Developer Diaries

Developer Diaries provide a behind-the-scenes glimpse at the development process and philosophy for MENACE, and provide tidbits and previews of the game systems to tide over the fans as we await the release of the full game. Usually posted on Fridays except for holidays and bank holidays in Germany.

Dev Diary #1: Breaking the Silence: Imitating the community-beloved dev diaries from Battle Brothers, the first Dev Diary describes MENACE as a game, gives a rough release date for Early Access in Fall 2025 (subsequently changed), and describes their (Overhype Studios') intent in creating a new game in a different genre.

Dev Diary #2 - Strategic Part Overview: The second dev diary and first real one, this describes the starmap in which the player will select destinations for missions, etc., the OCI system to upgrade the TCRN Impetus (the player's ship and base of operations), and the armory, wherein the player can examine troops, change loadouts, promote squad leaders, etc.

Dev Diary #3 - Tactical Combat Overview: Describes the tactical missions: How maps are designed, how Action Points and Turn Order works, differences between vehicles and infantry, and cover/LOS mechanics.

Dev Diary #4 - Weapon Types and Stats: Describes the difference between squad and leader weapons, the ammo system, and details the specific statistics such as range, armor penetration, HP damage, etc. each weapon will have.

Dev Diary #5 - Squad Leaders and Stats: Describes the rationale behind having pre-written squad leader characters as well as their statistics such as action points, HP per element, move range, etc.

Dev Diary #6 - Supplies and Equipment: Describes the supply system and the limits on how much men and materiel a player can bring on a mission, as well as how the armor system works in battle and accessories players can attach to their squads for extra benefits.

Dev Diary #7 - Combat Mechanics and Suppression: Describes what suppression is in real life and how MENACE incorporates it into tactical battles, the three-stage system used to model it, and how it can be worked around or defeated.

Dev Diary #8 - OCIs (Operational Capability Improvements) and Off-Map Abilities: Describes the OCI upgrade system in more detail, explaining the three types of upgrades and that they can provide both strategic and tactical benefits.

Dev Diary #9 - Perks and Promotions: Describes how squad leaders can grow stronger over time through the promotion system, wherein the player can distribute "experience" (so to speak) and decide which characters can be promoted for new skills, or even demoted if necessary (if you're willing to pay the costs both in wasted experience and the hit to morale).

Dev Diary #10 - Pirate Faction Preview: Explores the background, tactics, units, and weaponry of the pirates, one of the factions the player will have to deal with (either as a friend or foe) in the Wayback system.

Dev Diary #11 - Action Points and Attack Calculation: Describes how AP can be used, as in classic games like XCOM, to move and fire, how it can be reduced by suppression and other factors, and provides the detailed damage calculation for attacks based on the weapon's statistics, ideal range, etc. versus the target's armor, etc.