Inspiration for the Game Devlog
[h2]Hey there, Unbroken Ones![/h2]
In today’s devlog, we want to share some insights about our inspiration for the game. We hope you will get more in-depth information with this devlog. Let’s jump right in!
The idea for a walking beat 'em up in a neo-noir gothic/victorian realm with a mix of cyberpunk styled neons came out many years ago. After completing Neckbreak, I wanted to make a spiritual successor in the style of “different but the same” like From Software classics Bloodorne-Sekiro-DarkSouls, introducing new mechanics, a larger, more open world free to discover almost from the start of the game, with a great amount of freedom to achieve one of the multiple endgames. I also greatly appreciate games with minimal handholding, especially if a game is robust with secrets and hidden/unexpected features, so players can get the most out of the experience and hopefully be pleasantly surprised.
Bloodborne was a large inspiration, as well as grindhouse cinema (i.e., Hobo with a Shotgun) and Tarantino (i.e., Inglorious Basterds, Django) and Winding-Refn (i.e., Only God Forgives, Drive) movies. A mix of moody buildup with short, extreme bursts of intense over-the-top violence. Also, classic games like Strife, which was much more than a Doom clone, and introduced nonlinear gameplay with multiple outcomes.
I was aiming for the look of classic games that we remember in our minds' eye. Usually, when we replay classics, they don’t look as good as we remember. Hence, I aimed for a retro sprite aesthetic updated with modern effects like ragdolls, volumetric effects, PBR materials, real-time lighting, and way more.
Music-wise, there was no specific inspiration besides the game itself. Once I had a scene and was happy with the mood, I prepared a track that would be fitting given the theme of the game: so we have a mix of classic instruments, jazz and funk style breakbeats, distorted rock guitars, trip hop beats. My main general musical influences are: David Axelrod, DJ Shadow, Sick of it all, Slayer, Hotline Miami OST, and many more. If fitting, I also used some tunes from the Unity asset store for certain encounters and contributions from other musicians.
A rough draft came up way back in the day, long before I was even considering working in gamedev, when I was still at University and bored during some lecture and made notes for a game I would possibly make one day. And luck had it, I went full-time into game development many years later, and now I'm bringing those old ideas to fruition. The original idea was a bit different, but the core of the lore: ascending a classist realm with a vertically built city, stayed intact.
I was aiming for a puppet-esque, low-key, creepy style. Thanks to the hybrid 2D-3D method, this was easier to achieve in this hybrid style rather than in full 3D, as well as general combat impact. As for the design, we got a lot of variations, ranging from malevolent beings, through various vagrant thugs and bandits, to snobbish highborn citizens and towering knights. Going from Neckbreak, which had a way more crusty pixel style, I wanted enemies in UtA to be more defined, while retaining the retro aesthetic.
Fun fact: the Township of Westfall is inspired by real-world locations, like central Amsterdam's architecture, canal belt, and museum district, Utrecht, Bad Gastein's fairy tale-like backdrop against a Waterfall and buildings built along the curving slope, Gdańsk's old town, Gorlice, and Edinburgh.
In today’s devlog, we want to share some insights about our inspiration for the game. We hope you will get more in-depth information with this devlog. Let’s jump right in!
The idea for a walking beat 'em up in a neo-noir gothic/victorian realm with a mix of cyberpunk styled neons came out many years ago. After completing Neckbreak, I wanted to make a spiritual successor in the style of “different but the same” like From Software classics Bloodorne-Sekiro-DarkSouls, introducing new mechanics, a larger, more open world free to discover almost from the start of the game, with a great amount of freedom to achieve one of the multiple endgames. I also greatly appreciate games with minimal handholding, especially if a game is robust with secrets and hidden/unexpected features, so players can get the most out of the experience and hopefully be pleasantly surprised.
Bloodborne was a large inspiration, as well as grindhouse cinema (i.e., Hobo with a Shotgun) and Tarantino (i.e., Inglorious Basterds, Django) and Winding-Refn (i.e., Only God Forgives, Drive) movies. A mix of moody buildup with short, extreme bursts of intense over-the-top violence. Also, classic games like Strife, which was much more than a Doom clone, and introduced nonlinear gameplay with multiple outcomes.
I was aiming for the look of classic games that we remember in our minds' eye. Usually, when we replay classics, they don’t look as good as we remember. Hence, I aimed for a retro sprite aesthetic updated with modern effects like ragdolls, volumetric effects, PBR materials, real-time lighting, and way more.
Music-wise, there was no specific inspiration besides the game itself. Once I had a scene and was happy with the mood, I prepared a track that would be fitting given the theme of the game: so we have a mix of classic instruments, jazz and funk style breakbeats, distorted rock guitars, trip hop beats. My main general musical influences are: David Axelrod, DJ Shadow, Sick of it all, Slayer, Hotline Miami OST, and many more. If fitting, I also used some tunes from the Unity asset store for certain encounters and contributions from other musicians.
A rough draft came up way back in the day, long before I was even considering working in gamedev, when I was still at University and bored during some lecture and made notes for a game I would possibly make one day. And luck had it, I went full-time into game development many years later, and now I'm bringing those old ideas to fruition. The original idea was a bit different, but the core of the lore: ascending a classist realm with a vertically built city, stayed intact.
I was aiming for a puppet-esque, low-key, creepy style. Thanks to the hybrid 2D-3D method, this was easier to achieve in this hybrid style rather than in full 3D, as well as general combat impact. As for the design, we got a lot of variations, ranging from malevolent beings, through various vagrant thugs and bandits, to snobbish highborn citizens and towering knights. Going from Neckbreak, which had a way more crusty pixel style, I wanted enemies in UtA to be more defined, while retaining the retro aesthetic.
Fun fact: the Township of Westfall is inspired by real-world locations, like central Amsterdam's architecture, canal belt, and museum district, Utrecht, Bad Gastein's fairy tale-like backdrop against a Waterfall and buildings built along the curving slope, Gdańsk's old town, Gorlice, and Edinburgh.