Thy Shadow Updated

Thanks to all the feedback that has come in on The Consuming Shadow so far. A couple of large issues came to light, so I've uploaded a 1.0.0.1 version that takes care of them. I won't make a habit of putting out new versions regularly; like I said, I plan to put out a much fuller version further down the line. This is only to handle some big issues that may spoil the enjoyment of the beta and get in the way of assessing the game as a whole.

You can download version 1.0.0.1 from the same page as before. Here's a complete list of changes:

New features:

- Added the much-requested keyboard controls

Originally I only had mouse-controlled movement 'cos I like the idea of a single-button game. It's nice to have a hand free to drink with, and the possibility of a future tablet version has crossed my mind. But on reflection I didn't see any reason not to also have the option of keyboard controls if a keyboard is available.

So you can now use WASD or cursor keys to walk, holding down SHIFT to run, and the number keys 1-3 can be used to switch ammunition types. You can also press ESC to either flee the dungeon or to quit out of the Magic menu without casting a spell, which was another annoyance.

- You can now pistol-whip by right-clicking, as well as by left-clicking within melee range and left-clicking anywhere with an empty gun

Game-breaking bug fixes:

- Fixed the game crashing when you try to attack the Tall Man

Silly me: the damage checking script was trying to check the Tall Man's health variable, when the Tall Man doesn't have a health variable because he can't die. Incidentally, gameplay tip: stay the fuck away from the Tall Man.

- Fixed the ladder disappearing in the endgame dungeon

Minor bug fixes:

- Clicking to dispel a message while your mouse is still over the bottom-centre button no longer presses the button again.
- The Pentagram Necklace is no longer overpowered

Instead of eliminating sanity loss from spellcasting, now it only halves it, so you can't just cast Mass Death and Restoration infinitely. (The effect stacks if you also have the Rosary equipped)

- Fixed inscribed runes sometimes hanging around outside the casting menu
- The Fat Man no longer respawns infinitely during hunter escapes
- Fixed being able to cast magic infinitely while under the effects of drugs

See, what happened here was that there's the raw Sanity stat and there's the Trip stat, which is the amount of sanity the drugs have added. Previously, casting magic only reduced the raw Sanity, but now if there's no raw Sanity left it takes away from Trip instead.

Cosmetic changes and other tweaks:

- Hunters now fade in when appearing in a new room, rather than popping into existence at the door

That's about it. Please download and install the newer version if you intend to keep playing and testing - save files and score data from the previous version should still work. I learned my lesson not to use Game Maker's built-in save function after Poacher.