What the Dark Keeps
Project status
What the Dark Keeps is not abandoned, although it will not come out this, or next year. I bit more than I can chew and I need to distance myself from the project for now.
The game however, will definitely be released since I know many of you are waiting for it and it is my goal to deliver the best experience I can possibly create. I have great ideas I will be ready to introduce when I come back to work the game.
I am sorry I did not deliver the game and I will not deliver it soon. I promise, WtDK will come back - and it will come back with a bang.
Until then, good bye.
Yazaa
What the Dark Keeps
It has been a while since I last wrote here. I wanted to work on this project at my own pace. With all that has been going on around me and all the changes that have happened, I can still gladly say that I hadn't abandoned the project and it's progress towards release is slowly rising.
I do not want to send any misleading messages that the game is coming out anytime soon. I will do my best to inform you when that happens. In my eyes, the game is not just ready yet.
As some might already know, the game has been rewritten from the core because previous build was too unstable and unsatisfactory for me. I would like to show you some of the newest features or features yet to come.
Let me now present what I have been working on
Core gameplay
The core of the game will be roguelike with randomed dungeons and engaging gameplay. The building and survival element won't be there in the first release, but it will be a thing when i make a sandbox/survival mode (which would be most likely connected to roguelike dungeons and coop itself)
New inventory system
The inventory has been completely changed. The game now uses modal GUI system I have made at the beginning.
After entering inventory mode, every previously open windows appear. You can manage them how you want, they will stay in the same place. Every window can be now opened, moved around the screen and closed. The windows provide all the necessary informations without polluting the screen.
Weapon and armor modifications
With new systems, I wanted players to be able to create their weapons in a style they would like to play. Whether that's common modification to extend magazine size or improve accuracy or it's an higher tier modification which for example allows player to regain health when damaging enemies or makes it shoot another projectile which is weaker, but can deal additional damage.
It's all customizable and moddable, meaning players themselves will be able to modify and add new weapons or modifications (it will be limited though, because of the software I'm making it in).
So, if you want to make a modification which turns sniper rifles into shotguns that shoot satanic bunnies - it's your choice. I won't judge you.
Implants
A new feature is going to be the cyberpunk element of the game (in addition to Tier 4 type of weapon modifications). Like weapon modifications, but for the character, Implants will be special modifications that are going to modify player's abilities and even give them special usable, active skills.
Classes
Upon character creation, you will be able to choose your class. It won't restrict you to certain types of items, but will enchance your character with new features. For example, your character will be able to have more implants and will be able to use them better than other classes, but at the same time you will take more damage from certain types of damage.
Or a class which would allow you to be more careful and sneak past enemies, dealing critical damage from the shadows.
Upon character creation you will also be able to select traits, which would allow you to expand your character's capabilities in cost of vulnerabilities of your choice. Those will be shared between classes, but it might change in the future.
Randomized dungeons
Randomly generated maps, with different variations between stages and even different parts of the dungeon. Levels will be big in scale and they will allow for simple puzzles and different paths to complete the level through.
I am still working on randomized dungeons and the way they are generated. Even though they're not ready yet, I am happy with the results and I'm going to tweak current system to get the most of it.
There are more things I would like to adress, like core gamplay mechanics which is completely different than what was seen in the first version of the game. There is no point in writing about it though, since it's not something you can simply show or explain. The game just feels a lot more responsive and the gunplay feels definitely better.
I would like to show some screens, but there's no point in that since I still mostly use placeholder assets and the features will change.
So that was the update I would like to share with you guys. You showed me amazing support over the years and I wish it would continue until, and after release of this project!
If you have a question, don't be bothered with using the discussion board of this game. I will reply as soon as I see your question.
Thank you again, and I'm waiting for your comments!
Yazaa
Streaming development on Twitch.tv
I have made a new Twitch.tv account and I will be streaming some sessions of creating the game. You are more than welcome to come, say hi and stay for longer! Also be sure to follow me on Twitter to get notified about coming streams!
Twitch.tv: www.twitch.tv/devYazaa
Twitter: www.twitter.com/devYazaa
Thanks for reading and see you on the stream!
Yazaa
Dungeons and Monsters
Last few weeks were spent on making diversified dungeon generation, overlay shader work and designing (and drawing) creatures to fill the dungeon with.
Game shaders were also rewritten from scratch, now adding color!
Yes, the monochromatic style of the game is going to be a bit more colorful. The decision behind it is pretty simple: color allows categorising and recognising more elements faster which allows to introduce more dynamic gameplay.
Dungeons are now procedurally generated complex structures. Exploring them rewards the player but also puts him in danger of getting attacked by many different creatures that lurk there to protect hidden loot.
New monsters are inspired with Lovecraftian's Cthulhu Mythos and were designed to be in tune with style of the game. Each has unique abilities and has different mechanics.
I am sorry for keeping it that short, I know you are waiting for more and I am sure I will have even more interesting features to announce soon!
Thanks for reading!
Yazaa
WtDK developement changes!
Over the course of time, WtDK went through a lot of changes. Some of them changed the game base dramatically. Looking at what it is now, I am not certain if I should ship the game in it's current state. I would like to rewrite it from top to bottom, applying various changes and enhancements to ensure an engaging and fun gameplay experience.
The new, rewritten version of WtDK would be a roguelite type of game.To give you guys an idea what I have planned, here are some key features:
- fast paced roguelite experience,
- procedurally generated dungeons,
- more enemy variations and overall improvements to enemy behavior.
I would like to apologize for the delay and lack of communication. The past of two years developing WtDK were not always great. I have always done my personal best, abandoning social life or even school. It was really tough to live up to what I've had originally planned. I simply want to be honest with everybody and I want to make the best game I possibly can.
These drastic changes in the game's development will of course include you guys, the WtDK fans and community. Everyone can feel free to join the development at any time, by suggesting all kinds of interesting ideas and sharing feedback on the latest updates and advancements.
Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think.
Yazaa
WtDK is back!
It has been a long time since I have wrote here. That is because of personal matters. But I bring good news.
First chapter of the game will be released in May in early access. For the time of being in EA, the price will be lower. Next chapters will be released in form of free updates.
Though some of the game features won't be in the story mode as they might break the experience. However, they will be avaiable in survival mode which will come with another future update.
Thanks for reading! I am really sorry you had to wait so long.
Yazaa
Stay tuned!
I've made a Twitter account to post all the minor news that I will not be posting here, so you can see through the developement of WTDK. I have also made a Facebook page for the game even though it was long time ago and I use it only to post there news like this one.
Links:
https://twitter.com/devYazaa
https://www.facebook.com/WtDKgame/
So if you want to know more, observe, like.
Now about the game or more about the editor. Most of the funcitons are done, item creation and item spawning were the last thing done. What left is enemies and dynamic sprite objects. At the end of that, everything will need a final touch, polish of every function out there and finally giving life to the content.
Thanks for reading!
Yazaa
Love the Lore
It has been a rough time working on the editor. It is not done yet and there is still a lot of work to be done. Even though I wanted to keep you updated so I got a topic.
The enemies will be scary looking baddies (really scary). But jokes aside. I will work on couple enemies but I will try to make them unique and more complex, so the player could feel the challenge.
But it is not what the headline is about, right? I will be basing on Lovecraftian Cthulhu mythos. And let me get this straight. Cthulhu is not a creature. It is a feel of hopelessness. It is the fear of things that people can not control. Things that are out of reach for them. I want to face the player with something he can not reach. But for gameplay's sake I have to change the rules a little. Games are not books or movies. The player is the main character itself and if his hours of hard work (progressing through the game) will not be appreciated, he would not come back to the game and he would feel empty (like Lovecraft would want). I am not sadist enough to do that to my players. This is a conscious decision and anybody has strong arguments against that, please post them on the forum or in comment section below.
As always - thank you for the support. You are awesome!
Yazaa
What is going on
It's been a long time since I posted my last news here. That is because I've been busy with the editor since then and I have nothing interesting to say. Sorry!
However though, there's more about the editor. It works, it has basic functions implemented like object movement, object properties, grid options, snapping and couple more features like that. Nothing out of ordinary. I want to make the editor easy and simple after some practice. It's hard to get to work with at the start, but for that I wrote a simple manual with all the functions it currently has and instructions how to use it. Maybe I will show it sometime soon!
Thanks for the support, you guys are awesome! :2016popsicle:
Yazaa
Here's some story for you
As I am working on the editor at the moment, I don't really have anything new and exciting to say, so what I am left with is to spoil a bit of story that is being written right now.
Our main character is sent to a place that is similar to a purgatory. He seeks for answers, and your role is to help him find them. As much as we don't want to make everything linear we also want to encourage player to explore and reveal secrets that the world has to offer.
Yes, I know it's not too much, but I'm sure you will get the answers directly in the game. If you try to find them of course.
Thanks for reading!
Yazaa