{"author_link":"\/users\/loic-nageleisen","author_name":"Loic Nageleisen","author_uid":"loic-nageleisen","comments":[],"epoch":1524742301,"event":"LD41","format":"md","ldjam_node_id":94473,"likes":4,"metadata":{"p_key":"113959","p_author":"Loic Nageleisen","p_authorkey":"1013545","p_urlkey":"329919","p_title":"I still can't believe we made it!","p_cat":"LDJam ","p_event":"LD41","p_time":"1524742301","p_likes":"4","p_comments":"0","p_status":"WAYBACK","us_key":"1013545","us_name":"Loic Nageleisen","us_username":"loic-nageleisen","event_start":"1524182400","event_key":"72","event_name":"LD 41"},"node":{"_collation":{"body_sanitizer":"TextUtils::SanitizeHTML via existing importer","event":"LD41","removed_author":false},"_superparent":73256,"_trust":1,"author":13545,"body":"Let me do some kind of post-mortem, so maybe the curious ones can get a better feeling of what the idea was.\n\nThe game is basically some flappy bird thing where you type some commands, but we wanted to get some other gameplay elements in, notably from other games like Mario or Parodius. To that effect, we wanted the gameplay and commands to be varied (not just flap), memorable, easily typable(\"flap, dive, dash... ok, this *can* work!\"), and have some VIM-inspired power to it (a modal editor was really an incompatible genre altogether!)\n\n![11d35.png](\/\/\/raw\/9e4\/3\/z\/14215.png)\n\n\/!\\Spoilers below\/!\\ (sort of!) So if you haven't try your game yet, [please do!](https:\/\/ldjam.com\/events\/ludum-dare\/41\/type2flap)\n\nWell, were was I already? Ah, yes, post-mortem.\n\nBrainstorming on paper was key to exploring and scoping the project: we had *so many ideas* for this theme, choosing was the worst - thing - ever. We used Unity (on 2014 13\" Retina MacBooks) for the first time ever (installed it barely days before the event!), which was fine, but the collaboration tool ate some of our scenes. Using Procreate on an iPad Pro was glorious to quickly get concept art on track. Sprites were made using aseprite. We used a dedicated Telegram group and AirDrop to share things around our devices. We would have used BFXR to create some SFX. A lot of time was spent on tuning the timings, physics, sizes, hitboxes, and positions. Aaaand we missed the mark on level design though due to timing...\n\nFrom the early feedback there are some commands we got that seem to look like they're not that useful, here's the idea we had:\n\n- SPIT: We wanted to do some game balancing regarding score (either higher reward, or \"combo\" score multiplicator) to create an incentive to take a risk and shoot at enemies instead of dodging them (currently killing them give the same score as passing over a pipe). Also, we wanted to create some patterns that require you to spit, creating some variability in the game.\n- DASH: We planned to have some linear obstacles (like narrow pipe openings) that would be better gone through using dash, or even some requiring the almighty DAAASH. Again, more game tuning is needed for the player to be able to legitimately anticipate such sections.\n- FLAAAAP command: the idea was that since it allows you to record an autoflap sequence, you'd be able to plan ahead and trigger the next command at the exact instant you want (by pretyping up to the last letter, then triggering with the last one), whether it'd be dive, dash, or spit.\n\nUnfortunately we did not have a day off on Monday so we had to go to work and could not proceed with balancing the game further nor create some sound effects :\/ Somehow I think we didn't expect things to get that far... Next time we'll take the day off.\n\nAlso, our lack of knowledge of Unity was really, really dragging us down. Damn, we really should have prepared better!\n\nThings we wished for implementing, but weren't:\n\n- SPIIIT: rapid (or spread) fire! combined with FLAAAP, you'd have been able to aim and kill group of enemies, and score combos\/get powerups when you clear a complete wave (a la Parodius)\n- POOP: fatal to hypothetical ground-based enemies. Think Vic Viper's missiles in Parodius.\n- Mario-style bricks (which you'd have to spit at) and powerups (invincibility, and mushroom, so that the cutesy bird becomes a massive berserk monster)\n- A boss to fight against! (possibly bullet-hell style)\n- A mix of carefully tuned procedural and manually laid-out sections so that level design would not be too repetitive nor too generic, kind of predictable yet surprising. So, once in a while the engine generates some truly impossible pipes formations, which is really, really the worst, and definitely sour to us :\/.\n\nWe're sooooo happy to have released *something*, and even more thrilled that folks find it even *remotely* fun! Yet at the same time the game feels so unfinished to us, which is such a terrible, frustrating feeling, but **that gives us some lessons to chew on :D**\n\nThank you all for the feedback we already got, but [we need more! So, try our game!](https:\/\/ldjam.com\/events\/ludum-dare\/41\/type2flap)","comments":0,"created":"2018-04-26T11:07:57Z","files":[],"files-timestamp":0,"id":94473,"love":4,"love-timestamp":"2018-04-26T13:27:58Z","meta":[],"modified":"2018-04-26T13:27:58Z","name":"I still can't believe we made it!","node-timestamp":"2018-04-26T11:34:18Z","parent":91161,"parents":[1,5,9,73256,91161],"path":"\/events\/ludum-dare\/41\/type2flap\/i-still-cant-believe-we-made-it","published":"2018-04-26T11:31:41Z","scope":"public","slug":"i-still-cant-believe-we-made-it","subsubtype":"","subtype":"","type":"post","version":277969},"node_metadata":{"n_key":"94473","n_urlkey":"329919","n_parent":"91161","n_path":"\/events\/ludum-dare\/41\/type2flap\/i-still-cant-believe-we-made-it","n_slug":"i-still-cant-believe-we-made-it","n_type":"post","n_subtype":"","n_subsubtype":"","n_author":"13545","n_created":"1524740877","n_modified":"1524749278","n_version":"277969","n_status":"WAYBACK"},"source_url":"https:\/\/ldjam.com\/events\/ludum-dare\/41\/type2flap\/i-still-cant-believe-we-made-it","text":"Let me do some kind of post-mortem, so maybe the curious ones can get a better feeling of what the idea was.\n\nThe game is basically some flappy bird thing where you type some commands, but we wanted to get some other gameplay elements in, notably from other games like Mario or Parodius. To that effect, we wanted the gameplay and commands to be varied (not just flap), memorable, easily typable(\"flap, dive, dash... ok, this *can* work!\"), and have some VIM-inspired power to it (a modal editor was really an incompatible genre altogether!)\n\n![11d35.png](\/\/\/raw\/9e4\/3\/z\/14215.png)\n\n\/!\\Spoilers below\/!\\ (sort of!) So if you haven't try your game yet, [please do!](https:\/\/ldjam.com\/events\/ludum-dare\/41\/type2flap)\n\nWell, were was I already? Ah, yes, post-mortem.\n\nBrainstorming on paper was key to exploring and scoping the project: we had *so many ideas* for this theme, choosing was the worst - thing - ever. We used Unity (on 2014 13\" Retina MacBooks) for the first time ever (installed it barely days before the event!), which was fine, but the collaboration tool ate some of our scenes. Using Procreate on an iPad Pro was glorious to quickly get concept art on track. Sprites were made using aseprite. We used a dedicated Telegram group and AirDrop to share things around our devices. We would have used BFXR to create some SFX. A lot of time was spent on tuning the timings, physics, sizes, hitboxes, and positions. Aaaand we missed the mark on level design though due to timing...\n\nFrom the early feedback there are some commands we got that seem to look like they're not that useful, here's the idea we had:\n\n- SPIT: We wanted to do some game balancing regarding score (either higher reward, or \"combo\" score multiplicator) to create an incentive to take a risk and shoot at enemies instead of dodging them (currently killing them give the same score as passing over a pipe). Also, we wanted to create some patterns that require you to spit, creating some variability in the game.\n- DASH: We planned to have some linear obstacles (like narrow pipe openings) that would be better gone through using dash, or even some requiring the almighty DAAASH. Again, more game tuning is needed for the player to be able to legitimately anticipate such sections.\n- FLAAAAP command: the idea was that since it allows you to record an autoflap sequence, you'd be able to plan ahead and trigger the next command at the exact instant you want (by pretyping up to the last letter, then triggering with the last one), whether it'd be dive, dash, or spit.\n\nUnfortunately we did not have a day off on Monday so we had to go to work and could not proceed with balancing the game further nor create some sound effects :\/ Somehow I think we didn't expect things to get that far... Next time we'll take the day off.\n\nAlso, our lack of knowledge of Unity was really, really dragging us down. Damn, we really should have prepared better!\n\nThings we wished for implementing, but weren't:\n\n- SPIIIT: rapid (or spread) fire! combined with FLAAAP, you'd have been able to aim and kill group of enemies, and score combos\/get powerups when you clear a complete wave (a la Parodius)\n- POOP: fatal to hypothetical ground-based enemies. Think Vic Viper's missiles in Parodius.\n- Mario-style bricks (which you'd have to spit at) and powerups (invincibility, and mushroom, so that the cutesy bird becomes a massive berserk monster)\n- A boss to fight against! (possibly bullet-hell style)\n- A mix of carefully tuned procedural and manually laid-out sections so that level design would not be too repetitive nor too generic, kind of predictable yet surprising. So, once in a while the engine generates some truly impossible pipes formations, which is really, really the worst, and definitely sour to us :\/.\n\nWe're sooooo happy to have released *something*, and even more thrilled that folks find it even *remotely* fun! Yet at the same time the game feels so unfinished to us, which is such a terrible, frustrating feeling, but **that gives us some lessons to chew on :D**\n\nThank you all for the feedback we already got, but [we need more! So, try our game!](https:\/\/ldjam.com\/events\/ludum-dare\/41\/type2flap)","title":"I still can't believe we made it!","wayback_source":[]}