Devlog 4

Albus: 

This week, I created the level design using my previous sketches and planning as a reference. I also got all the code in and working. The project was then ready for a playtest demo. However, there were a few issues with the GitHub, but I was able to quickly resolve the problem by creating a new branch and putting back the code. It was just an issue with the input system and after trying to fix it, I just decided to revert back to an old untouched commit and bring it all back in together.

Ashleigh: 

Within class, myself and Danni had discussed what I could do – and I had created a to do list of what needs to be drawn for the game: there were different sections which needed different drawings, for example – the facility entrance would need scattered boxes, and a small red light, and the server room (which would be one of the puzzle rooms) would need a key, and some switches. After discussions of what to do, I had created some more sketches of the background – this time with small brown details which represented rust forming upon the buildings after they stood there for so long, and moss would continue to remain on the buildings to represent the overgrown theme within the present.

Daniele: 

This week was essential to make sure that all the work, specifically the main mechanics where completed and thrown together seamlessly. Here I was frequently checking in on progress individually and ensuring everyone's work load was manageable for what was required of the build. I brought everyone together the night before and checked in with the programmers to make sure all of their work is implemented, while making sure the artists are on track towards finishing their tasks ready to start placing them in the level later on. Though unfortunately there was some merge conflicts that prevented us from adding in certain work, it was all still complete and would be shown in the final build. 

Alex and I worked on the power point together. I adding all the necessary material, Alex choosing a theme that fit a sci-fi techy look and formatting everything a bit neater. I also added a drawing using the background concepts to create a sketch of what both past and present would look like.  

Kurtis: 

This week was mostly bug fixing, but I also connected my teleporting scripts to the player controller script and added a timer into the past, where if it runs out, the player will be teleported back to the gateway they entered the past from. The player can also now enter the past through one way and leave through another, which introduced a lot of other issues that I had to fix, such as how to detect where the player had entered from and how to properly stop the timer.  

Sarah:  

With the presentation coming up next week, I focused on our last big mechanic, the inventory system. At the beginning, I was overcomplicating it a lot - I was researching complex inventory systems, looking into UI setups, scriptable objects, and management systems. However, after a discussion with the team we shifted our scope and decided to only have a single inventory slot for small items such as a key, allowing players to only hold one item at a time. This simplified both the code and our gameplay logic, while still serving our overall aim for the gameplay mechanics. 

When the simple inventory system was complete, I also added a way for the player to drop items on the ground. This was a quick enough script to implement and required only minor edits, such as tweaking the force being applied to the object as it falls so it doesn’t clip off the player. 

This was a nice week in comparison to the first couple. This style of coding was more my style than the other stuff I have completed so far, so I found it a lot more enjoyable. I didn’t have any major bugs or issues thankfully. We saved a lot of time by downscaling, and now we have a fully functioning, simple, inventory system! 

Oleksandra: 

Throughout past few weeks, I noticed that one of my teammates had issues with background art and I offered to help with it. Therefore, I made some sketches and suggestions for how it might look. I also started on some individual background elements.