Hey all!

Somehow we've ended up in the sixth week already. Time really flies, huh? By the end of this week we want a nice demo of our game with a bunch of the art assets implemented. Speaking of art assets, a lot of exciting stuff (and less exciting but important stuff) has been added:

Character improvements

Jackie is slowly but surely transforming into a full-fledged character. This week, the retopo was finished (although we underestimated the time this would consume quite a bit). The unwrap was also done, and with these tasks out of the way, some animations could finally be added!

Since none of us has previous animation experience, it was quite difficult to figure out how to do this. There was a rig that was made in CC4 on which animations were added from mixamo. These rigs had to be synchronised, and there were a lot of issues. Some bones did not match up etc. so all this had to be adjusted manually. Luckily, with some outside help, everything was figured out and now we proudly present one of the animations so far:

Events, the sequel

We've finished implementing all the "game events" into our game!

Pillars!
The pillars have returned! Using the same logic as before, a predetermined set of pillars will spawn at fixed locations causing a distortion in the balls path! (pillars location is subject to change :) )

The mesh and textures of the pillar are fully completed. Only color correction may be needed in the future, but otherwise, this part is finished. 

Ice floor!

We've also developed the ice floor event. We've created a floor that will overlay the arena when the event starts. Both the texture and the floor itself are ready for implementation in the game.

Zap!
The lightning puddles have returned! Just like before, they spawn within the extent of the "Lightning box" (half black/purple box in the gif).
For some reason some of the puddles still spawn outside of it, which we will fix by the next dev log. 
Aside from that look at the zoomies :).

(the ice gif is also here, just for convenience sake, as this was already shown last week)

Stop! Parry time!
The player can parry the ball, stopping its movements! This allows the player to reposition and add an extra oomph to their attacks!
(parry timing/active window subject to change)

Health Bars!

Health Bars have returned to the game! Giving the player extra feedback how much health do you have at the moment!

Game Loop!

We have implemented full game loop, from start to finish! Now you can play complete game of dodge ball and restart after a win!

Arena!

Also, as you can see, we have tried to combine our game with the artwork we have. The result are pretty sick, you can check check them playing our new build!

Currently, our focus has been on the arena, the players, and the main mechanics of the game. Up next on the agenda are the surroundings of the arena, in-game effects, and many other elements.

See you next week! 

- Team HyperNeon+