Portal 2 is such a tuff act to follow tho, it was a masterpiece.

The textual stream: 2/5/2015 - AGANOS! ACCESSORIES! Q&A!

Hello everyone!

We’re back, and into February, and that means… oh let’s just get to it.

February Character: Aganos (ἀγανός)

Here’s the original concept. The final is close, but not exact.

Age: 3429 (assumed created ~1415 BC)

Height: 8’+

Nationality: Unknown

Gender: N/A 

Type: War Golem

Personality traits: Obedient, Stoic, Reserved

Weapon: Fists & Boulders

Animated by a group of powerful artisans for a purpose lost to time, this war golem, the last of its kind, has been a prized possession of warlords,  power mongers, and kings, its violent history writ large across the battlefields of Europe and the Middle-East.

As the ages wore on and the battles continued, so was a toll taken on the golem’s body. Its creators long dead, it was impossible to replace its worn and broken components. Piece by piece, battle by battle, the golem lost its original identity, substituting rocks for metal, vines for bolts and ropes.

The golem felt nothing, thought of nothing. It only obeyed commands… until one king gave it a most unusual order.  Instead of ordering the construct to kill or destroy, this king commanded it to learn, to think. He named it Aganos “a person of gentle disposition” in the hopes that it would grow beyond its previous use and into something that could choose how to act.

While that simple command allowed Aganos free will, he remained loyal to the king out of respect and as repayment for liberating him from strict obedience.

Years later, when that king learned that Kan-Ra still lived and was going deeper and deeper into research of the dark arts, he asked Aganos to hunt down and destroy the evil sorcerer once and for all. Aganos accepted this task, and for centuries, he has hunted Kan-Ra across the globe, battling him on numerous occasions around the world, yet neither has ever been able to destroy the other completely. 

Will the cycle of conflict continue? Will Aganos finally defeat the sorcerer and fulfill the king’s request? Find out in the S2 story!

STAGE CONCEPT: Forgotten Grotto

Until the stream next week, here’s a preview of what Aganos brings to the KI universe:

•   The BIGGEST character in KI (sorry, Glacius!).

•   A replenishable resource, visual on character, that can be used for projectiles, wall creation, or armor!

•   Wall creation, permanently (until destroyed or used) changes the stage boundaries of the fight!

•   Variable movement, jump, and attack speeds based on the amount of resource he carries.

•   Special roll attack with a controllable bounce component.

•   Shadow move that allows free action while incapacitating and damaging the opponent.

•   Powerful two hit strikes in place of auto doubles

•   The next stage to feature a Stage Ultra!

•   Much more! Tune in to the stream!

And how big are we talking? Look:

Golem Guessing Game – Winner!

While many people danced around the idea, the answer below was one of the first that was “close enough” for me in terms of a place and some fiction:

Quote from: KaijuSápa on January 30, 2015, 09:26:51 PM - Is Golem stage a coastal temple on the edge of the Mediterranean looking out to the West towards the sun set. Eternally awaiting the return of a dark power seeking the secrets that Golem protects? Golem has fought in many wars in Europe and the Middle East but he always knew the greatest evil will always come from the west.

Congrats to KaijuSápa! You’ll receive a Shadow Jago skin code in your inbox within the next few days!

As to the instinct mode for Aganos, no one got it. I’ll tell you that it does have something to do with walls – you’ll just have to wait until next week to find out!

Riptor’s blood! Why isn’t it purple?

We hear ya! Our bad! Purple it is! The 2.4 update (Aganos) will include it!

You’re taking out the Mike announcer?!

No, no, no. It’s just we don’t have access to Mike any longer, so new lines have to be filled in with a sound-alike. If we add more than a certain percentage of new lines, we end up with a non-cohesive announcer, and that’s when we have to think about what we do in regards to the voice overall.

Can we get a toggle back to Fulgore’s old stage lighting?

The previous version of Fulgore’s stage lighting was very problematic, as the stage was densely red, and the characters were all set up to also be densely red, causing a big contrast issue.  Even for normal people, mirror matches on this stage made it hard to tell which character was yours in many cases.  For our colorblind players, however, it was much harder to deal with than that.   We love the stage and didn’t want to see it banned in tournament play, so the art team worked hard to relight it in a way that helps as many people as possible see all the action.  It is not at all trivial to change stage lighting, as each character and costume needs to be lit individually to make sure they don’t blend into the background. So, unfortunately for fans of the old Fulgore stage lightning, it isn’t coming back.

Colors 7-9? When? How?

Coming with the 2.4 (Aganos) update. Character level max increases from 30 to 50, with more accessories and colors available along the way.

Color 9 = L50 character… and you can’t purchase it with KI gold. Some of the coolest ones we saved for L50, and only through dedication will you earn ‘em.

Here’s a preview of some of them (click to enlarge each), showing some new accessory colors and skins:

Community Q&A

Quote from: Director MasterStone on January 30, 2015, 07:19:28 PM

Is the ghost girl play style difficult to pick up/learn compared to the other characters?

Like many characters, she has aspects that are easy and others that are trickier.  She brings a new way of thinking about a KI match with her that we think players with a more patient, scheming mindset will enjoy.

Quote from: KaijuSápa on January 31, 2015, 01:45:10 AM

Ghost-kun is literally the most abstract silhouette amongst the cast. Can you tell me if like the silhouette Ghost-kun actually has only One Eye?

Considering she’s female, Ghost-chan is a more appropriate affectation, but anyway, our ghost girl has two eyes, you just don’t usually see more than one, unless her hair is flying around… which does happen with many of her moves.

Quote from: BuBBeR on January 30, 2015, 07:30:30 PM

(snip) on the topic, will there be achievements for the new leagues system? If so, please dont make something like "be on top 32". Thanks for the amazing work on season 2

There are a handful of achievements with leagues, and everyone should find them obtainable.

Quote from: Fwufikins on January 30, 2015, 07:38:04 PM

Also, do you guys plan on making Double XP weekends a regular thing, at least for  character releases?

Quote from: Nidean on February 01, 2015, 08:00:53 AM

Is there any chance of getting a bonus experience Wednesday, or something similar, for those of us who work weekends?

Sounds like everyone really enjoyed the double-XP weekend. As you saw with the XP UP icons, we have a system built-in to show them now, so you can be sure we’ll be seeing more of them, and not just on weekends!

Quote from: evolve on January 31, 2015, 03:09:48 AM

Same question as last time: why does T.J.'s arms glow if his cybernetics had been removed?

Nanomachines, son.

Quote from: CoolerThan24 on January 31, 2015, 10:37:06 AM

So, knowing that Cinder is now just a damned LIVING SUPERNOVA in some kind of containment suit with a mask, how many different designs did he go through until you landed at that?

Many! More than any other character this season. Some day after S2 is all out and done, I’ll share one of his alternate backstories / origins.

Quote from: Zcythe on January 31, 2015, 11:36:31 AM

What would you guys think of doing a character who was a "projectile teleporter", a la Naruto's father Minato. This has some cool potential. He could have up to 3 projectiles at once (one for each punch button) and pressing the corresponding button again after casting could teleport him to its location. (snip)

This is somewhat similar to Kan-Ra’s original design. He could put glyphs around the board that he could swing from, catch you with, plus teleport to. It was rather crazy… and for KI that’s saying something.

Quote from: PsychoJosh on January 31, 2015, 11:59:09 AM

Can Maya have her shrink ray ultimate back? With some added interaction, like pressing a punch button causes her to kidnap the opponent whereas a kick button causes her to stomp on them.

First, no ultimates in S2 – think we’ve already covered that pretty well. Second, would the shrink ray still fit the character? If we added ultimates AND had separate ultimates for retro and modern, then I could see her having that for her retro, but new? I don’t know if the old one really fits her lore and abilities any longer.

Quote from: Mikey2sam on January 31, 2015, 06:03:51 PM

Can we expect the conclusion of cinders teaser in TJ’s trailer the beginning  of cinders trailer Adam?

Sooner than that.

Quote from: Filemon204 on January 31, 2015, 06:20:19 PM

Is Bayliss designing alt costumes for Kan-Ra, Golem, and the rest of newcomers?

Yes!  Except Aganos, who has a very specific retro we’ve already built – his old self!

Several people asked great questions about training mode…

Quote from: Infil on January 31, 2015, 07:17:02 PM

Combo breaking is a big part of the game, but it's actually very difficult to practice in training mode. Would you guys consider a "combo breaker" training mode? (snip)

Quote from: BuggyInstinct on February 01, 2015, 01:45:08 PM

Is it possible to add a wakeup attack option to the training mode?(snip)

How about a feature to let you clear the pause screen in training mode? (snip)

I’ll be the first to say that our practice mode could use some more features. I don’t think we could get any into S2 unless they were small, but how about y’all start a thread in the feedback section on practice mode improvements and drive some priority from it?

Quote from: Infil on January 31, 2015, 07:17:02 PM

Have you guys thought about when to "freeze" the game so people can practice for Evo on a stable game? Some people are concerned your final character might need some balance tweaks, but it will be too close to Evo to make adjustments. What's MS/IG's take on this?

As you can see from the very minor changes coming in each month now, we feel the game is in a really good place balance wise.  Obviously, we’ll need to make bigger adjustments to the brand new character a month after their release to make sure we dial back anything we missed or fix any critical bugs, but the whole team is working overtime to release the most fair and interesting characters possible.  In the past, EVO has had a cutoff date for DLC content that they allow to be used in their tournament, and ultimately, this is a decision that should be made by the Tournament Organizers at any given event.  That said, we hope to see the entire KI Season 2 roster duking it out on the main stage this July.

Quote from: CupcakePop on February 01, 2015, 12:43:20 PM

Is the "Killer Instinct tournament" like a "world-championship martial arts" kind-of tournament?? or it's something totally different?

It is a test; an evaluation of potential.

Quote from: CStyles45 on February 01, 2015, 10:06:27 PM

Biggest questions I have revolve around leagues. Are you guys ready to break down how the point system will work for the wins/loses you occur? (snip)

The entire IG and MS design team have been working on the system together, and I think you’ll be very happy with the results. We’ll share more about the details as we get closer to the update and rollout!

Quote from: LeCoach on February 02, 2015, 04:39:38 AM

Bonjour, Est-ce que l'instinct de Thunder va subir des changements? 

Merci d'avance ;)

(translation: any plans to update / improve Thunder’s Instinct?)

Thunder’s instinct is very potent and I continue to see it turn matches on their heads every week.  The team is, however, evaluating a change to Thunder’s Call of Sky to help it achieve its originally intended goal.  More on that later.

Quote from: Whitetiger on February 02, 2015, 07:23:36 PM

Will the Dojo  be selectable outside of practice mode?

We have no plans right now to enable this.

Quote from: Stalkerthereal on February 03, 2015, 10:23:57 AM

is the silhouette of cinder his actual form? i mean, is what are we going to get?

Cinder’s look changed more than others from the concept phase that the silhouette is based on, but it’s not a complete re-design – e.g. the current hands are stayin’

Quote from: BHE Low Key on February 03, 2015, 12:08:46 PM

Why do you executives feel KI is better as a Rated T game instead of Rated M?? What ultimately made you guys choose rated T. Please answer I really need to know...

We felt that we could achieve everything we wanted for the new version of KI and stay within a T rating, which also allows us more flexibility in where and how we can sell the title. For a fighting title like KI, M just means more gore and blood, and KI was never directly about that.

And that’s that! Thanks everyone for the continued support of KI. Aganos stream next week!

http://www.ultra-combo.com/forums/index.php?topic=6651.0

interesting new character. has to see how he plays. thought i was going to have to dig for days to find 'em.

rated T.? looks like MS has no idea how to please Rare fans. talk about something i didn't see coming lol.

how many of you are enjoying KI? an old friend showed me (cuz he knowns im buried under PS games) how this new KI plays, and i found it interesting.

It looks like you love Bungie more than Halo, playa. Halo 4 is in no way a recycled material.

If anything, it's a rift from the usual unstoppable tale of man/machine that powers through any problem (Halo 1-3).

In Halo 4 MC not only has problems controlling the physical world around him, as he has trouble coping with the eminent loss of a long time companion and a lover (platonic relationship).

We've never been this up and personal with Chief. That alone grants Halo 4 a 5 star in my book.

One of the best games on Xbox One. Was a definite system seller for a friend of mines. It needs to be advertised mor. Hopefully more ppl give it a chance. Really love this game.