Happy holidays to all the gamers,
The secret is out! The setting for Episode 2 of Muffles’ Life Sentence is the land of Jangus. The expansive desert and lack of guards might have you thinking it’s a place where freedom and individualism prevail, but the grip of Maddox is felt here as strong as any jail cell.
In today’s devlog I'll be talking about all things Jangus- from where the idea came from, to finding the right color palette, and teasing out some plot details along the way.
Saddle up huckleberries.
Desert? I was expecting, like, a prison?
I’m a huge fan of two particular RPGs, and it is no secret they are big inspirations for Muffles’. In both OFF and Paper Mario (1 & 2), a fundamental component of progress and the unfolding plot is traveling to new areas/zones on your journey.
This is not unique to these games- new locations you travel between is a big part of the RPG formula. But what I love about these games is the contrast between the areas, and how integrated they are into the story. These areas are so ‘lived in’ by the NPCs there, and so distinct from the other parts of your journey in terms of tone, aesthetic, and plot.
Contrast? Tone? Setting? Plot? It sounds like a new area is a whole shuffling of the formula and requires a whole bunch of new assets and characters and thought put into it- doesn’t that take more than a few months to pull off??
Not if you’re crazy and have no life (the Bossy promise).
So why desert? It’s so hot there.
I would have been excited to write an episode about all sorts of different areas- a snowy mountaintop on lockdown, an underwater facility, a volcanic institution, etc. There’s an old saying of ‘write what you know’ and while I believe in the importance of that, I also like the challenge of having to learn about new settings and untangle my understanding of them to figure out what I’m going to bring to the table in terms of story.
Anyway- I had a very vague idea in my head of what that person who shot at the tram in Episode 1 was like. So the crux of figuring out the setting for Episode 2 become this:
‘What sort of world would we find this person in?’
And thus, Jangus was born!
Why does Episode 2 get its own color palette?
Another part of the inspiration I get from Paper Mario and OFF (especially OFF in this case) is the commitment to a new color palette with each new area. It breaks the journey into distinct sections, it reduce fatigue of any one particular color, we have the contrast of seeing familiar faces in a whole new setting, and cuz Bossy just can’t settle on only 1.
It actually took a long time to figure out Episode 2’s palette. Probably around 20 different palettes were tried and trialed before settling on the one you see here (which I am thinking about calling Dusty Huckleberry).
The lighter shadows give the impression of pervasive sunlight, while the more yellow saturated light colors evoke sand and sunsets. But the purple really is the best part- I don’t know why more games and movies don’t integrate purple into their desert settings.
A note about new episodes
I’m putting a lot of work into this Episode to try and make it the best possible. Starting this project and releasing a demo is one thing, but carrying it forward, expanding and growing to figure out how great this thing can actually be, THAT’S where the true challenge lies.
The first Episode was really a promise. A promise for more Episodes of even higher quality and scope that will continue on until Muffles’ is a full fledged RPG.
I intend to keep that promise. Because if I don’t, Nomad and Dee will KILL ME.
In other news…
Sickness has fallen upon Bossy and is ravaging him from within (it’s really just a cold) but fear not! He’s still hard at work, while making such to take more breaks, hydrate, etc.
I hope everyone is having a lovely December- the holiday season is upon us! To all those that celebrate, I wish you good cheer. Prioritize family, your relationships, and celebrate what’s good in your life.
Adios!