Adding A New Mechanic To My Roguelike Game - Devlog 3
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- Опубликовано: 4 май 2024
- Adding a chaos bar mechanic, as well as a new set of UI and upgrade icons for the roguelike game we're developing. In this devlog, I'll talk about the chaos bar game mechanic, and how it's designed to incentivize a specific kind of gameplay, while the UI changes are just meant to look pretty.
Steam page:
store.steampowered.com/app/26...
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💖Patreon: / helperwesley
Links To Where I Hang Out:
linktr.ee/helperwesley
Links To My Set Up:
linktr.ee/helperwesleysetup
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Time Stamps:
00:00 New UI
04:16 Chaos Bar
10:49 Favor
11:32 Chaos Lock
13:33 Last thing
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Devlog Playlists:
✅My Rogue-like Devlog Series:
• Devlog 1: Making A Bin...
✅Sci-fi Mobile Game Devlog Series:
• Remaking The First Gam...
✅GameJam Devlog Series:
• The Hardest Game Jam I...
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#Devlog #Gamedev #indiegamedev #Gdevelop #games #videogames #indiedev #gamedesign #Pixelart #GameDeveloper #GameDevelopment 
Игры
Let me know what part of a steam page you think makes you want to buy it. 🤔
Do you browse steam pages the way that I do? 😅
Name and Image which catchese my attention
Review Indicator to see if the game holds up to the first impression
Actual Gameplay to see if it fitss my taste
Genre to see if the Action game isn't a card collector or auto battler at its core
Price at last, i usually see my line at 20€ for a small Indie game, This also depends on other factory and I bought games for like 30€ or more.
I also read the reviews to see if people say something like grinding and the like.
When wanting to buy a game, I usually click on a game because the initial art I see looks visually appealing. It's honestly the main reason I haven't bought games like vampire survivors, because I just don't like its visual style. If you can get images to create that initial hook, I usually buy a game if the negative reviews still highlight positive things about the game, and if the genre interests me/doesn't feel too generic or lacking of content (for its given price).
I have to say, the art improvements already make me want to buy this game a lot more, so I would just make sure the game's tags are relevant and that all screenshots/descriptions on the steam page reflect the game in a unique light, rather than redescribing what a rogue-like is.
The image and video are what get my attention
Seeing the price discounted during sales hahaha! Great work as always Wes
@@fosterturtle so true
A way to make it personal and diverse is to have two companions and add items for the companions. You can add a nickname option and a tag to make the companion unique like pokemon. 10 Stat changing items would work and 20 tags is plenty of tags.
A cool way to signify the change might be a color change or a colored aura around the companion
I think it would be cool if when your combo meter is locked, chains are thrown around it. I think it would make it more clear and also be totally cool.
The lock should probably be placed in the middle of the combo bar
Even though you've swapped the doors with portals, they still kinda feel like doors to me because of the screen transition. The first time i saw them i even thought they were just fancy doors. A different kind of screen transition (like a white flash) could maybe better sell the idea of the portals being portals
Yeah, we've talked about that, and I'd definitely like to swap out the tween with an instant snap and flash effect. So you "pop" in to the next room. 👍
Even with a tiny change in the UI can get me so invested! I LOVE THE ANIMATIONS FOR THE CHAOS BAR! If its gonna release on mobile, then man am i gonna be addicted!
I would love to see you swap the default windows mouse cursor for a reticle. The arrow blocks like 60% of the small enemies, a thin circle that you can see inside of would be nice.
Eventually. 😅 It is on the list. 👍
I think it would be fun to increase the player speed with the chaos-bar.
I absolutely agree, I also think adding a slight aura around the player to emphasize the super saiyan feeling.
Your devlogs really inspires me when I'm working on my own game 😊
The way you lay out your videos just feels so calming to me. Keep up the work!
The new art direction is coming along so nicely
For me, a HUGE thing in steam pages is how they show difficulty scaling/run progression in the trailer. If I know it’s a game that can go absolutely nuts by the end of a run I’m way more likely to be intrigued of how that plays out. Also a strong achievement list, I need something to be proud of to show off on my profile after completing a game.
OGs will remember that we picked blue for Gun-Guy because it helped the Player determine which bullets fired were theirs and NOT the enemies'. That may be why it clashed so hard; you built the game textures around the color difference. Your Kaos Meter adds a lot of skill into the game, even incidentally, since now you can actually screw yourself over by NOT going fast enough in earlier rooms to DPS it down.
As for your question, I don't usually look at the tags. I watch the video first, then I read the description. If I can't tell what kind of video game it is, then I'll look at the tags and determine how much I want that game. When it comes for price, I assume that if I can play a game for 1.5+ hours times what I paid for it, the game is worth the investment. I bought BTD6 on-sale because I don't play it as much as I would. However, I played about 30 hours of Spelunky 2, thus far. A Speedrun game like this would be well worth the price.
Yeah. I should have just stuck with the bullet decision made at the beginning, there was a lot of thought behind that. 😅
Oooh, 1.5x times the price. That's a neat little way to look at it. I'll lock that one away to think about when we get to the price evaluation phase. 👍
I am addicted to these devlogs.
Maybe instead of changing the bullet colour you can add a coloured muzzle flash. Love the game btw keep up the good work
How I evaluate a game's Steam page
1) Skip trailer, go straight to screenshots
2) If screenshots are satisfactory, go back and watch trailer
3) Look at overall score (not individual reviews unless overall is mixed)
4) Skim through the "about" section. The more visual elements it has, the more I'll care to scroll through
5) Whishlist the game
6) Review whishlist during major sales
Things I look at in a steam page are the trailer and the few first screenshots. I usually glance though the trailer, so make sure (in general) that there is gameplay shown for most of the trailer, so I can understand it at a glance. I also look at the first few sentences of the description, so don't waste your time by saying, In this new 2023 blabla
Like an upgrade shop or some new ways for your companion to help that you can handpick makes it feel more special to the player
the middle ground between a conga line of companions and one important companion is a light party system where yu can have maybe three companions in your conga line at the same time, each with their own unique but less intricate story.
this is very nitpicky, but ngl i think the lock would look better in the middle of the chaos bar rather than at the bottom of it
I might play with the positioning some more later in development. 🤔
I intend to do a small playtesting round when I finally get the game put back together, so maybe that'll be feedback we get about it then. 👍
You could add one main companion that does stuff in the story and all that, and several customizable smaller companions that just give slight buffs and form a conga line.
When i choose a steam games ,I shortly check in the gameplay video and screenshots:
-the art style
-if each important visual elements stands out and are satisfying to watch and interact with
Then look at the critics and price.
I think gameplay, price, and visual style are the most important things to me. Also, how much I already care about the project.
For the steam page:
1. I look initial game icon
2. The price
3. I skip past the video and look at some stills
4. I either watch the video or click through it
5. I check the reviews
6. I read the description.
I usually look at the first picture or video on the game page, alongside the art on the right-side, whenever I'm deciding to buy a game on Steam. I don't skip through the trailer and watch it entirely. The description I don't bother with unless it has info on how the game is played (is it co-op, etc.). Then the price is the final deciding factor.
Increase Sales: The artwork needs a vibe consistent with the intended audience's desired frame of mind. The goal is to trigger an internal desire with an external prompt. The title, logo, banner and cover image are the most important factors. The attitude and direction of the game has to be clear in less than a second. The user will decide if they want to buy in less than ten seconds.
Visuals are far more vital than people acknowledge because of the confusion surrounding "good" or "bad". Design is good if it initiates a desired response within the target audience.
Start at the end: What internal desire am I aiming to trigger? What do I want the viewer to feel? Design around the solutions to those questions and an increase in sales is a certainty.
for me personally, i click a game in steam after looking at the "thumbnail" of the game and also genre is important because sometimes i search for a specific genre like "metroidvania" or "pixel-art" then i will judge the game's "thumbnail" and look at the video gameplay.
Things I look at on a game's steam store page:
1. Tags
2. The area where it shows if the game is singleplayer and/or online multi and maybe has steam workshop (I personally prefer games with Steam workshop and singleplayer)
3. Pictures and maybe videos
4. The long description area (under the price)
5. price.. which is the final decider if I wanna get the game: Now, soon, later or never.
tags > price > gameplay video for me
but generally i wait for a sale first, if its not on sale i just wishlist it
Same for me with the sale thing. 😅
I have a lot of wishlisted games. lol
So cool to finally see the game coming together with its own mechanics!
For the steam page, the first thing I look is to see if there's a trailer, with a banger song and gameplay footage. If there isn't, there's already a fall in interest.
Then I look to the other screenshots to see esthetic of the game, like the art. And afterwards I read the summary description and then I check the price tag.
You really want to check for the trailer and screenshot, for me at least, those are the things that I mostly pay attention to. If you need any guidence to make a banger trailer just check Forager Trailers.
love your work!
I love where this game is going! It looks like such a fun time.
For the first part of the video, an idea i think that would be cool is if the companion you start with stays the same, but you can unlock weaker companions along the way that disappear after the run.
For the second part, when i go to buy a game, i always try to find out how replayable it is. I also liek when games have a hood amount of content in it, but not too much so that you dont get overwhelmed. A good example of a game is something another youtuber called Firebelly is working on where you can swap out parts of your gun as you continue through out the run, giving that replayablility.
Thats all, again, amazing work and can't wait to see what happens next!
Love watching theses videos, and congrats on 13k
Thanks!
Looks great!
I personally look at the trailer and the tags and the screenshots and the demo gameplay and maybe like postprocessing ❤
Let's go I got a like
I'm having a problem with using tiled with gdevelop 5 can guys make a viedio about it and the tilemap that's the return favour I bro lol
What makes me buy a game : the design of the character, it needs to be cool.
By far the type of game I look for on steam are roguelites, and especially the roguelites with a high degree of customization and complexity
The main thing I look for in a steam page is the reviews and there is nothing you can really do about that so I’d just say make sure the trailer is mind blowingly good
Me personally, I look at price first, look at gameplay and animations. Animation is really important to me so I love games with good ones.
I Love all your work.keep it up!
Thanks! 👍
for me, i look for two things, first is the game animated trailer, if they take the time to make a snazzy animation introducing the game then im more inclined to belive they relly care about the product, and them the gameplay trailers, and then the images.
I usually look for videoes or pictures of the game on the steam page, i specifically look for one shot of the early game, one of the mid game, and one of the late game. This is to make shure the game is actually full of content, cause sometimes even if the game is cheap it lasts like 2 hours then stops being fun. I also look at reviews, and look at specifically why people don't like the game, i look at the ones being constructive as that's what i trust the most
honestly if it is a indie game i give it bonus point for wanting it and when i have intriguing lore i really want a game
I think the combo meter would feel more impactful if you changed the subtle death pop effect depending on the meter
I personally look at the description and the screenshots when I want to buy a game.
make it a single character that can be upgraded in different paths, so basically for every companion that would have existed there is a upgrade for your single companion
This is awesome! The game is coming together to its ultimate form. One fear I have for the project is that balance will make the game not hard enough. I'm assuming the typical audience of GDevelop is on the younger side and could influence the balance feel.
That being said, looking back on my purchases on Steam I seem to buy games that on first impression look like they have interesting mechanics. Something like Titanfall 2 or Downwell. Whether I like the game after buying ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Oh, and it has to be on sale
The balance should be fine, the infinite scaling should difficulty should appeal to all skill levels. 🤞
(I'm also not afraid to hurt the player.😅)
im always checking the trailer and then look at the rewievs
For the steam page, it’s almost always a non-factor for me, but that’s probably out of the ordinary. I find new games through RUclips/Twitch/my friends, and if I like what I see there I buy it.
That does also make me think, it would be really cool if there was inbuilt stream integration, since who doesn’t like causing streamers pain? But it might also be outside of gdevelops scope, I can’t remember.
I think the locked combo bar would look better if the color of the bar changed to a more metallic texture. As if it solidified.
Some things that get me to buy/play is the mechanics and art style
(I love the art)
a good trailer and a good poster
So excited for this to be released. Or when next testing? Yes please!
Next playtesting phase will be a while away, but we'll definitely have to do 1 or more of them before the game launches properly. There are so many changes that need to be balanced better. 😅
Put the lock over the middle of the bar it’s more noticeable and I feel like it shows the bar is locked better
Yes, I do typically read the description.
Small thought: Potential issue with increasing damage as players kill fast is it could really benefit good players and make the game easier for them while it hurts bad players who cant aim that good or take longer to clear rooms in general. Might add some reverse difficulty adjustment which could be annoying
Fair concern. It's definitely going to benefit the best players, but there is a cap on how high the multiplier goes. So I think the lower skill players will bounce around the first couple of power levels and maybe hit the middle, middle skilled players will be hitting the highest power level occasionally, and the highest skilled players will constantly hitting the power cap.
The game gets more difficult over time, so this SHOULD help higher skilled players get to those more dangerous levels faster each run. And help keep low skill players around the areas they're more comfortable playing in for longer as well by lowering their damage. So, fingers crossed, the result is everyone spends more time in their preferred difficulty level, and every skill level is encouraged to rush. 🤞
@@HelperWesley Mmm yeah that makes sense! I've just seen some things like this before and then people balance bosses to one of the highest multipliers. But ye seems cool, good luck!
Idea: add evolutions or upgrades to the single character so you can still customize it with keeping a good story. This wouldn't make a conga line for the helper but still add a lot o new elements.
Well what gets me to buy or even wishlist some game on steam is 3 things.
1.The trailer for the gameplay I actually do watch through and see what gameplay may be like and hope to see showcase of the main mechanics that set it apart from the rest
2.the art direction, what does the key art in the game and out of the game look like, does it become good vibes and intrigue the brain?
3.the description, i and many others may scan over it but it is an important scan, cus sometimes a word or two may tell to go “wait hold up, this could be fun!” Or not and such
Not sure if you still need this but for me, deciding to buy a game falls mostly down to my enjoyment of the trailer and the reviews, then if the cost is proportional to the amount of time I could spend in the game I'd get it! Great progress!
I always look at the description, some pictures, two positive reviews, two negative reviews and the price
The trailer make a really good trailer that will make people buy it I always look att the trailer and the thumbnail...
When i see a interesting game on steam, i usually see the trailer, if it looks sick enought, the music is right and the gameplay looks epic, i usually buy it
What I do before buying a game: Check RUclips for gameplay and/or good reviews, then check price, then decide if buy or wishlist (depending on how interested I am and the urge to play it and how much time I have etc.).
For example, with fromsoftware games, since I played all dark souls, Elden Ring was a "no doubts ill buy it" but until the beta or network test or whatever was released, I wasnt at the 100%, however with for example with Armored Core, Sekiro, Lies of P and other games, I just decided to wait a bit before buying because sure I wanna play them and I think the price is fair, but I don't feel the urge to play it asap + not that much time to play, sadly.
To make it more obvious for the player i would recommend to put the lock on top of the combo bar not beneath
I changed the way the lock spawns in at the end, it not shows up in the middle of the screen as a huge lock and then tweens to the chaos bar. It's hard to miss now. 😅
But during the next playtesting phase I'll be keeping an ear out for feedback on it. 👍
I always look at steam reviews when buying a game. Of course, I look at tags and screenshots too. I only read the description when I know nothing about the game, or I want to know what's on a DLC. Generally, I won't buy a game I haven't heard from before, in that case I would just wishlist it. Also, how much of a discount it has improves the rates of me buying something I don't know about. Lately I've been looking at trophies too, to see how much replayability the game has. That's it.
Looking amazing. My only thing with it is to me hitting the enemy's don't feel punchy enough (Personal opinion). Adding a white flash to the enemy's I personally feel would make it look premium. I know some have that effect already but imfeel it should be on all them.
It's just the old ones that don't have that effect, they'll all get it eventually as the art gets swapped out. 👍
Lovely graphics
for the steam question, i watch through the trailer, look at the reviews, and look at the price. also, i normally wishlist games until winter or summer sale, unless i urgently want it.
I do similar thing to choose a new game, look the video skipping parts, look at the images (searching for gameplay/combat), read the "topics" in description (if it exists) and finally look at the price, if fits in my wallet, I buy, if not, wishlist.
Yeah. I didn't say it in the video, but I usually wishlist games until they're on sale.
So I do that exact thing, but usually it ends in a wishlist. 😅
@@HelperWesley From what I read/watched about "steam's experts" that is the common behaviour, and is EXTREME important to "sell" your product quick, having a good and fast pacing video + images of gameplay. Generally you have a bunch of seconds before the potential seller move to other page. One tip that I saw a few days ago is, add yours logos/company name/etc at the END of the video, so the buyer could start seeing the trailer of the game in fact asap.
Make a single character that can be modified in like a upgrade tree or a power up that changes the pets weapon pr weapon type
I look at the art❤
Mr.Oil Carrying as usual 😎
I don't contribute to games dying just because they are not popular. so if a game sounds and looks fun , it really doesn't matter to me how the rest of the steam page is. (but it does for a lot of other people) so my answer probably doesn't mean anything.
but when I do look for games, its price, then trailers. I don't look at reviews(cant trust reviews from players that complain about everything) and I never tend to read the description. I only do that when the trailer doesn't show or explain enough about the game. have a wonderful day Wesley!
Yo I just started watching your videos and I'm big fan of roguelikes and roguleites
You could put the chains around the bar and the lock could be on the middle of bar that way its more noticable and more intuitive. And the upgrade box could be destroyed when clicked insted of pop automaticly that would feel good and bring more atention to actual upgrades and what they do because of kind of loot box feeling.
That was something Art was thinking about, but we decided to keep it simple with the single lock and no chains.
To make sure it was noticeable, I actually ended up making it pop up directly in the middle of the screen when it's created, and then tweening over to it's position under the bar. So it's really hard to not notice it, and misunderstand what it's doing. 👍
@@HelperWesley Okay noted. What about box idea (I edited it in last second so you probably didn't notice)
@@TopLineQuality That is a really good idea actually. 👀 I'll think about it.
It might be too often for that sort of thing, you have an upgrade pop up every 4 rooms, so that might get annoying. I'll look around at what other similar games do. 🤔
@@HelperWesley Thank you!
I usually look at the price first, then the game description, then check the pc reqirements, then once ive decided i like it, i read and/or watch some reviews. Hope that helps! Edit: the store page art is also important
I only look at pictures, genre and reviews on steam when considering to buy.
When I'm locking for a game I look the video gameplay, (the most important thing) the price, and the comments
I always check to see if there is multiplayer. I don't really like playing games by myself, I would sooner watch my friend stream another game.
the trailer is usually a pretty good indicator but to be completely honest, its usually seeing a youtuber I know play it or review it.
I look at titles and mainly the gameplay and video trailer plus if i know anything about it never read the description when I’m considering buying
Usually I look at gameplay first, if that looks cool buy it. If the price is a big questionable I look at type of game then decide will this game give me $$ value.
Description is what I read, and for the intro video, I usually tend to skip it ahead to get to the actual game play and I am quite frustrated if the videos show only trailers, story videos or anything unrelated to the actual game play.
If the video starts with the game play and drops the cinematic or other stuff in between on short bursts and the logos makers etc should be at the END of the video, then I might see the full video without skipping parts.
That makes sense, I usually do the same thing. I'll usually skip to the images if the video isn't about gameplay. 😅
Interesting, maybe we'll think about blending the gameplay with an animation to get people to watch more. We'll see. 🤔
For steam, a little cartoon like atomicrops are so damn charming, once i saw it i already knew i'd buy it
When I'm about to buy a game it's usually because there's cool music in the trailer, great visuals, and because I heard about it already, I don't really read descritptions or watch more than half of the trailer.
Tbh, when I buy a game from steam, I don't really look at the description or the video or the reviews, I enter the game page already knowing if I will buy it or not, usually it's because my friends recommendation, or if I saw it b4, that's for the big majority of the games I buyed at least.
Sry for the late response.
Everytime I see you post I jump out my couch 😅
I absolutely will get your game if it comes out on steam (might even make a youtube video on it
That'd be great. 😉
I'm trying to build a channel around (mostly action) roguelikes/lites, and I'm always looking for more
I wanna see some youtubers play it, I wanna KNOW that the game I'm buying is worth it more than other games and that it will always be worth it.
I do mostly the same as you do when I check out a steam game, though, I will say if there isn't any actual gameplay footage it turns me away for sure.
I usually check the reviews and look at some gameplay. I always skip the pre rendered footage trailers.
I usually don't read the description of the game, cuz most of the time it's the most generic description of the genre the game is in. Next, I don't usually watch the video/trailer of the video (only after it has my interest and I'm thinking about buying it).
How I scroll through games is basically looking at all the screenshots (that need to be some kind of gameplay-screenshots, if these are only "cinematic pictures" or something like that I will click off) and clicking between them really fast. I wanna see in those screenshots what the game is about - how is it controlled, are there levels? is there progression? ... etc.
That, at least for me, is the most important point. Next would be the trailer/video - which should also showcase all of those features in a rather fast fashion. I don't wanna spend 5 minutes looking at the store page, either it is a buy after seeing the first 20-30 seconds of the trailer seeing some epic boss battle or I start skipping around and wondering if I should buy it.
And I feel like I'm not alone in this, current media is rather short and want to pack the attention of the viewer, which your trailer/screenshots should. Of course, the "landing" image, the one that shows up in search etc. is also quite important and should be rather colorful.
Basically, go all out like some youtubers do on thumbnails, without the clickbait part of course.
I think it wouldn't make much sense to weaken the player over time. Instead, what I would do is increase enemy strength. It has the same effect but can keep the bigger numbers.
I usually looks the trailer and if it’s interesting I’ll look at the price and that will decide for me
Some advice on your steam page, my number one turn off from any stream game is when they use .gif inside their long form description, But the gif pushes the color limit gifs naturally have. Your game may not surpass that color limit at most times but keep it in mind as it speaks to me as, "well if that cant get something basic like a properly colored photo they probably cant program a game either" Sadly tiny builds and many many indie 3d games all share this issue and its a massive pet peeve of mine. Once you see it you'll notice it a lot more.
Well now I'll be looking for that on steam pages. 👀
The portal door idea seems pretty cool, but what if there were different kinds of portals you could go through
Like you could choose between a harder room for a higher reward or go through a normal one
I've thought about it, and maybe I'll try to squeeze that in, but it's not currently in the planned scope. There's already so much to do. 😅
when im looking for games on steam i first of all get atracted by fancy art before even knowing what the game is about then i watch the videos some times i look at the images but thats only if the video wasnt clear enough. then a quick screening of the text and if some keywoards catch me i look at the price :)
I was on the video!!!! Anyway I buy for two things trailer and description
Yeah, the trailer seems to be everyone's first thing, and then after that it's a little less obvious where people will look next. 🤔
For me it's The trailer. Gameplay footage.