Friday, 15 April 2016
The Blockheads, like most other games, gets occasional updates, adding new features and fixing bugs and glitches.
The update process for major updates starts with the developer of The Blockheads, David Frampton creating an update, followed by testing by the Majic Jungle beta team on iOS. After thorough testing, the release candidate build is sent to Noodlecake and Apple. Noodlecake then ports the update to Android, and does their own testing. Once both builds are approved by Apple, Google, and Amazon, the update goes live for all devices.
Minor updates do not have to be released simultaneously, such as version 1.5.2, where the Android version was released 30 days after the Apple release.
The longest wait between updates was between 1.6 and 1.6.1 on iOS, with a wait of 377 days. The shortest wait between updates was between 1.4.0.1 and 1.4.0.2 on Android, at a length of one day. It has been 135 days since the last update was released for iOS. It has been 99 days since the last update was released for Android.
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BLOCKMARKET
It's just got easier to keep a close eye on global trade portal prices!
When the trade portal was added to The Blockheads, I also created a basic website just for me, so I could monitor prices. But I thought it might be interesting and useful to tidy that website up and release it for everyone, so here it is!
http://blockmarket.theblockheads.net
It lists all of the latest prices, and gives access to graphs for prices over the past 24 hours just like what you can see in the game at a trade portal.
Okay, as you all know, the trade portal came out in version 1.5 a month ago. However, the economy is incredibly unstable right now. This has led to players gaining/losing large amounts of money. This thread is a debate thread as to if the blockheads staff should intervene and stabilize the economy. And no, for those of you thinking I did this because I am poor due to bad investing, it is not. I have actually gotten uber-rich from the trade portal. And by that, I mean a chest of golden coins. Anyway, feel free to debate about if the staff should 'fix' the economy. Enjoy. Oh, and please don't be rude to each other whilst debating. Thanks. 
To me the ups and downs are the big fun in using trade portals. Monitoring the prices, finding the "deal of the day" and trying to avoid poor decisions. I don't want stbility, I want opportunities 
To me the ups and downs are the big fun in using trade portals. Monitoring the prices, finding the "deal of the day" and trying to avoid poor decisions. I don't want stbility, I want opportunities
And btw: I somehow can't avoid the feeling that "the staff" is already intervening now and then.
Tuesday, 18 August 2015
At first or second glance, The Blockheads [Free] might strike you as just another one of those 2D Minecraft games. And while that's kinda true, The Blockheads has a lot more to share outside of punching trees and ore. It has its own secrets and style, as well as a neat party component that has you recruiting and using other avatars to hollow out your own place in the game.
If you've been kinda struggling with learning everything The Blockheads has to offer, we got your back. Earlier this week, we talked with the game's creator David Frampton about some of the basics of The Blockheads, as well as some high-level strategies. Here's some of the things we discussed.
Create Your Own Goals
There is no "end game" in The Blockheads, and that's a big part of the fun. You have to set your own goals. At the start of the game, you'll want to start small. Build all the work benches, start planting trees, and keep an eye out for caves, which generally have some of the more precious ores you'll need to up your crafting game.
Crafting Lets You Do Special Stuff
"Often the things that you craft will allow you to do special things, like riding a donkey with a carrot on a stick, or getting a caffeine fix from a cup of coffee," Frampton tells us. "But in order to craft those things you'll need a carrot and some coffee beans, so you'll need to go exploring."
Get Another Blockhead
It's a good idea to start building towards your second Blockhead -- available via the teleport -- as soon as possible because as you start crafting bigger and better stuff, the wait times increase, too. Having a second dude around helps your deal with that.
And Get Him Fast
As for how to do this the quickest, Frampton says planting is a good idea. Plant as much as you can near your spawn. When the trees start spewing delectables, you'll get part of the food required for another Blockhead. Digging with a quality pick axe is the fastest way to find a good cave.
Nothing Can Kill You
You can't die in Blockheads, but there are a few dangers. Drop Bears, for example, fall out of trees when provoked and can hurt you. They also attack at night. A good spear or a solid sword can take them out "easily," Frampton says.
But Pain Is Bad
If you take damage and lose energy and happiness, your avatar will take much longer to perform regular tasks. Fight against this with eating, sleeping, and caffeine. Frampton notes that Blockheads gain more energy faster when sleeping in beds. A cup of coffee is great for this, too, but you'll have to refine your own. Coffee trees are "very rare."
Use Gem Pick Axes
Gem pick axes are kind of a big deal. "An amethyst pick axe gives a 2x bonus when you mine, and a sapphire pick axe gives you 3x, right up to a diamond pick axe which gives you 6x," Frampton says. "This is particularly useful when mining time crystal blocks." If you hold off on mining all the crystal at the beginning, you'll get a lot more with a gem axe.
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One of the coolest things about The Blockheads is the amount of discovery that happens as you play, the not-so-subtle learning experience as you start punching more and more stuff. These tips are a good starting point, but there's a lot more game here than what we've discussed so far. Dive in, soak it up. It's fun.
Also, if you're looking for more ideas, hints, tips, anything, a good place to look is our forum thread. The Blockheads's official message board is a good knowledge-building base, too.
Images in this story via our thread.
Sunday, 9 August 2015
Mining
- See also: Caving
Mining is the removal of objects from caves. Supplies such as food and light source are typically needed for a mining trip.
Contents
[hide]Ore
Mining ore can be done by hand, but is much more efficiently done with a pickaxe (yielding three ores of that type instead of one). Mining speed is increased with each successive pickaxe upgrade (with the exception of the gold pickaxe which is slower than steel, but has other benefits).
Using gem pickaxes increases the yield. Like normal pickaxes, these benefits increase with progressively more expensive gem pickaxes (a diamond pickaxe yields six times the usual amount). The life of gem pickaxes can be extended by only using them for the final strike; a normal pickaxe can be used until the block is nearly mined, then a gem pickaxe for the multiplier.
Gems
Gems are found in caverns. There are five types of gems, diamond, ruby, emerald,sapphire and amethyst. They are picked up by hand, not mined using a pickaxe with the exception of theGOLD
pickaxe which has a chance to randomly produce gems, ores, ortime crystals with each strike. Since theGOLD pickaxe may produce bonus resources for each strike, using it only for the final strike (like with gem pickaxes) is only beneficial in prolonging its life, as it will not increase the yield.
pickaxe which has a chance to randomly produce gems, ores, ortime crystals with each strike. Since theGOLD pickaxe may produce bonus resources for each strike, using it only for the final strike (like with gem pickaxes) is only beneficial in prolonging its life, as it will not increase the yield.Time Crystals
Mining with a pickaxe yields more time crystals. The yield multiplier for gem pickaxes applies to time crystals, so the best gem pickaxe available should be used to maximize yield.
Mining Styles
Selection of a mining style is up to the player, but may be influenced by in-game resources or available play time. Simpler styles can be quicker and produce ready rewards. More thorough methods require more time and use up tools, but usually insure maximum results. Note that most ores are more abundant as depth increases and some are only found at deep levels.
Spelunking
The simplest form of mining is to explore caves and look for visible ores. By opening passages where natural caves narrow, it is possible to expose long, winding paths through extensive areas. Water, magma, and cave trolls are typical hazards.
Grid Mining
A more thorough process is to dig regular passages vertically, horizontally, diagonally, or in some combination through the bedrock. This allows both the exposure of areas not accessible by natural caves and, with careful placement, visual examination of unmined stone for ore deposits. Planning is still required to overcome underground hazards.
Strip Mining
The most thorough mining method is to remove everything, although occasional platforms may be left or constructed for ease of travel. Water, if not left in place, can be relocated with planned draining into prepared basins. Strip mining produces large quantities of basic stone, which can be used for crafting, construction, or processed into gravel and ores using an electric press and sluice.
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