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[Del_Duio]

THERE IS A CAT IN THE PHOTO!?!?!? 

Ha, good catch EE!

There are 2 things you don't do on Sundays: Assume a 32 yd field goal sends a playoff game into OT & Move a disgruntled 16 pound cat when she's trying to sleep. 

[Del_Duio]

Damn, well it's been awhile and what a strange H2 week it's been.

First, it turned out that the code and effects I put in for the whip's OHK vs. all undead caused a memory strain on the program. This meant that not only didn't it work properly all the time, but MMF would start replacing some of the graphics with all manner of weird stuff. For example, killing a skeleton should make a bunch of bones fly out but killing one while this glitch was active caused weird things like this to happen instead:



I tried everything I could think of to fix this, since the code and everything was technically correct, you can imagine how maddening this process was when your save / load / compile the .exe time is 4 or 5 minutes long


But most importantly, the problem was finally fixed. Turns out that when Rovert goes from room to room the immediate jump to the next frame was putting too much of a strain on the frames' code and events. So to fix this, I had to go back and make it so that every time you leave a room it jumps to a 'go between' frame (black screen) and THEN goes to the correct room. This causes a 2 second or so delay between rooms however it does solve a very irritating gameplay glitch that would have been crippling if left in.

And the best news is that this fix also potentially solves any future memory problems that might occur whenever I decide to go back and try to improve the game in a similar manner later.

The black screen delay is really only going to be irksome (yeah, I said it) to me and my playtesters though, since we've been playing some sort of build of this for over 4 years now the "old" way. The good news is that I've already gotten used to this new (working) way and I'm just glad I didn't have to take the whip code out.

[Del_Duio]

Made a new secret room that acts like a shortcut between the surface of Hoff and the crashed spaceship Proto. In here you'll find the game's latest treasure type The Status Quobe. It's a flashing cube that changes colors 4 times: RED (attack), BLUE (defense), PURPLE (propagne), and YELLOW (luck) and repeats over again. If you grab it while it's on whatever color it'll increase the corresponding stat by +1 permanently.

That might not seems like such a big deal however stat upgrades in this game are purchased and can get expensive. Also the max any stat's ever going to be is 15 (which factors in stat boosts from gear).

So there's a bit of strategy involved: Will you grab the SQ early for an early boost against weaker enemies or wait until later when upgrading a stat is likely to set you back a ton of cash.  

[Del_Duio]

I've done the next boss fight, and this one's special because the boss is none other than the anti-hero necromancer from my Necropolis Rising game. He won't count as undead in this game, so no OHK with the whip for this guy.

Only a few of his spells are the same in H2, however players will find he's a pretty good challenge once his undead army and ghostly sword / instant torch combo comes into play. The necro also has the ability to boost the ATK and SPEED of his summoned skeletons, making them even harder to kill.

Plus his HP is 666! The Hitpoints of THE BEAST.

[Hempuli‽]

I'm sure you're aware of this but I've loved to see this project get further!

[Del_Duio]

I'm sure you're aware of this but I've loved to see this project get further!

Thanks Hempuli! So would I!

Luckily I've been making a ton of great progress on the game, changes I can really see as big improvements over old builds. I've distributed a current build to my playtesters and will go from there with their feedback.

In the meantime, I have another Hoff area on deck. It's an underground factory, where they make some of the greatest snacks known to man. By the end of next week I hope to be mostly finished with it (the area, that is).

[Del_Duio]

Well, the new area is underway and it's coming out pretty cool. It's an underground factory / laboratory that makes nachos. If only such a place really existed.

[Del_Duio]

Hello again!

I've been working hard on the Nacho Lab, with a lot of emphasis on conveyor belts and boiling cheese. The cheese you can jump while in (unlike water) however without the proper protection you'll take 10 pts of damage / tick from the heat of it all.

A couple more rooms to go, and the the area's big boss should be next.

[Del_Duio]

Great progress on the new area (still), made a couple new rooms and later this week I'll tackle the big boss.

I think this area is way more reminiscent of Metroid than Castlevania. Kinda' cool how that turned out. 

[Windybeard]

Lol that floor cheese looks awesome, (never thought i would have to write that sentance)

[Del_Duio]

Thanks, WB

One of the things I have to fix later today is how the hot chicks (pictured in the cheese) aren't moving behind the cheese layer. When you first enter the room you see their eggs on the bottom and then they hatch soon afterwards. It's easy enough, gotta' love oversights of this sort.

I'm going to copy / paste my devlog entry from the Daily Click because it's more detailed in what I've been up to with this lately:

A few things to update here for those who've been following the game, and what I've been up to with it recently:

#1) I'm almost done with the latest area The Nacho Lab. This past weekend I was able to complete 2 more rooms for it and then I have 1 more corridor which leads to the eventual big boss fight for the area. Although not every area has a big boss in it, this one will be tough and guard the last of the power ups I've yet to put in the game. Also, this area is really reminding me of a Metroid game rather than anything Castlevania-ish. Works for me!

#2) I've improved the Necro fight even more than before. Using excellent feedback from my playtesters I've been able to really make this guy pretty challenging. New things include an improved Ice Sword spell for better Rovert freezin' and the Bat Form spell from my Necropolis Rising game. Definitely spices things up!

#3) One of the important NPCs you can meet and have join your crew is now key in obtaining a 'secrety' power up / upgrade to one of your armors. Let's just say that now players who want to fully explore the cooking aspect of the game will be rewarded with a cool cutscene, some interesting story bits, and a great upgrade. But now I've said too much!

#4) To further help the Hasslevania 2 n00b I've added some more player-friendly things here and there including some new entries in the in-game help book and warning signs whenever you're about to enter a big boss fight room. Since your backpack will be unavailable to you during boss fights, you'll have some time to pick and choose which armor and up to 3 weapons you can take in with you instead of being blindsided with the wrong gear and far from your last save point.

#5) Increased sequence breaking possibilities! Yes, I've gone and removed a couple of the game's normal roadblocks from key points now. This has to be fully tested- and it will be- but this will mean that players who want to explore a bit further than most might be able to get items and weapons or whatever long before they're really "supposed" to get them. This includes fights with some of the meaner big bosses earlier than usual. Don't worry though, because in order to balance this right I'm still giving players the "easier" paths to take that are.. eh, more obvious I guess 

Also: I may be in the market for another playtester for the game, if you're interested Windybeard. I gotta' trust any playtester for this, and at least I can trust you! If you're interested please let me know either here or via e-mail and thanks again

[Windybeard]

Also: I may be in the market for another playtester for the game, if you're interested Windybeard. I gotta' trust any playtester for this, and at least I can trust you! If you're interested please let me know either here or via e-mail and thanks again

Hey man, that would be awesome, i would love to have a test of Hasslevania! let me know what you need from me and ill do my best!

Thanks buddy!