Posted October 12, 2023 by Exca - Fly Game Studio
Welcome to this new devlog!
We'll dive into the creation of my game's trailer, how I organized my first playtesting sessions, and the improvements made to enhance the game to address the positive and negative feedback from the demo. In particular, I will cover the changes to the wall design and how it impacted other systems of my indie game.
The trailer for the game was created by implementing a second camera in Unity with free movements to directly show in-game actions. The developer chose to use this custom camera to provide complete freedom of movement and smooth motion. The camera script also includes practical functions such as zooming to a specific position, making gradual movements between angles and positions, and rotating around a selected point. With this camera setup, I was able to record video clips with dynamic camera movements and showcase different outposts on the Moon and Mars.
The organization of playtesting sessions in the development of "Too Far, Too Late" was a crucial step in gathering valuable feedback and insights for game improvement. The sessions were conducted on Discord, allowing for easy communication and the ability to record the gameplay for further analysis. Each participant received orientation on how to play the game, serving as a test to assess how quickly they could adapt to the controls without a tutorial. Observing their interactions and expectations during key moments, such as building and resource management, provided valuable information on the player experience. At the end of each session, participants were asked specific questions to gather feedback on their overall experience, frustrations, and expectations. These playtesting sessions proved to be an essential tool in understanding the learning curve and intuitiveness of the gameplay, guiding the priorities of the game's development.
One of the main improvements presented in the devlog is the creation of thin walls. In the testing sessions, we detected that players were expecting thinner walls that could be placed on existing foundations, which is a convention in base-building games. To address this, we made a significant change to the wall design by implementing a thin wall that players can place on the edge of a tile. This change allows for more customization of the player's bases and creates better visuals compared to the larger walls.
Other quality-of-life improvements will be made to the game, and the event system will be finally developed. this event generator will create challenges for players, to encourage them to explore, craft, and expand their colony. It will present unique situations and obstacles for the players to overcome. These events could range from natural disasters like meteor showers or solar flares. By introducing these events, the game aims to add excitement, unpredictability, and a sense of progression to the gameplay experience, making each playthrough more dynamic and engaging.
That's all for this devlog! We are working hard to create a challenging and immersive experience for players. If you want to stay up-to-date with the latest devlogs and be notified when the game is open for testing, make sure to follow our channel on Youtube and join our Discord community:
Your feedback and support are invaluable as we continue to shape this game. See you in the next devlog!