I made the Most Terrifying Horror Game!

I've been working on my dream game for a few months now, it combines the monster slaying of The Witcher and the combat mechanics of Dark Souls, with an overarching roguelike format of games like Slay the Spire and Hades, all being set in a terrifying cave system filled with eldritch horrors. But there was a huge problem that stood in my way:
Come hang out on Discord: / discord
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Twitter: / tjgamedev
Music in order of play -
jump man 93 - bruh: • jump man 93 - bruh
Evan King - Lets Go! / @contextsensitive
contextsensitive.bandcamp.com/
HOME - Head First: • HOME - Head First [Syn...
About me -
Hi I'm TJ, a developer who is passionate about learning gamedev. I primarily develop games on the unity platform using C# but any code is fair game. I’m still learning a lot but hope you’ll enjoy my
Software Used -
Unity Version: 2021.1.22f1
Visual Studio Code: code.visualstudio.com/
Adobe Premiere Pro: www.adobe.com/products/premier
Adobe Photoshop: www.adobe.com/products/photoshop
PC Specs -
NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080
AMD Ryzen 7 2700x
32GB RAM
Way too much caffeine
#wavefunctioncollapse #unity3d #indiedev #gamedev #indiegame #gamedevelopment #devlog #madewithunity
#indiedev

[@TJGameDev]

Btw, if any studio is looking for someone to generate terrain like the forests shown, my discord dms are always open 😉

[@rawallon]

So you got the wood huh

[@Entiregoat.]

Bro lets make a game together i will make the assets you will make the game you can keep 60% of the profit We can make a good 3D game

[@SebastianGraves]

I think this is my favorite video you have ever made. Great job man.

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man, means a lot

[@myk3l9675]

As is per tradition!

[@vextormull]

And it's only gonna get better onwards

[@Corpah]

I suggest you look at Deep Rock Galactic’s caves. It’s basically a game where you are a space dwarf and have to mine stuff for a greedy corporation. Some of the caves are absolutely beautiful, and all of them are randomly generated. Really, it’s good inspiration.

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks! Will do

[@SebastianGraves]

lmao brother, your desk is my desk. Just replace the energy drink cans with coffee mugs.

[@Black_Forestt]

Hear me out! ...... the cave is .... under the tavern! you collect the heads of the monsters to mount on your tavern walls/ceiling to increase the moral/prices in your tavern! love your stuff

[@tiptopmainiac5261]

thats a cool Idea

[@TJGameDev]

Lmao not a terrible idea 😂😂

[@TrentSterling]

Wow, this is seriously high quality! Almost a tutorial... I am certainly going to research this type of generation some more!

[@TJGameDev]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@nocapsbb]

i honestly love the low poly character look of these games! glad to see you're making progress and learning from it

[@JordanIsNowOnTheTube]

Is the goal to find a new exit from the cave or to find objects to return to the entrance? One way gives players incentive to explore while the other add to the fear of getting lost! Limitless potential with this one. I love it!

[@TJGameDev]

Probably exit the way you entered

[@arctiformgames]

This is a really great idea and it was very cool to see how you solved the cave generation. I was literally working on a souls like with cave generation for like 2.5 years and never figured it out! So congrats haha I may have to look into again.

[@TJGameDev]

Haha give it another shot man, you’ll get it!

[@jackmcmullin6160]

Great video I'm excited to see the rest of what you have planned

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man

[@elderyaag3534]

Actually criminal how your sub and view count is so low. Your videos are entertaining and interesting! Keep going dude, love these videos and your ideas. I think the gameplay loop for the tavern game could be great if it's a chill game to play with friends and maybe some random events that are happening. Like a big group of adventurers or something like that. But I can understand why you changed your focus and I hope it will all work out. Keep doing what you do.

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks so much man!

[@fishlesspants9688]

LOVE the idea! Keep up the good work

[@TJGameDev]

Thank you! Will do!

[@Ironroc]

I was just wondering what you were getting up to! Thanks for the super interesting video. I'm stoked to try out the demo whenever you release it.

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man, appreciate it

[@virtualmecha]

Very cool, it has been a little while since i saw a video of yours, you have progressed quite a lot.

[@TJGameDev]

Really appreciate it man, thanks

[@Fluxxn]

Finally a new Video, good Work!

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks!

[@Workof]

I love having an idea and then seeing someone on youtube randomly doing a devlog of sonething similar 😂

[@UselessFodder]

So, y'all got any of them alpha test slots *scratches neck* Seriously, great video TJ! I'm really excited about this project and I think your techniques for cave generation are really pushing the envelope on what indie games are doing. Even big AAA games like Skrim used premade assets to try to get that winding cave feel, so making a procedural generation algorthm that captures that is a huge accomplishment.

[@TJGameDev]

Haha thanks bro, glad to have you around. Thanks for the kind words

[@AngryStickBoi]

That opening scene nearly made me throw my fidget and jumped about an inch

[@TJGameDev]

Haha I scared myself a dozen times editing it

[@UsmanDev]

Looking great! Looking forward to seeing more

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks bro!

[@ErikLevelUp]

Absolutely epic video bro! Keep up the great work! ^-^

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man!

[@noelodor2123]

you should make it so the different levels of caves have different looks with new enemies, so that the players look forward to whats coming next and it reward them with a different visual experience

[@TJGameDev]

Absolutely

[@ericlewis3444]

if you relax the outside edge of the hex, you can get even better results the more it becomes a circle

[@TJGameDev]

That’s a good idea, I kept it solid so I could attach more hexes around it, but if I don’t I’ll absolutely do what you suggested! Thanks

[@obrooks]

This is some good shit right here. Wave function collapse + the irregular grid is so satisfying

[@TJGameDev]

Agreed thanks!

[@giggio1747]

Uow! Please share more of the technical details of the cave generation with us! It’s very interesting and unique

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man! I’ll go more in-depth in the future

[@snekkers1609]

you: "cave system generation that have never been seen before" also you: yoink

[@logancraft1883]

You watch etho too! good to see another fan game dev combo! also this looks great one day i hope to play it!

[@TJGameDev]

Haha thanks that’s why I threw the Easter egg in there

[@NewHopeGames]

Great job this looks fantastic 👍

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man!

[@basketball859]

the title should of been"I made my Nightmare Horror Game!"

[@TJGameDev]

Lol true

[@mathieuvart]

Seems like a really fun game

[@zayniacgames]

This looks awesome but hope you still continue development of the tavern game as well.

[@NKCubed]

townscaper is a must play for any aspiring game devs

[@gustav1323]

looks very cool!

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man!

[@dankingswell7082]

This is insane,awesome job man! Any chance you could share your notes or code on the generation I’d personally love to understand it a bit better

[@TJGameDev]

Think I have a decent explanation, but if you want any more hmu on discord

[@famnor_abdulrahman1997]

I wonder if you can use the game you paused(tavern) as a part of the game because its like an rpg/rougelike and horror game and its would be worth it if players can buy food that can help them in there run doesn't it

[@Zealolicious]

Looks promising !

[@TimmacTR]

Excellent concept! This could work commercially! Genuine "discovery" and "exploration" are concepts that not only are underexplored, but are actually less explored than before, with open world game maps that give you all the info you need through UI and deprive you of these aesthetics as a result. An interesting thing you could...."explore" would be to mix together procedural generation with authored content to end up with something that could really excite people. Think about Diablo 2: the levels are random, but some tiles are authored with some logic (cathedral is always in north-east, this level goes from south to north, this level expands in circles etc..) Actually, I'll give another suggestion from a game I would love to make myself one day: payday, but it's a party ("fellowship"?) and it's the mines of moria: you have to go in, make as little noise as possible, find the ancient "dwarven gold" (or other) and escape from orcs, goblins, trolls (....and...."other stuff"?) with your life. The trick is: the more you carry, the less you have to fight (you're also slowed, can only use one arm, or zero arms etc), the less agile you are (can't jump, can't run), and as more and more orcs are raising the alarm, a sort of "soft timer" forces you to hurry, more and more, to the point where at some point you will either have to fight your way out while others carry the loot, or even when shit hits the fan, abandon all, jump into a running underground river to save your life like that scene in 13th warrior and at least save your life so you won't have to start over with a new character Anyway, great concept, I'm sure it will work

[@TJGameDev]

The fellowship/payday is such a good idea for a game!!

[@TimmacTR]

@@TJGameDev yeah, it's about finding Smaug's gold and escaping though (and exploring!) ;)

[@jrgf27]

Great video! I've been working on implementing something similar, did you implement recursive propagation on your WFC algorithm? Still trying to figure how to do that with irregular grids

[@TJGameDev]

Yea, join the discord and I’ll send you the chunk where I do it

[@BraianStrak]

This game is awesome, I would definitely pay for a finished version

[@TJGameDev]

Appreciate it man, thanks for the support. You’ve been killing it lately congrats on the 100k

[@BraianStrak]

@@TJGameDev Thanks :)

[@tristanreejakobsen6157]

yes new video

[@BadTunes.]

Yay something new😊

[@4per8]

imagine how terrifying this would be in vr tho

[@TJGameDev]

True!

[@rysepulse2955]

My Brain just exploded, looks amazing.

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man!

[@astrangerontheinternet6901]

Visuals keep em simple and stylized, you could also throw on some post processing or filters to make it stand out from other games that use free or lo poly assets. that's what Mortal Sin does and it looks great because of it

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks, hearing a lot of low poly stylized stuff so might go with that

[@sevehayden1463]

..Would it be possible to make multiple 'cave layers' close together (overlapping their high and low points) and smooth out the generation so it fits together nicely, or would that be too tricky for the result?

[@TJGameDev]

Maybe, but since the height varies there would need to be some sort of staircase like structure

[@Eryniell]

I was wondering, are you gonna add any verticality? i feel like the way you stack the cave systems, it could work well to have like vertically connecting corridors. though i know just having a sort of hole mesh with a teleport to next level is easier ^^"

[@stevendavies98]

Would be interesting for the ability to craft a ladder or tie a rope to desend do to the next level.

[@Eryniell]

@@stevendavies98 yeah preferably but most difficult, would be actual cave climbing equipment and having to put in hooks to descend XD

[@Eryniell]

@@stevendavies98 or the horror of being closely followed by something that can descend without tools :D

[@TJGameDev]

Yeah was going to go with a rope for descent

[@RGHdrizzle]

Hey I actually have a question regarding ur npcs in ur tavern game , do u use object pooling to spawn them ?

[@TJGameDev]

Yes

[@jordanf6332]

Have you thought about making a dark and darker clone? I bet you would do a great job with your own touch to it

[@TJGameDev]

That’s a good idea

[@frapapcgaming]

Looks amazing buddy,the games name is cave generation so i can wishlist it on steam?

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man, it’s not on steam yet

[@Miękki1989]

That's a warper

[@thecrustycaptain1934]

Imagine having a enemy that stalks you just barely visible always a little to far into the fog of the cave and it would atk you at your most vulnerable

[@TJGameDev]

That would be terrifying! I love it

[@thecrustycaptain1934]

@@TJGameDev is this game available for wishlist yet? I’m really looking forward to play it with my friends

[@TJGameDev]

Nah, not yet. Will take a really long time to work on sorry

[@thecrustycaptain1934]

@@TJGameDev awweee 😔 but I understand god speed brother 🫡

[@user-jd5hd4tv9u]

Port the tavern game into the cave game (that may be impossible I have no idea). Place a town outside the cave that players can interact with when they aren't dungeon questing.

[@TJGameDev]

That’s actually a good idea I like it lol

[@Cjoudan]

I still think tavern keep has a lot of potential. I hope you come back to it, but your current project also seems great.

[@nahtan5855]

Very cool.

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks Nathan!

[@awesomemike3857]

Another dream game 🎯🍿😎😎😎🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉 Excited

[@theadventuresguild6514]

I love seeing your projects evolve! Can't wait to play them someday. If you need some voice acting at any point, shoot me a message! I'll work for free. Need portfolio stuff :)

[@TJGameDev]

Will do, thanks for the offer!

[@KayCherk]

Vídeo muito bem elaborado, conteúdo impressionante. Bom trabalho!

[@TJGameDev]

Gracias!

[@fiona9891]

​@@TJGameDev Obrigado* :p it's portuguese, not spanish

[@tiptopmainiac5261]

ur pc has caffeine? this game already looks fun to play with friends cant wait

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks man!

[@nightman706]

6:04 thats a halberd

[@iZer0]

Looks promising! :D Great idea

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks!

[@JoshMooney]

Could you open source the code for Tarven team ? I think it would be a great leaning tool

[@TJGameDev]

Probably not as there’s so many assets that are paid that are tied in, and without all the scenes it’s hard to follow how it works

[@JoshMooney]

Ahh that's fair TJ was just super curious how you worked with the Synthy modular pack I bought that after seeing your video just to tinker. Keep up the good work bud! cheers

[@NKCubed]

coolio, I support this

[@vandoodev]

5:23 XD

[@IsaacPeek]

4th! Love the video!

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks Isaac, glad youre still around!

[@Hzodx]

wouldnt that make it... a nightmare?

[@TJGameDev]

Hahah true

[@kubafraszczyk7517]

But, whats the name of the game and when we'll be able to try it?

[@TJGameDev]

No name yet

[@breakingbader69]

whats the song at 2:53?

[@TJGameDev]

Jump man 93, link in description

[@mimicray]

your dream horror game? you mean your nightmare game :)

[@TJGameDev]

Lol trueeee

[@Xenotester]

Someone tell me what games are 0:44 and 0:47 please

[@TJGameDev]

It’s a vid by Sebastian Lague, then a game called dome keeper

[@Xenotester]

@@TJGameDev thank you a lot - I have a domekeeper on steam wishlist but not recognize it

[@rawallon]

wait u got hired by unity?

[@TJGameDev]

Nah but I got their shirt

[@yingchen2448]

I hope you're be rich one day

[@TJGameDev]

Thanks, hope you will as well

[@Entiregoat.]

Bro lets make a game together i will make the assets you will make the game you can keep 60% of the profit We can make a good 3D game

[@thecosmickidsgaming]

good job but what's the point if you are not going to realise it

[@TJGameDev]

?

[@mathieuvart]

I hope you'll never wash your t-shirt again, it does not deserve to be clean.

[@elianimations4569]

Its like deeprock galactic