WIP: updating assets

Today's update is rather modest. I've started updating the in-game assets - tiles and sounds, gradually bringing them into a form that wouldn't embarrass me if shown to the public. Unfortunately I didn't manage to finish this process in time - during the last two weeks I've been pretty much idle on this project (see my last two Reddit updates for more details on the reasons for that -  #1, #2). Nevertheless, there has been some progress, so I'm sharing it here.

Background music

Background music has been added to the game - 15 tracks from the wonderful website https://dova-s.jp/. Light tracks that create a relaxing atmosphere and don't distract from the main action - maybe I'll replace them in the future, or maybe I'll keep them. Each level has its own random track (except for random encounter levels, where the music will always be the same, different for each encounter).

New tiles

Remember when I said I had decided to order my own tiles? The artist sent me the first big batch, and I started replacing them! This time it went pretty fast, because now I can specify the requirements for the properties of the tiles, so I don't have to change the map generation process significantly anymore.

Here's a little sneak peek at the updated look of the game:

There are some bugs and flaws, but all will be fixed in future iterations. Personally, I like it already, mainly because the game finally has decent character sprites xD

SFX

I started updating my sound effects. In my naivety, I started looking for free effects again, poking around resource packs in the hope of finding something that would work for me... In the end, I came to the same conclusion as with the tiles: there was no point in this. No pre-made resource pack will cover all your needs, you're sure to find a specific Asset, which won't be in the package, but without which the game can not exist. And even if you can find all you need, you'll require an unbelievable level of luck to make all the assets you've grabbed from various sources fit together to form a more or less coherent picture. In general, I've come to the conclusion that it's easier and better to get the sound effects from a professional. 

I started with the basics: sounds of footsteps, picking up objects, fighting, etc. To my indescribable joy, the person I contacted was incredibly fast: he did the first batch of effects in literally a day! So, the decision to buy SFX didn't slow down the process very much.

Changes in assets loading

The game is gradually scaling up, and the number of resources (mainly sprite pictures and voice tracks) is growing. Some of them are only used in certain places (encounters), so there is no point in downloading them at the start of the game. Well, from now on only the "core" assets will be loaded, those which may be needed at any given moment. The loading of everything else will be delayed until the player gets to the corresponding encounter. This way, the player won't have to wait half an hour for all resources to be downloaded when they launch the game for the first time.

In conclusion

I guess the addition of the title image has paid off - the game has got its first subscribers xD. Thank you very much for  your attention! The game is still underdeveloped, but I'll try to get it in playable condition and post a proper demo early next year. I've been knocked out lately, but I'll do my best to make sure the next devlog is bigger than this one.

See you around!