Development Update - 1/21/2022

Hello everyone, and happy new year!

Welcome to (hopefully) the first of many development updates this year! You may have noticed that this isn't the usual place I've posted development updates. In the past, I've used the Development Log section of Abyss, as it was the only game I've published thus far. Going forward I'll start posting updates and information here instead. I've also taken the time to retroactively add all previous updates to this page.This first update of the year probably won't be too big, but I'm hoping it's at least something. So without further ado let's begin!

Game 2(Bullet Rites?)

I don't refer to the game as Bullet Rites anymore unless I'm talking to friends, it's a matter of me not liking the name. It's a cute pun that I came up with while incredibly sleep-deprived. I haven't settled on a new name so for now, it's just internally called "Game 2". Exciting, I know.

Development has been relatively smooth so far, though I'm saying this after having Covid for almost 2 weeks at the start of the month and spending the past week overhauling my camera and UI system to make them more robust. As I'm mostly a solo developer having reusable base assets like a good camera system makes the development of future games a lot easier. Unfortunately, all of this did throw off my development schedule by a month or two, I expected the prototype to be finished and be in testing by now. All that said however, I'm proud of the progress I've made since my last update.

 

Me (badly) trying out the combat for the first time

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Admittedly, this is also from about a month ago at this point, a good portion of this stuff has been re-balanced (and the gameplay loop works now, this was just me testing out the combat for the first time) I was hoping to have the lighting/shader system done by the time I released another development update. Evidently, that didn't happen.

So , if it wasn't obvious: Game 2 is a roguelite. You'll be fighting through hordes of cultists in procedurally generated arenas. And like, they ARE shooting at you, so they must have a good reason for it! If you're lucky maybe you'll find that out as well. 

Occasionally, you might find a mysterious artifact beckoning you with ancient power...

.................................

Hey,these look familiar!

 

 

 

 

If you paid any attention to the designs, they might look a little similar to my icon on pretty much everything. There might be some lore implications there, but the main reason why is that they're all drawn by the same person(@_SIMULAZONE_)!The icon I currently use is a design salvaged from something we were working on in 2019. Sadly it fell through but we both loved the design , and I decided to update it and make it my icon so it could live on. I've always wanted to work with her again on some similar designs and with Game 2 I finally got that chance. All of them so far have been incredible, and I can't wait for you to see them all.

Currently, the gameplay loop is a lot more streamlined compared to most roguelites. I feel like the strongest part of the game is its combat so I just want to focus on doing that well and having that be fun. This is already the biggest game I've ever made, I feel like adding on complexity would ensure it never got finished. That said, I'm trying to add as much depth as I can with what I've got. I'm really proud of what I have so far, and I can't wait to get it in your hands. I'm taking extra care to ensure this game is the best it can be, so please be patient. <3

Abyss

Unfortunately, I've got nothing to report about the game. As I said before, I learned that working on 2 games at once is a bad idea. Admittedly I have been rethinking what I'm going to do for a "final update". That said I've recently been thinking about how personal of a game Abyss is for me, and I feel like at some point in Labyrinth's development I kinda lost that to an extent. Labyrinth was still a success in my eyes from a level design perspective (some weird balance issues notwithstanding)but a lot of the other choices I made took away from the experience for me personally. Expect some changes to be reversed/overhauled in any future updates.

When I look at my documents for this final update that I've been planning since before Labyrinth, honestly as I understand the headspace I was in when developing the original game the plans feel wrong now. At the same time I fully understand that when I go back, I'll never truly be able to recapture the same feeling I had when making it. That point in my life has come and gone, and trying to cling to it in some act of desperation is silly. That said, I feel like I can still make something that satisfies me personally and ties up one or two loose ends along the way.

In the meantime, the game's anniversary comes in less than 2 months, and I want to do something for it. I'll try my best but don't get your hopes up. 

That's about everything I can talk about right now, I'm hoping to see you all again in a few months with more news about Game 2. I've had a lot of fun working on it and I can't wait to show you more once it's in a more complete state. Until then, I hope you enjoyed this year's first development update!

I love you all <3
~Madi

Birthday Development Update - 11/21/2021

 

Hello Everyone! 

As mentioned above, today is November 21st 2021, otherwise known as my 20th birthday! Usually i don't really do much to celebrate outside of spending some quality time with friends. But today i thought i might as well take this moment to reflect as well as briefly talk about what I'm doing in terms of game development currently.

Abyss

Abyss doesn't have much going on right now, admittedly. I have pretty extensive plans for one last update before moving on completely, but i haven't really worked on it. I tried doing so while working on another project but i learned the hard way that working on multiple projects at once is a BAD idea.  I don't know when this final update is coming out ,or how big it will be , or how exactly it will take shape. But I'm hoping it will release next year. 

The response to Abyss at the beginning of the year was absolutely the most surreal experience I've had in my life.  I was absolutely overwhelmed by the positive response. At least for awhile this review has probably been the most impactful thing that's ever happened to me. Seeing my game transcend language barriers in the way it has is crazy to me and i still have trouble comprehending it all. Thanks to everyone for playing the game, and i hope you all stick around for whatever comes next. <3

Other Games

My main project currently has been fully realizing my vision for my game jam game, Bullet Rites.  That game's development was a total disaster, if I'm going to be brutally honest. And while i feel like the core premise is really cool the gameplay loop is deeply flawed, and I'd like to fix that as well as add a lot more to the game.  This version of the game is being built from the ground up, chances are it probably won't even use Bullet Rites as it's title (at least I'm hoping, i was very tired when i came up with it).  I'm quite proud of what i have right now, but I'm not ready to show too much just yet. 

(Some in-development footage from a month or so ago. it's a bit farther along now.)

I'm still proud of the original game, at least for what it is and the time it took to develop. But i always felt like i could do something much better with it's core premise, something much closer to home for me at least. Thank you for your patience 

Outside of this, I've experimented with a few smaller concepts, but nothing really came to fruition. I have one prototype that I'm holding onto because i think it's really interesting, but that's about it. my original concept for a "Game 2" so to speak was way too ambitious. I'd love to keep working on it but really delivering on my concept would have been a lot more taxing than i initially anticipated. I'm hoping something similar doesn't happen with what I'm working on now. 

I think that's everything, Again thanks to everyone who's joined me in this past year. I hope you'll stick around to see what else i have in store. I don't know how to describe the past year outside of surreal, unfortunately not all of it was positive. The highs have been high, the lows have been really low. in the end the best i can do is keep on making games.

Thank you all <3 

~Madison

Abyss : Labyrinth Release

 

Hi everyone! 

Well, I talked about future support a few months ago and this is kind of the fruits of that effort. I hope everyone is enjoying exploring the abyss a little more with the Labyrinth Update!  

I'm gonna be honest with you all, this update has technically been done for about a month and a half now? I held off from releasing it for several reasons, some of which were incredibly personal. Eventually, I got to the point where I felt like if I didn't release it within the next 2 weeks it probably wasn't going to come out for months. Now that it's out I'm glad people seem to be enjoying it! Admittedly I do feel it's a bit rough around the edges, I couldn't get nearly as much testing done as I did for the base game but I did what I could. 

Again, big thanks to my close friend Apollyon for contributing some work, it meant the world to me especially since I'm very scared regarding working with people. And thanks to all of you for supporting me throughout this process. I don't think I'd be here had it not been for all of you.  

As for what's next? I think I'm gonna start branching off into original games again. I've been meaning to experiment with Godot a bit more, and I wanna make something kind of small and arcade-y again. Bullet Rites was a fun experiment not only in terms of its concept but in the way of making a smaller experience like that. 

For the time being though, I think this is a moment to reflect on everything I've done thus far. 

I love you all <3 

~Madi

Abyss : Labyrinth patch notes

 

Hello Everyone! After a couple of months of silence, I'm proud to simultaneously announce and release the latest update for Abyss: the Labyrinth Update. This update is mainly focused on bringing new content and encouraging the player to loop, while also addressing some issues with the original game. So without further ado here we go! 

NEW LEVELS

After you finish the main game and its alt path, there are 2 new paths with a combined 15+ levels! Each of these paths can be discovered on alternating loops. Look out for holes in the wall...

    

Oh yeah, like the main game, both of these paths have their own little secrets that you can find on subsequent loops too! 

NEW MECHANIC

Glass Blocks - You can stand on these just fine, but falling towards them at high speeds can break them. Just make sure they don't have spikes in them before you take the plunge...

  

QUALITY OF LIFE 

Graphics Changes

Parts of the games art style have been improved, white portals have gotten a small update , while the rounded edges of levels and the spike sprites have been completely overhauled (Credit to @Apollyon_Art) 

   

Pause Menu 

The Pause Menu has gotten a major facelift. With improved text visibility, volume options , and a stat tracker. 

   

Looping 

You can now play the base game's alt path after your first loop instead of after your second. After that loop the next alt path opens, and so on. Additionally instead of having each path open after a certain number of loops, there is an established rotation order after the first loop. This should help keep the pacing of the game consistent, while also making sure nothing gets confusing. 

WINDOWS VERSION 

Abyss now has a downloadable windows version, complete with rudimentary controller support! It's not particularly fancy ,but I do hope people who wanted it enjoy it. 

Detailed Patch Notes Below 

ADDITIONS:

Levels

-Added 2 new paths with a combined 15+ new levels, both can be found by looping.

-Added new secrets that can be found via looping. 

Mechanics

-Added Glass Blocks, hitting a glass block at high speed will cause it to shatter

-Added support for multiple switches in the same room

FIXES + QOL:

-Path openings now have a rotation order after the first loop, rather than being dictated by how many times you've looped. 

(This does not affect how secrets open, those are still tied to loop count)

-The alt path from the original game is now open after the first loop, not the second.

-Overhauled and heavily optimized the interactable system

-Improved the Blight in room 17 of the main path

-Improved the look of white portals 

-Slightly improved the look of the logo on the title screen

-Updated the spike sprite to be much more readable

-Updated level geometry to accommodate for the spike update

-Adjusted difficulty in some minor ways to make the main game flow slightly better 

-Removed the ability to change the game's framerate between 30 and 60 

-The pause menu now has volume settings 

-Your stats now appear on the pause menu 

-General Audio systems have been further changed and overhauled

-Fixed an visibility issue with the pause menu

-Fixed an issue where the motion blur effect wouldn't match the players current rotation

-Fixed a hitbox alignment issue with shifting platforms 

-Fixed an issue where the music slider only changed the volume on the starting screen

-Fixed an issue where springs would cancel your momentum

-Fixed an issue where the players death animation could start on an incorrect frame.

-Fixed an issue where a player could still be affected by certain objects (such as portals) during their death animation

WINDOWS (Beta)

-Added a windows version to download

-The Windows version is in it's very early stages, despite the game itself being feature complete (It's basically a direct port of the browser version)

-Added rudimentary controller support to the windows version

Abyss Development Update - 6/1/21

 

Hello everyone, it's been a while. 

So, abyss has been out for almost 3 months and in that time much has changed. For anyone who's been wondering where I've been, I released a small game for a Game Jam called Bullet Rites, check it out if you'd like. Additionally, the Kickstarter for the pilot I wrote, Please Stay Tuned, has launched. Please share and support if it seems like something you'd be interested in. I've also been working on something a little bigger but development has been rough, and I'm not sure if it's going to see the light of day anytime soon. 

Recently I finally had the opportunity to come back to abyss full force. I've chipped away at an update sporadically over the past few months, and I'm pretty proud of what I have right now. However, I do feel it needs just a bit more time in the oven so I can get it to a place that I'm happy with. Thank you for your patience.

I don't know when the final update will release, but here are some in-development GIF's taken mainly from a month or so ago. 

 

Thank you for your patience and support, the response to the initial release was so overwhelming. I hope you all enjoy what else I have in store. 
Love you all 
~Madi <3

Abyss Release

 

Hey everyone!

Today is kind of big for me in particular, in that I get to show off the first game I've ever actually published for people to play: Abyss. It's not incredible or special in any major way, but for a small almost month-long project I'd say it turned out okay. 

For those of you who don't know who I am (Or need a refresher, I haven't talked to a lot of people in a while): I'm 19, I'm the lead writer on a small animated pilot called Please Stay Tuned and I've been chipping away at this whole game dev thing for over 7 years, making progress every year for sure but not enough to justify any releases. I'm one of those kids who had a bunch of really cool prototypes in Unity or Gamemaker but nothing else cause I'd hit a brick wall somewhere or something would happen and I would quickly lose interest. I've fallen into this cycle of coming up with neat ideas just to have them never fully materialize. 

After pre-production on Please Stay Tuned wrapped up, I've had the past few months to do whatever until my services are required again. I decided that within that time I wanted to finish something small at least, probably release a prototype for one of my bigger games. Yeah, that didn't work out whatsoever, and neither did my second smaller game idea (though I'm still trying to make that happen). Eventually a few days into February I started writing this and within a month this happened. 

Again it's not much, I wasn't able to do everything I wanted to (and some stuff will come in the following patch but that'll take a bit and I didn't want this taking forever) but I'm proud of it and hope all of you enjoy it. I want to start releasing games more frequently and this might just be the beginning.

Love you all <3~ 

~Madi