MS2b Dev Update - Vertical Slice (Aug 31 2023) (Patreon)

Written by Hare Konatsu edited by Munisix

Vilserio folks.

We’ve been working very hard on a vertical slice of MS2b (vertical slice: to have a section of the game where every function of the final game is working properly) and we finally have a version of the Vita Domain that’s somewhat presentable to the public! It’s taking quite a bit but there’s no cutting corners when it comes to merging 2D with 3D... something that’s constantly proving to be a challenge but the result so far has always been rewarding.

▲ The hourglass centrepiece of Bar "Cellar Door". Since a steampunk aesthetic is the underlying DNA in fault, I’ve decided to maintain photorealism in most of the textures because 3D texturing for an anime look is actually quite difficult and time-consuming. This way we can modify existing materials instead of making everything from scratch.

▲ Camera angles are possible only with 3D models! I wanted to do something like thiiiiiiiis!!!!!!!!! 😆💕

This range of expression is exactly what 3D can provide and we are finally seeing the results of our labor.

▲ I was quite concerned about the size of the characters and interior design. If we made them small enough to fit the characters, they would not stand out as much during gameplay and the silhouettes would be hard to recognize. Making everything slightly larger was the key to design.

It is a little hard to see from this lighting, but the columns of this staircase are larger than those of Ritona, so that they have a sense of presence even when seen from a distance.

This time, we were not sure how much the overall processing load would be, so we created the entire image in a low-poly style. We used normal map baking to express patterns and unevenness, and tried not to increase the polygon count..

However, we learned quickly that effects and post-effects such as dynamic lighting, fog and glow tended to be the heaviest processing elements. Polygon count doesnt seem to matter too much at the moment so we are planning on upping the quality for our models a bit more from this point.

▲A long walkway leads to the bar, and Munisix's knowledge of film and video is evident in the lighting. 

Dei, our programmer has made it possible to billboard (billboard: face assets perpendicular to the camera in real time) respective to multiple virtual cameras. This makes seamless camera angle changes on the fly even with a 2D sprite character (or any 2D asset).

Input is now seamless, just like any 3rd person 3D game, where character movement input dynamically changes depending on the camera angle, but respects initial incoming mapping until you let go for the first time. So in simple terms, if you press up (or W) to go North, it will stay North even if a camera angle change occurs during traversal until you let go, in which case input switches according to the direction the camera is facing.

It sounds way more complicated when explained with words. We plan to provide a video of the game in the next update. 😉

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Recently, we have not been able to publicize many of the functions and parts of the game we have been working on. This is because as Munisix has said a couple months ago, that there isnt really much to show to a general audience, and this strech of under the hood work has actually been quite emotionally draining.

The worry of things like “will people like this?” or “is this specific XYZ process suppose to take this long??” or “will people even care?” is always creeping up. There is no point in self pity since game dev is seriously a lonely struggle but knowing we still have support here helps us quite a lot.

Thank you very much for all your support.

I would be happy if you could give us a quick like ❤️ if you like! And if you can, please drop a line of what sort of updates you want to see from us. We kinda have no idea what sort of things we should share.

Anyways, I can't wait to show you the various parts of the project in action...! Stay tuned!

- Hare Konatsu