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[G-Factor]

Hey all

I've been working on a game over the last few months. I wanted to start a devlog earlier but never got around to it. Anyway, it's a party based combat game similar to Battleheart for the iOS and Android. The main difference is that it has an Action RPG-like randomised loot system, and it features a 'combat pause' button that allows buffering of commands (so when things get too hectic you can pause the action and plan your next move strategically). Art has always been my weakness but I'm trying my best!

I'm currently experiencing a lapse in motivation so I hope this Devlog will keep me going. The finish line isn't far off so I just need to keep trudging along. I'm currently aiming to complete the first World and release a demo for feedback and suggestions. I'm probably a couple weeks away from that.

Information

• Title: Arena Quest.
• Platforms: Android only for now.
• Dev Tools: Eclipse, libgdx game framework, Inkscape, Gimp.
• Team size: Just me!

Gameplay Features

• Party based arena combat. Fight several waves of enemies each battle.
• 7 character classes in total. Control up to 4 characters for each battle.
• Characters start with 2 skills and gain many more as they level up.
• 3 worlds with 10 levels per world (including a boss fight at the end of each world)
• Collect randomized loot, including very rare and powerful legendary items.
• 3 difficulty modes. Each subsequent mode drops higher quality loot.
• A tactics button that allows the player to pause combat and buffer commands.

World map and character screen

 

Weapons and skill/ability icons

   

Gameplay screenshots

 

[G-Factor]

Coded about half of the world 1 boss and gave him a couple of special attacks. Also had a go at drawing him in Inkscape. Pretty rough at the moment but that's the basic concept.

It's an axe-weilding orc chieftan with flame-thrower shoulder pads. Scary!

[Destral]

Looking pretty neat! I look forward to seeing where this goes

[G-Factor]

Thanks for the encouragement!

I coded some scrolling clouds for my world map. They don't look fantastic...but I need some movement in that screen, it simply looks too static at the moment!

I also started putting some sound FX in. I'm trying to find a variety of free sword sounds, at least 6-7 so that you won't hear the same 'clang' every time a character swings his sword. I found a few at the following sites;

http://www.freesfx.co.uk
http://www.freesound.org/

If anyone has other links to sites with free and legal sounds, I would greatly appreciate them!

[xix]

If you're making a bigger Battleheart, good luck to you. I loved that game.

I think part of the reason that games like Battleheart are so endearing, though, is that the graphics are expressive. Even if you're going to keep the overhead view, I think you can express different states by moving the arms or making the torso angled relative to the characters' head. Even just having each weapon give the characters a different stance (e.g. the bow being different than the sword or wand) will help differentiate the characters and make things a little more graphically exciting.

Btw, I really like the graphics even though you say you're not good at them. Just try to be less stiff and experiment a bit more.

[G-Factor]

Thanks for the comments!

I wouldn't say I'm going for a bigger Battleheart; I know my limits and probably won't have as many skills or monster variety as that game. And it certainly won't look as good either. Mostly, I'm trying to add more action RPG elements to the genre. Hopefully people that like to number crunch (I'm exposing a lot of values such as critical hit chance, DPS, armour mitigation...etc) and farm loot will find it interesting. 

I agree with your comments about adding 'character' to the...well characters! I like some of your suggestions. I might try to separate the body and head portion of the sprite and sway the body as they walk. They do have animated feet which don't show up in the screenshots because they are all standing still. But yes...less stiffness!

[G-Factor]

It's been a while since updates!

I've been working hard but pretty much just been adding sound FX and fixing bugs, so not much to show off in the form of new art or anything (apart from the application icon).





I've completed a playable version and put it up on Google Play (sorry, Android only for now). The game is completely free. No ads, no in game purchases, no pop-ups, no invasive permissions. Would love some feedback, cheers all!
 

• You can get the current version on Google Play https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.badlogic.Arena
• Or scan the following QR code.

[G-Factor]

OK so it's been a very long time since my last update!

I did a big update to the version I already had on Google Play (mostly UI and art polish). Since then I've added a bunch of enemies and coded a lot of new player abilities (I've now coded 38/49 of them). I hope that by posting more regularly in this Devlog (maybe once a week) will result in increased motivation and productivity 


Here is a pic of the new Inventory screen


And some new enemies


 

[G-Factor]

I don't know what the rules are on resurrecting VERY OLD devlogs...but this project was more or less abandoned long ago after I moved overseas for a new job and life generally became very busy, but I've recently found some motivation and started working on it again! It's now actually very close to complete. I've pretty much done all the heroes, enemies, bosses, skills, items...etc. The last major system was the Item Enchant mechanic which I finished last week.

If you have an Android device and would like to give this game a go please let me know!

Otherwise, since showing pages of code would be boring, here are some art comparisons between an older version of the game and the current version (A friend of mine did some character art for me). Left side is my crappy programmer art, right side is his.



Old VS new world map
   

Old VS new gameplay screen
   

[G-Factor]

Couple more screenshots

Boss fight
One of the bosses in the game. Bosses have mmo-style raid like mechanics that need to be avoided/dealt with. In this screenshot, the Lycan is tanking the boss while the cleric is healing the Lycan. The hunter is applying a debuff (while also dealing damage), and the mage is straight up laser beaming away. The game has threat mechanics so if the mage does too much damage the boss will aggro her. Luckily, the Lycan has a couple of abilities that generate aggro fast! Unfortunately the screenshot looks kinda dull and static  . When actually playing it gets quite hectic; keeping 4 heroes out of danger zones, healing the right targets, managing cooldowns, managing aggro, prioritising enemies...etc.



Enchanting

Enchanting is more or less the final feature. There are still a couple of bugs to fix but it more or less works. As you progress through the game you unlock new enchants and power levels of those enchants.

[Pixel Noise]

Whoa, cool! First time seeing this (obviously), but I'm glad you brought it back! The game looks well thought out and engaging. And yes, the newer art is far superior

[G-Factor]

I've just made a trailer for my game! I'm not really good at this sort of stuff but this is my best effort. Please let me know what you think  

[EDIT] Uploaded HD version!