[p]Hey everyone! I'm Bread, the developer of
Bolt & Whalington.[/p][p][/p][p]If you’re interested, please consider
adding it to your Steam wishlist — thank you so much for your support!
Steam Store page: [/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p]In the previous
Playtest , many players mentioned that they found the
Configurator mechanic—which allows the protagonist to change gameplay modes by switching settings—really fun and unique.
So, we’ve decided to
expand on this feature and make it a more significant part of future level design.[/p][p]If you’re curious, feel free to
click the link below to watch the video , or
scroll down to check out the details and screenshots![/p][p][/p][p]In addition to its default presets, the
Configurator also allows you to
manually add new settings.[/p][p]In certain areas of the map, you may come across
hidden cards marked with strange symbols. When you find one, try
grabbing it and inserting it into a nearby Configurator — who knows, you might just
unlock some mysterious new settings![/p][p]
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[/p][p]The
Residential Zone is an area focused on
high-speed movement and
mobility-based challenges, so the
Configurator in this region needs to be designed around that concept.[/p][p]At the same time, we have to ensure that this mechanic doesn’t make exploration — the core of a Metroidvania — too easy. We also wanted to give players a
creative and unconventional way to move around.[/p][p]That’s how we came up with a
non-traditional, counterintuitive movement mechanic — teleportation.[/p][p]
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[/p][p]At this point, some players might say,
“Wait, doesn’t the mech’s teleportation gun already let you teleport? What’s the difference?”[/p][p]Well, I’d say there’s quite a big difference. The
mech’s teleportation requires you to
fire a bullet to open a portal, which means you can only teleport to
places the bullet can reach.[/p][p]On top of that, you also need to have a
toilet nearby for
Screw to jump into in order to teleport — so yeah, it comes with quite a few
limitations.[/p][p]
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[/p][p][/p][p]The
Configurator’s teleportation, on the other hand, is a
scene-based mechanic — it allows you to turn
any environmental element into a
teleportation portal.[/p][p]For example, here I’ve set the rule to “
Borders = Teleport.” After that, whenever
Screw (the mech) touches the edge of the map, he’ll automatically
teleport to the opposite side of the screen.[/p][p]This design fits perfectly with the game’s
exploration theme. Players may notice treasure chests they passed earlier, sealed inside walls or seemingly unreachable — but now, with this “Teleport” setting, they can finally reach those places.[/p][p]It’s a mechanic that
makes full use of the map’s potential, giving players that
“aha!” moment of excitement when they revisit old areas and discover new possibilities.[/p][p]
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[/p][p]Moreover, this setting can be
combined with Screw’s (the mech’s) own abilities, allowing us to design a deeper layer of
emergent, knowledge-based progression locks.[/p][p]It can also
interact with other game systems, giving puzzle rooms and parkour-style stages
multiple possible solutions. This creates a satisfying sense of
breaking the game’s rules — the feeling that players are truly mastering and bending the world to their will.[/p][p]
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[/p][p]For example, take the
racing challenge we mentioned earlier — if you just follow behind the robot, you won’t even catch its exhaust, let alone reach the
time-locked chests.[/p][p]But once players unlock the
“Borders = Teleport” setting, they’ll remember that
some of those race tracks also have map borders. By using this setting, they can
create shortcuts, skipping large sections of the route and finally overcoming challenges that once seemed impossible.[/p][p]The potential of
free border teleportation is huge, which is exactly why it needs to be
limited to specific areas — otherwise, level design would lose its structure. This makes it perfectly aligned with the
localized nature of the Configurator system.[/p][p]
![]()
[/p][p]That’s all for this dev log — we’ll wrap it up here for now![/p][p]If you have any
wild or creative ideas about the
Configurator system, feel free to
share them in the comments — we’d love to hear your thoughts and discuss them with you.[/p][p]Developing a
Metroidvania isn’t easy, especially for a small indie team. So if you find
Screw & the Floating City interesting, please consider
adding it to your Steam wishlist — it really means a lot to us![/p][p]See you in the
next dev log video! 🚀[/p][p][/p]