you do an amazing things in it, when do you think the demo will be out to play?
you might be one of the most uniques game created in MV like that, but I also seen
some very unique battle mechanic, so there is alot possible when you know javascript
or use the right plugins to create something unique.
MV - And Remember Tomorrow [Surrealistic][Action][RPG]
● ARCHIVED · READ-ONLY
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Thanks! I definitely strive to be as unique as possible, for better or worse. This engine truly is capable of some amazing things once you get under the hood with PIXI and JS. :LZSexcite:
As for releasing a demo, originally the demo was supposed to be out around er... well now. Or at least a prototype. But it's taken so long to make my world creator not slowly overload processors, even now if you stay on the same map for 7-8 minutes it will start to slow down. But without it's rendering system "protecting" the user's computer, it will instantly use 100% processing (I've got a Ryzen 7 2700x to give you an idea) because these maps aren't normally possible. But with it running, usage typically doesn't spike to above 20-30% (on a single core). So now that is finally relatively stable...
I'm a couple of months behind my time table, but I didn't want to design a game loop and have it be impossible to implement. So what's between me and releasing a demo is implementing said gameplay loop, and the writing the story. Aside from that, there's some debugging to do, and enemy "AI" to work on. I'm hoping a couple of months for the demo. I might be able to get it done faster depending on real world stuff.
Also depending on how long that takes, I had a prologue chapter I was going to make... But I will cut that if it looks like it will simply take too long. It's not absolutely necessary, and would require a lot to implement. :kaoswt: -
well, it is worth the wait, if you have a prototype, let us know, story can always be implented,
but we can give feedback as well.
another game I playtest before public stops updates and push alot of things directly,
so we need to wait a while before that release come, and the game is nice, so it's
worth the wait :)
so take your timee :) -
I'm also interested in giving feedback!well, it is worth the wait, if you have a prototype, let us know, story can always be implented,
but we can give feedback as well.
another game I playtest before public stops updates and push alot of things directly,
so we need to wait a while before that release come, and the game is nice, so it's
worth the wait :)
so take your timee :) -
I realize it's been almost a month since I updated stuff. Much has changed... The game now uses a 1920x1080 resolution. Maps are now much more solid. Maps have depth now, and colliders for everything. Also working on a boss fight...
I've created a new ability, which is used extensively in the boss fight. Quaintly dubbed "Comet mode". You'll notice I've updated the amount of particles used to well.. Stupid levels because why not? :LZSwink:
Going to update some character models, and create a progression system now that I have a better idea how I want combat to go. Also I'll almost certainly tone down the difficulty of this fight. I've just tested it so many times, that I made it harder intentionally for the video. Basically sparkly "Dark Souls" just for me. :LZSexcite: -
Cool but no my taste. I prefer the simpler FF-style RPGs ^<^
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@Nectar Fair enough, I definitely figured it wouldn't be to everybody's tastes. Thanks for taking a look just the same. :LZSexcite:
And to everybody else, I've been working on my randomly generated space maps. Should make the previous fight way more interesting. Also er... my Dev Room (pictured here) is kind of like an awkward space screensaver now with all the shifting gases, asteroids and stuff.
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Alright, so in the last 12 days I've created lots of graphics for space. Updated the Boss's particles/graphics... And created a "dark" form (these aren't their final names just dev names). Where as the "light" form powers up Comet mode (the invincible sparkly light ball). Dark mode as a gravity well pulling the mobs to the player, while also providing a damage absorbing shield. A simple touch of a button changes the forms (though I may put a cooldown in to make things more interesting).
Other forms will be added, of course the player's only going to default with the light form, the others will be unlocked as the game progresses. I don't want to overwhelm the player, and I really need to devise a better interface for when there's more forms to avoid that.
Also don't worry about how everything does 1 damage at the moment. I simply haven't put in any kind of meaningful progression yet. Nor have I really bothered with improving the Interface since I keep adding/changing stuff. I'll get to that later.
Still stuff is progressing nicely. I've also done a huge amount of work improving the light plugin so the game has almost no slowdown and runs at 58-60FPS at all times. Except a 20 frame drop for 1-2 second when a new map is made. But you see that happen a lot of times in the video, so as you can see it's not really that noticeable.
Also recently I shifted a bit where the game starts. I wasn't actually going to make this "first chapter" because I was concerned I wouldn't be able to pull it off. But you know what? Then I made a whole lot of graphics for space, I loved how they looked, so I guess it's back on the menu. :LZSwink: -
So I've been testing disintegrating a map from left to right over about a minute and thirty seconds. And giving the player that long to drag stuff to a portal on the opposite side they'd like to keep, along with accomplishing any side objectives.
They can of course permanently abandon the map at any time, as no two maps are ever exactly the same. I may or may not allow them the option to replay objectives... Even if the map layout will be different. Maybe not though as I kind of like the finality of it. Though if the player dies, they'll get to retry of course.
Also what's disintegrating the map hurts the player if it hits them... So if they stay too long, they'll of course die a horrible death.
Of course there's no visible timer, I think the world disintegrating behind you is enough of an indicator that you should probably go fast, and er... not in that direction. Definitely doing a very "Half Minute Hero" vibe here, since well... I have infinite maps, might as well take advantage of that.
I've been spending so much time optimizing stuff lately (especially the lighting plugin) and creating a system to disintegrate the map. But some potential ideas I'm going to test are....
1. Power ups/treasures/important items that can be dragged to the portal to keep them.
2. Devices that when activated either slow, or temporarily push back the maps disintegration.
3. Safe hub maps for story and/or status stuff.
4. Potentially stuff that if rescued upgrades future maps, such as making new stuff spawn on them.
5. Possibly a boss/mini boss who blocks the portal and must be defeated before escape is possible.
Anyway these are just my current thoughts.... No idea exactly what will make it to the final game. Most of the time it's whatever I end up testing and it plays out well. But since it's been over a month since I last added to the thread, I figured I'd update people. :LZSwink: -
This is gorgeous IVillain.
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Thanks! Since I'm responsible for a lot of the graphics, it's always great to hear people like them. :LZSexcite:
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I already posted these in my profile posts, but I guess I should post these here too what with them being for the game and all. :LZSwink:
Map Stuff
So I've begun working on area maps, that allow the player to enter specific levels through the landmarks for story and mirrors for combat areas. This map is not randomized except for the space portion below the map which is randomized every time. Also the lights are currently randomized, though I might actually fix those for these area maps to maximize the looks.
The maps are already using pixel hit detection, so if it looks solid it is. I'm going to add flourishes/animations for each location when the player is nearby. Along with wobbling text appearing above it to say what it is (like in some of my previous videos). Also my working version also reduces the character's size for the area maps, so Lumina (the character running around) will be smaller on the area map than pictured.
On a side note, combat maps have been improved to make the randomized placement of important objects not appear on top things they shouldn't. So less enemies looking helplessly at you due to being unable to move. :LZSwink:
Story Stuff
This particular map will also represent chapter 1, which is the intended demo section of the game. The intention is 7 chapters, though I may or may not adjust that number if I decide I want to add/remove stuff. So that number is tentative. Tentative chapter names are Dying Light, From Darkness, Into the Nightmare, Denial, Sanity's End, House of Madness, and Corrupted Light.
I've also started a World Anvil to sort my notes, work on story, and eventually just have a place besides this thread to showcase game stuff. Links to that will be added once I've gotten it into a reasonable shape.
State of the Demo
In order to release a demo I need to finish the following....
1. Dialogue for the first chapter.
2. Area maps for the story locations.
3. Boss animations
4. Combat Interface
5. Solidify a progression system.
I've got some ideas on how I want the progression system to be. But it needs some serious balancing... I'm leaning towards a more meaningful progression system and less just "Lolz bigger numbers" which I honestly find to be very boring.
Anyway more to come... I'll also try and remember to post new stuff here more often. I swear my profile posts is a better thread for this game than the actual game's thread is. :kaoswt: -
if you need a story locations for the demo state, how will it be
done if 2 maps are never the same?
Anyway, looking forward to the demo, just wanna see things in action already ^^
keep up the nice work. -
I've been finding a real problem in the nature of random maps. It's very hard to tell a meaningful story when you have no idea what the scenery will be. I've experimented with giving the NPCs behavior patterns to deal with objects that I won't know their placement in advance, and even unique structures that spawn in.
It works, but it leads to an ironic problem. Though the maps are random, they start to feel the same after awhile because none of them are overwhelmingly unique. They still share similar characteristics, which is fine when you're racing around them fighting, as it's essentially just rearranged obstacles. But when you compare those maps against the ones I've added here to this post... You can really see how maps like this serve to better tell a story.
The other problem is that the gameplay is simply too fast. If you're used to a level with roughly a minute and thirty seconds to beat it, but then you suddenly encounter a similar looking area where you have infinite time, it just makes for weird gameplay.
Anyway the new plan is randomize the combat areas, but to create actual story maps. Which should solve a lot of problems I was having, and hopefully the speed the process of actually releasing something. Which I really want to do ASAP even if it's just a prototype.
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Here's the early work in progress video for the chapter 1 world map and a few story areas. A lot's still up in the air, as this is a pretty recent direction for the game. Still it's kind of cool to see it with the dynamic lighting and sound effects. Plus as an added bonus I've included Lumina's run effect now that's she entirely a particle. :LZSexcite:
Also in the works, I've created a mini map system to track everything on the randomized maps in real time. And created a health bar that's the character's image disintegrating as she's damaged, and a shooting star behind her that disintegrates as she runs out of whatever power is in use at the time.
Aside from that, next week I should have a video for the gameplay of a level, which is quite different than the boss fight previously shown. -
Since last I posted in this thread...
1. I remade the game in MZ so the graphics are cooler. Performance.. well... Make no mistake you'll need at least some kind of graphics card to play this game barring future optimizations. I get 60FPS with a GTX 1060, however it only spikes to 60-70% usage (usually sits at around 30-40%) so a lesser card would likely work. That being said I've done a lot of optimizations since the last video, so I'm pretty confident I can lower those requirements.
2. I've made all the maps in the video. My plan to tell most of the story via specially made maps continues. People seem to like them far better than the randomly generated ones anyway. I'll be using the randomly generated ones for combat as the story maps are far too small to house such fast paced combat. I do have an idea how I can pause an area to do story in the randomly generated maps... But we'll see how that plays out.
3. I've got a menu system that basically builds a map on top of the action, while stopping everything and preventing interaction with the field. I'm still working out the kinks and trying to figure out exactly what kinds of information it should have. More on this later, but so far it looks pretty sweet.
4. I've finally settled on how I want the story to go. Not going to lie, I've had three variations bouncing around in my head this whole time. That's part of why I deleted the original synopsis, since I was no longer sure I wanted the story to go that way. The deciding factor has largely been whichever way the art takes me. So now that I know, I'll make a new one to reflect the actual story. -
Well this *might* not be the taste my tastebuds were drilled to appreciate, but contrary to some *cough* @Nectar *cough*, I'm pretty open-minded and not afraid to give it a try. In fact, what you've come up with here @ImaginaryVillain is so extraordinary and unlike anything else I've seen made in RPG Maker, it got me salivating like a starved puppy! I'm anxious to see more, and especially curious to hear more about the story and the gameplay.
There's actually an area I was working on nicknamed "The House of Madness"... Which was probably the most spectacular map to watch in action... But almost certainly needs a warning label. The basic premise was two maps trying to form on top of each other, and it just swapped back and forth.
Man, this idea is just too brilliant, story-wise, to scratch! Please make it work somehow. I think the sole concept of two maps fighting for domination is already a winner here, a special area like that could add to the story and provide some new challenges and opportunities for the player's character.
From what I understand, it's much heavier on the eyes than the rest of the game, so in that case maybe making the animation slower and experimenting with the saturation and brightness could do the trick for the players who (like me) have low tolerance for bright, oversaturated colours and patterns, and rapidly changing animations.
That said, I volunteer to be your guinea pig for The House of Madness if you'll need one. I really hope you'll make it work.
Good luck, keep the wheels turning! -
Thanks! :LZSexcite: You know I should probably really update this thread more....
About the mapAnyway, It's funny you pointed out that particular post. At the time the map would just shift between the two forms back and forth like it was fighting. Basically it would just suddenly shift to one or the other as an entire map. So the image you see is just an edit of the two because it was never half and half just one or the other....
HOWEVER...
It became the inspiration for the actual gameplay of the game. In the randomly generated areas between the story maps (I like to call them "The Space Between"), you are being chased by "The Nihil" which is a massive force that disintegrates the map from one side to another.
In later chapters, the Nihil will actually convert the map over to another map. Thus actually creating the warring map effect from so long ago when I made that post. Only very real and less jarring than just completely shifting the map back and forth.
This system already exists and works... I'm just refining a lot of other stuff to make it all look good before showcasing it too much.
GameplayThis is currently divided into two categories...
1. Stuff that's for sure in...
The player runs around creating a set of paths they're running around on. These paths serve as both a weapon and a means of pulling items. Enemies that touch them cause the path to explode and damage the enemy. If an item is near the path it will follow it as long as paths are close enough to the item.
Combat levels or "The Space Between" are the randomly generated areas being chased by the Nihil. Maps disintegrate from one side the other as the Nihil essentially eats them. You however have a NPC you're protecting (I'm still not 100% certain on her name due to a critical story decision I need to make), that NPC can rewind time if you bring her the right item (for testing it's a hourglass). You can also drag her around using your paths. And if she dies, you also die so keeping her from getting disintegrated by the Nihil is paramount.
These levels have a singular goal... Story levels have been shattered into puzzle pieces. You must collect them to rebuild the level. If you and bring them there, that level comes to life and you can interact with it.
Puzzle pieces are captured and dragged with the paths, if you can get a puzzle piece to the exit and toss it in, then it appears in the menu as saved, slowly building the picture of the story area in question. If however the Nihil eats it, you must rewind time or abandon the level to try again.
Also available are assorted temporary power ups that increase the number of paths you can have at any one time. Though these don't have to be dragged, they simply are picked up.
There is also another mechanic, your character has different "forms" let's just say "Magical Girl Transformations" because the comparison is going to be there anyway. The first form also known as the "Light" form... Lets you temporarily turn into a super fast invincible ball of damaging light. It ignores all obstacles and can be controlled.
"Dark" form has a gravity effect pulling beneficial stuff to you. Other forms are still in the works, the system is already in place to switch them at will.
2. Stuff that is currently being tested but might not make it...
*There are supposed to be 6 different forms... One for each chapter and the starting one. They may simply be scrapped for magical powers instead of outright new forms. This mostly comes down to assets, if I can't make the forms look good then I'll just use particle effects and call it a day.
* A full world map? I've been throwing the ideas around. I have lots of maps, but there has to be compelling reasons to look at all of those maps. And it kind of feels like a different game, so it might get the axe for just a world map with locations.
* A stat system... I'm been going back and forth on this one for awhile. I admit I don't really want numbers all over the screen. But also as it's an action game, lots of stats don't even make much sense like Agility, Luck, etc. I may go a more simple Zelda style route, time will tell on this as it's very dependent on how exactly the rest of the gameplay pans out.
New Story Maps
StoryOh boy... I've been holding back on this a lot as I've had to scrap so much as it just didn't work with the gameplay. So the story's pretty loose at the moment with just major moments largely planned out. Here's what I can say though...
This game is a "dark Alice in Wonderland" style game. I'm still deciding the exact starting point of the story... However... the earliest part currently starts with a young woman running through the woods from a pursuer, (currently her name is Miranda but that might change). She falls down a chasm thus escaping her pursuer, but falls quite far and impacts the ground, knocking her unconscious.
Then she wakes up as someone else in "Wonderland"... (Which I'm currently calling "Omnia".)
There she must battle against the Nihil, the very real specter of her death if she fails to wake up, and the very real belief that she should just give in and die after what happened.
So to that end, the game is divided into five chapters, each mirroring a stage of dealing with grief... Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. The story of what happened is revealed as the player rebuilds the pieces of those memories and faces them.
Which is of course is where it gets it's title, "And Remember Tomorrow". Not only are you collecting the pieces of her memories, and then entering them... You're also doing so to wake up so there's actually a tomorrow for you.
I'll avoid much more about it for the moment, I need to make a couple critical decisions before revealing more as it will drastically change stuff.
About testing and demos..I fully expect "Denial" or chapter 1 to be the demo, a lot of it is being planned, but I'll be definitely post it here so people can give it a shot, along with Itch.io, and Steam (eventually). So everybody should get a chance to test it. Though I might have a smaller prototype demo available earlier just to get people's impressions/ideas on stuff. I don't have a great timeline for any of this though. Hoping to release this year, but it takes as long as it takes, all I'll promise is the demo is coming out sometime this year. So just keep an eye on the thread, or my YouTube.
edit: Updated the first post with all this info. -
Re: ABOUT THE MAP:
Great to hear it morphed into a gameplay idea! It sounds exciting, reminds me about the Nothingness from Neverending Story (which to this day I'm a big fan of).
Re: GAMEPLAY:
I like your gameplay ideas a lot. It sounds like you got most of it well thought out and are able to make it work, terrific.
Re: stat system: I'm also not a fan of the numbers popping out all over the screen. I've seen excessive use of 'right-in-ur-eyes' numbers in too many jRPGs and RPG Maker productions... often they are the developers' way to cover the lack of visual appeal or originality, just something that detracts from looking at the art. In your case, the art is so appealing and there's so many things going on at the screen, visually speaking, that the numbers would spoil and possibly dillute the experience (and let's not forget about those players with low tolerance for rapidly changing/flashing effects).
I know it's as you say an action game, but the story concept of these girls fighting against time and Nihil sounds strong and appealing, and throwing some stat numbers in player's face would kinda turn all this emotional potential into some kind of number-counting, math-like experience (which could be interesting but in a different game).
NEW MAPS: The cogs and all that animated machinery all around the player, turning - awesome.
THE STORY:
Much of what you wrote is close to my heart. It's probably hard to believe looking at my avatar picture but I'm also a fan of Alice in Wonderland (and some of its adaptations including A.McGee) since I've read it ages ago.Anyway, I dig the idea of the five 'mirroring' chapters. I'm a sucker for stories involving themes like these, so will be looking forward to see what it will evolve into, after you make all the critical decisions.a not-very-relevant side note(I even did a short alice-in-wonderland-ish game for the IGMC competition few years ago, A Girl Who Wore the Moon which also involves a girl finding herself in a weird, dreamlike world, I planned to turn it into a full game, made new assets and wrote most of the story which was in many ways similar/parallel to yours (but long story short, I had to put it on a backburner) -
Oh nice! A fellow Alice fan. I'm a sucker for variants of it, so I tend to watch/play all the ones I find. I'll have to check out what you've done.
Story StuffAmerican McGee's Alice and Alice Madness Returns are actually heavy inspirations for what I'm making. Or at least a lot of the visuals, as I'm not really going for that exact trauma. That's actually one of the critical decisions I have to make.
Sometime ago I wrote most of novel and I know what originally I wrote... However, it's honestly too gruesome to depict as I wrote it. But in working on this, I've kind of pivoted to a different trauma that I believe is better for purposes of what I'm making here.
But there is an overarching plot that I wish to follow with later games and that trauma messes with it. So it's a take the golden apple now versus saving it for later scenario. I will probably err in favor of the present game though as I'm an unknown, and other games for this story aren't certain if nobody likes this one.
Also the gameplay has unfortunately established a need for a character that wasn't there before. As I basically need two characters running around together. I'm going to need to get very creative for this character so they don't hurt the story of a young woman dealing with trauma, it's way too easy for the overall feel of the story to shift away from a personal journey to interpersonal interactions, which I'm trying to avoid.
About the second characterMy current front runner is to make Miranda split into two halves of herself, the one with the will to fight (who you play as) and the one who just wants to give up. Which plays off why bringing her the "hourglasses" buys more time as it represents you convincing her not to give up. It also explains why if she dies you also die, and why she has to be dragged away from the Nihil as she's not going to move to save herself.
I was considering representing her with a crying portrait (possibly with particle effects so she's actually crying). This also setups scenes with her basically convincing herself, and the occasional humorous scene where the Wonderland characters wonder why she's talking to a portrait. I'm a bit uncertain if the portrait would actually talk though... I'll have to see what plays out best.
GameplayYeah I honestly detest numbers everywhere. I've been experimenting various methods of hiding as many numbers as possible. Including stuff such as making the paths represent health, or even the power that's currently active so using that power destroys paths. But balancing it proved difficult at best, plus it made using the powers not very desirable.
I also experimented with the darkness closing in as the player lost health. However the gameplay's way too fast so limited visibility made it very difficult to play. Which wasn't really very fun.
I'm a big fan of show don't tell, even in gameplay so I'll keep experimenting. But at present it's basically a health bar and a secondary resource bar. With only the first boss "Denial" having a visible health bar.
Level/Boss DesignBoss:
Speaking of which Denial's mechanics have largely been decided. She refuses to admit what world she's in, so she constantly changes it to a different one. Very much like the "house of madness" idea. She also throws away visions of things because she doesn't want to see. As represent by her throwing away the eyes surrounding her.
Level
As for the level design, it's going to feature a lot of things such as not admitting there's a problem, so stuff is very pretty with occasional harsh truths bleeding through but quickly being covered up. It's a lot more steampunk than the others, as it's basically a giant machine covering up the truth.
So you've got a tea factory that makes tea that helps you deny the truth, represented by making you larger. And it's awful reverse later that shrinks you down. Even a TV that shows you what you want to see.
Other areas are only partially realized....
Boss:
Anger's current planned mechanic is to spawn "voodoo dolls" of itself, and to try and hurt itself (which hurts you as well for story reasons). As she's lashing out in anger at herself, and of course will attack the player directly as well. It wouldn't anger without lashing out at whatever is near.
Level:
Anger is harsh, red, full of blood and lots of eyes looking on. Everything is broken and destroyed there.
Boss:
Bargaining tries to offer itself to the Nihil, in exchange for "making it all go away" and the player must actually drag the boss away. They win by successfully getting the boss to the exit.
Level:
This is the area where the levels essentially bargain over which you're currently in. So stuff will switch as it passes the bargaining line this includes the level, the enemies, and you. So essentially you play to differently depending on which side of the line you are.
Boss:
Depression slowly turns off the lights, and you've got to keep them lit. If it goes entirely black you lose. It also creates areas of darkness that hurt the player. You win by exposing Depression to light enough times.
Level:
This area is very black and white. There's no joy in depression. Enemies here are actually floating darkness that tries to envelop the player. Dispelling them reveals the part of the map they were hiding.
Boss:
Acceptance is of course the Nihil itself and what it represents. Though it's exact mechanics aren't planned yet. Mostly because it will depend on exactly which trauma I go with.
Level:
This is the harshest level of all as it will depict as much imagery as possible about the trauma in question.
Oh as a fun side note, in relation to your The Neverending Story reference. Nihil is Latin for "Nothing", and a homage to exactly that. :LZSwink: