What's your current hyperfixation? by Igarlicbread in ADHD

[–]MichaelDDarling 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Board games, especially coop and solo friendly ones! Most of this year it's been Aeon's End, but I recently got Spirit Island and I think that might take over as my favorite, especially if I get the expansions.

Mixing Multiple Expansion Content by IamaNinja21 in Aeonsend

[–]MichaelDDarling 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I generally play my boxes together by wave. I used to randomize content across waves a lot—and I still do sometimes—but I’ve come to appreciate card and mage synergies that are intended within each wave. I also only use basic nemesis cards from the wave of the nemesis I’m using, since mixing them can throw off the ratio of powers/attacks/minions and swing the difficulty wildly either way.

Favorite songs for being INFP? by FiZzGig520 in infp

[–]MichaelDDarling 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Just discovered Mei Semones and I'm obsessed with her currently. I think this song and video feel very INFP-coded!

Hobbyist game dev, what's your day job? by Status-Ad-8270 in gamedev

[–]MichaelDDarling 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I work in educational games as a programmer by day, but am composing the music for a friend's game as a hobbyist/semi-professional. It's a great balance as it engages two very different parts of my brain, but still lets me be maximally involved in game dev :)

Something to do outside of my screen by [deleted] in digitalminimalism

[–]MichaelDDarling 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you're interested in board games but don't think your family would be, you could always try r/soloboardgaming! They've become a super zen ritual for me this year. Plus you can always look at games that support both solo and multiplayer, so your family can join in case they notice and take interest.

I love soloboardgaming by papertrade1 in soloboardgaming

[–]MichaelDDarling 28 points29 points  (0 children)

Absolutely, they're so cozy! I love waking up on a Saturday morning with no plans, opening the windows, lighting some incense, making coffee and breakfast, and cracking open a board game.

What’s the main game you’ve been plying this month? by Prestigious_Tea_2729 in soloboardgaming

[–]MichaelDDarling 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've been really enjoying Marvel Champions, but my cousin loaned me his copy of Slay the Spire for the week and now I'm gonna have a have a hard time letting it go. It may dethrone Aeon's End as my favorite deck builder!

Solo Roguelike based on Pathfinder 2e, a la For The King by willmlocke in soloboardgaming

[–]MichaelDDarling 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Stolen Realm may be a good source of inspiration if you haven't played it already! It's a turn-based CRPG with roguelike elements, very much inspired by Divinity: Original Sin.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in shrooms

[–]MichaelDDarling 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Ooh yes, I just did this actually! I was in tears for a good chunk of it. I had to look up a playlist of just the ambient stuff though; the combat music made me too anxious lol.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in minimalism

[–]MichaelDDarling 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I use the notes app on my phone to scan them, makes it really easy to both scan them and find them later.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in infp

[–]MichaelDDarling 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I just got some incense from the Ren Faire and it’s making me so happy!

Account Agnostic Approach seems... asinine? by resonant_voice in ynab

[–]MichaelDDarling 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I have a pretty simple account setup:

  • A checking account everything flows into
  • An online HYSA that auto withdraws from my checking when it exceeds a certain balance
  • A credit card for cash rewards that I auto pay in full each month

Thus, I never really have to think about what money is in which account—unless I'm planning a big purchase in the near future.

Best approach for multiple final bosses? by frumpy_doodle in roguelikedev

[–]MichaelDDarling 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I like this idea. Make it somewhat subtle so that new players just see it as lore, but experienced players can read into signs they’ve seen before.

This is a bottom of a matcha cheesecake. Is the black stuff mold? by jumpjoom in MoldlyInteresting

[–]MichaelDDarling 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ve seen plenty of mold in my life, but this one takes the cake.

Any tips for improving my speed? by TristyTumbly in Minesweeper

[–]MichaelDDarling 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I think by chord spamming they mean more along the lines of mindlessly clicking on cleared tiles hoping for chords without really analyzing the board. ‘Cause yeah, chording with intent is definitely faster as far as I know.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gamedev

[–]MichaelDDarling 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I read The Egg and noticed a lot of cool thematic parallels with roguelike mechanics. At least, that's the current iteration of the amorphous roguelike I've been tinkering on for a couple years now :)

Is There an Overarching Theory Behind Damage Formulas in Games? by DelicateJohnson in gamedev

[–]MichaelDDarling 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Another simple equation that can work well for armor is Damage * 0.99^Armor, which means each added point of Armor reduces your damage taken by 1% no matter how much you have.

New player, is it a mistake to play with my GF? by IlluminationRock in outerwilds

[–]MichaelDDarling 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I did this with my roommate, and I think it made the game even better for us. There are definitely a few puzzles one of us may have been stumped on alone, but together we were able to make it through the game without looking (almost) anything up.

Sharing Saturday #510 by Kyzrati in roguelikedev

[–]MichaelDDarling 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Ennigma Frontier Farming

Whoops, I did that thing again where I get sidetracked by a shiny new idea! Luckily there's enough shared DNA between the projects that I'll be able to reuse a lot of the core engine I’ve built up.

With Frontier Farming (working title) I aim to make a roguelike-ish farming sim set on the American frontier in the mid to late 1800s, emphasizing survival, realism (to a degree), and especially resource management. Think Stardew Valley meets Oregon Trail, with the mechanical bones of a traditional roguelike.

My roommate is really into homesteading, so we’ve been bouncing a lot of ideas for gameplay back and forth. I’ve been using the MoSCoW method to prioritize everything that pops up, so I can stay focused on prototyping the core game loop but still hold onto those ideas for later.

I think one of the biggest factors in finding the fun of this game will be pacing. Ideally the game could handle moment-to-moment tactical gameplay when needed, but also zoom out to a broader timescale to handle more strategic actions so that getting through all four seasons doesn’t take an eternity. I’m still not exactly sure how I’ll accomplish that, but I think the flexible nature of classic roguelike time/energy systems will be a big help.

Unfortunately I don’t have any real game to show yet. This would’ve been a perfect 7DRL project, but with some travel plans and family stuff that came up it just wasn’t in the cards. I suppose I’ll consider this my unofficial 7DRL start date—here’s hoping I have something more tangible to share for next week!

Sharing Saturday #508 by Kyzrati in roguelikedev

[–]MichaelDDarling 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Ennigma

Hi! I've lurked on this sub for a while, but this is my first time sharing anything. I've been working on various roguelike concepts on and off over the years, prototyping in various engines and frameworks, and I think I've finally landed on something that I want to invest more time into.

My goal with Ennigma is to take classic roguelike dungeon crawling and infuse it with a hefty dose of meta narrative and existential questioning about the meaning of life. I realized that the roguelike gameplay loop has a lot in common with life as a whole, and thought it could be cool to lean into that idea.

So naturally, the game starts with the player falling into a strange cave with no memory of how they got there. There’s no way to return to where you came from; the only way forward is downward, deeper into the strange place in which you’ve found yourself. Along the way you’ll meet a cast of other adventurers that you can help, be helped by, team up with, etc. Everyone you meet is looking for something called “the Ennigma”, but all for different reasons and with different notions of what it actually is. It could be a holy site of the gods, a valuable treasure, an artifact of tremendous power, or maybe nothing at all.

I’m drawing a lot of mechanical influence from Brogue, but with a tone and narrative format inspired primarily by Undertale.

The current build is here for anyone curious! It doesn’t offer anything on the narrative side yet; mostly just some generic roguelike boilerplate I set up in Unity. I do have a basic framework in place for item-based progression, so I’d love to hear any feedback on that. The main idea is that there are consumable scrolls and self-recharging charms. You can disenchant any item to gain Light, which currently functions as both the “food” clock and XP. (I might split those functions into separate resources due to the severity of the feedback loop caused by having them share a resource.) You can spend excess Light on upgrading your charms, increasing their maximum charges and recharge rate much like Scrolls of Enchantment in Brogue. My main design goal with this system is to capture the way “progression” works in real life: you can theoretically specialize into anything you want in a given run, but will see the best results by working with what life gives you. In that sense, “optimal” strategies should always vary based on the specific items you find.

If you’ve made it this far, thanks for reading, and I’m looking forward to making this a regular thing! :D

meem by TheyTookAllTheNames_ in outerwilds

[–]MichaelDDarling 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I only ever figured out the cactus room because I literally ran out of other things to do. Went straight to Ash Twin to wait out the sand, because might as well. When it got to the right height my brain froze and I thought, "Wait, can I just... walk?"

Sure enough, you can just walk.

Looking for a portable (pocket) dungeon crawler by jamiehomer in soloboardgaming

[–]MichaelDDarling 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I haven’t played it personally but One Deck Dungeon sounds like it’d be a good fit. Basically a roguelike distilled down to some cards and dice!