This is the (almost) complete move set. I just realized I missed a couple. Now I am testing the thing over and over to see it can go from one move to the next without any issues (for example, wall run-jump-grab bar or jump off bar-grab ledge).
As I said in a previous post, I am using moves from both Classic Tomb Raider and Prince of Persia, but I want the "base gameplay mechanics" to be more like Classic Tomb Raider so, after I finish testing and fixing bugs (won't take long) I will spend some time making some grid level to define jump distances.
Soon I will start working on the character so I can make some animations and also a test level. I still need to figure out a new story but I am not sure how it should start. I like the idea of Classic Tomb Raider with a "she-Indiana Jones" kind of protagonist (and some Lovecraftian stories have explorers or researchers) but I also like the idea of the protagonist that just happened to be there when all stuff happens.
Merry Christmas, happy new year, now we have wall jumps
Hello all. Merry (delayed) Christmas and happy new year. This is another small update to show off some moves. I think it won't be long until I can put a character (not the final character, but still a character that shows-off some of the moves better).
My goal is to have a move-set that combines Classic Tomb Raider and Prince of Persia. Right now I have running, walk toggle (running will be the default like Tomb Raider, and walking is performed holding a button), crouching, roll-to-crouch, hanging from a ledge and climbing up a ledge, running up a wall and jumping off the wall, running along a wall and jumping off the wall. I still need to make the "climb on top of short objects" move and then swing bar moves.
And then I need to make sure all of them work together and that you can go from one to another seamlessly (for example, running along a wall to grab a ledge) and also fix bugs.
This is a short video with the wall run and wall jump.
Now, as I finish this part I will figure out the protagonist and the story!
Wall run is working
If you played the current build and somehow managed to get past some bugs, you know there was a "chase sequence" and you had to perform a bunch of platforming moves. The idea was to have something like the Dahaka chase sequences in PoP Warrior Within.
One of the things I want is a horizontal wall run. Right now it's still a little buggy but it's kinda working. This is a short video of the cylinder doing some wall runs.
I know the video is not really a big deal, but I think posting these short clips keeps me engaged, and also the few comments or likes make me push forward to finish this game, and make it good.
Hoping I can reach a full playable in the next few months, with a character and all!
Finally some news
Hello all. Well, I finally have some news to share. I will mention different things in no particular order.
The first and most important, I have started to build the game in UE4. The mechanics will still be a combination of Classic Tomb Raider and the Prince of Persia "sands trilogy". Right now, I have a "character" that can hang from a ledge and move along it (as seen in the video), and also jump off the wall and climb up the ledge.
My plan right now is to get all the programming done (to have a "character" cylinder that can run around, climb, wallrun and all that, and also a basic enemy) and then continue from there. It still won't go as fast as I would like because it's pretty much a weekends-project but I think I can get the mechanics finished fairly quickly.
I have been using Unreal Engine since early 2020 and I have learned a few nice things and have also improved my "workflow" a lot. For example I can get very realistic characters in UE4 now with "realistic hair" (like the image below) and I've also learned a lot about AI so I can make better enemies (I can't make super-amazing AI like your AAA super-games though).
Even if this is a reboot, the only clear thing is this is still going to be a "Lovecraftian Tomb Raider". I will worry about the story later, but I will be seeking advice from some Lovecraftians I know, to make sure the game feels truly Lovecraftian even if it's not directly adapting any story.
I still can't give an ETA but I hope things will start moving faster after I am done with the mechanics part. At some point after that I will upload an update, and when we have something that looks and plays nice we can see about opening purchases again (my goal is mid-2022) because I will definitely not be like "Hey! I have a moving cylinder, so the purchase button is enabled again!"
When I have another update (with another moving cylinder) I will post again.
Have a nice day!
Quick note
Hi there. I'm just copy-pasting a response I just made in the forum a few minutes ago:
Hi there.
Yes, you are right, it's been a while. I'm not sure if you have read the announcements I posted (in the "news" section around here), so I'm going to give the quick summary:
The team abandoned the project in early 2017, I ran out of money, and, after almost a year of working on this game on my own I realized it was too buggy, so everything had to be rebuilt from scratch. I tried to "fix" the bugs, for example, fix the platforming, the navigation, but it's been impossible so rebuilding the game from scratch is the only option. At some point I began to try out some ideas (see the August 2018 update), and some are working (others aren't).
So, after a lot of thinking, I decided to do what I would have done if I had not been forced to release in early access: try a crowdfunding campaign so I can hire a new team to work on the game. If you see above, on november 2018 (a couple of posts above) I stated I was not going to involve other people in this game again, but I changed my mind because involving people is the only way to finish this game considering its current state (specially the part where it's very buggy).
I remember in one update I said I was broke. That's why I began to work on smaller games (for example, The Dreamlands: Aisling's Quest). Things are slightly better thanks to that game, but I am still not in a position where I can drop everything and work on the nightmare since I have bills to pay and family to take care of.
So, after that looooong explanation, it all depends on when I can get that new team.
Any news of the game reboot?
Hello all. Well it's been 3 months since the last time I wrote any news so I should give you an update. To answer the question on the title, "yes and no."
No:
I can't give you any news related to gameplay, images, videos, etc., because I don't have anything yet. That's why I am not including any images here either.
Yes:
I've been working on documents and prototypes, mostly trying to figure out what works and what doesn't, or what would be too difficult to make on my own.
So, what I've been doing now is:
- Working on the entire plot for the game (it will follow a *similar* idea to The Nightmare from Beyond, but without the alien girls, the twin sisters and the confusing language)
- I've also been working on different prototypes: an "Until Dawn" like prototype like the one I mentioned in a previous post, with multiple characters and branching choices. An "Until Dawn" like prototype with just one character. A more adventure-like prototype. An "adventure+platformer" hybrid meaning that it plays as a platformer in some parts, and as an adventure game in others. I scrapped the two Until Dawn like prototypes because they were too complex to make. Platforming works works for chase sequences and stealth sections, but it's too action oriented for sections that should be more slow-paced. I'm still working to figure out the best fix for this issue.
- All while I make a tasks breakdown so I can have a more organized development.
- All while I make money somewhere else because I have zero budget to work on this game since all the money went into paying the team members that simply abandoned the project to work on something else.
- All while I work with Steam to find out the best way to transition everyone who owns this game into the new rebooted game.
It's all about the money:
Well, here's the thing. As I've said before, I need money to pay the bills and to keep myself afloat. This year I released "The Dreamlands: Aisling's Quest," a game I made on my own to start making some more money since Enola is an old game and it doesn't sell that much anymore. TDAQ has helped but it's not like it has solved my money issues.
I can perfectly work full time on this "project Whateley" game right now, and then put the game on hold again in a few months with the same story "I can't work on this anymore, again, because, again, I ran out of money with the difference that now I won't be working on games at all."
I think it's a safer bet to work on this game slowly but steadily. That's why I make all those small tests and all those documents, spreadsheets and schedules. I want to make sure I can finish what I start.
So I need to make smaller projects to make some money:
That music game was another small game I planned to make and sell. However, after the initial prototype and some testing around, I noticed that kind of game was not going to gain enough interest so I decided to cancel it.
After that one didn't work, I decided to go back to my "horror adventure works" and start working on a new short horror adventure game, since those are the kind of games I make best. "Project Whateley" will be something I will work on side by side with this new game.
And when that "horror adventure" game is finished, the cycle will repeat itself until either "Project Whateley" is finished, or I have enough money to work exclusively on "project Whateley"
That's all I can say about this project right now. Thanks for your time.
[UPDATE] First image: Resurfacing old ideas...
Hello all.
Well, when I was working on the idea for the prologue (since I plan to split the game in different "chapters"), I went back to an early idea. But first, a short history class:
In 2015 I began working on this horror platformer with some people, and we titled it "the nightmare from outspace." The idea was to run a kickstarter (which failed, by the way) to make the game, and as part of the KS, we made a small demo prototype (see video below). After that, there were some problems with someone from the team, a girl that had contributed a substantial amount to the story but then lost the passion for the project so I "fired" her.
After that problem, I decided it was best to re-boot the story to avoid any potential future "hey but the story is mine so you owe me part of the game's earnings!" and that rebooted game became "the nightmare from beyond," and I won some money that would help develop PART of the game (the goal for that prize was to make a demo so we could get an investor, but nobody wanted to invest in the game so I just decided to keep it alive on my own). Then you know the rest: I ran out of money so the rest of the team abandoned the project (a project they supposedly loved so much because it was really cool, I should add).
Now that I think about it, it seems the game itself was cursed because in early 2017 the rest of the team just abandoned the game after we run out of money... or maybe I just have bad luck picking team members...
Anyway, enough ranting... the video below shows the demo of "the nightmare from outspace"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaIAfovFKFY
So I thought about doing something somewhat similar for the prologue: my idea is that this girl will wake up and explore the place until something bad happens to her. Just the basic introduction is similar, though, since the rest of the prologue will be different.
However, I am rebuilding everything from scratch, so I won't be using any previous models from that old demo.
As I said before, my goal is to have the prologue ready by Halloween. See you then!
"The Nightmare" update on future plans and incoming changes.
Hello all!
Well, I can now share some news to share about this project, although no visual stuff yet. These past weeks I've been working on a big document detailing everything I will be doing for the "reboot" of the game. In not so many words, this is the plan:
<*> I'm managing it as a new IP, and that means it will launch as a new game. I already have the title, but right now we can call it "Project Whateley."
<*> When the game launches, those who already own this game will get the update through the Steam Client, but I want you current owners to own the "official" build so I will need your help to transition you to the new game via Steam keys, so your libraries show "the new game" and not "project Whateleley."
<*> "Project Whateley" is still going to be a Lovecraftian horror game, and it's still going to include platforming and environmental puzzles. However, it will also include gameplay similar to Until Dawn (from PS4), including multiple choices and QTEs that will create a branching story.
<*> Due to the "Until Dawn" inspiration, it will include multiple playable characters.
<*> It's going to be episodic. I'm doing it this way because I think it will be easier and faster to deliver smaller chunks than a full game.
I'm hoping I can run some sort of crowd-funding campaign to support the development, but in the meantime I plan to use "alpha-funding", so if you want to help me fund the project, you can either purchase The Nightmare from Beyond on itch.io at a discounted price (knowing that you will then be transitioned to "Project Whateley" when it's on Steam). Another way to help is to get The Domaginarium bundle that includes TNFB and The Dreamlands: Aisling's Quest for an even bigger discount.
If you'd rather wait to see "Project Whateley" before you decide to purchase, it's perfectly understandable.
Thanks for your time and your support!
The Nightmare (really) big update
Hello all!
As you have already noticed, the "buy" option is not available. This is something I decided to do for a few reasons, and if you have been following the game for a while, you know about the different problems the game has faced during development. Long story short, this is what has happrned:
- I was the lead of an 8 people team working on no salary until we got some funding.
- Due to the way the game was funded the game suffered from a lot of development troubles.
- When funds were gone, people abandoned the project so the game became a single person game.
- The game ended on an extreeeeeeme early access against my will.
- I tried to find alternate ways to fund the game so development could continue, but after one year and a half, no luck.
- Profit!!!
After taking a break from The Nightmare (mostly to finish The Dreamlands: Aisling's Quest) I was able to take a completely objective look at the game with "fresh eyes" if you know what I mean. Basically this is what I saw: 1. It is impossible to make the game on my own, since was originally supposed to be made by 8 people; 2. Parts of the current game and are not "fun" and need fixing, but I am not a jack of all trades so I can't fix everything on my own; 3. There's not much I can do without funds.
Basically, what I decided to do is to completely and start fresh from the ground up. This means I'm going to work on a new game with a new premise, story, characters, world, creatures, sound... Basically a new game, while keeping the "core" of the game.
So, that is the reason why the game can't be purchased right now. However, I didn't want the store page to be completely removed because I didn't want to give the impression that I was just leaving you people out in the cold, with no explanation.
I'll keep you posted. Right now I have to start working on a new design and plan, because right now I only have a really basic idea of what the game is going to be, but I need to have a really clear plan. I also plan to use the good parts of The Nightmare's design. This means it would be really useful if you told me what elements you liked about "The Nightmare" when you played it!
You know I post updates on games on every store page I have here, so I will keep you people updated on the status of the game and post news as they become available.
And please, also join the mailing list to get updates on this and future projects!
"The Dreamlands: Aisling's Quest" is now available!
Hello all!
I'm very happy to let you all know that "The Dreamlands: Aisling's Quest" is now available on Steam, and a DRM-FREE VERSION will be available
on my website later today. This is a very special event because, while "The Dreamlands: Aisling's Quest" is somewhat different to other games I've made, it retains the same focus on storytelling.
I hope you like the game, and if you do, please leave a review. Also, if you run into troubles, let me know in the forums.
