First steps with GM:S
[WIP] Puberty Paradox (first real project)
Last year a friend and I teamed up to for the competition I game jam. Both of us started watching youtube videos on gamemaker and a mere two weeks later (both still in highschool so we have too much time on our hands) we created Puberty Paradox as our very first real "project" and entry. I have decided to continue this project and we're planning to change how the game worked entirely.
First Version / Contest Entry
Go to the Contest version
Download the Contest version
Attempt at level generation
Our old levels sucked (my fault :s). Every age took place within the same 9 rooms, our attempt at "random level generation" failed completely but... this was my first attempt at coding I don't think it was a bad first try. We did want to have random level generation so I decided to create a generator after the contest.
Old levels:
New level generator:
Far from perfect but the basic concept is there. (Green is start room, red is boss room)
To the sandbox - Trying out different fighting mechanics
Me and my co-creator discussed our game after the contest and came to the conclusion that we made a lot of mistakes.
-Combat mechanics
The player had access to 3 different blocks and only 1 attack, this meant that 75% of our combat mechanics didn't give the player any power over the situation at all. To make things even worse: Our indicators that tell you what block to use gives the player no time to react and also has no clear indication of when the enemy is actually "hitting" you. The first version ended up being a guessing game that had you covering your eyes and lying down every time a rogue poop charged at you.
-Enemies
We realised that we had made a few strong enemies instead of making a lot of weaker enemies. This meant that the player didn't get to "play" or "win" often and contributed to the annoying "grind" factor that the game had (and the grind didn't even reward the player - Ouch!).
After discussing all of the above I created a sandbox space ( we do not own the background image) and starting changing our blocks into attacks.
Old combat:
Block block block...
New punch:
The old punch gave no indication of its hit range so I decided to make it launch a projectile. We have made a super-baby
New "jump":
The old jump was just another block - I used it as my main movement ability while traversing the sandbox.
New "crouch" (now with screenshake):
The old crouch was a block. Now it is a baby slamming his face into the ground and then creating projectiles with his mind that will destroy anything they hit!
To do list:
- Rework the item system so that items actually have a visible impact on gameplay.
- Change block mechanic.
- MORE ENEMIES!
- Smash everything we're testing now together into a "new" game.
- Implement new level system.
Any suggestions/criticism is appreciated. Thank you :)
Last year a friend and I teamed up to for the competition I game jam. Both of us started watching youtube videos on gamemaker and a mere two weeks later (both still in highschool so we have too much time on our hands) we created Puberty Paradox as our very first real "project" and entry. I have decided to continue this project and we're planning to change how the game worked entirely.
First Version / Contest Entry
Go to the Contest version
Download the Contest version
Attempt at level generation
Our old levels sucked (my fault :s). Every age took place within the same 9 rooms, our attempt at "random level generation" failed completely but... this was my first attempt at coding I don't think it was a bad first try. We did want to have random level generation so I decided to create a generator after the contest.
Old levels:
New level generator:
Far from perfect but the basic concept is there. (Green is start room, red is boss room)
To the sandbox - Trying out different fighting mechanics
Me and my co-creator discussed our game after the contest and came to the conclusion that we made a lot of mistakes.
-Combat mechanics
The player had access to 3 different blocks and only 1 attack, this meant that 75% of our combat mechanics didn't give the player any power over the situation at all. To make things even worse: Our indicators that tell you what block to use gives the player no time to react and also has no clear indication of when the enemy is actually "hitting" you. The first version ended up being a guessing game that had you covering your eyes and lying down every time a rogue poop charged at you.
-Enemies
We realised that we had made a few strong enemies instead of making a lot of weaker enemies. This meant that the player didn't get to "play" or "win" often and contributed to the annoying "grind" factor that the game had (and the grind didn't even reward the player - Ouch!).
After discussing all of the above I created a sandbox space ( we do not own the background image) and starting changing our blocks into attacks.
Old combat:
Block block block...
New punch:
The old punch gave no indication of its hit range so I decided to make it launch a projectile. We have made a super-baby
New "jump":
The old jump was just another block - I used it as my main movement ability while traversing the sandbox.
New "crouch" (now with screenshake):
The old crouch was a block. Now it is a baby slamming his face into the ground and then creating projectiles with his mind that will destroy anything they hit!
To do list:
- Rework the item system so that items actually have a visible impact on gameplay.
- Change block mechanic.
- MORE ENEMIES!
- Smash everything we're testing now together into a "new" game.
- Implement new level system.
Any suggestions/criticism is appreciated. Thank you :)
Thanked by 1edg3
Comments
Spent this afternoon "studying" for next week's exam - ended up completing a gamemaker course by Heartbeast. Will start customizing throughout the week (boss level incoming!).
It was a fun course to complete and if there are any other newbies out there with a lot of studying to do I would suggest taking a look at this course :).
This is the final product:
We have lift-off!
Got to work with screen-shake and particles
The end.
If anyone prefers that I post everything directly to the main post: Please let me know as soon as possible and I will do so.
Thank you
The screen shake is a nice touch, though I feel like it happens a tiny bit before it should. I'd have to go frame by frame to make sure, but it currently feels like the screenshake happens slightly before the explosion appears, whereas, if there is going to be a sequence/order to it, the explosion should probably happen first. (Light travels faster than shockwaves/compressed air/sound.)
Blaster Faster Update!
I've gone off course and starting by adding to new features (on my own):
- Boss Fight
(Starts after 300 points, in the gif it appears instantly but I did change so that it floats down).
- Shield system
(Excess armour powerups can now be used to "overheal" the ship, Shield effect included!)
FIGHT!
I have added another powerup (Rapid Fire)
Defeating the boss now also gives you a teddy bear. In your next run you can pick up this teddy and gain the power to gain energy from fallen foes and launch vampiric bullets that will give you more energy. This creates a boss shredding loop of absolute destruction!
I have also added A NEW BOSS:
I have finally managed to get my GM:S to let me save the game properly. I now have a itch.io page with an operational download (hopefully). Feel free to give criticism or just leave a comment.
Here it is:
https://okkie.itch.io/spyc
This is already looking and feeling miles better than my first few GM games! XD
Today I added:
2 new enemies to go with my boss and a new menu system that now indicates around which planet you will be playing.
New Menu
More friends!
The new version will be on my itch.io withing the next 48h - haven't tested it properly yet.
If I am posting too frequently please let me know and I'll limit my updates to once a week or once every two weeks etc.
I can't decide if it looks better since I've played my game too much and I'm an awful artist soo... yeah.
I've added the final "stage" where a giant asteroid hits you and I'm planning on letting the character get out of his crashed ship and when this happens the game will become a 'platformer' (I want to try make a platformer). Will post that in a week or two.
Thanks for all the input so far - I know having a newbie on the forums might not interest (or may even annoy) most people so I appreciate that there has been feedback :)
You could also consider making a new thread when you make a new project (like Sweethearts). That way, people can more easily reply and give comments on that project without it getting confused/intermingled with the others you're working on.
Just a thought, don't let it slow you down :)