[Dev Note] Noise System : Drowning out the Noise

The “Field of View” system introduced in the last Un-Dev Note is a key system that enhances the mood and theme of the game. This is because the concept of “trying not to be detected by the enemy” was to be central to the “zombie/creature” themed media.

The Noise System, wherein a player must move quietly to avoid detection, that we will introduce today was developed for the same reason, but the role and goal of the system changed while refining the game. So today we’ll take a look at this process.



In early versions we wanted Noise to be generated in all situations that would entail noise creation in the real world and wanted this system to tie into the “Field of View” system in regard to detection.

• When any Character moves
  
• When the Enemy detects us or when they are killed
  
• During interactions (opening doors, setting up barricades, opening items boxes, etc)
  
• When using Weapons that create noise (throwing stones, explosive tools, etc)
  

However, our goal was to use the zombie/creature theme whilst blending the genres of Stealth and Tactical RPG, but not to create a full-on stealth action game, so the UI’s complexity became too high.

Although the visibility system led to the intended playstyle of “dealing lots of damage from outside the field of view”, factors such as “noise” being made when characters moved didn’t match the intention.

For example, if an enemy hears footsteps from behind, it would be impossible to make a surprise attack, so as a result, the satisfaction of one-shotting an enemy from behind or the stability of removing a threat without detection had to be given up.



As we mentioned in our previous post about the hit rate system, we were continually trying to make the game fun while maintaining uncertainty and minimizing any factors that had the risk of becoming frustrating.

From this point of view, creating an unexpected noise and having a creature jump out on you suddenly was an exciting variable and matched the theme, but the problem was that there was a risk the player might be frustrated for having been punished for not really doing anything wrong.

Therefore, currently, Noise creation is limited to tools which a player can use actively like throwing stones, or in other certain situations where we want this intention variable, such as when a Blister explodes or when a door is opened.



As a result of these changes, the feeling of “I have to try hard not to get caught” during gameplay has reduced in comparison to previous versions of the game, but it has been refined in a more positive direction which takes advantage of the players ability to use Noise creation tools like Stones to set up critical hits or create advantageous positioning.

Going forward we're going to take a look at the process of creating the Fun Factor in our game and the development process, and various factors related to that.

Thanks for sticking around and hopefully see you next time!

Thank you