Giovanni Nodal - Hackclub ZRL Santa Meet and Greet Coordinator

UPDATE #23: SECRET DEBUG MENU + AESTHETICS

-added a secret debug menu filled with several cheats, challenges, and game settings

• contains 2 secret modes, 3 cheats, and 3 game settings
• accessible through a hidden button in the corner of the settings
• unique opening and closing sfx

-added julien mode

• modelled after my good friend julien because he wanted to be in the game :D
• unique attack, hit, and death sfx, as well as a death jumpscare with his face on it

-added Hellen Keller mode

• now you get the 100% accurate hellen keller experience being both deaf and blind, makes the game virtually unplayable lmfaooo
• neat lil challenge for the worthy

-added cheats for invincibility, extra perk coins, and extra heart drops

• intended to make the game easier for testing, also accessible to the player to customize their experience

-added custom score, enemy speed, and player speed modifiers

• also intended for game testing, but still accessible to the player

-added a red pulsing screen effect when getting hit
-added tweenimations to the settings screen
-minor bug fix with player death particles

UPDATE #22: GAME OPTIMIZATION

-completely rewrote half of the game’s code, cutting off as many instances of _process() functions and _physicsprocess() functions

• went from >10 of these functions to ~3
• these functions run a check every frame, running thousands of times a minute. Cutting them down greatly reduces lag

-made all enemies only render their scripts and animations when on screen

• instead of rendering 150+ enemies at once, the player only renders up to 20, again reducing lag

-reworked the camera shift trigger when you enter the perk checkpoint

• all one big box instead of four separate checks, detects whether you enter or leave the box

-fixed a resolution and viewport bug on the itch.io demo

UPDATE #21: ATTACK COOLDOWN BAR + POST-WIN MENU

-added a bar above the protagonist’s head that displays their attack cooldown

• slowly drains based on time remaining, helps new players gauge their attack times

-added a unique menu screen after beating the game

• has a cute little star in the bottom left corner

-Added hell.
-added a second Normal level variant with different mob and drop positions
-adjusted the attack animation to match the actual window the protagonist attacks in (lasts for 0.15 seconds, attacks for 0.15 seconds)
-fixed a camera bug when starting the level

UPDATE #20: ENDING SEQUENCE

-added the ending to the level, a long bridge with the gates to victory

• unique UI pulls up that shows the player’s score and time to beat as they progressed
• adds a score bonus based on the amount of time to complete the level (awarded linearly by the hundreds if completed in < 400 seconds)
• unique sfx and tweenimations

-new tileset additions

• added a variety of brick variants, as well as slabs and columns

UPDATE #19: ADVANCED AESTHETICS + THE LOSER ENEMY

-added numerous major aesthetic changes

• added background music in-game
• added vines and grass flora, pebbles, and wall mounted torches
• unique lighting system: subdungeons are now cast into darkness, with the player illuminated
• revamped all background tiles to have shading under block tiles
• corrected the Dagger Dude’s sprite to match the environment’s lighting
• Bats now come in three variations: blue bats, green bats, and big boi bats (the last being the only non-cosmetic change
• the protagonist’s death particles are more white now

-added the sleepy Loser enemy, a stationary pest

• tanky guy, soaks up 3 hits and deals 1 heart of damage
• hitting him knocks him back and wakes him up, where his eye will begin watching you fearfully
• eye tracks your position
• unique hit and death sfx + death particles

UPDATE #18: SUBDUNGEONS

-added subdungeon rooms filled with clusters of enemies

• difficult but rewarding, each contains a perk coin
• accessible via secluded doors around the map
• custom “W” key prompt to enter + unique sfx

-reworked bat AI to have exclusive “dungeon aggros”

• significantly decreased aggro radius for dungeon bats

UPDATE #17: ADVANCED PERKS SYSTEM

-condensed perk menu into perk coins

• picking up a perk coin triggers the 3 perk choices
• coins have a unique animated texture, resembling the protagonist
• coins retain the perk sfx

-protagonist now has 5 perk slots, capped

• if a perk coin is picked up after all 5 slots are full, instead heals a heart and grants +2500 score

-minor perk rebalancing
-minor audio fixes

UPDATE #16: PERKS SYSTEM

-added 6 perks to spice up character playstyle. accessed at a “perk checkpoint.” halfway point in Normal mode.

• unique perk room with exclusive tileset, camera pan effect, and sfx
• given 3 options to choose from, with different chances for each perk to appear (ranging from 30% for common to 5% for mythical)
• each perk unique in nature

-gave the protagonist a “perk slot,” visible in the top right corner. an icon for any perks equipped.
-minor visual changes

UPDATE #15: MASTERED MENU SYSTEM

-added a “return to menu” button in-game

• positioned under the score counter with a warning beforehand

-added an aesthetic background footage effect to the main menu

• plays a repeating animation of the gameplay in the background, seamless gradient

-minor audio changes

UPDATE #14: ADVANCED MENU SYSTEM

-created a settings menu

• contains a slider for volume, displays percentage as well
• contains a difficulty editor between Normal and Expert mode (not coded yet) which will have unique challenges and stat changes. also has a tagline at the bottom!
• unique sfx for switching between difficulties
• contains an interactive controls guide, where pressing any of the keybinds will make their corresponding graphic “glow”

-main menu now has a theme playing
-added a fade to the play button

UPDATE #13: BASIC SCORE SYSTEM

-created a basic score system

• killing enemies and picking up items will award score: hearts are 50, bats are 100, and dagger dudes are 150
• score meter flashes a green indicator when achieving more score

UPDATE #12: DASH MECHANIC

-created a dash mechanic

• P to dash, dashing lets you scape short distances quickly, allowing for dodging
• added a visual cooldown indicator at the bottom of the screen
• unique dash sfx

UPDATE #11: MENU SYSTEM

-added a basic main menu

• play button, menu icon, and a short loading screen (for impact!)
• play button has a short hover visual and sfx when clicked

-extended the level

• tripled level size and began packing in enemies

-minor tilemap change

UPDATE #10: HEALTH RECOVERY

-added a heart pickup item

• recover +1 heart upon contact
• unique visual “pop” effect and sfx, player glints green

UPDATE #9: THE DAGGER DUDE ENEMY

-added the new dagger enemy

• stationary, but deadly. deals 2 hearts of damage and attacks in one direction. They’re weak from behind!
• unique death sfx

-minor background parallax fix

UPDATE #8: AESTHETICS

-complete aggro mechanic overhaul

• aggro radius is now based around the enemy, not the player

-being hit now has a visual effect

• whenever the protagonist loses a heart, they’ll flash red for a brief moment

-killing enemies now has a visual effect

• whenever an enemy dies, they’ll burst into white pixels

-fixed the heart system to show all 3 hearts downed upon death

UPDATE #7: PLAYER HEALTH

-added health mechanic to the combat system

• the protagonist now has 3 hearts, with bats damaging 1 heart. Three hearts leads to a total restart.
• hearts displayed in the top left, shattered when you lose a heart

-aesthetic death sequence: death and hurt sfx, respawn cooldown, and a “blood” visual effect

UPDATE #6: AESTHETICS

-HUGE aesthetic and sfx overhaul

• added a 3-layer paralax background, establishing the forest scene
• revamped the tileset again, adding gradient border to background walls
• added a jump sfx, randomized pitch (sounds good now!)
• remade the slash sfx, randomized pitch (sounds good now!)

UPDATE #5: THE BAT ENEMY + AGGRO

-finalized the first mobile enemy: the bat

• flies towards the player and is generally a pest. not damaging, at the moment

-added an aggro mechanic to the combat system

• enemies will only move towards you in a certain radius around the character (shortened here for demonstration)

UPDATE #4: BASIC COMBAT 2

-coded in a basic flying enemy with a placeholder slime image

• slowly move towards the player, adhere to collisions

-coded in a basic combat system between the protagonist and a “flying”enemy

• slashes instantly kill the flying enemy when entering the slash’s radius
• slashes have a .75 second cooldown, preventing spam attacks
• slashes now have a hit and kill sound effect, making for spicier combat

UPDATE #3: BASIC COMBAT 1

-implemented protagonist
-coded a movement system and slash attack for the protagonist

• slash attack activated by mouse clicking, A and D for left-right movement

-finished the tilemap for Level 1, a dark grassy setting
-continuing to brainstorm enemy ideas

UPDATE #2: THE PLAYER

-finished the design of the protagonist
-continued developing the level design
-brainstorming potential enemies

UPDATE #1: FIRST MAPPINGS

-finished the first basic tileset for the levels I want
-began designing Level 1
-brainstorming a design for the protagonist

UPDATE #0: TILEMAP

-began developing a tilemap for the setting. was thinking something cool like a dark forest.

• tilemap will contain of several 16x16 tiles to be arranged in a platformer-style map