Eron - 2D platformer with a twist

Comments

• NDDDave

  6:55am 18 Feb 2015

  Wow the graphics looks awesome! The video doesn't display what the game is about. I know that its you running, jumping and falling. Also the the red portals dos something to the environment. Did I get that right?
• Tuism

  8:47am 18 Feb 2015

  Looks like you switch between parallel worlds to access platforms etc. Not sure why your initial movement speed is so slow? Is there a point to walking slowly?
  
  Also yes, what are the big blobs for?
  
  Looks good :)
• dislekcia

  9:17am 18 Feb 2015

  Is there anything that indicates that a platform exists in the parallel world, or do players just have to learn their locations through trial and error?

  Thanked by 1Tuism
• redsplatgames

  1:33pm 18 Feb 2015 edited 1:36pm 18 Feb 2015

  The blobs are actually robot enemies. You have to destroy them by switching to the "spirit realm", colliding with their center and the switch back to destroy them from the inside. These enemies are non-threatening but it can prove a challenge to destroy them.
  
  Walking slow sets up the mood, you can play the demo to see. It's kind of an intro. You're peacefully minding your business while all of a sudden you hear a crash, setting up urgency and then only allowing the player to run.
  
  There are indications for the enemies yes. When you are in the "spirit realm" where the enemies do not exist, if you come close to them they slowly fade in to 50% opacity as you draw closer. I used this behaviour on everything in the start but it felt like it took away from the game's "secretive nature". What I mean is, if you traverse the world seeing both realms, it takes away from the "sense of exploration".
  
  As for handling this in gameplay, the player has to constantly switch between worlds to see what's up ahead. Trial and error can also work but it's not a requirement.
  
  Gameplay is basically about the player being challenged mentally and physically to switch among worlds to progress.
• redsplatgames

  1:33pm 18 Feb 2015

  And graphics are actually from an asset I bought on the unity asset store.
• redsplatgames

  1:34pm 18 Feb 2015

  I am responsible for design and programming. It sucks being solo-indie :(
• Jurgen

  6:18pm 18 Feb 2015

  Pretty cool, something I would like to see here is:
  - Higher contrast between worlds, for example (day and night) or (peaceful and chaotic), (Paradise and end of the world etc)
  In Soul Reaver, the spirit realm becomes a distorted version of the real world.
  Will your main character ever be affected by the realm change? Or is it just a natural or tech-ability?
  Interesting:)
• redsplatgames

  7:40pm 18 Feb 2015

  ATM the normal realm is "normal" and when the player switches to the spirit realm I apply a bloom effect. Used to also have motion blur in spirit realm but took it out.
  
  Is there maybe another post-processing effect I can try?
  
  No, the main character is not affected, it is a natural ability.
• Jurgen

  6:41am 19 Feb 2015

  I'm working with Game Maker Studio at the moment and I don't know enough about Unity.
  I did however find this:
  docs.unity3d.com/Manual/comp-ImageEffects.html
  
  
• Tuism

  6:52am 19 Feb 2015

  Yeah I wish I could get postprocessing easily........ It's only available with Pro. One of the big reasons to bite down and invest.
• FanieG

  9:30am 22 Feb 2015 edited 6:51pm 22 Feb 2015

  Is there maybe another post-processing effect I can try?

  Saw that there is a cool Camera Filter pack on the Unity Asset store. It is on the 24 Hour Sales today. Could help with the post-processing effect problem.
  
  https://www.assetstore.unity3d.com/en/#!/content/18433
  
  [EDIT] Damn still need Unity Pro for it.
  
  
• redsplatgames

  12:53pm 3 Mar 2015

  So I released the game, made a few changes based on the comments here :)
  
  It's on sale right now ($0.49):
  http://redsplatgames.itch.io/eron
  
  [youtube]H3JURRC41mc[/youtube]
• redsplatgames

  9:29am 5 Mar 2015

  Got greenlit along with a bunch of cool games, thanks for all the votes :D
  
  https://greenlightupdates.com/
• FanieG

  8:40pm 8 Mar 2015

  Got it for free of itch.io today. Any specific reason for the 100% off sale? Sorry I did not donate towards it (really didn't have bucks). I like the idea of the game, like the art of the game, but hate the controls. The combination of X, space, shift and left Ctrl makes no sense to me. Pressing and lifting the shift key while holding down X and tapping space feels extremely uncomfortable. I think the sprint mechanic could have been left out in lieu of a speed variable that changes the longer you hold a move button. Managing the shift and spacebar only would have felt much more natural. I guess that the game would lend it self much better to a controller, which I do not have with me. Controls are what makes or brakes a platformer for me. Please don't take my comment above as negative, it's just my opinion, and other players might have much better motor-skills than me and have no problem with the key layout. Also, I agree with @Tuism in that the opening sequence's speed is waaay toooo sloooooow! You could have had the player move at the normal speed, but extended the platform to still allow the cool looking credits to display. Really liked the bird flying up as you approached though, that was a nice touch and the sound for it was spot on. Sorry again that I just took the freebie without contributing, but wanted to try this out. Congrats on getting greenlit. I'll buy the end-product when you release on steam.