SECTOR 2F - Evolution of a game

So I made a game called SECTOR 2F for a game-jam on itch.io. During development I tweeted some screenshots of the game and I thought it would be fun to describe them a bit more, and documenting the stages of development the game went through.

Initial prototype. Walking around and random enemy movement.


Dijkstra map for enemy pathfinding implemented (debug output)


Some more tiles and basic auto-tiling algorithm implemented.

More GUI tweaks, nicer graphics. More monsters added as well.

Full-screen shader added for "authentic retro look"

Cursed Dungeons - 0.1.0 release!

Thanks for all the feedback! It's been great fun reading all the comments! It seems like the majority wants more of everything :)

I put together a new release with both bugfixes and some added features. here's the changelog:

bugfix: fixed broken game stats on player death 

bugfix: fixed player stats (skill, luck, hits) not being reset after death 

bugfix: fixed issue with being able to attack (and kill) dead monster again by swiping and holding

bugfix: fixed input type setting not being saved

Added invisibility potion

Added some monsters: scorpion, big scorpion, lizardman, lizardman ranger

Fear status now gives 50% chance of too afraid to attack each combat turn

Slow status effect added

Potion of Haste - temporary speedup (and cures slow status)

Added some more level decorations

Grab it from here: http://bit.ly/M0PYVF

Or scan the QR code:

Enjoy! And please provide feedback (I added version 0.1.0 to the feedback form as well).

Feedback please :-)

So far I had 39 clicks on the download link but no constructive feedback about the game. I made a short survey for you to fill out - if you tried the game, please help me out!

First official release!

Alright! As promised - here's the first public release of Cursed Dungeons! The game is now winnable; you need to collect the Sigil of Uaubh-ygg at the bottom of the dungeon (currently depth 6) and exit the dungeon. The game is far from complete yet but at least playable.

Grab the Android APK file from here (you'll need to enable installation of 3rd party apps in your settings, otherwise the install will fail - later I will upload it to google play store)

http://bit.ly/LzgESz 

Or scan the QR code directly from your device:

If you try it - please post some feedback in the comments below.

Changelog for version 0.0.9:

• final level generator - generating artifact
• better support for animated items on map (rotating artifact!)
• can only use up stairs on depth 1 if carrying artifact
• popup dialog
• tracking player game stats
• Game stats displayed after win/game over
• fine tuned logo (readability)
• resetting hunger timer on eat
• Increased exp gain for kills
• Button colors tweaked for readability
• not generating artifact if re-entering final level and already holding artifact

First official release soon...

I finally decided on a title for the game and with my limited art skills I whipped up a logo using Paint.NET (the only gfx program I'm comfortable with). Not very pretty, but it'll do the job.

The game is progressing, here's what I've done for the current version (0.0.8):

• Basic shop functionality
• upgraded to libgdx 0.9.3
• removed external storage permission (saving to private files instead)
• refactored level rendering code
• particle effects: blood, poison, fear (needs tweaking)
• level generator refactored - easier to set parameters per depth
• Added some random rooms to Maze levels
• bugfixes for tap movement config (now possible to retreat + no gfx bug when tapping repeatedly)
• title and logo
• status effects: poison (and antidote), fear (can't initiate battle)
• status effect animations restarted after game load
• more loot variations
• monsters drop loot
• luck influences monster loot drops (percentage = 30 + 5*player luck)

What remains? Here's what pops into my head as the most important things:

• The game has to be winnable. Currently there is no end conditions implemented. I'm going to add a classic quest type goal: Find Artifact X at the deepest level and bring it to the surface.
• Better balancing: monsters levels, combat etc need better balancing
• Some type of spells/magic. I'm not going to have mana+spells, instead spells are going to be one-shot things, possibly consuming health and/or food when used.
• Weapons/armor improvements. You should be able to improve your gear somehow. I'm going to keep it really simple, maybe just some enchantment that will stack and add to attack/defense
• Improve shops

Stay tuned - as soon as the game is winnable I intend to do a more official release. 

Large monsters

Trying to add some brilliant large boss monsters. But man was that difficult to implement! I have not designed for entities to take up more than one tile from the beginning and it really exposed some flaws in the design.. but on the other hand it looks cool, so I'll have to keep at it:

Testing video recording

I tested recording a video of the game in action using the free program CamStudio. The framerate of the capture was a bit low.. but anyway the result was quite good: