Adding an underground area to Lumbermill! (Indie Game Devlog)

Wishlist Lumbermill on Steam here! store.steampow...
Patreon: / bwdev
Since last time I've rewritten the entire factory system, particularly conveyors, making everything work a lot more smoothly. I've also planned out the next set of major features for the game, which I'll be working on over the next few months! The first of which, I've already started on. It requires a new area to be added to the game, which I begin work on in this devlog.
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Let me know if you have any ideas or suggestions in the comments, I'd love to hear them.
First video: • Procedural Forests! In...
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Trello - trello.com/b/M...

[@daanhoogland695]

Maybe you can add some dinosaur fossils in the underground layer just for detail

[@Toopa88]

And bones in general. What about underground water/lakes?

[@chikato7106]

tunnels, water table, gold, caverns.

[@jfp0763]

@@Toopa88 lava lakes

[@swyxTV]

oil? might have an interesting interaction with the lumber

[@F100cTomas]

@@swyxTV you could use oil to boost machines

[@optimalbruh7991]

The underground will be used to find iron ore via miners then put in to a smelter to make iron that can be turned into screws and nails to make furniture

[@LordofGold]

Or even better gear for the workers?

[@taibarrett1st]

yeah definitely

[@benschelp2386]

Or to upgrade machines

[@the_void996]

But it’s optional

[@zachnerdydude6605]

Petrified wood

[@BoredQuill9090]

It doesn’t seem like there is anything that can mess up your lumber factory so you should add bandits that steal money or wood and you can hire guards that can catch bandits. You can also add forest fires and you could buy water storage tanks that can be placed above underground lakes. The water tanks can be used to speed up tree growth and remove forest fires.

[@renasouza8261]

I like the wild fire idea

[@MarxyBasement]

Nice suggestion +1

[@ZeuXFi]

+1 to idea, needs to be some element of a surprise challenge

[@ffvbnbvxdvhggb]

I can see that that might appeal to some people, but would work against the chill feeling I associate with what we have seen so far. I don't think random negative events need to be added just for the sake of it. (especially if there is a simple strategy like.... thieves happen so buy guards - this isn't a choice for the player, it's just something they have to do that isn't part of the core loop/system)

[@ZeuXFi]

@@ffvbnbvxdvhggb i agree with what you're saying, but if there are no challenges involved in (any) game, then that game becomes boring quite quickly, and i really want this game to do well :) but i also understand the chill vibe that you mentioned.

[@nullmemaddress]

Anyone else finding themselves becoming addicted to watching Lumbermill videos and development videos similar to this? Edit: Thanks For The Likes!!!!

[@jacobg5257]

Devduck has a game hes developing

[@user-cb8pj2eb1g]

jup and maybe we should just do our project instead of watching others D:

[@manchild3437]

Yes dude! Every day i search DEVLOG to see what new videos have been posted on projects im following and new ones.

[@deei5130]

Kind of. Im watching videos like this to give me more motivation as im learning to make games in unity and it rll helps. I have huge dreams and this series of devlogs helps me reach my goals.

[@nullmemaddress]

@@deei5130 Nice, wish you the best on your journey!

[@thomascoull2019]

The smoothness is awesome! Loving seeing how your game is coming along. I'm thinking the underground layer will be to extract stone perhaps, a resource needed to build more advanced machines in the lumber pipeline? or something along those lines. That or maybe to lay wires/pipes for something the above layer uses.

[@Lino_MC]

At the Underground there can be miners who mine ores for the Player. You also can make lakes at the top where you can go fishing! I love this Project!

[@tuna5305]

Ores are definitely a good idea

[@ReedHarston]

For the underground I have two ideas that come to mind. First, some sort of system you can install/discover that increases tree growth speed. Either a machine you can install that fertilizes from below, or by going underground you can find areas that are naturally more fertile and thus are better for planting trees. Or maybe provide bonuses for machines. (Now that I say that it kinda sounds like a system from one of my old favorites, Deadlock. I used to want to remake that game, maybe I should actually do that someday. For now it is on my long list of project ideas...) Second, running certain machinery underground, like conveyor belts and maybe wires, so you can have two layers of conveyors for better routing. Not sure those are part of the aesthetic you are going for in this game, so I understand if they don't fit in, but thought I'd share my thoughts. :)

[@isto_inc]

Love the idea of an underground system! Would LOVE to see some underground water/aqua firs come into play that somehow affect the surface above it

[@nextProgram]

Looks good! My first thought was that the underground would be for specialized machines or mining

[@robotalbotross8128]

Lmao i watch your videos too.

[@ericnielsen4868]

BWDev, you should add: - Pipes: A new type of underground conveyor belt can be used to maximize wood transport. They could move under trees, conveyor belts, rivers, and buildings to save space. - Bones To Make Bone Meal: Various fossils and skeletons can generate underground that are crafted into bone meal fertilizer. Lumberjack workers can spread this throughout forests to help brand new trees grow and young trees grow faster. Coal: Can be harvested and used to help factories and buildings operate faster. - Underground Lakes: Serve the same purpose of rivers, only underground.

[@wbbooth]

You could repurpose conveyor belt code as an underground mine cart and rail system to move workers and cargo. And possibly make conveyors and mine cart rail functionally transfer objects between the above and underground layers, or purhaps make a placeable elevator structure that can transfer things between layers. Maybe add a darkness level below ground and make a craft-able light source necessary to light it.

[@tylerweir]

You should add some terrain like hills and mountains and such. So you can have pine trees that grow on the mountains where it is colder. This would work perfect so you can look inside the mountains for resources with the layers.

[@itznidal9501]

I'd like to see more animations for the employees. Lumberjack examples: ( leaving and entering the tent, chopping trees ) Mechanic example ( Repairing (Hitting it with a hammer) )

[@BWDev]

These are planned, just not a priority while I'm still adding core gameplay 🙂

[@bammbuss2874]

You make realy nice content just wanted to thank you for this nice stuff love your content ;D

[@BWDev]

Thank you!

[@jeroen1118]

Every video you post I get more hyped about the game. I dont know where you are going with the underground part but i cant wait till next video!!!! Cheers and keep writing :D

[@stazzadev3532]

The underground area just made me want this game x100 more! The Dinosaur fossil idea is genius!!!

[@LordofGold]

Here in Austria back in the day we used rivers to transport the wood - maybe you could implement that somehow into the Game. It also would be nice to see some kind of Terrain (Hills, Mountains,..) they are everywhere in my Country and they are so beautiful to see :) Ouh and I think it would be a good idea to Place Iron Ore / Coal in the underground - that could be mined, melted & smithed to Tools etc.

[@paulchi195]

Ooooo i like the tools idea. that way the game can stay around lumber instead of going into mining

[@TonsOfHunStudios]

Big fan of the new conveyor movement! I think it's a nice detail too that the top layer doesn't just fade out but lifts too. I don't know if this is how nature/plants work, but maybe underground their are pockets of water or fertile soil that can grow trees faster. Great job! Also 3:20 haha

[@trilldog]

If there were bats underground, their guano could be used as fertiliser lol

[@feynman6756]

The forest you were walking through is very beautiful! I think it's clear where the game idea came from :)

[@TheLatmask]

Just got on board the lumbermill train, and watched all of it in a very short period of time. I feel like for the underground, a few features would be cool to hit: - tunnels. Obvious one. However, something that could be cool would be a system for using planks to steady the tunnels so they don't collapse. - a return to exploration. Currently not really present in the game either, aside from finding the trading house. The underground could be a fun vector for that. - sifting. All these tunnels will produce a lot of dirt. A sifting machine (or manual labor) uses the river to sift through all of the dirt and sort out the valuables. The old gold risk aesthetic might fit well. While gold seems like an obvious thing to sift for, our dear lumberjacks are actually sifting for fossilized tree roots! These can then be researched to unlock unique tree types with different requirements for growth and whatnot. I've always thought that since the game is about machinery and trees, the trees should be a vital part as well!

[@olivestamma]

I absolutely love these videos and get so excited whenever I see a new one, I noticed, though, that when you made the conveyor speed random, it brought back the old problem of items stopping on each new conveyor.

[@MinecraftC0W]

Love the progress! Every video inspires me to make a game of my own!

[@ciberman]

Considering the game is pixel art but with a minimalist aesthetic I think the non pixel perfect movement fits perfect. I really want to play this game!

[@WS-xd4sd]

It's funny that i get excited when i'm notified of a new bwdev video. you never cease to impress with attention to fixing what you don't think is perfect and at the same time moving things forward in a new and intriguing direction. Underground layer?? perhaps a nuclear bunker? maybe mineral deposits allowing mining to fund forestry ops? maybe some form of energy to drive forestry and lumbermill activity?? whats your long term plan for this game?

[@thegreengoblin5483]

Uses for underground: 1. For oil, which will be probably used in future. 2. For bunker storage houses. 3. For shoveling dirt, and then making/buying fertelized dirt with it.

[@yeeter7747]

I haven’t been here a while but from what I’ve seen this game has so much potential and already looks great! Keep up the work

[@CodingWithUnity]

Nice updates to the game! The smooth movement and the underground are really nice! Games looking good

[@gimmearender2777]

Underground could, besides resources, also be used for a quicker transportation of goods via straight paths. Great work, keep it up!

[@Tiny.Shiny.Things]

Wow! Great progress on this devlog! Can't wait to see where this goes. Also smoov move for life on the conveyors

[@NeatGames]

I *SUBSCRIBED* !! This looks amazing~ lowpoly style is so nice. And it's super satisfying watching the logs move on the tread mills! Great devlog, I just stated making them too hehe.

[@Aceanuu]

Love watching your updates when they come out, even if I'm occasionally scratching my head at design decisions (screen shake on clicks, non-uniform conveyor speeds). You capture really great video to demonstrate what you're talking about which makes it really easy and fun to follow. Keep up the good work!

[@BWDev]

You can't make a good game without some experimentation. Some things work, others don't - I show the whole process in these videos.

[@Aceanuu]

@@BWDev totally fair! Still a huge fan, keep up the experiments too, it's fun to watch the process even if us salty internet people have salt comments!

[@haykkhulyan6201]

The smooth movement is a billion times better than not smooth, the not smooth makes my head hurt

[@xcraftminebb]

The underground layer could be darkened out and you could make a mine above ground and underground you can create a network of tunnels. Because it’s darkened out, you won’t know what resources you’ll run into. However, areas could be distinguished between harder rock (which is more likely to have rarer resources) which costs more to develop mines through and softer rock which has more common resources but is easier to mine through

[@nicksipes9135]

Maybe storage of surplus materials underground? Could also be a drying place for wood to be used to make furniture.

[@dewaldbekker883]

Found your 1 year update video on my recommended and really like the idea. Good luck man!

[@JOVdesign]

Another cool devlog, and a great job on the conveyor belts. Be carefull with how you implement the underground though, it might dilute the look and feel of a lumberjack game. Guess I'll have to wait and see in your next devlog. Keep up with the good work.

[@ivarlaupet8972]

I think the arrows on the conveyor belts should be brown or gray. I think it would fit the forest theme much better.

[@ivarlaupet8972]

Also, you should place some rocks in the forest.

[@PhilDeveloper]

Maybe in the underground area, you could have is so you can collect some sort of rare minerals that you can sell to the workers to get them to work harder!

[@IapetusII]

I can't wait to see how this turns out, your work is phenomenal! I also think that the conveyors do fit, and I have a feeling you'll change it into a feature (i.e if its a slope going down, it's speed increases.)

[@McHermit1]

The game is looking great. I think you did a hell of a job on the conveyor movement. I'm thinking you're going to use the underground to route utilities maybe... like water pipes.

[@MegaVauX]

I think the underground layer can be used to do things like set up mining machines to collect stone, maybe make some tunnels/underground transport or something like that.

[@Cannochi]

Very cool progress, thanks for sharing the journey! Also I can't wait to play this when it is out!

[@manvondarten2632]

I'd see entire mining machines and workers mining for gold to improve the efficiency of machines. I could also see it being used for gem mining machines, and you can use the gems to get cosmetics to use on your workers or machines.

[@stonic6396]

Ah, Conveyors... A feature we need but still don't know why... Also an idea for those new underground areas, you could add some more trees that players could collect to grab more crafting recipes... or something...

[@TheProfessionalReject]

The underground should have stalagmite and stalagtites appearing throughout it this offers a nice visual change and maybe some vines or new tree just one that can adapt to know sunlight however it would grow at a slower pace

[@Mecheka]

Here's my ideas: - Some patches of underground soil are better for growing trees - Also, Mining!

[@hoverboy5475]

This game looks really fun and it adds so much by you showing how it's made love your content

[@attenonmj3708]

Add ores like gold or iron. Maybe gold can be used to buy structures or iron to build them. Also you can add underground conveyors.

[@syrenarch251]

Im really happy that i see people simplify code!

[@jaron3511]

I feel like there should be random other resources in the underground like oil for example that can be sold to companies as another source of income. I like all the effort that is being put into the game and hope you keep enjoying you daily walks 😃

[@the0neskater]

Looking good! I like the smooth conveyors although I dislike how few items / how spread out the items are, on the conveyors!

[@jucom756]

Maybe you could use the monolithic rocks in the overground.

[@oldwarcatstudios3029]

The underground area should be used get rocks and ores to bring up into the forest area to combine with wooden furniture to make the better furniture. Also doing this should cause some more companies to offer you business. The stuff you make can also be things other than furniture like tools which need wood. The way you make money in this game could be better too, you could have the furniture and tools go to a little building that trucks pick it up from and send it off. ( the trucks travel into a small tunnel so that the driveway doesn't take up so much space)

[@januspedersen1272]

Even though i only dabbled a bit with unity i still really like watching your (and other game dev youtubers) videos. Keep it up (-:

[@generator314]

Definitely prefer the smooth movement. Keep up the good work! :) Also, I like the idea of the speed variation, but maybe tone it down a little.

[@lejamir1464]

Ah yes! A new vid. Thanks for making my day better :)

[@BWDev]

My pleasure!

[@teunkiewiet840]

Make iron ore spawn underground, build a new mine so you can make special components or upgrades of the wooden ones.

[@salvadormilanes6584]

I like the pixel perfect movement more, I think it creates a better “mechanic” effect as if the conveyor belt is actually rotating.

[@ReeceGeofroy]

Great video Ben! Keep up the great progress 😉

[@Ric_93]

Your devlogs are GREAT!

[@BWDev]

Thank you!

[@ytra1501]

Something cool with the underground could be coal mining, where you can mine coal that could maybe be used to speed your conveyors up or increase the production of wood.

[@YungAsger]

It would be really awesome if you would animate the conveyers, so they actually move along with the items being transportet

[@pingu4396]

Hmm. Maybe the underground will be for mining quality ore? Looking forward to next vid.

[@FEG_Studio]

I think mining will be the main use for the underground layer but you can add some features like rare trees found under ground treasures and so....

[@brycetonwest]

UNDERGROUND IDEA You might have the underground area and forest area be connectable by special conveyer lifts, for extra factory area and for optimizing spacing.

[@Alkyer]

You can maybe have some underground rivers/lakes which makes the soil above more fertile and the trees above/near yield an additional lumber or something?

[@pom69]

i think that the rocks from the underground could defenetly be used as a crafting matirial where you would have a special crafting station where you would cut rocks polish them and sell them or combine them with wood

[@rikdegraaff891]

It would be awesome if overmining the underground could result in sinkhole in the forest layer.

[@mrsorsa5938]

I think the underground should have a thing where you can see good soil, neutral soil and bad soil, to think where you would plant trees

[@leoeeo6448]

the game has Come a long way

[@nattkrypslair4277]

Have recently went through this playlist. Enjoyable to watch. What I think is missing is more connection to the people. They should be good at different things and get better over time. This should make them more important to the player. There's also quite few different tasks for them to perform, but I'm sure this will expand. I'd also think it's a bit strange they have conveyor belts and machinery for production lines, but no tools or machines (tractors, quads, chainsaws, planters) to help with the gathering and moving to storage. Those items could add interest for player through research better versions etc.

[@MaksB.]

Maybe allow conveyors to go underground so that they can cross?

[@JoshuaNorthi]

The underground section looks very promising, can't wait to see what happens with it. Also the smoov conveyors look much better in my opinion.

[@Tomgoldgamer018]

When adding the small rocks to the underground, have you thought about randomising the rotation of the rock entities' sprite? Might help make the underground a bit more varied. Love the hard work, thank you for sharing these videos with us!

[@BWDev]

I'm planning on having quite a lot of varied sprites! Rotation doesn't really work in isometric 2D unfortunately, so gotta do each sprite manually

[@Switchboy1]

A vertical flip of the sprite works and will look like a rotation.

[@BWDev]

It does in some cases, but in this case flipping the sprites would make the shading look off as it would all be on the other side!

[@mcb187]

Maybe you could have underground belts, that are visible when the forest layer is lifted! It has always kind of bothered me that I can’t see underground belts/pipes in factories in some way, and I feel like that could be a cool feature! Maybe add underground water as an obstacle for building belts, and as an easy way to get water if you aren’t near a river in the beginning. Water could be used for growing trees faster, or maybe putting out fires (if you add them).

[@3lectr1x]

I’ve been thinking of that too!

[@UncoveredTruths]

underground could be levels of factory and mining (could add a fantasy element here). this allows you to make your game quasi-3D, which separates you from factorio.

[@idontknowwhatimdoing4586]

Maybe you can add a special type of tree that only grows underground, but is protected by something?

[@Animaniac-vd5st]

I spent some time pondering about how i would handle a game like that. In my thought, every component is a machine with several inputs and outputs, some functions to handle that (eg mixing, alternating, ...) depending on what component it is (factory block, conveyor, splitter) And every component has a job with progress. Be it transporting an item or producing/selling/whatever. That job gets progressed every tick/frame/whatever timing you use. And only components that are visible show the current progress of their job every frame. That way i could have a lot of common code for all components, only the job-progress needs update very often and the more complex stuff is reserved for those components on the screen. Maybe theres some thought in that that could inspire something for you.

[@pedrobelluzzo6395]

I wish i had money to buy all the games from developers that are risking their skin out here in KZbin. Your game looks awesome! I have started my journey too (but my channel is in portuguese). For now, all i can do is to support you here and wish you the best! I will wishlist your game on Steam!

[@lennysmileyface]

I think it would look nicer if the items rotated 90 degrees on the corners so they line up with the direction of the conveyor. That way when you saw the logs in the half the blade cuts length ways.

[@GgoldfishII]

The underground could be used to hide conveyers for people who want an aesthetical, uncluttered map

[@Amatsugu]

I'm so happy you made the movement non pixel perfect. I was found games that do pixel perfect motion to be too stuttery and unplayable.

[@IgnoredSoul]

FINALLY SMOOTH CONVEYER!

[@alias8053]

You could add ores, not too many, like the minimal basic (Iron, Copper, Tin, Gold) and then could mine it up using new machines to then smelt the ore down using a smelter to create sturdier and better quality furniture. You could also sell the ore off raw, but it wouldn't really be worth it.

[@paulytheking7365]

You should make the belts work how they used to. Make it so you can upgrade it. Maybe that will make people think your place has good quality. That could make more people available for hiring.

[@xscodevelopment4853]

Maybe to run some Conveyors underground to prevent some space at the top. So that you can grow more trees on it. Or find more amber for your currency if you have some shortages in money.

[@luizozbal5255]

I really like you're game, i especially like the design :)

[@infernosakai]

These devlogs make my day 👍🏻

[@TheFleming98]

The underground would be cool if you have different soil types and nutrient concentrations that benefit different types of trees.

[@kroepoek3764]

Stone production underground snd the deeper you get the rarer the ores you find are which you have to transport etc.

[@corrbs2986]

you can probably find ores and stuff underground to be able to craft and make better machines and evolve your world to make it more efficient

[@casualpigeon1979]

add ambient wild life to make the forest feel more alive

[@siah9566]

i would find the underground area being useful for mining minerals you could use to upgrade all the machines on the ground layer

[@cryingcookie9860]

someone probably already suggested this but you could add a feature that allows you to make conveyors underground as a means of transport once you run out of space in the overworld. just an idea tho.

[@thomassynths]

Underground for water reservoirs and irrigation hacks. Dry areas more prone to dry wood.

[@Eight-Track]

I know that this game is a work in progress and is supposed to be really chill but i feel that prices should fluctuate, maybe adding competitors to entice the player into experimenting with new items

[@alvinjunier6644]

In underground section there shouled be oil to power up machines

[@sypdev]

Great devlog! I have a lot to learn in devloging :D Really entertaining!

[@theshadow5226]

You Should Make The Underground Layer Dark, So You Have To Light It Up

[@MattiaConti]

You can use the underground to take rocks or mineral to upgrade stuff