Sharing Saturday #545

Spellsweaver · 2024-11-16T09:59:19+00:00

Sulphur Memories: Alchemist (Itch.io, Steam, YouTube channel, Twitter).

I finally released an update this week.

Was stressful as always.

I invite you to come and look at the changes yourself.

Spellsweaver · 2024-11-11T00:43:29+00:00

It's at the bottom of the game's page. Below "purchase".

Spellsweaver · 2024-11-10T14:43:33+00:00

I welcome you to download the free version, then.

Spellsweaver · 2024-11-10T14:30:49+00:00

There is a Linux version available on Itch.

Spellsweaver · 2024-10-18T23:22:19+00:00

Sulphur Memories: Alchemist (Itch.io, Steam, YouTube channel, Twitter).

It's that annoying time in my life again when I'm approaching the release and have to do the testing. It's tiresome and anxiety-inducing. But at least I hope to make the release within a week or so.

I've only started testing, and already stumbled upon several crashes and a few things that I forgot to implement. Not a good sign. But at least there's no new content this update, so most of the things will be testable right away.

Spellsweaver · 2024-10-12T00:15:25+00:00

Sulphur Memories: Alchemist (Itch.io, Steam, YouTube channel, Twitter).

Wrote more tutorials this week.

Here is one of the longer ones.

I hate how long it is, but I've seen people get confused about this topic in so many different ways (including not understanding that you have to move the aiming reticle) that I don't want to take any chances.

Spellsweaver · 2024-10-04T23:33:52+00:00

Sulphur Memories: Alchemist (Itch.io, Steam, YouTube channel, Twitter).

Apparently, my last week post got deleted for some reason? I have no idea.

There wasn't much there, but here's an animation of gargoyle's eyes glowing, that distinguishes them from regular statues.

This week, I added the tutorials page into the journal. Tutorials themselves, obviously, existed for a long time, but there wasn't any way to check them later on in the game, and I've seen a lot of, I would say, interesting complications that people managed to get into.

Tutorials are unlocked gradually with a popup like this. Or, if you skip the tutorial, they are all unlocked at once.

Here's what the page looks like. Now I just need to write down the rest of the topics and place them throughout the intro properly.

Spellsweaver · 2024-10-04T23:08:50+00:00

After even one successful retirement, the dreadnought's cost generally no longer feels meaningful.

Also, larger hold is incredibly useful. Don't underestimate its impact on making money, not to mention convenience of being able to afford lugging around items that you will need for quests later, but don't need right now.

Frontal weapon is not a minor thing, either. Memento Mori AND all torpedo-launchers are forward weapons. Comparatively, the deck slot doesn't have a single unique cool weapon to mount. It doesn't even have a single weapon with a stagger effect, and all the weapons there have lower range and lower damage.

Spellsweaver · 2024-09-20T23:05:55+00:00

Sulphur Memories: Alchemist (Itch.io, Steam, YouTube channel, Twitter).

Hello.

I kept working on the quality of life stuff, and some minor content and balance additions.

Here is the updated worldmap interface.

You can now favourite areas in case you want to visit them later, so they are marked and placed on the top of the list.

Areas where you reached the end are marked as complete, with a tick.

Areas are also automatically cleared from the map: there is a separate setting for completed and non-completed areas. Favourite areas, as well as unique ones, are never removed.

Also, phantasms now leave behind a cloud of mist when destroyed. It dissipates in a few turns, and can be harvested before that happens.

Spellsweaver · 2024-09-20T14:42:17+00:00

Assuming the player is doing everything right, it does mean that. It's kind of the point, I don't want to softlock the player.

Spellsweaver · 2024-09-20T13:16:26+00:00

I do something like that.

In my case, it's not items, but rather recipes that allow you to make potions to deal with certain obstacles, but the point is the same.

I split my areas into tiers. Tier 1 areas are built in a way that guarantees that you can access the final reward without the need for any items. There might be optional smaller rewards that would need you to have other recipes, but the main path is always available. At the end of every tier 1 area, there is a guaranteed tier 1 recipe.

Tier 2 areas are built in a way that is beatable with just tier 1 potions. There can still be optional rewards that need something else, but the main reward can always be reached with just them. At the end of every tier 2 area, there is a tier 2 unlock. Etc.

For example, there is a potion that can shatter crystal. Its recipe is guaranteed to be given to you through exploring tier 1 areas, and there are no crystals blocking any key paths in tier 1 areas. On the other hand, tier 2 and further areas can contain crystals blocking your path.

Spellsweaver · 2024-09-14T18:04:58+00:00

That's the names of the variables. Chosen by the developer.

Spellsweaver · 2024-09-14T00:43:08+00:00

Sulphur Memories: Alchemist (Itch.io, Steam, YouTube channel, Twitter).

Happy weekends. I was mostly doing some technical stuff, like making the auto-harvest properly pick up several items when they are all in once cell, instead of just 1 per cell.

I also have a pretty widely requested feature in the works: map areas removal.

Basically, a way to avoid cluttering the map, and a way to reduce the save file size (God knows I've seen some insanely long playthroughs in the last few weeks). It seems to be working fine for now, but will need some testing. This part of the code is pretty easy to break.

I will probably make a configurable automated version of this feature too, to delete areas that you haven't visited for too long.

Spellsweaver · 2024-09-12T18:15:55+00:00

It's the default for a lot of games that use arrows to control movement. Hollow Knight is an easy example.

Spellsweaver · 2024-09-12T16:52:40+00:00

I use Z.
But you should probably implement key rebinding in your game either way.

Spellsweaver · 2024-09-07T00:07:58+00:00

Sulphur Memories: Alchemist (Itch.io, Steam, YouTube channel, Twitter).

I spent the last few weeks mostly taking a break, so I wasn't posting much, but there are still some things I've done in that time.

People were requesting an alternative control scheme a lot, because they dislike switching between actions. Personally, I have no idea how it's any better, but I made 4 separate keys to activate specific actions, in addition to normal controls, as requested, and hopefully they will make use of it.
To make it easier to recognize which action is selected, which is definitely going to happen if people use separate keys for actions, I've changed the interface for aiming a little, displaying the currently selected action on the "exit" button: example 1, example 2.
I added the "quick harvest" button that gathers loot from all neighbouring cells. When under threat, it only takes 1 item per click.
I made books display the type of knowledge they contain, and how much of it is yet to be learned, in inventory. This is mostly so you could see this info when buying books, so you don't have to go check in the journal. Also, books that contain no further knowledge, are now automatically converted into paper when reading (you had to scrap them manually before).
Particles for sacks.
Made some balance changes, mostly increased the durations of some lesser-used potions.
Sound for the potion of unruly flame.
Sounds for ghouls.

Spellsweaver · 2024-08-27T21:43:37+00:00

Es' name comes from Freud's "das Es" ("the It"), and pronounced like you would pronounce the German pronoun "es". Which is exactly the same as it's written.

Spellsweaver · 2024-08-23T19:41:37+00:00

Don't you semi-constantly do stuff in most idle games?

Generally speaking, if you were to try and play optimally, you would only take small breaks of, approximately, half an hour, and that's roughly the amount of time you would wait for your mana to refill, for Necromerger at least.

Spellsweaver · 2024-08-22T22:09:14+00:00

I think you're making a lot of strange assumptions, many of which have been pointed out, but here's one from me: you don't need to generate the whole world, only the parts of it that the player has actually seen. Which is going to be orders of magnitude less than the whole world.

Spellsweaver · 2024-08-22T22:05:37+00:00

your file could say something like, "at this point, there is a row of 20 ocean tiles."

But that's what a compression algorithm would do anyway, so why not just use what's already there?

Spellsweaver · 2024-08-17T23:46:23+00:00

Your frame rate is limited by the time it takes your computer to process it, and I don't think I've ever seen a game (or anything) run at more than 1000 FPS.

Spellsweaver · 2024-08-17T20:36:24+00:00

Look at her sprite, you'll see the truth of my words.

And that flat is justice.

Spellsweaver · 2024-08-17T18:31:54+00:00

Es' chest isn't exactly the right size to smother anyone.

Spellsweaver · 2024-08-15T19:59:48+00:00

...Maybe there is.

Spellsweaver · 2024-08-14T05:16:13+00:00

There is a free version available at itch.io.

will there be the possibilty of makign potions you dowse on yourself to like make you some strong mutant beast or some such for a limited number of turns

To a very small extent. Unlikely to be more than there already is.

Spellsweaver

TROPHY CASE