Hello there!

The time has come for production to end, this means this post is the second to last tower trouble Devlog post. Very sad, indeed. 

However! this does mean that we are only 2 weeks away from release! So hold on to your wizarding hats and strap in for some very exciting updates.

Art

With release so close around the corner we focused on getting the map looking as presentable as possible. We iterated on set dressing, color grading, post processing, materials, shaders,... We will push this even further in polish, but for now we are very happy with the way it is looking!

The map needs to look good in a screenshot, but it also needs to feel good. That is why we spent a lot of time on visual feedback! ranging from particles, to wind and explosion shaders. Take a look at this gameplay clip and see if you can spot all the visual feedback we implemented! (hint:  there's  a lot, even our programmers chimed in to help us out here!)

If you would like a more in depth explanation of how all this was achieved, feel free to read up on our Art Doc!

We've also implemented UI to match the look and feel of our game. We wanted the buttons to feel like boulders, that crack when interacted with with the text also carved into them.

Along with this we've narrowed down a design for our logo through some iteration, using the towers with wizard hats for both T's of Tower Trouble. Though it still needs some shading and a touch of love.

Programming

Now that some bugs are fixed, some issues are resolved and magic storms are cleared. The end is now in sight. 

Movement (Jump/Teleport) :

We focused and grasped on implementing and introducing a new movement mechanic to the player (The Jump/Teleport), which allows the player not only to defend an incoming boulder but also to attack the enemy tower at a higher level (position). This is also balanced by refurbishing the fall speed at which the player traverses through the air. When the wizard holds a hefty boulder the wizard also becomes very heavy, which means the speed at which the wizard falls is increased. And when the wizard is not holding a boulder it falls slowly increasing the chances for defense. But also balances it out by immobilizing the wizard while in air for a more balanced experience.

Welcome UI!!! :

Now that the end is in sight it is very important to show the player what the game is all about by giving clear instructions to the player at start  as at the end by providing the players with a very beautiful main menu as well as an endscreen giving ALL the players (but mostly the players that lost) the opportunity to replay and reexperience the magic battle of Tower Trouble.

Team Choosing:

After the main menu we have atm a placeholder for choosing your team, it needs to be cleaned up a bit but it is fully implemented and you can now choose which team you are joining. Ofcourse it is still a 2V2 so you will need select 2 players for chaos and 2 players for order. The UI took me a while cause after crashing Unreal Engine I had a big setback but just kept going until it was finished.

Offensive respawn tactic :

A new strategy is introduced to the game to make respawning more interesting. When the player falls in the fissure it will not respawn as before (flat respawn at the same position). The player will now respawn at his own side at a random position HIGH in the air.

By doing so, it creates more strategized opportunities/possibilities that can happen in air on a higher level instead of everything happening on the ground. That being said, the platform sadly had to go.

Throwing those boulders:

We took it upon ourselves to rework the throwing mechanism and with a lot of tweaking we found a balance between using power and angle and change both overtime to create a satisfying experience when throwing the boulder.

After fixing the throw itself we created a shader that show you where the boulder will hit to make it a bit easier to aim cause otherwise it is a bit of shooting with your eyes closed.

ForceBlast Protection:

After a lot of variations of the Forceblast we decided to still rework it to a better system. Instead of calculating the time from when to perform the blast, we decided to scale up a collision sphere at the same rate as the FX so that the boulder now actually gets thrown away when the FX hits it.

Minor tweaks and reworks :

-The pickup has been reworked, so it now is more subtle and nicer to pick the boulder up. It know moves in front of the player instead of teleports to that position, which makes holding the boulder also more satisfying (floating effect is also added (bobbing up and down).

-The boulderspawner has been reworked.

Dear "alt-tabbers", yes I'm looking at you!

For the ones playing on multiple screens or changing applications mid game (I don't know why you would do that, but anyway), the issue of the boulderspawner has now been fixed that caused the spawner to go out of bounds when tabbing out of the game.  

-Fixed the collision on the boulder so that the term "boulder surfing" won't become an issue :)

Sound

The audio artificer, at your service, is here to look back on production for Tower Trouble - it's been a ride. In the final week of production, I've gone back to sound design. The tower cores now make a delightlfully crunchy sound when hit, and the explosive sound of victory now officially rings through the valley when the defeated tower is blown to bits. After having spent all this time crafting the soundscape of the game, there is a comfortable rhythm to finding the layers for the sounds. Familliar but distinct, with the right characteristics to underpin the action. Our exciting addition of the teleport mechanic to reach greater heights has received some subtle sounds as well, distinctive for each side as with all the magic in the game. The music now also progresses based on the current phase of the game - huzzah - though it still needs to play the outro. 

The tower layers breaking away still need a sound, and I have a number of little tweaks lined up that should enhance the experience further. Only playing the cymbal crash on the tower hit when throw power is at its max, adding some ambient effects for the cores becoming more and more unstable as they go... I'd like to make the percussion only come in on the start of the second phase. There are still some bugs in the audio that need fixing as well. The final week of work before the moment of truth promises to be a busy one! 

Looking forward to wrapping this project up with a nice bow and a sense of accomplishment. 

Cheers dear readers, Have a magical week.