Category: DevLog

This is the Dev Update #2 for Timeless Adventure: A Journey to Begin. In case you missed it, here is the Dev Update #1.

The focus of the last few weeks was on creating more puzzles.
I use Twine to help me with that. Twine is a great and versatile open-source tool if you ask me. Even though it is meant to make complex text adventure games with branching narratives, I just love to use it for planing my games. Here you can see a part of it, representing the flow of different puzzles:

Animation Pipeline

Another big change was the animation pipeline. After some consideration and testing, I invested in Akeytsu Indie as the main animation program going forward, and so far it is great. The .fbx-files can effortlessly be imported into Godot with all animations in place.

Water shader

I also updated the water shader (again). I like the change of color, depending on the angle, as well as the waves with the white tops in the distance. But close up I think I have to change it a little bit in the future.

Harbor

The Harbor will be another area in the game, It is the gate into the city and a place of commerce and trade. Here you can see the general feel of it, even though you can consider it more a “concept environment scene” and it will change:

The next few weeks

In the coming weeks, I want to add and also flesh out puzzles. Depending on how that is going, I try to also implement another area, probably the city.

I hope to see you around.
In the meantime, don’t forget to wishlist and/or follow me,

Cheers

Hey,
I wanted to start posting more regular updates about the state of the game. So here is the Dev Update #1.

About the game

First, let me give you a quick overview, what I planned for this game:

• One seamless connected fantasy world where time got frozen (only for humanoid beings though)
• A storyline, that guides the player through the world
• 8 different themed environments filled with different races and characters
• Unique puzzles to be solved in order to progress through the game
• To solve the puzzles you have to possess humans, orcs, monsters, skeletons even animals and use their individual skills
• Pick up, use, craft, manipulate, and combine weapons, items, and objects to solve the puzzles.

Unlike traditional Point&Click games, the hero is controlled with a keyboard, a gamepad, or a mouse (I am still figuring out if it can be called a Point&Click game anyway).

About the art

To be honest, for the most part, I use the low-polygon assets from Synty Studios. Now I know, that this leaves a bit of a bad taste in some mouths. But this game is ambitious enough for me, so I am fine with using pre-made assets. Also, I really like the assets, since they are very light on resources – which should result in a game that is playable on a potato – while still being detailed enough. Plus, I use a lot of self-made shaders, which should result in a unique art style overall.

About the engine

I use the Godot Engine for this project. It is an awesome open-source engine with top tier features and a wonderful community behind it. Besides that, I use all kinds of tools and programs.

With that out of the way, what is the actual state of the game?

State of the game

A lot of the foundational stuff is done. It probably gets some tweaking along the way, but for the most part, I am happy with it. New items, characters, objects, etc. can be added easily to the game. And I have a clear pipeline set up for adding the environment, animations, music, sounds, and juice to the game. As of now, gamepad, keyboard, and mouse input is supported.

The first area is also more or less done character and puzzle-wise (except polishing). It will consist of a prison, a cave, and the smuggler beach.

This will also function as the tutorial area with straight forward puzzles, where most of the base mechanics are being explored by the player. At this point, I plan to release this area as a free playable demo prior to the game being released.

Right now I am implementing puzzles for the 2. and 3. area since those puzzles will be partly intertwined and more complex in nature. There will be more details, as I get closer to being done with these areas, but they will be the most civilized parts of the world.

I guess that is it for the first Dev Update. Hopefully, you find it informative. Here you find the second Dev Update.

If you find the project just slightly interesting, consider wishlisting it and follow me on Twitter.

cheers

The Harbor is another area you will be visiting during your adventures.

A long time ago he was a feared pirate, but once he got his wooden leg and a missing eye, he became very ineffective in combat. And the rum… the rum made him quite the bad steersman too. That is how he ended up with the smugglers.

This mouse wanders the prison and its sewers for quite some time now. Although a big fan of cheese, the rarely released prisoners are essential for its survival.

This orc got captured by the Kind Queen’s smugglers when he was a little boy. Since then he is forced to load cargo all day, usually crystal tears and slaves. Whenever he finds a free minute, he carves wood.

Once part of a group that called themselves “The Basement”. They would blow up the Kind Queen’s ships carrying crystal tears

Once an ambitious smuggler for the Kind Queen, he soon found himself rotting in this cell – Since her majesty is not fond of too many strings connecting with one person