Papilio [v0.9.2.5 Beta, now with True Last Boss!]

A place for people with an interest in developing new shmups.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by tiaoferreira »

Can you share a little tutorial "how to use gimp for pixelized graphics"? I don't like (and I don't know) to use photoshop, so, I'm still using MS Paint XP for draw my graphics.

I like to draw pixel-by-pixel, but sometimes I have no time to work several hours on a screen. I heared that other tools allow the artist draw in big format and convert/compile it to pixels...

I'm still in STONE AGE, heheh!
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

tiaoferreira wrote:Can you share a little tutorial "how to use gimp for pixelized graphics"? I don't like (and I don't know) to use photoshop, so, I'm still using MS Paint XP for draw my graphics.
I could start a new thread here regarding GIMP, but it would take me some time to sort things out. One of the more confusing aspects GIMP has is that its layers have their own borders that are not necessarily the same size as the canvas, among other things. If you're familiar with Photoshop then GIMP isn't that hard to get used to, though it lacks many features most modern releases of Photoshop have. But it's not too much of a problem if you haven't used Photoshop at all though; in fact it may be an advantage.

Basically:

1) GIMP requires some setting up in order to take advantage of its features. For starters you might want to watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kB2dQcpTZHE

2) Take the time to memorize all of the tools and their shortcuts. For pixel art, Pencil (keyboard shortcut "N") is your best friend, followed by the eyedropper (hold "ctrl" while using Brush, Pencil or Ink Pen) and forced straight line drawing (click then hold "shift" and drag the mouse).

3) Turn off "antialiasing" on all selection tools (magic wand, color selector, ellipse, path) and the Paint Bucket (shortcut "shift+B") and set Interpolation to "None" on all deformation tools (scale, shear, perspective, skew, rotate, cage transform) if you plan to do pixel art.

Here's a detailed video on how to set up your tools in GIMP for pixel art. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PONe4IIYSnQ
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

Stage 4 in progress. Downward scrolling stage a la Side Arms / Abaddox. Had to redraw those stone backgrounds several times. I even put in sinkhole waterfalls in the back after taking this screenshot.

In other news Indie Games Stand has approved my developer application for Papilio, but has yet to approve my game on their store.

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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by BPzeBanshee »

So you didn't actually port the whole thing to Studio in the end?

That explains a bit. I couldn't get past stage 1 on my win8.1 Toshiba laptop because the fire wisp fire bomb dragon doohickey turned into explosions which all played sfx at once causing a very consistent crash. Adding sound_stop(id) to all your sound_play(id)s for explosion/laser shot stuff should alleviate it a bit I think.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

BPzeBanshee wrote:So you didn't actually port the whole thing to Studio in the end?
At least not yet. One of my crucial DLLs is returning an error, at least in the Extension version. Studio seems to be confusing its uninitialize command with a function for a different DLL, so I backed off for now until I can figure out a workaround.
BPzeBanshee wrote:Adding sound_stop(id) to all your sound_play(id)s for explosion/laser shot stuff should alleviate it a bit I think.
It's already in there, but I might just modify it a tad bit so it doesn't ask for a conditional.

EDIT: It seems to work. I'm no longer getting overlapping sounds.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by BPzeBanshee »

Sounds good. When you roll an update next I shall put my Toshiba to the test again. :)
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by Tryzna »

Playing alpha and its great, however i still have to work on my skill as i did not get past second mission yet. I notice enemies too late couse they blend in with background a little, but dont take this serious as im partialy color blind and that might be it. However the game feels right, plays great and its fun. I can only recomend anytime i ll see post about it.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

Tryzna wrote:I notice enemies too late couse they blend in with background a little, but dont take this serious as im partialy color blind and that might be it.
Actually...you bring up a valid complaint. I'll definitely look into this.

The upcoming Stage 4 is now using a darker palette, so it should help. But I might have to adjust the colors for both levels and enemies some more.

The Green weapon types are also currently being redesigned to make them more viable. Currently they're very, VERY difficult to use, much more difficult than I had anticipated. The new versions should make a significant difference in how they play out.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

A preview of the changes I made for the Green Shot types, along with a few Survival Mode runs using different Wisps. This version will be uploaded soon on itch.io and Indie Game Stand.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igdDmLT_gPk

Still Fraps, had trouble getting OBS to work properly.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

Version 0.41 is now out! This version increases the default shot power for the Green weapon dramatically, and also reworks the Fire Wisp + Green shot weapon to do more damage overall. PLUS, the game should no longer crash on Windows 8.1.

http://s20-tbl.itch.io/papilio

Also, the game is on a limited discount offer at Indie Games Stand for only $2.00! The offer lasts only until this coming Friday (2014-11-14) so grab it while you still can!

https://indiegamestand.com/store/1319/papilio/
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by billzo »

I'm getting really excited for this! I'm gonna get it on itch.io and definitely pay full price. You deserve it.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by tiaoferreira »

Thanks for help, man! Lets make fun games :)
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by BulletMagnet »

Picked up the alpha at IGS, here are a handful of thoughts...

- I very much like the graphical style you've got going, though as others have said it's sometimes a bit difficult to make certain elements out against the backgrounds. My biggest issue on this front, though, is the "panning" screen - while there are warnings in place for certain enemies entering from all sides, it's very easy to get caught off guard if you scroll the screen too high or too low and an unseen threat is waiting there to blindside you. This also makes it easy to miss shields and other power-ups that appear at unseen heights.

- On a related note, I found certain attacks particularly hard to dodge unless I was anticipating them, especially when using the low-speed configuration (and some precise movements were annoyingly tricky at higher speeds). The recharging barrier obviously helps to mitigate this, but the "c'mon, c'mon, c'moNOOOO" process can still take the wind out of your sails. I'll also mention the "getting hit equals fewer bombs to use" system - I understand it's probably meant to encourage using your bomb to lower the rank instead of saving them all up too long, but it is a bit counter-intuitive, at least at first.

- I also dig the multiple stage paths you can take; I hope you include a practice/stage attack mode where you can attempt them all once you've found them.

- When I let the timer run out after biting the dust and seeing the "game over" screen, the game freezes and I have to press Escape to quit: I'm playing on Windows 8.1 on an integrated Intel graphics laptop, if that helps.

A lot to like here, will be keeping an eye on this one as it progresses...
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

Thanks man! You have a bunch of good points there.
BulletMagnet wrote:I very much like the graphical style you've got going, though as others have said it's sometimes a bit difficult to make certain elements out against the backgrounds. My biggest issue on this front, though, is the "panning" screen - while there are warnings in place for certain enemies entering from all sides, it's very easy to get caught off guard if you scroll the screen too high or too low and an unseen threat is waiting there to blindside you. This also makes it easy to miss shields and other power-ups that appear at unseen heights.
This is another argument towards increasing screen real estate, since it looks like my adjustments to the vertical panning allowance didn't quite cut it. I also feel enemies like those purple beetles can still be cheap at times when they suddenly show up and ram into you while you're flying up or down. I think I have enough time to make adjustments to some of the graphics now though.
BulletMagnet wrote:On a related note, I found certain attacks particularly hard to dodge unless I was anticipating them, especially when using the low-speed configuration (and some precise movements were annoyingly tricky at higher speeds). The recharging barrier obviously helps to mitigate this, but the "c'mon, c'mon, c'moNOOOO" process can still take the wind out of your sails.
Curious, which attacks are these? I've recently been adding visual tells to a few enemies (like those big laser pods in stage 2) to warn players of incoming attacks and mitigate cheapness, but it wouldn't hurt to add a few more.
BulletMagnet wrote:I'll also mention the "getting hit equals fewer bombs to use" system - I understand it's probably meant to encourage using your bomb to lower the rank instead of saving them all up too long, but it is a bit counter-intuitive, at least at first.
This is a good point. Pre-0.3 the game didn't have bombs and the design basically revolved around not getting hit so you can get a bigger gem bonus at the end of each stage, but since the addition of the Astra and Rank mechanics it's shifted somewhat to spamming bombs when you have an excess of gems. I had been thinking of alternate methods such as using the gems to power up a charge meter which would let you store up to three bombs (kind of like Garegga / Batrider without the incomplete bomb fragment feature), but so far I haven't come up with anything compelling.

Additionally, the Rank may also be going up too fast even in the regular stages.
BulletMagnet wrote:I also dig the multiple stage paths you can take; I hope you include a practice/stage attack mode where you can attempt them all once you've found them.
I think I can add this as an unlockable of sorts (beat a stage to unlock it in training mode).
BulletMagnet wrote:When I let the timer run out after biting the dust and seeing the "game over" screen, the game freezes and I have to press Escape to quit: I'm playing on Windows 8.1 on an integrated Intel graphics laptop, if that helps.
This is actually a persistent problem that I can't seem to get to the root of currently, even after I implemented an attempted fix. BPzeBanshee noted that it always happens during the first run of the game, but never on subsequent playthroughs (he also used to have an integrated Intel chip before he switched to an ATI). I'll look some more into this.

(Just to clarify, the game doesn't actually "freeze" per se, but rather a timer that was supposed to take you to the name entry / leaderboard screen didn't perform a variable check properly, leaving you stuck in the last room you were in. In Survival Mode, you'll even see enemies continue to spawn long after you died. The kicker is I can't seem to pinpoint exactly when it fails to perform the check)
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

I finally found the problem which caused the game to "freeze" at the Game Over screen: a clumsy variable check that prevented the game from properly transitioning to the name entry and/or scoreboard screen. What was surprising was that removing said variable check created another problem in the form of a huge block of redundant code that somehow looped indefinitely, leading to an ACTUAL application freeze. This too was removed.

Will upload a new version once I fix any remaining issues, as there appears to be something related in Survival Mode. Shamefur dispray.

EDIT: The game has been updated to address the Game Over freeze issue. Those who have purchased the game can redownload it at itch.io or Indie Game Stand.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by BulletMagnet »

S20-TBL wrote:Curious, which attacks are these?
The first one that comes to mind, weirdly enough, is the first boss's tall wave attack: if you're playing as the slowest option type and find yourself out of position when he launches it there's a good chance you won't be able to avoid the hit in time. Another is in the latter part of the second level, where a pair of the shell-launching critters will trap you from above and below, and a laser-critter will come in from the rear almost simultaneously; if you don't know the trap is coming you'll almost certainly get tagged there. I've also had a heck of a time getting out of the third boss's way on occasion, though I might just need more experience there (another argument in favor of a stage attack mode! ;)).

Mind you, a bit of memorization would obviously help in most all these cases and more, but it doesn't fell like that's really the kind of shooter you're aiming for here (correct me if I'm wrong, though!).
I had been thinking of alternate methods such as using the gems to power up a charge meter which would let you store up to three bombs (kind of like Garegga / Batrider without the incomplete bomb fragment feature), but so far I haven't come up with anything compelling.
I'm almost tempted to suggest some manner of limited "auto-bomb" mechanic; maybe the first time your shield breaks and you've got enough gems a bomb goes off to help clear the screen at an increased gem cost, and from there the shield/death system acts "normally" until you lose a life, but your gems aren't reduced further. This way you'd still lose a hunk of gems but wouldn't feel like your bomb was completely wasted.

No idea how that'd work in practice, but I would probably suggest some manner of not-too-high cap on your gem stock if you plan on using them as bomb fuel (or maybe you could keep the "stockpile" system in stage attack/survival, and adjust the scoring system accordingly to make things more interesting); this would encourage players to use them when necessary (might as well, when you can only stock so many), and you might also tack on a DDP-esque "max bonus" to reward those who can still get along without them.

Again, no idea if any of that would actually fit your template, but figured I might as well mention them in case you hadn't ruled them out already, heh.

BTW, I downloaded the revised alpha and the Game Over glitch seems to indeed be fixed, thanks! :)

Ah, and two other small suggestions: first, I'd appreciate an "item change indicator" like some of the more recent Raidens feature, which tacks a mini-timer onto "rotating" items, which allows you to more easily tell when it's going to change from one color to the other: the right weapon can make a huge difference in this game (accidentally snagging the blue powerup during a boss fight can be a real pain), so every bit of help in this area would be a good thing.

Second: it seems to me that you built the bosses with at least some measure of milking in mind, so a timer might be a good idea to indicate how long players have to stockpile gems before the boss times out and they lose a hunk of points.

Though maybe timing out certain bosses might lead to new stage paths...
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

BulletMagnet wrote:The first one that comes to mind, weirdly enough, is the first boss's tall wave attack: if you're playing as the slowest option type and find yourself out of position when he launches it there's a good chance you won't be able to avoid the hit in time.
I've also had quite a few people complain about this one. What makes the attack difficult to foresee is that the tall wave comes out quicker and flies faster than the first three attacks, so it should be easy to adjust this one. The third stage boss(es) may take a bit of trial and error to rebalance on my end though, since they're both relatively new and the pattern scripts are a lot more complex.
BulletMagnet wrote:Another is in the latter part of the second level, where a pair of the shell-launching critters will trap you from above and below, and a laser-critter will come in from the rear almost simultaneously; if you don't know the trap is coming you'll almost certainly get tagged there.
I'll be the first to admit that much of Stage 2's second half (both the upper and lower paths) is poorly balanced in terms of difficulty. I have the right ingredients for fixing it now though, thanks largely to Survival Mode. I'll definitely keep this one in mind.

Also, you're correct about me not wanting to make the game an outright memorizer. Given the platforming-style elements it's kind of hard for me to avoid it, but adding visual cues and rebalancing attack speeds does help to mitigate cheapness.
BulletMagnet wrote:No idea how that'd work in practice, but I would probably suggest some manner of not-too-high cap on your gem stock if you plan on using them as bomb fuel (or maybe you could keep the "stockpile" system in stage attack/survival, and adjust the scoring system accordingly to make things more interesting); this would encourage players to use them when necessary (might as well, when you can only stock so many), and you might also tack on a DDP-esque "max bonus" to reward those who can still get along without them.
This is a good idea. Much easier to implement than Garegga bomb fragments, at least, but the logic behind the classic "more rewards for more bombs" is sound, and you have a good point about possibly adding perks should I maximize my stock. Also, with a limited item cap I can forego halving the gem count on life loss, since that particular mechanic was tied to the old, excessively strict "no miss" system (I think I also might have based it off of ESP Ra.De. back then).

I'll think about the autobomb with higher gem penalty, though; that honestly sounds good, but we'll have to see first. I could also theoretically trigger it on a direct unshielded hit to justify the loss of gems instead of a shielded hit.

Regarding this system, I personally believe the flaws and/or potential become somewhat more apparent when you try Survival Mode since it pushes the mechanics to their limits. I've once managed to stockpile more than 2000 gems while testing Survival and honestly got worried that I could simply spam bombs to death. :P An item cap like you suggested would help things greatly.
BulletMagnet wrote:Ah, and two other small suggestions: first, I'd appreciate an "item change indicator" like some of the more recent Raidens feature, which tacks a mini-timer onto "rotating" items, which allows you to more easily tell when it's going to change from one color to the other
Almost forgot this one. :P BPzeBanshee had asked for this himself after accidentally getting a straggling powerup in the middle of a boss fight and changing his weapon to something he didn't want. I've just recently given it a "flashing" effect when the item is about to change color and also added a new rebound behavior when it hits the edge of the screen, like the powerups in an NMK game. They'll still time out after a while though, Raiden style, so you don't get unwanted powerups floating around too long.
BulletMagnet wrote:Second: it seems to me that you built the bosses with at least some measure of milking in mind, so a timer might be a good idea to indicate how long players have to stockpile gems before the boss times out and they lose a hunk of points.
No problem. :) I had been meaning to put this in myself.
BulletMagnet wrote:Though maybe timing out certain bosses might lead to new stage paths...
Actually....this is a good idea for something else entirely. :P You can, as of the current public build, time out the Stage 2 miniboss and the first Stage 3 dual minibosses and it would lead you down a default path, but just to let you in on a little something(s) I put in the game, there are Raiden Fighters-style secret bonuses in there. There aren't too many, but you just might be able to trigger a few things if you experiment a bit...

Thanks again for the great feedback. :) You gave me a lot of concrete leads I can work on.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

400x300, some previews:

Image Image

Compare the old 360x240:

Image

Now to put scanlines and VSync options into this thing after I've adjusted every necessary detail. CRT ho!
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

Sorry for the hiatus. I'm having a hard time designing and brainstorming the enemy distribution in Stage 4, plus I have to resize and redraw a good chunk of the art assets, but here's a few 400x300 screenshots for your viewing pleasure. The level scrolls downwards veeeeerrryyyyy slowly.

Image

Image

Image


As you can see, there's much more leg room now, which comes in very handy during Survival Mode and even the regular stages. Alas, some sections (like Stage 1's end boss arena scrolling) required me to adjust scrolling speeds and directions, and there are still other things like text justification and UI repositioning that need to be adjusted under the new 4:3 resolution.

Also, me screwing around with some enemy behavior algorithms using the Main Menu as a debug room. I wanted to see if I can replicate the behavior of the Bone Dragons from Castlevania using bullets as placeholder segments.

Image




...In other news, here's some Fate/Zero fanart.

Image

Shirley <3
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by BPzeBanshee »

Getting some Hidden Palace vibes from that stage 4 pic.

Image

(wish someone would actually backport this to the original game instead of it being locked to the iPhone port)

Something about that face looks familiar too but I can't pic where. Pretty amazing portraits you do man. :S
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

BPzeBanshee wrote:Getting some Hidden Palace vibes from that stage 4 pic.
Thanks. Funny you should say that, I actually based the design off of Mystic Cave zone, including some of the enemies (notably a bat with erratic movement patterns). Though there's a bit of Crimzon Clover stage 3 in the latter half of the stage.

I'm actually looking to some platformers for enemy placement patterns and distribution, though Bio-Hazard Battle is one of my references. Might look into R-Type if I run completely out of ideas.

And yeah, they should seriously port Sonic 2 HD onto PC or something. Though from what I understand there's already an existing romhack on SonicRetro that had both Hidden Palace and Genocide City in it, created way before this mobile version.
BPzeBanshee wrote:Something about that face looks familiar too but I can't pic where. Pretty amazing portraits you do man. :S
It's this girl. She's pretty much a one-shot character but she's surprisingly popular for some reason. Must be a tropical thing.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by BPzeBanshee »

Come to think of it that's not much of a surprise, the music for Mystic Cave was originally meant for the Hidden Palace IIRC and some of the design ideas went into that place in the end instead. The ROMhack is okay but you can tell it's a hack, essentially recycling one of the already existing bosses for the boss while the iOS port is actually new. And the port's not HD either, you might be thinking of the fangame Sonic 2 HD project which looks like its slowly gaining traction again but last I checked didn't have the Hidden Palace.

Can't say I've seen the girl. Perhaps its the expression I've seen.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

Due to some new developments, additional responsibilities that have crept into my personal life and some difficulties in the game design itself, Papilio's development is going to be slightly delayed. I was hoping to have released a new version around Christmastime, but sadly it won't be the case for now. Instead, I'm aiming for a January 2015 release hopefully.

Some screenshots to show everybody what's going on right now:

Image

A few preliminary enemies have been placed in Stage 4. Since it's a slow moving level with lots of walls, I decided on starting with a few stationary enemies.

Image

Experimenting with some code for enemy behavior. You'll see this guy in Stage 4 when he's finished (he already has sprites, but they weren't done yet at the time this screenshot was taken).

Image

Experimenting with a receding tunnel background effect. I'll leave the purpose to your imagination. (EDIT: In case anyone asks, it was done with object-controlled tiles, but it was a bigger headache to fine-tune than I initially anticipated)
Spoiler
Image

And no, this last one totally won't be in the game. I'm not that sadistic.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by BPzeBanshee »

Image

(im really digging that tunnel pic tho)
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by cuttingagent »

Just bought a copy, getting a heavy Biohazard Battle vibe from it, but cuter.

EDIT: Wow I just read the above comments saying as much, no wonder. XD
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

Midbosses are almost done. Boss still needs a lot of work but some of her sprites are finished.

This one doesn't have attacks and a death animation yet, but already moves in a set pattern.

Image


This second one has all his phases:

Image Image


New game modes! I could possibly add one more. Asuratva is exactly as it sounds, and the Training Mode which BulletMagnet requested is also in.

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cuttingagent wrote:Just bought a copy, getting a heavy Biohazard Battle vibe from it, but cuter.

EDIT: Wow I just read the above comments saying as much, no wonder. XD
Haha, actually Bio Hazard Battle wasn't as big an influence compared to the TF series and Einhander. :P I only began looking to it once Stage 4 started giving me problems with enemy placement and generation.
BPzeBanshee wrote: <snip>
...What was the film where Nick Cage had that horrid bob cut, again? :lol:
--Papilio v0.9 Beta now on itch.io! (development thread)--
Xyga wrote:Blondest eyelashes ever.
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by BPzeBanshee »

...What was the film where Nick Cage had that horrid bob cut, again? :lol:
Face/Off. I need to find it in the bargain bins somewhere for my DVD comedy collection. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1-6qSGAIyk

I notice you have a white ring around the second midboss. Is that a health gauge or just aesthetic to show collision hitbox?
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

BPzeBanshee wrote:Face/Off.
Nah, he had a short cut in Face/Off. I think it was either that really bad remake of The Wicker Man or Bangkok Dangerous (another bad remake).
BPzeBanshee wrote:I notice you have a white ring around the second midboss. Is that a health gauge or just aesthetic to show collision hitbox?
The latter, though it's also aesthetic. The ring actually pulsates quickly. I was gonna do a Children of the Atom / Darkstalkers style power aura but realized it would be a lot more complicated.

Anyway...

I thought a bit more on BulletMagnet's feedback regarding gems, bomb stocks, item hoarding and boss milking, and came up with a solution which had been implemented in the past couple of days.

Basically, you can no longer hoard gems like previously. Gems will be capped at 1000 during a single stage, at which point you will also receive a 25% increase in firing rate, upping your damage output by a bit.

Here I tested it in Asuratva mode to make capping easier in the first level (accidentally screwed up unlocking EX Prahastha in this fight), though it's also possible to reach the 1k cap in Standard and Rank Off modes:

Image

(Also yes, that's a boss timer on top of the lifebar)

At the end of a level, assuming you managed to keep the 1000 gems on your person, you will receive a "Perfect" Bonus which increases per level. Meanwhile, the old Perfect Bonus has appropriately been renamed to "No Miss Bonus" and still functions the same as before.

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I also made the tally screen display your current total score. Useful for Training Modes.
--Papilio v0.9 Beta now on itch.io! (development thread)--
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by BPzeBanshee »

Nah, he had a short cut in Face/Off. I think it was either that really bad remake of The Wicker Man or Bangkok Dangerous (another bad remake).
Might've been The Wicker Man then? He had *that* particular hairdo for quite a few films including National Treasure iirc. My crappy photoshop was from Face/Off though. :P

Liking all the changes anyway. Does Training mode allow adjustments for rank settings and that sort of stuff or is it some kind of "no bullet" mode instead?
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Re: Papilio [v0.4 EARLY ACCESS + v0.35 RE-BALANCED DEMO]

Post by S20-TBL »

Oh, ok. I always found that film.......funky. :P
BPzeBanshee wrote:Liking all the changes anyway. Does Training mode allow adjustments for rank settings and that sort of stuff or is it some kind of "no bullet" mode instead?
Training mode will allow for Rank adjustment by pressing Left or Right during the training menu (still very rough so you can't see any indicators on the menu yet). You can start at 0 or go as high up as 9 if you're feeling particularly masochistic (or to see how you can do rank management shenanigans if you finished a stage at a particular Rank level).

Image

The empty space on the right is for a map.
--Papilio v0.9 Beta now on itch.io! (development thread)--
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