Games HEUSS - 2D medieval action game about fast and brutal combat!

Hey! I'm a solo developer working on a medieval action game (HEUSS!) inspired by One Finger Death Punch.



I started development about 7 months ago on youtube where I show
the whole process of creation in detailed devlogs.

I try to make them as entertaining and educationnal as possible!

I go pretty in depth in all aspects of video game development
like game design, code implementation, 3D modelling, animations, etc..



My goal with this youtube channel is to record the evolution
of my project until it gets released early next year.

So, if that sounds like something that would interest you, come get a look!

Here's my latest devlog

Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

PS: I'll be updating this thread everytime I release a new devlog, so keep on the lookout!

UPDATE #2: New Environment (Sketching)
UPDATE #3 : New Environment (Coloring)
UPDATE #4 : New Environment (Shading)
UPDATE #5 : New Environment (Finalizing)
UPDATE #6 : Parallax Effect
UPDATE #7 : Infinite Environment
UPDATE #8 : Depth of Field
UPDATE #9 : Outline Effect
UPDATE #10 : New Combat UI (Design)
UPDATE #11 : New Combat UI (Overhaul)
UPDATE #12 : New Combat UI (Implementation)
UPDATE #13 : What's next for 2020?
UPDATE #14 : Arrow Deflect
UPDATE #15 : Character Ragdoll
UPDATE #16 : Death Animations
UPDATE #17 : Weapon Physics
UPDATE #18 : Dismemberment


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Nice thread, really loved your last dev log and the work that you put in it... But I have a question regarding the camera system, you have a parrallax effect, but the camera seem to render your models in orthographic? What settings are you using ? Good job, excited to see more soon !

 

Nice work so far! Awesome scroll artwork, and I love your Manic Arts logo. Was it supposed to be Manic or Maniac? Just curious. Either way that face is awesome.

 

Thx! I'm using a 3 camera setup. A perspective camera that renders the environment in the front. An orthographic camera that renders gameplay in the middle (3d models and everything). And another perspective camera that renders the background. This blends my parralax effect with my models, creating this sweet 2D look

 

Thanks man! I tried a lot of variants with the name (maniac was one of them), but I settled for manic in the end as it rolled better in the mouth when saying it! I'm glad you love the face, because expect it to see it everywhere when the game is released lul

 

It's been a while, but I just released my eighth devlog!

From now on, i'll be uploading a new devlog every week on mondays - so expect more content in the future!

In this episode, I sketch the foundation of my new 2D environment.





Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my ninth devlog!

In this episode, I add colors to my new 2D environment.




Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my tenth devlog!

In this episode, I shade my new 2D environment.




Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Great artwork! Can't wait to see it in action with all the 3D effect imitation

 

Oh boi! Me as well lol

 

Just released my eleventh devlog!

In this episode, I finalize my new 2D environment.




Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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i wanna see brutal gore effects together with your brutal combat.
"edit"
why not use 2d animations instead of 3d . it would better fit the environment work in my opninion.

 

Blood and gore is coming soon! And to answer your question, I use 3D models for multiple reasons.

Firstly, it's to better differentiate the enemies from the environment - I don't want them to blend in when the player needs to identify the threat quickly.

Secondly, it saves me a lot of time on animating as I don't need to draw every frame of an animation (I didn't want to use spline either). It also allows me to iterate quickly on any given animation to get a feel for it in-game.

Thirdly, all my animations are universal between enemies. I just need to swap the model when creating a new enemy and my character is already animated (for the most part - it's a big time saver!). If I did 2D, i'd need to redraw all the animations every time I made a new one.

Fourthly, I want to add wound decals when enemies get hit. If I go 2D, I'd need to create new sets of animation sprites just for that. Also because of the gore, I'll have multiple models of the same enemy to showcase the mutilation - some will be cut in half, others will have missing limbs and huge gaping wounds, etc... So if I use 2D with ragdoll animations added into the mix - well, you know the jist by now

The 3D models I'll use in the final game will have hand painted textures to better fit the style of the environment.
A little visual hack to bridge the gap between 2D and 3D!
Something resembling this:

Hope it answered your question!

 

Just released my twelfth devlog!

In this episode, I Implement my 2D environment into the game.




Here's some PARALLAX scrolling!



Here's the PARALLAX in action!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my thirteenth devlog!

In this episode, I transform my scenery into an infinite environment.




Here's a look at the self-repeating system!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my fourteenth devlog!

In this episode, I add a depth of field effect to improve the readability of my game.




NO depth of field!



WITH depth of field and contrast!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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These screen jumps makes a bit feel ill.
I wouldn't be able to play more than few min at most.
Somehow very uncomfortable.

Very first examples were much more pleasant, as there wasn't that much jumping stuff.

Now you have not only characters, but background. And each at different speed / jump step, to represent depth.

 

Next week I'll implement camera smoothing. There won't be this ''jump'' effect anymore during combat. I'll release the devlog in question on monday (18th of november), so let me know afterwards if the problem still persists for you! Thanks for the feedback!

 

As we all say, this is a "WIP", but concept and direction looks very good, biggest thing i see is its time to get rid of the "base models" and introduce some solid looking models that conform to the background/base of the game.

I see with your new updates that the BG is new, time for the main characters to take form of something recognizeable.

 

I still have a few features I need to implement before updating the models, but they are definitly next on the list!

 

Just released my fifteenth devlog!

In this episode, I add an outline shader to my 3D models, mountain fog in the distance and improvements to the smoothness of the camera.




Outline effect, mountain fog and camera smoothing all in one!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my sixteenth devlog!

In this episode, I start to update my combat UI by creating new 2D assets.



The hilt divided into multiple PARTS!



The hilt as a WHOLE with first color pass!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Looks cool. Thanks for going into so much detail! Good luck with your project

 

Thanks for the kind words!

 

Just released my seventeenth devlog!

In this episode, I need to overhaul my original UI concept to fix some unforeseen issues.



The NEW hilt!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my eighteenth devlog!

In this episode, I implement my new combat UI inside unity.



Combat with the NEW UI!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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just wanted to leave a comment from a beginner: great art style in video telling. i love it, keep up the great work!

 

Thanks a lot! Will do!

 

Just released my nineteenth devlog!

In this episode, I recap the updates I made to the game over the holiday break
and I introduce you to a roadmap of what 2020 has in store for Heuss.



Some gameplay with all the new UPDATES!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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I see you have smoothed out camera motion.
This feels much better.
At least makes me less sick by looking at screen jumps
Probably by playing, is different experience, than by just watching.
Great artwork indeed.

 

I'm glad I've quenched your urges to puke - I'll have a demo later this year, that will be the true test!

 

i have my doubts about the moving ui with the player.
it takes so much space and attention while watching the video/playing.
i would go as minimalistic as possible and use particle effects and indicators on the player character instead imo

 

I'm not planning to change this aspect of the game (not right now at least). For having played the game extensively, the UI disappears during gameplay as most of your attention is focused on the enemies. However, I'm waiting to get the demo into your hands to make a final judgment on it.
If the feeling is shared by a substantial group of players when the demo is out, it's definitely something I'll need to look into. Thanks for the feedback

 

Just released my twentieth devlog!

In this episode, I add arrow deflects to the combat sandbox.



Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless — like water.


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my twenty-first devlog!

In this episode, I set up my first character ragdoll.



Let the BODIES hit the floor!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my twenty-second devlog!

In this episode, I create death animations for my enemies.



Here's some combat with character RAGDOLLS in action!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my twenty-third devlog!

In this episode, I implement weapon physics inside the combat sandbox.



Here's some combat with fully implemented ragdolls!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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Just released my twenty-fourth devlog!

In this episode, I add dismemberment to my death animations.



Different DISMEMBERMENT options



Here's some combat with DISMEMBERMENT!


Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Stay on the lookout for more devlogs in the future!


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