Mar 10, 2024

Stramedia: Injury Plateau - Aerøsmaw Emerald-Harper

Hi. Am I starting to write these articles a bit too often now? It's been a month now since I dropped the previous update on how shit's going back on track after 3 months of a "hiatus".

If so - I sincerely apologize for that.

No, seriously, I really do.

But still, I do gotta address some stuff that's been going on, so, let's begin with what's clearly sticking out right now.

It's more than just a "misadventure". Welcome to Injury Plateau.

Stramedia's got a change in subtitles! Something I've been meaning to do in quite a decent while, and while I do not know of your opinion on it, I am just glad that I went through with that change.

I already feel you wonder why change "my_MISADVENTURE" subtitle to "Injury Plateau", and there's two solid explanations to it:

It didn't quite roll off the tongue anymore, or at least in my personal opinion. That besides the point of a question whenever an underscore character is supposed to be read or not.
People browse with screen readers enabled, and the software might be struggling to read stylized texts, which is something that normally do not wanna encounter. (At some point, I curiously looked up my own game in one place, the title didn't really match how it's officially written out and after beefing with the mods on that place, I realized that the guideline set for game titles and their 'stylized' variant exists for that sole purpose, and I felt bad and stupid for it, and basically this is my formal apology to that game database place, so, yeah... that got kind of embarrassing, but it's an L on my side I'll proudly carry badged on my backpack for everyone to see.)

If you're also wondering if the title change also relates to any potential plot changes - I am happy to say that "No, the game will basically remain the same. It's still Stramedia. Just carrying a different subtitle."

Just thought I'd get this out, as I know there is at least a few folks following the game's development on Steam, Game Jolt and whatever before the title change happened, so these fellas would know what the hell happened to their (somewhat) anticipated game (still stuck in development purgatory, as I like to call it).

Kickstarter Demo in Production

So! Stramedia's Kickstarter demo is in production now! How sweet, eh?

I can't exactly tell how soon and when THAT and it's campaign are launching, but I at least can confirm that it's absolutely in development for Windows and Linux - and a dedicated Steam Deck version, as I plan for the demo to return to Steam as well.

Granted, there's currently two versions of the same game getting downloaded onto the Steam Deck (both the base desktop and Steam Deck Edition versions) which is why it would prompt you to choose which version of the game to launch - plus, the game takes up twice as much download space on the Steam Deck due to the same thing, and I feel like I should be taking care of that before ever releasing anything, yet I get the feeling that only a few people would give a fart about that.

(I mean, some games are literally guilty of doing the exact same thing on purpose on WINDOWS for a variety of things, so I don't think it should be that surprising I might be doing that on Linux - even if it was not entirely done on purpose, but oh god that just sounds so funny... somebody remind me to add a note to the recommended system requirements for Linux+SteamOS warning that the Steam Deck would require players twice as much storage space to install that bitch if I don't end up resolving the problem hahahahah)

Anyway, so at least the demo is gonna be somewhat different from what you may have experienced waaaay back in October 2020 or so - it's been that long since the previous public demo, I forget when it was. Oh no.

Instead of focusing entirely on the game's narrative, I am just gonna present how the general gameplay itself would be, now that I am no longer restricted to the limits of one of the game's previous game engines.

All I can say that it might be somewhat stressful/frustrating. So, you might wanna get ready for that.

Seriously? A Patreon & Boosty???

I know, you might be rolling your eyes at this section's headline and question what's the point of me opening up a Patreon (and recovering my Boosty profile) if this game's deadset on launching a Kickstarter campaign at some point. While you are valid for wondering that, the difference between the Kickstarter and both Patreon and Boosty is that the latter platforms are oriented to my varying creative endeavors (surprise! I do more than just game development shit for a hobby! perhaps will be doing that 24/7 cos I am gonna be laid off from the restoration train station in a week and a half as it turned out I took a position from somebody who's been on maternity leave! :D), and the Kickstarter campaign is solely gonna be just to crowdfund the game if people would prefer that I don't wait around for both Patreon and Boosty funders to do that over a much longer time period.

Having those open, as well as launching the Kickstarter campaign, will not affect how I am gonna be updating you all on how the game's development going. Though, I will be showing off more in-depth look at how things are going on those platforms (and maybe will even cross the spoiler territory for the folks who'd back the theoretical Kickstarter campaign), leaving Indie DB, Steam and whatnot as places to notify you all about MAJOR things in the game's development.

If you wish to stay up to date on whenever the Kickstarter campaign gets anywhere near launching or whatever, I decided to compile a link tree containing all the social links for you to peep into: https://linktr.ee/stramediagame.

Regarding whenever you should be supporting me on either Patreon or Boosty, regardless of whenever the Kickstarter campaign happens or how it goes in the end, you can read a master post covering whatever questions by clicking on this underlined text.

Oh yeah, and due to those areas containing mixed content (especially Patreon), and mainly because I'd prefer a functioning adult capable of making proper financial decisions actually doing it, you must be 18+ years old to subscribe on either platforms.

TL;DR Conclusion

So, long story short, the game's Kickstarter demo is in production now, and while I cannot mention when that nor the campaign itself are coming out, I can confirm I am working on it for Windows and Linux systems, WITH native Steam Deck support in mind. I also changed the subtitle to "Injury Plateau" cos it just reads nicer to both humans and whatever screen reader software the vision impaired denizens of the internet.

Oh yeah, and Patreon and Boosty are a thing, if you're interested in supporting me doing more than just game development stuff, all the Kickstarter plans aside.

...Welp. I've said what I had to say, and I am gonna be going back in my hiding hole to continue doing what I was doing. Bye!

Mar 10, 2024

Here Be Dragons!

Rabbit and Steel - mino_dev

Hello Rabbits!

It's been about a month, and content is coming along. In fact... I've now made (but not tested) almost all of the game's enemies! Yeah!

All that remains content-wise is the final boss and all the story dialog. I'm prioritizing the dialog first, so I can hand off the result to translators for translations. I've also managed to slightly touch the very large list of random bug fixes and random adjustments, but those still have a ways to go.

In this blog post, some classic fantasy tropes: a knight in shining armor, and a dragon for her to fight!

Are you the type to play the stalwart shield, a bulwark at the front of the party, ready to defend friends from danger?

Or, have you ever been playing the demo and thought... "That person is not standing where they should be. They are about to die, and take me with them. I wish I could do something about that."

Introducing the Defender Rabbit!

The Defender Rabbit is a slower-moving rabbit with lower damage overall than most of the other characters. However, she makes up for these with her great AoE and unparalleled defensive capabilities.

Her basic rotation is very simple, though the way her Special works makes her optimal item choices weird compared to some other characters.

First, her Primary: a triple-hit thrusting attack that slows movement on use, and charges up your Secondary.

Followed by her Secondary: an orb that travels horizontally until it hits your target.

Her Secondary, by default, is weaker than her Primary in raw damage, but is stronger when it's charged. It gains one charge per use of your Primary, but up to 5 charges can be stored at once. The Secondary also doesn't slow you down, making it a good option when you need to keep moving.

Her Special... doesn't have a cooldown! Instead, it gets 2 uses every 5 times you use any other move. It also hits a big area, similar to Dancer's Special. Finally, it also erases smaller bullets near you when used, so it can be used defensively!

Her Defensive is a speedy roll followed by a defensive shield. Great for rushing to your ally's side and helping them out. It also counts towards your Special's uses, so you can use it on cooldown for a very slight DPS increase, if you feel like it.

And that's the Defender! If the above sounded complicated at all, it really isn't; she's one of the most straightforward classes in the game. Just 1-2-3! Or more like 1-1-1-2-2-3-3.

Boss time! You're up against the (former) ruler of the Moonlit Kingdom, Princess Ranalie!

Dragons favor huge attacks that cover a large portion of the screen. Lots of lasers, spinning lasers, explosions in every which way... you get the sense that they aren't holding anything back.

Ranalie is no exception! Her first phase combines a number of different explosions in ways that make it hard to catch a break. You'll definitely singe the frills of your dress fighting her.

Her second phase features quite the transformation. Her dragon form dominates one side of the screen for the entire fight, as your party is dwarfed by her size.

(Note: Assassin Rabbit's backstab attack always hits for the bonus damage against enemies transformed into animals... so she can stand on the left here just fine.)

Periodically during the fight, she'll dash through the arena, knocking you back and leaving a trail of obstacles in her wake.

Think carefully about how to dodge!

That's all for now! Hopefully by the next blog post, I'll have a release date... or maybe at least a release window.

Over the next few weeks I'm going to try to post more around social media! Be on the lookout for new screenshots and leaks.

See you next time!

Mar 10, 2024

Team Introductions: Cleopatra Motzel

Fallen Gods - Mark Y. @ Wormwood Studios

Very early on in the development of Fallen Gods, while researching runestones, I had the idea of using one to tell the world’s backstory. When I found Cleo’s gallery, I found with it the one artist on earth seemingly able to execute what I described as “my dream, although I'm skeptical that it could be executed”: that the lore of the world be “depicted in a single continuous illustration, like a Norse-style carving on a runestone, but in an outward spiral from the center.” Cleo’s laconic reply: “Feasible, but really challenging.” Needless to say, Cleo rose to the challenge.

Almost a decade later, I reached out to Cleo to see if she’d be interested in writing about creating the runestone. Cleo immediately agreed but also wanted to use the skills developed in the intervening years to make Fallen Gods’ main menu screen a suitable vehicle for the original spiral carving. And, again, Cleo delivered... not only the new screen, but also the breathtaking new logo for the game.

So, without further ado, I turn the floor over to the artist.

-Mark Y.

Mark: Knotwork, runestones, and traditional Norse/Celtic art have been a focus of your work for over a decade. How did that interest begin, and what do you find most appealing about that kind of art?

Cleo: My mom is a jeweler/goldsmith and once bought a book about Celtic designs to use as patterns for jewelry. Once I got a hold of that book I was fascinated with knotwork designs at first sight.

I started out copying the designs from that book and later began doodling my own creations, which grew ever more complex over time. Eventually, they were seemingly good enough that I started to get requests for tattoo commissions online, which became the backbone in my early years of being a freelancer.

As I picked up more diverse artistic skills in my studies, and refined the ones that I already had, the kind of commissions that I am doing have now shifted away from knotwork designs towards 3D visualization and character illustration. I still get the occasional commission for Celtic or Norse knotwork art, but not nearly as much as in the beginning.

Personally, I find it somewhat meditative to draw knotwork designs. Also, I love busy ornamentation/visual noise, where your eyes have to actively go around the image to look for all the hidden details, and follow every twisted line from its origin to its end. The spiral design for the menu stone itself is a pretty good example of this.

Mark: The Fallen Gods knotwork tells the story of the game’s setting in a single widening spiral. Can you explain some of the techniques you used to weave its scenes and elements into a single unified image?

Cleo: I made the spiral in my very first year of being a freelancer. I didn’t have the best tools back then: I only had an A4 scanner, and I’m pretty sure I didn’t have my lightboard yet. So it was more complicated than if I had done it nowadays—nowadays I’d probably have made it digitally from the start. The original spiral illustration was done on five separate pieces of A4 paper that each had a part of the spiral that had to match at the seams if rotated. Those were then arranged digitally and incorporated into the runestone illustration.

Mark: Your initial rendering of the knotwork and runestone in early 2015 was part of your application portfolio to university. Almost a decade later, you came back to the project to update the runestone and craft the game’s logo and main menu. Did your approach change at all with the passage of time?

Cleo: My general approach has definitely changed since then.

Regarding the knotwork, I have better tools now that make my work easier than it used to be back then. Nowadays I’d also use different line weights in the knotwork designs to make the details pop a bit more. Also nowadays I make all sketches digitally for easy iteration; the final design is either traditional, or digital depending on what my customers need. Overall, apart from the fact that I developed a better general sense of composition since then, my approach and workflow there has largely stayed the same.

My approach and workflow have changed for everything else that isn’t knotwork designs. I’ve learned a lot in those nine years and honed my artistic skills. I offered to completely rework the background from scratch and large parts of the runestone, except for the knotwork, which I left as is. The old version of the menu screen was very lacking artistically, had the wrong aspect ratio, and terrible layer management on top of that. The new version looks a lot more professional and allows for some dynamic effects with the layers.

The logo I approached from my ornamentation-designer angle since I’ve always loved ornamental logo designs. Minimalist graphic design is not what I do, so of course there had to be at least some knot-ornaments in the logo! Of course I was also very conscious about not overdoing it too much, readability was still the primary concern here, all the while offering more to the eye than just the game’s name. I made several initial designs in different styles and colors, and we settled on the one with the more Celtic-looking uncial font.