Adding secrets + visual updates
Hey everybody, I will be posting a devlog at the end of every month, this month we'll be talking about secrets.
First off, what kinds of secrets should I add?
Well, the first thing I thought of was secret treasures, like those rare items hidden from view or in tricky locations.
[h2]Secret Coins[/h2]
The first secret treasure is this coin:
This is a simple coin that you find hidden behind walls/bushes or in hard-to-reach places, like this:
I put them behind walls or hard-to-reach places, but still, what do you get out of them?
I haven’t exactly thought of anything right now, maybe I’ll add a secret shop later where you can purchase items using these coins.
[h2]Alternative Exits[/h2]
They are great for speedrunners and explorers alike, think of Super Mario World, or Donkey Kong Country 2.
But how exactly do I add an alternative exit for a minigolf game? when you can freely move the camera around and you MUST get all the targets for the hole to spawn.
I figured the best solution to be: Odd Targets
The odd targets function the same but behave in a different way, as you can see, the normal targets rotate counter-clockwise but the odd target rotates clockwise.
In this game, if you have one target existing alone, it'll automatically transform into the cup so you can win, however, if the lonely target is the odd target, it'll create a special hole that will put you in a different hole.
This is the progression layout of the first course, you start from hole 1 and end up with hole Boss, here you can see the secret route (hole S1) starts at hole 4 and if you succeed at this hole, you skip to hole 8 but if you fail, you go back to hole 5 like you were never in the special hole.
[h2]Easter Eggs[/h2]
Fun references or jokes are hidden in your game. These can be nods to pop culture, other games, or even inside jokes with your dev team (unless you're a solo dev like me which no one gets), I don't have anything currently for course 1 but these will be added later for my game.
[h2]Secret Chests[/h2]
scattered throughout the game, every chest contains a small message that adds some key solution to the biggest puzzle in the game which once solved, will unlock the hardest courses and a secret boss (think of Culex from Super Mario RPG, or Sephiroth from Kingdom Hearts)
[h2]Secret Letters[/h2]
There is one for each course, collecting the letters will unlock extra courses, which are basically the same course but different obstacles.
[h3]That's all the collectable secrets, but let's talk about secrets that help to get you there, I made 2 key secrets.[/h3][h2]Invisible Warp[/h2]
The secret warp triggers whenever any ball stands in a specific spot once. This warp will open up for a certain amount of time until it despawns. if a ball steps on it, it teleports to an otherwise unreachable location, where the warp relocates for a return trip. This area usually contains a challenging treasure, with a reward for any of my secrets I talked about, the trigger event for this warp is usually hinted at in a subtle way. It WON’T come back again, btw, once it despawns, you have to restart the hole.
[h2]Mystery Switch[/h2]
There are variant switches in the game, some disable conveyor belts, and some change day and night, but this switch does much more.
The Mystery Switch alters the map of the game in a specific timeline, these switches might open up new paths, reveal hidden rooms, or even trigger significant changes in the game world.
That's all I can think of right now, thanks for reading, and leave a comment about what your favourite secret is.
First off, what kinds of secrets should I add?
Well, the first thing I thought of was secret treasures, like those rare items hidden from view or in tricky locations.
[h2]Secret Coins[/h2]
The first secret treasure is this coin:
This is a simple coin that you find hidden behind walls/bushes or in hard-to-reach places, like this:
I put them behind walls or hard-to-reach places, but still, what do you get out of them?
I haven’t exactly thought of anything right now, maybe I’ll add a secret shop later where you can purchase items using these coins.
[h2]Alternative Exits[/h2]
They are great for speedrunners and explorers alike, think of Super Mario World, or Donkey Kong Country 2.
But how exactly do I add an alternative exit for a minigolf game? when you can freely move the camera around and you MUST get all the targets for the hole to spawn.
I figured the best solution to be: Odd Targets
The odd targets function the same but behave in a different way, as you can see, the normal targets rotate counter-clockwise but the odd target rotates clockwise.
In this game, if you have one target existing alone, it'll automatically transform into the cup so you can win, however, if the lonely target is the odd target, it'll create a special hole that will put you in a different hole.
This is the progression layout of the first course, you start from hole 1 and end up with hole Boss, here you can see the secret route (hole S1) starts at hole 4 and if you succeed at this hole, you skip to hole 8 but if you fail, you go back to hole 5 like you were never in the special hole.
[h2]Easter Eggs[/h2]
Fun references or jokes are hidden in your game. These can be nods to pop culture, other games, or even inside jokes with your dev team (unless you're a solo dev like me which no one gets), I don't have anything currently for course 1 but these will be added later for my game.
[h2]Secret Chests[/h2]
scattered throughout the game, every chest contains a small message that adds some key solution to the biggest puzzle in the game which once solved, will unlock the hardest courses and a secret boss (think of Culex from Super Mario RPG, or Sephiroth from Kingdom Hearts)
[h2]Secret Letters[/h2]
There is one for each course, collecting the letters will unlock extra courses, which are basically the same course but different obstacles.
[h3]That's all the collectable secrets, but let's talk about secrets that help to get you there, I made 2 key secrets.[/h3][h2]Invisible Warp[/h2]
The secret warp triggers whenever any ball stands in a specific spot once. This warp will open up for a certain amount of time until it despawns. if a ball steps on it, it teleports to an otherwise unreachable location, where the warp relocates for a return trip. This area usually contains a challenging treasure, with a reward for any of my secrets I talked about, the trigger event for this warp is usually hinted at in a subtle way. It WON’T come back again, btw, once it despawns, you have to restart the hole.
[h2]Mystery Switch[/h2]
There are variant switches in the game, some disable conveyor belts, and some change day and night, but this switch does much more.
The Mystery Switch alters the map of the game in a specific timeline, these switches might open up new paths, reveal hidden rooms, or even trigger significant changes in the game world.
That's all I can think of right now, thanks for reading, and leave a comment about what your favourite secret is.
