We've nearly finished our DreamBuildPlay version and we'll be submitting it sometime tomorrow after we get the last few changes/additions in there. We also made a new trailer that has up-to-date art and shows off some newer additions we've made to the game. At this point we're going to finish up all of our co-op problems and start working on the evil checklist (a list of quality checks, for those outside the XNA community) so we can get our game ready for release. Our new trailer has been added below so you can watch it, as well as on our trailer page on the left hand side. Look for an update next week on our release status!
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Updates will probably start coming in a lot slower now, but we'll try to do at least one a week to keep everyone updated. We're working on the final boss battle now and working out the last few kinks in co-op. Since it's the final boss in the game we wanted it to be something pretty different from the others as well as something to make you use your reflexes a little more. This is the one and only boss that is the same size as you but he makes up for it in firepower. As far as the current specs for him go, we're going to give him a shotgun that he can shoot anywhere in the level, granted he's on your screen. The spread of the shotgun should make it hard to just jump over the bullets or to the side, and you'll have to use your stealth quickly to avoid his shots. Being that it's a shotgun, the closer you are the more bullets that will hit you so you'll have to keep your distance but stay close enough to be accurate with your guns also. The boss won't move left/right at all, but we're going to have him teleport around the map so he's not just a sitting duck.
Once the boss battle is done we'll be playtesting this week to get the game ready for the DreamBuildPlay competition that ends March 3rd. After that we'll be flushing out any last bugs, adding anything that missed the cut for this contest and getting ready to release sometime in March!
I'll be going through and updating the screenshots on the website and our Facebook page tonight so there should be some new content in there very soon.
We finished the High Pass boss battle (screenshots below) today and did some testing on the 360 to see if anything needed to be changed. The Sea Floor enemy is added so that level is complete and the first version of Sky City is in the game without enemies. We started brainstorming ideas for the final level and I think it's going to be a timed level where you have to race to the top in order to stop the weapon from firing. This level, Shadow Island, is a vertical level rather than a horizontal level which all the others have been. It's a race to the top and if you reach the top the final boss battle begins.
We added a few changes to the GUI to improve visibility. The O2 gauge that shows the amount of breath you have has been moved behind the player so you can easily see how much you have left. I also added some text that pops up at the beginning of each level that lets you know if you have weapon upgrades available, and fades out after a few seconds. We've had some issues with people not caring enough to upgrade their weapons, or even knowing the upgrade menu existed, so this should push it on the players some more. We mention it during the tutorial but I guess it just doesn't stick with the players to remember.
We plan on having our DreamBuildPlay version of the game done by the end of this week so we can put a lot of playtesting in to make sure there's no bugs or crashes, and most importantly get some feedback/suggestions. The heavy lifting this week includes; Sky City enemies, Shadow Island level design/art/enemies, final boss battle, and a few popups where needed to explain everything in the game.
With 95% of everything done now comes the testing stage. We are meticulously going through every area of the game looking for any bugs or glitches in the programming and gameplay. We are also tightening up some areas, refining some of the gameplay elements and having people run play tests through it.
I’m also going back and making new art for certain areas just to give each area a little more detail and more life. The game is shaping up nicely and we are getting excited to get it out into the world and into the gamers hands.
We just have to stay focused in the crunchtime because all the little things that are left didn’t seem like a lot of work but they all add up and we have our list we are gonna blitz through and finish this thing up for you guys!
We are in the final week of finishing up our game to test for Dream Build Play contest. This week I have been working on the SkyIsland and fixing the problems we are having with the HighPass levels.
I will also be working on the final level called ShadowIsland. This level is inaccessible until you beat every other main level/boss in the game. ShadowIsland is basically meant to be a giant weapon that rises out of the ocean. Simon must race to the top of this vertical scrolling level and defeat the Final Boss before he can wreck havoc on the rest of the islands in his world.
On another note this week I have also been working on new music like Industrial/High Pass music and making changes to some previous songs like the Frostbite music. As it stands right now we have music for the Industrial, Frostbite, Black Ash, TropicalVillage, Sea Floor, and HighPass levels.
Well that about wraps it up for things being done with levels/music this week; be sure to check back with us here next week for more updates.
Later,
xXIIBRANDOIIXx
We're at a little standstill for what we want to do for the lives system. Currently you have 10 lives and when you lose those 10 lives you start losing medals (which you use to upgrade weapons). We wanted to have a penalty for dying so you don't just power through levels with no remorse. Here's a few key notes:
-Lives are just a safety net to prevent you from losing medals.
-Lives can be bought from the in-game store.
For skilled players there really won't be a downside to this model. For the less skilled who die often it just turns into them losing all their medals, so they won't be able to upgrade to better weapons to help them out.
The way it's currently setup really hurts the less-skilled players so we're looking for some suggestions that anyone may have!
