New Soundtrack and graphics will be split into several smaller updates
New Classic music coming first
Christmas music will be released separately soon after
The New graphics will be released last, along with the official release of the new soundtrack, probably some time in August, and the price will change at this time
More info below.
Classic Music Incoming
I've decided to split this next big update into several smaller updates. The new music for Classic Mode is planned to launch in the next couple of days. For now, the price will remain the same and will change later (more on that below under 'Graphics Update & Pricing').
In this update, the new graphics that are already created for worlds 3 and 4 will be implemented fully, but the rest of the worlds will be updated at a later date, hopefully in August.
Here's the last 2 music tracks:
World 5
Classic Ambience
The ambient track is a rotating, alternate track. At the moment, all the songs just cycle on a jukebox, regardless of what world you're in.
In the update, whenever you reach a new world, the theme music for that world will play. Once it's finished, if you're still on that world, the ambient track will play, and then if you're still on that world, the theme music will play again, and so on.
Each world will have it's own theme music, but this ambient track will be used across all of the worlds for Classic Mode.
And for anyone who missed it, you can hear the other new tracks so far here:
Title
Menu
World 1
World 2
World 3
World 4
Christmas Music
The new Christmas music will be released soon after the classic music. The price of the game will remain the same at this point.
I don't have a date for when the new Christmas music will be out, it depends on how long it takes to write and implement into the game. Hopefully before August.
Graphics Update & Pricing
As stated above, the new graphics for worlds 3 and 4 are already implemented, so they will be released along with the new Classic music in the next few days. I haven't decided how much the other worlds will be changed visually, but there will still be at least some other changes to their graphics, mostly in the form of adding new decorations to some worlds. This update will likely come out in August.
With this update I will increase the price of the game to $8 USD. I also plan to release the new soundtrack with this update at $8 USD.
Later, when the 'Ruins' update is completed, the price of the game and the soundtrack will increase to $10 USD each. I have plans for future content after that, but no plans for future price increases.
New Soundtrack Coming, Graphics & Price Changes
I've been very busy working on updates for Puzzledorf, and there's quite a lot to discuss. Covered in this newsletter:
A brand new sound track is coming to replace the old, licensed one
There will be minor graphical enhancements to the old worlds
A preview of several of the new music tracks
Ruins update is on hold while the new soundtrack is being worked on, but still coming soon
There's a price change coming soon
I will cover the above points in more details below.
New Soundtrack
Puzzledorf will soon have a brand new sound track to replace the old one. One reason is the current soundtrack is licensed and will keep costing me more money, but I also want something that's more individually tailored to suit Puzzledorf's unique vibe, giving each world it's own personal mood and flavour. This will be achieved through original music for the different worlds, taking players on a deeper journey than ever before into the unique, atmospheric world of Puzzledorf.
Graphical Enhancements
Some of the classic worlds will be receiving minor graphical enhancements. A concept of World 3 and 4 below shows some of the changes I'm doing. Some plants have received new colours, while I've also added new decorations altogether.
Preview Music
Preview versions of each music track will be available to listen to for free on Youtube, with the full track available to buy on Steam once the update hits. Here are some of the preview tracks below (subject to change). These are the new theme music tracks for worlds 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the Classic mode.
Ruins Update On Hold
Since my priority is to replace the soundtrack (while also adding graphical updates), the Ruins update is temporarily on hold and will be coming out later.
This is also because the Ruins update is taking longer than expected, since I'm putting a high amount of effort into creating as much content as possible, and ensuring high quality. At the moment there's 32 levels in early testing, new worlds to explore, and brand new music. Below is a quick preview of some of the concept art that is subject to change.
New music added to the game in free updates will automatically be added to the Soundtrack as well, so once the Ruins update hits, anyone who already owns the soundtrack will automatically get the new music tracks.
Price Changes
When the new sound track is released, I plan to increase the game's price to $8 USD and the soundtrack will probably be $8 USD as well. When the Ruins update is released, I intend to raise the price of the game and soundtrack to $10 USD. After that, I have no plans to raise the price again, but I do plan to create more free content. So if you haven't bought the game yet, now is the time while it's cheap. It won't be this price again.
I hope you've enjoyed the new music and graphics and look forward to the coming updates. I'm already excited thinking about what comes next after the Ruins.
How Puzzledorf Was Born
I had a dream to make video games. People around me seemed to think I should "get a real job". I ignored them and went my own way, because this is how I wanted to live my life. Now I've made Puzzledorf. This is how I did it.
Introducing the new Menu Music for Puzzledorf that will be arriving in the next major update. It also contains a new, animated background. You can preview it in the video above.
With this piece, after a relaxing intro with the title screen, I am trying to then build a sense of anticipation for the player before the level starts. The constant drum kicks, with a driving bass line, overlayed with an other worldly melody, I hope gives a sense of both anticipation and a strange new world. I think it suits the game really well. There will be more original music coming soon.
In case you missed it, I also wrote a new, original Music Theme for the game, as well as designing an entirely new, animated title screen. You can see them below. With the new Theme Music, I was trying to create a sense of wonderment, inviting the player to explore a strange new world full of mysteries, as well as create a sense of relaxing calm, which I think is appropriate for a Puzzle game.
You can hear the new playlist so far here. Expect to hear these new music tracks and others in the next major update. Next I will be developing music for the new puzzles: the Ruins.
New Title Screen Preview with Theme Music
Something I’ve always wanted to do, ever since I was a kid, is recreate some of the feeling the original Sega Genesis games gave me, in particular, the effect of those large, animated title screens you got in the Sonic games. Sonic CD, while not on the Genesis, followed the same suit and was particularly striking.
Well, I’ve been working on a new title screen for Puzzledorf, with new Theme Music, and you can now finally preview it. It will be coming out in the next major update. It’s my go at recapturing some of that Genesis feel. I hope you enjoy it!
That was about a solid week of work. I have plans for some other new music coming out in the next update which I will be sharing previews of here and on my Youtube Channel so stay tuned! Next up is new menu music.
If you would like to see how I made the Title Screen, I have a series of “Making Pixel Art” videos with the full playlist here. The first video is below for you. I plan to do more "Making Pixel Art" videos in the future as well, they were a lot of fun to make.
There's new puzzles coming soon with a Ruins theme
*UPDATE** I considered removing Mirror Mode but as people actually seem to want me to leave it, I will leave it in
Steam Developer Homepage
I've just launched a Steam Developer homepage. Please give it a follow. Following helps boost my discoverability in Steams algorithm, but also, it means you will get notifications about any new games I release, discounts, and any developer specific news.
Speaking of new games, it's early days yet, but I'm already starting to prototype my next project. There's nothing concrete yet, but I'm leaning towards an RPG / Dungeon Crawler of some sort and I've started using experimental graphics in Unity to try and work out what's fun. It's another reason to follow my developer page and also Twitter if you want to keep up to date. A few quick previews below - simple art, bold colours for the prototype.
Ruins Update
As I mentioned, new puzzles are coming soon. The theme is: Ruins. A lot of the art is already done and many puzzles are worked out. I'm currently in the process of deciding how many puzzles to put in.
The Ruins update will not only have new graphics, there will be entirely new mechanics. I won't say what they are just now, but expect something different to your typical Sokoban game. With a lot of the future updates I hope to put little twists on the formula to add a bit of extra fun and variety with any new puzzles I add.
Also I have been developing a brand new Title Screen for the game. I'm then using those same graphics currently across all of the promo art on Steam. Here's a preview.
If you'd like to see how I made it, you can watch me draw it on Youtube. There's 3 parts (part 3 is about to release).
Mirror Mode - Updated
I had considered removing mirror mode, as after seeing some streamers play and some of the reviews, while a lot of people clearly enjoyed the game, I wasn't getting any positive feedback about the Mirror Mode specifically. However, I am pleased to say that people have responded and want me to leave it in, so Mirror Mode will stay.
In regards to Mirror Mode, this is why I added it: I thought it would bonus content, and it's based an old Da'Vinci trick. He would look at his paintings in a mirror, because it tricked his brain into thinking he was seeing something brand new - this helped him to spot flaws. With the puzzles, it stops your brain from remembering the solution. You see a similar thing happen in Mario Kart mirror mode - it completely throws out your muscle memory.
Graphics Update
Graphics in all levels have been made brighter. Personally I feel this makes the game look better, and now you can see all the pixel art for the cave walls more easily. I think it makes the levels feel larger and clearer.
Below is a graphics comparison. What do you think? Feel free to let me know if you prefer it in the comments below!
Review - 88/100 - CCGR on Puzzledorf
Review just in - 88/100 for Puzzledorf from CCGR, very pleased with what they had to say about the game and a solid review score!
Takeaway quote from the article - “The classic box pushing puzzle game is especially fun if set up well, and Puzzeldorf is short, sweet, but immensely satisfying.”
Graphics are often thought of as a key selling point of the game - they draw people in and help immerse us in the world. But they are much more useful than that - they can help communicate ideas and teach the player how to interact with the game world, all without words.
This article discusses the visual design of Puzzledorf, looking at the visual style but also how the graphics tie in to game design, communicating ideas and teaching through design. This article was featured on the front page of Game Developer.com.
Thanks to community feedback, I have decided to add a new Hot Key to the game. From now, pressing "Ctrl + Enter" on the keyboard (or relevant game pad hot keys) will go back 1 level, making it easier to retry the previous level, without going through menus. This is helpful if you are going for an achievement or high score. Thanks to everyone in the community who has been supporting this game and for helpful feedback like this :)
There is also a minor bug fix:
Occasionally when using a controller, the "Controls Overlay" would flicker between "Game Pad" and "Keyboard" controls. This has now been corrected
