On Monday Untitled version 1.0 was released, more than likely the final version of the game. If there are any major bugs or problems, or even if someone translates the game I will release a version 1.x to fix issues. For the most part, the Untitled chapter is closed.
On 8-21-2011 the prototype was released for the Ludum Dare 21 competition, for my second entry into Ludum Dare (and third construct game) it did quite well, scoring as #38 for Innovation. Over the past eight months I have taken the game from a prototype into what I feel is a solid game.After I released the game for Ludum Dare the biggest critique was that the controls were cramped and not easy to use. 15 days later I released beta 1 that changed the controls to use the mouse, it made the game a lot easier to play, and more intuitive.
One of the cut features in the prototype was the the level generation, I wasn’t familiar with ini files and didn’t know a good way to keep track of the numbers (as well as only having 48 hours) But I did intend for the game to have the level generation options, so you could change the level from a crowded one, to a minimal one. Beta 1 had a shell of the level generation (had to edit the configuration file, and all objects got the same number) in Beta 2 I added the options to the menu and you could set the individual color generation.
Then on IndieDB a suggestion was made by Reqieumthefallen about unique effects for when you’re each color. I liked the idea and quickly came up with and implemented Abilities and Traits for colors. Beta 2 had the Abilities and Traits along with Orange and Violet colors.
Beta 2 was when it became a game, and not just a toy. The Abilities and Traits allow you to move differently and approach the level with a different plan. After Beta 2 I shifted focus to polishing the game, and adding more options.
A Leaderboard was added in Beta 3 that could be viewed on the website, you had to push a submit button for your score to show up. In Beta 4 I improved the integration of the Leaderboard into the game, and there is an option to automatically submit your score, or push a button.
Configurable controls is something that construct doesn’t do well itself, but a mod fixes this issue and makes configurable controls easy to implement and support a wide range of controls. Beta 3 was the first version that you could remap the controls in, so if you don’t like playing with WASD you can change it to use the arrow keys. The only thing I had wished I could have implemented was a way to change colors without using the mouse, but it was to big of a concept change at this point.
To finish the game up I just polished everything, redesigning all of the menus to be more appealing, and making the game easier to just pickup and play. Pickups were also given a color effect that fires when you pick them up. and the difficulty was made easier using presets. I’m happy with the resulting game, and hope to see some more scores on the Leaderboard.
