Def-Op : Codename I.R.I.S version 1.0.6 Devlog

I’m happy to announce that Def-Op : Codename I.R.I.S version 1.0.6 is now out on the Appstore. This update is mostly under-the-hood optimizations and bug fixes, along with some graphical upgrades. I will go through some of the key changes below.

Name Change

First and foremost, the game’s name has been changed from I.R.I.S – DefOp to Def-Op: Codename I.R.I.S. The reason behind the original name is that I wanted I.R.I.S to be the base name for subsequent games that were to follow (e.g I.R.I.S – <sub title 01>, I.R.I.S – <sub title 02>. As time I passes, I realised that I.R.I.S isn’t exactly memorable nor does it do well in search rankings (as pointed out by a fellow game dev). With that, I decided to switch the name around.

Right Gate Fix

When the left beam gate is activated, there’s a random chance that the right gate will not work. This results in some frustrating situations where the enemies will slip right past. This issue is now fixed in the latest release.

Improved Summary Screen

In the previous version, the summary screen consists mostly text explaining the situation surrounding the main character Erika. While it gets the message across, the overall feel of that screen seems dull. In 1.0.6, I added some illustrations and split the summary text into 3 pages.

Improved Menu 

It is much easier to navigate through the menu now compared to version 1.0.5, with buttons clearly labeled and the designs standardized.

Minor Graphical Upgrades

I redrew Erika’s portrait as I felt the original wasn’t that great looking. Some facial expressions looked really odd as well. Apart from that, enemies now have shadows beneath them and I’ve changed one of the explosion animations.

That’s about covers it for version 1.0.6. If you have played this game, feel free to leave any comments or suggestions. If you enjoyed, be sure to give it a rating on the Appstore. It really helps me out as an indie developer. Thanks!

Time To Talk Bout Project Beam Gates

ProjectBeamGate-Banner

It doesn’t take much to see that I’ve been neglecting my blog for quite some time, with the last post made back in April (and not game development related to boot). Unlike social media sites like Twitter or Facebook where you can easily popped in a quick thought or screenshot without spending too much time, making a blog post does take a bit more effort.

Today, I decided to gather any remaining strength I have from coding and talk about a new game I’m developing for iOS and Android codenamed Project Beam Gates (I haven’t finalize the game name yet). Before we get to the details, I would like to point out that the previous game I was working on (Project Wings) is currently on hold, at least until Project Beam Gate is completed. I didn’t like the way how the game is progressing and to be honest, the overall result would have been mediocre at best. Having said that, I did come out with some new interesting game mechanics for Project Wings. We shall see.

So what is Project Beam Gates? PBG is a game where you have to defend a secret arms lab from enemy invasion, using beam gates that somewhat look like a light saber. Successfully defend the lab for 5 days (stages) and you win.

Latest build of #ProjectBeamGate
Latest build of #ProjectBeamGate

If you think that this is a really simple game, I would have to say that you are absolutely …. RIGHT! The original plan was to create a single stage and then release it on the Appstore / Google Store within 2 weeks. As development progresses, I came to the decision to spread it out to 5 stages and include a simple background story explaining as to why the secret lab is being invaded. The main protagonist is a young woman called Erika, a character I’ve created during Project Wings development.

Sketches of Erika's character
Sketches of Erika’s character

At the time of posting, the game is about 80% complete. Gameplay mechanics still needed some tweaks and there are still game graphics to finish. By right Project Beam Gates should be out by end of May. I have taken measures to ensure that I don’t repeat the mistakes I made with Project Wings.

If you wish to keep up to date on my game devs, be sure to follow me on Twitter or like my Facebook page. I’m definitely a lot more active on Twitter.