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[lapsus]

clever buttons

hi there, this is a devlog for a small game ive worked on for a while now.
this is far from my first game ive started on but my problem, like for many people, is that i never finish stuff since i loose interest after the tech is done.

this time it will be different, or so i hope, and to make sure of that i started with a few clear goals:

• as small scope as i can get away with
• no amazing new game design, just basic 2d-stuff
• use an existing engine
• dont write the perfect code, fast major hacks if needed
• causal enough for my mom to like

code - to at least have some tech challenge i decided to make a iphone game to learn a new platform and a new language - objective c, im using cocos2d since it seemed to fit my needs.

art - im horrible at graphics but can at least do some vector-drawing since it reminds me of code not taking any risks here but ive redone the art many times to get the look it has now.

music - doing something different from what i usually do to make it more interesting
edit: tried some menu music makin'




the game consists of two game modes - a no time limit puzzle one and an fast paced 1-minute match one.

the elevator pitch for each game mode:

puzzle mode
the goals is to remove the number of buttons from the screen indicated in the upper right by connecting 2 or more buttons of the same color.


additional game rules are introduced gradually, including:

you can not drag a new line over an existing one (left over from chains)

colored walls are removed by connecting a chain to them
loops remove both the buttons and the lines completely
etc

this allows me to create some pretty challenging levels
you get a gold star if you finish the level on "par" number of moves


score attack
this is the secondary minor mode - buttons in 3 different colors fall from the top of the screen. connect them by dragging.
you can remove buttons in 3 ways -
chains
loops
traps (buttons caught inside the loop area)

chains gives less points than loops but spawns additional buttons from the bottom of the screen. basically the game play comes down to trying to find a balance between spawning new buttons with chains and creating loops for more score. there are extra stuff like stars that spawns if you get a 7-chain that you should trap for more points and range of different combos.

you have 60 seconds (you can however play after the timer reaches 0 due to chains the spawns new buttons mechanic) to score as many points as possible, a global highscore keeps track. you can get more time by doing high scoring combos:

this game mode is actually more fun than i expected it to be.






so why a devlog... well ive run out of steam again and need something to keep me motivated, to let me see progress.

some things left to do, i'll probably add more:

• game center integration
• make more combos for score attack mode
• make loads of more levels for puzzle mode (have ~30, target is 100)
• finish menu music
• compose score attack music
• compose puzzle mode music
• sfx-effects (very few)

while this game obviously wont result in high-fives from the hardcore indie crowd that is not my goal - the only goal is to actually finish something.

EDIT:game finished! a trailer can be found here:




and the game itself here (appstore):
http://bit.ly/lLaXtT

[richy486]

Good on you for keeping motivated and setting goals. Can you explain how the game works a bit more please?

[AlexDJones]

Lack of motivation and never able to finish a project, eh? I've been there many times.

Good to see you're sizing the scale down. It's important to have a project out there, no matter the size. It helps you when it comes to picking up second, third, etc projects.

I'm interested in how the game works mechanically, though.

[lapsus]

i'll explain the mechanics soon, just need a few more screen shots to make it easier. makes me happy that anyone is interested though :)

meanwhile, i took a quick stab at doing some menu music:



pretty far from my usual style but i tried something happy and welcoming with a distinct melody

[lapsus]

right.. nearly finished the music for the score attack more, i realize i need one for each game mode since the pace is so different.

also by request updated my op with more in-depth description of what you do in the two game modes. and damn its hard to evaluate how fun a puzzle is to play when you have designed the puzzles yourself.

[lapsus]

yay!
finally done. first time ever i've finished a game, it may be a casual puzzle iphone/ipod one but it is done and i'm very happy with the result.

here is some links

trailer can be found here:




and the game itself here (appstore):
http://bit.ly/lLaXtT

and a review just because
http://appvader.com/2011/06/review-clever-buttons-iphone-ipod

[richy486]

Great game lapsus, I nearly missing my train stop playing it tonight. I did have trouble with 'Warmed up?' #1 though. Haven't finished it but I hope you keep making levels.

[lapsus]

Thanks alot, it makes me very happy knowing that someone enjoys it out there
Have you completed that level yet? If not you can check
http://www.youtube.com/kakburkgames for solutions.

I'm working on new levels, hopefully they will be out soon but Apple is taking forever to approve my current patch with bugfixes so not sure when I can release the update.

[richy486]

Yeah I got it, finished the game the next day.

The only issue I have with the game play is that when I hit the black stitching it finishes the line I'm on, this seems to leave me with no option than to restart the level because it has broken the pattern I was going for. Maybe have it just block the line and let me continue to try to make a pattern.

Apart from that, the game is very polished. The animations on the buttons and the bouncing text really adds to the feel of the game.

Good luck with the new levels.