AuthorTopic: [wip] Bilou's school : Pendats goes marchin' in [c+c]  (Read 102753 times)

Offline PypeBros

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #130 on: March 15, 2013, 02:39:22 pm
Hehe, that was mainly me trying to prove the case of how extremely important consistency is for a game. <:U!
Then it was definitely a good argument to make your point.

Oh, btw, it's pretty non-sense, but I find the following some funny and coherent non-sense. Ink by itslef is not floating and magic. If that was the case, there wouldn't be ink swamps in first place. Yet, ink reacts in a magnetic fashion to inspiration flows (think of something glowing moving up or down), that makes inkjets move up or down, although they have no possibilities to escape those flows to track Bilou.

Hmm... now, what I cannot explain is why the ink stays within the inkjet despite the flow pulling it up ... so I bet it's not consistent after all :P
« Last Edit: March 16, 2013, 08:30:24 am by PypeBros »

Offline Helm

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #131 on: March 16, 2013, 10:15:46 am
The blocks in the mickey game float because of the Mario tradition, there is a clear visual language communicated to players over a long period of time to make floating stone blocks with faces seem okay in such a platform game.

Inkwells just up and floating, and animated as they are, not so much. I would never think to use them as platforms and even when I would figure it out I would say 'well... this is weird' and it would take me out of the game.

You're controlling your game. You can find a better solution than this.

Offline PypeBros

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #132 on: March 17, 2013, 08:50:30 pm
I would never think to use them as platforms and even when I would figure it out I would say 'well... this is weird' and it would take me out of the game.

Thank you for providing feedback on this. I think I've found workarounds for all the level locations I had so far, now. You might see them camp, block your path, float (when empty) on the ink or bounce on super-elastic erasers, but there shouldn't float freely in the air anymore.
« Last Edit: March 18, 2013, 07:14:14 am by PypeBros »

Offline Decroded

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #133 on: March 20, 2013, 07:05:21 am
As he looks now I would instinctively try to kill it.

If its a platform, try putting a lid on the bottle (probably a light colour e.g. off-white or yellow).
Let him look happier normally then his eyes squint (rather than being so angry) as he shakes from side to side, then the lid pops off and you can ride the lid up.

Offline Mathias

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #134 on: March 24, 2013, 12:17:30 am
If something is attacking, I attack back. And I expect to be able to have an offensive effect - i.e. damage/destroy it.
When I encounter an indestructible enemy in a game, I always resent it.
I do find it neat when something is not susceptible to typical attacks and you have to get creative to destroy it - just like a few enemies in Zelda games where you must first freeze them, then quickly use a blunt force weapon to shatter them to destroy in one single blow when 100 conventional hits did nothing. That's always cool.

Offline PypeBros

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #135 on: March 24, 2013, 02:20:10 pm
As he looks now I would instinctively try to kill it.
Point taken. It is indeed a threat, and should be avoided most of the case. There will be some way to disable inkjets permanently, but only in some circumstances, and -- as Mathias will enjoy -- not through Bilou's typical ways of attack. Throwing a dumblador here will only produce a glassy sound, and trying to jump on it will only reveal to the player that inkjets can be used as bumpers.

To some extent, part of the story of Bilou lies in the resistence to those instincts, and use those dangerous denizens to overcome the challenges.

Quote
If its a platform, try putting a lid on the bottle (probably a light colour e.g. off-white or yellow).
Let him look happier normally then his eyes squint (rather than being so angry) as he shakes from side to side, then the lid pops off and you can ride the lid up.
good piece of advice, but I prefer keep his current look that match its role in the story, and figure out ways to use something else as a moving platform where I really have to.

Quote
If something is attacking, I attack back. And I expect to be able to have an offensive effect - i.e. damage/destroy it.
When I encounter an indestructible enemy in a game, I always resent it.
And that's the established rules for an action game. So I realise that it will be important for me to make sure that alternate behaviour (where the right move is *not* to attack back) leads to secrets or alternative routes, but that I do not force it on the straightforward path so that every player can make it through, just like Mario series do not use advanced technique as the "only one path" to get to the exit.
« Last Edit: March 24, 2013, 08:32:55 pm by PypeBros »

Offline Jim16

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #136 on: March 24, 2013, 09:59:23 pm
I, personally don't see this as a problem. For me, as long as the inkjets are explained before the player character has any interaction, then why would you feel the need to attack them? If you explain them as, unfriendly platforms that will push you off if you stand on them, then for me at least, I'd seem them as an obstacle, not an enemy. Just felt like throwing that out there.

Offline Ymedron

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #137 on: March 24, 2013, 10:15:06 pm
I had an idea for a potential inkjet-platform mechanic but... Well, you be the judge. <:U



Also my art tumblr: ymedronart.tumblr.com

Offline PypeBros

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #138 on: March 25, 2013, 06:48:43 am
Thanks for sharing, Ymedron ^_^

I had something like
planned and kept secret since a while ago, with the "cork lid" being a sort of organic key that Bilou carries along to change the behaviour of inkjets. The idea is that the height Bilou could reach would be higher when he's using the lid.

The scenario you suggest is pretty interesting to, especially in its "tutorial" fashion. It also make me realise that adding a lid pretty much transform the inkjet into a block, where Bilou moves freely (i.e. walk and jumps as on plain ground), while without lid, you're stuck at a specific position. I also had plans to use the fact that Bilou's hand are busy when he "rides" an inkjet, and thus he cannot e.g. carry a blador along while riding. That's one of the motivation to keep "empty-inkjet-floating-on-ink" in some part of the levels to ensure that Bilou can only use the resources he acquires locally to solve puzzles.
« Last Edit: March 25, 2013, 10:17:52 am by PypeBros »

Offline PypeBros

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Re: [wip] Bilou's school : injet ahead! [c+c]

Reply #139 on: March 29, 2013, 06:57:14 pm

I think I found the trick I'm missing. It will require to add some chemistry-themed items such as laying out bonuses into H2SO4, but having vertical bars and grips that make inkers move up and down would do the trick.

Habemus Atramentarium!

Now mock-up time and colour picking ^_^ ...
« Last Edit: March 29, 2013, 08:42:37 pm by PypeBros »