86 Days Left To Finish My Indie Roguelike [Disinherited Devlog #2]

[@DualWielded]

I swear guys, it was the game's fault that I got trapped, not mine. I'm really good at this game, trust Also, the boss room looks so good! Also also, I still feel like there are some decorations missing. Some bones would go a long way

[@user-zy8ug5pk1q]

Hello 👋 I think, bones shaking while jumping (or other movements) would be great. Also, when the undertaker jumps the bones must shake for sure

[@LighthoofDryden]

I’ll consider adding ONE more bone, but no more 😤 (budgetary concerns) And thank you!! sorry again for imprisoning you 😆😆😆

[@user-zy8ug5pk1q]

@@LighthoofDryden Alright, thanks a million for your work!

[@BoterBramKroket]

@@LighthoofDryden Nah man, at least TWO more bones xD

[@endlesswar7480]

Oh my, you are insanely productive, this game is gonna be HUGE. Like literally, you say thing, i think it is already a lot, and you double and triple it!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you 🥹 this was a pretty full week (with other things) and I was almost feeling like I shouldn’t even do a Devlog, so that feels very nice to hear

[@monke1340]

YES

[@Pirthy_Genis]

It usually takes indie devs like months for a single update. Bro did multiple quality updates in two weeks.

[@laynex_]

I think adding slightly (or even not-so-slightly) different colored tiles to some areas would go a long way with making the game more visually varying. It'd be great for screenshots as well

[@LighthoofDryden]

Oh yes, each area will have its own tileset! :D

[@jeyizumi]

evertime i think about the lore of this game, i just think samuel's father just woke up and chose violence against his son 😂

[@LighthoofDryden]

HE DID THO 😂

[@JD96_]

I have a small suggestion. Could you add signature attacks of bosses? From my end, one attack for the grave digger would be, he smashes the ground and a coffin appears behind the player in the background. Then the door shuts and the player is trapped inside. During this state, the light level becomes completely dark temporary until you get out of the coffin. You can get out of the coffin by repeatedly moving and shaking your character.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Omg that would be sick. I’m gonna see what I can do

[@captainshado783]

Bros an amazing coder, musician AND artist. What can this man not do??? Next big indie game right here

[@LighthoofDryden]

Aww thank you, you’re too kind!! And I certainly hope so!

[@CupcakeTheMuffin]

A possible boss and new enemy idea could be a massive spider that has weak attacks, but summons spider minions to attack you instead of being a single large enemy. The new falling spikes could also be incorporated as you could drop them on the spider to blind it and escape its lair.

[@LighthoofDryden]

This is so cool 🤩 as an arachnophobe, I’m scared already

[@user-ty6wp3cq7t]

Imagine bringing back one of the old boss to team up with the new boss but you'll do it just once so it won't feel annoying

[@xxaardvark]

Make sure to keep it all bloodied, throw a hook hand out something to make old attack patterns new but familiar

[@ThatPinkLizard]

I hope you not only make it big in the gaming industry but also on youtube. These dev logs are freakin bomb. Keep up the good work man.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ahh thank you so much, this is so nice 😭

[@FeederFTF]

Let’s go Dryden, make the deadline bro 🤙

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you!!!!

[@seeinggrey7945]

You should add Yama, the god of death and the underworld, also known as the "Restrainer", Pretaraja, "King of Ghosts", and Dharmaraja. Yama is the first man to die, and is responsible for determining the destination of souls, which can be heaven, reincarnation to earth according to Hinduism

[@LighthoofDryden]

This is the coolest thing I’ve ever heard of, don’t know how I’d add him but I can *only* imagine how sick it would be

[@joltmix7660]

lol if this gets added it really will start to be lot like spelunky

[@LighthoofDryden]

@@joltmix7660 oh is Yama in there? 😆 I’m not that far in Spelunky!

[@joltmix7660]

@@LighthoofDryden ya in hd

[@Seio0987]

Massively underrated channel. I really like the way you present your progress and Im looking forward to play Disinherited :D

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much, and thanks for bein here!! We’re just gettin started 😃

[@lincolnrogers4353]

The violin track that plays in the beginning of the video is gorgeous. An instant favorite!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ahh thank you so much! I appreciate that 🥲

[@Suavemente_Enjoyer]

It would be cool if the grave keeper’s expression changed throughout the fight! And maybe his area could have a little more decor…some bones perhaps…

[@LighthoofDryden]

Yesss he needs more faces, and at least one (1) more bone

[@Trotleold]

To fit the momento mori theme you could have a final boss fight of his father as a ghost kinda like it’s giving a final acknowledgement to the death of him. Also last video I said you could make a count Olaf boss and you said you could model the father after him so that could be cool.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Oh yes, Dad’s gonna be a boss fight 😈

[@iiropeltonen]

Decoration idea: Obviously you sometimes in some 'biomes" want the level to feel claustrophobic. But if not, consider perhaps punching holes in the background tilemap and adding something to create depth. Like windows, cavern entrances, cracks in the wall that let light through etc... Don't apologize for technical content. Some of us are all for it 🎉😂

[@LighthoofDryden]

I was thinking of you writing that part of the script! Love the “hole-punching” idea, I have a very trippy idea of how to accomplish it with a shader that I need to try out now ASAP

[@iiropeltonen]

@@LighthoofDryden Glad to be able to add to your Todo - list 😂

[@ymegah9109]

since i saw your game on that dev jam video i loved the idea so much, it's so cool to see you improve and move that idea forward! keep up with the good stuff man!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much!!! Appreciate you being here :D

[@indigowater2225]

I have a few new boss ideas. First, I have The Count of St. Germain, a European adventurer, alchemist, and courtier. He was often depicted as immortal and was said to have lived for centuries, which could be interesting. Another idea is the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. He was obsessed with finding an elixir of life and sent expeditions to obtain it. Lastly, there's Francisco Pizarro Who was was driven by legends of the Fountain of Youth and the Incan belief in a place of eternal life. I don't know what their areas would look like, but I feel like they might fit your game. Thank you for reading! And i loved this devlog. Can't wait for the next one and good luck!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Aaaahhh these are so cool, especially love the variety in here. I’ve never heard of the Count of St Germain… might have to do some research 🤓 (on all three, really)

[@eliasvandecasteele6151]

You deserve way more viewers!

[@LighthoofDryden]

And from my POV, I’m still surprised I have so many 😅

[@kaloyan261]

Hi, I have an idea about the game’s death screen. Maybe when Samuel dies you could make his ghost exist his body to add a bit more flare to it, and even you could make death eat his soul or something similar. Eitherway, thank you for showing the games development and good luck with it!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ooh I love this! I’ve been thinking about what his death animation should be, and I hadn’t thought about his soul coming out!

[@ogbaxstar]

You are making some insane progress! Super happy to see where this is going, and you're doing an amazing job! Just some game design points and tips that are cheap, but pack a lot of punch and character: - The main character and enemies should use some colour theory to help them stand out from the backdrop and make them pop a bit. - - Currently, the colour scheme looks very washed out and everything is blending with each other. Try picking a nice pop of colour (A nice blue trinket (Pocket watch?), jacket, and or Hat to make the main character stand out from the background. Similarly, give enemies an orange complimentary colour to them to oppose the character. Orange/Yellow eyes? Pick a unique detail on each enemy and find a way to incorporate that contrasting/complimentary colour. - Use a simple shader to re-colourize the backgrounds/assets randomly for each map/level (within some range of hues you like or fit the theme) to give them interest and variety. If all of your screenshots of your game on a steam page are the same, washed out colour, it's going to make your game look plain (which we all know it is not)! Try to find over-arching themes to apply to categories of the entities and elements in the game, like a blue pop of colour for player and player-related upgrades, orange for enemies etc. Also, lighting is very cheap (time investment) but adds a ton of interest to the overall mood and look. Even simple point lights in some places. You're doing an amazing job and you've accomplished so much already. I'm sure you know about these tips already, but I thought it might be a good reminder regardless. Love the character controller changes, I think it's much better this way.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ay, thanks so much for taking the time! I’ll definitely be taking it into consideration :)

[@subjects6234]

These devlogs are absolutly delightful you have such a warm energy it always feels comforting watching, I came here from the blackthorn video a few weeks ago and absolutly fell in love with disinherited. You are doing an absolutly incredible job, cant wait to play in 86 days!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ahhh thank you so much!! (Though not to disappoint- but after 86 days I’ll still be taking some time to prep for the release, which is targeted to be February 😅)

[@astrangerontheinternet6901]

possible thing to add is camera shake for impact of things dropping or hitting hard

[@LighthoofDryden]

There’s some in there already, but there could always be more 😈

[@RKIOrbMage]

This is becoming one of my favorite devlog series on KZbin! My only suggestion is maybe adding some more color variety, right now most of the floors in the different areas are a spooky yellowish, and while they all look amazing with the new decoration, color would help with variety and looks great in steam screenshots :D Also maybe a few more bones

[@LighthoofDryden]

BONES yeah, the different areas will each have their own color schemes ultimately! I plan to keep it fairly muted (like Blasphemous for example) but they can still have their own color identities as well!

[@InfinityBladeRecollection]

These devlogs are sick. So much progress and good ideas keep em up!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thanks so much!! Cant stop wont stop haha

[@otaviobz]

Ngl, its impressive that you learned the violin, the piano, AND programming Maybe if you're gonna add more bosses or boss attacks, there could be an attack where the boss throws a projectile that gets faster each time it is deflected (both by you and the boss). So it basically turns into a heated ping pong match a few seconds lol, until either you or the boss fail and take all the damage Just an idea though.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Yesss I feel like a big ball of dark energy (so it’s clear you can’t catch it) would be a great fit for the final fight with the Reaper for sure!!

[@TheoJanisch-cq1vd]

Some greenery higher up in the map would make nice contrast I think

[@indigowater2225]

Yeah i agree

[@LighthoofDryden]

Great idea, I like it!!

[@lynxerax7011]

I love the feel of this so much. The high potential indie game, all the positivity in what can become an actual community. Especially if this is the progress you make during a busy week! You could take it easier and i would still be very impressed

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you!! I really can’t believe the sense of community I’m feeling already, it’s really special 🥲

[@Warpedlight]

Love your stuff and I'm really excited to play Disinherited when it eventually comes out, I also thought that there could be some items that interacted with the decorations, like something that gives you more money from crates or increases damage after a crate is destroyed

[@LighthoofDryden]

Oh smaarrtt, the destructibles are so new that I hadn’t even thought of that. Great idea!

[@calebgilbertyt]

I think it needs more bones...

[@LighthoofDryden]

Hmmmmm I’ll consider it maybe?? Loved your latest Devlog btw, keep up the great work :) tileset is looking so vibrant!!

[@yaksher]

While it's obviously more work, I think "boss fight mixups" go a long way towards making the early stages of the game more exciting. The most common version which I see in nearly every roguelike (Hades, Gungeon, Binding of Isaac, Slay the Spire, etc.) is just... a pool of bosses for each level which is randomly chosen from. Obviously, it's all trade offs on where you put the work, but I think something like giving him a few weapon variants might be on the easier side while still spicing things up (for example, maybe he sometimes has a body bag which he swings around for slower, more longer reaching attacks instead of his shovel, and maybe sometimes he's primarily ranged and picks up those skulls in the background and chucks them at you. A fun attack for that last one could be like, chucking a big ball of skeletons which bounces around for a while and then breaks into a bunch of individual skeletons). The other option is something like Heat Levels from Hades or the Cells (might be getting the name wrong) in Dead Cells or Ascension in Slay the Spire or whatever, which allow players to amp up the difficulty once they've beaten the game. Hades does this really nicely because the modifiers tend to change how the game plays in non-numerical ways, the pinnacle of this being the Extreme Measures heat setting which changes up boss fights. A relatively easy way to qualitatively change up boss fights would be to add area hazards to their arenas or whatever.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Boss Fight Mixups would be AWEsome, and I agree that it’s especially key for the first one. Having all three furies as a possibility was a great play by the Hades team (but we notice that Lernie and Theseus and Asterius don’t have them except the extreme measures). I’ll be doing some thinking on how to make this work 🤔

[@Warpedlight]

@@LighthoofDryden I don't remember the boss order, but you could maybe make there are variations with the single boss (as in the style of the furies you mentioned), but heighten different aspects, like one where Guillaume focuses more on shovel attacks and has a bigger shovel and one that focuses more on using their body to slam into you. I don't think that this exactly works, but maybe something similiar

[@yaksher]

@@LighthoofDryden As a followup, another thing I realized is that I had an intuitive feeling that there's more to why the first boss having variety is most important and I think I realized why: roguelikes thrive on build variety-even as you get familiar with everything the game can throw at you, you're doing it with a different build each time and that's what keeps it interesting. But the first boss has the least build variety since it's far closer to just the baseline starting build, so it also needs the most variety for that reason I think. I think many roguelikes also try to give you early game build variety by giving you a few different starting classes or weapons or whatever. In some of them, this choice is a defining characteristic (e.g., which weapon you chose in Hades doesn't become irrelevant when you get to the final boss, it's still a core part of your build. Similarly in Slay the Spire.) while in others it's a more minor thing which doesn't qualitatively change the game but starts you out with a different item or slightly different stats (Binding of Isaac is broadly an example of this-ultimately, your run is shaped by the items you get, and most characters just skew the early game a little (notable exception being Isaac himself, who starts with one of the most powerful items in the game once you get a certain unlock and it shapes the entire run)). Noita also does this, where your starter wands are slightly randomized which changes how the first area plays but you very quickly outclass those wands. I think if you do any of these, the latter is probably much less effort than the former, since you could either randomly or at the players choice just tweak some relatively minor things to give more flexibility to the start without having to rework any major mechanics or whatever.

[@craigcav1454]

Really nice work. Enjoyed the idea since the Blackthorne vid. for the gravedigger you could have it as an opportunity to have new bone types fall from the ceiling that have different throw trajectories. Skulls like shotputs, boomerang hipbones (don't hit yourself), hands that split and do negligible damage but intercept incoming missiles easily. Basically learn a bunch of new bone types all at once on the fly because a gravedigger has all the bones. Having a script which slowly changes the hue of the characters hair imperceptibly each time they die would be cool too. Each death the characters hair gets greyer but they don't notice at first (wrinkles too if your keen). Seems to match the theme that Death cant actually kill you in this domain but he can make you waste your life away chasing immortality until you die of natural causes.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ohhh super interesting, I didn’t think of different bones having different trajectories like that (boomerang bones! Brilliant!) Also love the idea of your character model changing subtly over time, very Shadow Of The Colossus. I’m gonna have a think on that 💭

[@AJ-fy3mi]

Wanted to lyk that u are doing an AMAZING job. it had me hooked as soon as i saw it and i dont even consider myself to like games like this. I personally love the Quality of this game with there being so many bosses already, the amount of music thats been added to rlly poll u in, and even the Fighting mechs u are giving to Disinherited to make it unique but yet very understanding and simple. Im now a fan of you and im very thankful to be able to play this game once it comes out. ill be watching and goodluck! ❤

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you for the encouragement, this is so kind of you to say!!!

[@fumetsusozo]

One of my thoughts on the bony grass walls you added is the idea of you could change them or make something else where you can walk slowly across it... except the right tool would allow you to quickly move across it. Not everything has to be just a key & door type gimmick, sometimes simply making something more convenient with the right tool works nicely for a difference. Also for more environment variety maybe add some sand or even bone sand, and some carvings/ancient paintings on the walls.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Very good thoughts here, that’s a new direction to brainstorm in! I like it!

[@alimansour3728]

Dryden amazing job! The game is coming along beautifully. May I suggest adding some surprise element to breaking the decorative bones or maybe urns etc... A small chance were instead of rewarding you with currency they might contain a ghost or skeleton (for 'defiling' their resting place) it could add that element of surprise and caution for the player when mindlessly bashing every decorative item they see.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Oh, great idea! I’m noticing the power of that moment of fear when I play Spelunky for research, and I think it can definitely fit here!

[@aaron9o337]

I think quests from certain npc’s in the catacombs would be cool, like you see them, they tell you to collect some items, then you find them again and get a reward

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ooh, this is a neat idea, that could create some continuity between runs too :)

[@27-Carrots]

Its so cool that you compose the music for your game as well as coding it!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you!! That’s actually why I got into game dev in the first place 😆 just to write game music

[@storm-phoenix3609]

Second dev log and you’ve got so much already :D Might I recommend a little camp fire where Red Eye chills or wherever the player goes after defeating a boss, as a way to top up your hp and light level? Kind of like Dead Cells with the little potion thing that heals before you head to the second level.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Oh yes! Redeye is our main shopkeeper but he should have a nice campfire and tent situation, I think! And then you’ll have a place to rest and rejuvenate (although knowing him, he’ll probably charge a fee 😉)

[@finnehrenberg4990]

I do not know if you are already planning on implemeting something like that, but I think it would be pretty cool to be able to interact with the surroundings even more. I'm thinking of stuff like explosives or hidden walls that maybe even could hold some secrets. Even though it's just the start of the development I already see so kuch potential in Disinherited and I'll absolutely love to see how it further develops! It's so impressive how creative and artistic you are and I enjoy seeing you working on so many small details. So keep up your great work and enjoy the process! You're one of the most authentic content creators I know ❤

[@LighthoofDryden]

Love this, thank you so much! (Hidden walls are soo good, already got me thinking about how to implement ‘em)

[@Lag._.]

Another fantastic devlog this week! More Bones!! 💀☠️🦴🍖🩻

[@LighthoofDryden]

tune in next week for more bones 🦴

[@CozyFrogGames]

Really looking forward to seeing where this goes!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you!!! Me too tbh haha

[@64bitrobot]

Gotta say, looking great. The solution to decoration makes a lot of sense! I never much got into spleunky type roguelites but really cool to see this one evolve and I can't wait to see what the finished and then post release versions will look like

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much! I can’t wait to see how it turns out either 😝

[@sfhjgdsvfjsdhbfkshbfj]

This game is going to be great. It is also so cool that you are adding your own music

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you!! Tbh it is the whole entire reason I got into game dev 😅

[@croconaw__]

Wow I can't believe how good this is turning out! Huge props

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much!! I’m giving it my all :D

[@mattrobb3566]

Excellent once again. I find your pace and delivery excellent, so clear. No clumsy distractions to try and add false humour. Also great not to be burdened by swathes of coding detail, which can be mega boring. Your artistic abilities are truly outstanding, I am in awe. Perhaps you could do some more on your art development processes (using procreate I believe?).

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much, for all of the above! It’s definitely in my mind to do some more in-depth art-focused videos, especially once this challenge is done and I can mix up the format again :)

[@akitaropiquet7580]

9:08 reminds me of Holt in Brooklyn 99 ^^ great devlog man, can't wait to see what you come up with next!

[@LighthoofDryden]

HA Holt is the greatest, I’m honored

[@Monkkie]

This bones of game looks absolutely bones. It’s honestly bone chilling. How great a bones Indi game can be. Did I say bones enough, I feel like I might have said bones a lot, but it doesn’t seem there’s too many bones in this comment

[@LighthoofDryden]

🤣🤣🤣 this was all the bones I needed

[@guilhermemorius]

The artstyle for the game is so pretty, it reminds me of Don't Starve. I think it would be nice to change the collor pallete between level maybe? To differentiate them better and give each one it's own atmosphere, like you really are walking through different sections of the Death Realm. I also love Guillaume because his name is mine in French xD

[@LighthoofDryden]

Yesss! This is all only area 1 at the moment, I’m hoping to move on to develop some other realms soon 🤓 And omg your name is like 4 letters different, that’s awesome 👏

[@skiBDman]

I really like the art for that clock thing

[@Cygnitheprotogen]

The levels look so much better now but to further improve on the visuals of your game I would make variations of the wall, floor, ceiling and background art so the pattern looks more interesting and doesn’t repeat that often. Maybe you could also make the tiles wich are not visible trough the characters eyes black like in terraria and dead cells to prevent the game art being to overwhelming.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Definitely noted!! I was torn between blacked-out middle tiles and just darkened, but I think I’m gonna try blacked-out on the next pass since you said this. And we’ll have to see if I can make variations look good 😅

[@autumn_3989]

I can tell this is a game I’m gonna be obsessed with when it comes out The artstyle is downright charming and all the mechanics and bosses look so interesting!

[@dirkygoodness]

perhaps adding parallax effect backgrounds might be a good way to add depth and level/scene changes without creating a bunch of sprites for generated scenes

[@cheezylettuce3360]

This game looks fantastic. Amazing you were able to create all this yourself. Keep up the good work!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Hey thank you, that’s very kind 😄

[@orangeblanket7181]

Love the game. Also, the reincarnate death message reminds me of garten of banban lmao, had me laughing for no reason

[@LighthoofDryden]

I haven’t seen that but now I feel like I need to 😆

[@GameGems]

So happy to see that you keep working on the game! Yey!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you Game Gems!!! 💎

[@catatav]

The worldbuilding is very charming, wishlisted!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much!!! I appreciate you!

[@rienafaire9286]

Oh hell yeah you changed the movement to be faster, looks way more fun! This might be too much to ask, but i hope thay you add some deep _lore_ in the game since this kind of story is a perfect fit for it. Rogulikes aren't very famous for their stories(except i guess hades lol), but yours has such a good pitch and element of intrigue to it already i hope that you build more to it.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you!! I love the lore building part, and I do agree-minus Hades I think the genre hasn’t been super strong on that front. I’ll be doing what I can 💪

[@user-qt9hq8xr8g]

I have an idea for a boss (Sisyphus) was a man who cheated death two times then was punished by the gods too push a bolder up a hill forever (he could try to crush you with his bolder)

[@LighthoofDryden]

Interesting idea, too: a sloped boss arena that’s like his mountainside. Hmmm!

[@forgottendemon3429]

honestly loving these dev logs. I also am thinking about making a 2d platformer type of game. most of my unity experience has been in 3d though so its a big change from what im used to. so excited to be able to play this game in a few months!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much!! 3D->2D is a big switch, but honestly it’s gotta be easier than going the other way haha

[@BraydenOverstreet-dg6yz]

All of your relic ideas sound great! Keep it up man!

[@LighthoofDryden]

Hey thanks so much!! Folks have been giving crazy good ideas in these comments too, it’s awesome!

[@ivan05degtyarev]

This is actually unbelievable how much progress you make in a week. It’s always so amazing to see how the project transforms week by week. And it’s so exciting to see that you listen to your viewers and truly get inspired by much of what your community suggests. Amazing job! 🎉

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you!! And how could I not get inspired with the quality of the ideas being thrown out?? It’s amazing

[@knightofthenorth926]

I'd love if there was a friendly npc you can randomly find to help you, just to have a nice moment amidst all the lonliness

[@LighthoofDryden]

That would be such a sweet moment. Maybe like… a ghost dog? That talks? 🤔

[@knightofthenorth926]

@@LighthoofDryden a ghost dog would be adorable! Idk if it would need to talk though, as long as you can pet it and talk to it I think that would be enough.

[@Weirdo_Studios206]

A ruined campsite as decoration could be really cool

[@LighthoofDryden]

*Really* cool. That’s goin in the game

[@neverdaddy]

Yoooo can’t wait for this indie game to release 🎉

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you!!! Comin as soon as I can 😅

[@ladtheoneandonly4980]

I've gotta say, I do really love the music idk how much it'll help, since it's 3D, but Roboquest does segments really well. rather than have preplanned rooms, it has more of what I would call open spaces and then randomized walls and halls as well, so you may see the same room, but it'll play differently since the cover from the outer edges of the space will be different each time you run into it. and then of course there are many rooms and randomized sides per stage It feels kind of like a basic/easy idea when I type it out, but I can't understate how well it works in practice, and especially that it's the only roguelike that I've ever seen utilize rooms/segments in that way I like how you're doing it so far :) Though it might get more difficult to match up to the same spots with every single room, if you ever want even more customization. I'm sure you may have thought of this, but perhaps categorizing rooms into a certain type, like just A, B, C, and D, and then you know that A rooms can always connect to B rooms on the right and bottom sides, C rooms can always connect to the left, etc. or you could mix the two above ideas to have both type A, B, & C rooms and A, B, & C connectors (amount of letters is obviously up to you) There's a million other customization options for randomization, of course. I think beyond making each room or layout feel unique, it's up to your discretion as to what you'd like the player to be able to rely upon I'm sure it's been said elsewhere, but your art style is lovely 🖤 probably due to my background in theatre, I always think about decorations in terms of what function they serve to those who exist there. It's also a really easy excuse for world building. It occurs to me that I'm not actually sure where the game takes place. I can only assume that in some capacity it is in or under Death's domain. So, I suppose you could think about how you would spend your free time as a ghost or skeleton in a labyrinth when there's no intruders to fend off. Or you could also think about what other sorts of people have tried to break into this place before the main character comes in (especially if the skeletons/ghosts don't have autonomy or agency of their own). Do you see other fallen adventurer remains? (up until now, I've simply imagined the skulls laying about to be just the many many bodies of the dead, not necessarily having come here while they were alive) Are there any monsters that upkeep this place, or is it simply held together through magic? If magic, how does it maintain its current throughout the area? Are there signs that may point you towards what lies below? If the place isn't thoroughly maintained, how much combat has this place seen? Were the dead ever buried with any of their possessions (how do the dead actually make it here)? And then of course, you can answer each of these questions with decorations: occasional armored skulls/skeletons; maybe more recent remains with hair still (gross); pallets of bricks, mortar, tools; occasional glowing crystals, perhaps dim or unnaturally lit (as to not interfere with mechanic); scratches/deterioration from bored or battling monsters; dolls, pictures, wilted bouquets, tattered dressed/suits, anything your friends/family love, but decayed, (almost hate to say it but) ...pets? I think a really easy source to look into may be simply what archaeologists most commonly find There's probably a lot of documentation out there for pompeii and egyptian pyramids, though the aesthetic is more european (though it's just a jumping off point, and there's usually a cultural equivalent) Quick last thought, if any monsters are sentient, perhaps graffiti of them trying to recall their names love the ability for players to move around the traps after they fall, really encourages the ability to simply play Anyway, yes yes very depth response, it's honestly kinda fun for me, and I love to help people who earnestly pursue art for the sake of it, though I may have spent a bit too long on this one 😅 Let me go back to writing my own stories haha -- saw a comment about the color palette, and I do agree that it could use some pops of color or more contrast in some capacity but also with all the aesthetic advice I've put in here, at some point I aught to remember that the time you spend is limited and will be focused much more on the actual game

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you for this in depth response wow!! I loved that bit “imagine you were a skeleton and how you’d spend your free time”🤣 it’s for real though!! What a great way to brainstorm new decor ideas (which I still need *many* of) Faintly glowing crystals could be really nice, especially if hitting them destroyed them. Maybe just a small encouragement to be careful because they’re helpful 😄 (or maybe even standing near them recharges your light, too!)

[@ladtheoneandonly4980]

@@LighthoofDryden oh, that's a really good idea with the crystals! I like that :) and yes, doing the actor's homework over and over will get you thinking like that pretty frequently 😄

[@user-py2zu3re5h]

Bro game is shaping out to be dope. Your game kind of reminds me of both Harry Potter and hollow knight. Add a lot of bosses because people like games like these(Cup head for example) for bosses and also slick movements and controls. Also I would suggest to use your current colour pallet and environment for a certain number of levels or a world and then create different world where character goes in the story. This will make the game fresh throughout. Hope my feedback helps.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Awesommee thanks man! And I love bosses too, I’m a huge Cuphead and HK fan and Elden Ring for that matter, all three are the best to ever do it in my book in terms of boss fights!

[@mutantdrumsticks]

As always, I absolutely love the look and narrative for this game! ❤ I feel like one thing I would really like to see if I was playing, would be some kind of secret room that has a low chance of spawning with a rare item and or a challenging enemy. To go with the catacombs theme, maybe something like a crawlspace or whole in the background's wall would be cool (maybe a chance to spawn behind one of those destructible crates). Something to play even more into the whole "exploring the unknown" and maybe encourage trying to explore the whole map. Plus, imagine how spooky it would be to crawl through a narrow passage after running out of light in ancient catacombs.

[@ParsleyDev]

It would be really cool if you put the main character's father (the one that put the main character out of his will) as a boss fight. Great game, keep up the good work!

[@LighthoofDryden]

🤫 you’ll give away the ending! And thank you so much!!

[@JimandEd11]

Loved the step through of the procedural generation of decorations. Awesome problem solving!

[@BoterBramKroket]

I love to see more work done of the decoration side, by implementing more decoration but also biomes and such> BTW, don't overwork yourself. Take your time and don't feel forced to implement a lot every week ❤

[@aidanmcguire8976]

It would be cool to implement some sort of point system, assuming this is kind of a level based structure. Or maybe something like in Super Mario with the big gold coins, or Battle Blocks Theatre with gems that you can collect and spend at the end of levels. Overall I love the way this is turning out, impressive work. It's inspired me to dive into this weird world of developing... I already have a headache.

[@LighthoofDryden]

The headache means you’re doing it right! (I currently sit here sighing after an hour of beating my head against a problem 😂) Love the idea-it definitely feels like there needs to be a tangible reward for good play!

[@ReyGis]

I love the artstyle, the music, the montage, your way to explain everything. You have a lot of potential here. And i really know what i'm talking about as a content manager. Keep up the good work , and have a wonderfull success :)

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much, that means a lot!!

[@Vedranation]

Lovely to watch the progress

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you 😊😊

[@Cdmander-pu3lx]

This is coming together great! I'm not a game dev, so I'm not sure how difficult this would be to implement, but I think some of the more open tomb areas could look really cool with parallax. Although if it's fully 2d I know that wouldn't work

[@LighthoofDryden]

Yess it’s on my list to figure out. I made the BG imitate parallax with a shader effect but it has to be set up differently for the “stuff”

[@Cdmander-pu3lx]

@@LighthoofDryden oh that's really cool! I already love the art style. It reminds me of Hollow Knight mixed with Don't Starve

[@LighthoofDryden]

@@Cdmander-pu3lx omg, couldn’t ask for two better comparisons! Both of those are basically my favorite hand-drawn artstyles. Also, you’ll be happy-I just happened to implement parallax on the other background items last night!

[@joshuagop5909]

Maybe adding corpses and bones from previous attempts as decorations would be a nice touch

[@rob-rendell]

Given the levels are procedural and have a different layout each run, it might be hard to have signs of your previous runs in "the same place". But since the boss rooms appear to have a fixed layout, perhaps there could be some changes to them for each time you die to a boss? Oh! And of course, since Guillaume is a gravedigger, if you die in his boss fight, he would bury you! When you come back, there could be an added tombstone for your character 😁

[@LighthoofDryden]

Oh this is amazing!! Especially the boss room idea like Rob said!

[@joshuagop5909]

Good point i didnt even think about it being procedurally generated.. but the boss room idea would be cool!!! Maybe even add a glowing text to the writing on the grave to bring attention to it being your grave!!

[@quagsire413]

i feel like some decorations in the foreground would look nice

[@LighthoofDryden]

That’s a good idea! I really need to figure out how to get that going

[@kirocetwhy]

Absolutely love the progress! Definitely buying the game as soon as it comes out)

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ahhh thank you!! February target release!!

[@leonardoluiz7487]

By week 2 I already want you to maybe do more then 100 days. Time is flying fast, even if you're going pretty fast yourself.

[@LighthoofDryden]

We’ll see what happens! I’ll still have quite a bit of time between the end of 100 days and the planned release date to polish and expand, but I do want it to be at least nominally “complete” by 100 😄

[@drakevillareal7772]

The cloak just needs a collar :)

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ope that may be exactly what I’m not liking about it!!

[@tomschlaiss5735]

Great work and video again, cheers

[@CoolStuffAK]

In slay the spire there are question mark rooms, that give a random risk it for reward descision. ie “grab the relic from the scrap pile” lose 10 health 20% chance of obtaining new relic. Maybe add something like that.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Oh I live for those question mark rooms in spire, don’t know how it didn’t occur to me to make something similar!! Hmm and with a game like this, there could be like fun little mini games, too

[@CoolStuffAK]

@@LighthoofDryden that would be so awesome! Can’t wait for the game to come out!

[@Oru328]

Spelunky has a really good solution to procedural generation, might be worth looking into

[@LighthoofDryden]

I’m gonna do some research!!

[@kristupaspaul8254]

Nice work you did here. You should also consider making props for example boxes darker unless you want players to try and hit them also i would suggest adding fluidity to animations make transitions from animation to animation so it wouldn't look so chopy.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Animations are a big thing I wanna go back over soon, agreed! I do want ‘em to hit and break the boxes tho! But the other ones sinking more back into the dark could definitely be good

[@mufrog1215]

NOOO I’ll be in class when this premiers

[@LighthoofDryden]

I’m sorry to have failed you 😭

Every week it gets better and better

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much 🙏

[@labu5605]

Keep it going! Looks great

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you so much!!

[@fammyboy7519]

Just a suggestion, but what if there was some sort of key you could pick up, and get a reward if you bring it to a door? It would sacrifice the ability to grab other items traversing your way to the end point, but maybe a special npc or something could be on the other side? (btw mimics would be cool in this game and would totally fit the vibe, please add them)

[@indigowater2225]

Like spelunky? But instead of npcs a key?

[@LighthoofDryden]

Mimics!! I always love a mimic. And I should have chests too, tbh, because who doesn’t love opening chests? (No one)

[@Shayan_failure]

I love your art style bro ❤

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you 🙏

[@aidannatsume9550]

Man this is going ro be awesome ❤

[@danielwertz8724]

Loving the devlogs. hoping that one day you go through what tools you use. usually most people use similar tools for audio, art and stuff like that but i always love to hear what other developers use. also, i think it could use a few bones.

[@rob-rendell]

I'm really enjoying these videos - keep up the great work, you're doing a fantastic job! Obligatory suggestion: to vary things up a bit more between runs, you could have random doors (secret doors, obvious doors, mausoleums like the decorations you just added) leading to "chambers". If the player stands in front of a door and presses "up", you switch them to another, tiny, hand-crafted level (standing at an exit door that takes them back). Spawn say 0-2 doors on each level, and the chambers they lead to is different each run. You could then have a pool of special chambers, like the fountain rooms or Charon's shop in Hades, a place where there's maybe a reward or a chance to catch a breather or heal up, or maybe challenge chambers, like a spider nest that's packed with spiders, but there's something good if you can get past them.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ooh, this is a really nice idea that could be quite lightweight in terms of dev time! I’m into it. (Also a good way to include lore rooms and the like)

[@A_guy_named_ivan]

I thought of a boss idea, what if there was a duo of a groom and a bride, imortilized by love, and it was two different entities, kind of like the second phase of the mantis lords from hollow knight.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Shhh don’t give it away!! (That’s surprisingly close to what I’m planning haha)

[@lilwan2122]

For some visual variety it might be cool to add lil tufts of dead grass, moss and vines on top of some of the tiles?

[@LighthoofDryden]

Awesome idea!! Roots too, I’m thinkin 🤔

[@TriXJester]

I dont really understand how procedural backgrounds would work just cus I'm just not the familiar with coding like that, however I think the idea you came up with will most likely be the best choice as it will save you a lot of time on the different levels through the games, as for new areas like the Pirate's ship or the Laboratory of your female scientist boss you can just switch out the image in the loadout which is much more efficient. I also agree that the Arachne's Cloak definitely needs different art as it currently just looks more like a random cloth. Maybe have it look more like a Himation which was the outer cloth wrap that was worn by Ancient Greek men and women, and since Arachne is a Greek myth it could be a nice reference to real world myths. She was also a famous weaver, hence why she was turned into a spider, so maybe have it with some border embroidery instead of the common spiderweb pattern throughout can make it more stand out.

[@LighthoofDryden]

Ooh a Himation! I’ve never once heard the word for that garment, that’s an A+ idea for the redesign.

[@TriXJester]

@@LighthoofDryden I am very big history nerd, the range of my weird esoteric knowledge is vast lol

[@LighthoofDryden]

@@TriXJester I can tell, and I LOVE that you’re here to share the wealth

[@user-so4ns1ut9y]

An enemy idea, a pile of bone could either resurect into a big boy made of several skeletons, or several skeletons could reform out of a pile to ambush the player, either way, super excited for this game to release

[@LighthoofDryden]

Oooohh enemies coming out of the background, now there’s an idea…

[@gitikaaa]

Love your content and storytelling, cant wait to play this game

[@rohanvishayal8724]

You are soo good. From your planning to execution everything is coming together pretty nicely. Keep up the good work :)

[@LighthoofDryden]

Thank you, you’re too kind!

[@DuelNY]

Love the work man! I think the design with the cloak is great, although the contrast of the purple in this otherwise very Victorian-esque color palette is a bit disjointed at the moment. So what if when your light dims and your torch goes out, if you have something like the cloak or another "dark" item, it makes the surrounding area's color palette start to become much more dark and sinister with more grayish blues or dark purples. This would allow the cloak and more subsequent items to fit in the game aesthetically, and would give a bit more personality to the Crypt. Not to mention there are other avenues to go down with this route, such as, only being able to see specific secrets or codes, or even a hidden boss. This would also allow non-dark builds to have a desire for their light to dim as well. Sorry haha, played through Animal Well and now I must only think in secrets

[@LighthoofDryden]

Animal Well has me SALIVATING for real, can’t wait to play it (after 100 days is up lol) Ooh, a relic that applies strange post-processing effects to the camera and reveals secrets could be *very* interesting 🤔 💭 a little inscryption vibes too.

[@NoahTheGuyy]

nice, been a little active in the discord server, really like the game idea, btw I think a throwing animation for Samuel would be nice

[@LighthoofDryden]

Oh you’re that Noah! Hey there! It really would be nice 😭😂 I’ve been dreading it. Maybe this is the week I get back into giving him all the anims he’s missing.

[@Bashfulhyena]

You are insanely talented, the new decorations look great! Not that many bones though, maybe add a few more.