Devlog Update: Manager Synergy & Smarter Upgrades

Hello everyone!

This development session was all about adding more strategic depth and quality-of-life improvements to our manager and research systems. We’ve introduced new mechanics that create powerful synergies and give players more control over their empire’s growth. Here’s a breakdown of what’s new:

Manager Synergy & Research System

We’ve laid the groundwork for a much deeper management strategy by introducing Global Manager Research. Players can now invest in technologies that boost the effectiveness of all their managers across specific attributes.

• New Research Tiers: We’ve added new research options for Manager Extraction, Transport Speed, and Transport Capacity. Upgrading these provides a global percentage bonus that stacks with each manager’s individual skills.

• Enhanced Manager UI: To make these bonuses clear, a manager’s info card in the selection panel has been updated. It now displays:

  • The manager’s maximum potential bonus for an attribute (e.g., Extraction +50%).

  • A green, parenthesized value showing the total additional bonus gained from njihovog level-ups and global research (e.g., (+37%)).

This gives players a clear view of both a manager’s inherent potential and their current, upgraded effectiveness.

New “Advanced Recycling” Research

Flexibility is key to managing a growing empire. To support this, we’ve introduced the Advanced Recycling research line.

• Downgrade Refunds: This new 10-level research allows players to increase the percentage of resources they get back when downgrading a building or transport upgrade. It starts at a low percentage and can be upgraded to refund up to 80% of the previous level’s cost.

• Strategic Respeccing: This mechanic empowers players to reallocate their investments from early-game planets to more profitable late-game operations without a massive loss, adding a new layer of strategic planning.

Improved UI & Player Feedback

To support these new mechanics, we’ve polished the user interface to be more informative and responsive.

• Dynamic Manager Buttons: In the manager selection screen, a manager who is already assigned to a planet will now display a “Remove” button instead of “Select,” streamlining the management process.

• Live UI Updates: The manager selection panel now dynamically refreshes after a manager is removed, ensuring the UI always reflects the current game state.

• Informative Downgrades: The downgrade button now features a helpful tooltip showing the exact percentage and amount of resources that will be refunded.

• Visual Feedback: When a downgrade is performed, a floating text notification now appears at the mouse position, visually confirming the amount of gold recovered.

These changes create a more robust and engaging management loop, rewarding thoughtful investment in both managers and technology. We’re excited to see how these new strategic options play out!

Stay tuned for the next update