Status Report #39

     Unicorn Quest keeps looking better every single day. It actually has a nice game feel to it now, as in it's playable and I can clearly see where the fun comes from. So far it tells me my idea for an arcade shooter RPG isn't insane (which is comforting). There's still a bit more to add before I go around posting a video of what I have on other websites.

Today I'm working on the spell upgrades (functionality of leveled up attacks) but you can see what has been done in the past week below.

Unicorn Quest Progress Video #12

     It's time for another progress video full of too many small details to post about! I tried to keep this video as up to the minute as possible because so many things change every passing hour. Here is what the game looks like as of 11:43pm on the 22nd.

      A lot of graphical improvements were made for the interface and a few menu functions are operational now. I also fixed up a bunch of bugs, polished the shield spell a bit, finished the death screen, and make health pickups. Pink hearts dropped by enemies give you a quarter heart and purple ones they drop take away a quarter heart.

This is the YouTube Video

     I feel like I'm on fire!! Everyday so much progress is made! I can't wait to see how things look a month from now. I want to get to a point where I'm just adding rooms and enemies to flesh things out.

Making the Lose Condition

     Unicorn Quest needs to be hard for two main reasons. To lengthen playtime and feel like a genuine arcade style shooter.  But losing can be frustrating if it doesn't feel right. One thing I noticed about myself when playing things like Trials or Flappy Bird is that a quick redo makes the whole thing less painful and more like "Just one more time." and I'd rather have players quickly resetting battles when they lose than going all the way back to a checkpoint and losing items, experience, etc.

     In Unicorn Quest, if you lose all your hearts you can just reset the fight or exit to the entrance of the overworld room where the fight started. No penalties. If you die in the overworld (traps, lava pits, etc.) you reset to that rooms entrance as if walking in for the first time, but without losing items. Chests you opened will stay open and beaten enemies won't respawn.

    When you beat a boss, it'll be a hard battle that you came out on top of. You tried and failed, switched strategies and won. I want players to feel good about themselves when beating enemies, not just plowing through an easy game in a couple of days.

Now I just have to finish up death animations.

Why On Mobile?

     I was reading an article on Gamasutra a while back and it got me thinking about why I chose mobile as my primary platform in the first place. I basically want to help push expectations up. I know it's a niche but I believe there is a place for people who want deeper game experiences beyond minute to minute puzzles. I know the need exists because I know I've wanted that since I first bought an iPod Touch (9th grade). A big RPG adventure that's playable in small chunks.

     Day-by-day you spend minutes here and there trying to gather enough gold to restock potions and attempt a hard dungeon instead of collecting coins to keep crops alive. I'd rather have a tough Pokemon match than beat a level in Candy Crush when I'm on the toilet. It's possible for a single person to make a game with SNES quality in about a year thanks to the tools out there. I see the pocket sized mobile devices packing the power of PlayStation 2's and think this is a chance for really awesome games to come out, but the majority of what's out there isn't appealing to me.

     So in short, I'm making games that I wish existed. That's what most indies are after too right?