Hey, Welcome back!

My name is Jen Davalos And I'm the game designer for MARRED. We're back again with a second design blog,  this time with the added section of play test data  which will become a recurring segment in these blocks.  the right now we're going to stick with the basic framework of what's changed with; Shootin’, Lootin’, and Scootin’ Playtest Data

For this first playtest, we were only able to get 4 play testers, however they gave us valuable feedback that we can use for our next play test where we will hopefully get more testers.

By and large, the players found that the level was much too large. They also reported it getting lost in level one which is not something that we would like to have happen.  However, after discussing the results with my producer we chose to not make any level design changes until later playstests. The reason we believe that this criticism can be dissuaded by not doing anything is if we have enough props and  environment assets to make the space smaller. 

Bugs encountered

The biggest problem we are running into for this first play test was quite literally the running.  We have almost an entire movement set implemented into the Prototype however it is rather glitchy.  

 The combination of how we've implemented our walls and Floors mixed with the Advanced movement system led to us dropping out of the world several times or phasing through walls. Currently, no design changes need to be made however our program or Josh is working on a fix.

Playtest conclusions

For the next playtest I hope primarily to get a lot more play testers. Next, I also hope to have more art assets involved  

Shootin’

  Texture Test by Tyler Lazzareschi 

 The largest thing we've changed in terms of design for the nail gun is that we've altered the reload animation.  Originally the nail gun was supposed to have a fully detachable magazine like a standard pistol or SMG,  however after talking it over with some of my teammates, we decided to transition the nail gun to be more of a clip fed gun. It would function closer to M1 Garand or Mosin Nagant where is the clip of nails would be fed to an internal magazine ( seen on the right side of the picture)

On top of visual changes, We have decided to change the weapon placement locations on each of the levels. This will be discussed further in the level design section. 

Lootin’

There were no design changes to looting this Sprint.

Scootin’

How has movement changed after our first round of feedback? Beside the round of repairs we need to make so that the player does not click through walls and Floors.  I have considered expanding the advanced movement section of the player controller.  the goal of MARRED  is to be a fast-paced  movement shooter. One of the most common Perceptions in the first-person shooter genre of a movement shooter is Titanfall.  now, not to take a page out of their book,  or rather a book out of their Library;  I've been considering adding wall running to the game. No concrete design decisions have been made yet,  but having while running would be able to add a level of verticality to  gameplay as well as give the player a way to retain their verticality for a longer amount of time. 

Visuals

I'm happy to report that after conducting a test with both of the team's modelers,  that we will be able to pursue a retro/ PSX graphics style. I didn't want to move forward with texturing the way that CAGD students have learned to texture  because I feel like it would not give the game a personality of its own.  However, after conducting some tests I found that both of my modelers are capable of doing this retro-style texturing to certain degrees.

Texture Test By Payton Fuller

Level Design

 Recently, we have made the design decision to add 3 new Mini levels to the game. The reason for this is twofold; Firstly, our local designers are working fast enough to the point where they Are finishing  annotated maps and blockouts at a pace that the rest of the team can't keep up with. Secondly, MARRED  is a fast-paced game,  and players will be going through the game at a high-speed. In order to facilitate a long enough period of gameplay, There needs to be enough content for them to get through. 

The main difference between A levels and B levels is the amount of time it would take to get through them without any enemies. A levels also come with an added bonus of being able to teach the player a mechanic in a simpler setting before they go on to practice it in the next B level.

Side by side: Level 2a (2 min) and HALF of level 2b (5-8 min)

Weapon Placement

Because of the addition of the three mini levels,  we want to give you a player proper time to use all of the new weapons that they pick up.  We noticed a discrepancy in weapon placement. When the player would pick up the railgun near the end of level 3(b),  they would only really have a grand total of 5 minutes of use of it until the game was over. We decided to re Scrabble the weapon placement for is that and every other weapon so that they would have a proper amount of time to play with the weapon until they found their next toy. We have yet to implement this in play; however,  I'm confident that is the right choice.  If we are introducing mechanics to players before they get to use them to their full potential,  then we should keep that same energy for weapons. 

Railgun model

Conclusion

We're completing Sprint 3 in a week and the reality of being halfway done with development is not lost on me.  It's a dormant fear that slowly awoke and still only torments me in the late hours of the night and early morning. It has yet to consume my daily life, however I fear that it is not far off. 

But that's not to say I'm not confident in my team.  I'm very confident that myself and my team will be able to pull through this and make a great game. I just need to be realistic so I don't get caught up in A blissful fever of thinking “Oh the game’s not out until late December, and it’s barely even October! TeeHee! “

I'll catch you in another couple of weeks after our second round playtests, scope changes, and further developments of some concerning caffeine habits.

See ya! Jen Davalos Game Designer