Indie Sonucido: The Mage - A turn-based Dungeon Crawler

[Moaning_Clock]

I'm building a new level at the moment, here is screenshot of the interior of a prison room.

In the next couple of weeks, I need to make the levels, design all the quests, the endings, write the dialogue and implement the save-system. The save-system is simple but tedious so I won't put it in before the game is more or less done. Basically I need to write a long-ass list that just grows and grows and grows especially while implementing new quests.

At the moment I want to work on stuff that doesn't have the highest priority but improves the game overall like visual variety. I tackled visual variety a couple of times in the past but every time I do it, it significantly improves the game.

Still need to upload the demo to Itch. 3703 downloads on Steam atm.

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Yesterday, I took the time to design some decorations! The quest for more visual variety isn't completed yet but when I take a day then and now until release it should work out. Some of the stuff also will come naturally in specific areas.

I reduced the default walking speed to the lower setting since it felt more and more like running through the dungeon all the time. No worries, you can change the speed if you like it faster (fast, slow and instant (no smooth movement - instead jumping from one part of the grid to the next, if it doesn't feel turn-based enough )).


Also, the demo will be updated soon to polish it even more and address a minor oversight!

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Demo got another update!

Accidentally, I gave the player 2 bombs at the start of the demo which made it way too easy to get through. Since this alone would be a very lame update, I decided to change some other stuff, mostly minor visual details.
Also put in the ladder you can see in the screenshot above which I made recently. The walking speed is a bit slower than before but if it bothers you, you'll be able to change it in the final game.

If you haven't played the demo yet, try it out!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1535240/Sonucido_The_Mage__A_Dungeon_Crawler_by_Daniel_da_Silva/




Full Changelog

- Removed the bombs in the inventory at the start of the demo
- Support for Azeri Keyboard layouts
- Lowered walking speed
- Added a few decorations
- Small changes to the fighter
- Minor placement changes of certain visuals
- Changed the look of the walls

 

[Infinitron]

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Thanks for posting the video Infinitron!

Today, I released the demo also on Itch for everyone who doesn't like/use Steam, you can play it here: https://smokesomefrogs.itch.io/sonucido-the-mage-demo

The game will be available on Steam and Itch when it is released. Have fun!

 

[Moaning_Clock]

So guys, some (minor) bad news - I won't release the game before Q4. Good news is, I target now the beginning of Q4 or to be exact October.
A definitive release date will be announced in a few weeks.


Why?

There isn't one specific reason but a couple.

1. First big project

Even though I worked on several games now and some of them even a bit bigger, this is the first big project I am in the programmer role (and almost all other roles). It took some time to learn the quirks of Godot (the Engine that I'm using) and to learn all the stuff. There aren't really tutorials on making a Dungeon Crawler in Godot, so I had to come up with my own code (which is a lot of fun and was the challenge I was after but it takes more time).

2. Bugs

Not in the sense that you likely think.

I really dislike bugs. Every time I put something into the game I test it. Every single time. And if I find something I want to fix it and spend multiple hours on it, even though it's likely that only one in a thousand players will find that bug. The consequence of this approach that the game has almost no bugs (which is almost unheard of in any RPG) but it slows down the process a lot (that's why many RPGs focus on more quests/areas/etc. and many have quite a lot of bugs in them). I'm considering leaving some stuff as it is but every time I encounter a new minor bug that most people won't encounter I still spend much time to fix it.

3. Vision

As many Indies I have big ideas I want to put into that game. Like everyone I need to cut corners but I want to make the game that I'm envisioning. Even though I'm not always communicating that properly.


How can I be sure that this is not another vapourware project?

I really hate to not finish stuff. To be frank, I don't have much respect for people who jump from one project to another. Just to give a track record (risking to appear as a blowhard): I released 4 games (+ some gamejam games), 5 books and well over 100 short stories in a few years. Even though I'm likely to only delay that game a few weeks it still nags me.

So don't worry, I will release that game.


That's all for now, making slow but steady progress!

 

[Moaning_Clock]

The Demo for Sonucido got 4000 downloads on Steam!

The launch of the Itch demo didn't went so well; I got only another 45 dls there. But fortunately I got a few articles due to my press release (which maybe bumped up the Steam demo a bit?)

In the last couple of days, I helped a fellow dev with his German click-adventure. It's only in German but if you happen to understand Deutschmännisch and like experimental games: https://www.dasgelbesofa.de/youhadonejob/
Since I already helped with searching for YouTubers etc. I just continued for my own list and started to organize it properly so that it isn't so stressful when I'm actually releasing the game :D

Had an interesting idea for a simple puzzle which I will implement soon!

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Filthy casuals keep muttering in my ear: "coNtRolLing tHe uI iS iNcOnsiStent", "iT's tO haRd tO rEmemBer aLl hoTkEys" and "noBodY reADs maNuAls". So I decided to give in and make a lot more supported by clicks.



You will be able to throw bombs, drink potions, and change weapons all with mouse clicks. That reduces the number of keys one has to remember to 6 and 4 of them are movement lol. The other two are attacking/interacting which is already on multiple keys (e, space, soon Enter) and wielding the weapon (f or ... right mouse click).
This doesn't affect anybody who likes hotkeys and reads manuals, it just adds another option, so it's not that bad ...

Next time I turn this game into a free mobile game with paid skins. Stay tuned.

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Jokes aside, are there any people who like playing only/mostly with their mouse? I could totally add an optional panel with buttons for walking and interacting (sure enough, the default would be off).

Aside from that I'm still working on that YouTuber/Streamer list so that it isn't an issue when I'm actually releasing!

 

[PompiPompi]

Really cool!
I like the visual style.

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Really cool!
I like the visual style.

thanks!

 

[Moaning_Clock]

After a small detour to make the game more accessible, I'm back at working at the levels. Just wanted to give a small overview how the game is progressing and speaking a bit more what you can expect (and can't expect) from this game!

Current State

The code is mostly complete although I'm still making small additions here and there if needed but there is not a major problem I need to solve or add. Many enemy graphics are complete but it's likely I will add some more. Most of the existing enemies have sounds and moving objects like spikes or levers also have sounds already.
So, what's missing? Mostly levels, quests, etc.

How long is the game?

The game will be a couple of hours long. I still don't know how long the game will be exactly but I think the first playthrough will take your more than three hours but less than seven. The next one will be naturally shorter and you can skip a lot of optional stuff if you want to. When my playtesters played through the whole game I have a more precise estimate for this but this will take another month.

That sounds rather short

It is. RPGs typically have three activities that make up most of the playtime. Fighting, Reading, Walking.
The fights are extremely short (even the longest fight will take you less than a minute), it's not a text heavy game and even though you still walk, I reduced the walking distances.
I could easily double the playtime a lot with longer fights, more text to read and longer walking distances but I really don't want to do that.

So, if you are only looking for playtime, don't bother.

How much replayability is in the game?

I would say it's enough for 2 playthroughs, maybe 3. To give a rough estimate: With the first playthrough you should see around 60% what the game has to offer, with the second run you are at 90%.

How much will the game cost?

I'm still not 100% decided. Around 10$.

Can I cast spells?

No, you need to find the mage because he can. There is magic in the world but not many mages.

How traditional is the Fantasy world?

It doesn't feel outlandish but doesn't have orcs, elves, etc. either.

Will you update the game after release?

Yes! Aside from minor bug fixes (the game will be already very stable at release, this is always a priority for me) and some performance tweaks, I usually tend to add a little bit of stuff over time.

How much character customization is in the game?

You will be able to spend stat points in the beginning to the three stats strength, vitality and luck. Every build will be viable although some builds will be harder than others.
I also want to implement some further customization that are comparable to races in most games or signs in Morrowind. One idea would be throwing bombs makes more damage but the same time you take more damage from hits.


So, that's it for now, back to work!

 

[Moaning_Clock]

New Update!



The demo for Sonucido: The Mage got a new update which implements additional mouse inputs (as announced). Instead of a lot of hot keys you only need to remember the interact/attack key and the wield key (and the 4 movement keys).

You can download the demo on Steam and Itch!

My fiancee also drew a better death screen!

Full Changelog

- Changed Language Screen Background
- New Death Screen
- Added mouse input for many things (throwing bombs, drinking potions, changing weapons)
- Added additional inputs (clicking the middle mouse button also changes the weapon, you can also change to a specific weapon with the num-pad)

 

[PompiPompi]

Nice, going to download. Also added to wish list.
Good luck in Next Fest.
Also, if you don't mind sharing wishlists/visit info later.

 

[PompiPompi]

You don't have that banner for the download region.

 

[PompiPompi]

Spoiler

Annoying thing, I reached that soldier guy, I did the dialog. I am not sure if in the end of the dialog I attacked him by accident and started a fight or it was meant to be like that. I just wanted to end the dialog, but space is like E

The Demo is definitely not short and easy like you make it seem to be lol.

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Nice, going to download. Also added to wish list.
Good luck in Next Fest.
Also, if you don't mind sharing wishlists/visit info later.

Hey, I already participated in June! Got over 3000 Demo downloads (now over 4000), had 365 wishlists before and 779 after, so +424 wishlists. Now 840. Streaming helped a lot, got one time over 2000 viewers! Also released the demo afterwards on Itch and got 50 downloads there.

You don't have that banner for the download region.

I really don't know why because I gave Steam all the files. But I downloaded 3 demos of other games and all had no picture so it might be a Steam thing.

The Demo is definitely not short and easy like you make it seem to be lol.

It's relatively short, you would have finished the demo shortly after the soldier but it's not that easy, that's true. It's a small demo but it depends always how quickly people get the combat and the puzzle, if you would replay the demo I'm sure you can get through in under 5 minutes.
I still need to figure out how to tell people how to leave the dialogue. It's simply going backwards and is written in the manual (but not everyone reads the manual). It's the last big thing that's not accessible UX.

Thanks for the feedback! I will figure something out!

 

[PompiPompi]

Why not make E/Space stop the dialog, just in case.
Yea, need to figure a more understandable way to stop the dialog, because attacking this guy is like a death sentence.
This is a big issue, a lot of people will feel frustrated from this. If they even figure out how not to get killed by that guy by accidently attacking him.
It's a deal breaker that will give you bad reviews.

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Why not make E/Space stop the dialog, just in case.

Because E and Space are attacking/interacting and I want to give the player as much freedom as possible to attack whatever NPC they like.

Yea, need to figure a more understandable way to stop the dialog, because attacking this guy is like a death sentence.
This is a big issue, a lot of people will feel frustrated from this. If they even figure out how not to get killed by that guy by accidently attacking him.
It's a deal breaker that will give you bad reviews.

As I said, I will figure something out. It's not really an issue of finding a solution, more the question of which solution. And thankfully I still have time!

Spoiler

Just to list solutions of the top of my head.

1. "Tutorializing" dialogues. I really dislike tutorials,
2. Let 1-2 dialogues appear very early in the game. Could feel forced.
3. Making the fight in the demo easier (doesn't solve the UX problem but eleviates some of the frustration) and solve the problem later.
4. Having more icons available in the dialogue. A leave icon or attack icon and you could do everything with the mouse. Really don't like cluttered UI.
5. A text prompt with all options appears. Feels a bit like a tutorial.
6. Having another text prompt to consult the manual. But people won't read it lol
7. ...

In the end it will be a combination or something totally different. At the moment nothing convinces me completelybut I'll address it before the game releases.

 

[PompiPompi]

Yea, but... I pressed space instinctively because I knew E is already attack/interact.
Then Space made me attack him, eventhough the dialog text was still open.
Don't put a little sign "Do not fall into the death pit", assuming most people will read it.

 

[Moaning_Clock]

Yea, but... I pressed space instinctively because I knew E is already attack/interact.
Then Space made me attack him, eventhough the dialog text was still open.

Every move has a couple of ways to be triggered and if I put going back on Space this won't fix the problem overall. Since it's literally going back, pressing space would feel very weird.

Don't put a little sign "Do not fall into the death pit", assuming most people will read it.

It's not a death pit or a trap - it's an optional challenge at the end - the real problem is the unintentional triggering, and thankfully there are multiple ways to fix it.

I will fix it in an update (and from a usability point it's the top priority) - it's also not the start of the game, the demo is more of a vertical slice in a way. How was the rest of the demo? You seem to be frustrated from your end but have you feedback for the rest of it?


I hope the numbers I shared were useful!

 

[PompiPompi]

The Demo was kind of fun, yea.
A little hard though for a first level. (The same issue I am having with my demos/first levels).
The riddle was nice.
It needs better animations I think.
Just this last bit was really frustrating.
I didn't even know if I had no choice but to fight him.

 

[Moaning_Clock]

The Demo was kind of fun, yea.
A little hard though for a first level. (The same issue I am having with my demos/first levels).
The riddle was nice.

Thanks for the feedback!

It needs better animations I think.

That would be possible but unfortunately would cost too much time.

Just this last bit was really frustrating.
I didn't even know if I had no choice but to fight him.

On the bright side this feedback helped to address it even sooner!


Do you plan to participate in the next Steam Next Fest? I thought I had sawn Golden Fall 2 in the last one in the dev preview but it was already released when the Next Fest started I think.

 

[PompiPompi]

Yea, I was mistakenly releasing it before the previous demo festival, and was no longer eligible to participate.

 

[Moaning_Clock]

That's a bummer - have fun next time? Maybe Golden Fall 3?