splaffinator
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🕑 Added 2019-11-10 02:32:53 +0000 UTCHey everyone!! This is going to be a longer update about the state of the game / the upcoming demo, so please take some time to read through it. In the interest of releasing something worthwhile as soon as possible, I'm changing my game plan a little and want to make sure you all know what's going on.
So - before I took that break for Halloween stuff, I was still plugging away at designing and modeling the tutorial level. Here's some updated shots from it, including a cool new vertex-painted skybox model:
This tutorial level is huge, completely linear, and I've been working on it since August, which is kind of a while. Part of this is because the game is still early in production, which means I've still been busy creating all of the core systems that comprise it - dialogue, menus, characters, etc. - as opposed to being able to focus solely on content, which is usually what you do near the end of a dev cycle.
The other part is the level's linearity. Unlike the rest of the game, this level is a linear sequence of tutorial challenges, so it's mostly a bunch of single-use rooms and hallways that all need to be artpassed and conjoined together. As a developer, it's basically the most effort you can spend on the least amount of actual gameplay (whoops.)
And while I know (hope?) that playtime isn't equatable with game-worthiness, I was starting to worry that I've been spending months making... ten-or-so minutes of gameplay that isn't a great representation of the actual game loop (namely, getting badges for doing missions and 'sploring), and that people wouldn't be into the end result. :(
So, what do? Coming back from the Halloween break, I felt like I had fresher eyes as to what I want out of this game, and what would make a good demo of it. I've decided to shelve the tutorial area for now, and work on a new, smaller, more nonlinear area that more efficiently captures the pace and feel I want from the full game.
Welcome to Lighthouse Rock! (maybe working title)
Climb up the cliffs to repair the old lighthouse, or take a swim for hidden treasure!
This is obviously still untextured / in blockout, but you'll notice it's a pretty finished blockout after only a few days of work, which feels... reassuring. My goal is to make something more like a Banjo-Kazooie level, with different paths to follow and a collection of tasks overlaid within the same space. This is more in line with what I want out of each area in the final game.
With all that said, a demo "before the end of the year" doesn't feel as feasible to me anymore (and to be completely honest, it was already a pretty big stretch before the change of plan.) I don't want to promise another firm deadline and consequently have to expand it, so I'll just say that it'll be a few more months from now. I hope this isn't super disappointing, but you'll be getting frequent updates and previews of everything either way.
So, stay tuned! And thank you again for all your support. π
Comments
Zachary Carson
The work you do is as beautiful and thoughtful as always. Do whatever you feel necessary for the project!
Laguna Crale
So, one of the things I'm really happy about, is that you're able to identify gamefeel and especially what you want gamefeel to be - and acknowledge when the game doesn't line up with intended gamefeel. For the tutorial zone, I wonder if you'd be able to make it faux-linear (that is, linear progression but reusing rooms). That would tell players that the world is large and multi-purposed, while still accomplishing your goals of a tutorial.
Akio aria
Hope you can make it soon man ^^
