THE FLASHBACK - An Update!

Hey people! Thanks for stopping by to take a look at this little project here.

This is THE FLASHBACK, a game I submitted to a game jam recently. I'm really happy with it because it demonstrates how far I've come in my skills as a programmer and designer. I know the concept and aesthetic aren't totally original, but for a game jam and overall learning experience, that was just fine by me!

When I submitted the game, it had TONS of super rough edges. So, I took a few days to iron out some of those kinks. Here is a list of changes I made in this new build:

•  I changed the bullets so that they don't collide so easily with the level. This means it's a lot easier to shoot guns at ground level, and makes the shotgun much more fun.
• I fixed the particles so that they render correctly, so they shouldn't look so glitchy when in front of the level.
• The bullets now come out from the barrel of the gun instead of the center of the player! Who woulda thunk it?
• The music fades in and out differently now. This avoids weird overlap (especially with the drums) when changing levels.
• I fixed an exploit that allowed you to jump super high without a gun. (You cheeky speedrunners!)
• I fixed bullet knockback on enemies. Sometimes you would hit an enemy with a bullet and it would knock them towards you instead of away from you. That's fixed!
• I added a footstep particle effect. It helps to let you know that you're moving in open spaces when there aren't objects around. Also, it looks nice!
• The enemies that shoot now have guns! Wowzers!
• Many times if you killed an enemy with the shotgun, it would play the death sound multiple times in the same frame because multiple bullets hit at the same time. That made it SUPER loud. That's fixed!
• I edited the muzzle flash and smoke to fade out completely rather than fade most of the way out and then despawn. That just helps it to look less jittery, especially with the assault rifle.
• I edited the respawn particle to look extra cool(ish)!
• All of your guns are now reloaded each time you respawn. It helps you to keep up your pace!
• I added a little bullet trail particle effect. It helps you to see their velocity more easily.
• I revamped camera shake to be more versatile and punchy! It really helps to provide meaningful feedback.
• I increased the recoil of the revolver and shotgun a tad. Helps to make them feel more powerful. Lots of fun!
• Added coyote time!! A couple of small features that make 2D platformers like THE FLASHBACK more responsive and forgiving to the player. (Hopefully it works right)
• Otherwise, I just cleaned a ton of the code to be easier to read and work on.

I hope you guys (if you're out there) enjoy these changes! I haven't really added any new content, I just focused on making sure I had a firm foundation. I do still intend on making it into a more finished experience content-wise. That doesn't necessarily mean it'll be long, but I want a couple more weapons and enemies and I want to finish the story. If / when THE FLASHBACK is at that point, I'll release it as a new project and put it out on Steam for free (maybe). If people really like it, I'll take what I learned and make it a full game for sale! Otherwise, it will still be a great learning experience and a good portfolio piece.  

Thank you, internet stranger, for visiting my humble devlog. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope you'll give THE FLASHBACK a go, right here on Itch.io.

-Connor (SecretJuice1)