Tuesday, November 28, 2017

November 27th weekly update! All moved in

Hey everyone,

So I'm finally all moved into my new place. I didn't have as much time as I wanted to work since it was Thanksgiving and I had family over, but I still managed to get quite a bit done. Unfortunately, it's not done enough to show, but by next week I should have the demo update for Usagi Star done that not only addresses some of the feedback I got, but also starts to implement some of the game's other mechanics. I hope you look forward to it!

Also the Lewd Game Jam is coming up soon so I will be making a small game for that too. I think it'll be a good way to get some exposure, get some project experience, and meet some new devs! I have the basic concept of the game, but I think it'd be best to show rather than tell so I'll be working on a small demo for next week to show. The game itself won't be anything ground breaking, but I think it will be interesting enough for you guys to enjoy and will allow me to practice my skills a bit more.

Once again sorry things have been a bit dry for the last couple of updates, but there will be updates to my projects coming soon so I hope you look forward to them!

See you guys next week!

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

November 20th weekly update! In the middle of a move

Hello everyone!

I'm finally moving to look for a job so I won't have as much time to work on things before and after I find a job but I'll still try my best to get things rolling!

Speaking of which, I've been working on a mascot character for logos and such. Her design isn't final by any means, but I figured it'd be fun to have a character outside of the games I make that could make cameos and such.

I've preparing a "CountMoxi" logo that will feature her so I've been working on what I want her to look like as a sprite. Things are still in the early stages, but here's what I've made
so far:


I hope to have a basic logo for the next Usagi Star update, and then make an animated one later. 

Speaking of Usagi Star I still have some things I want to implement based on feedback but unfortunately I haven't had too much time to sit down and work. So I'm not sure what the ETA for it is yet. I wanted to get it out by the end of November, but based on how things are going now, I might push it to the end of December and add some more background assets to make up for it.

Also I'm in a new timezone now ( 3 hours behind what I was before) so updates might come a bit later depending on where you are. But usually they will still be pretty late in the day haha

That's it for now. See you next week!

Monday, November 13, 2017

November 13th weekly update! Full swing Usagi Star!

Hello everyone!

So recently I think my biggest problems with my game projects has been that I usually start out by making a character, then making some vague game play and H ideas around them, and get started with making sprites/ art for the game. I make enemies, environments, and think up main set pieces I want in the game, but I never really establish the exact numbers of enemies I want or specifically what mechanics I want in the game and what it should revolve around. Due to this, I think when I get to the middle of the project, it tends to stall out and since I don't really have any direction with the project, I end up dropping it, which has already happened to some of the games I've announced.

To combat this I've started mapping out exactly what levels I want, what those levels should contain, the game's narrative, set pieces, number of animations I'll need, needed scripts, characters, enemies, you name it, BEFORE I start development. I think doing all this helps on those days where I feel like the project has stalled out since I can look at the schedule and see what needs to be done. It also allows me to not have to rely on pure passion for the project and instead can look at it as individual tasks I need to complete that leads to something bigger.

So I managed to set aside some time for work last week and worked on some of the sprites for Usagi Star. Kyrieru was kind enough to give me some feedback on the HUD sprite I made and it was a big help and helped me isolate some of the problems I was having while also giving me some new tricks to implement.
Original HUD
Updated HUD

Kyrieru's edit and tips for metal and lines
Kyrieru really helped me understand lighting and metal reflection. He also gave me a good tip about lining sprites in that you should try to minimize black lines inside the sprite and instead just use them for the outline and very dark places. The eyes and overall face shape we also changed as the colors allowed for a smoother "blend" and made them pop more. I also edited the helmet shape and the star to look more appealing.

I'll probably still tinker with it a bit, maybe changing the eyes a bit more or some of the reflected light, but once it's finished I'll do some other expressions and add in animations to it.

I'm also going to have little dialogue parts during game play that happen between Usagi and other characters. It'll be like the dialogue from Star Fox. The girl on the right is the contact for Caturn that called for Usagi's help and will be  navigator throughout the game.

I think this will spice up the game a bit and add a bit more to each character and boss.

Other than that I have a good idea what I want the first level to be so I will be making background assets for that for the next demo. So instead f the next demo just being a touch up based on the feedback I got last time, I'll be trying to incorporate more things that I want to be in the game. So instead of just a space level, the background will be a bit more interesting.

I'm still in the middle of a move, but I'm hoping to have the first level fleshed out by the end of the year. I still have some other projects I need to finish too so it's gonna be busy haha

Until next time!

   

Tuesday, November 7, 2017

November 7th weekly update! Just a few things

Hello everyone,

Things have been a bit slow recently. I will be out of town for the rest of the week as well. I'll post the art I did at the end from last week if y'all haven't seen it yet.

Also been meaning to practice more pixel art so I did a few to get better:

A Lamp and a statue for practice

I have quite a few things in the back burner still but I'm gonna try my best to get stuff done and get things out there for y'all. I'm currently working on improving my drawing, coding, and design process to allow me to work faster and more consistently. I can't promise too much since I'll be pretty busy till the end of the year, but we'll see how everything pans out.

Till next time.

"Flex" Maniac set

No text version

Belated birthday pic for Jonxtu-2D