https://chepegagamedev.com/2024/07/15/levels-in-disguise/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/screenshot_20240715_150151_pokmongo2495259882253949772.jpgscreenshot_20240715_150151_pokmon go2495259882253949772.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/screenshot_20240714_233611_firefox3706420788620100363.jpgscreenshot_20240714_233611_firefox3706420788620100363https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/screenshot_20240714_230947_fireemblemheroes8165758997613598983.jpgscreenshot_20240714_230947_fire emblem heroes8165758997613598983.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/downloadfile288298607449997180704748.jpgdownloadfile(8)8607449997180704748https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/screenshot_20240714_225649_fireemblemheroes8206411761739250746-1.jpgscreenshot_20240714_225649_fire emblem heroes8206411761739250746.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/screenshot_20240714_225649_fireemblemheroes8206411761739250746.jpgscreenshot_20240714_225649_fire emblem heroes8206411761739250746.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/screenshot_20240714_225649_fireemblemheroes3617547887228917118.jpgscreenshot_20240714_225649_fire emblem heroes3617547887228917118.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/screenshot_20240715_150151_pokmongo5666793956142988383.jpgscreenshot_20240715_150151_pokmon go5666793956142988383.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/screenshot_20240714_230148_fireemblemheroes817953428735329004.jpgscreenshot_20240714_230148_fire emblem heroes817953428735329004.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/screenshot_20240714_233507_firefox1110257748451139407.jpgscreenshot_20240714_233507_firefox11102577484511394072024-07-16T02:56:30+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2024/06/25/anti-user-interface/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/hostiledesign_moment3.jpgHostileDesign_Moment(3)https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/hostiledesign_moment2.jpgHostileDesign_Moment(2)https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/bafkreibvcfy4rcum7dhnn7z7mvrclkd3kwfpr2k3phfabhh5hbkethl7oq.jpgbafkreibvcfy4rcum7dhnn7z7mvrclkd3kwfpr2k3phfabhh5hbkethl7oq2024-06-25T21:06:11+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2024/05/31/may-2024-roundup/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image_editor_output_image-362859938-17172128677779167703116041542682.pngimage_editor_output_image-362859938-17172128677779167703116041542682https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/20240528_163341.jpg20240528_1633412024-06-01T03:51:10+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2024/05/07/i-like-big-lasers/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_kojax1o8vm.gifgodot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_kojax1o8vmhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_iletxtrgvz.pnggodot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_iletxtrgvzhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_b8ugx7g5vn-1.pngGodot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_b8uGx7g5VNhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_b8ugx7g5vn.pnggodot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_b8ugx7g5vnhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/monolithic_laser.jpgmonolithic_laserhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/diagram.jpgdiagramhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_kwyarijc07_moment.jpgGodot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_KWYARijc07_Moment2024-05-07T18:01:46+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2024/04/29/the-rts-essay/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/firefox_7taxpfon0m.jpgfirefox_7taxpfon0mhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/firefox_wfcjpbayyu.jpgfirefox_wfcjPBayYuhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/20240206003505_1.jpg20240206003505_1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/20240206003529_1.jpg20240206003529_1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/20240206003617_1.jpg20240206003617_1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/war_of_nerves_-_1979_-_magnavox.jpgwar_of_nerves_-_1979_-_magnavoxhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/armada.jpgarmadahttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/herzogzwei-cover.pngHerzogZwei-Coverhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/md_herzog_zwei.pngMD_Herzog_Zweihttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/south_eastern_pacific_species_of_petrolisthes_allopetrolisthes_and_liopetrolisthes_porcellanidae.jpgSouth_eastern_Pacific_species_of_Petrolisthes,_Allopetrolisthes,_and_Liopetrolisthes_(Porcellanidae)2024-04-29T14:24:09+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2024/04/08/the-juggling-act/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/20240401205729_1.jpg20240401205729_1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/20240326233017_1.jpg20240326233017_1My friend and I spent several minutes discussing why this bird was here. Then it shat out an emerald and flew away. That has nothing to do with this blog. It's just weird.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/20240404213617_1.jpg20240404213617_1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/20240404213617_1.jpg20240404213617_1And friends. Those help, too.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/trello_plans.pngTrello_PlansIgnore the mention of helmets.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/20240402_162427.jpg20240402_162427Sometimes the entire driveway turns into a pond when you aren't looking. This is not related to game development.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/image.pngimagehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_gmfhb9tijm.pnggodot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_gmfhb9tijmhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/whoops.pngwhoopshttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_gmfhb9tijm.pngGodot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_gMFHB9TijM2024-04-08T22:03:59+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2024/03/02/card-souls-an-essay-on-mechanical-flavor/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/20240303155710_1.jpg20240303155710_1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/20240227165427_1-1.jpg20240227165427_1-1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/screenshot_20240303_143901_tower-of-winter.jpgscreenshot_20240303_143901_tower-of-winterhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/screenshot_20231212_122140_tower-of-winter.jpgscreenshot_20231212_122140_tower-of-winterhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/screenshot_20230804_111451_tower-of-winter.jpgscreenshot_20230804_111451_tower-of-winterhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/ability_0202_p1.jpgability_0202_P1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/image-2.pngimage-2https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/image-1.pngimage-1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/image.pngimagehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/jhin_originalcentered.webpjhin_originalcentered2024-03-03T22:17:37+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2024/02/15/tasks-temptations/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image-13.pngimage-13https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image-12.pngimage-12https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image-11.pngimage-11https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image-10.pngimage-10https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image-9.pngimage-9https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image-8.pngimage-8https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image-7.pngimage-7https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/unnamed_file_from_www.playsuckup.com_.png.pngunnamed_file_from_www.playsuckup.com_.pnghttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image-6.pngimage-6https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/image-5.pngimage-52024-02-15T16:48:28+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2024/01/22/the-four-horsemen-of-the-emailpocalypse/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/spamthumbnail.jpgSpamThumbnailhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/reportnotspam.pngReportNotSpamhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/emma.pngemmahttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/image-2.pngimage-2So... that's the sales pitch?https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/image-1.pngimage-1[Insert Red Herring Joke Here]https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/clippy.webpclippyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/ciri.jpgcirihttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/kriss_scott.pngkriss_scotthttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/elizabeth-kimberly.pngelizabeth-kimberlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/stephanie.pngstephanie2024-01-22T18:12:27+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2024/01/14/welcome-back-gamedevs/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/20240102_161204.jpg20240102_161204https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/image.pngimagehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/20240102_143724.jpgMontreal_20232024-01-14T20:52:32+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/12/31/progress-complete/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image-4.pngimage-4https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/0f7e3a23-106c-4ed3-9b3d-1706a76542c0.png0f7e3a23-106c-4ed3-9b3d-1706a76542c0https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image_editor_output_image-974708466-17040728574724345079068887235374.jpgimage_editor_output_image-974708466-17040728574724345079068887235374https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image_editor_output_image-974708466-17040718142257934511998645800001.jpgimage_editor_output_image-974708466-17040718142257934511998645800001https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/20231221_1221356496878741489124054.jpg20231221_1221356496878741489124054https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/20231221_1221351518858395979598904.jpg20231221_1221351518858395979598904https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image8870165167154307182.pngimage8870165167154307182https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/screenshot_20231228_160336_firefox8325304163151200232.jpgscreenshot_20231228_160336_firefox8325304163151200232https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/hiwmy2159799598696265456.pnghiwmy2159799598696265456https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/doorways9loadscreen_moment.jpgdoorways9loadscreen_moment2024-01-01T04:42:40+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/12/24/and-now-a-brief-holiday-message/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/ayannasxmas2023_moment2.jpgAyannasXmas2023_Moment(2)2023-12-24T06:49:32+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/12/17/rollover-an-unnecessary-micro-thesis-on-dice-rolling/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/firefox_twzw6gqcdd.pngfirefox_twzw6gqcddhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/qfnqqxwbrbitso0yaqct_nzvkkl7hguycrej7.webpqfnqqxwbrbitso0yaqct_nzvkkl7hguycrej7https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image-3.pngimage-3https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/sno_dice.jpgSno_dicehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/judgementsgreatcoat.pngjudgementsgreatcoathttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image-2.pngimage-2https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/monopoly_mariokart.jpgMonopoly_MarioKarthttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/20231214_164009.jpg20231214_164009https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/monopoly.jpgmonopolyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/image-1.pngimage-12023-12-28T11:42:54+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/blog/2023-12-16T01:56:36+00:00weekly0.6https://chepegagamedev.com/2023/12/04/knock-knock/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/knock_knock.pngKnock_Knock2023-12-04T14:41:32+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/projects/projects-monolithic/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_17.jpgMonolithicGallery_17I personally spent much of my time during the extended development period focused on things that affected the quality of the user experience. One of the problems that had frequently come up during our initial QA testing was an issue with communication. While we had UI in place for most parts of the game, players still had issues at times telling what was going on in-game - especially when it came to the abilities at their disposal. I worked with artists and designers to iterate on our UI, and to collect more feedback from players. Ultimately I found that simpler was better, in terms of reducing our learning curve, and cut down on the number of individual actions that the player had to deal with at any given time. There was enough complexity to the game in juggling multiple units and cities, and having less options in the UI made the player's options more easily understandable.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_4b.pngMonolithicGallery_4BThe idea at this stage was to keep rules clear and simple-to-learn - while creating gameplay that would capture what we wanted for a digital version. If it took more than a page to explain how to preform a turn, that was too much.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_4a.pngMonolithicGallery_4AI wrote up some of my test rulesets in pamphlet form, to be handed out to fellow students for testing. https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_3_notransparency.jpgMonolithicGallery_3_NoTransparencyI was not the one who came up with the premise of the game, but was tasked with figuring out the direction we wanted to take. I started out by breaking down the ideas we had into the experiences associated with them, and determining which ones would make a good game. I decided on three main pillars to guide our development: Control & Strategy, A Power Fantasy, and Narrative Through Gameplay. This laid the foundation for what the game would be about: using gods to build a civilization, war with others, and see how long you can last.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_16.jpgMonolithicGallery_16One of the final design iterations I made was a change to our endgame mechanics. In early versions of the demo, the endgame had suffered from a lack of development time, and added an unwanted random element to the game. In the final steam release, I changed it to a system that saw cities collapse in order of size - and added a great deal more visual flair to make it clear exactly what was going on. From that point It was a matter of visuals and polish. Monolithic was released on Steam in December of 2020.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_15.jpgMonolithicGallery_15After jumping from a team of five to a team of thirteen, my role as designer shifted to be a bit more directorial. I already had an idea for the direction to take the game, but the details of additional content were something I worked on collaboratively, with artists, programmers, and other designers. Early meetings focused on establishing the scope of our work - what resources we had, and what design changes we wanted to make, based on feedback from the demo. We opted to focus mainly on expanding content within the systems we had, and working on refining our user experience. https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_14.jpgMonolithicGallery_14After our 2020 graduation from Champlain College, we continued working on monolithic with a team of six (later seven) people, with a goal of preparing the game for a proper steam release. I did a bit of everything during this stage, but on the design front, the biggest thing I had to address was the matter of pacing and balance. We had an issue with our final-semester version of Monolithic being too swing-heavy, with objective points being too frail, and changing hands constantly into the late game. It was an issue clearly detracting from our intended fantasy (empire-building) but wasn't the sort of problem we had the time to address under a student schedule. As our artists were making further changes to UI anyway, I took the opportunity to implement a system of city defenses - which let players decide between investing their resources in protecting cities and generating attacking troops. The system went from testing to a final version relatively quickly, and we felt it improved the flow of the game, without over-complicating things, as previous resource systems had.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_13.webpMonolithicGallery_13Our game was ultimately approved for continued development, and went forward with an expanded team. The game was showcased at Champlain College's 2020 Senior Show.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_12.webpMonolithicGallery_12Towards the end of our work on the demo, I spent time working on pulling everything together, on the UI, UX, and balance fronts. At the time I was probably the most experienced person on the team with Unity's post processing and vfx, having had to do some research into HDRP the year prior. As part of debugging some ability effects and game timer things, I decided to go all-in and figure out a way to properly do the end-of-times sequence. I did most of the code setup for darkening the sky, having cities burst into flames one-by-one across the map, and making the game snuff out cities. A lot of work on presentation.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/monolithicgallery_11.webpMonolithicGallery_11Towards the end of our last semester, I was in charge of accessibility and tutorialization features. I worked with our artists to plan and implement our UI and in-game instructions. I also did a fair bit of bug-fixing and scripting work on the abilities. Primarily it was in the context of making pre-existing abilities feel good, and sync up correctly with their VFX. But I did a good portion of the gameplay scripts on my own as well.2023-12-03T21:01:39+00:00weekly0.6https://chepegagamedev.com/projects/fiasco-restoration-repair/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/fiascogallery_14.pngFiascoGallery_14Designing objectives for Fiasco was a balancing act between encouraging creativity and ensuring that art was actually being restored. The obvious way to compare the player's work to the original art would have been pixel-by-pixel comparisons - measuring the colors of the player's painting against the original. However, on top of being a bit too rigid of a measurement system for the goofy game I was trying to make, that sort of method also came with a number of pitfalls as far as UX. How would you, account for something like the effects of game lighting on a paint color? Or the inaccuracy of using render texture blits to recreate work done with physical media? The solution I came up with was to break up measurements into chunks, which more closely aligned with the way the player would be approaching the painting. Rather than going through every pixel, we would instead check for "a blob in the shape of a face", "a dark shape roughly where a coat should be", and so on.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/fiascogallery_12-791460813-e1680448374897.jpgFiascoGallery_12Objective systems underwent several major iterations, as we looked at different ways of breaking down paintings for scoring - as well as technical methods of accomplishing what we wanted to do. I scripted most of the prototypes for these iterations - including early methods of letting players attach objects to a painting, collage-style.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/fiascogallery_12.pngFiascoGallery_12I worked with the rest of the team to come up with ideas for tools that would cover a variety of different use-cases. I started with actual artist's tools (brushes, paints, etc.) to stick to the functional basics of the "artistic" process, and to keep things simple while working on early iterations. Once I had the gameplay fundamentals nailed down, I moved on to making more unorthodox ways of decorating the painting - the sorts of tools that really had no business being anywhere near a painting. One of the big questions concerning tools was how to encourage players to use the weird things I was putting in front of them. We had a bunch of tools that were very entertaining to use - but, by design, a bit unwieldy. How to encourage players to use them, rather than sticking to the more traditional ways of painting? The solution I came up with was a combination of objectives and time constraints. Most of the actual art implements were accurate, but small - meaning players would have to use some of the sillier stuff to get the job done in time.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/fiascogallery_11.pngFiascoGallery_11I iterated on UI designs throughout development, and did most of the scripting work myself. In early iterations of the UI, I largely stuck to blockouts - with a few pieces of functioning UI, surrounded in non-functional versions of all the information I was considering for display. Through gameplay testing, I developed a better concept of what was and was not needed - and pared down the designs accordingly as I implemented them.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/fiascogallery_10.jpgFiascoGallery_10UI, UX, and communication were among my biggest responsibilities as a designer, and were things I had to consider as I worked on every other part of Fiasco. The HUD, menus, and objective displays all started out in basic form - introduced as early as the prototypes for the systems associated with them - and were expanded upon throughout development, to meet the needs of our gameplay. All UI/UX features were documented and updated throughout the project, for artists' reference.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/fiascogallery_9.pngFiascoGallery_9In addition to the regular dev work, I did a fair bit of the work involved in setting up for Fiasco's Kickstarter campaigns, and - after we made the decision to end the project - the setup on the final release. https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/fiascogallery_8.pngFiascoGallery_8As paints were an important element of Fiasco's gameplay, I ended up doing a lot of work on rendering liquids - creating and testing shaders that could display blendable materials with many different qualities. The decision to allow players to freely mix together substances made liquid rendering one of the bigger technical challenges we faced on this project. While there was some consideration to having tools or paints with fixed colors - to save on programming time - we found that mixing stuff together was one of the more satisfying gameplay elements from our testing, and one we wanted to keep. I was responsible for working with our programmer to establish what sorts of features we would need for our paints, and how we would need players to be able to interact with them.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/fiascogallery_7.pngFiascoGallery_7https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/fiascogallery_6.pngFiascoGallery_6Paints, materials, and visuals were an important part of Fiasco's gameplayhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/fiascogallery_5.5.pngFiascoGallery_5The level design on Fiasco was intentionally straightforward. Going into the project, I knew we would want a relatively small environment, with just enough space for some variation from level to level. For the type of game I was making, I wanted the player to have to do some searching, and to spend time getting their supplies together - but I didn't want them to spend too long running back and forth down corridors. Everything that the player needed would have be close to the painting, but placed in a way that would see them fumbling around for what they needed. When it came to the actual layout of the the garage, I started with major fixtures - the painting, cabinets, shelves, etc. - that the player would be rifling through. I looked at a couple real life garages and work-sheds for loose inspiration, and opted for an L-shape with an attached living space - a relatively open plan that would be a bit more interesting to move around than a rectangle.2023-12-03T20:47:24+00:00weekly0.6https://chepegagamedev.com/projects/doorways-9/2023-12-03T18:51:33+00:00weekly0.6https://chepegagamedev.com/2023/12/02/this-is-not-a-visual-novel/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2023-11-26-19-59-06_moment.jpg2023-11-26 19-59-06_Momenthttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/dw9_sequencenodeinspector.pngdw9_sequencenodeinspectorhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/dw9_textsequence.pngdw9_textsequencehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/dw9_moveto.pngdw9_movetohttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/dw9_changeeye.pngdw9_changeeyehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/dw9_sequentialelement.pngdw9_sequentialelementhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/dw9_nodesequenceexample.pngdw9_nodesequenceexamplehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/slug_codesample.pngslug_codesamplehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/dw9_dialoguebase.pngDW9_DialogueBasehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/dw9_dialogueline.pngdw9_dialogueline2023-12-02T23:11:05+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/11/12/looks-can-kill/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/image.pngimagehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/applicationframehost_djzmnat8oh.gifapplicationframehost_djzmnat8ohhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/2023-11-12-16-48-42_trim_moment.jpg2023-11-12 16-48-42_Trim_Momenthttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/2023-11-12-16-48-42_trim_moment-2.jpg2023-11-12 16-48-42_Trim_Moment (2)2023-11-13T04:23:55+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/10/28/teaching-an-eyeball-to-be-petty/2023-10-28T22:56:12+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/about/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/20220921_1634511-1.jpg20220921_1634511-1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/20220921_1634511.jpg20220921_163451(1)2023-10-23T02:35:06+00:00weekly0.6https://chepegagamedev.com/2023/10/22/im-sensing-a-theme-here/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/image-4.pngimage-4https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/hazymind_fssqzhwye1.pnghazymind_fssqzhwye1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_2fvx7lmlgd.pnggodot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_2fvx7lmlgdhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/image-3.pngItemList_GitHub_2https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/image-2.pngItemList_Github_1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/image-1.pngimage-1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_lpbzsdogtc.pngDW9_Hitbox_Test_2https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_zfeeini59r.pngDW9_Hitbox_Test_1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-10-21-18-54-11_trim_moment.jpg2023-10-21_ThemeTest12023-10-22T21:30:55+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/10/16/the-event-horizon-of-a-rabbit-hole/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/image.pngimagehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/languagepopup.jpglanguagepopuphttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-10-13-18-07-52_moment2-1.jpg2023-10-13-18-07-52_moment2-1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-10-13-18-07-52_moment2.jpg2023-10-13-18-07-52_moment2https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/iwillnot.pngiwillnothttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/82nenr.jpgADHD_ANXIETY_HandshakeHe's bad at managing tasks. She hates doing things, generally. Together, they are: The Worst.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/2023-10-13-19-25-06_trim_moment.jpgDoorways_9_GameOver2023-10-16T04:03:46+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/10/07/roll-for-investigation/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/firefox_bm9wlci6r8.jpgfirefox_bm9wlci6R82023-10-07T20:47:46+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/09/30/the-godot-micro-update/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/itch_soon_tm.pngitch_soon_tmhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/firefox_3v1cfeggyd.pngfirefox_3v1cfeGgyD2023-09-30T23:49:26+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/09/28/the-eyeball-speaks-to-me/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/screenshot-2023-09-28-145611-2.pngScreenshot 2023-09-28 145611 22023-09-28T21:50:12+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/09/20/things-are-godot-ing-well/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_lrwmspfu0o.gifDon't Give Anyone Your DataAll normal here.2023-09-20T04:25:46+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/09/13/so-godot/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/inputtester2_moment2.jpginputtester2_moment2https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/inputtester2_moment3.jpginputtester2_moment3https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/ayanna_attacks_moment.jpgayanna_attacks_momenthttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/godot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_vfi5an5riy_moment.jpgGodot_v3.5.2-stable_mono_win64_vfi5aN5rIy_Moment2023-09-13T05:49:15+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/09/02/when-things-arent-quite-right/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/rbp_splashscreen.pngRBP_SplashScreenA splash screen was among one of several checkboxes demolished.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/heywaitaminute.pngHeyWaitAMinutehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/heywaitaminute2.pngHeyWaitAMinute22023-09-02T20:42:01+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/08/06/who-turned-out-the-dam-lights/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/rbp_shadertest2.pngRBP_ShaderTest2https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/rbp_shadertest1.pngRBP_ShaderTest1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/dr_canal.jpgOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAhttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/2023-08-05-20-00-41_moment.jpg2023-08-05 20-00-41_Moment2023-08-06T04:18:14+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/08/01/testing-facial-animations/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/2023-08-01-19-45-02_moment.jpg2023-08-01 19-45-02_Moment2023-08-02T00:48:16+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/07/29/launch-points-and-bigger-boats/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/riverboat_pachinko_pointsandtypes_moment-2-1.jpgRiverboat_Pachinko_PointsAndTypes_Moment (2)https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/riverboat_pachinko_pointsandtypes_moment-2.jpgRiverboat_Pachinko_PointsAndTypes_Moment (2)2023-07-30T01:56:08+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/07/26/renpy-and-the-steppe/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/pathoslug1.pngpathoSlug1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/content1.pngContent1https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/content2.pngContent2"I think it will be fairly easy" NO YOU FOOL DON'T SAY THAT NEVER SAY THAThttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/content3.pngContent3https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/content4.pngContent4The good news: the loading sequence is right now. The bad news: the loading sequence is right now.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/content5.pngContent5https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/content6.pngContent6I immediately fixed the color issue by breaking something else.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/content7.pngContent7https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/content8.pngContent8https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/content9.pngContent92023-07-27T00:19:14+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/07/10/this-vlog-took-me-5-days-a-riverboat-pachinko-update-video/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/hindsight.pngHindsight2023-07-10T15:13:16+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/06/25/levels-in-progress/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/riverboatpachinko_canal_3_preview.pngriverboatpachinko_canal_3_preview2023-06-26T00:15:49+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/05/07/a-sick-man-learns-renpy/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/7kx1eu.jpgItsThatSimpleI apologize for this meme. I'm still sick while making this.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/slugsim_test_image.jpgSlugSim_Test_Image2023-05-08T02:56:04+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/04/17/ultimatum/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/image.pngimagehttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/cardprogression.pngCardProgressionThe borderland patrol agent and conscripted spy both appear repeatedly. This was originally to signify card functionality, but ended up telling a little story about their respective journeys.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/main_build.pngMain_BuildThe UI setup for the final demo build of Ultimatum.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/ui_tests.pngUI_TestsGame UI tests. Some assets were in-game, most mock-ups.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/concept_current-1.pngConcept_CurrentSome revisions were made. Notably, I decided to take a cue from Go Fish, and leave all the cards face-up in the center of the table. Not that constantly passing five decks around wasn't fun or anything.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/systems_card_design.pngSystems_Card_DesignA sample of a card design. All cards were color-coded by the stage of the game they were introduced.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/systems_archetypes-2.pngSystems_Archetypeshttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/board.pngUltimatum_BoardThe play space for Ultimatum was constructed (in my head, at least) as an adversarial set of tower defense tracks. Players lay down buildings on the six slots on their side, units that will attack the opponent on those buildings.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/systems_archetypes-1.pngSystems_ArchetypesThere were several "archetypes" of cards in the game, which had similar functionalities and visual motifs. The more powerful versions were introduced as the game progressed.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/full_setup.pngFull_SetupA diagram assembled from the actual assets I made for the physical card game, depicting the gameplay of Ultimatum. Players would play base cards onto a slot on the grid, and then put units, weapons, etc. on top of them, face-down. The draw pile was passed back and forth between players each turn, so it was a game of figuring out what cards had gone missing, and where your opponent had placed them.2023-04-17T23:00:57+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/projects/projects-riverboat-pachinko/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/riverboatalphascreenshot-1.pngRiverboatAlphaScreenshothttps://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/riverboat_pachinko_test5_moment.jpgRiverboat_Pachinko_Test5_MomentWith later level design tests, I tried to stick closer to the format of a pachinko or pinball board - with wide spaces to bounce boats around in, but varied obstacles on the way. I also began thinking about levels in terms of progression, making some simpler designs to precede my initial level, and some more complex ones to follow. In the course of working on sequential levels, I also decided that I wanted to have stages be strung together physically - to have the player literally progressing downstream. To accommodate this, I developed a system that would load level segments sequentially, allowing me to load in different scenes at different times, and control what stage elements were active depending on where the player was.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/riverboat_pachinko_test4_moment.jpgRiverboat_Pachinko_Test4_MomentAs I started testing out level designs, I began working on systems to support the transitions between levels. Though I was still prototyping, I created a basic menu, input manager, and a level loading system, so that I would have the infrastructure in place to quickly add in new content.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/riverboat_pachinko_test4_moment2.jpgRiverboat_Pachinko_Test4_Moment(2)To get a feel for what I could do with my mechanics, I tried out several different types of level designs. I found that, in general, more "realistic" river designs and narrow passages looked nice, but ultimately left the player less room for the player to maneuver their little boat. Watching the boat bounce wildly around a level had been one of the original fun things I found in testing, and I didn't want to ruin it for the sake of level visuals. Going forward, I decided to find ways to make levels more interesting while keeping them more open.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/riverboat_pachinko_lakemouth1-fixed_moment.jpgRiverboat_Pachinko_LakeMouth1-FIXED_MomentUnity's terrain system was proving to be problematic for my design workflow - too rigid for the amount of changes I was making, and a bit tricky to get looking nice. I ended up switching to probuilder, to create simpler, low-poly terrain chunks that I could string together to create environments quicker. I also started using some assets by kenney (https://kenney.nl/) as placeholders, to get a feel for different types of boats, and to build out features of the environment.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/riverboat_pachinko_lakemouth1-fixed_moment2.jpgRiverboat_Pachinko_LakeMouth1-FIXED_Moment(2)With most of my core elements in place, I moved to plotting out level mechanics on a roadmap, and prototyping them. https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/canalitytest1_moment.jpgCanalityTest1_MomentDevelopment on Riverboat Pachinko started with a simple test of player perspectives and boat physics. In one night of work, I wanted to get a feel for the game idea I had in my head, and see if I could find something satisfying as far as boat movement goes. This testing was done with my original, management sim concept in mind. The boats being pulled downstream was originally sort of a stand-in for proper navigation - the idea being that the player would set up launch positions for ships at the start of the canal, and try to get them to their destinations. In the process of dropping the boats downriver, I was enjoying watching my ship careen off-course and bounce around wildly. That simple loop quickly supplanted the management idea, and was what lead me to seek inspiration from pachinko, pinball, and mini-golf. At one point while working on this, I edited together a clip of the boat bouncing around, adding impact noises, and calm music that came to a sudden halt when the boat first started spinning out. That edit was entertaining enough that it ended up acting as a rough draft for the game. A few days later I ended up integrating that sound system that did something similar in-engine.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/canality_test2_moment.jpgCanality_Test2_MomentOnce I'd chosen a direction, I began developing the core of the game. For my first set of iterations, I wanted to nail down my gameloop. I took the prototype I already had, and reworked it into something playable - with simple boat-launching controls, a harbor that the player had to get to, and a single obstacle in the form of a small island. The idea here was something akin to mini-golf, where the direct path between the player's start and finish was blocked - forcing them to use angles and bounces to complete the stage. Once I was satisfied with that, I gradually began expanding on the level design, to make something a bit more interesting. I started with a few "rocks" for additional challenge, positioned in the river like the pins of a pachinko board. I repeatedly tweaked their positioning to keep (roughly) the same level of difficulty, while making their placement in the river feel a bit more "organic". Finally, I added an overpass bridge, to break up the visual blandness of the map, and to create a slightly varied obstacle that obscured part of the path. A bit of texture and color to better communicate what was what, and I was satisfied enough to move on.https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/riverboatalphascreenshot.pngRiverboatAlphaScreenshot2023-04-12T00:37:57+00:00weekly0.6https://chepegagamedev.com/contact/2023-04-11T21:44:08+00:00weekly0.6https://chepegagamedev.com/2023/03/12/riverboat-pachinko-basics-of-a-lake/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/2023-03-11-23-25-46_trim_moment.jpg2023-03-11 23-25-46_Trim_MomentA very early test of the script setup and space of Riverboat Pachinko level 42023-03-12T05:02:46+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/projects/2023-03-09T17:55:31+00:00weekly0.6https://chepegagamedev.com/2023/02/11/226/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/loadingscreen.pngloadingscreen2023-03-09T16:59:59+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/03/04/lake-mouth-pinball/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image-1.pngRiverboatAlphaLv3https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/image.pngimage2023-03-05T02:37:59+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/02/12/224/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/hqdefault8.webphqdefault82023-03-01T03:16:25+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/02/12/225/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/hqdefault7.webphqdefault72023-03-01T03:11:54+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/02/06/227/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/hqdefault6.webphqdefault62023-03-01T03:06:27+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/01/29/continuing-adventures-in-riverboat-pachinko/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/hqdefault4.webphqdefault42023-03-01T01:50:56+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/01/28/boat-plinko-boat-plinko/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/hqdefault3.webphqdefault32023-03-01T01:50:50+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/01/27/adding-the-ui-before-the-controls/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/hqdefault2.webpCanal 22023-03-01T01:50:41+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/01/27/trying-something-out/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/hqdefault.webpCanal 12023-03-01T01:50:31+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/01/31/menus-resets-and-other-things/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/e999f249d7e2da2651d716894507ebde1.gife999f249d7e2da2651d716894507ebde(1)2023-03-01T01:49:26+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.com/2023/02/02/riverboat-fun-times-continue/https://chepegagamedev.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/hqdefault5.webphqdefault52023-03-01T01:49:26+00:00monthlyhttps://chepegagamedev.comdaily1.02024-07-16T02:56:30+00:00