TLDR; We added a glider, and it's awesome!
Up until recently, we have mostly been focusing on the skiing movement physics and basic terrain generation. This has resulted in skiing that feels great, and that terrain offers a proper challenge. The result is that our local testers have a lot of fun playing SNØ, and that the skill ceiling feels high enough for such a little game.
Perfect, let's wrap this up!
*turns around in the doorway*
Just one more thing...
Despite all the good feedback, we felt that something was missing - or the raisin in the sausage, as we say in Norwegian - something to add a little more depth and variation to the movement. We considered stuff like double jumping, boosting, and wingsuit flying. We even tested with boost pellets scattered across the mountain, but they changed the dynamics of the game in unfortunate ways.
At this point it has been a while since we have referred to our original inspiration for making this game - our guiding star, if you will. Looking back at some inspirational footage, the solution seemed clear as day:
We should make a glider. The very first test was extremely crude - just add a constant forward force when you're off ground.
SUPERMAAAN! 🦸
Ok, this was way over the top, but after tweaking some values we had a new, smooth method of locomotion. The glider had to stay.
How it works:
- Deploy or retract with the press of a button
- The glider automatically retracts when you touch ground
- You can only deploy the glider once per airtime
How it affects the gameplay:
- Pacing: Deploying it can slow down gameplay, allowing each run to get periods of both high and low intensity.
- Mobility: The glider yanks you upwards when deployed. This makes it useful as a dodge mechanic. It can also quickly reduce your speed if angled correctly.
- Player Agency: Deploying the glider is a choice with gameplay consequences. Since it reduces your speed, you will score less points after deploying the glider, but it might be worth it if it got you out of a hairy situation. The glider also disables your spin points, so you might find yourself unintentionally cashing in a combo, resetting your built-up multiplier. The glider has to be used with care.
^Crisp 🍤🍤🍤
I hope I managed to get you at least a little bit excited about our glider. In any case, it is here to stay! And yours to play around with as soon as SNØ is available for play.
Until next time,
Alex & Christer