[Released] They Came Through the Floor

[atte]

Now available: https://atteo.itch.io/tcttf

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They Came Through the Floor - Arcade 2D platformer action in a strange and intriguing setting

 

 

This is an idea that I have had for some time; I really like fast paced, single screen platformer games like Super Puzzle Platformer Deluxe, Super Crate Box and Woah Dave (pictured below). Those games are all about the gameplay and the aesthetic side is clearly not the thing that the player is supposed to pay much attention to - This is of course perfectly fine (and usually even preferred) but for some reason I want to try to make a game that has both dense action and interesting art.

 

 

There is a lot of stuff I have to figure out (about gameplay and artstyle) and the end result might be just a selection of somewhat pretty screens where you can aimlessly jump around. My friend who made music for my WJ5 and 6 games will return so that's one cool thing to expect. Here's a couple of ideas for rooms/levels. I think I'd want at least three in total, but I don't know how much work one will actually be yet (how much animation there will be and so on).

 

 

 

[brendonsmall]

Looking good!

[Mythalore]

Ooh this looks very nice as usual!

 

I've played quite a bit of super crate box and I'm pretty interested in a successor to that genre.  

 

What sort of combat, if any, are you thinking of?

[Nappi]

Looks fantastic as always!

[root]

Ah man these visuals are radical.

[atte]

Thanks everyone!

 

  On 6/10/2018 at 6:10 PM, Mythalore said:

What sort of combat, if any, are you thinking of?

 

The action is still very much a mystery even to me, but one element is pretty certain: At times the level will be bullet hellish and the player can store/absorb the "bullets". There is a limit how much you can store, and going over kills you. Having lots of stored energy is useful in different ways, so the riskiest and most efficient way to play is always being almost full.

 

PS: Fans of the genre should check out that  Super Puzzle Platformer Deluxe. Boring name, fantastic game!

 

[Zirrrus]

You are very good at eldritch horror!

[atte]

  On 6/10/2018 at 8:20 PM, Zirrrus said:

You are very good at eldritch horror!

 

I do like drawing weird things every now and then.  https://atte.myportfolio.com/this-is-not-my-face

[hedgefield]

Wow, this has a really interesting style, exciting!

[Rilen]

Super cool idea and your art is great as always! I just re-read Bone and your second picture reminds me of the hooded figures and serpentine monsters of that series.

[atte]

  On 6/11/2018 at 1:46 PM, Rilen said:

 I just re-read Bone and your second picture reminds me of the hooded figures and serpentine monsters of that series.

 

I read some Bone when I was a kid, I mostly remember those hairy monsters with big round eyes. A hooded figure without a face is still/always a very cool visual.

I have to decide soon are these creatures going to appear in the game like this, painterly and pretty static or will they be in a simpler style (line art and flatish colors) but more animated.

 

I think I accidentally made a Final Fantasy boss now...

 

[phill]

Sephiroth is that you?

 

Looking awesome atte! As much as I would love a new atte adventure game, I'm glad you're branching out and doing something different!

[z_bill]

Really cool. Your art and title though are making me anticipate some proper lovecraftian slow dread though, not an actiony thing. But really curious what this turns into!

[nkornek]

Yo that art is super creepy and rad. Well done!

[atte]

  On 6/12/2018 at 10:30 AM, phill said:

As much as I would love a new atte adventure game, I'm glad you're branching out and doing something different!

 

I have done some more actiony stuff in Wiz Jams (like The First Age of Extreme in WJ3) but yeah in past couple of jams the games have been very much about pointing and clicking. I've been very lazy at getting better at programming so designing interesting actiony gameplay can feel sometimes very scary (I should be fine here as I'm not planning any wildly complex mechanics).

 

  On 6/13/2018 at 12:44 PM, z_bill said:

Really cool. Your art and title though are making me anticipate some proper lovecraftian slow dread though, not an actiony thing. But really curious what this turns into!

 

It is a bit peculiar blend of things  I hope I'm able to assemble a somewhat cohesive package in the end.

 

Here's a version of the intro scene.

And here's the levels. (Still quite unsure what the action will be like )

[fabian]

I love the combination of detailed fore- and more abstract background here. Your art looks amazing! 

[atte]

  On 6/15/2018 at 12:45 AM, fabian said:

I love the combination of detailed fore- and more abstract background here.

 

Thanks! I think it's a really cool mix too. I ended up with it kind of by chance when I was just testing different stuff. Speaking of backgrounds, I actually wanted to make one of the rooms a toilet/bathroom, but in the end I wasn't happy how it looked with the creature.

[phill]

Mate your art is spectacular. Like Fabian I also really like the way you've detailed the fore-and backgrounds, works really well!

[atte]

My usual midjam update break was pretty long this time. There was some going back and forth when I tried to figure things out, but I think I now have a pretty clear picture what I'm actually making (well, there's still couple of big unknowns/decisions...)

 

Again, for most of the more complex movement and collision code I borrowed from Heartbeast's GM tutorials. I'm very happy I got that "turning into bouncing ball and back" working nicely. (hmmm, that's a heavy gif - I should just upload video to youtube next time)

 

 

[atte]

I kind of enjoy making visual effects in GM even though I'm sure they usually end up being very "heavy" - as I just use new objects for everything because I'm afraid of particle effects and shaders.

I don't know what I'll have ready for the deadline, I hope I get a version with some kind of progression out tomorrow so I can get some feedback/comments - I will certainly continue developing this post jam too because there's a lot to add and experiment with, and I already like what is there. Here's a low framerate blasting gif:

 

 

I've experienced this before but I've noticed now again how tricky and devious game design can be - how even if a new idea sounds very clever or interesting, it doesn't mean it will work when put in the context of the rest of the game. It's a very strange emotional arc when you first feel like a genius and then have to slowly admit to yourself this road actually leads nowhere

[Travis]

That effect looks really good, especially the colors in the darker environment.

[atte]

https://atteo.itch.io/tcttf

 

First version now available - It's a work in progress in many ways but please check it out and enjoy and experiment with what's there now. I might record a playthrough video tomorrow, the mechanics might be a bit obscure for fresh eyes...

[atte]

While the core ideas and mood is there the actual levels are very, uhmm, undesigned - still I wanted to show/document some current gameplay:

 

 

Edit: Here's my current notes for continuing:

 

  Reveal hidden contents

PostJam ToDo

 

- Some UgEnergies already midway up at the room start
- Big Blocks from collisions with big energies (there's no size4 energies? Is it a good thing)
- Block variations (some sort of (decorative) growth)
- Worm body affects all energies in some way
- Better Worm body: depth order, links between the parts, parts moving too.
- Way to destory the worm - tail functions as life meter, or reverse: part appears when hit to head
- Worm invincible if all cores not open
- Blocks slow worm or reverse its direction (and gets destroyed)
- Telport to mirror position thing. Helps evading the worm. DroneMime is a resource that can be activated or appears after hitting a core.
- Can turn to ball without points? ball speed = points
- UgEnergies more interesting looking (wobbly lineart style)

_______

 

Other ideas

 

- fog alpha and color changing in big effects
- drone energy collects //something// which gets stored when reaches back to drone
- pull/push/mime energy control
- Hazards like beams that destory if pointless (or if less than 3/2 points)
- Moving, not moving, jumping, current points, affecting other elements
- passively and actively affecting the movement of objects
- ffd button (emulator style)
- Animations for the main creatures ("They", The Worm, Man in the tree)
- Ending - pictures of the three rooms where the creatures have turned to statues and the man lives among those, maybe friends and animal hang around there too.

- Something falls into ground, wanders back and forth.
- Platform is for traversal, cover, hazard.
- Projectile hitting a platform redirects it toward the player
- Platforms can cause trouble because while passing, UgEnergies turn them deadly.
- Create horizontal/vertical (hazard) line from the opposite side of player x/y
- Hazard line with its axis in a platform (takes direction from something)

 - Too big shift, but: points getting > 3 just resets to 0, different hazards for different point amounts.

 

 

[atte]

Post jam update now on itch https://atteo.itch.io/tcttf

It's a real certified video game now as you can actually finish the levels!

 

More action music is coming sometime soon, and I have still gameplay and graphics stuff I want to add at some point too.

 

 

[infamous space turtle]

I like this, though I wasn't entirely sure what I was doing. The art is great as always and the music/ sound design is terrific. Top job! Ill play a bit more later, im in a hurry right now but I really enjoyed it.