It's been a while since the last entry and the reason is that I was working on another game.

But I've been back to Light of the Locked World since September 21.

I have reworked combat - made spells activatable with different keys like in many other games and added 3 new spells.

After that, I have added roles and started working on Locul town.

So, what are roles?

In most RPGs you pick a class and then go do whatever is that RPG wants you to do - complete quests, kill monsters, save the world, the usual.
You get XP and level up, get attribute points, build your character, become more powerful.

Now imagine that instead of one XP bar, you get several, one for each of the classes and that you're no longer are locked to one class.
You can switch classes whenever you want and while you are using that class, it gains XP, levels up, you become better at using that class.

That's the role system!



Similar systems can be found in RuneScape, Skyrim, Ultima.

Currently, I have made 2 classes or roles, as they are called in-game: Survivor and Warrior.

You get Survivor XP by using Regenerate spell and restoring health.
Later you'll be able to get XP by using health-restoring consumables and maybe even surviving lethal strikes.
Leveling up Survivor increases your maximum health by 3 per level.

You get Warrior XP by dealing damage with Warrior role weapons, which are melee weapons.
Leveling up Warrior increases damage and accuracy - but it only applies while using Warrior weapons.



The next demo version will also have Mage and Archer roles, which will function in a similar way to Warrior, but it will be about flinging magic missiles and shooting arrows to kill enemies!

In total there will be 10 roles and it will be possible to level up roles up to level 50.
It should take over 10 hours to max out all of them,

In future leveling up roles will not only make you stronger, that will also be required to unlock new content.
For example, to equip silver equipment you will need to be level 10 Warrior.

The main goal for me right now is to make the first quest and finish the Moonrise Desert area.

This is what the first quest requires:

- Role system.
- Mage role and equipment: The quest's boss is a mage.
- The first town: NPC that starts the quest is in the town.
- NPC interaction and dialogue systems.
- Quest log.

Currently, I am building the town, that's how it looks right now:



When the town is finished, I'll be making the first non-aggressive NPCs and interaction systems.

So that's where the game is at, until next time =]

UI rework is coming to an end!

I'm very happy with how it looks now - buttons will move, features will be added and removed, but the style will stay the same.



Another thing that will make it to version 1.0 is the new tooltip system!



They are incredibly versatile and easy to customize - they will be crucial in building the rest of UI.



The next tasks are to convert the rest of UI to the new style - currently, only the Items page have been converted - and make a new HUD.

I'm hoping to do that next week and then start working on combat changes I've written about in the previous entry.

Until next time!

It's been two weeks since the last entry.

The first week I've been making shadows, the second - finished shadows and started making new UI.





I decided to work on the UI because it has been bothering me for a while and because I wanted to do something different after working so long on shadows.

First I played with colors and frames, hoping that would be enough.





None of the mockups felt right for the game. I want an immersive UI, and none of those felt like a part of the game's world.

I wanted something UI as cool as old RPGs had - with statues, stone arches, columns, gems, parchments, and other good stuff.

While thinking about all of this, an image flashed in my mind, it looked something like this:



I've spent an entire day trying to make it fit the art style of the game.

The last iteration of castle UI even had shelves in the inventory.



But I've run into problems.

I had two options: Make it noisy and tiring to the eyes to display all of the useful information, or hide the information to make it look better.

I really hate choosing between convenience and beauty, so I decided to drop the castle UI and try something else.

The next idea is to go for a medieval adventurer logbook/diary feel.



So instead of putting things on shelves in a castle, the adventurer would instead draw pictures of owned items on a piece of paper.

Currently, it's the best idea - this UI has the same looks as the rest of the game, it makes sense, and it's convenient.

Hoping to finish it next week.

Anyway, about the combat:

The feedback I received since the pre-alpha demo was released is clear - combat needs to be better.

Like castle UI, position-based combat seemed like a great idea at first.
It turned out that it's just more complicated than it needs to be and has no significant benefits.

I want to get rid of the position aspect of the system, and instead, allow to use attacks everywhere with different buttons as many other games do.

I also want players to be able to change their strategy during fights and have more options.

The weapons should offer 3 or more ways to defeat an enemy.

For example, ideas for the iron sword:

Attack A:
A quick attack that deals low damage, but makes the target bleed and increases movement speed temporarily.
The plan is to jump to the enemy, make it bleed and run away, repeat until the enemy dies.

Attack B:
A slow attack that in addition to dealing damage, binds both you and the enemy.
There is a short window for the enemy to escape.
The plan is to bind and outlast the enemy.

Attack C:
Creates an energy field that deals high to enemies that are performing attacks against you.
The energy field will also deal low damage to enemies around you.
The plan is to create the field and punish aggressive enemies, then finish them with area damage.

A is effective against C because you don't have to stay in the energy field. A is useful if you have low health and can't afford to take too much damage.

B is effective against A because bleed is only useful if it's possible to run away. B is a good option if you can take some damage or an ally is healing you.

C is effective against B because it requires the enemy to attack you. It's also a defensive option because it punishes enemies that are attacking you. Also effective against enemy groups.

This should give the player plenty of choices and make new things possible with AI.
NPCs could react to what you're doing, for example, try B when you're doing A.
Then you can switch to C for that retaliation damage or B - if you are confident that you can outlast the enemy.

I have no idea if this will work, but I think it's safe to say that the next version of the demo will be more interesting to test!

I'll be changing the combat when I'm done with UI and other graphical improvements, so in a week or two.

That's all for now, until next time!

Go to store page >>

The purpose of this demo is to show what the game will be like and gather early feedback.

Feedback form:

Link >>

To complete the demo content, obtain a full set of iron equipment, cape, sash, and amulet.

Note:

To do PVP, find and equip red cape.

This will change your faction alignment, allowing you to attack the other player.

Have fun!

EDIT: I posted this on Sector Six hub by accident. Sorry!

After releasing the alpha demo I've been working on improving the game's graphics.

I've started with small things - cloud shadows and sand particles.



Cloud shadows went through several changes:







Currently, cloud shadows are still not finished because I started working on non-cloud shadows, which currently look like this:



I've also made minor changes to attack animation, added idle animation, and changed the font.



Improving graphics is just one of the many things that I want to do before releasing the next demo version:

Add interior system and Locul town

• A system to allow you to go inside houses and then a bunch of houses!

UI looks 2.0

• Current UI looks too bland.

Character interaction system

• Pressing a key while you are near to a character will open a screen with options, such as talk to a character, trade with character, etc. This is system is necessary for making quests and trading.

Role system and first four roles

• This is a big one: It requires a lot of coding, staff and bow attack animations, 6 new attack spells, and countless UI additions. The first 4 roles to be added are Warrior, Mage, Archer, and Survivor. Expect to get more information about roles in the future.

The first quest

• Combining roles, new content, and character interaction system into your first big adventure in Caios!

My goal for next week is to finish working on graphics and start working on the interior system.

That's all for now, until next time!

The demo should be uploaded to Steam soon if it's possible, but meanwhile, you can already download it from:

GameJolt >>
Itch.io >>
GameDev.net >>
IndieDB >>

Send your feedback:

Link >>

Have fun!

This week I finally fixed area loading and now I'm building the first area - Moonrise Desert.

Here are a few screenshots:









About Moonrise Desert:

It's an arid land around Moonrise Site, the place where Demon Moon was built and risen.

Demon Moon is a giant iron sphere built to be a prison where demons are taken when they are banished with Ritual of Banishment.
Demons must be banished because they are completely indestructible.

Moonrise Desert is very rich with iron, the ore veins are close to the surface and are easy to mine.
That's the main reason why the Moon was built here.

Pits and ditches in the desert are left by mining to get all the iron required for the Moon.

Currently, the only humans in the Moonrise Desert are exiled criminals.



Anyway, I also want to share an epic track from LOTLW's OST!

Music for Light of the Locked World is composed by Bert Cole, a musical genius who has also made Sector Six OST.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1779042316 Capital of the World will play in Eiralta, world's most important city.

If you want to know more about Bert Cole, visit his website:
Link >>

That's all for this entry.

Until next time!

This week I've been working on UI.

I've done two things:

1) Finished the first version of Items page. Items page is inventory + equipment + stats.



2) Changed the way game handles UI, fixing a lot of problems and making the process of developing UI much faster.



UI still needs a bit of work, but most of it is ready for the pre-alpha demo.
Now the only big obstacle left is area loading - I'm still stuck on that.

Anyway, I was suggested to write about the combat, so let's get into it.

This is how combat works:

Holding attack key - can be any mouse button, controller button, or keyboard key! - will charge up attack.
Once it is charged, animation plays and attack is executed.

Where it gets interesting is attacks themselves.
The player always has 3 combat spells: Melee position spell, limited position spell, and open position spell.



To execute a melee position spell, your character must be in a melee range of an enemy character.
In pre-alpha demo melee spell simply deals weapon damage to the nearest enemy character.



To execute a limited position spell, your character must be near something that you can't move through - rocks, walls, cliffs, bodies of water, etc.
In pre-alpha demo limited spell restores 10% of health. Currently, it's the only way to restore health.



To execute an open position spell, your character must not be in limited and melee positions - away from enemies, edges, and obstacles.
In pre-alpha demo, open spell teleports your character to nearest enemy melee range and binds the enemy for 4 seconds. Bound characters are unable to move.

In future combat spells will be determined by the equipped weapon - this is where limitless design space comes from.
To make weapons and combat have good variety all I need to do is add about 50 combat spells, which is not too difficult.

Another important aspect of this system is that level design changes the combat.

I can make long, narrow passages where open position spells are impossible to execute, fields with no limited positions to retreat to, and trap-filled mazes where enemies don't let you get close for melee spells.

So to summarize, in the end, combat should become varied, highly customizable, easy to learn, skill demanding, and PVP viable.
A combat system to be the core of an RPG =]

That's all for this entry!

If there's something you want me to write in the next entry - let me know in the comments.

Welcome to the first LOTLW development blog entry!

Light of the Locked World is what happens when old school MMORPG is turned into small, but dense RPG with local splitscreen multiplayer.

I have started working on it in 2018 October and serious development began in 2019 March, when I released the last content update for my other game.

Here are other important moments:


In January I have defined LOTLW's artstyle and implemented pathfinding.






During this month I have added inventory systems and written the foundation for the game's story.




This month was all about character graphics - I have implemented animation and equipment sprite systems, made walking and attack animations.
I have also added the wind system, which was a huge success - the game feels a lot more alive with plants, flags, and capes moving in the wind.








May was epic! During it I was working on combat - now it finally resembles what it will be like at the end of development.
I also implemented basic faction systems. Factions will be very important to the game - player actions will determine how NPCs react to them.




My current goal is to release the pre-alpha demo in June.

There's still a lot to do - finish Moonrise Desert area, add HUD, rework interface and world chunking systems, make the game more player-friendly, add a way to customize keybindings, and so on.

So, yeah, I am not very optimistic about releasing the demo this month.

Whatever happens, I'll keep you all updated =]



If there's something specific you want me to write about in the next entry - Story? Combat? First area? Faction system? - let me know in the comments.

Until next time!

Light of the Locked World is now live on Steam!

If the game has sparked your interest, consider adding it to your wishlist - the wishlist count will help the game a lot during the release.

If you need more information about the game, go to Q&A thread in discussions - questions are usually answered within a day.


If you want to follow the game's development, here's where the news about the game will be shared:

Live updates:

LOTLW's Trello board

Frequent updates - GIF's and screenshots several times a week:

Twitter
Discord

Weekly updates - development blog entries roughly once a week:

Developer's official website
Facebook page
Subreddit

Blog entries will be shared on the Steam page as well - the first entry will be posted very soon.

Until then!