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[Omiya Games]

I figured I should get in the habit of posting a DevLog when I do my #OneGameAMonth, so here it is!  A few things worth noting:

• #OneGameAMonth, as the name implies, is about making one game every month.  I'm starting this project pretty late for October, so instead the target release date is on the end of November.  Edit: the project is delayed to the end of January.
• Due to the short deadline,  I will be using a lot of free art assets.  For the purpose of prototyping, these assets will suffice.
• Since this game is more or less a prototype of an idea, I may abandon it very quickly if I think it's not going anywhere.

With that out of the way, lets get started:

A long time ago (2 weeks back, in fact) I said on my blog that I would make a point & click adventure after being inspired by Ko-op’s GNOG. I’m finally getting started on it, and targeting the end of November for release. First step: get Unity-chan to move to different check points.



For the code name of this project (I haven’t figured out what to title this game yet), I’m calling it Prototype: Murakami. Like the past code name convention, it’s in reference to an artist and Superflat founder, Takahashi Murakami. The plan is to create a Killer7-esque game with point & click segments, explaining the dark and flat aesthetic for this game. It is admittedly a complex and daunting task, but I’m sure it’s going to be a fun challenge.

[Omiya Games]

I should probably mention that I'm cross-posting from my blog.  Anyways...

Last time, I was working on making Unity-chan move in a pre-defined, on-rails fashion from point-to-point.  Today, I implemented a button to turn the character around 180 degrees at any point in the game.  Additionally, I cleaned up the running and turning animation so that the character moves very smoothly.  Lastly, I updated the physics so that the player can climb and descend hills pretty easily.



The screenshot above shows my work-in-progress with the rail system.  Like Killer7, the intent is to have several branching paths.  As of now, the connections between each points are working, but the ability to choose which direction to go when approaching a fork in the road is not.  Hopefully that can be implemented tomorrow, making the prototype of a navigation system complete.

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my blog

Last time, I was in the middle of the rail system, particularly on setting up a menu that shows up when approaching a fork.  Today, I have a prototype of the menu letting you know of the branching paths.  Clicking on the buttons in the screenshot below will put Unity-chan down that path.  Escaping from the menu is as easy as just turning around with a key-press (currently assigned to shift).



Next up will be the camera animation.  In the screenshot above, it's hard to tell that our heroine reached a fork.  Thus it'll be necessary to visually show that the path does indeed split.  That's a little hard to do with the current suspenseful camera angle, so triggers will be implemented to pan the camera out.

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my blog.

Yesterday, I finished the navigation, and had a working menu system to navigate from one path to another.  Today, I added in camera animations to provide better view on the paths the character can take.  I'm still working on update the buttons to indicate direction, but as you can see in the screenshot below, I've made some progress on that as well.



Once I fix the buttons (you can tell the text leaking out of the screen), the plan is to start on the Point & Click puzzles.  For a week-long effort, it's exciting to see the navigation working, but I still have a long way to go!

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my blog

Here's a quick update I wrote before the Bacon Game Jam: I fixed the buttons from last time.  I've also improved the camera animation to react more quickly.  Similar updates has been made to the menus as well.  As mentioned earlier, point & click puzzles will be next.



While I'm working on Bacon Game Jam, there might be a mysterious post that claims it's automated.  That's the playable build of Prototype: Murakami!  Now that the game is in a testable state, I've configured the automated system to post publicly to this blog.  The prototype is, well, in super-early state, but it should bring better context to these development updates.

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my blog

Today was a an incredibly busy day with the Bacon Game Jam voting period going on and the inauguration of the Tech Valley Game Space.  I was able to fit in a few hours for Prototype: Murakami, though, to start on the point & click portion of the game.   Behold!



Alright, I admit it, it's just a plank of wood.  And I don't think I'll get any cookies when I say getting to here was a lot harder than I expected.  Rest assured the next update will be a lot more interesting.  In fact, you can playtest it right now!

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my blog

Yesterday, I spent some time working on the point & click puzzle portion...and found it a lot more difficult than I expected.  The point & click puzzle itself exists in the 3D space, so to convert that space into 2D controls requires a lot more math.  So instead, I switched tasks and started on something simpler: being able to look around in third-person aiming mode.



Similar to Resident Evil 4, this causes your character to stop moving entirely.  Additionally, aiming is done using a laser rather than a reticle.  Killer7 fans should immediately recognize what this part is for: to emulate the incredibly disjointed combat portion, just in third-person perspective.

[Josiah Tobin]

I'm huge fan of Killer7, so I'm interested to see where you go with this.

[Omiya Games]

I'm huge fan of Killer7, so I'm interested to see where you go with this.

It's probably going to be very short, like 15-30 minute experience.  But I think it's worth the challenge.

Anyway, new update:

Cross-posted from my blog

I update the point & click portion of Prototype: Murakami with a rear-view mirror and an inventory space to drop your items into.  There's no items per se in the game yet, but the graphics are there for demonstration.  At least the plank of wood now doesn't look that bad anymore.



So what's with the rear-view mirror?  Well, the idea is that time doesn't stop when you're approaching a point & click puzzle.  While attempting to assess the puzzle, you'll also have to keep track of what's going on behind your character.  This means I might put a few jump scares during the puzzle portion...

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my blog

After a wave of events that happened at once around this weekend, I've took a bit of break on Tuesday before getting back on Prototype: Murakami.  Right now, the current build is very broken, so there won't be an automated post today, but there is a new screenshot to show off.



Yup, Unity-chan is finally holding a gun.  The plan is to have this as an equip-able item during the puzzle sequences, so there may be portions where you have to sacrifice your pistol for a brief moment to get through a certain passage.  How thrilling!

And for early credits, the pistol was created by Lotnik, and licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported.

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my blog

Apologize for the late update. To be honest, I haven't had much time to put into Prototype: Murakami, and the point & click portions are proving to be more difficult than I initially expected. Still, I did add in a new feature: drag & drop into the inventory. The screenshot below demonstrates the pistol dropped into an inventory space. Should Unity-chan leave the puzzle at this state, she will now have the pistol equipped.



As of right now, this is only a one-way drop. Once the pistol is dropped into the inventory, it can't be take out. I'll be working on making sure the pistol and other items can be dragged out of the inventory. Still, this is a pretty darn good start in my book for an inventory system, especially since I'm programming this from scratch.

I'm still working on this puzzle portion, but I may have a playable build posted on my blog tonight.

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my blog

Phew!  The automated build is finally up!  This time around, I did some re-writes on how the drag & drop is handled between the inventory and puzzle plank-of-wood, meaning now it's possible to pick-up the gun from the inventory and vice versa.  Since today is #ScreenshotSaturday, here are all the screenshots!







I'll be working on ironing out a few more things today, including wonky navigation menus, item placement not being stored at all, and more complex puzzle 3D orientations.  Hopefully by next week, I can get started on combat, and with it, learning how to do IK-animations with Unity.

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my dev-blog

Hey, guys.  Sorry for the late update.  Last time, I said I was going to work on several things, including fixing the menu placement and making items persistent.  While there's no save slots to store your progress, you can now carry objects from one location to another with ease.  Additionally, when the pistol is in the characters inventory, not only will she be carrying the gun around, she'll carry it with her after entering doors as well!  Things are finally shaping up!



I only have a few more issues related to the point & click puzzle portions to iron out, including the orientation of the items when using them between different locations.  I can finally get started on the combat portion very soon.

[Omiya Games]

Cross-posted from my blog

Today, I finally ironed out a lot of bugs I had left-over on the point & click puzzle portions of the game.  The items being dragged around different puzzles now rotate to the correct orientation.  The cursor now changes based on what action you take.  Finally, the cursor appears in the game only when it needs to, i.e. when buttons appear, or you're in a point & click puzzle portion.  This means that I can finally get started on the combat portion of the game.



Actually, I take that back.  I plan on taking a break for a few days due to certain circumstances (a birthday to celebrate, a few unfinished choirs, etc.).  At least this time it's a scheduled break from development.  I plan to be back on this project Monday next week, so stay tuned!

[amanfr01]

I really like the art direction of the character model!  It's very nice.  I look forward to seeing more

[Savick]

I would really like to see the main character somewhere besides in engine every time. I can tell it's a girl with ponytails and stockings, but I can barely tell anything else about her. Drawings? Concept art?

[Omiya Games]

I would really like to see the main character somewhere besides in engine every time. I can tell it's a girl with ponytails and stockings, but I can barely tell anything else about her. Drawings? Concept art?

Hey, Savick.  Actually, the main character is Unity-chan, a mascot made by Unity Japan.  As mentioned in the top post, I'm using free assets due to the short deadline (one game a month) I'm developing this game in.  And speaking of deadline...

Cross-posted from my blog

Today, I've worked on implementing gun fire.  Left-clicking while aiming will fire a bullet. Additionally, firing the seventh bullet will cause Unity-chan to reload the gun with its own (terrible) animation.  This leaves enemy implementation, combat upgrades, and smoother animations left for the combat portion of the game.



While major progress is being made on the game, I have to delay it's release to the end of January.  Unfortunately, I'm swamped with multiple projects for November and December, and need to shift my focus on them.  Until January arrives, you can expect sporadic updated on this project (if any).  I apologize for the delay, and thank you for understanding.