next »

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

OUT NOW!!!

Steam
Humble Store
itch.io
IndieGameStand
Website

or download the demo

Retool is a 3D hacking puzzle game set on incomplete orbital defense stations 
that circle around Sinai, home planet of the alien species known as Onix.

After 43 years of war, the Onix triumphed and defeated the humans. The victory came at a 
cost of destruction to their planet and orbital stations. Instead of repairing it themselves, the Onix used 
their captured prisoners as slave labor to rebuild their destroyed properties, starting with the stations.

You are Maria, an engineer that was captured in the final weeks of the war. Having hacked 
your way out of your prison cell on a station, you must escape and return home.

Features

• Hack computers to rewire electronics to make them work the way you want
• Travel through twenty different stations to help Maria escape from the Onix
• Travel through twenty different stations to help Maria escape from the Onix

Below is the PC Launch Trailer video:

Background
I have been making small games for the past few years. It was more for practice than to show anything off. I am now at a stage where I think I can make something half-decent. So I started to work on Retool in December 2014. I so far have the core gameplay loop how I wanted, which is using computers to hack into electronics to change their outputs. Now, I am trying to make it better looking and start adding new features.

I will try to update this frequently for all the people that might be interested in this.

Updates
DevLog 001: Updated GUI / Lighting
DevLog 002: Added Animation
DevLog 003: First Playable Build
DevLog 004: Retool Build 0.006 and New Art Style
DevLog 005: 3D Artist Needed!!!
DevLog 006: Retool Build 8
DevLog 007: UI Functionality
DevLog 008: Smile for the Camera (Screenshot Feature)
DevLog 009: Hacking 101 - Creating a Good GUI
DevLog 010: Blood and Terminals
DevLog 011: Level intro animation created - will not be using it
DevLog 012: Level Objectives
DevLog 013: Electronic Functionality
DevLog 014: Character Models WIP
DevLog 015: New Skyboxes
DevLog 016: Art, Lighting and Animations
DevLog 017: Electronic Meshes Implemented, Level Design Started
DevLog 018: Electronic Animations and Level Design
DevLog 019: Particles New and Old
DevLog 020: Level Props Implemented
DevLog 021: All Levels Designed and Implemented!
DevLog 022: Color Correction and Other Boring Stuff
DevLog 023: Getting Ready for Steam Greenlight
DevLog 024: Now on Steam Greenlight
DevLog 025: Weapons Nearly Completed, Waiting To Be Greenlit
DevLog 026: All Meshes Implemented, Still Waiting To Be Greenlit
DevLog 027: Demo Released
DevLog 028: Launch Date Announced
DevLog 029: Retool Is Out For All PC Platforms

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

So this week I worked on updated the GUI and lighting. The GUI and lighting that I was using was mainly for test purposes. The new GUI and lighting makes the game easier to understand and much better to look at.

The GUI now gives the player cues when they can press a button to do an action, such as pick up item or interact with an electronic item. The GUI has also been updated when hacking. It gives the player more information, such as currently highlighted device what the output is, and what the new output can be. Below is a screenshot comparison between the old GUI and the new GUI.



I have updated the lighting by decreasing its intensity. I have also added new shaders to the player model and started using some post-processing effects on the camera. I am still not satisfied with how it looks, but it is much better than before. Below is a screenshot comparison between the old lighting and the new lighting.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

Implementing some of the animation

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

You can now download and play the first playable build of Retool. It will help you understand the game 43% more than just reading the text.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

I have created a new build of Retool (0.006) that you can now download from GameJolt. This build contains the following updates:

• Four new levels
• New art style
• Working menus
• Scoring system
• Options for screen resolution, volume, etc.
• Better levels than prior build to help new players understand the game better (I hope)

I am looking to get some feedback on how you think the game is, what can be improved upon, what you like, don't like, etc.

Below are some screenshots of the new build:

[Alex Strook]

Looks interesting, but for the moment it remind me a LOT of gunpoint, looks almost like a 3D port of gunpoint

Some suggestions : The hacking interface is really not user friendly, maybe a more contextual system (like gunpoint), right now its a bit confusing to know what exatcly am I target (even with the list), the switch should pop out way more in the 3D view, and maybe when element like a door is selected, you should display a outline ou make the object glow...

Gunpoint (and other games) made this "hack view mode" where not only you see connection, but the way thing are displayed is much
more simple !

I'm liking the way the art is going, maybe the sharpen effect is a bit to high, but it's starting to look cool !

but it's definitly promising !

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

I know what you mean by it reminds you a lot of Gunpoint. I originally started making this as a prototype to see how Gunpoint would work in 3D with a controller. I am finally at the stage where I am going to start adding features so that it will (hopefully) start to distinguish itself from Gunpoint.

I know the hacking interface needs to be improved. A lot. The idea about highlighting/glowing the object is a good idea, I didn't think about using that. I am also going to update the connection lines between the items so that you can see the direction in which they are connected to each other.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

So I am looking for a 3D artist for Retool. Most of you know what Retool is by now. If you don't then just read the first post.

Quick Overview of the job

• Cel-shaded art style
• Set in a futuristic, dark alien world
• Need a modular kit to create levels (floor and wall prefabs)
• Need the main player character + several other characters
• Designs of several electronics used in the game and three different weapons

If you like what you read so far, then click here for the full description of what I need and how to apply for it.

The deadline for applications is August 24th 2015.

Thanks for taking your time to read this.

[roboy]

just tried this out and wanted to say how awesome it already is!

the gameplay feels pretty tight and the art, albeit placeholder, looks pretty neat - I love the cell shaded look

keep it up man, looking forward to see how this goes

good luck getting an artist as well!

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

Retool build 8 is now available from GameJolt. It contains the same four levels as before but with much more improvement... I think:

• Functional UI that allows you to change sceen resolution, graphics settings, rebindable keys, basically the whole shebang.
• Hacking has been much improved (in my opinion), still require feedback on what you think. Yes you, the on that is reading this.
• It should work perfectly fine with keyboard and mouse or gamepad. Again, feedback people! How else will I know whether something is fixed.
• You can now take your own screenshots within the game.
• Shooting has been much improved. Guards will now kill you 97.8% of the time they see you (not statistically correct).
• This is probably the last public build... or not.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

It has been several months since I last posted a proper update on here but quite a lot has happened since then. First, I have hired artists. This means no more having to look at my basic 3D models. Their art will be integrated into the game over the next several months and that should make a big difference to the game. I am also going trying to put the game on Steam Greenlight by around mid-December time.

Since my last update, I haven’t worked much on the gameplay as the artists were creating the art. Therefore, I decided to focus on one of the dreadful aspects of game development: the UI. In that time, I have implemented all of my UI functionality and included all the features I wanted (screen resolution settings, rebindable keys, graphic settings, etc.). The design of the UI definitely is not final, but it works and looks much better than before.

You can see below some of the new UI in action below:

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

This week I created a screenshot feature for Retool. Players can start the screenshot feature at nearly any time during play.

When I implemented the screenshot feature, I had to ensure that certain aspects of the game were paused, such as rigid bodies, animation, etc. This took quite some time because I had to find a way to store their initial velocity or animation state, and then reassign it back. I ended up using a script that captures the amount of velocity when the screenshot mode starts and reassign it back when screenshot mode ends. Simple but effective. The movement and rotation keys control the camera so that players can move around to capture a screenshot. I also created a menu that allows changing the HSV(Hue, Saturation, and Value) of the screen before capturing the screenshot. Now players can create artistic screenshots.

Overall, it was quite simple to create but I had to tweak it quite a bit to make it look and work this great. Some of the main features of the screenshot are:

• It can take screenshots 1/2/4 times the size of the game resolution
• All HUD elements automatically will be hidden when a player takes a screenshot
• The player can customize the Hue, Saturation and Value of the game to get better looking screenshots

Below are some images of the screenshot feature in action and some screenshots captured by me. Even with no prior knowledge in art, I have to say these screenshots turned out quite good.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

One of the biggest, and most, complaints I get about Retool was the hacking interface. It sucks. I knew it for a long time. I tried to delay it for as long as possible but this past week I decided to tackle it head-on. Over the past few months, I had written notes on how the new hacking GUI could possibly work. I implemented them all and settled on my favorite design. Therefore, without further delay, I bring to you the new hacking GUI.

I designed the GUI and controls around my number one priority, to make it work with keyboard and mouse, and gamepad. The GUI now feels a lot easier to use, and since I have been the only one that has been using it, it has received 100% positive feedback.

I have also added a 2-second delay to the initial hacking of a computer. I didn't think it would be that realistic for players to just go on a computer and start hacking. When a computer is hacked, it will make all the electronics linked to the computer glow (with a simple light, but will update it at one point). I also updated all connection lines between electronics so that they are animated. Now it is easier to see how the electronics are connected.

The one thing I do miss from this GUI is the ability to see all the different electronics connected to this computer in a list. I might implement this back in depending on what feedback I get from the new GUI and controls.

Here is the tl;dr of this update:

• Updated hacking GUI and controls
• In hacking mode, electronics glow to show that they can be 'retooled'
• Electronic connections are now animated show the player how they are connected

Below are some GIFS of the new hacking GUI in action.

Delay in hacking a computer (with a backwards loader)


New hacking GUI


Changing a output of an electronic

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

This week I worked on creating something to ensure that the player never has to restart a level if they were to die. I was going to create an in-level save system that would save the player progress automatically, but I found it not to fit in with the story of Retool (and because I couldn’t figure how to code this in Unity). I then came up with the brilliant idea of creating a copy of the player and letting the player continue from there. I didn't want them to start from the beginning so I decided to create 'terminals'. These terminals allow the player to save a 'copy' of themselves so that whenever they die, the machine will create a new copy of the player and they can continue from there. I also made sure that there is only one terminal that can be active in the game. The player can hack other terminals during the game to activate them, which will deactivate the old terminal. Now this means the player never has to restart a level (or lose a level).

Also, I created blood effects that, in my opinion, look good. I just create a new projector every time I need to create some blood splatter. To make sure that there are not too many projectors during runtime, I just put a simple timer that destroys them after some time.

Below are some images of the new updates.

Terminal in action


Retool: The Clone Wars


World's first one-man pyramid

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

Worked on several things this week but only managed to complete one. I created a level intro animation. I like how it looks, but I don't think it will suit Retool. It makes it suggest that Retool is some fast-paced game, which it is not. It's back to the drawing board for me.

Below is the level intro animation in all its glory.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

Last week I took part in Ludum Dare (shameless plug), so I didn't post an update. This week I continued my work from last week and created and implemented the final two objective types (the goals in each level). The first one is the player has to retrieve a keycard and then get to the exit. A guard will usually carry the keycard so the player will have to kill the guard to get the keycard. This is already much more exciting than the static diamonds I have been using.

The second objective type I created is where the player has to save a NPC. The goal will be to find the NPC and then lead it to the exit. To add a bit more challenge, the guards, electronics, and even the player can also kill the NPC. To ensure that the player is never shown a loss screen, the NPC will automatically respawn from the terminal meaning the player has to retrieve him again and get him to the exit.

The other objectives already implemented are getting to the exit (which will be used for the earlier levels while players get used to the game mechanic), killing a target (VIP) and killing every guard on a level. Made good progress so far during the holiday period. Now it's off to create all the electronics' functionality in the game.

Below are gifs of retrieving a keycard and saving a NPC.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

Great news, I coded the functionality of all the electronics in the game. Now I am just waiting for their meshes to be created. This means the game is now officially 40% complete. Below you can see some of the electronics in action (with placeholder art of course).

Using a security camera to turn on a electronic floor pad


A floor pad button that triggers a turret to shoot


Lasers that turn the lights on and off when someone walks through them

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

The 3D artist for the characters is nearing completion with the meshes, so I thought it would be nice to see a comparison between my character models compared to the artist's character models. Enjoy.

Even without the texture, the artist's player mesh looks much better


I was lazy so I used the player's mesh as the soldier's mesh


The guards finally look alien


Again, laziness


I regret nothing with my mesh


It... kind of looks like him

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

I created some new skyboxes for Retool. I am not sure whether to keep the new skyboxes or return to having a solid color. What do you think? I also started to implement the new level modular kit.

Solid color skybox


Nice purple color skybox


Green and mean


Maybe this is too many colors

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

This week I implemented all of the level modular kit and the characters. The game already started to look much better than before just by updating the assets. This also gave me the chance to start working on the lighting in the game. After spending couple of days tinkering with it, I decided to go with an orangey-bluey color. It gives the feeling of calmness and mystery at the same time, or it could be just be me. I also worked a little on the animations but not sure how I feel about it. Feedback on that would be nice actually.