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TIGSource ForumsCommunityDevLogsRe: Tower57 - Dieselpunk Pixel-Shooter (dinosaurs included)
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Benitosub
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« Reply #180 on: August 21, 2015, 10:13:59 AM »

thanks a lot Bombini!

and here are a couple more gifs Smiley



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tower57
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« Reply #181 on: August 21, 2015, 02:04:58 PM »

Quote from: Kicstarter

Update 3 : Paper-dolling

Welcome back dear backers!

Today's update is about paper-dolling.

Paper-dolling is the idea of building characters out of several layers of body parts; in our case

    shadow
    legs
    torso
    left arm
    right arm
    weapon
    head
    facial hair / glasses
    hair
    hat



 While it may seem counter-intuitive to use so many layers just for a single character, this method actually allows us to do a lot of cool things:

- chopping limbs off : since every character is already essentially just body parts held together by magic (and code), it becomes very easy to chop off these body parts without having to redraw and animate every character for every possible combination of lost limbs.



 - character variety : rather than having to rebuild every NPC from scratch or resort to cloning characters to create crowds, we can leverage a limited base set of body parts to create a variety of unique NPCs. The process can even be automated for some … “interesting” results!



 - character customization : it's always fun in a game to equip your newly acquired armor, weapon, hat, etc. and be able to admire how great it looks on you! Paper-dolling lets us do that at no extra cost, since equipping a new hat or a new robotic arm really just means swapping one layer for another.



 - productivity: if we were to realize any or all of the above mentioned features without paper-dolling, the time and therefore cost of production would balloon exponentially, and would certainly not be within reach of a 2-man-indie-powerhouse.

And ultimately that’s the best reason for using it Wink

Thanks for the support, and see you all tomorrow for another update!

Cheers,

Marco / benitosub
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MrHelmut
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« Reply #182 on: August 22, 2015, 02:07:56 AM »

Those two are excellent! Tears of Joy





I can't believe the level of detail/polish you guys are putting into your game...
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Benitosub
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« Reply #183 on: August 22, 2015, 10:08:16 AM »

Thanks MrHelmut! We're really trying to stand out from the masses of pixel art games out there Azn

Here are some more gifs Smiley







Cheers!
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tower57
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« Reply #184 on: August 22, 2015, 06:02:42 PM »

Quote from: Kickstarter
Update 4: the scientiest
One of the questions we have been asked the most so far has been "will there be playable female characters?" (so much so in fact that we put it down in the FAQ)

So without further ado, it is my pleasure to introduce ...
The Scientist:



Well versed in a variety of scientific disciplines, the scientist is also a woman of questionable ethics, considering how most "science" in the tower revolves around experimenting on less than willing subjects.

Nonetheless her tough demeanor, vast medical knowledge, and proficiency with explosives have turned out to be valuable assets to the team on more than one occasion.

Perks:

Scientists are regarded as highly intelligent members of the elite, and as such are granted access to a series of exclusive life prolonging treatments.

As the scientist, standing still lets you regain up to half your health.

Special ability : Field medic

Use this ability to heal your teammate. This includes stitching back severed limbs, provided you can find them.

The next female character we introduce will be the officer!

Hope to see you all again tomorrow for another update Smiley

Cheers,

Marco / benitosub
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Louard
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« Reply #185 on: August 22, 2015, 07:07:38 PM »

Ooh! Thems some pretty fancy shmancy visuals you've got there! Some really nice stuff indeed.
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tower57
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« Reply #186 on: August 23, 2015, 04:45:42 AM »

Update 5 : Co-op mechanics


today's update is about co-op mechanics. So I've never been a huge fan of competitive multiplayer, I normally like my games to be very-single-player, but co-op is a whole different thing!

There's something about teaming up to defeat the odds that really appeals to me, and I especially enjoyed beat-em-ups that offered special moves that could only be performed with another player.

So with that in mind, we wanted to introduce some fresh possibilities for co-op, and since our game is a shooter, the obvious way to co-operate was with guns!

We already illustrated the idea on the main page with the harpoon and the flamethrower:



 However there are many more possibilities! For example you can use the flamethrower to set the other player's bullets on fire, and create flaming bullets (which in turn set their targets on fire of course):



The range of the "eletric-gun" (working name ^_^') is quite short, however a clever team can extend this range by electrifying each other's bullets:



(the electricity travels down from bullet to bullet, branching out into any nearby enemy or item)

Some weapons also have additional uses in co-op (or in single player mode with an AI companion hired from a seedy bar in Amor's Den...).

For example the Tesla connectors are normally orbs which you can fire and attach to enemies. When two orbs pair up, it creates an arc of lightning that harms anything it touches.

The twist is that those orbs can be attached to anything (enemies, objects, rockets, etc.).

Here is what happens when each player attaches an orb to each other:



Co-op interactions will not be limited to combining weapons either.

You can toss ammo or health packs to your teammate.

Or if he / she becomes incapacitated (i.e. loses both legs) you can pick them up and carry them on your back (while they cover your back with their gun!).

I hope everybody likes where this is going Smiley

And this concludes our co-op update. Tomorrow we will post some stats to celebrate the first week, and let you guys know where we stand exactly.

In the meantime I wish everybody a great week-end!

Cheers,

Marco / benitosub
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grayhaze
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« Reply #187 on: August 23, 2015, 06:56:01 AM »

This continues to look awesome. It has a very Bitmap Brothers / Chaos Engine vibe to it visually. Looking forward to playing. Smiley
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CyangmouArt
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« Reply #188 on: August 23, 2015, 04:01:45 PM »

Ooh! Thems some pretty fancy shmancy visuals you've got there! Some really nice stuff indeed.

THanks a lot =)

This continues to look awesome. It has a very Bitmap Brothers / Chaos Engine vibe to it visually. Looking forward to playing. Smiley

Yep TCE was quite a big inspiration regarding graphics, mainly because it is one of the best looking topdown pixel art shooters - still after that much time.
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tower57
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« Reply #189 on: August 24, 2015, 02:48:41 AM »

The Officer!

After giving up on a promising career in Information Extraction, The Officer enrolled in the academy and quickly rose through the ranks, aided by the numerous complaints of brutality lodged against her, to become a feared and respected Executive.



perks: pain is just another fleeting emotion to file and forget. Your exceptional constitution grants you an increased resistance to any type of damage.

special move: the deal maker: a nifty trick you picked up from your days at Information Extraction, approach any humanoid and tear off one of his limbs to extract a confession.

Oh yeah, almost forgot to mention, her favorite weapon is the mini-gun Wink
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ThilDuncan
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« Reply #190 on: August 24, 2015, 03:07:34 AM »

Really loving the co-op mechanics on the go here, as a big fan of co-op games I'm really excited about the idea of combining abilities, really like the idea of having to talk and co-ordinate your actions when playing to achieve the best results Smiley

I'll be keeping and eye on this one!
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tower57
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« Reply #191 on: August 24, 2015, 09:11:13 AM »

TL;DR : interconnected floors, secondary paths, exploration and “adventuring” floors in addition to “action” floors, NPCs, and the possibility to go through the game completely ignoring all of this Smiley (we’ll call it “arcade mode”).

Tower 57 is built around 3 main gameplay mechanics: fight, explore, and cooperate. Players start the game at the base of the tower, and the goal is to reach the top “elite” floors and thwart the upcoming invasion. At least that’s the short version of it (there will be a “story” update this week where we go much more into detail regarding the lore, setting, etc.)



We are big supporters of the “teach by showing” philosophy pioneered by beloved classics such as Mega Man and Castlevania, and that should be the purpose of the first level: the train ride to the tower. Here players can familiarize themselves with the controls, figure out the core mechanics, and kill their first enemy in a relatively safe environment (and of course completely wreck the train in the process…).



Once you reach the Tower, you will quickly find yourself at Amor’s Den, our hub floor. On this floor you can find shops, terminals, a small arena that may or may not host robot-gladiator fights (I used to watch Robot Wars religiously ^_^), a black market, clubs, bars, and plenty of shady characters.



 In addition to selling your loot, upgrading your weapons, and swapping your fragile biological limbs for brand new robotic ones, you can also strike up conversations with the various NPCs to learn more about the lore and unlock the occasional side-quest.



 From the hub you can initially access only a handful of floors through the main elevator. As you complete the available floors, you will run across new elevators. Some will still be in working condition (the “main quest” ones, so you can proceed unhindered), while some may need fixing or unlocking through various means (the side-quests).

This setup leaves room for exploration (not all floors need to be monster infested hell holes, some floors will serve for exposition, some will simply be abandoned areas, some may contain secret rooms, etc.), while also letting you race to the top if you are inclined to do so - of course some floors will be guarded by huge bosses, but that's for another update Wink



Each elevator will present you with a little control panel, and you get to punch in the number of the floor you want to go to, so you can chose at any time to put the “main quest floors” aside and go off exploring.



Therefore all floors will be interconnected by this system of elevators, though no backtracking will be required thanks to the elevators (i.e. there will always be an elevator at the “end” of a floor to take you back to hub or the floor you previously came from).

The tower even boasts its own monorail Smiley



Ultimately our goal is to deliver a solid twin-stick shooter, wrapped in an original world which you can chose to explore or skip in favor of pure action.

Don't hesitate to sound off in the comments if you have any questions, and I will do my best to answer them!

Cheers,

Marco / benitosub
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CyangmouArt
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« Reply #192 on: August 24, 2015, 01:30:38 PM »

Really loving the co-op mechanics on the go here, as a big fan of co-op games I'm really excited about the idea of combining abilities, really like the idea of having to talk and co-ordinate your actions when playing to achieve the best results Smiley

I'll be keeping and eye on this one!

Glad you like it, thanks a lot. Yeah we have quite some stuff in mind for co-op and will see where it eventually goes.
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tower57
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« Reply #193 on: August 25, 2015, 05:10:56 AM »

TL;DR: we will feature level design which leaves you options. Tower57 might feature some „Metroidvania qualities“ in level design. We also have different types of rooms:

- rooms which teach you about weapons

- rooms which have multiple access points

- rooms with a strategic battle challenge



 Mou here,

The games I really like when it comes down to level design and I remember a lot are the following ones: Metroid Prime, Dark Souls, Banjo Kazooie, Zelda Majora's Mask, Pikmin, and Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow – and I played through all of those games multiple times just because of the level design.

Metroid Prime is with 16 completed runs the game on the top of the list (and also one I enjoyed for its world).

I always have tried to challenge myself, either with certain weapon choices, upgrades or reaching the goal of a game on unusual ways. Keep in mind that I am definitely not the most skilled gamer out there and completed most challenges just with a lot of tries, but through all those runs I learned how different positioned items or upgrades can change a playthrough.

Run'n'guns don't feature levels like this, I came up with a few ideas how we want to increase the depth for tower and make sure that multiple playthroughs are a lot of fun and stay challenging, aside from just having a different character.

So in the best case Tower57 might have some „Metroidvania“ level design qualities, but without being heavily restricted by „movement/upgrade“ barricades.

The most important aspect for any action game is the „going forward“ approach without much backtracking or searching for the way to proceed. I personally hate it to waste time in a game with just running around and searching the chokepoint in order to move forward.

The choice of the exact path and figuring out in which order some rooms or floors should be visited after the first playthrough should be completely up to the player. Especially, since the gameplay we laid out underlines the aspect of getting creative with the „tools“ you have – positioning, weapons and surroundings.



 According to our core-gameplay mechanics rooms will play differently depending on which weapons you have and which objects are placed in them.

A room just filled with wooden boxes can become a deathtrap, if you or an enemy sets them on fire, but if you are using just a tommygun, it also can be harmless. Some switches in the game world which are triggered by completing floors and add enemies to existing rooms can heavily change the gameplay.

We already laid out some rooms, generally speaking there are currently 3 big types of them:

- rooms which teach you about weapons: Those are rooms in which you will find a new weapon and the game will show you its new awesome capabilities just through the architecture.

This is a possible room design which highlights the range and spreading bullets of the shotgun:



- rooms which have multiple entries: some of the rooms you can enter from different directions. Some of them you will even visit more than once – we are speaking of „knots“ in the level design you pass multiple times.

They either can play out entirely differently depending on what path you take to get in them, or they will provide more than one challenge - one if you go through the first time, another one if you go back and have triggered something.



- rooms with a battle challenge: those rooms are designed with different weapons in mind and take advantage of multiple possible strategies, depending on the weapons you have. I have to design those with solutions for weapons which are already accessible to you.

It will matter if you use the railgun, which can shoot through walls, the harpoon which can push enemies over ledges, or the sawblade, which can take advantage of the overall architecture.

This room here features different challenges for the flamethrower or for the harpoon – you can play it out differently if you have none, just one or even both of them available.



 And depending on how those challenges are set up, tested and later on tied together we might end up with levels which are interesting to play, if you are willing to try it with different weapons or challenge yourself to find the best, fastest and safest strategies for getting through.

This is what a possible room sequence could look like in the end:



I hope this answers some questions you may have had about the level design, but if you have more don't hesitate to ask in the comments!

Greetings,

Cyangmou
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ryansumo
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« Reply #194 on: August 25, 2015, 07:05:45 AM »

Just wanted to say I really love the art direction of the game.
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Pixel Noise
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« Reply #195 on: August 25, 2015, 09:33:11 AM »

One more week for the KS - really hope you guys get there! The game looks fantastic.
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« Reply #196 on: August 25, 2015, 04:08:18 PM »

As our most recognizable location, Amor’s Den gets the honor of going first ^_^

Amor’s Den, or the Den as the locals call it, is the Tower’s “Vegas meets Amsterdam”, a floor where almost anything goes. The authorities are well aware of this, but they wisely chose to turn a blind eye, as the cheap drugs and robot fights provide the perfect outlet for the citizens’ pent up anger and frustration.

This floor also doubles as the game’s hub area, a safe heaven where you can relax between levels, soak up the atmosphere, chat with the locals, sell loot, upgrade weapons, and hopefully partake in some silly mini-games (I always loved stuff like the playable arcades in Space Quest).

Here is what you can expect to find in it:

Shops

Mom-and-pop shops which could certainly use the Don’s “protection”…

Terminals

Here you can make purchases but also browse the tower’s local news cable.

Bars and clubs

Chat with the locals, buy a round of drinks, find out about the latest rumors, unlock side missions, or just get your freak on!

A black market

If you find the right NPCs, you can buy things you wouldn’t find in shops or at terminals…

A casino

Will the slots be interactive? Absolutely! No plans for a Pachinko just yet though...

An arena.

No picture here as it’s barely in the concept stage, but the arena will host hexapod and robot fights, where you can bet on the winner and make some money in the process (and yes, there will be ways to tip the odds in your favor Wink )

And there you have it!

Cheers,

Marco / benitosub
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grandslam
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« Reply #197 on: August 25, 2015, 06:50:52 PM »

This looks sick I hope it gets funded.
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tower57
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« Reply #198 on: August 26, 2015, 03:39:29 PM »

This looks sick I hope it gets funded.

Vote with your wallet. By hoping alone not much ever was accomplished.


Back to an interesting news post-mortem from the first 20 days of the campaign:


It’s been an uphill battle, but so far we’ve managed to avoid the dreaded “mid-campaign” lull, instead showing a nice steady progression towards our goal.




Here are some key learnings from our experience so far:

It’s a s**t ton of work!

No kidding! Good thing we had prepared update drafts in advance, but even then it takes up to 1-2 hours to get each update out the door (polish / adapt the draft, capture the required gifs, format everything, etc.).

Then comes replying to mails, Kickstarter comments, Greenlight comments, forum comments, Facebook comments, YouTube comments, and so on - I really try to answer everybody’s questions ^_^’ - and of course sending out personalised mails to the press and YouTubers.

Add on top of that preparing daily gifs for our twitter channel, taking part in the various “promotion channels” (#FridaySpotlight, #screenshotsaturday, etc.), answering twitter PM’s, setting up cross-promotions with other teams / campaigns, the occasional stream or twitch appearance, reviewing the day’s analytics to re-focus our marketing efforts on the channels that work, finding new Facebook groups to post on and new YouTubers to contact, and you can see how running a campaign quickly turns into a full-time job!

Press

Our luck with press has been very mixed so far. To give credit where it’s due, the Indie press has been nothing short of fantastic! Eager to support us, give us feedback, provide us with tips, and just generally making us feel very welcome and appreciated Smiley

On the other hand, the only major publication who took an interest in us was wired.de (thanks guys!), but none of the “big ones” - i.e. RockPaperShotgun, Polygon, etc. - seem to have time for us ^_^’

We did get 2 lines in-between articles on Kotaku, and those 2 lines brought a disproportionate amount of pledges (enough that it still features among our top 10 sources of pledges!), so one can see how effective an article could be Smiley



Twtitter



Throughout the entire campaign, twitter has been our number 2 source of pledges, right behind "direct traffic", and our number 1 source of page views according to Google.

Screen Shot 2015 08 23 at 11 49

We take great care in tweeting new gifs every day, and taking part in things like #screenshotsaturday which help raise awareness of our campaign and brings interested viewers directly on the campaign page with a single click.

YouTube

YouTube is our second best avenue for promoting the game. We had exactly 1 contact going in (EpicNameBro) who was kind enough to feature us early on and get the ball rolling, but we have contacted over 200 YouTubers since, and have managed to score a few more videos along the way:



-

- Fork - IndieInsights - XdarzethX - IndieGameNews - and more!

Facebook

I’ll be very honest here, I’m not a big Facebook user ^_^’ I’ve had an account for years, and occasionally check it out to keep in touch with old friends, but my post count is in the low 2 digits Wink

However I must say the reaction on Facebook has been fantastic! Every new post on a retro-gaming or indie-dev themed group brings in comments, visits, and pledges! I’m not sure if it helps that my account uses my actual name and pictures, but it seems like people are more eager to help and support on Facebook, which definitely makes me re-consider spending more time in those groups ^_^#

The experience in general

I started out by pointing out how much work running this campaign has been (let alone the months of preparation that went into it), and one thing that doesn’t often get mentioned is also how stressful it can be: the long hours, the doubts when your progression graph flat-lines, the not-so-supportive comments etc. can really take a toll on you.

Having said all that, it’s really an amazing experience nonetheless Smiley

We are extremely proud of how far we’ve come, we have made many friendships along the way, have found a ton of support among the indie community, and have had a blast meeting and interacting with our backers!

Of course with 1/3 of the funding goal to reach in 10 days, we’ve got our work cut out for us, so buckle up because it’s going to be one hell of a ride Smiley



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ProjectX593
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« Reply #199 on: August 26, 2015, 10:11:11 PM »

Absolutely awesome pixel art, looking forward to seeing more!
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