Latest update:

Fixed enemies spawning to be further away from the player and not right on top.  Think I fixed drone enemies facing/aiming and firing in the appropriate direction

Fixed bug w/ named enemies dialogue not appearing at all.

Coming soon: Save / Load!

Launch  your Hyper Frame to liberate the sector from the iron grasp of the emperor! But beware: You aren't the only ace mecha pilot in this fight. The emperor's top pilots are holding the conquered zones, and they take their jobs personally.

Some of the pilots you encounter will become your rivals, pursuing you across the sector as you pursue its liberation from the emperor. And just as you will grow more powerful from the resources you liberate, so too will your rivals grow more powerful, with their development driven by their individual personalities.

In the end, the fate of the sector will be decided between you and your deepest rival! It will be a clash of wills...and of mecha!

Game made as part of MechJam III: https://itch.io/jam/mechjam3

How to Play:

Rivals in the Sky takes place in two main sections: The sector map and the combat zones. The map is where you plot your moves, and the zones are where you fight to liberate the sector.

The map is a hex grid. At the start of the game, you begin on the only liberated (green) tile among a sea of conquered (red) tiles. Each conquered tile shows an icon representing the stat boost you'll gain if you liberate that zone. You can move freely within the liberated tiles, but you cannot move through a conquered tile.

Liberate enough zones, and one of the hexes will turn black, with a bloody red X replacing the buff icon. It is here that you will have your fated duel with your ultimate rival! This battle decides the fate of the sector, and it alone is fought to the death, so be prepared!

In each zone, you will pilot your mech to defeat the emperor's forces. Destroy the AI drones and defeat the mech pilots you encounter to liberate the zone. But remember, some of the mech pilots you encounter, win or lose, are going to come back for more!

Once you've developed a rivalry, there's a chance that one of your rivals will intervene at the end of a combat encounter. You'll need to defeat them too, if you want to liberate the zone.

The rivals aren't the only ones watching your progress. As you liberate more zones, each zone you dive into will be more heavily defended than the last. Liberate your sector, collect buffs, trust in your mech, and defeat the emperor's forces!

Controls:

Map Controls

Use left and right on the dpad, A and D or the left and right arrow keys to aim your movement on the hex grid. You can move freely in liberated spaces, but cannot move through a conquered tile. Press up on the dpad, W, or the up arrow key to move in the direction you've selected. Press Start or Enter on conquered tile to attempt to liberate it.

Combat Controls

KB & Mouse / Gamepad

WASD/Left Stick - Movement

LMB/Right Trigger: Fire beam rifle

Aim with the Mouse/Right stick

RMB/Left Trigger: Focused aim

Space Bar/Right shoulder button: Melee

F/Left Shoulder Button: Use Subweapon

Mouse Wheel/ X & B (gamepad): Change subweapon