Pine DevBlog #65 - Jams and Jewelry Posted in Development Blogs

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New week, new blog! February has already started - time flies.



Last weekend we joined the Global Game Jam 2018, as we do every year! That means we were making a game in 48 hours. The whole team joined this time, together with a good friend and one half of Ratchet Audio! The theme was 'transmission', and we made "Wisp-Lash" - a game in which deities dash into each other to transmit their soul power, but in exchange for energy. The more soul power you have, the slower you are!







We actually took to Itch.io for the first time, so you can download our jam game! It's local multiplayer only, and a lot of fun with a few friends.







But on Monday it was back to Pine, of course! We had a long discussion about a particular area of the species' behavior, which is reachability. Often we see situations where species are stuck or useless, because they have no means of reaching the player.



One of such limitations is steps, ledges and heights - species can only walk on flat surfaces now. We've thought long and hard about this, but we've decided to add basic leaps/jumps for species so that we can make the world more interesting and let them follow you in more ways than one.











Another limitation can be found when using ranged weapons. We were working on a fleeing/cover system for the species, but that behavior didn't seem to fit all personalities of the organisms. Thus, we worked on non-damaging throwing attack animations to knock the player off higher places if they are exploiting a ranged tactic. Simple but effective!











Furthermore, we've continued to work on our extensive GOAP simulation system, as explained in previous blogs. We're now combining multiple villages that interact with each other and we've improved roles, the concept of energy and more to make the simulation feel alive. It's like watching ants! It may look simple, but there's a huge and intricate system at the base of this.







After getting a lot further with the first two Vaults (the Hollow Mountain and the Dry Bay Tower), we've made a few mood sketches for the third one - the Ancient Stables. Exciting area abound!







Lastly, as promised, here's an all-new look at the all-new Gobbledew species! We announced this one when the Kickstarter was still running, and it was named by the backers - and we're really happy with how they're taking shape. We've taken inspiration from Greek and Egyptian culture for their look and feel - but they still go crazy when in combat. This is the high-poly version (before texturing etc) - feedback is welcome!







Soon we'll have a few big things to announce. One of them is the long-awaited update on the Human player species. We've been working tirelessly to make something unique out of the Human race, to make them as interesting as the other species. The player character is looked at the most, so we're hoping it's good. We're gonna need some feedback on that soon!