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[LazerRock]

A few weeks ago I started working on this new game of mine. The concept is that it's a platformer where you have to reach the end of each level, but instead of jumping you have the ability to dig into the ground and then burrow out. Your momentum is conserved and increased when digging so you have to build up momentum and try not to lose it as you burrow about. Once you get the hang of it the gameplay is super fluid, so I've decided to lean into the speedrunning aspect by adding scores based on time. Here's a gif of the player burrowing about, gaining momentum:

[LazerRock]

Hey, here's another small devlog. Progress has been super slow lately since school has started, but I'm trying my best to keep things moving along. I've mostly been busy on the soundtrack. If you want to listen to it and give feedback, I'd highly appreciate it:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLp563oeGTzz4NsFgw04vjJVCedNf28uX8

I also added portals and started work on giant crushers:

[LazerRock]

Progress Update #3
I've been really busy irl, so progress is slow, but I managed to get a few things done in the last month. I added falling platforms, 3 new levels, improved portal texture, and various sound effects. I'm also working on a new boss music theme.

[baftis]

Hey, LazerRock. This game would have been the bomb in the SNES/Sega days. What engine are you using?

[LazerRock]

Ah, thanks! I'm using Unity/C#

[LazerRock]

Progress Update #4
Happy (late) new year!
I've added two new mechanics (fans and sawblades moving on tracks), one new level (featuring fans), and various bug fixes and polishing (mainly for the UI). I'm really happy with the way the two new mechanics turned out, they really allowed for some interesting level design. Level design overall though is getting more and more challenging because I don't want to repeat ideas too much, and it's proving difficult to keep finding new concepts.




I'm also really struggling to explain this one fundamental concept clearly. Basically, in the game, you conserve your downwards momentum when burrowing into dirt. So if you enter dirt while falling, your downwards velocity is conserved, and you can use this momentum to rise out at great speeds. It's an extremely powerful trick that allows you to gain momentum rapidly instead of having to dig down, rise up out of the ground, dig down again, rise up, etc which takes time and isn't all that fun.

Anyway, this is all quite difficult to explain in-game. I tried using the level design to explain this, but after I let some friends playtest it, they didn't get it at all. I then tried implementing a block of text explaining it but I knew this
a) still didn't let players fully understand the concept
b) was boring and looked bad

I then tried embedding a little video of the character performing the trick inside the level itself, letting the player know how it's done, but it looked out of place.
I then tried this ghost-replay thing where a ghost player is performing the trick on loop:



So far it's my favourite option, but I'm still not sure if I should keep the text explaining it. If anybody has any suggestions or comments, I'd greatly appreciate them!

[LazerRock]

It's been a while, but here are some updates on Cuniculum:

2 new levels
  1 new major mechanic: hazards moving on rails
 ghost replay that plays back your best run (can be toggled on/off)
I've also been working on the soundtrack. The boss theme as well as the boss intro theme is now complete. As per usual, many, many bugs have had to be squashed.




On the art side of things, (spoilers I guess) I've created the boss character as well as his disguised form.


I've also created expert levels- a harder variant for each level, unlocked once you've completed the main game.

[mobilelast]

If you have a dirt ground that doesn’t act like a dirt ground, it’s going to be hard to explain. Game mechanics should somehow be tied to the real world. They don’t have to be realistic, but they have to be logical.

Instead of dirt, try using some kind of liquid or plasma-like tiles that could theoretically cause the momentum you want. Then build a surreal story around it: “Steve the Square exploring the Cushion world”. Children’s stores are filled with such nonsensical yet valid stuff, logical in their own terms.

[Thaumaturge]

Hmm... I feel like that old indie game, Death Worm, had a similar mechanic--albeit without the gaining of momentum. I don't recall the movement there feeling unintuitive.

See the following video for an example of that game in play:




I wonder, then, whether an idea might not be for you to start your player in a "tutorial" area with a large amount of soil--enough for them to simply mess around in--and a series of jumps that increase in height until said jumps require a gain in momentum.

The former, both in its spaciousness and safety, might encourage players to experiment, while the latter might nudge them towards finding ways to control and increase their jump-height.

Returning to Death Worm, above, I also wonder whether a "tunnel trail" (one that slowly fills in over time) might not help in conveying to the player what's happening when their character moves underground.

[LazerRock]

Hmm... I feel like that old indie game, Death Worm, had a similar mechanic--albeit without the gaining of momentum. I don't recall the movement there feeling unintuitive.

See the following video for an example of that game in play:




I wonder, then, whether an idea might not be for you to start your player in a "tutorial" area with a large amount of soil--enough for them to simply mess around in--and a series of jumps that increase in height until said jumps require a gain in momentum.

The former, both in its spaciousness and safety, might encourage players to experiment, while the latter might nudge them towards finding ways to control and increase their jump-height.

Returning to Death Worm, above, I also wonder whether a "tunnel trail" (one that slowly fills in over time) might not help in conveying to the player what's happening when their character moves underground.

Very good feedback, thanks! The tutorial is already sort of what you mentioned, but I'll try to do even more so.
Coincedentally, that Death Worm game was a big inspiration for Cuniculum.

[LazerRock]

Oof, it's been a while since the last devlog. A lot of exams have been going on, but hopefully I'll be able to get more work done on Cuniculum now that it's the holiday- although on the flip side I'll be on vacation so probably won't get much time to be doing gamedev...oh well.
Anyway, I've mostly been improving the visuals lately.
1- I've added some more particles when landing and burrowing into the ground to help sell the impact a bit more
2- I've added a trail that the player leaves when burrowing about


3- The background's saturation has been reduced slightly to make the foreground pop out a bit more. I'm still not 100% sure on this one, so letting me know which one you prefer would be great:
Old New

5- I've also changed the font in response to feedback; best change I've made in a long time, I think. The old font was, in retrospect, rather horrible. This new one is much smoother and easier to look at, I really like it. Link here: https://www.dafont.com/vcr-osd-mono.font

I've also finally added a controls settings menu, so all the control keys are entirely customisable:


Also, I'm working on a new level. I've been having a lot of fun mixing and matching all the game mechanics into surprising combinations. Here's fans on moving rails!


Lastly, I've created a subreddit dedicated to Cuniculum! Check it out here if you're interested: https://www.reddit.com/r/cuniculum/

That's all for now! Cheers