The summary pretty much nailed it, I'm absolutely stoked that I'm able to say my firstgame is officially out. And now that it is, I can tell my dad that I finally done it. I can't help but to smile at the thought. And don't fret, I will try my best to get the game fully released by the end of the year, so please bear with me. I more than happily will make the game into the beast I want it to become.
That being said, here's the patch notes/dev dairy, the actual patch notes are located at the bottom. I didn't do much adjustments to the game in this update buuuuuut here it is!
The purpose of this document is to put the plans for my game into word form to come back to whenever I have time to build it.
At the end of the day, I can see what progress I've made and where to go from there. Think of it as a Development Journal with extra steps.
Before I kick off this list of dev stuff and patch notes, I would like to thank our plugin sponsors
YANFLY
Olivia, Fallen Angel
MOG
Yoji Ojima (Enemy Book plugin)
Atelier Irina (Collectible Card Game Plugin)
PHLiM2 (Menu Plugin)
For musical credits, I'd like to thank Peritune, who's beautiful music is absolutely splendid. And also Wingless Seraph, who did the Battle Theme.
If you know anyone who'd be willing to make RPG music, please hit me up at any time, I'm more than happy to pay them for more music! Because the feel of an RPG is tied to the music imo
Thank you for these wonderful plugins, and if there's anything else I need to do credit wise please let me know.
And, in case of possible usage, thank you whtdragon for the tileset expansions! Absolutely looking forward to using them.
And now without further ado...
Current Form:
Game is at 5% completion on 11/2/2019 12:46pm.
Goal: At least 50% completion come next year, or at least expanding upon concepts to make the game more technical, but not overwhelming.
- Added as a note during 1/16/2020, 12:50am EDT -
Game is at 7% completion but it sits better with me as it stands now. If anyone sees this, I hope they realize I don't really want it to be an Early Access Game but I also
need help testing that I simply wouldn't get anywhere else. But! I hope by the time my game releases that it's fun enough that people look past that, or at least that it can be
delayed by some way so I have more time to work on it and feel better about the end result. As it stands, the game's final mechanics are in place and it's just storycrafting and
locale-crafting that needs work. After all, I never planned on releasing this game at all, but I also wanted people to play it. So, it's kinda bass ackwards to want that. I'm throwing
it out there and hopefully giving people the best I can.
1/26/2020
I pulled almost an all-nighter to complete the first portion of Chapter 2, wanting to ensure that there's enough gameplay to justify an update, plus having fixed enough balancing issues and etc. that the
game is playable. So far, I don't feel it's bad. But what do I know? So, the game is technically 0.17.1. I haven't had time to playtest it to the fullest but I was having fun playing what I had before I started
chugging through to get where I am now. So, any balancing issues please let me know.
2/12/2020
My birthday. I decided I was going to release my game early on my birthday. Why? I don't know. I thought it was a good idea. Hope so. Chapter 2 is done. Chapter 3 is Bronzegard and Deluta Pass. Chapter 4 is the Bonfire the spoilerino thingerino.
Current Objectives:
- Flesh out towns, strengthen the dungeons I have.
A big issue I see is that my towns and cities are mostly lifeless, where the charm in an RPG should come with who you see and talk to.
Sidequests are obviously a must-have and should be included to the most of 8 per town.
- Added in as a note during 1/16/2020, 12:53am EDT -
As I write these notes, I realize that I've been slowly crafting better towns and fleshing out current ones. I might end up revisiting Graduva and Virtue and expanding upon them
so they don't feel dead, and can have a bit more shine to them. Bronzegard still feels incomplete unfortunately, and I have to make a deadline of Feb. 18th for the demo if I want everything
to be okay by Steam.
- Introduce "Card" system as a form of memory.
Journals seem a bit overdone in terms of remembering where you're at but cards in RPGs have always been a fun thing. I think if I try
to make a "Card Catalogue" system that functions like a journal but with rewards and cute art, it'll be a charming and fun way to keep
track of story progress and sidequest progress. As well, introduce these in the story in a way that doesn't harm proception of the game
and the conception of new ideas. Also, possible superboss that you can fight if you collect all of them?
- ADDED AS OF 2/6/2020 -
So, I found a plugin for a card game IN GAME. Which would be absolutely fantastic because I'm gonna be real with you I absolutely love TCGs. And how fun would it be to have another leisure activity in game?
Absolutely. This also expands upon my idea that I'm making a game I can have fun playing too, rather than just a game that fulfills the need for a game to be made. If I can enjoy it, others will too.
Looking into getting the plugin tho, it might be a next paycheck thing. But I'm absolutely hyped for it ngl - ADDED AS OF 2/12/2020 -
I have the plugin, and I'm prepping it to be added in game. So that's a thing. But it'll take a bit cuz I'mma talk to my artist friend about helping me with it since he and I love CCGs and TCGs
- Delta Engage and Enrage system
Flesh out and implement Delta system to enable a burst feature to turn the tide of battle. Implement an Enrage system for enemies to
make 100%ing the game easier, as they throw out their Willpower techniques more frequently and become stronger. Deltas have been planned
from the start and making the system easier to use and understand would possibly strengthen the user to be able to combat the deadly
forces of the Suun.
- Added as a note during 1/16/2020 12:46am EDT -
Made the Delta system more intuitive over the 2 weeks I had off from work. Used Auto-Passive States plugin from Yanfly to make the Delta system easier to access.
Especially since I find 10% Heart to be incredibly low in a game where I want enemies to 2-3shot characters, if not 4 shot them on a good day. Functionally, it seems useless but
I feel that this makes it a last-ditch effort in incredibly high tense situations. Of course, this doesn't really change anything that was already there, it still takes 2 turns to
unleash a Delta if you're going via the old way and there isn't a reliable way to achieve the Delta HP<10% if you're trying to abuse the system.
- Creating new locations and stories as I go along
Self-explanatory but needed to make sure I go along with it. Right now, there's a string-along story that's just fetch quests to go
forward. That is not fun. Restructure the story, make it more intuitive and fun to journey through. Make characters more character,
embrace a quirky, fun, and charming story that engages the player.
- Added as a note during 1/16/2020 -
Currently doing this, revamped the beginning portion of the game to make Leonard much more fleshed out and give purpose to his journey. The story doesn't revolve around him but it
sets the pace for the game so far. Absolutely thrilled that this one went so well, and it kicks off the game in such a fashion I just can't wait to see how the players react to it.
- Create subquests and make them apparent.
Unfortunately, this takes a lot of time but if I list them here I can make it easier on myself to implement them in the game. - Library Book Return
- The Warp Zone
- Finding Froveryn
- Destroy All Chests.
Added As of 2/6/2020
Quests are getting added as I go. I don't have everything I want in the game atm, and there's a lot of side content that I have to add from the Old World too. Think the Chimera, or Froveryn. Especially since both of those are challenging fights in and of themselves.
Absolutely going to be added as soon as the party reaches Bronzesgard, which will be the same Bronzesgard from before, as it will be the same sewers as before too. Those areas are still well-crafted, just need to be fleshed out before the party heads to Deluta. Which is
made from much earlier.
-
- Added As of 1/20/2020 - Elaborate on the crafting/upgrade system in the game
Before the prior notes, I had crafting as a per-case instance using events and conditional branches but that led to problems, mainly used resources if you don't have the final ingredient.
To remedy this, I decided it'd be better to switch over to a crafting plugin. Moreso, added an item upgrade plugin to make characters more versatile and customizable. This will be a long process
especially since I have to find out where to put a lot of these items so they make the game unbalanced in certain areas, or make players rely on upgrades to clear main content. Side Content and
side quests or superbosses is fine, since they exist to push players to try new things, and test players. So far, I've implemented states to make this possible but I have no clear date that this will
be finished, but as the game is in early access, it could be added as I go along, along with any new content that's available. However, I don't want to rely on the game being Early Access to give me
the breathing room I need to implement new ideas. Back on topic, I haven't implemented as many crafting recipes as I want and want to make more as it goes on. I want at least a weapon of every element,
and a definitive version of each weapon type in those elements to be craftable. But that means making rarer ingredients, so that may need to be held off on until I reach those areas of the game in development.
Added As of 1/27/2020 - This is actually going really, really well. Recipes (so far) are easy to obtain and make certain areas easier too. I don't regret adding this and it adds a little bit of gameplay depth, along with the random based gameplay I have so far.
- Added As of 1/20/2020 - Elaborate on the crafting/upgrade system in the game
I am slowly making Bronzesgard feel like a legitimate city and not just filler. Little bit by little bit. I also have to make the next dungeon over.
I'm going to wait until the party gets to Deluta before I do anything major. It's just a good place to send the entire party on their own ways.
Re-implement the beginning so it feels like the beginning of an adventure. I've already laid the groundwork with Leonard's backstory since he's the character you start as
I might as well continue this by making the entrance to the game more fluent, and allow Taytra and Syan in the party at the beginning. Clears up unneeded dialogue and creates
a dynamic.
Shipyard boss battle with actual mechanics, utilizing variables and ship background attacks.
Plans for 0.18
Implement a New World version of Yehanlu and the surrounding Areas.
Yehanlu has been an instrument of difficulty to reimagine. It, like Virtue is a port town but it's also a port town with successes in agriculture. So, how do I reinvent this without taking away from the atmosphere of both elements?
Naginta Plateau/Peaks is an absolute bore to explore. The first time I was there in my own game I wanted to get out of there ASAP. So, it's going to get the New World treatment. Cove Cave was fine, as it functions more like an intro dungeon and doesn't need that much touch.
Hyani is perfect as it is, but I may expand upon it to give it more love. Overhang Bridge is still really nice too. I don't think it needs any changing. Just need side quest tags and it'll be good to go.
Crystia is absolutely in every shape and form underwhelming and boring. It definitely needs the New World treatment.
Cloud Stalk needs the NW treatment too, only because it needs tileset upgrades.
Bronzegard still needs to be finished but it's coming along great as we speak.
The Secret Side Dungeon is good as is, it's a dungeon first and foremost and by the time the party gets there hopefully it'll feel balanced.
Added as of 2/2/2020
Oh my god everything needs to be adjusted, also, looking at it CTB doesn't seem to be that effective, having issues where some characters may get locked out. Will look at attack speed values to ensure that I'm not accidentally causing a loop.
Figuring out that AGI is the primary scale for CTB. If CTB doesn't work, I'll just stash it somewhere for me to mess around with, since I was having a lot of fun with it. ATB will work tho, so I'm fine with that.
Added as of 2/6/2020
Bronzesgard is still a few updates away, but I have the foundation for the next area pretty much complete. I might end up reusing Old World Hyani, since there was nothing wrong with it. And since I'll be reusing that, I can reuse the entirety of Overhang Bridge.
Since those maps got a lot of love, but I may need to fix the issues that'd come with the pacing too.
------ Patch Notes -----
Most recent notes are at the bottom.
0.17 - Official Beta Launch. Game launch means no real patch notes, but I can tell you that I buffed Rapture again.
0.17.01 -
Balancing changes
Ferocious Rat health reduced to 275. Double Strike qualifications moved to <25%HP.
Snowbloids MaxMP reduced to 12. MaxHP reduced to 60. Magic Attack reduced to 4.
Leonard's Magic Defense increased at lower levels.
Ace, Deceptor of Good Faith's MaxHP reduced to 675. Frequency of Tackle reduced significantly.
Made text in Snowli easier to see for the tutorial prompt after leaving Grand-Grand's. Removed Snowbloids from small forest area in Snowli.
Changed maximum amount of armor and weapon slots, that increased filesize.
Added a Beastorb Delta to Sewhagins and Sahagins. Gave Sewhagins a Level Based Attack
Added Yarns and a Knitting Recipe.
Added more recipes too.
[...].02.01 -
| Bugfixes
Fixed Riposte Guard, now targets User.
Text in Snowli now doesn't mesh, window turned dim.
Forgot transfer to Haunted Hut, added Transfer
| Plugin Additions
Enemy Book, now we have a Bestiary!
Yanfly ATB, CTB, and STB plugins have been added! Check the Flyer in the Main Area of the Gracious!
| Additions
Added Bestiary, check the Lounge of the Gracious! (or Rotten Cores Base)
Added Fishing, and fishing spots!
Added new crafting recipes! Armory Recipe I and Smithing Recipe I can be found in the -NEW- Weapon Store in the Lounge!
Added Heavy Splash Gun as a Delta for Moah (unintroduced as of this patch). Must be Beastorb'd to obtain, or find a Soul of the Sahagin
Added Soul of the Sahagin, weapon for Moah. Grants Splash Gun, Heavy Splash Gun, and Aqua Bubble
Added Shark Fangs, Soul Clothes (the special equipment for Moah). Craftable, uses Soul of the Sahagin, 3 Green Yarn, and a Scaled Binding to craft. Grants Splash Gun, Heavy Splash Gun, Aqua Bubble, and Tsunami
| Adjustments
Upper Slash now properly jumps user, also can inflict bleed at a 15% chance.
Leonard now gains 3 levels before initiating the Boss Fight with the Grime. This is to supplement the leveling the party may have done before reaching the Grime.
Grime now drops 2 Slime Pudding and a Slime Potion Recipe. This is to create an actual source for the recipe, rather than obtaining a temporary recipe from Slime Pudding. Slime Pudding remains unchanged.
Ferocious Rat now gives 100XP, to give Leonard a guaranteed Level Up to 3.
| Plans
Job Board System planned ahead, returning to the Gracious (Rotten Cores Base - The Lounge) will have Flyers posted with quests on them. These sidequests will grant many things, from rare equipment and recipes, to new characters.
Chapter 2 completion, I don't know if Chapter 2 will be completed prior to the Early Access release date but I'm going to try.
Introducing another 2-3 characters, as the story will allow.
Implement WeaponUpgrade Plugin. I don't know where to put it as of yet. Maybe I'll add it to Bronzegard (unofficially implemented as of 1/28/2020)
0.19.01
Balancing Changes
| ATB/CTB/STB
In order to prevent loops of death on the player, I have buffed AGI values on multiple enemies with a base agility of 10. This ensures that the player and enemy doesn't get locked into loops where they are unable to do anything. Also dropped max value for those gauge based systems.
Ace made tankier. Spongier.
Content
| Chapter 2 is complete. World unlocked. Kill them dead!