11 JUN 2022:
This week was mostly experiments and tests, but I got a lot out of it.
- To be consistent, I've decided to make all my image sizes a multiple of 8. Ideally, you want to have numbers that are nicely divisible (less math for the computer to do). You could work with an image size like 97x13, but it would be mathematically sloppy.
- Next up, the Battleship. Truth be told, I've never been completely satisfied with how the Battleship enemy has turned out. Below I'll do a quick review of its iterations:
This first one viewed from a top-down angle just looked plain ugly. Even now it's kinda hard to tell what it is.
The next version was bigger and the slightly angled view made it more obvious what it was. Guns not shown because they're a separate layer.
The final version I toyed around with this week will look something like this. Enemies in shmups shouldn't always have to be viewed from a top-down angle and I think this view makes it much more imposing and threatening -- like a Battleship should.
Whereas the previous version only had the 3 guns that could be targeted, the newer version will allow you to attack 4 segments. One for each of the guns, plus the Bridge. I've already tested this version in-game and it looks . . . AWESOME!
Quote of the Week:
"Don't set yourself on fire to keep others warm." -- Gamedev Unlocked (<---- click here for video link)
It was a little shocking this week to hear that Gamedev Unlocked was going to stop doing Youtube videos. He's that rare indie game developer success story.
But burnout is a very real thing in any creative endeavor.
As indie developers, we shouldn't be allowing this happen. For me at least, part of the whole allure of being an indie gamedev is being able to call the shots. Feel like working 10 hours in one sitting? Go for it. Only feel like doing 10 minutes? Do that too. Or even take the day off.
I'm blessed to say that I don't feel "burned out" with Scrapship. Sure, it's taking much much longer to finish than I expected, but I'm still having fun with it. I used to really pay attention to follower counts, downloads and other metrics, but I've recently stopped counting those things. If you want your performance to be measured, let me tell you, there are lots of 9-5 jobs that will gladly do that.
We're indie devs, and I hope that means to you what it means to me: We do our own thing and we do it because it's fun!
Thanks for reading and have a great rest of your week!