Making an OPEN WORLD Game as a Solo Dev

[@anbagames]

Wishlist VELKYN on Steam and support the development of the project: store.steampowered.com/app/2728320/VELKYN/

[@rokasb9441]

What a gread idea man, keep it up! But i got just one suggestion: look how classic wow world/map was designed, how they made small world feel big and immersive.. and why fast travel (like grappling hook) would make gameplay less enjoyable and exciting in the long run :)

[@Plapperei]

It seems you have a lot spare time, otherwise i cant imagine how a single person creating such a thing in such a "short" period of time. Im really hyped to see the process of a development from the scratch to the final game.

[@anbagames]

You can never have enough time... so many things and so little time :D Thank you very much for the kind comment. I'm glad you liked the devlog :)C

[@athemalive]

Well, look for Project Kyrill - two guys made it in period of I think 5 or 7 years, in Unity 5.

[@twainrocks4771]

​@@anbagames please don't add wall jumping. It just doesn't feel right Inbthjs type of game. Maybe just keep It to wall climbing. Or you could make the character throw a grappling hook onto something, and make her slowly hoist herself up. You are making an open world adventure game, not an Apex Legends ripoff

[@eNjOixX]

It’s called passion…. Good for this solo dev looks amazing!

[@m1701z]

@@kishirisu1268calm down where’s ur game

[@gamedizzy]

Just wishlisted! Congrats on your journey and progress! Look forward to your success!

[@vivyn6349]

I think a grapling hook is great as a way to help a character gain momentum, being able to chain that into a gliding form would make the grapling hook help to gain hight for the character

[@anbagames]

Sounds like a great combination of skills!

[@stray1239]

depends on if the flight form is actual flight or gliding

[@vivyn6349]

@@stray1239 yeah exactly :) , i meant specifically gliding, otherwiss it would be redundant.

[@stevenwahlmusic]

This is beautiful! I also love that you keep your goals realistic so you can actually finish it! :)

[@anbagames]

Thanks Steven, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@xbott94]

Now the wait for the second devlog starts. Looks really nice so far!

[@anbagames]

Thank you! I'm currently making good progress :)

[@IndieScapeGames]

Great job on the dev log and progress on Velkyn! It makes me super excited to see your videos again and more so how much your skills have improved since Cloud Escape (and your thumbnails and graphics are what drawed me to your dev logs for Cloud Escape). Great job, excited to see this to blow up!

[@anbagames]

Thank you for your kind words. I really appreciate your support throughout the years! I'm always striving to improve myself :)

[@SmallCatGames]

This is amazing. I am starting my own dev journey and it is so motivating to see what you've accomplished!

[@gamenicity5905]

This looks incredible! I love the stylized feel of the game, the character animations model, and the overall feel of the world. You are doing analyzing job! Thanks for sharing this with us. New sub and wishlist. Cheers!!

[@drewdowsett]

Love the devlog! Keep up the amazing work mate. I look forward to following your process.

[@anbagames]

Glad you like the devlog! I will definitely post whenever there's something new. But progress does take its time

[@EHartmannMusic]

I said this in a previous devlog already, but this looks amazing! I hope all goes smoothly

[@anbagames]

Thank you very much! I hope so too, hehe 😄

[@puzzlebgames]

loved the concepts and art style, looking foward to see your progress, also, nice setup

[@anbagames]

Thank you! Glad you like it 😊

[@DEERFERNO]

This looks insanely impressive! Can't wait to see more

[@anbagames]

Thank you so much! I'm working hard on the game :)

[@kylebanks]

Looks great so far, wishlisted and excited to see more

[@anbagames]

Thanks, Kyle, that means a lot to me! Cool that you were here at the premiere :)

[@FeederFTF]

It is looking amazing bro! Keep going!!

[@Essiggurke-r2h]

looks amazing honestly

[@DraslyThe1]

Wishlisted it already, as a Zelda fan, this fit right in!

[@anbagames]

Thank you so much! I'm glad it appeals to Zelda fans :)

[@indieramus]

The game looks amazing, wishlisting now. I think facial animations for the mc would go a long way. She's so close to feeling like a living character rather than a mannequin. I was super impressed seeing that you've already rigged everything up.

[@Elitekampfsocke]

Wow, das sieht wirklich gut aus. Es ist jetzt in der Top 10 auf meiner Steam Wunschliste.

[@anbagames]

Vielen Dank! 🙏 Das freut mich sehr :)

[@mis4ry]

Looks stunning, can't wait to play it

[@anbagames]

Thank you! That makes me very happy :)

[@WhyKev]

Great devlog! Will be fun to follow this!

[@anbagames]

Thanks, Kev, your opinion means a lot to me. I'm also a big fan of your devlogs and can't wait for the next upload! 😊

[@Vercidium]

Incredible visuals, thank you for showing us your processes

[@anbagames]

Thank you very much! I hope I can show more soon :)

[@anniquinia]

Wow, this looks so cool! It's incredible how many different areas of responsibility you have as a solo developer on such an ambitious project. I'm really excited about the combat system. Will players be able to target the enemies? Also love the main character! Great job!

[@anbagames]

Thank you, I'm glad you like it! 😊 A target system will definitely be included, yes.

[@daniel4647]

You look like you're doing everything right, and the game looks interesting to, wow, great job.

[@nuttyak2taps]

Really loving the stylized looks! The transformation gameplay mechanic could also help your game stand out more with its uniqueness. All the best to you!

[@anbagames]

Thank you! I'm trying to implement this mechanic as polished as possible!

[@insomniadevs]

Looks great! Cant wait to see this progress :)

[@afffroman795]

This is insane for an indy dev. You can tell that a lot of care has been put into making this game and dev log. I wish listed the game and can't wait to see more. I also plan on starting my game dev journey and want to thank you for inspiring me to keep going.

[@anbagames]

Thank you for the kind words, and I'm glad the video inspired you! :) I wish you success on your gamedev journey! And don't forget, there are many of us, and we can help each other :)

[@Oskratos]

Really looking forward to the next devlog and more updates on the game!

[@anbagames]

Thank you Oskratos, that makes me very happy! I really appreciate your constant support

[@Drifl]

Looking great so far! Love the feel of the game. Keep it up!

[@anbagames]

Thank you very much! I'll do my best :)

[@GameHypeStudios]

Looking great so far!!! I like the idea of turning into the bird for traveling. I can't wait to see more!!

[@KhroMcKrakken]

This looks awesome!! The character model looks so good! And the slide looks way better than my attempt at the mechanic lol

[@anbagames]

Thank you! Do you have video footage of your game? :)

[@takaw.d8486]

AYOOOO THIS LOOKS AMAZING MAN!!! i too am trying to make a Open world game, but i just cant get started, this has given me so much inspiration!

[@anbagames]

Thanks a lot! That’s awesome to hear. Wishing you lots of success with your project. Maybe we’ll see something from your game on your channel soon? 😊

[@takaw.d8486]

@@anbagames heh, maaaybe xD im excited to try, just dunno how to start

[@tvius1553]

Bro good job and I look forward to your work

[@anbagames]

Thanks bro, means a lot to me

[@rockingsai4922]

Congratulations and all the best

[@anbagames]

Thank you so much! :)

[@Xenoks_Dev]

Really nice project, as a solo dev my self, i support your project !

[@GRDLab]

Wow, it looks amazing. I'm looking forward for updates. Wishilisted!

[@anbagames]

Thank you so much!

[@kaiburofficial5552]

This concept seems really interesting so far. I don't know if you have decided on this yet, but I actually think it could be really cool (though probably a bit challenging) to implement both the bird form and grappling hook and seamlessly transition between the two. Sure, it might seem a bit redundant, but with that wall-jump ability I can totally see myself stringing together some very awesome moveset combos off of the towers and mountains and tall trees that would just feel very satisfying to pull off. It'd just add that extra bit of creativity that I can add in my traversal throughout the world. In any case, very impressive work so far! From one developer to another, best of luck in your journey! :)

[@anbagames]

Hey, thanks a lot! That sounds like a lot of fun, but I need to see how the balancing works when there are so many movement mechanics. With a Spider-Man game on a huge map, I totally get it, but my open world won't be gigantic. I will definitely keep thinking about it! Thanks :) Good luck on your journey as well!

[@kaiburofficial5552]

@@anbagames yeah, i can see where you're coming from! upon further reflection, i'm sure most might see what i originally posted to simply be too gimmicky in practice. just as well, I completely understand the need to make sure things are balanced! whatever you decide, i'm certain i'll enjoy it (though my fingers are crossed very tightly that i'll at least be able to turn into a bird... i love birbs)! I wishlisted your game when i originally posted my first comment and i'm very excited to see how it turns out! :)

[@CitizenCoder]

Project looks great man, happy to wishlist it.

[@anbagames]

Thank you so much!

[@twainrocks4771]

Love this project. No wall jumping. It's just not gonna feel right in this type of game

[@SecondsGuess]

Cool video! Great presentation. And VELKYN looks fantastic! Good luck 👍

[@anbagames]

Thank you! 😊

[@Godot-Bro]

Awesome work! Wishlisted!

[@foxidgamedev]

Wow! your game looks really amazing O.o No doubt that this will be something really big. Good luck!

[@anbagames]

Thank you! I'm glad you like it :)

[@errornull77]

very nice. love all open world survival games!

[@MooshroomStatus]

The grappling hook could be great for areas that may contain any bits of anti-magic, such as puzzles or something of the sort. Similar to how you mentioned the first island introduces core mechanics, there could be an area for the grapple too. Maybe the bird form could be mid-late game? You could use it to go back to earlier parts of the game for either story re/progression, or just finding collectibles. Everyone loves collectibles, and perhaps those could link to minor stories within the story? Like other adventurers may have been there before, or at least their stuff ended up on the island? The visuals are very pretty too! They're simple, but vibrant and I personally love them!

[@anbagames]

Thank you, I'm very happy to read this! You address many good points, and it's difficult to find a balance. I had also thought about something like anti-magic, but more to restrict the flight form and not for the grappling hook. But the other way around is certainly worth considering! I'll think about it again :)

[@MooshroomStatus]

@@anbagames I look forward to seeing what new stuff you do with this project! :)

[@yzgrdyn-WiseGuardian-]

Grapling hook would be a good mid game, and you could maybe have the astral flight have a limited number of flaps but an unlimited glide, with thermals to lift you back up. Then give the flight a longer cooldown. Depends really on how you want the flight to feel, is it mainly for travel, is it only vision, like a magical drone, or would it have any combat associated?

[@anbagames]

The open world will have a lot of verticality, and that's exactly what the flight form is designed for. However, I definitely don't want to make the flight form too overpowered. Ascending will be more challenging than flying straight ahead. Gliding is basically free. I've also considered introducing the grappling hook later in the game. Mid-game sounds good :) Thank you for the kind words!

[@dragonoyx07]

I have also been trying to make an open-world game and have recently switched from Unity to Unreal Engine 5 and I am exited for the development of this game!

[@anbagames]

Thank you very much! Unreal is an excellent platform and offers many tools that are only available through third-party assets in Unity. I wish you great success with your game!

[@Telesto_Timelost]

Devlogs really are the meta

[@Jhoosier]

Very cool! I've played a lot of survival and open world games, and this one has me really interested. Regarding grappling hooks, I think they have a lot of potential use, especially if you plan on dungeons having puzzle-like elements. It might also be useful if there are movable objects in the world that could be pulled, either pulling enemies to you/off a cliff, or pulling something to you that can be used to access an area. It could be evened out with the astral flight form by making disallowing one of them in dungeons, or as another person said, using the grappling hook to gain momentum/altitude and then going to the astral form to reach very high places. Of course, this all depends on the vision the dev have for the game. Wishlisted and looking forward to it!

[@anbagames]

Hey, thank you very much! Those are some good game design technical points that you're addressing. I actually plan to disable the flight form in dungeons or enclosed areas. This will also have a plausible lore-based reason.

[@x_x5204]

I would love to try this out!

[@TFVyse]

I also would like to volunteer!

[@x_x5204]

Maybe we could have a dev testing collab done on unity cloud?

[@anbagames]

Thank you! There will definitely be a QA phase. Maybe there will be something to test in 2024? :)

[@sriman1]

good luck for the project

[@anbagames]

Thank you!

[@DerAmir]

I would personally put the "Press B to open chest" above the chest :) and good luck with your new game :D gamedev is indeed very hard ;D

[@anbagames]

Good point, that catches the eye better! Noted! :) And thank you!

[@jozsef98]

That steam badge chest opening was adorable

[@LuukVlasblom]

Nice video. Would be very interested to see how you did the landscaping, for example at 5:00 you made that look fairly simple.

[@anbagames]

Thank you! I will definitely show a lot more about the world building and terrain workflow in the upcoming devlogs

[@matthiasengh7935]

gorgeous art style!! Good idea to limit the scope so it will be manageable

[@SACHAdebreij]

character looks pretty cool

[@theoskphoenix]

Nice video, I liked it! You got a sub and a wishlist from me! Good luck with your project :D

[@anbagames]

Thank you so much! 😊

[@Dayoflu]

AWSOME ! 🎉

[@knowariddle9462]

I think the bird idea would be a cool mechanic if it were more of a dash or glide than prolonged flight

[@anbagames]

Good point! Will think about that

[@goodbyejinsei]

love the dungeon vibes!

[@SpasticLlama]

looks great, keep it up!

[@thewhyyyguy6274]

Solo game dev here. I’ve been working on my own adventure game for awhile now. It’s very different from this but similar enough for me to appreciate the insane amount of time this must have taken you. I don’t think people understand how time consuming and tedious a project like this can be. Well done!!!

[@anbagames]

Oh, yes, definitely! Before uploading, I asked myself if the content really looks like it took months. Not every effort has a directly visible result. And thank you! 😊

[@Injabsful]

keep it up its a tuff world out there

[@ArsDevS1]

DUDE THATS AMAZING

[@KemalTonbul]

The game looks amazing! Of course it is wishlisted ❤ Maybe you should increase the volume of the closing door sound when entering the boss fight. That would make it more dangerous. Beside that i really like the bird flighing stuff and would not implement a grappling hook.

[@anbagames]

Thank you! Good point about the volume of the sound! You're the first person to speak out against a grappling hook. I agree, I also think that having both a flight form AND a grappling hook might be too much. What is your reasoning against the grappling hook? I'm curious to know :)

[@KemalTonbul]

My reason is that having the flight form differs from other games that have been there in the past. Some kind of unique selling point ;-)

[@jonaspriebeofficial]

looks great!

[@taco.tavern]

Beautiful game and great breakdown! Sounds a lot like an Australian Magpie o:

[@Buberson]

I started my game project basically in September. I am really happy with how it goes... But I will just say that I am not where you are yet 😂 Damn. That's a lot done so fast, congrats!

[@anbagames]

Thank you! Is it the project on your channel? I'll take a look right away :)

[@tristanhatfield24]

Reminds me greatly of recent Zelda games, beautiful artwork, player animation could use some work but this is the only of the devlogs I've seen so far so that might have been addressed by now. Either way looks great.

[@anbagames]

Thank you for the kind words! The upcoming video will feature a bunch of new and improved animations 😊

[@rodionstb4903]

it is a masterpiece

[@anbagames]

Oh, thank you, that's nice to read :) I'm glad you like it!

[@JWITG]

Wow I just casually click on the video because of the beautiful thumbnail And the first 20 seconds amazed me The graphics are so awesome 😍 As a game dev i can imagine the work behind Some uggestion: add the grappling hook but not as a grappling hook But as a normal rope And make the character have some kind of super throw ability which can be used not only for parkour but fights Instead adding a shield add a parry function and when the character needs to block make her use the sword Make the sword special Make it have some kind of special attack etc... Also add some more speed to the character to avoid feet sliding ( she seems a bit slow compared to animations ) Hope i could at least inspire you with some ideas and good luck🤞

[@anbagames]

Hey, thanks so much, that really makes me happy to hear! 😊 Using the grappling hook like a regular rope (similar to Wind Waker) sounds pretty cool to me - I'll definitely consider that. What do you mean exactly by Super Throw Ability? Can you explain that in more detail? Also, replacing the shield with sword parries also sounds interesting and I'll have to think about that :) All the animations will be getting a makeover, and I'll definitely be adjusting the speed. Thanks for the kind words and great ideas!

[@JWITG]

​@@anbagames​ hey, thanks for replying I'm glad that I was able to make your day better I may have been a bit too excited when I said "super throw" But I meant a strong throw so the character can reach high places As for the combat part I meant something like she could Pull the enemies closer to her something like scorpion from mk ( I know, a bit out of context 😂 ) So it would be some kind of extra attack Also If you still haven't named the character I would have a suggestion: Syndra

[@gamesomecarlitos]

You should make the chest come up from the ground to spawn in. Since the map is called Isle of the Acients.

[@anbagames]

Good idea!

[@Cloud-HeadedDev]

If you want to keep the grappling hook, then make it so it has high acceleration without being able to maintain current speed. Make bird form slow but steady, and then make it so that you can chain the two states together (grappling hook into bird form) and maintain speed. Just a suggestion.

[@anbagames]

That doesn't sound bad at all. Do you have any examples of a game that has implemented the grappling hook feature well? I'm definitely open to some inspiration! Thank you :)

[@Cloud-HeadedDev]

@@anbagames There’s this hame called Cyber Hook where movement and speed hinge on how you use the grappling hook as well as double jumps and wall runs. I was also thinking of Just Cause 3 and 4 when mentioning chaining together movement in an open world (I haven’t played those games though. I’ve only seen clips).

[@anbagames]

@@Cloud-HeadedDev Thank you, I'll take a look! I know Just Cause, but at this speed, you could explore the open world in just a few minutes :D

[@theunityguy_yt]

Wow this game is stunning. Great job! If I may ask, I was just wondering how you created that sky/fog shader or effect. I love how there's a gradient in the sky, and it'd be awesome to find out how I can also achieve that effect :D Great devlog and best of luck on your project ^^

[@anbagames]

Hey, thank you very much! For the effect, I'm using URP Volumetric Lights & Fog. For the fog, I have defined a fog volume where the fog exists. At the edges of the volume, the fog blends with the rest of the scene. Hope that helps!

[@theunityguy_yt]

@@anbagamesAwesome! Thanks man :D

[@NicolInteractive]

This looks great so far! I can tell how much love you're pouring into this project. How are you handling the music?

[@anbagames]

Thank you very much! The plan is to hire a composer for the music. But since I'm still in a very early stage, it will take a while

[@Emervine]

That scene at the end reminded me of Devil May Cry for some reason, that used to be one of my favorite games 😊

[@codexed-i]

bruh devlog 1 its alr on steam let me create 10 alts to wishlist ur gaem

[@blue-cloud-studios]

This looks awesome so far the world looks incredible 👍. Something's id changed is the animations making them more snappy or shorter also just maybe making the characters shadows a bit darker cause we can't see the features all to well.

[@anbagames]

Thank you for the feedback, I'm glad you liked the devlog :) The animations definitely require some more work, I agree with you on that. Which shadows are you referring to? The shadows on the character or the shadow cast by the character onto the environment? I will definitely take a look, thank you for pointing it out!

[@blue-cloud-studios]

@@anbagames the shadows on the character

[@nove1398]

This is pretty good for a solo dev

[@CarnivoreChris89]

I love the Ocarina of Time -feel of the game! Wishlisting :)

[@anbagames]

Thank you so much!

[@rhylord1577]

Grappling hook looks epic

[@anbagames]

Don't you think it feels a bit overpowered? ^^

[@CosmicComputer]

It looks great!

[@MaxNewberg-r4l]

the main thing you need to worry about is having weight to your animation. I know that's hard to do, but are you going for mario or mirror edge style.

[@Narwhelington]

Remember to match the movement speed of the player and other things with the animation speed. Right now you're player walk and run look like the feet slide across the ground simply increasing player speed will fix that.

[@anbagames]

Thank you, that's a good point. I really need to work on that :)

[@Kronix051]

This art style goes fucking nuts

[@goodbyejinsei]

a no flight zones (/no transformation due to some reasons) could make grapling hook a very precious part of experience, imho :)

[@anbagames]

That's a very good point!

[@Bloobs_Dev]

Amazing ❤

[@davejay6855]

A Grappling Hook is NEVER REDUNDANT…

[@TN_fliptop_english_subs]

looks tight!

[@fellixjs4839]

@5:55 nice touch ahah

[@w47-p1e]

The game looks pretty!

[@shubhamgautam5393]

you made nice game your game scene beautiful

[@sosasees]

¿what's the deal with the trees changing shape when the player character nears them?

[@Serivice98788www]

Happy new year 🎉

[@Peach_VOxo]

Love it

[@anbagames]

Thank you! 😊

[@ssddsameshtdifferentdragon6188]

Suggestion: Make the character Cell Shaded.

[@anbagames]

Good point! Currently reworking the character and not loving the shading so far. Thank you for the suggestion! 😊

[@ssddsameshtdifferentdragon6188]

@@anbagames just know that cell shading is a lot more complicated than it looks. Since it's emissive, it requires a lot of work to get done properly. Shadows, day-night cycles, metallic surfaces, and a lot more won't work out of the box. You'll have to find good tricks to keep it consistent.

[@bjorns1135]

You should limit the etheric flight. Like Kiki lose her ability to fly with a broomstick, and you need to use a grappling hook. Nice dev log. Good luck.

[@lawrence9713]

If you need a 3D modeller, let me know. Looks awesome

[@williampalmer8052]

If only there was a way I could wishlist this on Steam...

[@raztaz826]

I always like grapple hooks

[@MaxNewberg-r4l]

this guy is on to something

[@ybm_678]

Which game engine do you use? This looks amazing so far, can't wait for the next devlog!

[@anbagames]

Thank you! :) I'm using Unity 2021.3 LTS