Windblown Early Access Pays Off As Motion Twin Implements Community-Requested Change

Controller Master



Windblown has not even been out in Steam Early Access for a week, and already community feedback is changing the new roguelike. According to an announcement on Steam, Motion Twin will be changing a game mechanic thanks to an overwhelming amount of feedback from the community. The feature in question is Sudden Death, which is somewhat similar to the old Borderlands mechanic, in the sense that it puts players into a downed state when they lose all their health in co-op mode. Except, in Windblown, it’s up to the downed player’s teammates to revive them by defeating 10 enemies. While Sudden Death isn’t usually an issue in standard missions, it becomes problematic during boss fights, when there is only one enemy to defeat. Obviously, this makes it difficult for the remaining players to complete the mission and resuscitate their fallen compatriots.

Fortunately, Motion Twin confirmed in a recent Steam Store news post that it plans to address the difficulty introduced by the feature, although it’s not clear that the planned fix will actually solve the problem for everyone who has complaints about it. Motion Twin says it will not remove Sudden Death from Windblown, instead opting to tweak it, admitting that the current state of the feature “feels harsh and maybe even unfair”. Motion Twin says that, despite wanting to address the feedback, it wants to maintain the tension and teamwork that Sudden Death brings to the game.

Motion Twin’s motivation for not outright removing the feature for boss fights makes sense, given the game’s focus on co-op gameplay. Ultimately, the developer wants to encourage teamwork in Windblown and punish players to a degree when they fail to protect their teammates. It also says that it wants players to treat co-op gameplay more strategically than simply using it as a damage boost. Ultimately, Windblown is still in development, and, like its predecessor, Dead Cells, it is likely to change drastically over the course of its early access period.

  • Losing a teammate in battle should have serious consequences for the adventure: we want to build a real bond between players: we win together, we die together. You don’t want to die, and you definitely don’t want your teammates to die either. But we want to do this in a fair way.

    [*}Our goal is for co-op to feel more strategic than just stacking DPS. Here, keeping your friends alive is key, and Windblown provides tools for supporting not only your own survival but also that of your allies—even if they’re a bit green compared to you.
  • We know the current version feels harsh and maybe even unfair for some of you -> we hear you, and we feel the same.
  • Now, we’re not looking to scrap it; rather, we’re building it into an epic moment where reviving your teammates feels like a true high point. (Please remember this is a work in progress!).
  • Rest assured, we’re actively working on it as you read this. We’re keeping a close eye on your feedback to make this feature as cool as possible without losing the tension it’s meant to bring to the game. (And sure, getting one-shot is intense, but let’s admit, it’s not exactly fun).