The unnamed protagonist of The Crypt of the Dark Heart has sought out the titular crypt in great need, hoping to gain that rumoured amulet, the Dark Heart, that resides within--and with it, the great power that it holds. The amulet is guarded by a gauntlet of shadowy enemies spawned by the crypt; only by defeating these guardians can the protagonist reach their goal and take up the Dark Heart.
As to gameplay and aesthetics, The Crypt of the Dark Heart is a low-poly fantasy action game; it's intended to be brief and linear (more or less
). A core mechanic is shapeshifting: over the course of the game, the player gains access to two forms in addition to their initial human form, each with their own abilities. A note to those who don't like spiders: while one form is just that, I intend to include an option to replace the spider form's model with a simple abstract--this is already implemented, lacking only a UI option to toggle it.
The human form, the protagonist's native shape, is the fastest of the three, but also the weakest: in this form, the protagonist can take and deal the least damage, but is also the most agile. The protagonist carries a hammer with which to attack, and can kick enemies to briefly stun them.
The spider form (or abstract, if selected) is less quick than the human form, but more durable. While it lacks a standard attack, it can leap prodigiously, and if it catches a weaker (or weakened) enemy in doing so, it will kill and feed on that enemy, restoring health. If the enemy is too strong for this, the enemy will simply take (significant) damage, and be stunned.
The living statue form cannot move at all from its spot, but is very durable indeed, and its attacks are very powerful. While not ambulatory, this form is--somehow--alive, and can turn and swing its arms; these swings are broad, and do heavy damage to any enemy struck. In addition, the living statue can produce a shockwave that will stun nearby enemies.
Thus far I have the basics of the gameplay working, I believe: The player can move around, attack enemies (and kill them), and can switch between the various forms available. A basic version of one enemy type has been implemented, and can seek out the player and do damage--albeit that the player can't yet die. The basics of "rooms" have been implemented, including raising and lowering the doors and spawning enemies.
All of the above notwithstanding, at least some progress was made on A Door to the Mists this past week:
First of all, the new "translation" puzzle was completed (for now, at least), including it's UI--see the screenshot below. The prototype for the puzzle was also finished, and can be downloaded
here.
Similarly, the "ideogram" puzzle's UI was reworked a little--I feel that it now better fits the general idiom that "player tools" are presented against leather, while the elements being interacted with appear against stone.
I finished the work that I had begun the week before on the tumble-down stone blocks around the pyramid, adjusting their UVs to better work with their textures and the new normal-map.
Finally, the grass saw various tweaks and adjustments.
That's all for this week--thank you for reading, and stay well! ^_^
