Dev Blog #3
Hello Skul Squad!
This Development Blog will introduce one of the coolest things about the upcoming 1.0 Version of Skul: The Hero Slayer, the upgraded skulls!
As you already know, Skul can swap his skull to take on the form of one of his fallen demon brethren and make use of their special powers.
But due to his inexperience he wasn’t able to take full advantage of their abilities.
However a spider demon called ‘Arachne’ is looking to help each skull reach its full potential.
Nobody knows why she has agreed to help, but her eight legs are imbued with magic silk that can breathe new life into skulls and transform them in magical and interesting ways.
"It’s a pity how those skulls ended up in the hands of a weakling skeleton such as yourself. There’s so much untapped power within those skulls..."
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
That video gave a quick overview of our thought process regarding the skull upgrade system.
We also think that every single aspect of our game deserves our fullest attention, so we did a lot of research to make sure that each upgraded skull stayed true to the original but also was a ton of fun to play.
This allowed us to succeed in transforming the playstyle and visuals for each skull through the upgrade system.
Just like in the video, you can see that the Skeleton-Spear can be upgraded from its base “Common” form and amplify its special ability to charge forward.
You may then be wondering, how about “Unique” grade skulls that are already quite extraordinary? How will the upgrade system affect them?
Let’s take the Ninja for example. The nimble Ninja is the only skull that can triple jump or dash which makes it an aerial combat artist of sorts.
But when upgraded to the ‘Ninja Master’, it becomes more agile than any other skull in the air which gives it a big advantage when going against the Adventurers.
We actually removed the Ninja’s ability to triple jump.
Instead the Ninja Master will have a new ability called ‘Substitution Jutsu’.
When using this ability while jumping, an exploding log is summoned and the Ninja teleports in mid-air.
Rather than just simply working on the triple jump, we thought it would add a more strategic layer to the fights overall if done this way.
The Ninja Master can zip around in any direction you want, but only once in a row for each.
Not only does this significantly boost the Ninja’s mobility, but it allows for some pretty sweet combos that can deal more damage in short spurts.
But we don’t think that this makes the Ninja Master an ‘Aerial Attack Ace’ so to speak ;)
Just like the base Ninja skull, the Ninja Master can have a maximum of two skills. But here’s where it gets interesting…. its arsenal of skills changes when it’s in the air!
The Ninja’s swap skill has also changed from ‘Phantom Drive’ to ‘Fire Style: Fire Breath Jutsu’.
When swapping with the Ninja Master on the ground, it breathes out fire and finishes it off with several explosions to make it even spicier.
If swapping in the air, it uses the ‘Water Style: Sludge Bomb Jutsu’ skill and launches poison-laced projectiles towards enemies on the ground.
’Flash Slash’ is a skill focused on mobility and charging forward.
The Ninja Master takes it up a notch though by being able to change direction up to 3 times when using the skill.
If used while in mid-air, the Ninja Master teleports behind the closest enemy and absolutely slices them to shreds with a lightning-fast combo.
The ‘Numerous Blades’ skill is all about throwing good old fashioned shurikens, but it can leave the Ninja open to attacks from the back and long-range.
The Ninja Master is able to overcome these weaknesses though.
If used while in mid-air, the Ninja Master throws 3 exploding knives. This skill can also be charged several times and if the cooldown time is managed well the amount of damage dealt can be maximized.
The ‘Phantom Drive’ skill is all about dealing heavy multi-hit attacks along with your clone. However just like ‘Numerous Blades’ it leaves you vulnerable to attacks from behind and ranged attacks.
The Ninja Master can attack multiple enemies within a set range by summoning several clones of itself.
And if done in the air, it summons 8 of itself and can hit enemies in a large radius.
The ‘Wheel Shuriken’ skill sends out huge shurikens that penetrate enemies and is great for dealing with mobs.
But the Ninja Master’s shurikens are even bigger and can pull nearby enemies closer to it.
If used in the air, 3 wheel shurikens are summoned that revolve around the affected area.
The Ninja Master is difficult to control and if a mistake is made, it can result in getting swarmed by enemies and not being able to use a skill when you want to.
However once you get the hang of it, you’ll truly become an aerial combat force to be reckoned with.
Like we said previously, we’re doing our best to make sure each new upgraded skull is fun to play but stays true to its original/base form as well.
That being said, we do have another good piece of news to share with you.
Skul: The Hero Slayer was selected as the “Best Overseas Game” at the ‘IndiePlay 2020 Expo’ and also the “Top Indie Game” for ‘Korean Games 2020’.
It really means the world to us to see how many people enjoy playing our game and these awards are just the icing on the cake.
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
We’ll keep doing our best to create the best game that we possibly can.
Thank you!
This Development Blog will introduce one of the coolest things about the upcoming 1.0 Version of Skul: The Hero Slayer, the upgraded skulls!
As you already know, Skul can swap his skull to take on the form of one of his fallen demon brethren and make use of their special powers.
But due to his inexperience he wasn’t able to take full advantage of their abilities.
However a spider demon called ‘Arachne’ is looking to help each skull reach its full potential.
Nobody knows why she has agreed to help, but her eight legs are imbued with magic silk that can breathe new life into skulls and transform them in magical and interesting ways.
"It’s a pity how those skulls ended up in the hands of a weakling skeleton such as yourself. There’s so much untapped power within those skulls..."
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
That video gave a quick overview of our thought process regarding the skull upgrade system.
We also think that every single aspect of our game deserves our fullest attention, so we did a lot of research to make sure that each upgraded skull stayed true to the original but also was a ton of fun to play.
This allowed us to succeed in transforming the playstyle and visuals for each skull through the upgrade system.
Just like in the video, you can see that the Skeleton-Spear can be upgraded from its base “Common” form and amplify its special ability to charge forward.
You may then be wondering, how about “Unique” grade skulls that are already quite extraordinary? How will the upgrade system affect them?
Let’s take the Ninja for example. The nimble Ninja is the only skull that can triple jump or dash which makes it an aerial combat artist of sorts.
But when upgraded to the ‘Ninja Master’, it becomes more agile than any other skull in the air which gives it a big advantage when going against the Adventurers.
We actually removed the Ninja’s ability to triple jump.
Instead the Ninja Master will have a new ability called ‘Substitution Jutsu’.
When using this ability while jumping, an exploding log is summoned and the Ninja teleports in mid-air.
Rather than just simply working on the triple jump, we thought it would add a more strategic layer to the fights overall if done this way.
The Ninja Master can zip around in any direction you want, but only once in a row for each.
Not only does this significantly boost the Ninja’s mobility, but it allows for some pretty sweet combos that can deal more damage in short spurts.
But we don’t think that this makes the Ninja Master an ‘Aerial Attack Ace’ so to speak ;)
Just like the base Ninja skull, the Ninja Master can have a maximum of two skills. But here’s where it gets interesting…. its arsenal of skills changes when it’s in the air!
The Ninja’s swap skill has also changed from ‘Phantom Drive’ to ‘Fire Style: Fire Breath Jutsu’.
When swapping with the Ninja Master on the ground, it breathes out fire and finishes it off with several explosions to make it even spicier.
If swapping in the air, it uses the ‘Water Style: Sludge Bomb Jutsu’ skill and launches poison-laced projectiles towards enemies on the ground.
’Flash Slash’ is a skill focused on mobility and charging forward.
The Ninja Master takes it up a notch though by being able to change direction up to 3 times when using the skill.
If used while in mid-air, the Ninja Master teleports behind the closest enemy and absolutely slices them to shreds with a lightning-fast combo.
The ‘Numerous Blades’ skill is all about throwing good old fashioned shurikens, but it can leave the Ninja open to attacks from the back and long-range.
The Ninja Master is able to overcome these weaknesses though.
If used while in mid-air, the Ninja Master throws 3 exploding knives. This skill can also be charged several times and if the cooldown time is managed well the amount of damage dealt can be maximized.
The ‘Phantom Drive’ skill is all about dealing heavy multi-hit attacks along with your clone. However just like ‘Numerous Blades’ it leaves you vulnerable to attacks from behind and ranged attacks.
The Ninja Master can attack multiple enemies within a set range by summoning several clones of itself.
And if done in the air, it summons 8 of itself and can hit enemies in a large radius.
The ‘Wheel Shuriken’ skill sends out huge shurikens that penetrate enemies and is great for dealing with mobs.
But the Ninja Master’s shurikens are even bigger and can pull nearby enemies closer to it.
If used in the air, 3 wheel shurikens are summoned that revolve around the affected area.
The Ninja Master is difficult to control and if a mistake is made, it can result in getting swarmed by enemies and not being able to use a skill when you want to.
However once you get the hang of it, you’ll truly become an aerial combat force to be reckoned with.
Like we said previously, we’re doing our best to make sure each new upgraded skull is fun to play but stays true to its original/base form as well.
That being said, we do have another good piece of news to share with you.
Skul: The Hero Slayer was selected as the “Best Overseas Game” at the ‘IndiePlay 2020 Expo’ and also the “Top Indie Game” for ‘Korean Games 2020’.
It really means the world to us to see how many people enjoy playing our game and these awards are just the icing on the cake.
Originally posted by authorAlso, you may have seen that the Steam Awards is currently taking place. We’d really appreciate it if you could vote for us as the “Sit Back and Relax” Award ;)https://store.steampowered.com/steamawards/nominations/76561199006886376?k=11209032490807525876
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
We’ll keep doing our best to create the best game that we possibly can.
Thank you!