Kaneko Update 1 - The Spellbook

So, it’s about time for another update (probably past time). Let’s get to it!

Disclaimer: Again, some placeholder graphics are used for the sake of programming. {: .notice}

Screenshot 1 Kaneko Update #1 The Spellbook

As you can see, Witch Doctor Kaneko looks quite a bit different than it did a couple months ago. For now, I’ve decided to make the graphics less tile-based. You can see how the land is really curvy. Kaneko follows its path very smoothly. This change should allow for more interesting landscapes. After all, a forest is not square or blocky, but rather a continuous flow.

Next, you can also see that we have what looks like a floating orb with some flames around it. That’s exactly it, an Orb. Touching it gives Kaneko some MP. Different colors produce different amounts. We also have a thick fog that’s pretty neat to look at, and there are a few ladders which Kaneko can climb.

You can also see some pieces of paper floating in the air. These are pages from Kaneko’s spellbook. They have been torn out, and in order to learn new spells, Kaneko must collect enough of them. The programming for the spellbook functionality is completely done. You can see a preview of the Spellbook screen itself below:

Screenshot 4 Kaneko Update #1 The Spellbook

When on the Spellbook screen, you can read all of the information about the spells you have learned. As you collect pages, you will gain access to more information. For right now, I’m not letting you see anything (it’s a secret to everybody!) but as time goes on, I could make updates that slowly reveal them.

The spells are important because Kaneko will be using them to traverse the levels. I’ve made an interesting decision here — in Witch Doctor Kaneko, there will be no jumping. Yes, a puzzle-platformer without jumping! I’m crazy, right? But hey, Kaneko isn’t Mario — she’s a witch doctor! She doesn’t jump, she casts spells! You’ll need to get creative if you want to reach higher places!

Of course, Kaneko’s primary spell is still the Debug spell. But the combination of Debug and the other spells will comprise the majority of the puzzles in the game. That is, you’ll be figuring out ways to reach the spellbook pages (without jumping!) so that you can get more spells, to use in more puzzles… So ultimately, a lot of the puzzles will be optional. If you don’t feel like solving it (or can’t!) then you can always come back to it later. But as usual, you’ll be missing out if you don’t solve everything!

I’ve been drawing ideas for levels in a few of my notebooks for the past few months, so with the gameplay design pretty much finalized now I’ll be able to implement them. It’s going to take a while though, and we’re all busy with school and such. But creativity takes time, so hang in there with us, and before you know it, we’ll have a game!