Changelog: v0.6.9 - Introducing Andrew & The Taser

This massive update transitions the game from a proof-of-concept to a fully playable experience with deep, interconnected systems. It introduces strategic resource management, new gameplay mechanics, and a complete AI overhaul. Future versions will seek to refine the resource management aspect of the game to make purchase decisions much more weighted, and make money a far more scarce resource. For now, players are free to buy as many devices/as much ammunition as they desire, as money is a very ample resource in this version.

Core Gameplay & Progression

• New Weapon System: The infinite-ammo placeholder has been replaced with a new Taser sidearm. The Taser gun is a permanent piece of gear, while its single-use Cartridges are a consumable that must be purchased from the DarkMart, introducing ammo management into the game. Players can only slot one cartridge into the taser, and it cannot be reloaded except from the loadout screen.
• Functional Gear System: The first gear-based ability is now fully implemented. Equipping the E.M. Induction Gloves and interacting ('E' key or 'A' on controller) with "Vent Panels" now remotely opens new, previously inaccessible paths. In this version, only one side of the vent can be interacted with, but this will be fixed in future versions.
• Complete Narrative Arc (Part 1): Added dialogue, missions, rewards, and map unlocks for all 9 stages of Cipher's storyline, creating a full narrative path from newcomer to proven operative and setting the stage for the next contact.

Enemy AI Overhaul

• Line of Sight Fixed: Enemies can no longer see through walls. Their vision cones now correctly and dynamically stop at solid obstacles, making stealth gameplay viable and fair.
• State Machine Corrected: Enemies will now properly "cool down" after a hunt. They will search the player's last known position and then correctly give up and return to their patrol route if the player has escaped.
• New "Hearing" Mechanic: Enemies now react to sound. If the player is moving within a certain radius, nearby enemies will be alerted and move to investigate the source of the noise, adding a crucial new layer to stealth strategy.

UI & Quality of Life

• Mission Debrief Screen: The end-of-mission screen now functions as a proper debrief, showing currency/cred earned for first-time completions and a custom, fixer-specific message for replays.
• LoadoutScreen Refined: The Loadout UI was redesigned into a compact "notes app" style, where players can cleanly equip their gear and load a single cartridge for their Taser before a mission.
• Interaction Prompts: The game now displays contextual prompts on screen (e.g., "[E] Activate Vent") when the player is able to interact with an object.
• Major Bug Fixes: Resolved a persistent and complex layout/scrolling bug in the MessagesScreen. Fixed numerous crashes and logic errors related to the new inventory, reward, and gameplay systems.

As promised, a couple of paragraphs relating to the above fixes...this session was brutal. Much of the code provided by my AI assistant was incredibly flawed, difficult to parse, and needlessly redundant. It kept trying to solve problems by reverting code to previous states rather than properly iterating. I eventually solved this through clever prompt engineering, but the time I wasted attempting to identify previous states of code before committing it was immense. Thankfully, my new prompt engineering strategy works VERY well, and just in the last hour, I was able to completely refactor large portions of the code, fix several longstanding bugs, implement an entire new feature, with minimal hiccups. 

That being said, today was a puzzle, and although I solved it, it came with a cost. I'm tired, burnt out, and just spent 11 hours straight trying to get this game into the workable state I wanted it to be in. I'm grateful to be done. I'm sick and tired of looking at this game already. Welcome to version 0.6.9. You can't quite interact with Andrew...but the code to do it is there, and his first bit of dialogue with him is written, so, I'm counting it.