My second update to the preview prototype is up. I’ve been thinking more and more to move to a 3D realm, so these may be the last days of a 2D approach game.
I’ve done more pixel art for the bottom floor, and it’s really starting to take shape, so even if it goes 3D, it’s going to be interesting trying to retain or reinvent the look for a pixel-art world feel. We’ve been looking over toon shaders for that, and we think it’s gonna be alright.
Although the lower deck takes a back seat to the main deck, it’s actually mighty important for the narrative. This being your proverbial interstellar cargo transporter, it’s all gonna be about the goods.
We worked on the initial planning and setup for lights and shadows, too, and worked out the basics. The screen glows are working great, and both they and the stairwells light the captain nicely.
We spent almost an hour (!) just walking around the spaceship and looking at screens. This is the kind of stuff indie development is all about. You give yourself some time to enjoy the little things.
There are a lot of functionalities ahead, but what we’re looking into now is finishing the basic look and feel, some essential designs, and animation cycles for the rest of the crew before we go full 3D.
Beyond that, we’ll be biding our figuring out interactions and items – and it’s already looking like once we start working on dialogues it’s gonna be a lot, a LOT of time to spend there.
We’ll just see where the solar winds take us!