itch.io

thanks for the feedback!

for the enemy ai; green and red ninja and the 3 red variants of samurai are specifically a lot more passive with their ai. it was part of the work done on being able to make more specific playstyles for enemies with the goal of having some enemies act more basic or simple. green ninja specifically are set to throw ninja stars on a loose timer and rush down occasionally with no logic on how to combo it, while the red samurai variants wait until they are attacked (or enough time has passed) before they respond, with the 3 variants having different amounts of pressure they give back. whether this is fully appropriate or not remains to be seen, but the white ninja and blue samurai variants use the original ai pattern (which is the default robust routine currently). 

i'll keep this feedback in mind as i develop enemies more. there is a design space for simpler enemies to job for the harder enemies, but it may be better served by new enemy designs made for the part. the reason for the specific style they follow currently was matching to the attack pattern style present in the original jam version of the game to see if those designs could still be made with the enemy behaviour tools in the game.

(partially it may be the case that green/red ninja are fine to be very easy and passive but are also currently overused in the few encounters on offer, there's a lot to do with this topic)

the first variant for witches don't have any attacks other than the support aura currently, though they are supposed to try and exit battle if they find themselves alone, though there seems to be detection problems for it

red thread choker 1 has some code rot to it. it _does_ have audio, but is missing layers; the soundtrack fades between versions of the track depending on context, and RTC1 has only the main layer (no soft or heavy layers). the soft version plays when dialogue is running or the pause menu is active, which are the 2 ways to hear the track currently; if you speed through matsu's dialogue when it plays or play it in training and exit the training menu you'll be able to hear it. i've been needing to fix the functionality on the layered playback for tracks that only have 1 layer.

motion inputs on stick, i'm not sure; it doesn't use a separate system, and trying on a switch pro controller myself it seemed fine for the most part. so the analog sticks get read into the input system as an 8 way value, with each axis on analog needing to be over .6 to register for the direction, so it may be that it's picking up extra directions like diagonals funny and messing up the sequence. i found the double-quarter-circle super input (236236) to be a little tricky on stick sometimes

again thank you for the feedback, i _really do_ appreciate hearing that the meaner versions of the enemies are missed

controllers should be auto recognized by the game, but the way game maker reads the controllers is to assign them to one of several ports and then read inputs from that port. there is a setting in the menu under P1 Controller Remapping that allows you to set the port that is being listened to. I know the game can also be weird sometimes about controllers plugged in after the game has started up 

On this menu you should see a name pop up when it's on a controller port with some device recognized, otherwise it'll just show the number.

this makes me so happy to read, ty

bird is a quarter circle forward motion into light attack. you can cancel into it from most any other move (which is typically the case for any move that is a motion input). you'll want to start down, roll to down-forward, then forward, then press the light-attack button.

the card input that shows the move is showing a little arc along the down and forward inputs

there isn't anything in the game at the moment that gives a good rundown on how motion inputs work, sorry

sorry, i've been struggling a bit recently. some burn out and health problems, i'm behind on when i wanted to get the next update out, there's been a bunch of churn on some things and there are some things that need holes filled before it can go up. next update has another 'parry' and dash change (dash being chainable like it was before, parry having a pushback effect), heavy enemy ai changes, portraits update (mainly backend cleanup, but some redraws on some characters), and maybe save/checkpoint changes, though it depends on if i end up scrapping/pushing that back for now

the flowers are a character attribute that has some effects

and kiku can't kill yet because i haven't made the event yet, sorry, i'm really behind on a lot of things

what version are you on? is it the version with momiji's needle attacks or just her web? i couldn't get it to replicate, the hitstun stops being long enough at 18 hits (though it's certainly enough to defeat a lot of enemies)

this route with katana [5L > 5H > jump > j.L1 > j.L2 > j.H > landing > repeat...] loops, though it also becomes air-techable (combo counter is black, and you can even see the hitstun meter under ribbon's portrait doesn't even stay on screen anymore, the ai in this case doesn't try to tech at the moment making demonstrating this easy) (it  also starts itself, since j.H is what ends up launching)

there are a few attributes that decay combos (juggle height, gravity, hitstun and hitstop), not entirely to remove infinites (which i'm ostensibly fine with), i just want figuring out infinites or loops to have some friction to it. the little meter under the combo counter also shows the current decay rating.

probably! adding weapons is fun, but something i've had on the side until i've filled out some of the enemy variety and movesets first

thanks for taking the time to do that playtest and write all this up! it's very useful insight to have

hmmmmmmmmm, this is a weird one...
i  am able to reproduce it and figured out a fix, but I don't know _why_ it's only crashing in that room... ostensibly it should be crashing in all the rooms asl;dfkj

thanks for the report though!

it seems that something in a recent gamemaker update has messed up the ability to remap the keys, so I'll try and get that fixed. I recently updated the IDE, and hadn't checked the mappings, so I imagine some of the built in functions are different.

sorry about that! it should hopefully be fixed in tomorrow's build

currently there is not, i'm afraid.

yeah, the slowtime input is a seperate feature. i recently updated game maker which the update notes mentioned having some changes to reading more buttons on gamepads such as the touchpad on dualshock controllers. i'll have to look into this, but i'm guessing that right now it might be detecting the circle input as another input as well, possibly.

thank you for the report

no need for apologies!

it's a bit of the nature of the regular micro updates, lots of little changes, i even find it hard to keep it all straight lol

this is a change i've been trying out for various reasons, new to the 6/22 version.

Suu's dash is for now a step dash with a set distance to it. The goal of the change was to get the double-tap dash to behave the same as the dash-button dash in respect to a held press.

https://addaline.itch.io/blade-sight/devlog/753273/blade-sight-wip-20240622-upda...

oh, yeah, i uploaded a version with the debug actions deactivated.

sorry  about that.

thanks for the feedback! yeah, making changes to jump input parsing seems reasonable. i'd actually been meaning to change the superjump to being a tap prerequisite. seal of continues not clearing after finishing the bonfire event isn't _exactly_ a bug, since it clears if you use the cleansing bell or get a game over. clearing the bonfire isn't a 'full reset', at least not right now.

ty for the kind words!

optimization is always something i try to look for so the game runs smoothly. the large room with Hiyoko on the balcony is actually a room that i made for doing stress tests with a very large stacked area. the doll patio getting slow down is more concerning as it's much more compact (though there are a lot of actors loaded into the scene there). so, no specific plans currently, but i'll try and look in to the doll patio for what the resource drain is

oh cool! i hope you had fun and look forward to when more is added! thank you for playing!!

everything will be dead

uh, the main -things to do- in the current build are:

-doll patio encounter to meet Gaji
-kiku ambush in the basement of the ruined house
-battle the skeleton on the bridge
-battle the pig ninjas in the cave
-battle hiyoko on the baclony
-finish the Don't You Remember scenario
-hidden fight in Don't You Remember
-and the alternate version of the Don't You Remember scenario accessed through the bonfire

and then training mode labbing if you'd like

oh yeah, that happens if hiyoko is interrupted during the super before hitting the ground. it can be cleared by recasting it. i'll try and get that fixed today.

oh, yes, i found this one earlier this week. it along with some of the targeting system 'nearest target' detection has been fixed and will be in tomorrow's build. i had recently changed the y coordinate to using a centered position on the target, and kill shot was using the wrong value to snap to.

ty for the report

hi Lilly! thank you for the kind words ♥

i just saw the message on the twitch dms before i started stream today, sorry i hadn't responded yet (though, yeah twitch dms are a little clunky)

im on discord if you'd like to add me there (addaline there), or on twitter (though twitter dms are also crusty lol), though i'm not as interesting as blade sight is probably

♥ thank you for the kind words.

i would like to get the game localized for other languages if possible, but it's still too early to start on that step currently.

the controls can be remapped in the menu for controllers and keyboard, but the defaults are:
Keyboard
WASD - move
J - Light Attack
K - Jump
L - Dash
U - Heavy Attack
I - Girlfriend Attack (requires a girlfriend)
O - Interact (can be held down to target)
Y - Cancel (is a macro for Heavy Attack + Girlfriend Attack)
H - Grab (is a macro for Light Attack + Girlfriend Attack)
N - Burst (is a macro for Light Attack + Heavy Attack)
Escape - open menu
Spacebar - slow down game speed
Arrow Keys - reserved for movement
Enter - reserved for accept in the menu

on controller (dualshock buttons, latest version)
D-Pad/Joystick - move
Square - Light Attack
X - Jump
O - Dash
Triangle - Heavy Aattack
R1 - Girlfriend attack
L1 - Interact (can be held down to target)
L2 - Cancel (is a macro for Heavy Attack + Girlfriend Attack)
R2 - Grab (is a macro for Light Attack + Girlfriend Attack)
Start - open menu

i don't have a plan to move to any other platforms. i intend for the final version of the game to be available on itch. i'm glad you've been enjoying the game!

ty!! Matsu is only available as an assist through debug tools currently, I've been wanting to put her in a special place, but it might make sense to have her more easily available while everything is under construction. She can be found as a boss in a specific secret area, but can't be asked out. As far as the fish, only one suit of the fish (Ayu) are currently available (so, the top row of the fishing page).

This is actually reminding me that I should probably have a spoilered checklist of things to do for people to check to see if they've gotten everything already, because there are some secrets, usually trying out interactions to see how they feel in a larger scope.

it's meant to allow you to use your preferred peripherals. there is a keyboard remapping and gamepad remapping menu in the pause menu (can open by pressing ESC) under settings and then in the controls section. is it having problems recognizing your pad or accessing the menu?

i haven't been able to put together a full mechanic-overview-tutorial for the game yet, as the project is very much still in progress. the opening "dont you remember" scenario is a sort of challenge gauntlet that rapidly builds in difficulty. you can exit it by taking the option "please let it stop" after losing all your extra lives to take a reset back to the actual main area of the game, where the game gets a little more sandboxy and gives some space to play with mechanics. You can revisit it later by talking to the Miko and asking her "don't you remember?".

beyond the guantlets there is not as much linear progress to the game, as it is in a sandbox state, essentially a big tutorial play area.

i'm sorry for the frustration with the poor documentation, it's been hard to stay on top of everything and i am failing in that regard.

oh sorry about that - re: accepting the outfit from Momiji. it is currently broken, it's still tied to the old color change library. She just unlocks the Akumajou Kimono color for Suu, which can be purchased with points in the pause menu.

thank you for the write up!

i think the pillowcases for 1&3 are duplicates of each other? They are different index slots, so I'll be able to get some variation on there later

yeah, difficulty seals are just flatly cleared after a gameover, i wasn't sure which way was more jarring for no-continue, lol. also realized after posting i did not get them into the save-file, so they get wiped after reloading~

girlfriends getting stuck sitting or in reveal loops is a -thing-, i need to revisit that part of the system

Curse Level up items i'd wanted to replace with the Curse Points items; the conversion on all of that is still kind of coming together. Purple skulls are worth a lot and can be taken out quickly and -are- accessible to fight currently as well- (also the % read is a lie, it's just 1curse=1point and the tip over point increases at each level, something like 100, 110, 130, 150 iirc)

Matsu may get accessories, i need to decide how much work i want to take on for her

(hello Joy's GF Draida!!)

thank you for all the reports/feedback - im catching up on things now that i'm -back- from holiday stuff.

two of them i can comment on is the numpad 0 debug key will probably not be changed to keep the enemies unlocked forever, i kind of like that it doesn't forever alter a save file. I can detach it from the -dying- effect or make it a toggle in the options that can be turned on/off (and have the toggle allow to save).

the second one is the 'resetting' doesn't fully reset everything currently. a lot of the progress metrics have been changing recently with 1up pieces and cursepoints/pointvalue/etc etc

thank you again!

hmm, that's really odd

there is the two audiogroup data files, the exe, another data file, and a config file

i have no clue what could be doing it, honestly, especially if it's for all the previous uploads as well.

hmmmm, yeah that sounds off
controller issues are always a little tricky; i'm not familiar with DS4Windows and how it presents the inputs. The keyboard and gamepad are always 'active', and arrow keys always do directional inputs, so if it's inputting the controls as both a controller and keyboard, that could cause the double input.

there is an option to change which 'controller' the game is listening to that maybe(?) might get it to only listen to one of the inputs. it's in the 'controller remapping' menu

hello, you can do a super jump by holding down when you press jump, and then double jump the rest of the way. (also using 236H (the quarter circle forward attack) with the katana can work as a third jump, but super jump works as well. It's currently missing from the movelist cards, and i haven't added any sort of movement tutorial yet.

sorry about  that!

(AppData is a hidden folder, you may need to change some display settings in windows for it to appear)

Thank you so much for the kind words and feedback.

First, the bugs; 
- pause menu lock is troubling, i'll need to get that fixed.
- Momiji's prompt stays up because the input the game is looking for is actually Suu -greeting-, which she cant do while being held. This was on my to do list to adjust either hiding the input if she can't greet or allowing the raw input to work.
- The card selection doesn't have an effect if they don't do a little -shine- effect. The wiggle means that it doesn't do anything.

a few tips and thoughts on the notes;
-Gameplay is very hard right now. Enemies are all much more aggressive than many of them should be and the pace is very fast. Enemy AI has been a very tricky area that's been churning a lot recently until I took a break from it this last week to do portrait art/display systems. Beyond that though, the game on a mechanical level is still very tough, and it's something I'm always on the look out to ease if possible.
-GunDoll (and all of the dolls) are generally very tough. They all use the player's moveset, so you don't have much of a built in advantage in speed/power. It sounds like a potential bug if Grazing through one of the GunDoll's attacks isn't giving weakness reveals, though. The Gun doesn't aim upwards, so you can play around the shape of its hitbox with air-approaches.
-Gashadokuro is actually fairly weak to grabs. (More seriously this enemy needs deeper work. Their moveset has been largely unchanged through a lot of other changes and it's -weird- comparatively. Kind of the case with most enemies, but Gashadokuro sticks due to its size and power). Enemies can be made to path back to their origin spot by moving away from them. There is a range past their spawn point that they don't like to engage past (in the 11/4 version), though if you are -between them and their spawn- they will stay engaged since their retreat is blocked.
-The gold freeze hits are a Clash, which happens if two characters hit each other on the exact some frame. Basically the effect is the (~40frame) freeze and both attackers super-armor through that hit. It's kind of a signal that it's time to -quickdraw-, since both characters are allowed to cancel their moves normally. (Red Canceling here is very strong since it's technically the fastest move.)

i'll be brief here, for a few words on yourlighter thoughts;
-first, ty so much for sharing your thoughts!!
-Gaji is a weird one. She's a bunraku ghost puppeteer, who is definitely on the [Playing Games] side of that spectrum (as a fun aside; her name comes from the Hanafuda Storm card, which is a sort of Wildcard in some rulesets. Hanafuda figures into so much stuff in this project, tbh). I haven't fully settled all of the stuff between Suu/Gaji/Momiji/Matsu, so it can come across as inconsistent, especially going off of previous versions.

uh oh,

save data for game maker studio 2 (on Windows) is put into Users/[your username]/AppData/Local/blade_sight_0_1, it will be the savedata.ini file in that folder.

mm, ty

Both of these were fixed today; the targeting system for Duels uses a dedicated memory slot for the Rival (which the player is forced to target); This wasn't clearing unless combat -concluded- which taking a game over doesn't do, so the Rival would stay cached. When returning to the room the targeting would snap back on, or in the case of starting combat again; lock you to the wrong target or crash if it was an enemy that hadn't spawned yet.

Room changes now clear that value so it will be fixed in the next build.

aw, ty so much!!

I know about some of these bugs, but; "Dying in the pig ninja fight or the duel with deadname doll and taking a go-home makes it so that next time you go to that area, the camera pans over there and gets stuck a mile away from you" - this is a bug i had no idea about or thought was possible, thank you for the report on that.

to answer the important question up front: Suu can bite Momiji at Curse Level 4. It's just an arbitrary condition currently; curse level can be changed in the menu options at the bottom of the list.

related to that; the score and unlocks. the values are all entirely arbitrary and completely unbalanced. I actually have no clue yet how i want to balance score gain specifically, if it should be zero-sum, farmable, etc; i could go on and on here, but basically that was something i was going to shape around the final gameplay loop once it's solid. for now the numpad 8 key can be used to gain score. Currently i think i want to get the unlocks to be tied to lifetime score instead of current score, it's just on the backburner atm.

The in-game documentation; there's been a lot of system/mechanic churn the past couple months, so making the explainers hadn't come up yet. If a lot of the stuff around tutorialization seems rushed, it's because it is! A good friend convinced me to start pushing out demo builds on a regular schedule -before i felt fully ready- because they saw i'd gotten stuck in a loop of -never being ready-, so... here we are... that said; getting a menu with like, a glossary of mechanics IS something i want to get to eventually, as well as better pacing of the difficulty starting out. The intro is kind of a deep-end-push that's setup to mirror the original jam version of the game.

Fishing rod... there's going to be some churn on fishing rod before all is said and done.

Mikiri and Stress are strictly buffs (Mikiri is kind of replacing stress, though it's so new i haven't ironed it all out yet). The bandages are a max hp penalty for higher difficulties; though Suu actually has guilty gear style guts so the penalty isn't quite as bad as it looks. Level 3 is 25% reduction, Level 4 is 50% reduction. I liked the bandaged hp bar thematically far more than just increasing enemy damage which is what it stands in for, essentially.

Bonefire with a Clean Heart crash is put in intentionally, kind of as a joke/secret, as once the game reloads it's back into a nightmare

Thank you so much for the kind words and feedback, it means a lot to hear from players.

I think this is related to the auto-combo setting; did you turn that on?

right now it routes through attack states, though it's still snapshotted to an older version of Suu's moveset where the state.heavy id would get assigned to moves (now they heavy attacks are unique state ids between weapons).

i have the auto-combo code disabled in a patch i'm going to post, i have another bug i'm checking on before I post