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[RenegadeNinjaNL]

This week I received the final meshes for the electronics so I implemented them in the game. The game looks a lot more alive now. Also started working on the level design. I have been designing all the levels on paper first, and then recreate them in the game. Most end up being tweaked when I recreate them in the game, as it is hard to judge gameplay without trying the levels. My goal for Retool will be to create 20 levels in the final game. Other than that, I also completed other small tasks this week, such as updating the character animations, creating the electronic animations, ragdolls, etc. I will create GIFs of them next week; they make the game feel much more alive.

Picture of a completed (layout-wise) level


Player hiding behind a wall from a guard


You can literally walk underneath some electronics


Sometimes flight is better than fight

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

This week I created animations for the electronics and finished the designs of all twenty levels. The levels still need to be tweaked, props added, and tested, but as of now, they are all working levels.

Security camera animation


Door opening and closing animation (normally a door would only be opened via a handscanner but I rewired them to open it via the floorpad buttons


Screenshot of a designed level


Another screenshot of a designed level

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

This week I created some new, and updated some old, particles for the game. I am particularly proud of the glass breaking particles, but the others are good nonetheless. Did some other (boring) things as well this week but overall it was a good week of progress, apart from having payment issues with a freelancer but that is a story for another time.

Breaking glass without the clean up part


Dynamic objective highlighter particles - here it is highlighting an injured soldier that needs saving


And here it is highlighting a keycard that the player needs to steal


The level exit particles - green to tell the player the exit is ready and red to tell the player that the objective still needs to be completed

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

This week I implemented the level props in all the levels. I also added an earth-like planet to all the levels so that the story kind-of makes sense. The game looks much better now if I say so myself. I finally feel I can start creating better screenshots with all the assets I have implemented over the past few weeks.

Guard standing guard


Hope you are not afraid of heights


The weapons are still being created


Two guards are always better than one


Elite guards are more dangerous than normal guards

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

This week I designed and implemented all the Retool levels! I am now in the final stages of development and I can finally see the end. I just have to optimize the game, try and make it look better with post-processing effects and test everything. Oh, and I still have to put it on Steam Greenlight. So I guess I am not that close to the end then :|

Strike three and you're out


I don't know if the weapon hurt him more or the wall


You can see that this was not my first attempt of trying to do this

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

There is not much to show this week as I was mainly optimizing the game and updating the post-processing effects. One of the biggest improvements I made was with color correction. It made the game look just that much better. You can be a judge of it yourself below.

All there is left now regarding Retool's development are some assets and music, both which are still being created. Next week I'm going to focus on creating promotional materials (trailers, screenshots, etc.) for Steam Greenlight. Also, need to update the game website with some new text. It is not the most exciting stuff but it has to be done.

Screenshot without color correction


Screenshot with color correction

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

Look ma, new description text of Retool! Other than that small update, I have imported some new meshes and tweaked some animations. Now I am just drafting of how I want the trailer to look for Steam Greenlight. Oh, and thinking about how much to release the game for. I am really stuck with that part.

Player spawning in on a cloner


Player spawning out on a teleporter


Player hacking a computer


Door animation made slower (hard to tell by gif)

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

So a lot has happened over the past two weeks. First, I created a new trailer for Retool and I have finally put it on Steam Greenlight. Go vote for it if you think it is good enough to be on Steam. Second, the music for Retool is finished. The talented Liz Rainsberry created it and you can listen to a sample of the OST by clicking here. Lastly, the promotional art for Retool was also completed. It was created by Kim Parker. Now, I just have to wait for Retool to get greenlit before I can do the final testing and release the game.

Trailer




Promotional Poster


Banner going to be used for store fronts

[elisof]

Hey hello, I thought I'd be good and wait until this thread has been updated before I post on it, haha! So yeah, I'm happy to say that I provided music for Retool. It was a great project to work on, especially since I'm all about writing ambient music at the moment.

I haven't provided music for the Greenlight trailer, I should say right now, but, like Lovepreet said, you can check out the sample track that will be heard in-game right here:

https://soundcloud.com/lizrainsberry/exploration-escape-retool-ost-sample/s-cthTc

We wanted to go with some subtle sounds so people can mainly focus on the gameplay, so what you should expect would be something minimalistic, but still ambient and atmospheric. I intend to release the three-track OST on Bandcamp at the same time as game release (when we hopefully get greenlit, of course), so watch out for that!

[Jasmine]

Man, this game sure is coming along! The reskin is wonderful and the music sets the tone beautifully! I thoroughly enjoyed the demo, so I can't wait to play the game with all the final and finishing touches added!

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

This week, I did not do much regarding the development of Retool. It was mainly marketing the game and waiting for the weapon meshes to be completed. I did get an early look at some of the meshes and they look great in my opinion. They stand out enough from the rest of the environment so that the players know what they are without having to inspect them. I did do some testing in the game but apart from that, it was an easy week (for once). I decided to use this new spare time I have to test out some of the ideas I have. None panned out so far.

Apart from that, I also created a development progress album that highlights the changes made in Retool from 2014 to today. It was inspired by recent posts on r/gamedev of developers showing progress in their own games. Hope you enjoy it!

Also, if you like Retool, go vote for it on Steam Greenlight

Bimace (sledgehammer)


Pistol


Noise Grenade

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

Retool is content complete. I received the final meshes for the weapons earlier this week and implemented them all in the game. All there is left to do is make some small tweaks to the code, do some more testing and wait to be greenlit.

I don't think there will be many updates after this one. This is because there is nothing exciting left to show until the release date. If something exciting does come up, I will definitely be making a post about it. So as this is one of the last posts, let's go out with a bang.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

The latest, and final, Retool demo is out now for Windows, Linux and Mac OS X. It is a small, three-level, demo giving you a glimpse of the core gameplay in the game. The great news about the demo is that your game data can be carried over into the full game when it is released. You can read on to find out the reason why I released a demo or just download it from itch.io right now. Also, vote for Retool on Steam Greenlight.

There were two main reasons why I created a demo for Retool. They are:

• To show you what the game is like before you purchase it
• To make sure that the game works properly on your system

The second reason is the most important reason for the release of the demo. Everybody, and I mean EVERYBODY, who wants to, or is going to, buy Retool should try the demo first to see if it works on their system. I don't want anybody to buy this game just to find out it does not work.

Also, remember that this is only a three-level demo. Every time you try to play the fourth level, you will return to the main menu.

The last news for today as that in the next few weeks I am going to announce the release date for Retool, so stay tuned for that.

Download the Retool demo from itch.io.

Vote for Retool on Steam Greenlight.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

Good news everyone, Retool finally has a launch date for its release on PC platforms. May 19. Mark your calendars, put the game on your wishlist, or create a reminder on your phone to get the game. Release date for other platforms will be announced in the near future.

It has been a long road but I can finally see the end of the development, and the beginning of patching the game for every new bug players will find. I don't know whether to be happy or sad now.

Nevertheless, enjoy the release trailer below.

[RenegadeNinjaNL]

Retool is out now! You can purchase it from Steam, Humble Store, Itch.io or IndieGameStand. If you really want to support us, you can buy it from our website.

For everyone who are hearing about Retool for the first time, it 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.

You can check out the release trailer to find out more about the game:




For more updates about Retool, and our other games, follow us on Twitter.