Dragon's Lair

Oct 7, 2022

Multiple save files, lock on system, negative status effects like Dark Souls

Hey everyone,

It's been a while since I've posted updates so here are some new things to showcase in the video below:

- Lock on system - just like in Dark Souls, you can lock on to enemies to facilitate combat direction. Also, attack animations have a initial time where you can rotate the character before it commits to the attack, blocking your rotation. This feels really good and it's the way it's done in the souls series;

- Multiple Save Files - wanted to do this for a while! You can now have multiple save files, and they will have a screenshot of your character and also the total game time!

- Better UI - my girlfriend complained that the weapons stats and equipment was very confusing so I tried to improve it and give some explanation fo how attack and defense works (it's like in Dark Souls, if you've played it). You have your base physical attack / defense, and for weapons, they will scale with your strength or dexterity, with their Scaling Bonus ranging from E to S (worse - better);

- Negative Status Effects - it was already available in Episode 1 v0.1, but I've improved it UI-wise;

- Better Dialogue UI - It's just that! A better Dialogue UI :-) You can now leave conversations in the middle as well, just like, you guessed it, Dark Souls;

And much more!

What is up next?

- Alchemy crafting system (yes, the game needs one. Crafting potions is so cool, and I have some neat ideas for potions that influence gameplay);

- Day / Night system, with NPCs showing up at certain times of day, or plants growing once per day if you pick them up, or harder enemies at night. It will be done!

- Parry System like Sekiro where enemies have posture and if you break it, you'll receive a chance to punish the enemy with a critical attack;

That is what's on the roadmap before Episode 2 gets started. I'm in the prototype phase still, but I'm feeling confident. In just two weeks it felt like I really grinded to a good place. Let's see what happens next!

Sep 21, 2022

Cacildes Adventure - Revival - Episode 1 is out!

It's been a good while since I've updated the blog!

After 9 months hidden away, I bring to you all the revival of one of my dearest game characters: Cacildes.

This is a remake of an old RPG Maker project I had, and I plan to release many more games in an episodic format. For now, here's the first one in the series:

TWITTER | GITHUB (Source Code)

A coming of age Action RPG about a lazy boy who gets kicked out of his home and forced to join the king's army.

In this first episode, Cacildes is tasked with finding a bear that might be involved in the disappearance of his mother's chickens.

Developed over a period of 9 months by one developer, the game was built with many Dark Souls mechanics in mind: there are boss fights, weapons that scale, bonfires and, of course, poisonous swamps!

KEY FEATURES:

Heavy focus on melee combat, with emphasis on stamina management and spacing;
Dialogue with multiple choices;
Reputation system tied to your choices;
Two boss fights available, one of them a secret!
Enemies can throw projectiles and some have environmental attacks;
Poison and fatigue status can affect your character - more status planned for future episodes;
Bonfires allow you to level up;
Weapons scale with your attributes;
Hotkey system to favorite items and use them in combat;
Lighthearted story and atmosphere;
New Game +, keep your weapons and armor from previous playthroughs!
And more...

Download it now on itch.io:

Thank you for playing!

Jan 24, 2021

The Bard & The Mead - Book system

This week's update included a book system similar to the one we see in Skyrim. Advancements have also been made regarding the first main quest, and soon enough we will be exploring the outside world and many adventures!

“Art of parrying”, by Sir Tiebaut

Mial was down to his last health potion. His eyes were weary, giving in to the darkness of the foggy cavern. He knew he had two more deadly cavemen to face, and after many failed attempts at dodging their pickaxes, he had come to terms with his inability in rolling in heavy armor.

“A true adventurer”, he thought, “would have kept an eye on these cavemen attacks and memorized their patterns, and then he would parry them and break their guard”. And after carefully planning, Mial had made a decision.

“I’ll parry you, dwellers of dark” and so he did so beautifully. One perfect parry from his sword against the caveman's pickaxe, and he had an opening at last. With time slowed down to half, Mial struck his enemy with stunning slashes, making quick work of what would have been his demise otherwise.

Now, Mial had discovered the power of parrying an opponent, and how it saved his life. “I don’t even take any damage for parrying perfectly”, he concluded.

Silly ideas of abandoning his armor and running around naked throughout the kingdom’s perilous lands soon ran through his feeble mind.

Indeed, Mial the now naked adventurer would meet his end shortly after leaving the cave, when he tried to parry a nearby bandit, only to miss his parry timing against a foe he had not studied carefully beforehand.

As a conclusion to this cautionary tale, one cannot parry a foe he knows not. So study your enemy’s attacks, all of them if possible. Only then would you know the exact time to parry, or to run. And please, always use armor, of any kind!

Jan 16, 2021

The Bard & The Mead - Revival

I'm back with something in the oven.

After having played the Dark Souls trilogy, I've felt inspired to work on my always post-poned RPG dream game, this time with an emphasis on a dynamic combat system with parrying and dodging. Here's hoping I get far enough to get something playable in a couple of weeks.

I'm building a game design document to get me to stay humble and objective with the development. You can find more background about what I'm building here:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mM8Vm-xg99dOzFetQLEJOUXiGiyfgVE9DtbrlGLf_8o/edit?usp=sharing

And here's some sneak peeks of this week's work: