DAY 3
So yesterday I had some vague inspiration about having some Ancient Greek or Ancient Roman buildings in the first level area of the game. So I went out for a hunt on 3d models that would serve as a placeholder. Lo and behold, I did stumble across something that I can use and that also is thematically aligned with what I want.
Works nice, if I do say so myself. Had to make some modifications to the collisions first, though. While it looks really nice, the model's collisions were nonsensical. The columns, for example were all under 3 separate block-like collisions. While OK for the purpose of blocking the level out and using these as reference until I make some final models, when using a third party model (this one came from kitbash3d.com) you do run the risk of having to do some of the work yourself. Luckily it was only a matter of removing the original collision and applying one from inside UE4, so it was merely a small inconvenience.
So I know two of these buildings are going to be used and I also know that I need a water plane. So I added them. And the result:
The area is coming along quite nicely. I'll bring back the trees, since I want to decorate the area like an Ancient Roman villa, with bushes and thin but long trees. This is to create an idyllic sort of area that the player would feel a sense of awe and serenity during what is essentially the game's tutorial section. Pretty fitting, don't you think?
The bad thing about this is that it looks really rough, even for block-out standards. But since I really don't have much time to work on it like I've wanted, this will have to do for now. At this stage I'm not concerned with the area "looking" good. I'm concerned strictly about the gameplay, the logic and player navigation. And since I'm going to iterate a lot, it doesn't make much sense to spend more time than needed to make this area "look" good now. Iterate until I find the fun. Form always follows function, as the Elder Gaming Gods always say.
Speaking of logic, this would be the next thing to implement. Since I do have basically all I need to have in this area to make it functional, it's time to get to the nitty gritty of creating the logic. This would mean the puzzle, the doors, triggers for text and dialogue inspired by What Remains of Edith Finch and maybe some in-game events unrelated to the puzzle logic.
That's about it for today. Tomorrow, I'll take a crack at doing the puzzle. I have the doors working from other projects, so that's a time saver.
See ya tomorrow. Bye.