Our first devlog.

This week we started prototyping our currently still untitled couch co-op game. It will be a 2-player game where one person plays as the warrior and the other plays as the engineer. Together they will need to find their way to the end of the level while slaying enemies and manipulating the environment. Here are some highlights of what we did this week:

Gameplay

Sean started testing fighting mechanics for the warrior. You can download the playable build on the game page. The game also works with a controller. There are three different attack types implemented, so we can decide which one we like the most.

Glen started prototyping a system for moving the characters around and picking up and placing objects (for the engineer). Attempts at having two controllers control the different characters were not successful, so for now only one of them can be played with a controller. The camera angle can be adjusted and it's possible to turn on either free placement or grid placement.

Art

On the art side of the game, we as a group decided on a style for the game. It will be stylized toon-y but also gloomy.
Based on our ideas, Menio and Yannis started creating our art bible. This is the mood we're going for:

Questions

Now that the first prototypes are finished and we're getting a more detailed idea about how the game will work and look, we're ready to start week 2 of prototyping. In the next week, we'd like to find answers to some important questions. This will enable us to have a clearer view about the project going forward.
- Which camera angle fits best for our game?
- How far away can the camera go while keeping both players in view without losing visibility? Should the camera zoom in/out dynamically or have a constant distance from the players?
- Will attacks slow the warrior down or do we want the game to be really fast-paced?
- Will the engineer be able to place stuff freely in the level, or are we going for a grid-based placement style? Placing stuff freely might be tricky, as it might make navigating (on a navmesh) for both enemies and players more difficult.
- Which elements do we implement to make the gameplay truly cooperative?
- We need to make a toon shader and start experimenting with lights. How do we make the scene look good with the toon shader and dark shadows, and how can we use darkness vs light in our game mechanics?
- How do we want to design the UI? What information is important to show? Health bars above the players?
- How will enemies behave? How will they choose which player they attack? Do they have a line of sight?