Operation Terra News

[p][/p][p]Finally... ! [/p][p]Things got delayed for a number of reasons; however, here we are. Playtesting will start in 10 days, on the 2nd of August, and will run for another 10, until the 12th of August.[/p][p]Everyone's invited, just sign up for it, and I will accept all requests the day it starts, so that you receive an email on the actual day.[/p][p]See you in ten days![/p]

Recap:

30 separate tilesets in 7 different environments; spaceships 7, temple 7, planet 6, castle-like 2, mine 2, droidships 5, tunnels 1.
30 enemies.
Core functionalities: 7 different weapons, "kreds" to upgrade weapons, mission points earned by finishing missions with which to purchase permanent upgrades. Around 100 basic materials for the levels.
Biochips that add to your basic stats, Powerboosters that increase the level of your powers, energy globes that serve as fuel for your powers.
Leveling up and Character page, Equipment page, Powers page.
A number of different types of locked doors and relative keys.
Basic save system.


Recently done:

All 30 planets and missions and tilesets can now be played in order from the start to the end in the default galaxy.
Implemented basic compatibility for all aspect ratios including ultra wide.
The 5 shops are fully working, apart from a couple of "Coming soon!" features that will be added later.
Added "Full Repair" power for a total of 5 out of 8.
Implemented the majority of the menus.
Added difficulty levels, with also separate adjustable sliders for enemies HP and damage dealt for fine tuning.


To do:

The very last mission on the Terra planet.
The few remaining menus for gameplay options and credits.
Intro text.
Explanation of roaming mechanics (you can roam on a planet after you have completed its mission, but there are some differences)
Debugging and polishing as needed.
Fix UVs where not matching.
Testing, testing, testing.
Some extra audio and music.
Some localization at some (later) point.
Remappable keyboard keys.
Overhead map with indicators of mission objectives, keys and doors, being worked on right now.
Putting the demo together.
Promotion.

The priority at this point is to finish the core game so as to start more in-depth testing both internally and externally.
Stay tuned!

Quick update:

Finished the last 5 tile sets for the total of 30. The final distribution is:

Planets: 6
Castles: 2
Temples: 7
Spaceships: 7 (6+1 special different tiles)
Tunnels: 1
Mines: 2
Droids: 5

The game is now fully playable until planet/mission 12, with all relative 12 enemies working.
Also:
added 4 new unique missions.
Implemented 3 new powers for a total of 4 out of the final 8.
Finished shop 3 which leaves only 2 for the final 5.

That's it for now.

Though much has been done, much still needs to be done.
What is ahead the most is the number of tilesets: currently there are 25 tilesets of the final 30.
Divided by setting, which I refer to as "environments", they are:
planet: 6
space ship/station : 7 (6 + 1 with different, unique tiles)
space tunnels, a more claustrophobic space ship with unique vents: 1
Castle-like structure: 2 (one daytime, one dark)
Mine: 1
Temple: 6
Droid ship/station 2
Core functionalities have been implemented; 7 different weapons, "kreds" to upgrade weapons, mission points earned by finishing missions with which to purchase permanent upgrades. Between 100 and 120 basic materials for the levels. Pickupables: biochips, which add to your basic stats, power boosters which either unlock a new power or improve it, energy globes (you need energy to use the powers).
A number of different types of locked doors and relative keys.
Leveling up and Character page, Inventory page, Powers page.
Basic Save system.

To do:
Connect fluidly all the different tilesets from the galactic map in the main base. At the moment only the first 3-4 levels can be played from the start.
Tilesets: a second mine, 2 droid, another 2 between planet temple or droid.
Missions: a number of mission objectives are repeated right now. Ideally there should be something unique for each planet, with the exception of a very few that are simply: "Kill all the enemies in the level".
Powers: apart from the "Teleport" power that gets you back to base and viceversa, all other (7) powers need to be implemented.
There is some audio and music but more is needed.
Menus/options etc. Right now you can only start a new game.
Enemies: the needed 30 models have been acquired, but right now only 5 or 6 do their job, the others still need to be made "operational": animation where needed , A.I., weapon mechanics working as expected, Hitboxes. etc
The e-shops in the various parts of the base: right now the first 2 are fully functional, a third is in the works, 2 still needed for the final 5.
Overhead map, with indicators of mission objectives, keys and doors.
Performance optimization, some of which I have already done, but I'm always looking to improve it.
Correct discrepancies in textures, object sizes, stuff like keys appearing in unreachable areas and whatnot. etc in all 30 scenes.
Configureable keyboard keys at some point.
At least some localization at some point.
Lots of polish and debugging as needed.
Promotion.
Preparing for testing and demo.

Some of these things might change as development goes on.
Some specific design decisions still need to be made.
Indicative release date at the moment is Q4 2025.
Just wanted to keep everyone up to date.

New gameplay trailer showing a multitude of different environments and enemies.
Watch with audio for best results!