Test Update: December 1, 2003 [sv1.0.9.2.test]

[The Duck&Mouse]

December 1, 2003 [sv1.0.9.2.test]
Welcome!
Welcome to the initial prototype testing of Cog Headquarters (Cog HQ). The first Cog HQ released will be the Sellbot HQ, attached to Daisy Gardens. We are excited to be in the final development stages of this new area of Toontown -- but we have a long way to go, and we are ready for your help! Cog HQ introduces new physics, environments, enemies, story elements, and game play and thus needs great deal of testing. We feel it is close enough to start letting people in to this rough version.

A few things to keep in mind, especially for those new to the test server:

• Nothing of what you will see should be considered final.
• Balancing will change. Every system may get easier, or harder, and may change several times.
• Story elements may be tweaked and rearranged for clarity.
• Very little is polished - The interface, sounds, physics, and dialog will all get better over time before final release.
• Temporary sound effects - We will integrate final background music and sound effects soon.
• Lots of cracks or holes in world - Take screenshots and report. We are still updating all the 3D models to the new physics system.
• No CogHQ ToonTasks yet - These will be added over time as we finalize the overall difficulty.
• Textures, models, and code are not optimized - Your graphics rendering (frame rate) may be choppier than in other areas of Toontown. The game will be smooth at times and completely unplayable at other times. Please bear with us.
• We may not directly respond to each individual bug report, especially if we get numerous copies of the same issue. But rest assured, each and every report is read by developers.

A Brief CogHQ Overview

Toons have been taken hostage by the Cogs! They are being held on the top floor of CogHQ. It is your mission to gang up and rescue them. Getting into CogHQ will not be easy though; their tight security will detect and reject any Toons that enter. You must build a Cog disguise first by recovering Cog parts from their factory. The factory is a 4-player environment with many new game-play elements. You can keep track of your Cog disguise progress with a new page in your Shticker Book.

Once you have your entire Cog disguise built you can enter the Cog HQ lobby dressed as a Cog. The Sellbot Boss is a very busy Cog, so the guard will not allow you to see the Boss unless you have important Cog business, like needing a promotion. You must earn your promotion by fighting Sellbots to collect "merits" around Toontown. Merits are given out after every battle just like Gag experience and are recorded in your Shticker Book as well. The elevator to the top of Cog HQ holds 8 players so when you are ready for your promotion, group up with your friends and head up to battle the Boss.

If you defeat the Sellbot Boss Cog, you will free the hostage Toon who will in turn present you with his "trading card". You can use these cards in battle to call on them for extra assistance in a tough spot. Of course, knowing the Cogs, they will quickly build another Sellbot Boss Cog, so hurry and get your next promotion to rescue another Toon. There are 60 total promotions as you work your way up the corporate ladder.

Summary of What is New

• New Physics with jumping ability - now you can hurdle bushes, jump onto crates, and hop over small fences!
• New Toon interactions - conveyor belts, stompers, gears, locked doors, switches, pushable crates, platform action.
• New Gag, Laff, and Jellybean Barrels - Cogs have stockpiled all the Toon items they have stolen. You can recover them in the factory.
• New Cog Factory environment
• New Cog Boss enemy
• New Pie throwing mode in final phase of Boss Battle
• New Cog HQ environment
• New Rescued Toons (SOS) system (as tested in previous test releases)
• New Rescued Toon Shticker Book page holds up to 8 Toon cards
• New Rescued Toon battle interface
• New Cog Disguise Shticker Book page
• New Cog Merit system with 60 promotion levels
• New "Skelecogs" - Sellbots that do not have their final Cog suit built
• New "Goons" - Cog worker drones
• New street - "Oak Street" off Daisy Gardens playground
• New map artwork
• New Shticker Book tabs make finding pages faster and easier

Known Issues

• There is no reward presentation when you finish a factory, but you should still get the Cog disguise part.
• Teleporting to other Toons inside CogHQ will sometimes crash your client.
• You may fall through the floor on fishing docks on the streets of Donald's Dock.
• You will be able to jump over the fences around fishing docks
• If there are textures missing, polygons will show up pure red or white.
• Some objects allow you jump through them.
• You can jump above the ceiling inside Toon interiors.
• Door inside your house may have a large gray square frame.
• Jumping on crates is too difficult.
• Some visual cracks exist on Oak Street
• You can jump over Flippy in the tutorial.
• If you enter the game before finishing the Tutorial download your client will crash. Allow the full download to finish before choosing or creating a Toon.
• Timing of stompers crushing Goons inside Factory warehouse is off.
• Camera control inside Factory warehouse is being worked on.
• Boss battle currently crashes out. This will be fixed soon!

Note: A release date has not been finalized.

We appreciate your support in helping make CogHQ great. Hope you have fun, and keep the bug reports coming in. Thanks!
- The Toontown Development Team

[TTFKASS]

OOO!!!!!

[The Duck&Mouse]

OOOOOOO! OOOOOOO!

[TTFKASS]

Sorry all, No movie from me on this. Got some testing to do. Look forward to it when it hits Open Server.

[TTFKASS]

Big update, still downloading on a 33.6 Modem. Almost 4 hrs.

[LoopyCrunchybee]

Whoo Hoooooooooo!!!!!! Ive been thru 2 betas for this!!!

It rocks!!!

LCB

[Bubbles]

Dude! I truely am feeling a bit under the weather this morning...now I have the perfect reason to just go home

(Just forgive me if I fall asleep at the keyboard. Stupid snorers.)

[Elmer]

Eep! Looks like I'll have to really start working on Test Elmer

[Leroy Poppenzilla]

I'm very impressed by the description. Hooray! At last, the day long awaited has arrived. Go out there and test, you testers!

Other than the extreme coolness of the HQ, I was very happy to read they've redone the physics engine to make jumping something useful. I've always thought that the present form of jumping was really stupid, as it doesn't do anything.

One thing I'm curious on. Where are they going to put the 4th HQ? If the Sellbot HQ is off DG, aren't there only (at least at the present time) two more places to put HQ's (off TB and DL?) Did the changes in the map reflect this? Did they add a new street to another PG?

The other thing I've always wondered, is why is it that Disney only chose their TT toons for SOS calls. Wouldn't it be more fun (and more Disney) to have Mickey, Donald, or Goofy come help you out? I've always thought that there was a severe lack of Disney in TT. If you leave the playground, the entire game (except for a couple of shop names) could have been created by someone who had never heard of Disney. The mice don't really look like Mickey or Minney, and the ducks wear pants.

Ok, the pants thing is a joke, but has anyone else ever thought this? Why not use the Disney toons more often?

[Lady Bumblebee]

ok...ok... I may be slow... how does one become a tester?? and these tester toons... Are they new toons on a new account??
Sorry, I am a bit confussed and would love to be a tester... (if asked of course)


please help me make sense of this

[Robinhoodshadow]

Awesome cant wait till i comes for open... im so excited better get to work!

[Lady Slippy Wondercrump]

there is a test sign up page..Bunny Summers has a page stickied in Test Town Territory for that info.

Let me just say WOW!!!!

It is very laggy tho. MeBear has some pics posted from Sellbot Cog HQ.

Very nerve racking in there. Scary. If one member of your group goes sad, you all get sent back to the playground.

But it is way cool. When I think about when i will log on next, my tummy does flip flops!!!!

[ssjgamer]

Extreme coolness, can't wait for it to hit open.

[Mister Harvey Wondergadget]

WOO HOO!!!I am now on Test!!!

[Pinks]

I cannot even express in words how extremely cool CHQ's is.

I am overwhelmed by the awesome graphics, even though I was scared to be in there...i just kept going "ooo" at every thing I saw. From the storage area of cog stuff we found, down to the rust on all the pipes, the black skies and grey clowds. It was just so far past my expectations, I absolutely love it!

I took a bazzillion screen shots for everyone, and with Cosmic Crimson's help, we made it to the top of the HQ's by defeating cogs and then gaining access to buttons, that we jumped on that killed the robots (can't damage the robots, but they damage you) once past the robots we made it to yet another lift and then more stairs and yet another lift. It's just an interesting puzzle of a place with big cogs that do lots of damage, cool areas to hide if you panic LOL >.< boxes you can jump & stand on where the cogs can't hit you. Also, once inside...your speed chat adds a button that says "Factory" which allows you to say things like, "let's stick together" etc. I'm sure I'm just repeating what someone has already posted about all of this, I'm just sooo excited that I have to share it.

I'll have to post the screen shots I took for everyone later.

Man, whata ride!