Frost Protocol

About this game

Latest news

• Announcements·25 Aug 2026Official

  Playtest signup closed! Thanks to everyone!

  I am absolutely overwhelmed by how many people want to playtest Frost Protocol, mainly due to an article on turnbasedlovers.com. Thank you so much!https://turnbasedlovers.com/overview/an-xcom-like-strategy-rpg-with-base-management-and-robots-frost-protocol-overview/I didn't expect this many testers and for now, I think there are enough so I closed the signup. I already received valuable feedback and wait for more to create a much better version for the next wave of playtesters!The playtest stays open to everyone with access.To give feedback:Join my Discord: https://discord.gg/Sg4jWwe6n orfill out the form: https://forms.gle/cs9urS21aBJSo5XN7Thanks!
  Read full article on Community Announcements (FrostProtocol-Dev)

• Announcements·24 Aug 2026Official

  Frost Protocol Playtest Sign-Ups Are Open

  The Frost Protocol Playtest is now open!This is the first round of playtesting and an early development build focused on the core gameplay loop. There is a tutorial and 2 expedition maps.If you play, I would really appreciate your feedback:→ PLAYTEST FEEDBACK SURVEY: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdtCOrkETh-dHpGrIG9B7h7S1p5uIcL3ojPTx4arwx0M8CRaA/viewform?usp=headerYou can also join my Discord and give feedback there as well. https://discord.gg/tfXcRRYK5The survey only takes a few minutes and helps me identify what works, what doesn't, and what needs more work.Thanks for playing!
  Read full article on Community Announcements (playsicko)

• Announcements·2 Jul 2026Official

  Final answer: Turnbased strategy game!

  It's been a back and forth with realtime and turnbased concepts. Turnbased strategy games are by far my favorite and I tested this for Frost Protocol in early stages and it simply didn't work well. Why? Because it was a different game several months ago. I implemented so many concepts and mechanics since then that the game became much closer to the vision in my head. But in the end, it always felt... weird... The first change was to switch the homebase from realtime to turnbased. It make everything clearer, every decision more readable and more impactful. It made the code easier and it just felt right.The next logical step was to (at least try to) change the expeditions. They were in realtime and I thought this was necessary since monsters that attack you in realtime increase the pressure very naturally. But I always wanted a second layer: not just pressure but "making tough decisions under pressure". This wasn't possible in realtime, at least not the way I built it.So... I changed it again turnbased. And this time it works like a charm! My mind is flooded with ideas and everything is coming together!Changes:Robot Upgrades / CustomizationCustomize robots: 1 Chassis slot 3 Ability Modules (combat abilities) 3 Chip Modules (stat bonuses) 1 Specialization slot (Hacking, Mechanic, or Bio Analysis) Each item must be found during expeditions and can have multiple bonuses. Applying pending changes is a task at the homebase. Items are not destroyed when removing them. This means the player can experiment but it costs time.Expedition tasksMovement - Action pointsEach robot has 2 action points per turn. Tasks can cost multiples APs as well as picking up or putting down objects.CharactersGoing back more to a survival feeling here. This means each character has its own Fatigue and Hunger value.+1 Hunger and +1 Fatigue on each new day. Plain, simple, readable.Eating costs 1 Food and removes 1 Hunger. Sleeping costs 1 turn and removes 1 Fatigue.Being an operator during the night ...
  Read full article on Community Announcements (playsicko)

• Announcements·20 May 2026Official

  It's combat time! Combat mechanics / Explosives / Ragdolls

  Combat time!I just released Version 0.3.1 which now is open for my current playtesters. Looking for more, so drop a comment if you are interested.Major changes:Combat, enemy spawn (Waves and ambient streams)BOOM! Explosives!RagdollsTrailer (already working on a new one, though...)Ragdolls / Explosives: ExpeditionsI focused solely on the expeditions in the last weeks since they became the most important part of the game. Combat was a bit stiff:Perform tasks with robots until an enemy wave appearsPositions yourself - auto-fire - kill everythingReturn to tasksetc...Sounds boring? Yes, it kinda was... Here are my ways to counter that.RagdollOne thing I always wanted to add, was a ragdoll system to the enemies. I thought it was a lot of work but it actually took less than an hour... No more boring death animations! Still not polished but works well for an early version. It doesn't change combat conceptually but it makes it feel more satisifying.Default robot combat abilitiesNext thing was to focus on the combat abilities of the robots. This was already included BUT the robots started without any abilities, which didn't give them a strong identity and also made combat more boring, because the enemies couldn't be that strong at the start. Now, each robot type has a default starting ability that fits the archetype.Defender: Shock Pulse (stuns all enemies within a small radius for 3s) - 2 charges per expedition -40s CDStriker: Overdrive (+100% attack speed for 5s) - 60s CD This way, the starting strength of enemies can be higher -> combat becomes more challenging -> The player has to make DECISIONS during fighting (in contrast to before where both starting robots just stood there like... robots and auto-fired). Explosive objectsThe grenade launcher became my favorite ability after implmenting the ragdoll system. Enemies flying through the air just doesn't get old... So I expanded on the mechanic.Analogous to Energy Capsules, I implemented Explosives. These are objects that c...
  Read full article on Community Announcements (playsicko)

• Announcements·24 Apr 2026Official

  Still alive! Big changes!

  Back again!I took a break from all updates regarding the game and focused on the game itself.A publisher reviewed Frost Protocol (and decided not to go further with it), which actually gave me a big boost in reworking the game. I took a step back and looked at the game to find current flaws instead of adding new mechanics, resources or something else.One single question helped me realize how to think about any and all mechanics and systems of the game:What is the one word that best describes what the player has to do in the game?I had the answer immediately: PLANNINGThis game is not about luck, agility or perfect micromanagement. I want you to come up with a plan based on the information you gathered and then execute it. Still, there will be random events or unforeseen problems but your plan should always accommodate them.Based on PLANNING, I went through the game, changed or removed systems and now, I will slowly and carefully add new systems with this one goal in mind:Is a new mechanic or system readable enough for you to incorporate it into a plan?Which information do you need for planning and how do you get it? What disrupts you from getting / having information?Major changes:Base management is turn-based now instead of real-time.Expeditions are on smaller maps with more mission / objective character.Reworked character conditions (hunger, fatigue, stress, etc...).Robot progressionBase ManagementIt's no surprise that turn-based systems allow for more strategic planning.Previously, the base management part of the game was in real-time but the optimal way of playing was always to stop time when a task is finished, reassign the character, and then continue time. In a way, this already had some character of a turn-based system.Now there are two phases during the day: a Morning phase and an Evening phase. In each phase, a survivor can work on one task. When all survivors are assigned and you move to the next phase, a short animation is played.Some tasks are performed ...
  Read full article on Community Announcements (playsicko)