Plans for 0.2.0 based on playtests

Playtesting the first draft has revealed a lot of useful information. Suspicions about potential issues were confirmed. New issues came to light. Game breaking problems surfaced. Much needed advice was received.

I have some big plans for the next revision of this project that involve significant changes to the layout of the level while retaining the scale of the space.

Main Changes Planned for 0.2.0 

Overhaul the first and second rooms.

The goal is to streamline the player experience in these spaces and focus exclusively on teaching the player the main mechanics of the level in a clear and straightforward manner. It's also a good opportunity to make the first two areas less unrealistic in terms of architectural design. Some of the information has been removed from the rooms completely, such as the combination lock safe, which is now in a more appropriate and intriguing location where it will not distract from the tutorial. 

Change how batteries and power are used.

The initial concept for the level was downsized to reduce the scope of the project. This resulted in a disjointed power/battery progress system that did not achieve the intended result of interconnectivity and "evolution" of the space. The power/battery systems will be overhauled to better lend themselves to the intended feelings and experiences. The aim is to create a more predictable system that presents the player with easy to understand choices and consequences relating to batteries and power states. 

Condense the gameplay area.

While I wish to retain the scale of the area and overall vibe/setting that has been achieved with the block out. This change is to address an issue with puzzle areas being too separated from each other. This is an artifact of the initial project concept where a central battery hub was intended to be used to unlock/manipulate the machinery of the level to create new ways of exploring and engaging with the world. Without an effective central hub element connecting things together, the puzzle areas feel disjointed. I intend to make things more interconnected and centralized without losing the sense of scale. 

Present new objectives.

It has been pointed out that an alternative final objective would make more sense and would fit better with the gameplay path that the level presents to the player at this time. The primary objective will be changed to be more intuitive and satisfying. New power related objectives will be added. 

Add non-linearity

If there's one thing playtesting revealed, other than how unintuitive the first two rooms were, it's that players don't only enjoy overcoming a specific challenge, they also enjoy cleverly bypassing the challenge through an alternative path. This is a phenomenon I am well aware of both from running TTRPG games, and from the well known Sid Meir GDC talks. Despite knowing about the phenomenon, I didn't give players enough freedom in the initial draft of the level. I had the concern "What if they bypass all of the fun puzzles and beat the whole level without being challenged at all?", but now I realize that players will be happy to cleverly bypasses all of my tricks and traps. They will have their own genuine sense of accomplishment, one that will be even better than the satisfaction I can give them with the intended puzzles. So any time I find myself thinking "I don't want the player to be able to skip this" I'm going to take it back to basics and focus on ensuring a positive player experience. That means if a player might have the thought "It would be cool if you could get around this by doing x" I want to enable them to do that. It's not about the player having a specific experience, it's about the player having a positive experience. 

Replace the Reactor Rod Control Room Trap

This room and trap was half baked and didn't communicate clearly with the player. I hoped that playtesting would reveal what was fun about it, and it did. I got some good advice on a direction that I can take this area to be much more interesting and create more engaging gameplay. 

Make glass breakable, and change how glass is used throughout the level.

The people have spoken. It is human nature to destroy. It turns out if you present the player with throwable bricks, you'd better have destructible windows. Handing the player a brick and showing them an indestructible window is an act of breaking promises.

I am aiming to get the update done by the jam deadline.