Review: Guacamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition

I am currently at an ideation phase for my own game. I decided to make a Metroidvania with a fresh combat system that actually feels good and powerful- I felt like too many games of this genre (and especially Hollow Knight and Super Metroid) had very unsatisfactory combat system that quickly became too boring, repetitive, or focused more on avoiding enemy hits rather than actually hitting the opponent.

So, when I heard about Guacamelee, I was instantly hooked. I picked this game up during last year’s winter sale, and when I had the opportunity to go back and clear my backlog, I was excited to see what this game had in store for me.

To put it simply, I felt… angry. Not because the game was bad, because the game had so much potential to be better yet it was so unsatisfactory. In this review, I will try to go over some points as to why I felt this way and my (quick) suggestions to the solutions to this problem.

As a side note, I played the Super Turbo Championship Edition (wow, every single subtitle from SF2), which adds some extra features, a genderbend 2P option, better resolution/graphics, etc. Main storyline practically stays the same so it shouldn’t be an issue here that I didn’t play the “original” version.

1. Very Linear Progression
2. Item gating feels rushed- progression feels off
3. Combat becomes repetitive
4. Anticlimactic ending (I know, hold on for the objections)

Before We Begin, Some Positives

I think it’s always a good praxis to include some positives even if the whole piece is critical. So, let me start off the review by stating some positives.

I absolutely adored the art style. The Sunday-cartoony look of the game matched very nicely with the Luchador/Day of the Dead theme of the story. This art direction also allowed for some exaggerated action, which helped to set the tone and add some dynamic into the game.

Character design is also a point that I liked. Juan’s exaggerated limbs immediately convey his tough guy superhero persona. X’Tabay is one of my favorite characters now, literally. Uay Chivo acts as both a mythological deus ex machina but also a hilarious meta-commentary (Goat Fly sends me off, every time. Without fail.) Carlos Calaca’s exaggerated black sombrero and classic mariachi clothing (with a cape, of course) radiates cartoon villain energy, which I shall bask in with pleasure. Overall, I think this “Sunday cartoon” vibes is what makes this game very pleasing and also a bit relaxing to play.

But here’s the thing: when I think of Sunday cartoons, I think of a typical hero’s journey (I know the structure is deeply problematic, but… blame western media conventions?) and direct, almost humorous action. This game does that very well. As an action adventure game, that is. However, as a Metroidvania game? Well, I have some different set of expectations there and this game didn’t check all the boxes there. Here’s why.

Linear Progression

Main story progression is too linear. You have to visit each area basically only once and there is barely any backtracking. Each of those areas aren’t giant spaces with winding paths, either; it rather feels like a Zelda dungeon than a Metroid area. No, not the more complex ones, I am talking about Wind Waker levels of linearity. Almost all stages simply have forward motion and never even tries to go back, and unless you are in for the 100% clear (I will talk in depth about this later), there is no replayability in any of the areas. Hell, some areas are completely left over from the main story- and this, I think, is a very lazy way to pace out the game.

Also I just want to say that I am not completely against linear progression or that all games should have a nonlinear level design. In fact, if I only consider the theme and the tone of the game, the linear progression would fit better. I am just saying that this game clearly had a lot of potentials to be nonlinear (and it shows, very clearly) but designers didn’t make it so; as a game that is marketed off as a Metroidvania, this comes as a disappointment.

Item Gating Feels Off

Throughout the game, Juan gets mysterious luchador powers from Uay Chivo (name from Huay Chivo, a Mayan sorcerer/beast), including the ability to uppercut, wall climb, dash, and even fly. Players get their powers from the Choozo statues (ha…ha…………….. god this just keeps getting weirder)

Item gating definitely exists in this game but in a very limited context because of the aforementioned linearity. There are no stages (or parts, even) where the special abilities and their properties become the center of design; they are always just aiding combat or adding an extra mobility feature. The times when the abilities are actually useful are when you just get them; this becomes apparent in the last ability, Goat Fly, as Juan gets this ability right before the final dungeon and never uses it again in a meaningful matter except for entering the final dungeon of the game.

Yes, item gating in Metroidvania should aid in mobility and combat alike and should open up new areas that are inaccessible before, but shouldn’t they serve a purpose beyond that? It comes to be as a result of contrived design- they had to get to this conclusion and had to come up with a way, so they made up an item that is basically only used once and never again.

My opinion about item gating is that they are kind of outdated and can be seen as off or boring if not spaced correctly. Either limit the abilities to a short list of 4-5 and introduce all of them at the beginning or recontextualize not just that single area but the entire game, making sure to include some aspect of even the most basic and early abilities throughout the entire game. And please, I am not completely against including major items or special abilities right before the ending, but it should come as common sense that a gimmick used once then forgotten is contrived.

Boring Combat

This is more or less a critique of combat mechanics in the whole genre, but I was especially disappointed because of my prior expectations. Action is crisp and does feel very satisfying. However, it does lack depth. Since the game’s aesthetics are so focused on that cartoony feel, avoiding enemy attacks seem a bit gauche.

Special abilities are also largely focused on mobility and are very often one-time gimmicks; as a result, most enemy fights come off as “keep pressing X till the enemy is dead”. No avoiding, no clever platforming, no small puzzles (I sometimes miss the classic “hit three times on bosses’ weak point” type Zelda gimmicks), just… hitting. This doesn’t even satisfy the superhero cliche well, as modern comic/cartoon heroes often have flashy abilities or finishers (this is more apparent in tokusatsu where they have to sell toys so they make as many gimmicks as they possibly can).

Anticlimactic Ending/Grind-Centric Real Ending

Now this topic is truly based on my personal opinion. My guiding design philosophy is video games are for everyone. I believe that the whole story should be enjoyed by everyone who finishes the game, not just the few who will attempt to collect every single collectibles/items/whatever. “True ending” should always be a reward but never a punishment.

That’s why I hated this game’s ending. After you defeat Calaca, you obtain a mysterious collectible and face the ending- where El Presidente’s daughter is dead and you meet her at the world of the dead after you die. This was extremely disappointing- not because of the story itself but because of the fact that they introduced a collectible this late into the game and gave little to no clue on how to get it. I had to search it up, and after finding out that I had to grind a battle dungeon, I stopped playing.

The decision to include this is disappointing because of two reasons.

1. Players view the “true ending” from the lens of the “false” ending. This is not only more narrative work but also disillusions the player. Multi-ending approach can work, most definitely. However, for this game where the aesthetics clearly present a classic cartoon superhero story, it just doesn’t work.
2. It’s so clear that this was an afterthought. In other words, they tried to extend the playtime of the game by including this, but it’s not only user-unfriendly but it’s also very obvious that it’s contrived and artificial.

In conclusion, give extra for those who go the extra mile; don’t punish those who don’t do everything.

Nitpicks & Conclusion

• Boss characters don’t have much presence throughout the game. Juan’s “rival”, Jaguar Javier, appears only twice during the entire game- the very beginning and the very end. I thought he would appear a bit more frequently throughout, acting as sort of a double agent/tsundere rival character who keeps fighting the protagonist but still gives hints against his superior. Nope, doesn’t happen here.
• I mean, Lupita’s name is mentioned once or twice but… bit iffy that she’s just El Presidente’s daughter throughout the whole game?

Maybe my expectations for this game were too high- after all, I am trying to make a game just like this. However, even considering the amazing art decisions, the perfect cartoony look, and the awesome soundtrack, the whole affair come off to me as:

It had potential, dammit.

Daily Thoughts- Quick Jot Down

Well, still busy. After about a month or so of almost no activity, I figured that giving some form of an update might be helpful. I’ll be really busy until the beginning of June because of finals, but I have thought up of some ideas and I need somewhere better to put them down than… Sticky Notes.

1. Top down shooters that you don’t shoot the enemy

Whilst working on Laser Defender, I began exploring concepts and further elaborations that I can do on the template project so I can somewhat pass this as a portfolio material. I personally never played the game, but I thought that Luftrausers delivers on its premise of WWII dogfighting by not focusing on the action of shooting but rather actively dodging bullets from a different perspective. Why are top-down shooters called shooters anyways when in most shooters (especially so for bullet hells) are focused much more on avoiding enemy bullets? If it’s unnecessary, eliminate it.

2. Environmental RTS

I need to do a CAS project for next year- for non IB students, this means that I have to do some long-term project (preferably with a partner) with some significance, either activity-wise, service-wise, or creativity-wise. For me, it’s a perfect opportunity to flex some game development muscles.

When I was young, I played a small RTS game online called EcoFriendz (website is now dead, RIP). For every level, there was a challenge to complete- presented in the form of development quotas (increase in population, factories, housing, etc.) I had to manage resources by protecting trees from illegal loggers and managing my resources so the CO₂ levels don’t go beyond the set quota. The main goal was to plant trees and build sustainable factories and homes to meet quotas sustainably. This was a UN sponsored project back in 2011.

I found my inspiration- I want to rebuild this game with a different, more strategy-oriented design. It will mainly involve around sustainable resource management and development; meeting certain growth quotas while also being sustainable will still be the main goal of the game.

3. JoJo tag fighter

I know, licensed content will 100% headcanon, but there are only 3 JoJo fighting games and two aren’t even that great as fighting games.

JoJo is an IP born for fighting game adaptation, not some silly battle royale. Not all stands are created for battle, but that’s the point of using a tag/partner system- so stands unfit for direct combat can still participate.

Pokken Tournament had an interesting approach with switching between perspectives and using partner/tags, but perspective change felt largely like a gimmick and tags were largely like an item.

Main goals for this as a character game would be:

1. Plenty of nod to the source material- special interactions, the idea of a “dream team” delivered through partnership, team-up attacks, etc; mostly cosmetic
2. Fairness in play. As DIO once said, there is no absolute hierarchy in stands; this is where partner system comes in, as they can function to compliment weaknesses and make unfair fights more manageable when it seems unfair only looking at stats.
3. Use of special powers/stands- similar to Heritage for the Future, I want to implement a system where stand attacks would only appear at the last burst of a combo attack or only after filling up a gauge/low in HP. Seems a bit cliché, but I mean, it works, there’s no doubt in that.

 

4. Daemon

Thought about this for a long while now. Couple of things:

1. I still don’t know about the story side. I kind of want to approach it from a metafiction perspective but not sure how to execute it with a fresh take.
2. Control scheme- I personally think that the control scheme for fighting games like Smash would work better than the typical Metroidvania format- directional attacks, guards and dodges, special attacks (with or without direction I’m not sure)- are all elements that I really want for this project. Not so sure how this will work out in a Metroidvania setting but I think it’s not a horrible fit.
3. Action and combos- go big on the tokusatsu concept- maybe do a combo number system like Bayonetta while also combining mana/skill point system with the combo system (heavier attacks spend a lot of combo points but cannot generate a lot on themselves; flashier attacks earn higher scores and can also prepare for heavier attacks; system interference to prevent players from spamming heavy/special attacks by placing a timer). Details later.

Review: When the Darkness comes -Why Experiences Matter-

A word of caution if I may before I begin: For these types of games, it’s really hard to accurately translate the “feels” to words; “experience simulations” are one of the most personal interpretations of interactive media, and as such, they impact people in varying degrees, more so than some of the “traditional” experiences. Rational judgement is a bit hard in this case, but I will try my best to extract knowledge out of it and make my argument.

I’ll try not to spoil the entire experience but it’s kind of inevitable. I’ll try.

Lastly: CW: depression, suicidal ideation, anxiety, social stress, etc.

Part 1: Introduction

The first place that I encountered this game was a bit different from the ordinary. I follow a lot of Rioters, and Mr. Kevin “Sirhaian” Leroy was one of them. His indie VFX work on Star Guardian Gragas and PROJECT: Karthus impressed me (ArtStation here) and that’s when (I think) I pressed the follow button.

Many weeks pass, and I see something interesting in my timeline: he released a free game on Steam. I never knew that he was a developer (well, beyond an amazing VFX artist) before that point, so I was a bit surprised. My immediate, automated response to this was, of course, was to go to Steam and put it in my catalogue, download it, set the category as “Backlog”, and… tell myself “I’m a bit busy now. Let’s revisit this when I have time.”

Then classic immature, 16-year-old high-schooler Eric moment hit me and I forgot about it for a month or so until the last day of spring break. There were other factors, of course: I was busy finishing up my Unity tutorial and playing Apex Legends and League (I am terribly embarrassed. I should cut this habit soon and start clearing out my backlog before it’s too late).

(*Let’s actually introduce the game to the audience, shall we?*) Ahem.

Part 2: The Game- Technical Stuff

When the Darkness Comes is a short indie game developed by Kevin Leroy. The game is relatively short (it took me around an hour to complete the entire thing) but has a ton of replayability in it. Developed on Unity, it features standard controls, amazing VFX, a… debatable narrator experience, and some other notable design decisions.

Darkness is a type of a game that is best labeled as an “interactive experience” though it is hard to clearly define its genre; it’s somewhere between a walking simulator, interactive fiction, puzzle adventure, narrative game, and a visual novel. Player goes through a series of dark, mysterious, labyrinth experiences of the developer Leroy’s state of mind. The player goes through the Leroy’s experiences through life, examining his mental experiences as a game developer, as an artist, as an adult human trying to have his ends meet, as a student struggling through school, as a helpless romantic, etc. Players go through his mental state and his memories, putting themselves in his shoes and trying to understand his position within himself and in life.

Since these types of games deserve more of a literary analysis and critique than standard game design analysis, I will try to make my critique of the physical experience short. Controls feel a bit slide-y and, combined with the narrow POV and overall dark color scheme of the game, made be nauseous after the first 45 minutes of it; I had to take a break to 20 minutes or so during the middle before I could continue because some parts of it were making me physically ill.

VFX was, of course, amazing, as the dev is mainly a VFX artist (or at least that’s the impression that I’m getting from his ArtStation). I noticed some very clever use of perspective, lighting, and contrast throughout the experience. It wasn’t polished as much, sure, but it was really good and it did get the message through (discussed later).

Lot of the Steam reviews for this game pointed out that the narrator was sub-par and how, for many of them, the “bad” narration impacted the experience negatively. From a purely objective point of view, yes, it does lack polish compared to, say, The Stanley Parable. But remember that this is a short side project by a single dev, and it would be a faulty comparison to compared it with the production scale of an entire indie team. Also, I think that the subpar narration actually adds to the experience (more on that later).

Environment design was not too bad for a scale like this. As I pointed out about VFX, there were some very good uses of contrast and perspective throughout the game, and those really stood out when it came to environment and map design. Some of the sections did, however, were a bit frustrating to play (like the final zigzag/jump section where you only have a single source of light to guide your path in pitch black; more on this later) and many of the sections were quite labyrinthine and caused some motion sickness. At least subtitles are there, so that’s a start. Colorblind options can definitely be there but it would be kind of hard to implement in a game where darkness is such a vital part of the experience.

Also, a quick shout-out to Julie Maxwell (link to the iTunes page of the piece used in-game), the artist who did the piano piece for this game. Her (I’m assuming here correct me if I’m wrong) performance, I think, really added a whole new layer of depth to the game and was significant in the narrative, which was a really nice touch when it came to some of the important moments.

Part 3: The Game- Actual Criticism

Now here’s the real criticism of the game. I will try my best to give the best explanation of the things that I felt while playing this game and not make it a 500-word blabber but words are hard. I’m sorry, your friendly second language learner just can’t express his words into letters that well.

Unlike some of the “experience” type games that I’ve tried before, this game stood out to me because I felt a direct connection between me and the developer. Some other games where the narrator is an integral part of the story (say, The Stanley Parable) felt like I was being challenged, tested or provoked almost, by the game itself. Those games felt more or less like Undertale where meta knowledge about the game (as in like the title itself: spoilers, story, background settings, etc.) and meta knowledge about the game (as in like a medium to tell a story and the conventions that go with it) directly affected how the game treated me. Interaction and emotional connection existed between me and the game (and its story), but everything was, more or less, an illusion of an emotional bond between the medium and the audience. A sort of connection that you feel when you identify strongly with a character in a book or a movie. A guided experience where the element of interaction existed simply as a medium to get a message across, to think not only within the shoes of an invisible entity called player in-game, but also as… well, yourself playing the game. In those experiences, I felt like the game was talking directly to me, as a person who was playing the game, talking to me to think about the impact within the constructed world of gameplay how my interaction affects things.

But note that those experiences only consist of a very small group out of the bunch that I want to talk about in this post. Games that our proud community of Internet has labeled Not Games^TM still exist (such as Gone Home, What Remains of Edith Finch, Depression Quest, Dear Esther… list goes on). I haven’t referenced these games because I think of them as an extension to the visual novel genre, where the layer of player interaction only exists as a medium to tell a set story. We will come back to this later.

This experience, however, was different. I felt like the game was not only the extension of the developer himself but also the developer and his inner state of mind. There was a complex communication of some sort going on in my mind between myself as a human being, myself as a player of this game in the shoes of someone else, the game itself as a medium and a set story, and the developer himself and his internal state of mind. It felt like Stanley Parable but also not like it because the dev/narrator was in control of the experience and the player (I) could go against that control, but also that control was merely an illusion and I was actually experiencing a direct communication between me and the dev. For the first time, I viewed the developer and the game as one and equal (somewhat of a natural conclusion for a one-person dev game), and sort of a complex dynamic took place between us.

The central message of this game, however, shattered that communication. The main getaway of this game is that it is your interpretation of the experience that matters and nothing else. “The game means nothing”. The game, and hence the creator of the game, is trying to actively deny looking for a deeper meaning in the text. A very strong death of the author feels here, but I don’t think this is the real intention of the dev. When I bring context back into play, I sense that the death of the author-esque feeling is an illusion, a subconscious denial almost, of the developer. There is something very clear and deep within this experience, yet the game denies me such opportunities while the author subconsciously desires such analysis. This is the moment when the author-text dynamic breaks and I realize that the author and the body of work are both separate and equal at the same time.

Darkness is an interactive, visual translation of the developer’s inner state of mind, and that translation tells us, the audience, not to extract meaning out of the experience because whatever we felt during the experience is the only takeaway that actually matters. True meaning of the experience shows, however, when I break away from the fundamental assumption that I made while judging this game, given its context: developer equals his body of work. I realized that in order to judge this game properly I must view the relationship between the author and their body of work not as a binary, but rather as a superposition, a state where the author maybe and maybe not be equal to their body of work at the same time. So the deeper meaning of this game is not nothing as the game tells you to believe, but rather the combination between the dev’s personal experiences, his emotions and mentality, and the player’s takeaway from that experience, which is a translated one from the author’s internal state of mind, plus the player’s own emotions that they identified with during the experience and after it.

If this sounds like bloaty, edgy gibberish to you, it’s because it is. But hear me out. I identified with this game so strongly because I was in his position and I still am. I struggled through some hard depression moments and I still struggle because of my crippling anxiety every day. I felt the moments that the dev illustrates in the game: I felt like people were lying to me all the time and all of them secretly think bad of me, I was terrified of even the slightest notion of criticism because I thought that it involved personal emotions, and I was on and off caring about how I walk, gesture, pose, and dress in public because I always felt like people were talking about me. I am getting better through meds and therapy, but it’s still a long way. Some of the moments in this game really hit me hard because I totally identified with those experiences, and when I did, the interpretation was not analysis of the text, but rather total empathy and full, human emotional connection, an emotion that I’ve never felt in any work of art. Teachers often use the phrase “poetry/novel/whatever speaks to you”. We all know that it’s a figurative language, but this phrase captured the essence of my experience with this game: it spoke to me. This is why Darkness felt so fresh and different to me when I finished it: even the game’s denial of meaning was a form of self-denial that I’ve experienced. Maybe I’m a bit biased, as not everyone may think like me and identify so deeply with this experience, and I totally agree with that interpretation. But as person who had to go through this experience, I feel like the game was giving not only an invitation to the author’s point of view and inside his mind but also a genuine conversation between a friend and a sympathizer, and that in itself was genuinely touching to me.

Part 4: Some Nitpicks

Before I move on to the final part of the game, let’s take a breather of some minor criticisms that I had while playing.

• Content warnings in the beginning were really nice, but the text was kind of hard to read because of the… sort of gradation/shadow effect of black shades on the text. The important text are boldened, but I don’t feel like that’s enough; the entire text should be crystal clear to read, especially in the case of these important warnings. I think it would be better if the font sizes were a bit bigger and the text was completely white and clear so that it’s perfectly legible, no matter what; for content/trigger warnings, legibility and clarity must come first before aesthetic preference.
• File installation was a clever touch and it somewhat did help my experience in a good way. It also felt quite fresh too, as most games with a feature like this usually hide their files in the installation folder, not smack right in front of the desktop. I did see some reviews, however, that this is not the smartest decision to make. I do agree on this. Yes, fully enjoying the original experience is quite important but that cannot come at the cost of real-world threats: accessibility and security. I think it would have been much better if the player could opt in to get their files either installed or sent through email or other methods; I know that time and resources were severely limited, but this approach of single consent yes-or-no was not the cleanest of the possible approaches to this.
• As I mentioned before (or did…I?), some sections of the game were a bit frustrating. I fell off almost 15 times during the section where I had to navigate through a zigzag road only relying on a direction of bright light coming from the sides and a section where I had to jump between blocks the exact same way. It was very important to the overall experience, absolutely, but the frustration that I felt while playing those sections eventually masked the emotions and the main takeaways that I felt from playing those sections. I started to feel like less of playing an emotional experience and more of playing an annoying platformer. I don’t have specific recommendations on better execution but… it didn’t feel smooth. I get the context and all but I don’t think that the dev wanted the audience to snap back into the feeling that they are playing a game.
  • Also, during the jumping block section, whenever I respawn, I spawn on top of the first block platform and presumably because of collision I bounce up as soon as I spawn. Since jump inputs are ignored while I’m in air, I missed many jump timings because of this.

Part 5: Counterargument Against Some of the Criticism on Steam Reviews

I feel like some of the criticism for this game was quite valid, like how the message felt quite hamfisted and how it “tried too hard to get the player to interpret their own meaning and insert their own feelings into the story”. I partially agree, though:

1) I feel like the impression of pretentiousness and “put yourself in my shoes” was a part of the experience. It is obvious that “this game has no purpose” is not true, but the denial itself is an emotion that people often face. Maybe the experience does feel a bit pretentious, but I argue that that is the authentic anxiety experience: everything feels pretentious and everything feels like nothing at all.

2) Context matters, always. This wasn’t a full-scale production but rather a side project of a developer who already has a stable day job. I am definitely biased here since not a lot of people are aware of the full context, but when it comes to this, I feel like people jumped to the conclusion a bit too quickly.

3) Maybe it’s just me, but I think that the awkward, obvious “this has no meaning” and “make your emotions the only getaway” are what makes the experience actually special. The obviousness of the whole thing actually enriched the experience.

4) I do agree that jumpscares were a bit disturbing, but with clear content warnings, this was a commitment made by the player. This is a bit subjective but I don’t think the horror element was that protruding.

Conclusion

I think I wrote down most of what I wanted to say about this. It’s a bit hard to understand, but take a read if you are so inclined.

And Sirhaian, if you are reading this, thank you so much for sharing your experience with me. It has meant a lot to me. Also, I very much admire your work as an artist and a developer. I’ll be eagerly waiting for your next release, whenever it may be.

 

Recap on Daemon

So obviously I flopped on my initial design doc. I focused too much on the story aspect that I completely failed to illustrate the design of the game, the core appeal of the game.

My main goal with this game was to combine the nonlinear, item-gated, platforming exploration of Metroidvania with a stylish, combo-oriented action with plenty of options during combat. I wanted to combine stylish action (Devil May Cry, Bayonetta) with Metroidvania, a genre where combat feels a bit flat and too timing-specific.

Looks and feels-wise, I want to really embrace the tokusatsu aesthetic. It is really hard to put these in words, but the rough image of this is:

• Lots of cool explosions and visual effects
• Exaggerated actions, often focusing on a single item or a gimmick (afterall, the shows are there to sell toys)
• Exaggerated design, usually focusing down on one to two motifs
• Emphasis on collectible (toys); some sort of small gizmo that interacts with the main weapons or item

So there’s my three pillars- Metroidvania, stylish action, and tokusatsu. Now, let me connect the three pieces together.

Metroidvania

Stylish action- gated, nonlinear exploration means that there will be multiple tools for combat under a certain situation. When and how to use those tools will be the player’s choice.

Tokusatsu- exaggerated, heavily theme-specific design means a consistent theme for a single area. Lots of room to work through here.

These two components mean that I will incorporate a lot of open areas for my game for combat purposes. There will be areas where platforming is emphasized, but I don’t want to bog down players with both combat and platforming.

Stylish action

Metroidvania- hidden collectibles and item-gated exploration means that multiple tools will be available for players. As they explore, their toolset expands; as their toolset expands, there will be more tools to elongate their combos and make satisfying moves.

Tokusatsu- seems a bit obvious, but stylish action genre itself is mainly inspired by tokusatsu.

Tokusatsu

Metroidvania- collectibles and different items are a perfect way for merchendizing (or, in other words, showing cool new abilities)

Stylish action- same as above.

V2 of the doc is coming… soon (I hope I can work on it this week but no guarantees, I am busy).

Day 10: Laser Defender is Done!

After a LONG hiatus, I finally hit spring break; time to refresh and recha… I mean, finish off my projects.

Speaking of finishing off projects, I am finally done with Laser Defender! I did most of it in school, and although there is a small bug to fix (my text appears broken in-game), the core functionality is complete.

I think now is a good time to reflect upon my experiences. I started this off as a complete Unity beginner, freshly picked up an online course at a heavy discount. Coding part wasn’t a challenge for me, as my experiences from APCS learning Java translated really well into C# (syntax was near identical). File structures were bit of a hassle, but once I got into it, I was hooked.

It was a bit hard to keep in track at first; as an IB student struggling to adapt in a new school, I was a bit overwhelmed with schoolwork, and it was a challenge for me to actually put in the time and energy to learn a completely new skill. Once I installed Unity on my laptop and started this in school, however, things started to look a bit different. I used most of my free study periods and lunch breaks on Unity. Though I did not reflect every single day, I tried to come back here every week or two so that I could reflect upon myself and how far I’ve come.

And I should say that I did come quite a long way. I can now create projects from scratch. I can organize my files in a proper order. I am quite comfortable with Visual Studio. Most importantly, however, I am having fun.

I really do hope my skills pay off somewhat. As an aspiring student designer, learning engines and dev tools can help me build indie projects and portfolio material to show off my skills. These skills will come in very handy once I enter the job marketplace (or heck, even college admissions).

Okay, enough talk, here’s the link: https://www.sharemygame.com/share/2bfd9c1d-ec11-44d4-b24c-e8f165e7c3f5

 

Day 9: Restart! Laser Defender is Go!

Sorry, long time no see on this thing. Had a busy week. I have SAT coming up this Saturday so I’ll be busy until then, but I did touch on Unity. I started laser defender, a template for a top down shooter. I think it will be fun to transform it with different assets and power-ups, but I have to get the main systems working.

Here’s a screenshot:

(V2 on the works!) Design Document: Daemon

EDIT: After some amazing feedback from Reddit /r gamedesign, I decided to work on a more comprehensive V2 of this GDD. I think I considered this more as a TV production and less as an actual game, so it is really heavy on stroy but light on actual game design. Hence, this doc will probably serve as a story bible- after some heavy edits, of course. General sense of the game will be the same, but until I finish my new(er) GDD, feel free to critique or send ideas on the game. Thank you always for the amazing feedback. 

 

 

 

Please note that:

1. Literally, everything in this document is temporary. The story reads like literal fanfic from Wattpad and is overwhelming with overused tropes and boring cliches. Please gimme feedback. I need it.
2. For TL;DR purposes, my MVP (minimum viable product) will be this: a sidescrolling Metroidvania with a combo action system, guard, and switchable forms.
3. I know, as all student projects are, this game has a scope that is way beyond my ability. Obviously, this will probably never see the light of the day; I just needed somewhere to organize my thought after reiterating it over and over again for about a month now.
4. Art aesthetic isn’t complete yet, but I think I got the general grasp of it. Hang on tight.
5. Again, please trash me and give me feedback. At this point, I really don’t care if it’s constructive or not. But that said, constructive criticism is greatly appreciated.

Title: Daemon (Placeholder name)

Intro

You have awakened after 3000 years to a completely different world. Having no memories of your past, you must find out the truth of your mysterious birth and protect this world as it gets slowly engulfed in the flames that raged this world, 3000 years ago. Daemon is a Zelda and Metroid-esque action-adventure dungeon crawler, with its story and theme heavily inspired by Japanese tokusatsu shows.  

Character Bios (Note: ALL names are temporary placeholders.)

“Zero”- Main protagonist. He has risen from a cellar of an abandoned church after a 3000-year slumber. His bodily age, however, is merely that of a teenager (around 16-17). Having lost all of his past memories and deeply anxious, he struggles to reintegrate himself into modern society. Unaware of neither who he is nor where he came from, he struggles to find his true identity. He possesses the power to transform into a fierce, hellbent warrior wielding a heavy sword and dealing hell magic, but he struggles to find his place between a “normal” teen and the protector of a world unknown to him.

“Swordy”- A mysterious emblem that Zero held when he rose from his slumber, Argent Blade, or simply “Swordy”, is a hellforged demon blade with a witty personality. Combined with his belt counterpart, he possesses the power to transform Zero into a warrior. He guides through Zero’s perilous journey through the underworld while also struggling with him in the modern world.

Lucifer- the true lord of hell himself, Lucifer is the vile menace behind the heinous acts of violence caused by the demons. He intends to reignite the 3000-year old conflict once more, this time using the mortal realm as a stepping point. He, however, keeps many secrets…

Michael- the current head of the Army of Heaven and the practical leader of the high Heavens, Michael is a cold-blooded leader and an archangel of dreadable power. His justice is swift and unforgiving, smiting all who do not follow the lord’s plan… though it looks like he has some secrets upon his sleeves.

Patrick- A former youth pastor-turned-writer, Patrick is a struggling single dad of a teenage daughter. He coincidentally found Zero right after he awakens from his slumber and takes him in, trying his best to manage both his (now two) children and his personal struggles, including the absence of his partner. He is Zero’s trusty guardian and father-figure, mentoring him whenever he struggles to find his place in the world. He also knows a lot about the magical realm, maybe a bit too much…

Anna- A typical high school girl, Anna is Zero’s best friend and companion. She tries her best to integrate Zero to modern life, including helping with his schoolwork and being close friends with him. Wacky and lighthearted, Anna is a history fanatic and a wannabe archivist.

Sean- Rival character, teased during the first act, formally introduced during the end of first act/beginning of second act (“the second rider”). Formerly a typical white-collar worker at a game dev company, Sean became a cold-blooded demon hunter after his family got abducted by demons (or so he thought). Striking a pact with the holy angels, he was granted the power to transform into a powerful warrior (much alike to Zero’s transformed state), skilled in scorching light magic and marksmanship with his powerful magic gun. Recently betrayed by the angels and stripped of his abilities causing great pain, he now hunts all magical creatures, demons and angels alike, swearing vengeance to all that is magical; he, however, knows that this is the only way of survival for his fleeting life. He keeps a close eye at Zero’s mysterious identity, sometimes standing on his way while also helping him from time to time.  

Yona- the Supporting protagonist, pops up during the third act (“Third rider”). A school librarian-in-disguise, Yona is a covert black ops agent of the special magical ops division of the military. Once horribly traumatized and losing their limb, they now act as a covert agent, secretly gathering intel about magical creatures hiding in human society while also helping the other two protagonists in battle. They wear a high-tech special ops suit, focused on speedy melee combat and stealth.   

Rough Plot

The main protagonist, Zero, awakens from his long slumber with a small necklace, with a grotesque pendant on it. Patrick finds Zero, shivering and almost dying, whilst visiting the cemetery; he takes him in and becomes his guardian.

6 months later, Zero now attends high school with Pat’s only daughter, Anna. He struggles to adapt to the modern world. He encounters the hideous crime caused by a demon on his way home one day and is forced into a fight against the demon after being suddenly forced into it by the mysterious pendant, who introduced himself by the name of Argent Blade. He kills the demon, confused and tattered, only to find out that this was his destiny and he was once used as a weapon of war, slaughtering millions of innocent lives. Shocked and anxious about his identity, Zero decides to take up his newfound partner’s advice and venture down into the underworld to slaughter demons.

Zero grows in strength as he slaughters the first four great demons, but as he questions the integrity and the aftermath of his past and current actions, a hooded figure appears in front of him and confronts him with the shocking truth that he is the son of Lucifer and all the demons were “attacking” the mortal world just to find him. Mentally shattered, Zero confronts him and eventually wins, but the hooded figure falls in front of him unconscious. Zero brings him back to his dwelling and nurses him back to health, only to find out that he is a vicious hunter seeking for vengeance. Using the last bit of advice from him, and combined with his increased powers from the demons he killed, he ventures into the underworld once more, this time to confront his supposed father.

He soon comes to the realization that his school librarian, Yona, is not actually a librarian but rather a secret government agent and a spy, sent to keep a close eye on him. With the fights getting ever more harder with the hooded figure interrupting him constantly, he gladly takes in their help. Now backed by the secret anti-magic agency, Zero fights off demons both in the real world and the underworld, with growing questions about his identity and his place in the world. He finally faces Lucifer after facing the 7 Sins, only to realize the actual circumstances of his birth: he is the reincarnation of Chaos, the twist of the universe and the creator of the mortal realm, and that he was actually the cause of the war but never the supposed weapon of mass destruction. He also reveals the plans of the heavens to eradicate the mortal realm: they have cleverly manipulated the forces of hell (or so they thought) while also growing their own army to burn the civilization down to the ground.

Zero and his crew, now supported by the forces of hell, venture into the high heavens as they prepare for the final fight to prevent the conflict, once and for all. Michael tries to bring down the creator, but eventually admits defeat and, admitting his corruption, dies. In order to restore the damages done by the descending of the creator and the death of the head of the heavens, Zero and his crew give up all of their powers (including Swordy). Now just an ordinary teenager, Zero goes back to normal life. 

Gameplay Description

Daemon combines three different genres into one with some unique twists: Metroidvania, dungeon crawler, and melee action. In its core, Daemon is a Metroidvania, complete with free flow, item gated exploration of a large, interconnected map, backtracking and remembering crucial information, and side view platforming. The player controls Zero, who wields Swordy, the magical sword from hell, clad with a hellish suit of armor. The action style is stylish, complete with combos similar to fighting games or stylish action games and with different sets of abilities.

The two biggest features are guard and form change system. Zero will collect different “vials”, this title’s main collectible items. He can harness the power of these vials, and each vial will provide different abilities, whether it being extra platforming prowess, assistance in combat, or giving him completely new skillsets to use in both combat and exploration. The guard system adds an extra layer of depth in the typical Metroidvania combat. In his default form, Zero can defend enemy attacks; guarding attacks will either completely negate the attack or reduce the damage of it. Combined with the form change system, however, this feature turns into a completely different system; each form has different methods of guarding enemy attacks, whether it is completely dodging the attack, reflecting projectiles, absorbing damage than releasing them, etc. This will add an extra layer of depth and provide the satisfaction of stylish action that other Metroidvania games could not provide.   

Artistic Style outline

As mentioned above, this game takes very heavy influence from Japanese tokusatsu shows. The game is also a modern fantasy, although it also incorporates some dark, gothic themes.

Most of the ally and enemy design will be based on whether or not it would be possible to create a functioning suit design. Hence, most of the design will focus heavily on physical authenticity. The design does have an advantage, however, of not being an actual TV production and hence will allow for some deviations that are not possible in an actual live action setting, e.g. flame capes, special effects, etc.

Three main “factions” exist: demons of the underworld, angels of the high heavens, and humans of the anti-magic covert ops. Demons will primarily focus on spikes, crimson red and black color scheme, and the 72 Demons of Solomon. Angels, on the other hand, will focus on straight, linear lines, sky blue highlight with a mainly ivory and white color scheme, and a more of a high-tech finish more than high fantasy. Humans will focus heavily on round shapes with realistic tactical designs, focusing on the colors purple and black.  

(Note: project timeline, assets, components, etc. are not listed here because in NO way this is going to be a real project)

Daily Thoughts: Apex Legends

Apex Legends was my first attempt at a proper battle royale game. Turns out I like it! So much so that I want to make a couple of points on why I liked it more and didn’t quit immediately like how I quit Fortnite moments after I started playing it.

Note: This is just a quick list of bullet points after less than 2 hours of initial play time. There’s a lot of room for design analysis and critique, but that would require a bit more time with the game. Apex defies a lot of standards set by the “original” battle royale, H1Z1 and its direct successor, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. Might do a comparison analysis later on, but there are my immediate thoughts after playing the game for the first time.

1. Accessibility

Respawn really stepped up their game in accessibility options in Apex. Accessibility options are very, very diverse and easy to access. These might be small, even meaningless to many people, but for some, these are absolutely necessary and very welcome. Remember, experience of the majority doesn’t translate to experience of all.

Look at these options!

• Settings are accessible at any time, default to the ESC key on PC.
• Accessible chat options
• Built-in voice-to-text and text-to-voice system- all voice chat can be subtitled and vice versa. This is absolutely phenomenal for the genre where it relies heavily on both audio and visual information.
• Keys/controller and mouse sensitivity are completely remappable (most AAA games do this now, but not all games do this)
• FOV slider (most FPS/TPS games have this, but neat to see)
• Options for toggling or holding crouch and aim
• Three different colorblind options for different types of colorblindness– most games just have one “colorblind mode” with a toggle switch. Nice for them to include options for the three most common types of colorblindness.
• HUD and icons are clear, with opacity fully editable.

2. Representation and diversity

Apex did 10 times more on diversity and representation on launch than what Overwatch did in the past 3 years. Two characters (Bloodhunter and Gibraltar) are officially LGBT and nearly half out of the eight legends in the launch cast are visibly PoC. Representation is always important, and Respawn nailed this part.

(*It was hilarious to see the Gamer Culture^TM reacting on Gibraltar and Bloodhunter’s lore though*)

*Sobs in joy* JUST LOOK AT HIM, DAMMIT

 

3. Design-

Character design- Each and every legend is very distinguishable and unique. Their armor reflects their personality, cultural background, and in-game positions.

I was very impressed with Gibraltar’s design. His armor conveys both his occupation as a search and rescue agent and his cultural background (I’m not an expert on this but his front vest, neckless, and his idle pose all convey his pacific islander heritage), and his color highlights stand out vividly from the grey background for better visibility (sources: TBSkyen’s design critique video. Go watch em!).

Writing- Not sure if accents were accounted fully in the writing, but if they were, they are a very nice touch to convey extra character.

4. Gameplay

Environment design- Even though Apex doesn’t have the wall run and Titan action of Titanfall, it does have a fascinating environment design. Parkour is seamlessly integrated in the environment; instead of wall running, sliding is the new main method of traversal. The environment reflects this by having a lot of high ground and slopes. This was very fresh to me, as other battle royale games always gave me a sense of flatness. It uses high ground very effectively and effectively; the environment feels very dynamic, more so than other games that I’ve seen.

Also, the different zones present are full of character; each zone has a unique story that is clearly visible, and combined with the great sense of verticality and environment traversal, it makes the environment feel real.

(I want to explore the game design aspect of this game in a separate post, but I’ll post my general thoughts here for now)

Squad system- Respawn absolutely nailed this aspect. In Apex, you get to team up with two other players as a three-people squad against 19 other squads. Teamwork is essential, because unlike other battle royale games, everybody starts out on a different footing.

Hero Shooter- This is because Apex is also a hero shooter. Each hero has three different abilities, all working in synergy. Also note that every hero (so far) has at least one ability that directly helps their teammates. Another conscious decision there to encourage teamplay.

Cooperation- Apex’s ping system is one of the best non-verbal communications systems I’ve seen in a multiplayer game so far. It’s that good. I feel like Respawn really wanted to go against the unspoken truth: that voice chat is absolutely necessary to play as a squad in battle royale games.

So much to talk about just this feature alone. Maybe next time…

Respawn system- Another “deviation” from the norm set by PUBG: match isn’t immediately over after you die. Your teammates can pick up a “banner” of yours after you die to respawn you back into the game using a respawn node (which are located in wide-open “hot spots” and respawning requires a 10-second channeling time. Very nice risk-reward). Not sure if pings are available while you’re dead, but you can still use communication methods to direct the living players.

The “Zone”- Apex takes a different approach when dealing with the safe zone. Each game is divided up into multiple rounds, and the safe zone shrinks only after the round is over. The amount that it shrinks at once, however, is very large. This both forces movement and concentrates action towards the center of the map (what “traditional” zones do) and gives a bit more time with each encounter, as it obviously requires much more time to battle with a squad than to fight a single player (unique).

 

I really want to do a deeper analysis on game design, but sadly I’m short on time. I will come back to this subject once I’ve played a bit more of it.

Day 8: Block Breaker is DONE!

It has been finished. After more than a month on it, I have completed all 45 lectures of Block Breaker and created some levels.

I can’t post a link to the game directly on here, but here is a link to a Tweet that has an embedded link to the game:

I MADE A GAME
I AM THE ULTIMATE G@YMER
I AM UNSTOPPABLE
https://t.co/eLDxF78EJ9
Thanks @GameDevTV for a simple way to https://t.co/UhTgAwaDSt

— Eric Park (@pjheric1219) February 4, 2019

(I now kind of regret tweeting this on a *school related portfolio* but I AM excited, and no one can stop me now)

Go play my gorgeous child! They are absolutely fantastic (sorta)! You won’t be disappointed!

Day 7: More than halfway through on Block Breaker!

Title says it all. 18 lectures left out of 48 (I don’t think the numbers are correct but I’m too lazy to check right now). Core game functions properly; all the hitboxes are in place, physics works perfectly, I can break stuff with my ball. I can also use prefabs to create blocks and other objects easily and change all of them at once without much hassle. It was actually my first time learning about prefabs; I somehow knew that object types existed for easy copying and pasting, but I didn’t know that they were essentially templates and that they could be changed by changing just one of them.

Here’s the image. Looking pretty “solid”, eh? (Pun was not intended. I’m sorry).

Side note: SteamWorld Dig post is at works! The progress is slow because… I’m not so sure, writing fatigue? I just feel like I can’t write like before (of course that before being totally arbitrary, probably just my anxiety or something). It will come, sooner or later.