SUMMARY:

• FIRST BUILD RELEASE! - Build version 1.0 ready, play at your own risk, let us know your thoughts!
• SOUND REASON & REASONING SOUND - Our secondary thing is going to be sound going into next week (or more)
• BUGS AND OTHER THINGS - Early feedback has revealed there are some much needed fixes to address.

FIRST BUILD RELEASE!

This week we have a build! We did it! Yes, there's now a fully, functional, working game!! (Yay)

We added a loading screen sticking with our design guide from Week 7 (as well as Week 8) and as promised, we pushed to move forward. As you remember from Week 4 to 9, it was a struggle to find a great font, forgetting the importance of getting a build running and working. Thanks to your feedback, we got there sooner rather than later.

Adding a fence helped to keep players from falling off, just like what we referenced from last week, in proportion to what you see in a lot of farms and state parks. It feels legit, if you look closely you'll see a gap between the fence and sign. It's done on purpose to allow you the chance to have some off-world mischief (queue the sound of children screaming).

The way it looks with the trees brings harmony, as we stuck with our color palette. We also changed the bottom menu bar to use the same orange as the dig bar, further keeping it cohesive. But there's a long way to go with the Inventory screen and our main Player character.

Also we have bugs! They came up from early testing that have been added to Task Tracker Pro. One of them is the "BAG FULL" issue where you sell treasure but doesn't empty your list while another is the ability to pick up the same item over and over again after you switch menus (no bueno).

One other note, the store isn't fully functional, not all upgrades are actually available. It's going to be an uphill battle to actually finish and close the loop of existing mechanics while adding new ones that address issues of core fun. Adding while fixing is like building a plane while it's in the air, not ideal per se but a constant balancing act.

Our approach to this project will have to be marathon based rather than a sprint. It means living with broken features for weeks until they're addressed if they're not the most important thing. Evenutally, we'll get it all in there if we learn to prioritize, use the whole buffalo, and try to make the most of what we've got.

DIGGING DEEPER

In a conversation with a fellow game dev along with our first play tester, it's come to our attention we're missing something: Sound! We'll talk more about that in a minute. We also we need some kind of obstacle, the floor is too flat, more on that later.

Breaking mechanics into their fundamentals, we have basic moves to think about. How do we keep your mind busy and engaged within the ones we already have? Adding mudpits that slow you down may be the answer, which may solve the challenge of adding meaningful obstacles, create problem solving opportunities, but also make one look forward to upgrades, and perhaps raise the chances of finding more rewarding treasure.

Maybe part of the secret to a great game is to keep your mind busy without the stakes being too high? Engagement without too much stress? I'm not sure but we're learning a lot about the fundamentals as we go along.

Our Treasure shop and customer service desk aren't up to par but neither are they a priority, sadly. Besides sound, mudpits, and bug fixes, a part of me feels like we need bonuses for digging up treasure. I'm also torn between finishing the remainder of our bag mechanics as well as other upgrades and add cool art details like a totem pole or wooden arches.

A WELCOME sign so you feel ushered into the game was one suggestion I loved from our preliminary testing. It's tempting to say we need terrain detail but it's important for this project to maximize the core mechanic to be fun first, so once environment art is in, anything we do will always feel awesome and engaging.

We're sticking to what's natural and limiting ourselves on purpose to force us to use the entire buffalo. Before we think about adding boulders that may challenge you as a player, it's important to make sure the basic rhythm is good enough without it to avoid feature creep along with an unfun game.

SOUND REASONING & REASONING SOUND

Sound is our biggest problem. We barely have any. I've been afraid to add it and yet several folks have mentioned we need it now! NOW!!!

BASIC SOUNDS TO HUNT FOR

So next week, we'll be working on gathering audio while fixing bugs. As tempting as it might be to get way too involved, the best thing might be to keep it simple, high quality, and then build on top as we go along.

Foley art is a world unto itself and rabbit hole to say the least. Some would say it's 60% of gameplay. Just gathering files, building a library, and testing to see what works could take weeks, months, and maybe years. That's why we'll take a simpler approach and make it an ongoing effort.

Typically when I play a game, I keep it muted. I hate sound, to be honest, I feel it's distracting. Maybe a lot of it has to do with acknowledging the power of it, the way it affects how you feel, and yet maybe by keeping it simple, we can avoid going too far.

BUGS NEED FIXING & OTHER UPDATES

Being realistic about the scope of what we can deliver on a weekly basis is something to consider. Each week, we're going to start focusing on one main thing so we're able to create consistent builds on a regular basis. Audio could end up taking weeks but for the next several days, we can make it a priority and then do some more in our spare time as we move ahead.

What does the future look for us going forward? I have no idea. We're spread thin which is why we're working to make limits our friend and figure out ways to scale back yet keeping within a consistent quality forward.

Task Tracker Pro's gallery update has been completed! This means now you can add images to your gallery similar to the way you can on itch.io! We were inspired by this site and it works well as you can see, register now and try it for yourself!

Star Kingdom continues to make minor strides on instructions but it feels like forever. There's a few more items left from our menu buttons that require updating. With a whole slew of rules to explain in under 337 characters, there's a challenge to condense it all even with the help of AI.

MORE TO COME, STAY TUNED

So much more to say, but it's time to sign off. We'll start to focus on one main thing each week while addressing bugs as we go. When you get a chance, check out our links to this project and all others. As always, to be continued...

Week 11 Demo (movie link): Check out our YouTube channel and subscribe for updates.

Task Tracker Pro Checklist (link): Check out our progress on Task Tacker Pro | Progress 49% Count(82/166) :

Star Kingdom GT Demo (link): Star Kingdom GT Demo (check out our other game, a space stratgey in the works)

Monarchgames.net (link): Our website (for more on what we're up to!)

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