Indie Game Dev - Tumblr Posts - Page 3
Almost done with Elden ring, so it's time to remind everyone that this game exists. We are currently at 45 downloads but i`m more interested in hearing about how everyone's playthrough is going along? I might work on an update in the coming week depending on the kind of feedback i receive.
Irredeamable is out!
Go and give it a try this weekend, it's fun, it's short, and it's free!
Today i wanted to give a bit of a spotlight to the song Tensions by Johan Brodd/Jobromedia which is used for The City of Thieves. New Eden is a major centerpiece of the game's story and progression and the song greatly contributes to its grungy, dystopian vibe. I do my best to credit (though i still have a lot to learn on how to do it properly) but i feel that the smaller contributions to a project often go unappreciated, especially in bigger projects where it can get difficult to determine who worked on what exactly.
The stepping stone, an irredeamable post mortem
A big challenge when making any creative product is being overwhelmed by the sheer amount of ideas you want to express. It can be very difficult to decide what will be part of the first story and what will have to remain unknown. Irredeamable was a particularly difficult case as i wasn`t only trying to make a cohesive world for the game itself, but the first building block of a greater setting that require its own lot of setups. In such conditions, everything felt important and it took a lot of restraint to cut things down until only a tease of the true scope remained. Overall, it was a huge mess to work out, but I'm happy with the result and i feel a lot more free and focused in the pursuit of my future projects now that the foundation has been set up to build upon and i can use the previous reveals to do a lot of foreshadowing with very little.
Irredeamable version 1.1 is out!
Update 1.1 of irredeamable has been released, and with it, the alternate "give me money editions" which replaces all copyrighted songs with streamer-safe alternatives.
My account isn't quite set up yet so you can't actually give me money, but it's the thought that counts.
Here a list of the new and improved content in this update: ------------------
-Left click can be used to progress dialogue
-a prompt will appear next to text boxes to inform players of which input can forward dialogue
-A secret npc was added to the postgame area if its visited early
-reduced risk of respawning above a pit after falling
-the game will display how much exp is being gained from defeating enemies and bosses.
-Altered the layout of mount evermore to guide players toward the main route
-Loki has finally remembered to set up their pride flag
-a few minor bugs were fixed
For Give me money edition:
All copyrighted music was replaced with streamer-safe alternatives.
Just press those 3 dots next to the download button to download the Give Me Money edition.
Irredeamable version 1.1 is out!
Update 1.1 of irredeamable has been released, and with it, the alternate "give me money editions" which replaces all copyrighted songs with streamer-safe alternatives.
My account isn't quite set up yet so you can't actually give me money, but it's the thought that counts.
The Ich.io page for irredeamable has been set up.
I finished setting up My ich.io page, you are now able to give me money if you are willing to suffer the consequences (which are a loss of money)
Any and all money given to the game shall be used to feed my endless hunger for tea biscuits.... You have been warned....
This post introduces the flamebearers' main family. They are the main npc Jupe interacts with through the game and occasionally are fought as bosses. Thundercaller Jupe : The youngest of her siblings, she acts as the current matriarch of the family and is the strongest flamebearer alive. Tidebreaker Neptu: Second oldest member of the family. Neptu lives at the far coast with his husband and son, endlessly training amongst the boiling tides to regain his title as the strongest member of his siblings. Winddancer Ouran: Eldest sibling of the family. She lives in a village far above the highlands with her extensive family. She has been drifting away from the flamebearers current lifestyle in favor of caring for her village nad family, but still regularly trains to keep up her skills. Satur: The old patriarch of the family, Satur has since been banished to the forbidden lands for opposing Jupe's current rules. He is a survivor and a traditionalist, looking down on the flamebearers' current practices. Pluron:.... Venu: Elest child of Jupe. Venu has gathered a reputation has the fierce but kindly caretaker of the flamebearer home. Eri: Youngest of Jupe children. Eri is a frail and confused flamebearer, unsure of their place in the world and the power they hold. Jupe is still in the process of training them. Mar: Twin sibling of Mercy, Mar is a thrill seeker, always tracking the next big game hunt. They are responsible for providing food for the family and their servants. Mercu: Twin brother of Mar. Mercy is a frail but agile flamebearer, capable of achieving great speed and distances. His current role is to serve as a messenger, communicating information between the distant members of the family. Most of their designs are currently only at the silhouette level but progress is slowly being made as their role and concept is being solidified.
One of the biggest obstacles in writing irredeamable was how large and spread the cast of characters had been. Most of the game was composed of disparate storylines whose characters rarely would intersect. One of the objectives of this game is to work with a much smaller and tighter cast of characters, hense the focus on a single extended family. It also brings the benefit that everyone has pre-defined relationships with each other.
This post introduces the flamebearers' main family. They are the main npc Jupe interacts with through the game and occasionally are fought as bosses. Thundercaller Jupe : The youngest of her siblings, she acts as the current matriarch of the family and is the strongest flamebearer alive. Tidebreaker Neptu: Second oldest member of the family. Neptu lives at the far coast with his husband and son, endlessly training amongst the boiling tides to regain his title as the strongest member of his siblings. Winddancer Ouran: Eldest sibling of the family. She lives in a village far above the highlands with her extensive family. She has been drifting away from the flamebearers current lifestyle in favor of caring for her village nad family, but still regularly trains to keep up her skills. Satur: The old patriarch of the family, Satur has since been banished to the forbidden lands for opposing Jupe's current rules. He is a survivor and a traditionalist, looking down on the flamebearers' current practices. Pluron:.... Venu: Elest child of Jupe. Venu has gathered a reputation has the fierce but kindly caretaker of the flamebearer home. Eri: Youngest of Jupe children. Eri is a frail and confused flamebearer, unsure of their place in the world and the power they hold. Jupe is still in the process of training them. Mar: Twin sibling of Mercy, Mar is a thrill seeker, always tracking the next big game hunt. They are responsible for providing food for the family and their servants. Mercu: Twin brother of Mar. Mercy is a frail but agile flamebearer, capable of achieving great speed and distances. His current role is to serve as a messenger, communicating information between the distant members of the family. Most of their designs are currently only at the silhouette level but progress is slowly being made as their role and concept is being solidified.
irredeamable development retrospective. Part 1.5: capitalism IN SPACE This one part will tackles an alternate setting for the Specter game we spoke of last time. It may even have come first in the development timeline, through it can be a bit difficult to determine exactly how and when ideas shifted so lets not worry about what actually came first. Much like shadow and light, this game was about a specter, possessing people, but just as the title says, the setting was more of a space-faring adventure where you would visit multiple planets.
It features much of the same races as shadows and light, though their exact appearance has shifted a bit, as everything would in a different setting.
Depicted here, we have Mars, a frozen desert planet with large scale mining operations and a bit of a western vibe. Humans and mitons are the main races here and were given stout figures and thick coat to fit the cold yet dry weather. Venus is now overgrown with a rich, volcanic jungle where countless comic plant are being grown and harvested. This planet is mainly occupied by goblin employees who take the place of the succubus from last game. Mercury was hollowed out and turned into a giant energy powerplant, with a massive solar panel attached to one side. Earth ...well i dont think i ever did figure out what to do with it. Its kind of just another mining planet. and finally we have the alien mothership. The home base of a group of invading alien corporations from the Alpha Centauri system. ....yes i know what it looks like, but its actually supposed to be based on their system having 3 stars (2 large and 1 small)
Aniway, the Centaurian species consists of long-lived and hyper-intelligent giant squid. Their technology is very advanced, especially in domains of communication, space travel and artificial life. Many of their servants (which i think included the goblins) are bioweapons that were specifically crafted to integrate into local populations and perform whichever jobs were needed for the growth of the company. There was never much of an actual story, so all i really got left are some blueprints of the solar system, now converted into some kind of space construct for the Centaurians to exploit.
Aniway, thats it for today, but next time we`ll be leaving all those specters behind and move into yet another setting. One that is not quite so cosmic, but instead rather....toweresque... To be continued in part 2: Ascending the Godlands
The next part of the retrospective is taking some time to write, so i think i`ll only release it tomorrow. In the meantime, why not play/finish Irredeamable? The next part is getting pretty close to the actual game story, so its going to contain quite a few spoilers. Download the game now on gamejolt: https://gamejolt.com/games/irredeamable/879931 ...Or Ichio (no copyrighted music) https://blackblooms.itch.io/irredeamable
Anything to say about your experience? Any moment you found particularly memorable?
OFFICIAL ART YEESSSSSSS WMDNSNAKSJDSNWLA
Also I just REALLY can’t get over Vere being in the water with a whole outfit on bruh 😭 like did he forget his swim trunks or sumthin?? And why tf does Leander have a bralette tan going on?? And why is his nips so perky (💀)??? AND WHY ARE THEIR BLOODY MARYS SO FREAKIN HUGE LIKE I MEAN DAMN ANDJSOWJSBAKKAN 😖😖😫
(Anywho… I absolutely love this art and I can’t wait for 2025 🤪)
“What do you mean you found this floatie on a corpse?”
With your help, Vere and Leander successfully moved five and a half bodies off the beach before succumbing to the heat and too many Extra Bloody Marys.
Happy Summer!
Lemme see…
IMO, starting with Sen(? I forget her name 😅 EDIT: Indeed, her name is Sen! 😌), I would say:
1) Sen(?) -> Fierce, Determined.
Based on her gaze, I think she’s the kind of person who knows what she wants. She’s probably the “I know what I want, and I know what I get” kinda gal (props to anyone who recognizes that saying!). If she wants something from you, she’ll get it — I think she’s that kind of gal. It’s like she always knows how to twist someone’s arm just right (yes, even in the painful way if necessary!).
Persuasive as hell. A little too good at the art of persuasion… like, she’s not a conwoman or anything but… shit, she might as well be, lol.
I feel like she’s a tough cookie. Maybe even the “no nonsense” kind. You think you’re running circles around her, but nah, she’s running circles around YOU my guy lol. Nothing gets past her, can’t NOBODY get over on her!
I feel like a part of her’s kinda strait-laced, though, idky. From what little I recall of her story, this is likely not true because she’s trying to free herself of immortality no matter what, so… yeah, heheh. But I feel like other than her issues with immortality, maybe she’s very strait-laced in most any other situation. Idk.
Like the type who’d probably tell you to stop walking in the road when there’s a sidewalk available… and you’re just like: “but it’s nighttime, and people don’t drive in Eridia like that,” and she’s all, “Ok, go get hit then, see if I care.” Lol, yeah. Something like that maybe, idk. Just a headcanon.
I don’t know if she’d be a perfume girlie but like… I feel like she’s a perfume girlie. I mean she’s already so pretty, so she must care about maintaining her aesthetic to some degree (or maybe she just wakes up like that, idk 🤷🏾♀️). I feel like she’d either smell like something very sweet and floral since she makes me think of a pale rose, OR she’d wear something deep and resinous. Idk. I think the perfume thing could make sense if (as morbid as it would be) she’s immortal, sure, but still aging. Cause like… think about it. As we age, our bodies stop working like they used to. Cells don’t multiply as quickly and our bones continue to wear.
… What if she’s… rotting?
Shit, I’d be desperate to formally die too, if that were the case!
Anywho, I feel like she’s a tough love kind of woman. Like, she scolds you, but then she gives you a little pat on the back or something when you do really well. Maybe a bit like a mom —not motherly by any means, but sometimes does things like that, which can kind of feel like a mom-ish thing to do.
I feel like she’s a great fighter too, lol, her gaze is too fierce and warrior-like to not be.
2) Leander -> Calculating
—there’s more going on in his mind than swaying the MC’s heart!! Leander is a sweet guy (or so we think), but sweet don’t mean stupid!
But I also feel like there’s something admiring or just generally adoring in his gaze. It’s almost like soft, but I feel like the sketchiness of the art here might have something to do with that.
The tilt of his head makes the gaze feel almost longing. I feel like he’s the kind of guy who makes you feel so special when he looks at you lol.
But green can also be associated with envy, jealousy, and/or sickness or bad health. Idk man… I don’t think he’s gonna beat the yandere allegations any time soon, haha.
3) Mhin -> Perceptive
—sees through you. Intense; they’re staring too deeply into your soul to be simply looking at you 😭 Analytic. They’re taking notes about you and will probably be able to tell you things about yourself even YOU didn’t recognize.
Kinda like: (Sighs) “You have a terrible habit of glancing around a room like you’ve never seen four walls before. You’re too obvious!”
And you’d look (down) at them like:
“Huh? Do I??” And for some of us, we may not be able to keep ourselves from insisting, “Nuh-uh, I don’t do that! W-what are you talking about, what do you mean?? When have I ever done that??”
And Mhin will roll their eyes, or depending on your affection level (I’m assuming TS will use a point-based system since it’s a game with worse/best endings), Mhin will smirk at you and say, “You’ve done that multiple times.”
Depending on how much of a nerd they turn out to be, they’ll probably even tell you exactly how many times you’ve done it!
4) Vere -> Deceptive.
They have beautiful, sparkly eyes that make you wanna stare into them till you fall in, but you and Vere both know very well that should you give in, you’ll regret it. Then again… maybe you won’t??
Refusing to look you in the eye like that, Vere very much gives you the impression right off the bat that he’s not one to trust. Hell, he looks like he’s plotting a scheme (Swiper no Swiping!! Headass…)
He’s intriguing. Pink eyes are rare —beautiful! —but so, so rare. Where is he from, why is he here?? What does he want from you, what does he really want?? Does he even know what he wants?? Hell!
5) … Elyon -> Seductive.
Like Sen, I don’t know much about this character or anything, so I can only make little assumptions. But his eyes seem very enticing —like Vere’s, they draw you in, but unlike Vere, he (probably happily) stares deep into your soul.
Almost like Mhin, you can tell he’s picking you apart and putting you back together. But unlike Mhin, he’s not looking through you, per se. He’s looking at you, right at you. It’s the kind of gaze you can’t escape —if you were looking or walking away, I feel like his gaze would never waver, and you’d know it —cuz you’d just feel eyeballs on the side of your face or the back of your head, lol.
Idky but I lowkey feel like he’s the kind of person who probably likes eye contact. I don’t remember much about his character and background and stuff, but I think he’s someone with a prestigious background?? Idk I just remember his flower being associated with royalty, I believe. And so, if that’s correct, I feel like he has these mannerisms that people who come from a background of power usually have (at least where I’m from!).
As such, he probably really values eye contact and will literally follow your gaze. Every time your head and gaze starts to shift over to the side, he will literally tilt his own head just to maintain eye contact. If you’re bent over or looking down when he’s talking to you, he’ll probably bend over, too, or crouch a little to see your face and catch your eyes, haha.
(As an introvert, I kinda hate ppl like this, ngl 😂😅)
I feel like he’s also the kind of person to give really firm handshakes. The kind of man who, for better or worse, tends to show power over others —even if that’s not really his intention—because… yk… he’s from a posh background! He’s probably from Hightown!! So… yeah!
Kuras -> Comforting.
With his eye shape and golden gaze, it’s like staring into a pot of honey. His eyes being light, it makes me think of sunshine. I feel like Kuras is staring at us with an air of warmth, like a kind doctor, which is quite fitting of his character, actually!
Kuras’ eyes are expressive. I feel like he has a gaze where you can’t help staring into them to try and gauge his feelings. Like, he’s pretty stone-faced —he doesn’t always make himself easy to read —but his eyes… idk, I feel like his eyes can give you a good idea as to what’s going on in his mind. Not always, but I feel like once you get to know Kuras more, you’ll find yourself looking into his eyes, and you’ll begin to notice every little thing in his gaze.
He’ll stare at you as he explains the prescription he wrote, and when he casually slips a joke in between his explanation, you’ll see his eyes squint ever so slightly as his cheeks press up into his lower lids. Or when you and Kuras take a little walk together and see something quirky, he might look (down) at you and almost like… smize.
In fact, I feel like he does that a lot! Like, he may not smile per se, but whether he does or not, I feel like he’s the kind of person where most of his smile is in his eyes. He just tends to look at you and just… smize! He’s a smizer!
(I think that’s really cute tho, lol).
Ais -> Intimidating.
Ais’ eyes make you feel like you’re a burglar caught with your hand in his pocket. Like he’s sizing you up almost, tryna figure out if he’ll let you go because you seem so freakin’ weak or if he’ll beat your ass because like… bruh, come on 😭 you’re trying to rob AIS of all people bruh??! Like maybe Leander (… MAYBE) cause he’s sort of nice enough to probably just loan you a dollar or something —but AIS??
Anywho, his eyes give me… inquisitive vibes. If he’s not staring you down like prey, he’s definitely the type to stare at you just for your reaction. That’s what I feel like, at least, lol. His eyes just tell you that he’s annoying asf.
And he is… lmao
Based on his gaze, I feel like he lowkey has a bit of a staring problem lol. He’s the type who just… stares at you. And you might get uncomfortable or agitated, and you’ll look at him and just be like: “What are you staring at me for?” And his annoying ass would probably be all like: (shrugs) “Didn’t think I needed a reason.” Like… BRUH.
Sometimes he stares as if he’s paying close attention, like, way too close attention. Like he’s just waiting for any sudden wrong move. That, or I feel like he’d stare at you and then begin to space off a little. Idk, he’s kinda giving… space cadet, lol.
Just a little, just a little.
——————
ANYWHO I GUESS I ACCIDENTALLY TURNED THIS INTO A HEADCANON POST SO… YEAH. Hope somebody enjoyed out there lol
Can’t wait til the game itself comes out and then I get to look back on this and laugh at how OOC it is 😭😅
What do you think each character’s eye design says about them? 👁️
Lancer Tactics devlog
I'm gonna try out posting my ~monthly devlog roundup here as well. These suckers are glorified changelogs with anecdotes and gifs galore. Let me know if this is something you like seeing show up on your dash?
Map Editor
Got units able to be placed/deleted/moved in the mission editor
Can paint/remove command zones in the editor
Can paint minecraft-like terrain blocks in the editor
Can paint/rotate multi-tile props in the editor
Can edit unit character sheets and portrait via the editor
3D maps
Did a bunch of art tests with 3D mech models, provided by GeneralChaos, which we ended up deciding not to go with to keep things simple.
To avoid the can of worms that is animation, we'd have to lean into a static "tabletop minatures" aesthetic which we decided is not a style we want to be stuck with. By sticking with 2D sprites, we avoid falling into a sort of uncanny valley; it's easier to get away with not animating a 2D sprite than it is for a 3D model.
We also experimented with 3D terrain. We decided to make a rule that the visual style for a piece of terrain should match its mechanical effect: obstructing terrain that you can't move through, such as rocks or buildings, will be in 3D, while non-obstructing terrain like trees will stick with 2D sprites.
Hooking up the 3D camera to follow events like movement and attacks did a LOT for making it starting to feel like it's cohering into an Actual Game™
Implemented cover! And an attack preview! Cover works by aiming a ray from the target to the originator (technically to and from each voxel of each, respectively, to handle size 2s shooting above size 1 cover) and tracking all the terrain blocks it hits (how we'll handle non-terrain hard cover TBD). I think I have it working according to Perijove's cover rules manual, but I'm sure there'll be edge cases to work out. This is a case where things are significantly simplified by working in squares instead of hexes; hexes have a lot more possible weird angles you have to deal with.
Re-added what I'm stubbornly calling Combat Popcorn; little bits of text that pop out when you use abilities and attacks.
UI & game screens
Added ability for the engine to show UI that's anchored to the game world via a little word bubble line but also stay on screen as the camera moves around.
Got word bubbles working; you can now write dialogue in the mission editor, hit playtest, and see it work in a mission! (it does actually translate correctly now; this gif is just from a bug I thought was funny)
Got ability effects mostly behaving appropriately again, including muzzle flashes. The easiest way to handle them ended up being NOT billboarding them so they always face the camera (like all other 2D sprites in the game); instead, I put them on a plane parallel with the ground and just spin them around the unit to point at wherever their target is.
Did some work ironing out our tooltip system. The standard in CRPGs these days is this kind of nested labyrinth of tooltops that you see in Baldur's Gate 3:
I Did Not Want to try and figure out how to wrangle that much UI, so we're instead opting to cap the nested tooltips at the second layer. You can lock a general tooltip for e.g. an action and then mouseover various items within that tooltip to get glossary definitions...
...and then instead of having those glossary tips be lockable/mouse-overable themselves, I collect all related terms to that glossary definition and let you tab through them.
Added skin overlay functionality to the portrait maker, enabling textures like scars, tattoos, stubble, and vitiligo to be applied to just the skin and not extend off into space.
Midway through writing this update, Carpenter sent me this gif of the randomization button working! There's a still a bunch of skintones/assets missing and a few are a bit janky, but it was exciting to start seeing the range of these lil freaks (affectionate) that this editor can create.
Mourning cloak license!
This is the one I'm probably most excited about: I did a bit of a content dive and implemented a basic character sheet + all Mourning Cloak traits and equipment. They don't have fancy graphics yet, but the weapons and systems can be added via the character sheet and used in-game.
It took a little under a day, including adding soon-to-be common mechanisms like bonus damage. This is great news in that it means the engine we've been building for so long in the abstract seems to do a great job in handling comprehensive actual game content, and that it looks like we've set ourselves up for success when it comes time to buckle down on churning that out.
I'm sure other licenses will come with unique difficulties (I fear the day it comes time to do the Mule Harness // Goblin CP) but I'm feeling good about it!
Vertical slice?
Taking a step back, the pressing question on my mind has been "when will we have a playable early access build?"
I was originally hoping for Feb/March, but what we've internally been referring to as the "3D cataclysm" has pushed everything back by at least three months, so the target for the first alpha build is now in May. So, ah, thanks for your patience! Seeing things come together, I've become more and more convinced that moving to 3D was the right call.
hey!! thank y'all for all the follows and notes on the other post. i really really appreciate it <3
this is Vega, she's the main character of the game and... oh she's uh... lying on the floor, after... those pigeons... pushed her to the ground? idk what happened honestly.
either way stay tunned for more twilight story updates real soon. i can't wait to show you more and start revealing some of the characters <3
also! this game is being done entirely by me, that means coding, music, writing and (awful) artwork.
i might share some of the coolest tunes soon hmm...
"how did you pass through the fence outside my house?"
"Oh, I came from the other side. Fr-from the forest..."
"wow! it's been so long since someone came from there."
"c'mere, you must be really tired. let's rest for a bit."
Finished the cosmetic system. Now, you can mix and match multi-colour threads with trails.
I've been told this alone looks great for a relaxing drawing game. Too bad the Gameplay will be a mess :)
5 for sure ‼️‼️
Which seat are you taking on this turbulent flight…? 💀
Ais paid for an extra seat for his “dog,” Kuras has to sit in the emergency exit row so his legs fit, and someone is secretly cooking shrimp in the bathroom