Dungeon Crawled (RPGM2)

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1W6SGIDnXQ

I knew it. I knew I should've let myself weaken sooner. I could've shown it when I only had one enemy working. But at least I didn't get so far to reveal too much.

Now, before people get their hopes up, I'd like to remind everyone that I don't have the greatest track record with completing games, and the original attempt to make this on RPGM1 didn't get far enough. Now, if I actually DO finish this game, it'll take advantage of some things that wouldn't have been possible with RPGM1. But, that's IF it gets finished. Pretty much what you see here is everything I've got playable at the moment.

...Come to think of it, I'm not even sure I showed the original attempt here.

[Ryner]

Re: *cough*

Is there a way to lose or are you just trying to get the highest score?

Also, I assume the enemies are set to just continuously move down instead of having some kind of specific pattern, yes?

[Big Rick Cook]

Re: *cough*

It seemed like the enemies had some kind of imperative, where some would move down or left/right over others, making them more likely to get/stay in the forefront. And I would also assume if one of the enemies touches you, you die or lose a life or something, since they did gradually start moving closer.

[Valkysas]

Re: *cough*

yeah, I dont think you ever posted anything like this here before. is it some kind of puzzle-battle?

[Dallas Alvis II]

Re: *cough*

Something like that, I've seen his RPGM1 version of this on YouTube. At least, I'm assuming it was his. Interesting stuff, Dray... Still the same as the original for the most part? I didn't get to finish seeing the vid because my net connections being stupid but, I remember the other one. The player has to have "X" amount of points (experience) to kill the last enemy right? Or they fail. Something like that if I remember correctly. You used a demon/gargoyle graphic in the RPGM1 version, I think.

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: *cough*

The player has to have "X" amount of points (experience) to kill the last enemy right?

What this guy said.

Yup, it's a puzzle game. Enemies are set to move towards the player. Primarily so the player can attempt to heard the enemies into positions for the advantage. And none of the enemies can actually reach you, because of a barrier blocking them. (I'll probably add a visual effect to show that.)

[Ryner]

Re: *cough*

But since the enemies (essentially) move randomly, doesn't that take away most of the puzzle element? Since you can never be sure how the open spot you create will be filled, it becomes more about hoping things turn out the best since you're unable to think more than one turn ahead.

That said, I hope you expand on the idea. Right now it looks like it's just a game of "shoot multiple turtles in a row and then check your score", but could be interesting if you add more gameplay elements.

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: *cough*

But since the enemies (essentially) move randomly, doesn't that take away most of the puzzle element? Since you can never be sure how the open spot you create will be filled, it becomes more about hoping things turn out the best since you're unable to think more than one turn ahead.

You are correct about this. It was a lot easier predicting movements in RPGM1. Enemies would change direction when they attempted to move, and you could time it so the enemy you want would move into place just after the two surrounding enemies have made their attempt. Here, I'm probably going to need to introduce an extra gameplay mechanic. At the moment, I'm considering an attack that stuns an enemy into place.

I do have a few other gameplay elements planned out, yes. The most basic of which being obstacles meant to divert the enemies' paths.

[Ryner]

Re: *cough*

What if the different enemies had their own movement patterns? Turtles always move straight down, woodmen move left/right if possible, .etc. Though that might be too complicated with a high number of enemies.

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: *cough*

The obstacles would ensure some of them would get stuck, partially on account RPGM2 doesn't know how to skip a direct movement command that can't be executed. And once levels reach a point where the first two rows are as cluttered as in the video, I can't see how varied enemy movement would make a difference.

[Wavelength]

Re: *cough*

This looks pretty fun to me! I'm sure it was a lot of work to even get it where it is.

You could probably make some sort of "chain" system using groups of the same enemy type... and it's clear you're good with VFX so maybe you could even add in some special effects.

With those together, you could probably afford to make it all even faster-paced, thus increasing the difficulty.

Sorry if it sounds like I'm telling you what to do, especially since I couldn't dream this up or make it happen with RM2. I just think these might be valid ways to address some of the valid concerns people are voicing here.

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: *cough*

Chain system? What, like you strike one enemy, and other enemies around it inexplicately self-destruct?

EDIT: Actually, you might be on to something. Fiddling around with another idea.

[Wavelength]

Re: *cough*

Chain system? What, like you strike one enemy, and other enemies around it inexplicately self-destruct?

EDIT: Actually, you might be on to something. Fiddling around with another idea.

Yup, that's what I had in mind. If you have four or five types of enemies (I think I saw 3 in the video), you can make it so that when you whack an enemy, all the adjacent enemies of that same type also pop, and all the enemies of the same type adjacent to those burst as well. The more enemies in the chain, the more points each one is worth. I guess Bust-a-Move would be the best analogy. I think it would be a cool idea, but run with whatever you've got in mind.

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: *cough*

Yeah, that, I was wanting to avoid, because then it'd be just like any other puzzler.

What I've instead got in mind is perhaps a charged attack that can strike both a front enemy and the enemy behind it. Because it seems to me that the first two rows are the most important (I found myself ignoring the third a lot), and there were plenty of instances where I needed to be able to strike that second enemy next.

The exact method I'm going to impliment the idea, I'm not sure. But a preliminary test shows that it's probably the best way to go.

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: *cough*

At first I was hesitant to post this, but then I remembered I have The Gimp.



I added the HUD. It's not quite as nifty-looking as the RPGM1 version. I sorta had to sacrifice a complete VFX HUD for a text message, or else it would cause MASSIVE SLOWDOWN. Right now, though, it's just a placeholder, not working. As for the part that's blurred out, I assure you it isn't anything that special. I just don't want you guys knowing what's there when I may decide it isn't worth having.

What I did decide is worth having is a double-attack so you can deal with those pesky enemies in the back row. At first I had it set up so a button press charges your attack to strike two enemies at once, but this wound up feeling rather awkward. Double-tapping the attack button feels much better, and it works quite well. Ultimately my test scores didn't get any better as a result, but at least I felt more in control of the situation, and it sped things up a bit.