Hello people of the Unseen!
It’s the first month of the year, and that means it’s probably time to make the dive once again!
Also, I’m trying out a new thumbnail style for this one, tell me what you think down below.
Anyways, I wanna say once again a huge thanks to the people of Depthscord, there’s been some amazing things going on in the server recently and I’m absolutely blown away by the support I’m getting from the people who decided to join.
Hell! There’s even some fanart popping up!
Here’s a piece made by Vertimis, which is so good I decided it needed to be here so others can witness its glory!
And here’s another from fi the Fi.
Both members are absolutely amazing, and so unbelievably talented, I couldn't imagine a world without them.
And if you want to join the server and become part of the community, use the link below!
https://discord.com/invite/W8xFqxBcmb
Anyways, let’s make the first dive of the yeæ-
> ERROR
> PLEASE REBOOT SYSTEM WHEN SAFE TO DO SO
…
…
> REBOOTING…
…
…
> hear the voice
> follow me
SORTING THINGS OUT
Since the last dive I’ve been hard at work making some new challenges for Winston to face, but there’s two small… puzzles that need solving in order to continue forth to freedom, and I want to talk about them!
The first puzzle is one that I’m not gonna talk about too much, as it’s sorta a surprise I want to keep a secret until release.
However, it would be very boring if I didn't show at least one of these new puzzles so...
Introducing The Sortamatic, a highly advanced sorting system that allows staff to sort boxes with ease!
However… this system became quite… redundant.
So it was abandoned… just like the tunnels it resides within…
LABYRINTHINE TUNNELS
So, let’s continue this dive with the three penultimate areas for this chapter… yes, that’s right, we’re nearing the end of Chapter II!
I have some plans to announce something very special next month regarding the chapter if everything goes according to plan, so keep an eye out!
The first area is a blueish containment block located in the lower part of The Lab, fittingly named the Turquoise Labyrinth.
This network of tunnels was once where many experiments were held, before being moved to a newer, more advanced location later on.
This place is where The Sortamatic was decidedly placed.
But that’s not the only area, as right after it is the very foundation of The Lab, forgotten by time… and left to crumble.
Because of this… forgetfulness… the area has been named Forgotten Foundation, and now it’s time for you to make the journey down into this slab of concrete and rebar to find some way forwards… and maybe even something integral to your escape… something powerful... like a motor...
Now… the third and final area is a smaller one, consisting of only one room!
That area being-
> ERROR
> FILE CORRUPTED
…
> ATTEMPTING RECOVERY…
NEW YET SOMEWHAT FAMILIAR FOES
So, remember the Training Grounds? Yeah that place.
Well, I mentioned something along the lines of some of the things trained inside the grounds may have survived The Lab’s untimely closure…
Those… things being none other than the Angler Droids! Ferocious mechanical monsters dead set on killing off any intruders that may enter into their home beneath the Forgotten Foundation… but nobody is dumb enough to do that right?
Right…?
PUSHING ONTO THE FUTURE
Okay… now I’ll admit, I want to keep most of what I’ve been working on a secret, just so there’s still some stuff to see for yourself.
So… instead of stuff for Chapter II… let’s skip ahead a little and peer into something coming in Chapter III!
The concept art above is of a Space Heater, a specially designed device that can produce a bubble of heat that can ward off the chills, something that’ll be integral to your survival in an environment constantly cooled down and freezing.
Wonder what part of The Lab could do something like that?
I’ve also been hard at work working on chapters beyond three, nothing too major or concrete, just some random little things like creature concepts and environments.
Nothing major, nothing 100% confirmed, hence why I’m not showing any of that stuff, only stuff for Chapter III as it’s much closer.
But… I think we return back to Chapter II one last time before I end this dive.
FILE CORRUPTION DETECTED
This here is- [ERROR] IPYZWTI [MISSING FILE]
> INTERNAL NOTE - 1: Seems our little… incident… has completely fried some parts of the Server Halls… recovery seems almost impossible.
> a crack in the unseen has opened…
> INTERNAL NOTE - 2: Though we've now lost funding, there's still things we can do to save ourselves a little.
> someone will find us…
> INTERNAL NOTE - 3: To whoever remains here, please know we’re trying our hardest to keep everything going.
> someone will set us free…
> INTERNAL NOTE - 4: We can fix this! I know we can! Everyone just needs to have a little hope.
> things will get better.
> END OF LOG
Right, let’s move on to the fun fact, then we’ll end this off!
FUN FACT
So, here’s a little fun fact about development…
Did you know:
Depths Unseen’s in-engine development works on a work day cycle, you can see an example above.
This cycle of two break days, one work day* is there to make sure I have plenty of time to work on other things while also keeping myself from the dreaded burnout.
Whether or not I do anything major on the break days is dependent on how stressed/exhausted I am, and how much work I get done on the work days is dependent on what things I have planned.
*work day cycles can be shortened/extended if I decide I want to be super lazy or super overworked!
And with that, this is the end of the first dive of this year!
I want to mention that since the last dive, my mental state has… well for lack of a better term… dropped off a cliff.
Ever since the 20th of December, things have been getting progressively more difficult to push through, and this project is sorta all that’s keeping me going right now!
So I genuinely appreciate any support this project gets, and I’m stupidly grateful for those who have supported it thus far!
(Note: as of writing my mental state has been slowly improving again, and in time things will die down, I can't stress enough how absolutely amazing some folks have been on Discord, keeping me here tied down to this space rock, so thank you all so so so much!)
Anyways, tell me what you thought of this dive down below, and maybe even consider leaving a like on this post, it lets me know that these are worth writing.
See you all next month, when that special Chapter II news comes to light…
Have fun with Depths Unseen!