Hello people of the Unseen!
Can you believe it? It’s been 1 year since I began this stupid little series of dev vlogs! Time sure does pass by doesn’t it?
It’s also been 1 year and 5 days since the release of Chapter I, and about half a year since the release of Chapter II… Christ almighty.
So yeah, it’s been a little while… but that’s why we’re here today, to celebrate, and to also share some fun bits of info, just in a less cryptic fashion this time, I don’t think any of The Leaked Documents made any sense to all of you, but it might in time!
So, without any further ado, let’s party!
Oh and we’ll make the dive too I guess… in more ways than one…
COMMUNITY CHAOS
Alright, let’s begin with me fulfilling a promise.
Last month, I held a small creature design competition on the Discord server!
The creature being designed was the Jellydrone, a hovering, buzzing, zapping drone with the ability to deliver a deadly electric shock to any intruders that dare tread into The Lab without the proper Mariana Corp branded permissions.
If the name seems familiar to some of you, that’s because the Jellydrone was actually mentioned back in Chapter II in one of the notes!
Back then I hadn’t designed the drone yet.
I did however end up designing (and even animating) it around May, but I thought the design was a little generic.
So I decided to turn to the community for help, and BOY… they did not disappoint!
Here are the winning designs from Fi the Fi, and Vertimis!
Now you may be wondering, “two winners? How does that make sense!?”
And yes, there was supposed to only be one winner… but it was a little difficult picking one!
So I merged the two winners together, taking the amazing design from Fi’s, and the awesome mechanics from Vertimis’s!
Making one… wonderfully electric creature that’s bound to give you a jolt of action in the Drowned Ravine… oh yeah, there’s a mossy ravine… did I say that already…? I’m honestly forgetting what I’ve talked about and what I haven’t at this point.
How about we take a look at the finished Jellydrone?
AN ELECTRIFYING ADDITION
This right here is the final design, in all its buzzy glory…
The Jellydrone spends its days fluttering around the caves of The Outskirts patrolling backwards and forwards looking for intruders with its bright yellow searchlight.
When something it deems as an intruder is caught moving within its light, the drone is quick to make sure that being is removed from the premises…
…even if it means killing them.
These drones serve a similar purpose to the Protosnares from Chapter II, being an enemy to those who seek to dive deeper into the dark depths, just without the useful tongue hand that can be used to propel yourself skyward…
But what if we could use Jellydrones as a means of getting around…? What if is truly the question… one that may be answered in the future…
But the drone isn’t all I’ve been working on… there’s been some other developments in our journey deeper into the depths of The Outskirts.
And I think me and Winston have found our way to the deep end…
DIVE INTO THE DEEP
Welcome to the Bleeding Wound, the ninth area in Chapter III, and one of the last stops on our journey through The Outskirts!
The wound itself came to be after a particularly devastating incident occurred in The Lab’s experimental hydroelectric power plant, otherwise known… as the Hydroworks.
That’s right, after all this time, we are finally here… the Hydroworks awaits us… and we can’t hold off any longer, but there’s some things we must discuss before we descend.
Nothing about the aforementioned incident, you’ll come to learn about that yourself, but instead I want to talk about how you'll navigate this place.
You’ll be sealed in an airtight diving bell, attached to an anchor on the surface, and you must descend as far into the dark waters as you can.
But something tells me that chain won’t hold for long however, so it’s best to be prepared to figure out a way to move the bell without a chain, perhaps by ramming into the walls and ceiling of the bell?
You most likely won’t be alone, as our good buddy Zeltrinx may be there to guide you in the deeper parts.
I’ve also got some info about a couple loose mine experiments known as Sun Mines that seem to be stationed in the water.
The way down will be treacherous, but I’m sure you’ll be able to conquer the Bleeding Wound.
We’ve come this far, we’ve seen some horrible things together, worms, fish, all of it… we’ve got this.
Are you ready? I sure know I’m not…
To be continued in Depths Unseen Chapter III: Distant Secrets.
FUN FACT
Alright, you know the drill by now right? It's fun fact time!
Did you know:
The original story of Depths Unseen back in 2022 was about the player trying to find the wreckage of their grandfather’s ship that sunk in the Atlantic!
This storyline started with the player diving into the sea in a submarine, where they must then navigate using a tablet, eventually to find the wreckage, and get killed by what would eventually become our favourite turquoise fishy friend… you know the one.
Thinking about it, the Bleeding Wound kinda harkens back to the early days of this project doesn't it? Y'know, being in a cramped tin can diving into the darkness and all.
Now that the fun fact is out of the way though, let’s get into the final stretch of this Dev Dive.
NEXT MONTH ON DEPTHS UNSEEN
Alright then, let’s wrap this up with a little glimpse at whats to come…
…what’s that? Chapter III is wrapping up development?!
No way… and next month is when the trailer releases?!?
GASP! And it has the release date at the end?!!? Whoa!!
Okay okay, in all seriousness, next month will be a big one, as the trailer for Chapter III will be released, and yes, at the end of it, in typical major trailer fashion, there will be the release date.
I hope to finish Chapter III early next month, similar to how I finished Chapter II in early February.
The trailer, if everything goes according to plan, should release around the mid point of September.
So yeah, I hope you’re all as excited as I am!
But with that, this ends this month’s dive into The Depths!
I'll be sure to report when me and Winston have reached the bottom of the wound, but for now we're still... careening... slowly...
PUSH ON THE BELL HARDER!
Whatever, I'll deal with Winston later, for now I just want to say thank you for reading, and an enormous thank you to my amazing community as well.
If you want to join the chaos and have the opportunity to participate in other events like the creature competition, I suggest joining our little server!
Come hang out!
But with that out of the way, it's time for me to be off... I'm sure Winston needs a hand moving this hunk of junk.
Have fun with Depths Unseen!