DL03 - Version 0.3 Released

As of this writing, Bel & Poppy 0.3 has been released, and with it come some significant changes. 

1 - IMPORTANT: Version Control 

Updates for Bel & Poppy are now powered by butler. If you use the itch.io app and have a previous version of Bel & Poppy installed, please uninstall and re-install the game. This will get you updated to the current version, and any future updates will be automatic for as long as you keep the game in your library. 

2 - Level Design Changes

Several adjustments have been made to the level design in an effort to smooth out the difficulty and improve the overall game feel. Generally speaking, the game is now a bit easier, but more importantly, some areas which were quite annoying to get through now feel much more fun and polished.

i) Made several tweaks to the level design in the intro / tutorial room. It is now significantly easier to navigate the room, and this area now does a better job of teaching the individual game mechanics without any handholding. 

ii) Added a stationary electric prod enemy near the end of the tutorial room. The only way for the player to get past this enemy is to disable it by shooting or whacking it. The prods that appear elsewhere in this room can be jumped over and avoided. Since the player cannot "die" in this starting area, it is a good spot to teach them that enemies can be disabled in this way.

iii) Added a one-way platform in Level 2 / Room 2 above the second switch. For players having difficulty stringing wall jumps together (especially if playing on keyboard), this change allows you to jump on the platform and get to the upper ledge with a double-jump. One-way platforms have no effect on wall jumping, so you can still be a ninja if you want to.

iv) Tweaked the level design in the moving platform rooms. The main change was to increase the vertical size of the whole room, giving the player more space to jump. Previous versions felt a bit cramped vertically.

v) Reduced the difficulty of the second moving platform room. There is now only one tricky timed jump over a platform (previously there were two). Also, this jump now is easier to perform with the extra vertical space in the level. 

vi) Reduced the height of the main platform in the laser sensor room to give the player more room to jump over the electricity. A very minor change but this room feels much better now.

vii) Removed a few springs from the final challenge room to make it slightly less difficult / annoying to navigate.

3 - Additional Patch Notes & Bug Fixes

• Increased the maximum range of Poppy's bullets, allowing the player to shoot all the way across the screen.
• Fixed incorrect particle effect when shooting certain vertical walls.
• Fixed a bug in the opening room which failed to destroy a platform after it moved off screen. 
• Removed an unnecessary invisible wall spawner from the first electricity puzzle room.
• Made a few small formatting changes to dialog sprites.
• Made a few adjustments to Bel's spritesheet, including adding a falling animation that was previously missing. 
• Added a 'power down' sound effect to indicate when an enemy has been disabled.
• Edited the 'shake' sound effect when waking Poppy to a softer, less harsh sound.
• Edited the 'hug' sound effect to a softer, less abrupt sound.

Thanks again to everyone who has taken the time to play the game and share their thoughts and feedback. Much love!