After Dark: Rain, Thunder & Torchlit Sieges

March Out! 2.7.9 adds two new ways to experience the battlefield: an optional day/night cycle and changing weather.

I wanted marching out after sunset to feel different. Lamps moving with the army, warm light along the castle walls, and a cannon blast briefly lighting up the soldiers around it. You can now try that atmosphere in the latest game and Steam Playtest builds.

Your kingdom after sunset

The cycle moves through daylight, dusk and night before the sun returns. The sky, moonlight, ambient lighting and reflections change with it.

Castle wall and courtyard lights come on after dark. Melee infantry use shield lamps, hand torches or lanterns suited to their equipment, so your advancing army brings points of warm light into the battlefield.

Gunfire, cannon muzzle flashes and explosions illuminate nearby troops and ground. Those brief bursts stand out against the darker surroundings.

Rain rolls across the battlefield

Weather brings rain, ground splashes, storm skies and mist. Ground and building surfaces take on a wet appearance, then dry as the rain passes.

Distant lightning is followed by delayed thunder. Moving under a solid roof shelters the view from rain and softens the rain and thunder ambience.

You can combine weather with the day/night cycle for wet roads, lit castle walls and cannon flashes in a night storm, or enable either setting on its own.

How to try it

Both experiments are off by default . On the main title screen, below the Battlefield selection, switch on either or both:

• Day/night cycle: On (Experimental)
• Weather: On (Experimental)

Choose these before starting a game or joining a multiplayer lobby. They are local visual preferences, so each player can choose independently. The atmosphere settings do not change troop stats, movement or combat rules.

Help me get the atmosphere right

I'm interested in how clearly you can read a fight after dark, how the storm sounds feel, and how performance holds up on different PCs. If something looks too dark, too bright or distracting, please tell me your settings and where it happened.

Thanks for playing and helping me improve March Out!

Mason Solo developer of March Out!