The response and feedback I got from the gamedev community since I joined Twitter last month, really pushed my motivation to work on Nimbatus. Therefore I have much to show this week.
Procedural Enemies
One of the biggest changes I've made is the addition of procedurally generated enemies. Instead of designing each enemy by hand, I let them generate themselves procedurally out of different parts. This generation underlies some basic rules:
- Each enemy-part has multiple docking points that are used to interconnect the parts
- Some parts have weapon-mounts, which are equipped with a procedurally generated weapon of the appropriate level
- The number of parts depends on the level of the enemy, the higher the level, the more parts it can use
- Each enemy part can be destroyed individually
- Bigger enemies move slower, but can withstand more damage
At the moment there are just a few parts I've created to test the algorithm, however it generates already some interesting opponents. Here are some screenshots showing different enemies I encountered on my testing journey.
Planet Selection Screen & Risk Level
I completely reworked the planet selection screen by adding a preview of the generated planet instead of the abstract cross section I had earlier.
In addition to this, I've also implemented something called "Risk Level". It controls the minimum level the enemies will have at the starting position. So if you just crafted your first drone it's not recommended to enter the atmosphere of a maximum risk planet, or the fun will be over in a few seconds ;)
Drone Workshop - Item Filters
There are now multiple item filters available to filter the growing list of items by type. I thought about adding more filters so you could sort the items by rarity or weight, however I think the type-filter is sufficient at the moment. The screenshot also gives you an overview over the different types of items besides the ones generated by the weapon builder.
Next Steps
Here is an incomplete list of the next planned features and improvements without any warranty :)
- Procedurally generated Boss-fights - Every boss will select his weapons and special attacks from a wide selection and therefore play differently each time you meet.
- Complete planetary destruction - As it is necessary for the game progression that your drones get destroyed at some point, there will be some unavoidable events like meteor showers or black holes, that will destroy a whole planet and all it's inhabitants.
- Background Story / Mission - Why are you sending out drones to all planets? What are you trying to find?
Please follow me on Twitter if you like to see daily Work-In-Progress screenshots or give me some feedback about the game. (Twitter.com)
There's a fascinating game called Warning Forever which is basically top down, one direction boss generator. See how far you can get with ten lives kind of game.
Each boss is procedurally generated, but what's really interesting is the game tracks how you play to make the next boss harder. If you attack the front parts of the previous boss to kill it, the next boss will have greater armor and more weapon in the front. If the previous boss took away one of your lives with a particual weapon, the next boss will have more of that weapon.
It might be interesting if you did something similar - track how the player plays and how he's been killed, and have that factor into how some enemies (bosses? worlds?) are generated.
Thanks for the feedback, this is a great idea!
Especially because the player can upgrade his drone each round it would just be fair if the enemies adapt their weapons or tactics too.
I'll see what I can do :)
This game looks soo cool, cant wait to play it.
Thanks!