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[DNAbro]

Interesting theme. I have an idea already and I think I'm going to incorporate both. No idea how this is actually going to go though.


EDIT: oh god I realized i have no idea how to create usable pixel art. Tried creating something with piskel and it's too small to even be usable. Idk art, i usually just program. i think i figured it out though.

 

[HellBlazer]

Man, there were so many better themes in the previous rounds. Pretty satisfied with my decision to skip this LD now.

 

[Blizzard]

Man, there were so many better themes in the previous rounds. Pretty satisfied with my decision to skip this LD now.

Make sure you do the survey to record your opinion on the voting process, then:

http://ludumdare.com/compo/2015/12/11/survey-what-did-you-think-of-theme-selection-website/

 

[capylikesgames]

I actually don't mind the restraint so much! Personally, it got my brain working, and I managed to come up with something that incorporates both themes. Just finished drawing out the main character. I'm probably going to try to code a base for the engine before I go to bed.

oh god I realized i have no idea how to create usable pixel art. Tried creating something with piskel and it's too small to even be usable. Idk art, i usually just program. i think i figured it out though.

I don't think most will mind as long as it's a neat concept! I know I haven't. There have been plenty of fun LD games that don't exactly look the part.

 

[hobblygobbly]

My progress so far on LD34, doing a super light weight 4x/management simulation game of colony/empire growth, got the planetary system gen + orbital path movements done. I've written background simulation code for a bit of the 4x/management but nothing to show of it yet. I've also got family over that interrupt me now and then.

There's a slight issue depending on how it is generated where the moon orbital paths may intersect with a planet but I can fix that later.

 

[Vanguard]

My progress so far on LD34, doing a super light weight 4x/management simulation game of colony/empire growth, got the planetary system gen + orbital path movements done. I've written background simulation code for a bit of the 4x/management but nothing to show of it yet. I've also got family over that interrupt me now and then.

There's a slight issue depending on how it is generated where the moon orbital paths may intersect with a planet but I can fix that later.

Finding that quite hypnotising and relaxing...


Slowly starting to flesh out the area that been playtesting which I want to do for a small demo to show off the game, happy so far! But will still take me a while though, especially with christmas round the corner. UI will get a bit of a freshen up at some point but will be last, hate doing UI the most

edit: finally got the gif to work

 

[missile]

normal power up

desync vertical

desync horizontal

desync vertical & horizontal

desync random


Desynchronisation effects are one of the primary (if not the primary) effect
of all of video.

Spoiler

And god I love them!

The above desync effects are my first
take on the subject (very early stage of development). They need much more
work, i.e. the sheering needs to be filters to keep the image readable up to a
given degree of distortion. Another aspect is the set-in of the effect. The
real desync behavior isn't as rough as seen here because no TV today is
directly synchronized via the sync pulses of the video signal. A CRT has its
own sync-frequency which will be synchronized with the frequency of the sync-
pulses extracted out of the video signal. This way of synchronization
is done either with a PLL (phase-looked loop), aligning the sync-frequency of
the TV with that of the video signal over time, or with a flywheel mechanism
where the video signal pushes on the flywheel to change the TVs sync-frequency
over time. The advantage of this form of synchronization is that the TVs sync
circuits do have a certain (electrical) inertia such that some isolated
distorted sync-pulse, or random impulses due to noise etc., won't have any
effect on the picture for a couple of lines or even frames at times. However,
if the video sync-signal is lost for a specific amount of time (depending on
the mechanism used, setup etc.) the picture on the screen will start to get
distorted but in a very continuous and differentiable fashion up until it all
breaks loose. That's something I'm going to implement further down the road,
it will improve the effect in orders of magnitude. For now I will focus on
color.

 

[Davision]

I think I'm on to something:

Those are just tests though.

Here is my character sculpt, One Punch Man ...No, I mean Growing Limbs Man:

 

[Jacksinthe]

normal power up

desync vertical

desync horizontal

desync vertical & horizontal

desync random


Desynchronisation effects are one of the primary (if not the primary) effect
of all of video.

Spoiler

And god I love them!

The above desync effects are my first
take on the subject (very early stage of development). They need much more
work, i.e. the sheering needs to be filters to keep the image readable up to a
given degree of distortion. Another aspect is the set-in of the effect. The
real desync behavior isn't as rough as seen here because no TV today is
directly synchronized via the sync pulses of the video signal. A CRT has its
own sync-frequency which will be synchronized with the frequency of the sync-
pulses extracted out of the video signal. This way of synchronization
is done either with a PLL (phase-looked loop), aligning the sync-frequency of
the TV with that of the video signal over time, or with a flywheel mechanism
where the video signal pushes on the flywheel to change the TVs sync-frequency
over time. The advantage of this form of synchronization is that the TVs sync
circuits do have a certain (electrical) inertia such that some isolated
distorted sync-pulse, or random impulses due to noise etc., won't have any
effect on the picture for a couple of lines or even frames at times. However,
if the video sync-signal is lost for a specific amount of time (depending on
the mechanism used, setup etc.) the picture on the screen will start to get
distorted but in a very continuous and differentiable fashion up until it all
breaks loose. That's something I'm going to implement further down the road,
it will improve the effect in orders of magnitude. For now I will focus on
color.

These look great. Nicely done!

I do like the desync random the best

 

[Pehesse]

Missile, this one's for you :-D

http://gfycat.com/TornBlackAzurevase

Early and rough implementation test as I said I would, so it's still missing plenty: AI, hit effects, and plenty of other stuff, but at least it works enough for a start, and it's in context this time :-D

 

[Jacksinthe]

Missile, this one's for you :-D

http://gfycat.com/TornBlackAzurevase

Early and rough implementation test as I said I would, so it's still missing plenty: AI, hit effects, and plenty of other stuff, but at least it works enough for a start, and it's in context this time :-D

That looks so good!

 

[Pehesse]

That looks so good!

Thanks!! I tried to get FX and AI working today, but it's going to take more time than I thought, so it's still pretty bare compared to match fights gifs... we'll get there, but probably not before next year now :-D

 

[Blizzard]

My progress so far on LD34, doing a super light weight 4x/management simulation game of colony/empire growth, got the planetary system gen + orbital path movements done. I've written background simulation code for a bit of the 4x/management but nothing to show of it yet. I've also got family over that interrupt me now and then.

There's a slight issue depending on how it is generated where the moon orbital paths may intersect with a planet but I can fix that later.

Super impressive! I made a progress GIF of my Ludum Dare graphics progress.

 

[3phemeral]

normal power up

desync vertical

desync horizontal

desync vertical & horizontal

desync random
.

Great job. I love details like this. Even if they don't add significantly to the overall core concept, it's a nice kind of polish that makes you appreciate the effort.

 

[DNAbro]

Super impressive! I made a progress GIF of my Ludum Dare graphics progress.

oh wow. Looks interesting. Mine is barely coming along. I really should have re-acclimated myself with Unity before starting this. Not to mention my art still looks shitty atm.

 

[snarge]

Super impressive! I made a progress GIF of my Ludum Dare graphics progress.

I really love those black icons for the plants and symbols. Reminds me of game and watch / tiger electronic games, in a great way!

 

[Jobbs]

I put the "voice distance" method to practical use the other day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zZ9i4VM-0g&feature=youtu.be

This shows how the character's voice adjusts based on distance to make it sound appropriate, since sometimes in the game people speak while the player still has control.

 

[Blizzard]

I really love those black icons for the plants and symbols. Reminds me of game and watch / tiger electronic games, in a great way!

Those two games are absolutely what I'm aiming for, so thanks!

I just cut my left index finger though, and I needed it to program! Mayday! Mayday!

 

[Jacksinthe]

I put the "voice distance" method to practical use the other day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zZ9i4VM-0g&feature=youtu.be

This shows how the character's voice adjusts based on distance to make it sound appropriate, since sometimes in the game people speak while the player still has control.

Goddamn. This game.

 

[missile]

These look great. Nicely done!

I do like the desync random the best

Yeah thx a lot, Sir! The cool thing is, I didn't really needed to do much to
get these effects done, just taking away the sync-signal from the "CRT" with
the engine doing the rest, basically. Initially I only wanted to post the
random one, but I thought that some people in here (us videophiles) may also
want to see the desync separated because they prove the point of the whole
thing. There is an important detail in the desync-V/H animation a videophile
will look after. That's why I posted them.

Missile, this one's for you :-D

http://gfycat.com/TornBlackAzurevase

Early and rough implementation test as I said I would, so it's still missing plenty: AI, hit effects, and plenty of other stuff, but at least it works enough for a start, and it's in context this time :-D

Yeah, that's what I wanna see! Nice! It feels much better this way to judge
the character when in context. Perhaps it would be cool if you could always
put your characters straight into a testing chamber so to speak.

Thanks!! I tried to get FX and AI working today, but it's going to take more time than I thought, so it's still pretty bare compared to match fights gifs... we'll get there, but probably not before next year now :-D

If I could make one wish about the game, then please do a mode where the game
becomes very hard to beat. I pretty much hate all the journalist-easy modes
having creeped into such games these days (to please the press whatsoever).
Jack, this holds for your game as well! Matt, too! Not because I am awesome,
no, but because I want to deal with a game longer finding/learning all the
cool stuff and tricks etc. if I put my time into such games. Little story; I
even hacked a game (won't tell which) to make it harder for me! xD

I put the "voice distance" method to practical use the other day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zZ9i4VM-0g&feature=youtu.be

This shows how the character's voice adjusts based on distance to make it sound appropriate, since sometimes in the game people speak while the player still has control.

Mmm, nice! How long till release, roughly?

Great job. I love details like this. Even if they don't add significantly to the overall core concept, it's a nice kind of polish that makes you appreciate the effort.

Many thx. Am putting a lot into this sh!t. I want the Alien Isolation guys
to call me up next time to give any new Alien game a proper and useful
video element!

Speaking about "Even if they don't add significantly to the overall core
concept...", I want to give a different opinion. Lets take Alien Isolation
again. The video effects (scanner, map, etc.) they use in the game are fakes,
recorded from real hardware blended over the game with no interaction
whatsoever. They are static, don't react to the environment, are repetitive
and as such become annoying to some degree because there is no information
coupled or carried with them. Now consider if you really go for a simulated
video signal. This can change the whole thing regarding gameplay and the whole
atmosphere of the game, not just because simulated/dynamic video looks cool,
no, but because you can couple the signal with events/objects etc. in the
game. Proper signal distortion due to certain game object may deliver a wealth
of information. Reception quality, influenced by the geometry of the level or
being influenced by a jamming station/object nearby, sparks etc., or
interference of multiple signals and so on can all add up to produce a very
interesting way to play the game and may also produce a much better
atmosphere.

 

[Pehesse]

If I could make one wish about the game, then please do a mode where the game
becomes very hard to beat. I pretty much hate all the journalist-easy modes
having creeped into such games these days (to please the press whatsoever).
Jack, this holds for your game as well! Matt, too! Not because I am awesome,
no, but because I want to deal with a game longer finding/learning all the
cool stuff and tricks etc. if I put my time into such games. Little story; I
even hacked a game (won't tell which) to make it harder for me! xD

Haha, noted :-D For what it's worth, there is a hard mode that not only boosts your opponents stats and raises the stat thresholds needed to pass tests, but also uses different AI calls and priorities, has special unlockable events, etc. Playing in hard should hopefully feel different... question remains, will it be hard enough, though? :-D (first iterations/playthroughs of this mode were almost impossible to complete by testers so I've tweaked it down, but hopefully not too much. We'll see!)

 

[Jobbs]

If I could make one wish about the game, then please do a mode where the game
becomes very hard to beat. I pretty much hate all the journalist-easy modes
having creeped into such games these days (to please the press whatsoever).
Jack, this holds for your game as well! Matt, too! Not because I am awesome,
no, but because I want to deal with a game longer finding/learning all the
cool stuff and tricks etc. if I put my time into such games. Little story; I
even hacked a game (won't tell which) to make it harder for me! xD

Some people find my game very hard, others less so, but it certainly isn't being designed to be easy. Coddling isn't in my MO.

Mmm, nice! How long till release, roughly?

late Q1 hopefully... But... Who the fuck knows. XD

Goddamn. This game.

thankzxz

 

[missile]

Haha, noted :-D For what it's worth, there is a hard mode that not only boosts your opponents stats and raises the stat thresholds needed to pass tests, but also uses different AI calls and priorities, has special unlockable events, etc. Playing in hard should hopefully feel different... question remains, will it be hard enough, though? :-D (first iterations/playthroughs of this mode were almost impossible to complete by testers so I've tweaked it down, but hopefully not too much. We'll see!)

Some people find my game very hard, others less so, but it certainly isn't being designed to be easy. Coddling isn't in my MO. ...

Sounds rather promising! Nice! Thx for considering, guys! I'm not the
hardest of the hardest, but I want the game to be still difficult even when
having fully figured the gameplay.

Hey Peh, you may add a hidden "zombie" mode where the beaten ones stay up
again having their looks and tactics altered. Don't know, just a random
thought.

 

[Pehesse]

Sounds rather promising! Nice! Thx for considering, guys! I'm not the
hardest of the hardest, but I want the game to be still difficult even when
having fully figured the gameplay.

Hey Peh, you may add a hidden "zombie" mode where the beaten ones stay up
again having their looks and tactics altered. Don't know, just a random
thought.

Don't want to give away too much, but there might be something relevant to your interests in there already, exclusive to hard mode of course :-D (though not look-altering, that'll be for "Honey Rose Redux the Super Duper Deluxe Re-Edition Extraordinaire GOTY GOAT Souls" when I have infinite budget to add three times the animation frames!)

But kidding aside, yeah, the design for hard mode is to alter the content, not simply inflate the stats, so some fight mechanics are changed, both for the multiple opponent and the match fights. Using/unlocking different attacks and states, weighing them differently... That sort of stuff. It's still a paper theory for the multiple opponents segment, but it works already in the matches, so I don't see why it wouldn't in the other!

Also, there's a "feat" system, with some special conditions to achieve during the matches to gain style points, and the hard mode ones should hopefully prove entertaining :-D (for instance, in the first match, one of the easy mode feats is to grapple->throw the opponent, which is really quite a basic manoeuver, but one of the hard mode feats is to air interrupt a few of her attacks using uppercuts. Satisfying to pull off, but needs more timing!). It's very easy to end an easy mode match with the full style gauge without going for the feats, but it's almost necessary in hard mode to go for them at the right time. At least, that's the way I've been playing/designing it, but I fully expect players like you to deconstruct the thing and show me how it's really done :v

Some people find my game very hard, others less so, but it certainly isn't being designed to be easy. Coddling isn't in my MO.

Yeah, just looking at the vids/gifs, I can tell this is going to be very hard for me to complete, but I'm still interested in trying to play through even though challenge isn't usually my cup of tea. I'm just not sure I'll manage to make it all the way to the end :v

 

[Blizzard]

Flash is really nice for some game jam things, but I've learned something this time: Never try to do gapless MP3 looping. You're gonna have a bad time (about 6 hours of it in my case).

Apparently if you have the Flash Pro tools it's easy, but I don't so it was NOT.

 

[DNAbro]

Already know at this point I won't be able to finish my game in time for any of the deadlines. My inexperience immediately caught up with me. But will continue working on it regardless of deadlines. It will get done eventually. I'm a bit tired at this point though lol.

 

[HP_Wuvcraft]

There any SteamDevGAF that could help me and my team out with a Steamworks issue (via PM obviously)?

 

[bkw]

There any SteamDevGAF that could help me and my team out with a Steamworks issue (via PM obviously)?

Probably best to mention what engine/language you're working with. Your game is Ren'Py / python right?

 

[HP_Wuvcraft]

Probably best to mention what engine/language you're working with. Your game is Ren'Py / python right?

Yes.

 

[liliththepale]

It's still Saturday for me! California gurls, we're unforgettable.

https://fat.gfycat.com/ScaryMarvelousDavidstiger.webm

Resting advances the game's ecology by six hours. Technically this means you can farm plants, since they respawn after twenty four hours, but most of the checkpoints aren't going to be nearby much if any plant life.

I'm thinking about adding some other systems as well, but I'm not sure what all that would be. For example, I think it'd be cool if the player gets a little more tired after enough time has passed without resting, so then max stamina would start to wane until she rests again. But is that interesting or just annoying?

 

[missile]

Don't want to give away too much, but there might be something relevant to your interests in there already, exclusive to hard mode of course :-D (though not look-altering, that'll be for "Honey Rose Redux the Super Duper Deluxe Re-Edition Extraordinaire GOTY GOAT Souls" when I have infinite budget to add three times the animation frames!)

But kidding aside, yeah, the design for hard mode is to alter the content, not simply inflate the stats, so some fight mechanics are changed, both for the multiple opponent and the match fights. Using/unlocking different attacks and states, weighing them differently... That sort of stuff. It's still a paper theory for the multiple opponents segment, but it works already in the matches, so I don't see why it wouldn't in the other!

Also, there's a "feat" system, with some special conditions to achieve during the matches to gain style points, and the hard mode ones should hopefully prove entertaining :-D (for instance, in the first match, one of the easy mode feats is to grapple->throw the opponent, which is really quite a basic manoeuver, but one of the hard mode feats is to air interrupt a few of her attacks using uppercuts. Satisfying to pull off, but needs more timing!). It's very easy to end an easy mode match with the full style gauge without going for the feats, but it's almost necessary in hard mode to go for them at the right time. At least, that's the way I've been playing/designing it, but I fully expect players like you to deconstruct the thing and show me how it's really done :v ...

Interesing! Seems you're on the right track here. :+

It's still Saturday for me! California gurls, we're unforgettable.

https://fat.gfycat.com/ScaryMarvelousDavidstiger.webm

Resting advances the game's ecology by six hours. Technically this means you can farm plants, since they respawn after twenty four hours, but most of the checkpoints aren't going to be nearby much if any plant life.

I'm thinking about adding some other systems as well, but I'm not sure what all that would be. For example, I think it'd be cool if the player gets a little more tired after enough time has passed without resting, so then max stamina would start to wane until she rests again. But is that interesting or just annoying?

I like the idea. But if it does slow me down (changing the pace of the game,
perhaps to a standstill for a given interval), then, I guess, it can be
annoying.

 

[liliththepale]

I like the idea. But if it does slow me down (changing the pace of the game,
perhaps to a standstill for a given interval), then, I guess, it can be
annoying.

Yeah. I wouldn't have it completely hamper the player, probably never drop it past half of max stamina. Mostly this limits the number of consecutive attacks that can be made back to back, essentially slowing down the combat and prompting the player to be more cautious.

I think designers can get away with annoying features in the game if it makes other parts of the game better in turn. In this case, I'm hoping it means the player would be even more appreciative of finding a new checkpoint, or a shortcut back to a previous checkpoint. Then again, I could have it all wrong. I'm not married to the idea.

 

[Blizzard]

Ludum Dare 34 progress:

I'm stopping for sleep, then a final push. Unfortunately the main game code is still to go, BUT I'm hoping it's simple enough now that I have most other systems in place.

I'd like to finish in time to make some music too.

 

[missile]

^ What happend to your other game (with the tanks and stuff)?

 

[Balthuk]

It's still Saturday for me! California gurls, we're unforgettable.

https://fat.gfycat.com/ScaryMarvelousDavidstiger.webm

Resting advances the game's ecology by six hours. Technically this means you can farm plants, since they respawn after twenty four hours, but most of the checkpoints aren't going to be nearby much if any plant life.

I'm thinking about adding some other systems as well, but I'm not sure what all that would be. For example, I think it'd be cool if the player gets a little more tired after enough time has passed without resting, so then max stamina would start to wane until she rests again. But is that interesting or just annoying?

Your background is looking swell, well done.
Regarding resting and stamina, I think it can work but it depends on your game. If the levels are structured in a way that makes the player decide if he wants to risk going for that last enemy before the next resting point or going to the previous one,healing and trying it all again, it could work.

 

[AusRoachman]

Where is the best place to try and recruit a modeller / gfx person . I have a prototype which I feel is pretty feature complete but would like to give it a real gfx polish before showing it off in more detail .

To date I have been surviving on unity asset store and whilst I love my current art style I would like to make it more polished .

I would like start off a Kickstarter / green light campaign but I'm not sure where to start.

A bit about the game

-turn based strategy game
-procedural hex levels
-multi height tiles
-unique feature of destroying tiles and altering levels
-atm just a basic level config and play but would like to infuse a full single player campaign in at some point

 

[Candescence]

I put the "voice distance" method to practical use the other day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zZ9i4VM-0g&feature=youtu.be

This shows how the character's voice adjusts based on distance to make it sound appropriate, since sometimes in the game people speak while the player still has control.

Damn, this is nice. Soooooo good.

 

[Jobbs]

For example, I think it'd be cool if the player gets a little more tired after enough time has passed without resting, so then max stamina would start to wane until she rests again. But is that interesting or just annoying?

This is a good idea, and I think precisely the kind of idea that'll get a mixed reaction if you put it up for popular vote in isolation.

I'm jealous that you're getting to play with day night cycle and time passage stuff, since this is something I've wanted to do for a long time now.

Damn, this is nice. Soooooo good.

Thank you!

 

[Jacksinthe]

It's still Saturday for me! California gurls, we're unforgettable.

https://fat.gfycat.com/ScaryMarvelousDavidstiger.webm

Resting advances the game's ecology by six hours. Technically this means you can farm plants, since they respawn after twenty four hours, but most of the checkpoints aren't going to be nearby much if any plant life.

I'm thinking about adding some other systems as well, but I'm not sure what all that would be. For example, I think it'd be cool if the player gets a little more tired after enough time has passed without resting, so then max stamina would start to wane until she rests again. But is that interesting or just annoying?

This is cool. As for other systems I would go a bit deeper than endurance. More world-changing. I have always liked the idea of managing sanity with persistent effects. Doesn't have to be new enemies or creepier imagery or any of the usual culprits when dealing with the psyche and video games, but I would love to see the world, itself, change. Some locations have more of a "deja vu" feel as if you're running in circles. Other elements require puzzles to unlock or reveal areas that were previously accessible because "I swear I was just here not long ago and X existed". Do more with making the player feel "crazy". It doesn't have to be any more than subtle, but would be cool to see some changes. Some NPCs you've encountered don't recognize you, others do you've never seen before. Perhaps introduce new story elements this way, some branching paths.

 

[Jobbs]

This is cool. As for other systems I would go a bit deeper than endurance. More world-changing. I have always liked the idea of managing sanity with persistent effects. Doesn't have to be new enemies or creepier imagery or any of the usual culprits when dealing with the psyche and video games, but I would love to see the world, itself, change. Some locations have more of a "deja vu" feel as if you're running in circles. Other elements require puzzles to unlock or reveal areas that were previously accessible because "I swear I was just here not long ago and X existed". Do more with making the player feel "crazy". It doesn't have to be any more than subtle, but would be cool to see some changes. Some NPCs you've encountered don't recognize you, others do you've never seen before. Perhaps introduce new story elements this way, some branching paths.

Don't Starve has a sanity meter and shit gets creepy as it gets lower. If it gets too low, enemies actually change into demons and shit.

 

[Jacksinthe]

Don't Starve has a sanity meter and shit gets creepy as it gets lower. If it gets too low, enemies actually change into demons and shit.

Exactly what I'd like to see NOT done. The whole "gotta make shit creepy because sanity yo" is done to death in games, film, literature. I'd like to see a different slant on sanity other than creepy monsters and scary stuff. There's so much more to exploiting the mind than "boo!".

 

[Jobbs]

Exactly what I'd like to see NOT done. The whole "gotta make shit creepy because sanity yo" is done to death in games, film, literature. I'd like to see a different slant on sanity other than creepy monsters and scary stuff. There's so much more to exploiting the mind than "boo!".

It's not really "boo". It feels like psychological horror. It's really well done, and my first times playing the game actually did weird me out. It eventually becomes more about mechanics, as you may find yourself intentionally going insane to try and obtain specific items that can't be obtained while sane, that kind of thing -- So when you're an advanced user, this all becomes routine, but it was certainly very effective early on.

Incidentally, Don't Starve is one of my favorite games. Facing permadeath through starvation (or myriad other ways) while in a weird environment where you don't know how anything works or what anything does is such a great ride. I've probably put 200 hours into the game and I still play now and then. I look forward to whenever the expansion hits PS4 (I don't generally like gaming at my PC).

 

[Jacksinthe]

It's not really "boo". It feels like psychological horror. It's really well done, and my first times playing the game actually did weird me out. It eventually becomes more about mechanics, as you can intentionally became insane to try and obtain specific items that can't be obtained while sane, that kind of thing -- So when you're an advanced user, this all becomes routine, but it was certainly very effective early on.

Incidentally, Don't Starve is one of my favorite games.

But it doesn't have to be monsters or anything creepy. I mention how things can change the gameplay or story paths, etc as small examples.

None of that is triggered by creepy monsters. Its just that creepy monsters is done to death. That's my point. It can be well done but it can still be OVERdone. I want to see a different take on "sanity". Its not always dark, twisted, creepy stuff. There's a lot more to play to to the human psyche than horror.

 

[anteevy]

Yeah. I wouldn't have it completely hamper the player, probably never drop it past half of max stamina. Mostly this limits the number of consecutive attacks that can be made back to back, essentially slowing down the combat and prompting the player to be more cautious.

I think designers can get away with annoying features in the game if it makes other parts of the game better in turn. In this case, I'm hoping it means the player would be even more appreciative of finding a new checkpoint, or a shortcut back to a previous checkpoint. Then again, I could have it all wrong. I'm not married to the idea.

You could also put a positive spin on it. Like, when you are rested, you gain a bonus on attack speed (or "number of consecutive attacks" or whatever) for some time (decreasing slowly). I think it's good practice to reward the player for doing something instead of punishing him for not doing it. Gameplay-wise it would be almost the same as what you described above.

 

[Jobbs]

But it doesn't have to be monsters or anything creepy. I mention how things can change the gameplay or story paths, etc as small examples.

None of that is triggered by creepy monsters. Its just that creepy monsters is done to death. That's my point. It can be well done but it can still be OVERdone. I want to see a different take on "sanity". Its not always dark, twisted, creepy stuff. There's a lot more to play to to the human psyche than horror.

I see what you're saying. I think "scary imagery/sounds" is just an easier approach, especially if your game is (in part) an action game. Fully integrating into the gameplay in non-monster ways would require more effort -- Making it so "sanity" can branch the story or introduce new puzzles -- You'd more than likely be designing your game around it at that point, which is fine, but it's harder to approach it that holistically when it's meant to only be an occasional thing.

This is all stuff I'm thinking about a lot because I also plan to do a survivally, day night cycle, plant and animal life, dynamic elements type game, possibly as my next game. Had the concept in the back of my mind for probably almost a year now.

I'm not sure yet how I'll approach sanity, but it's something I'll definitely be considering. I doubt there'll be an actual "sanity meter", (at least not one the player can see...) but in a game that's at least in part a survival sim, it seems natural to have a psychological element.

edit: one idea I've had for a psychological scare would be "trip out spots". In other words, there are certain predefined spots/objects where if you stand near them for a bit, they change slightly or something happens unexpectedly and it's over quick enough that you aren't sure what it was. I already have this in Ghost Song to a minor degree. As a simple example, there's a dead robot thing in the game, but if you stand motionless near it for 15 seconds, its eye moves and looks at you for just a moment and then stops.

The idea behind this is you'd feel some fear of looking at the same thing for long when you're not in a good mental state. I'm told if you're on acid to not focus too much on anything, especially anyone's face (or your own face in the mirror).

 

[Jacksinthe]

I see what you're saying. I think "scary imagery/sounds" is just an easier approach, especially if your game is (in part) an action game. Fully integrating into the gameplay in non-monster ways would require more effort -- Making it so "sanity" can branch the story or introduce new puzzles -- You'd more than likely be designing your game around it at that point, which is fine, but it's harder to approach it that holistically when it's meant to only be an occasional thing.

This is all stuff I'm thinking about a lot because I also plan to do a survivally, day night cycle, plant and animal life, dynamic elements type game, possibly as my next game. Had the concept in the back of my mind for probably almost a year now.

I'm not sure yet how I'll approach sanity, but it's something I'll definitely be considering. I doubt there'll be an actual "sanity meter", (at least not one the player can see...) but in a game that's at least in part a survival sim, it seems natural to have a psychological element.

edit: one idea I've had for a psychological scare would be "trip out spots". In other words, there are certain predefined spots/objects where if you stand near them for a bit, they change slightly or something happens unexpectedly and it's over quick enough that you aren't sure what it was. I already have this in Ghost Song to a minor degree. As a simple example, there's a dead robot thing in the game, but if you stand motionless near it for 15 seconds, its eye moves and looks at you for just a moment and then stops.

The idea behind this is you'd feel some fear of looking at the same thing for long when you're not in a good mental state. I'm told if you're on acid to not focus too much on anything, especially anyone's face (or your own face in the mirror).

Horror is usually the easiest approach because its the easiest and quickest to understand. Not that it's not a good approach, just that you see it a lot because its an easy crutch when it comes to altering states of "sanity". There's grandma, again! Seeing creatures in the corner!.

Its much more difficult to try and convey Deja Vu or a feeling of something being only slighlty off and having that play a part in the game's design and path than simply throwing in creepy crawlers.

Before MAINFRAME ONE I had designed a game around this theme. Sci-Fi adventure-exploration that relied heavily on non-horror sanity elements. I'd need a bigger team to pull it off, though. Eventually.

 

[Blizzard]

^ What happend to your other game (with the tanks and stuff)?

Like Superstall, it still exists, but it's on hold for a bit. I'm also doing a 48-hour game jam at the moment so that's what the screenshots are from.

 

[missile]

^ Got it.

 

[liliththepale]

I definitely do want to experiment with sanity effects in some way. Previously I was thinking it would grow in tandem with the magic using stat that you can raise, but now I'm thinking that alone would be too formulaic. I like Jack's idea to keep it mysterious. I don't necessarily want it to be like Bloodborne where you hit level 40 insight and suddenly

Spoiler

the giant cosmic spiders in the background are visible.

That's a backup plan, of course, but hopefully I can do some things that are more subtle and less calculable.

Anyway, this is a lot of good stuff to think about! And I think you're right Matt that this is something which will inevitably gain mixed reactions when polled in isolation, but the discussion has made it worthwhile.

You could also put a positive spin on it. Like, when you are rested, you gain a bonus on attack speed (or "number of consecutive attacks" or whatever) for some time (decreasing slowly). I think it's good practice to reward the player for doing something instead of punishing him for not doing it. Gameplay-wise it would be almost the same as what you described above.

Great point! I suppose this comes down to how it's represented in the UI, but I'll keep it in mind. Thank you!

Your background is looking swell, well done.
Regarding resting and stamina, I think it can work but it depends on your game. If the levels are structured in a way that makes the player decide if he wants to risk going for that last enemy before the next resting point or going to the previous one,healing and trying it all again, it could work.

Aw, thanks! Yeah, that's the plan. It's going to be a very careful balancing act, but I think I can do it. Thank you.

 

[jrush64]

So I'm having a little code problem.

I have a boat that's a gameobject. When that boat is destroyed by a trigger, i want to respawn the boat and then destroy that clone. Then just keep doing that.

public class PumpkinSpawn : MonoBehaviour {

public Transform originee;
public GameObject Pumpkyn;

void Start () {

Pumpkyn = GameObject.Find ("PumpkinBoat");

}

// Update is called once per frame
void Update () {

// if (Input.GetKeyDown (KeyCode.Space)) {
//
// Instantiate (Pumpkyn, originee.position, originee.rotation);
// }
}

void OnTriggerEnter (Collider pumpdetect)
{
Debug.Log ("Boat destroyed");

if (pumpdetect.gameObject.name == "PumpkinBoat") {

Destroy (Pumpkyn);
Instantiate (Pumpkyn, originee.position, originee.rotation);
}
if (pumpdetect.gameObject.name == "PumpkinBoat(Clone)") {
Destroy (GameObject.Find ("PumpkinBoat(Clone)"));
Instantiate (Pumpkyn, originee.position, originee.rotation);

}

}
}

This code destroys the boat, clones it, then destroys it again. However I want to keep destroying then cloning.

I can't seem to get it right. Can anyone please help?