TOTB3 - JeffreyShimane
JeffreyShimane
Member Posts: 372
Day 1:
So the TOTB3 theme is the ocean. I read about it last night before going to bed. I figured I would let the theme marinate in my slumber. When I woke up, I decided to make a game about... 70's/80's R&B singer, Billy Ocean.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_ocean
If I can figure out a way to simulate his geri curl in GS, victory will be mine!
- Jeff
So the TOTB3 theme is the ocean. I read about it last night before going to bed. I figured I would let the theme marinate in my slumber. When I woke up, I decided to make a game about... 70's/80's R&B singer, Billy Ocean.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_ocean
If I can figure out a way to simulate his geri curl in GS, victory will be mine!
- Jeff
Comments
- Jeff
After mulling over various ideas on Day 2, I finally settled on one. My game will be called "Gentle Bubble in a Harsh World" (or something like that). You control Gentle Bubble, a bubble that spawned from a crack at the bottom of the ocean. As all bubbles rise, you have to guide Gentle Bubble as high as he can go, from the bottom of the ocean to the surface. That would be pretty easy so obviously, there will be all kinds of sharp and stabby things to avoid (thus the "Harsh World").
It will play like an endless runner game except you go up instead of right and the obstacles and enemies will come from all directions (even from beneath you!). The obstacles and enemies will be random so each game will be different. It will feature tap to move controls (where you tap on the screen and Gentle Bubble will move to that spot). I may try tilt controls but in general, I find tilt controls to be too hard to control (except for Air Penguin, that game has perfect tilt controls!).
I'm still kind of torn on the graphics style. I love retro 8-bit graphics but I kind of wanted to try do some textured graphics like Tiny Wings or Little Big Planet. I kind of doubt I would have enough time to experiment with that style and get all the graphics finished before the TOTB3 contest deadline though.
I built a working mock-up of the game last night. Hopefully, I'll have time to post a video of the mock-up tonight. All in all, it was a productive day!
- Jeff
Other things I'm working on:
- A background that gradually changes to simulate Gentle Bubble's ascent to the surface. It will be done with only one 320x480 background and no scrolling.
- Like the background, the obstacles/enemies will change as Gentle Bubble rises to reflect the kinds of obstacles/enemies you would see at that depth of the ocean.
- There will be some kind of item to collect (haven't figured out what I want it to be yet though) and once you collect a certain amount, the game will use the Pause Menu functionality to go to mini-game to boost your score. After the mini-game is done, you can resume back to where you were and keep playing.
- I think power-ups are a must. Gotta figure out which ones though. Temporary invincibility and movement speed boost seem like no-brainers. I think it would be kind of funny to have a gun power-up and see Gentle Bubble don a Rambo headband and M60 machine gun but I want the primary gameplay to require tap to move only to make the game as easy to control as possible.
- Jeff
i had for a moment the same idea (bubble bottom to top ocean, fish want's to eat the (air)bubble)
but... fish get the oxygen not by eating bubbles but get it from water (or something xD)
i like it:P good luck, see forward to you're next log!
wouter
Here is a gameplay demo video for Gentle Bubble in a Harsh World. No graphics yet, except for the bubbles and the octopus' ink.
I've asked in a previous post about another game, but it seems this game would greatly benefit from a "upgrade system." Any thoughts?
@CircleTime and RH
Thanks for the compliments about the octopus/ink!
@outasite
Thanks for the compliment! An upgrade system is an interesting idea. I think depending on how long I estimate an average game to be will determine whether an upgrade system is feasible/worth it. If the games are short, an upgrade system will probably not get used much and it would probably be better to go with power-ups only. Regarding the Tiny Wings art style, I have not gotten a chance to do any graphics tests yet. I did, however, pick up a stylus for my iPad and I started doing some sketches of the enemies in the game. I'll post those later when I get a chance.
- Jeff
Moderators, please feel free to close this thread at your convenience. Thanks!
- Jeff