Update:

Took me longer than it should but I had a 6 day work week to contend with..but here we are and now we have backgrounds that change hue over time in the caves..looks awesome and seamless!

We are ahead of schedule on the cave portion of the demo and are at about 90% done with more than 3 weeks to go before we hit our set deadline. Cannot wait to get to the next stage!

Next stage and environment will be a drive up a mountain side on the road to the rebels base. This include mountains by the sea, ancient battlegrounds, and a menacing attack on you and the rebels. This is an action Stage where you wont be able to exit the tank, this is full on "Metal Slug", "GunStar Heroes" and "Contra" all out balls to the wall action lol Featuring scaling enemies, explosions, a battle ship and a airship trying to nail you with a barrage of missile attacks. Enemy soldiers will make their first appearance as well as enemy weaponized mini drones.

We will update soon with a new look at the cave.

Have a good one!

This is where it all begins in GunnSwitch. This scene is almost final at about 80%.

Update:

• We have started to implement the background layers that will feature parallax on the X and Y axis giving the cave more depth.

• Many small fixes all around: the game is running smoother, at a constant 60 frames per second steady when previewing off the engine and better on export. Even with the added objects, particles, animations, backgrounds etc. Nice to know that there's still some wiggle room for the bigger areas later in the game.

• Game play is tighter, enemy spawns are being tightened up and timed better. Collision detection is better for projectiles and platforming.

This Saturday we will try to show a bit of the caves with the new backgrounds

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We have thought of adding a more dynamic camera for a while now using lerp position/scale in some areas and we finally implemented it!

• It makes for better game play in certain scenarios like for example scaling out to show more of the level, scaling out for when you control the tank and scaling in close when you're in control of the protagonist. Also for fighting a mini boss so the screen doesn't scroll when you move around the battle area and the camera pans toward the center of the battle as you approach it.

• When falling at high speed the camera pans quickly below the player and also scales out smoothly allowing the player to get a good look at whats below.

• The game feels better with the dynamic camera. The camera movement (panning to a position and scaling in/out) is so smooth and seamless that you barely notice it but it looks and feels so much better with it than with out it.

Been a busy start to the year with life stuff but we have managed to make progress and good strides so far. By the end of February we plan to have the cave stage 98% complete. Our to do list to reach that goal includes:

• Adding 3 layers with parallax in the background (We've tested this and it gives the area some nice depth), crystals to be added in the foreground that distort what ever is behind them with an effect.

• Optimizing and organizing the engine, events and and image sizes, physics use, particle counts, redundant actions, memory management etc..

• Refine enemy movements, actions and spawn points.

• Balance damage/health, difficulty, enemy spawns and attacks

• Small adjustments to lighting and scenery placement. Refine the particle effects and add new ones to replace placeholders. Small adjustments to the tanks colors and outline, add a decal to center of tank.

*****- Extra- ***** ( If time permits)

• Experiment with new lighting engine using normals and real light and shadows. (This is already looking awesome, transforms the look of the cave but we still have to test it when all layers and graphics are put in place.)

• Add a HUD (1st test)

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I believe we are on pace to reach these goals but always keeping in mind that the unexpected will arise from time to time and that there are new challenges to face after every solution. The indie gaming dev rabbit hole goes deep

Another look at the first area in the GunnSwitch demo. The GunnSwitch demo will be released later this year!

Another look at the first area in the GunnSwitch demo. The GunnSwitch demo will be released later this year!

Love it! My old school senses are tingling, great idea with the game genie..i mean wizard

Sorry to hear about your moms health problems and glad to hear she is doing well and playing video games! Death From Above was a great start. I have found with each project I finish I learn so much, especially if the games are a bit different. Your concept art is great, love me some Metal Slug too. Im actually working on an action shooter in the vain of a metroidvaina too, I look forward to seeing your approach to it. Our game GunnSwitch is more like Blaster Master though with the tank but also adds in some Metal Slug/Megaman style action and platforming. Good Luck with whatever you decide to do, Ill be watching.

Cheers

Cool project, its nice to see someone bring back "Lemmings" style game play back, great idea for mobile.

A quick look at how the animation is progressing in GunnSwitch, footage is not final but we are happy with how its coming together.