're going to need a moment of rest... Thank you for your support so far, everyone!
-System Erasure

ZeroRanger will miss its original release date of August 24th. The new release date is September 28th 2018.

We do feel bummed out to announce this delay so close to the original release date and we apologize for that.
Ultimately we believe this to be the right decision in the long run.

Although the game is now more or less fully playable from start to finish, this extra month will allow us to properly polish and test the game before release.
So do not fret, the home stretch is on our sights.

Thank you for your patience, we're doing our best to make the wait worth it!
-System Erasure

As the release of ZeroRanger is only few months away, we wanted to take this opportunity to answer some of the common questions players have made regarding commercial release.

Mainly, what exactly is different/new about this release when compared to earlier freeware demos?

If you're unfamiliar with the development history of ZeroRanger, here are the key details:
The development began around 2008 under the name of FINALBOSS. This dev version saw small-scale freeware releases during the subsequent years, the most prominent one being -Raw Label- in 2015. Although this demo already had many of the key features in place, it was in many ways still incomplete.


Almost all game objects (enemies, bosses, backgrounds etc.) have been touched upon and in some cases completely redrawn with more frames of animation. Even the game's colour palette has seen an ever so slight update.

In a similar fashion, the game's soundtrack has received an upgrade from a simple midi base to more fleshed out arrangements. Have a listen![soundcloud.com]


While the fundamental parts of gameplay have remained the same, new quality of life features have been added along with a list of subtle refinements. For an example, simply colliding with an enemy won't immediately cause the player to lose a life anymore. Furthermore, both life and continue systems have been reworked to make things overall more approachable.

Many underlying systems in terms of scoring and difficulty have been finetuned as well to keep things interesting for both newcomers and more seasoned players alike.

-Raw Label- demo technically had three different modes, that could be categorized broadly as EASY, NORMAL and HARD modes. While these modes were rather similar in terms of gameplay, in the final version these modes will have much more distinct characteristics, especially between NORMAL and HARD.

However, HARD mode won't be available at the release and will be added later as a free update.


Arguably the biggest addition when compared to -Raw Label-, rounding the stage count up to four. We don't want to spoil too much about the fourth stage before release, but in terms of scope it's closer to stages 2 and 3. And of course, what would a new final stage be without a new final boss...


Hopefully this post has a given you a better idea how the final version differs from the earlier demos. Many surprises and mysteries still await you at the release.

We hope that you're looking forward to it!
-System Erasure

ZeroRanger DEMO Version is now available for download.[system-erasure.itch.io]

This demo offers a short, vertical slice of the final game.
There are some surprises left for those who're already familiar with the game's previous iterations.

We hope you'll enjoy your time with the demo. Feel free to send us feedback - there's still some work left before the game is ready for release after all.

Speaking of which, we now also have a concrete launch date on our sights: August 24th 2018!
After all these years it feels almost surreal... We're doing our best in order to finish strong.

Take care!
-System Erasure