Fall Production Schedule: Revision 2

Code Things to Be Done by the Alpha:

• Crowd Meter
• Grunt and Scientist AI
• Alternate Pinball Controls
• Damage/Power/Health
• Polygon collision boxes
• Breakable Objects
• Front and Back Collision
• Attack/Dodge Mechanic
• Solo Mode Mechanic
• Finished Controls with Steering after Throw

Art Things to Be Done by the Alpha:

• Scientist Placeholders
• Ozzy Damage States
• Breakable Object Placeholders
• Level Start Screen
• Level End Screens (Game Over/Victory with stats)
• First Level Background
  

Week 9 - Wednesday, Nov 4

Art - making 2 kinds of smash-able objects (damage dealing and smashing for the sake of it), finishing the placeholder damage states for Ozzy

Code – Fixed screen scroll/flixel integration, code cleanup, grunt AI planned out, damage/power system integrated. Pool ball style controls readied for testing.

Music – Starting final recording for the first level track. Compose 2nd level track, Compose game over & victory music.

Week 10 - Wednesday, Nov 11

Art – Scientist placeholders done, start first level background.

Code - Crowd meter is implemented, front and back collisions are added. Damage/power system finished off. Testing Begins.Grunt AI integrated. Decide which control scheme is used then add steering to it.

Music - Start final drum and vocal tracking for first level track. Compose 2nd level track. Finish game over & victory music.

Week 11 - Wednesday, Nov 18

Art - First background finished.

Code – Crowd meter is linked to the combo meter, scientists can now decrease the crowd meter when in position. Front/Back collisions polished. Testing results are put into effect. Scientist AI integrated.

Music - Composing 2nd level track. Start Composing Title Screen track.

Week 12 - Wednesday, Dec 2 – Prototype 3 – combo and crowd meter working together, first level song completed and level 1 background completed. Near finished game at this point.

Week 13 - Wednesday, Dec 9

This is when the actual play test starts. Be ready for this.

Art – Anything that does not have a placeholder at this point.

Code – All animation states inserted into the game.

Music - Start final recording title screen track, game over & victory screen tracks.

Week 14 - Wednesday, Dec 16 – Alpha – One finished level.

Mosh Pit Prototype 2

Play the Prototype

This version contains tweaked controls and a working combo system

Testing Feedback:

• Audio feedback to go in a loop instead of getting stuck on the last octave. Add in the UGH and the smack noises to play with it.

• Swapping the score and combo #'s position and making the numbers bigger, especially the score.

• There needs to be giving and recieving damage

• The player needs more things to do and wants to feel more interaction with the hit, the dodge hit buttons need to start coming in.

• Hit animation should have a push off one directly after it so it shows he's gaining power.

• More feedback for hits. If it's strong something more should happen, the character needs to be more expressive and feedback for if you're doing a good job/the combo meter going up/bad job

• We need a team/developer name.

• Don't forget about the end of a level/start of a level screens and what they do/audio/graphics etc.

Next Control Scheme to Try

Pull back on the mouse in the opposite direction of where you want to go. Then an arrow grows in the direction you want to go, the larger the arrow the fast the player goes. like pinball. When he's in motion then you can steer just by moving the mouse. The faster he goes the harder to steer he is.

Click once to stop and if a new movement is entered the player slows down to a stop then takes off again so they don't just keep shooting him places.

New Control Ideas

Things to think about control wise:

Do you even need to hold the mouse button down? Can you just flick without holding the button or click then flick?

Collision Graphics

Do I need separate collision poofs from when you do damage to an enemy and when an enemy does damage to you?


Do I also need a series of collisions for when the player misses an attack or does a stronger attack?


Should I just scale up the one star effect depending on the strength of the attack?

3 sentences of awesome.

Everything is rubber.

Everything is fluid.

We all must destroy.

Combo Timer Graphic

It will be a hand throwing up the horns with the inner red fill draining out of it. Here's a quick sketch \m/

Then have the scoring in the Tony Hawk style with the score x the combo number

Post posting notes: The flames should either be black or not red and should end BEFORE the numbers so they stand out. That and when draining the space should be black not gray or transparent black.

Getting characterization

I just realized:


The characters need to bicker at each other during gameplay. It could be whoever you don't have selected talks by means of either a speech bubble (That'll appear over their tracking icon if they're off screen) or just by audio clips.

Midterm Things Think About

- Sound Design. How can I use the ambient noise in a concert and the effects themselves to make it all feel more brutal.


- Making the game more cinematic, is it still zoomed out too far? Where does it zoom in? How can I make that awesome?

Fixing Level 1 Background

The perspective was really off and still slightly is (in the top right corner) so that needs to be addressed. The other part is an unexploded atom bomb would be awesome. When the resistance arrives they drive up brake hard and accidentally bump it where it freaks out for a second then fizzles out with a plume of smoke.

Grunt Enemy Concept Art

So this is the enemy the player will see the most of. In line with the game the scarier the mask on the enemy the weaker he actually is. This came from a variety of sources, the main one being US swat team outfits and body armor. He needs to look half military and half police force. The cattle prod being the best weapon for subduing people.

Mosh Pit Movement Prototype

Play the Prototype

Key feedback from the play testing:
- Clicking a spot should be able to move the character there.
- Players need negative feedback if they decide to just drag the character around instead of throwing him.
- There might be too little friction
- Enemies move like they're on crack
- There needs to be more indication of where the player is traveling after he's thrown
- Players enjoy the act of throwing and hitting things but they need direction
- Players are able to quickly get a feel for the controls

Collision Map

EDIT: It might be helpful to make damage and momentum into one unit, so 3/100 = one general collision unit then use those to tweak.

This assumes both the player and enemy have a health of 100 and a max momentum of 3.

Drag mode – When the mouse is down

Click move – When the player is moving to a spot the player clicked

Before the hit

When the player is within a close distance to an enemy that can damage him a dodge icon should appear over that enemies head. Also if there is an enemy he can damage the player can hit a button in order to strengthen the attack (+10) if he hits it at the right time, otherwise the damage is less than normal (-10).

Enemy hits Player (enemy momentum > player momentum)

The enemy is behind the player (enemy always wins this no matter what momentum level the player is at)

Enemy Momentum +1

Player Momentum -3

Enemy Health +0

Player Health – 15 * Enemy Momentum Level

Enemy Animation - Hit

Player Animation – Hit from behind (If damage is > 15 Hit hard from behind)

Player is in drag mode

Enemy Momentum +1

Player Momentum -1

Enemy Health + 0

Player Health - 10 * Enemy Momentum Level

Enemy Animation - Hit (if the damage is more than 20 Hard Hit)

Player Animation - Hurt (if the damage is more than 20 Hurt Badly)

Player has been thrown/moving

Enemy Momentum +1

Player Momentum -1

Enemy Health +0

Player Health - 10 * The difference between the player and enemy momentum

Enemy Animation – Hit (if the damage is more than 20 Hard Hit)

Player Animation - Hurt (if the damage is more than 20 Hurt Badly)

Player is in click move

Same as drag mode

Player is still

Same as drag mode

Player hits Enemy (player momentum => enemy momentum)

The player is behind the enemy

Enemy Momentum -3

Player Momentum -1

Enemy Health - 30 * Player Momentum Level

Player Health +0

Enemy Animation – Hurt (if the damage is more than 30 Hurt Badly)

Player Animation - Hit (if the damage is more than 30 Hard Hit)

Player is in drag mode

Enemy Momentum +1

Player Momentum -1

Enemy Health + 0

Player Health - 10 * Enemy Momentum Level

Enemy Animation - Hit (if the damage is more than 20 Hard Hit)

Player Animation - Hurt (if the damage is more than 20 Hurt Badly)

Player has been thrown/moving

Enemy Momentum -3

Player Momentum -1

Enemy Health - 20 * The difference between the player and enemy momentum

Player Health +0

Enemy Animation – Hurt (if the damage is more than 20 Hurt Badly)

Player Animation - Hit (if the damage is more than 20 Hard Hit)

Player is in click move

same as drag mode

Enemy whose been hit knocks into another Enemy

Hit Enemy Momentum -1

Hit Enemy Health - 1/5^th the damage enemy that hit him just took

Hit Enemy Animation – Hurt (if damage is more than 20 Hurt Badly)

Original Enemy Momentum -1

Original Enemy Health -5

Original Enemy Animation Whatever animation it was in previously it repeats

Enemy whose been hit knocks into the Player

Nothing happens

Player whose been hit knocks into Enemies

Enemy Momentum +0

Player Momentum +0

Enemy Health +0

Player Health -5

Enemy Animation – Hurt (if the damage is more than 20 Hurt Badly)

Player Animation - Hit (if the damage is more than 20 Hard Hit)

Sound Design Reference

Collisions:

Dead Space: Isaak stomping on things and that nice crunch.

Halo: Punching enemies

Saints Row 2: Getting hit by a car

GTA 3: Running someone over