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[Cosmocat Games]

Major overhaul of melee weapons... now 1000% beefier!



Here's a quick rundown of everything that went into this:

• Completely ditched colliders for melee weapons; they're now 100% based on triggers (colliders were causing some issues anyway, like props going flying in certain situations)
• Sped up the animations by an insane amount, and updated them so the weapon swipes right to left and completely clears the screen (vs landing and stopping abruptly in the middle)
• Added trail renderers
• Made the hitboxes much more forgiving
• Screen shake on impact 100% of the time (vs selectively)

Still some outstanding stuff I need to deal with, like implementing a little physics nudge for props, and dealing with some edge cases where the hits don't land consistently, but it already it feels waaaay better.

I also plan to do something similar for the fist (fast swipe vs slower thrust), as it now feels even weaker/lighter than ever, heh.

[Thaumaturge]

That does look really good, I do think! :D

As to the breakable wall, I'm surprised at how good that looks in-game, based on the gif. The untextured model looked a little too obvious and artificial, I think--but in-game, with proper lighting and a texture applied, it looks like it's visible without being blatant, and not as artificial as I'd thought. ^_^

[Cosmocat Games]

As to the breakable wall, I'm surprised at how good that looks in-game, based on the gif. The untextured model looked a little too obvious and artificial, I think--but in-game, with proper lighting and a texture applied, it looks like it's visible without being blatant, and not as artificial as I'd thought. ^_^

Hah, yeah, I was a bit surprised too, I was expecting to have to do a few more iterations to get something decent looking. But hey, given the number of things that have taken way longer than I expected, I think I earned one freebie

(edit: it'll still probably get another pass or two at some point, though)

[Cosmocat Games]

and dealing with some edge cases where the hits don't land consistently

Pro tip: don't rely on Unity animation events for critical logic, like enabling/disabling hitboxes! In the past I had noticed some quirks at lower frame rates, and now that I've speed up the animations, it's quite obvious that these events don't always fire. (As well, I've read that transitions can also interfere with them)

I'm going to move all this stuff to a coroutine or DOTween sequence, hopefully that fixes it once and for all.

[Cosmocat Games]

For the nerdy folk, here's what that looks like.

A new abstract class for MeleeWeapon, which Pickaxe and Plank extend. It contains the sequence, and defines abstract methods for everything the sequence needs.

Code:

public abstract class MeleeWeapon : WeaponBase {

    protected abstract void Swing();
    protected abstract void ActivateColliders();
    protected abstract void DeactivateColliders();
    protected abstract void OnSwingComplete();

    public void DoSwing()
    {
        SwingSequence();
    }

    protected void SwingSequence()
    {
        Sequence seq = DOTween.Sequence();
        seq.AppendInterval(0.1f);
        seq.AppendCallback(() => Swing());        
        seq.AppendCallback(() => ActivateColliders());
        seq.AppendInterval(0.1f);
        seq.AppendCallback(() => DeactivateColliders());
        seq.AppendCallback(() => OnSwingComplete());        
    }
}

And then in Pickaxe, for example:

Code:

public class Pickaxe : MeleeWeapon
{
    protected override void Swing()
    {
        FMODUnity.RuntimeManager.PlayOneShotAttached(swingEvent, gameObject);
        if (trails)
        {
            trails.emitting = true;
        }
    }

    protected override void ActivateColliders()
    {
        GetComponentInChildren<PickaxeDamageDetector>().Reset();
        foreach (Collider collider in GetComponentsInChildren<Collider>())
        {
            collider.enabled = true;
        }
    }

    protected override void DeactivateColliders()
    {
        foreach (Collider collider in GetComponentsInChildren<Collider>())
        {
            collider.enabled = false;
        }
    }

    protected override void OnSwingComplete()
    {
        if (trails)
        {
            trails.emitting = false;
        }
    }
}

So far, it's working quite well! Everything is firing 100% of the time. I'm not sure how accurate the timing of DOTween sequences are (I know coroutine "WaitForSeconds" isn't very accurate), but as long as I get a few frames with the colliders active, everything is fine.

[Cosmocat Games]

Heyo! I've just uploaded a new build to Itch. In addition to the aforementioned beefy melee and breakable walls, there's a whole whack of improvements. See for yourself!

Character Controller Improvements

• Add velocity/acceleration for jumping
• Smooth crouch/uncrouch
• Automatically uncrouch on sprint key pressed

General Improvements

• Remove locks from electric panels, as they were leading some players to believe they could be smashed
• UI hint for hold to interact (punch scale)
• Fix for player falling after pause
• Improve flooded junction geometry (mostly for ease of traversal)
• Fade in/out low health overlay, stealth vignette
• Add proper splash damage for beacon explosions (ignites nearby rats or miners)
• Add rustling SFX for roots

Bug fixes

• Disallow sprinting backwards or sideways
• Disallow powerslide with no stamina or when moving backwards
• Fix for ghosts breaking rocks and crates

(full post/announcement)

Patrons should automatically have access (if not just LMK), and anyone who has preview access on Steam can expect to see a new build in the next few days.

<shameless> Oh yeah, as added incentive to become a patron, I'm offering these snazzy stickers ("Cat" tier and above).

[Cosmocat Games]

Oh yeah! I've also submitted the game to the Steam Game Festival summer edition, so if all goes to plan, there will be demo version for folks to check out just ahead of the official early access launch! (which I will put a date on imminently)

[Thaumaturge]

Heyo! I've just uploaded a new build to Itch. ...

Those look like some pretty solid fixes and improvements, I do think. ^_^

Oh yeah! I've also submitted the game to the Steam Game Festival summer edition, so if all goes to plan, there will be demo version for folks to check out just ahead of the official early access launch! (which I will put a date on imminently)

That's excellent news! ^_^

[Cosmocat Games]

I'm busy plugging away at the Steam Game Festival demo build over here! The Steam page is all setup and approved along with an early build, so now it's just a matter of fixing bugs, polishing, and perhaps adding a bit more content if time allows.

As part of that I'm considering including an in-game form for submitting feedback. I've been experimenting with STOMT, which seemed to be the most readily available/turnkey integration of this type. It was literally just a matter of minutes to get it setup:



And of course there's webhook support to send feedback directly to my Discord server:



I'm slightly wary of opening the floodgates like this--not that I'm averse to feedback, mostly just concerned about trolls--but even if I only receive a handful of valid feedback it will likely end up having been worth it. Obviously the ideal is to get people to join the Discord community, and I'll still push that option hard (via in game buttons/links), but not everyone is going to take the time to do that (and not everyone uses Discord).

If it works out I'll probably add it to the other game that I'm including in the festival (Super Rocket Ride).

P.S. as you can see in one of the shots, I went down a bit of the rabbit hole over the weekend and built a Discord bot! Originally I was thinking I would use it for some sort of in-game integration, but it morphed into a full-blown chat bot with natural language processing (via Dialogflow), heh. And of course it also includes functionality to send random cat pictures and Simpsons quotes!

That's live in the server now if you want to play around with it, and I'm happy to share code or answer any questions from would-be bot enthusiasts.

[Thaumaturge]

I hope that you get plenty of solid feedback, and are not troubled by trolls. ^_^

It sounds like things are advancing quite well, I'm glad to say! ^_^

PS: Sorry that I haven't gotten around to trying the previous demo; extraneous issues have left me feeling not all that up to it, I fear. I still want to give it a shot, although I doubt that I'll have much useful feedback after so much post-demo development! ^^;

[Cosmocat Games]

Heyo! We're in the home stretch before the Steam Game Festival (ICYMI: it's been postponed until June 16). As such, the last dev cycle has been focused almost entirely on bug fixes and quality of life stuff.

Interact Dots
The interaction points for some objects--in particular, exits--weren't super obvious since they didn't have outlines like other items. To make this a bit easier, I've added "interact dots" (thanks to God of War for the idea, heh).

This should make them much easier to interact with, especially in the heat of the moment.



Along with this, I've also added proper interaction outlines to the upgrade stations (workbench, dark altar).

Quick Restart
Previously you would have to pause the game after dying in order to restart (inspired Half-Life 2, but I could see how it might not be obvious to some). With this change, you can now press any key to restart (a prompt will appear after 5 seconds).



Thanks to my new collaborator, Lukas, for his help with this.

Better Spawning
The hallways connecting rooms are cluttered with props, but over time, the spawning logic kind of got away from me, and you'd end up with barrels falling over, blocking passages, etc.

I've taken the time to clean this up, and you'll now see much more consistent clutter. As a bonus, it creates these neat little hiding spots between rooms:



Bug Fixes
Whew, lots of these! With the extra week, I was able to fix pretty much all of the bugs I wanted to, including a few that were really nagging me!

• Only allow shielding from limited angles
• Improve mutant miner AI behaviour (minimize likelihood of them walking intro eachother)
• Hide beacon launcher on death
• Fix for beacon impact projector disappearing after pausing
• Fix for beacon impact projector rendering when no beacons
• Fix for enemies not always finding a random wander target
• Fix for debris culled with room, causing it to disappear in some cases
• Disable interaction with lockers (until they actual contain things, heh)
• Fix some missing colliders (was making some crate drops difficult to collect)
• Replace Windows NT screen with something less likely to lead to legal issues
• Fix for rats spawning outside of level

Edit: spoke too soon, captured this choice GIF while prepping this post!



"I have to go now, my planet needs me."

[Ashedragon]

Aaand here's the corresponding video for that:





Notes to self:

• Fix the bug that annoyingly causes the player to "land" on start/unpause
• Fix the blood decal at the bottom of the mineshaft (increase projection angle)
• Update the plank's discovery log image

Man I am really digging the sound design going on here!  Maybe a bit too much reverb but I love it.

[Cosmocat Games]

Man I am really digging the sound design going on here!  Maybe a bit too much reverb but I love it.

Thanks man! You're probably right about the reverb, but I'm a sucker for it. (totally opening to toning it down, though, especially if I hear the same from others)

[Thaumaturge]

Ah, this seems like an exciting time: the festival approaching, and only bug-fixing and polish on the list of things to do! I hope that it's been going well, that you're ready when the festival comes around, and that the game is well received there! ^_^

[Cosmocat Games]

The Steam Game Festival demo is now live!

[Cosmocat Games]

Mark your calendars: rogue-like survival horror TOXICANT gets an Early Access release date on Steam! This is my most ambitious game yet, developed entirely in my spare time over the past 3+ years, and I'm excited to finally share it with the world on Friday July 24th!



To celebrate, I'll be playing through the game live on Twitch, answering questions, and talking about how I plan to develop it during Early Access. (You might even see a preview of some new features!)

Plus: I'll have a few copies to giveaway! (Stay tuned for more details)

[Thaumaturge]

Congratulations on the Early Access release date! Have fun with your stream, and I hope that both stream and Early Access are received well! ^_^

[Cosmocat Games]

Congratulations on the Early Access release date! Have fun with your stream, and I hope that both stream and Early Access are received well! ^_^

Cheers! It's nice to finally move on to the next phase!

[Cosmocat Games]

Alright, here we go, the last dev journal before Steam Early Access!

Go Big or Go Home
This is something you can expect to see in the first major release after Early Access (dubbed the "Lofty" update): support for large modules.



This opens up the possibility for bigger hand-crafted areas, which I'll likely feature in the final floor of each level, but it's setup in such a way that large and small rooms can co-exist on the same floor. As you can see above, this also means bigger underwater areas, and hopefully some small puzzles and platforming areas as well.

Quality of Life
A couple things on this front: I've moved the settings into the game--no more launch screen! (actually, Unity forced my hand on this: they removed it in the version I recently upgraded to, heh)



I've also added the ability to "Quick Start" from the main menu. This bypasses the developer note, intro story, and tutorial area. (This unlocks after reaching the first main area).

You'll see both of these features in the first Early Access build.

Looking Ahead
Looking past the "Lofty" update, what will likely follow is a focus on adding new types of enemies. I have a few in mind already.



There's the requisite spider, a super mutant miner, and some kind of underwater creature. Stay tuned for more details on this.

On that note, I've built a prettier version of the roadmap. As much as possible I've tried to group related items into major releases with easily recognizable names. This is all subject to change, of course, but hopefully it gives you an idea of where I plan on taking things.

[Thaumaturge]

This is something you can expect to see in the first major release after Early Access (dubbed the "Lofty" update): support for large modules.

...

This opens up the possibility for bigger hand-crafted areas, which I'll likely feature in the final floor of each level, but it's setup in such a way that large and small rooms can co-exist on the same floor. As you can see above, this also means bigger underwater areas, and hopefully some small puzzles and platforming areas as well.

That seems pretty cool, and like potentially-useful feature indeed! ^_^

A couple things on this front: I've moved the settings into the game--no more launch screen! (actually, Unity forced my hand on this: they removed it in the version I recently upgraded to, heh)

Sometimes a problem is an opportunity, not so? ;P

I've also added the ability to "Quick Start" from the main menu. This bypasses the developer note, intro story, and tutorial area. (This unlocks after reaching the first main area).

Ah, that does seem convenient! ^_^

There's the requisite spider ...

[joking] Shouldn't it be an ant? A toxic ant?

... and some kind of underwater creature.

[joking]... That's a "Beholder". You can't fool me!

Stay tuned for more details on this.

More seriously, I'm interested to see how these turn out! They seem cool thus far, at least. ^_^