We discussed new additions to our in-house engine in the first developer diary. For this installment, we will look at the starting zone or “tutorial island” of the game. Besides giving out some general information on the actual island, I will also discuss some game mechanics! I will try to structure the diary so that you won’t get too many spoilers, but things are also bound to change, so don’t fret too much.
As you might have surmised from the “tutorial island” remark, this time around, we are building the world out of multiple islands instead of making a single large one. One big reason for this is that it gives more freedom for the level designer when every new area doesn’t have to fit snuggly into the overarching, pre-dictated shape of the game world. While developing our last open-world title, Dysmantle, we noticed some developmental teething issues with working on two side-by-side areas, so this decision should circumvent that issue.
That said, I should briefly examine what you can expect from the tutorial island size-wise. Here is a shot with the Dysmantle Island and the tutorial island from Dysplaced in scale. A blue edge surrounds the tutorial island so you can pinpoint it more easily. I have blurred both so as not to spoil anything. As you can see, the tutorial island is quite hefty. Dysmantle fans will recognize it is also quite a bit larger than Capernaum, the tutorial area in that game.
Now, we didn’t just make the tutorial area larger because we could, but because we introduce a handful of game mechanics within this area and they need some room to work properly. This is not the only reason, mind you, as we also wanted to have a more freeform tutorial experience where the player can explore and find some hidden things at their own pace. The final reason is that we want the player to return later, as some areas can’t be accessed right away. You need to acquire some initially hidden powers first. More about those at a later date.
So, you find yourself whisked away into a fantasy world. It might initially look like it might be our world, but the further you go, the more you come to realize that you might just be somewhere else entirely. It is definitely a mystery worth solving if you want to get back home. First things first. You need some sort of armament, like a stone axe. Our protagonist here decided to pose a bit with their newfound loot in front of this decrepit house. You might also notice that the character looks “slightly” different than the one on the store page. As advertised, there will be a character creator, and we aim to showcase different options throughout these diaries.
With a weapon in hand, you can start breaking things up. As with Dysmantle, you can break most of the objects in the world and gather resources when the objects go “pop”. 3D objects now represent all materials in the game with a helpful little glow on the bottom so you can more easily spot them. While the 2D sprites in Dysmantle had a charm of their own, we decided to go this route for Dysplaced as it allowed for physics implementation. When you fell down a tree, a few logs will appear and drop down and roll satisfactorily.
Of course, you might also find materials near ruined buildings. Not all destruction in the world is caused by you, after all. Some scrap wood and stones are next to a building that has seen its better days. You better collect all you can, as you will need all the materials you can get!
It does not take long after finding the axe for you to stumble upon some crafting stations. On the left in the above pic, inside the shed, there is a workbench. This enables you to build basic gear, such as two weapon parts. Known recipes are stored in a recipe book that shows you the required materials for crafting any item. All weapons consist of a handle and a head part. In some weapons, the terminology might change a little, where a handle might be a hilt and a head might be a blade, but the same basic principle stays the same. With the Anvil, you can combine these parts into a usable weapon and take apart any weapons you might find back into pieces. All weapon parts have stats and modifiers, so you can customize a weapon that suits your needs. There can even be slight differences between two parts of the same type, as it becomes evident the more you craft them. Once you gain experience making a specific type of part, it will have better stats. Of course, you will also find some parts as loot from dungeons, caves, and other adventure-worthy places.
Speaking of caves, you will have multiple underground areas to explore and find loot from. Displayed below is a mine from the tutorial area. It contains mineral veins from which you can get new access to new materials, and there are also some unusual growths down at the bottom. Surely, it's a sign of something cool and good. Natural caves and D&D’esque dungeons are also on the design table and one or both might end up in the game as well. There might also be caves with multiple exits, allowing passage to hidden areas on the overworld maps.
The beefy fellow below is an NPC from whom you’ll get an essential quest while staying at the tutorial island. You can have conversations with NPCs, but some will have more to say than others. We will likely showcase talking at a later date. One cool thing about the character creation tools is that we can use those same tools to make our NPCs. Character generation is also something for later, but there will be a good amount of choice available for the player.
This guy is not the only NPC you will meet, but they are limited in number. One reason for this is that you are visiting at a bad time. The world is in pretty bad shape, and things could worsen quickly. Locally speaking, things aren’t great either, as most NPCs on the island are hiding from cultists who ransacked their village. After all, those ruined buildings aren’t there just because of poor craftsmanship.
Of course, as a hero would do, you need to confront these dastardly fellows. They have set up a base of operations from where they aim to rule over the island. Human enemies can use many of the same equipment that you can use. Expect to battle against axes, swords, and spears. Some might even carry a shield, which complicates things. Some questions also arise: What exactly are these cultists worshipping? Unfortunately, that is also something for later.
I also have a few things to report on the miscellaneous side of things. We will finally have houses with multiple floors; the roof is automatically hidden when the player is inside them. This should allow for various exciting designs for houses and other buildings. Also, we just received some 3D models for meals the player is able to cook, so have a look at some of that tasty grub!
Whew, that was quite a lot of things to unpack, so I will leave it at that. These diaries will likely come more regularly as development goes further, but I wanted a good amount of stuff to show off this time, so it took a while. Till next time!
-Hazamuth