Options Completed; Next, Story

I finally put the last finishing touches on the options today.  The script for the story is in place and that will be next.  Hopefully that will be done before the end of the month.

In the meantime, I might work on the enemy.  I'm still not exactly sure what I'm going to do - any ideas?

One more thing - does anyone want a new updated beta?  I haven't released one in a long time, and perhaps this one could be public.

The completed in-game options menu:

Control Tweak

I'm tweaking the control scheme - q will now switch the active item and e will activate an inventory type screen where you can see how many glowsticks and matches you have.

So short I could almost post it on Twitter.

Minor Changes

Today I tweaked a lot of the minor gameplay mechanics.  The lantern will no longer run out of fuel in the first area (still debating this - it might be better if it did) and you can run for a longer duration and with less of an interval.

The arm is now textured and in 3D.  It looks really nice in my opinion.

Any Maize-related questions?

Versions of Maze

I've been thinking recently about the length of the maze and the time needed to complete it.  As of now, the maze is huge and takes 30-40+ min to complete even for the person who designed it (me)!  I fear that it may be too much for the attention span of the average player.

What do you think of a shortened version of the maze accessible in an alternate game mode?  Here's what I think it might look like:

This "quick play" mode would feature the same core gameplay elements with a shortened maze.  I definitely think it would increase the playability of Maize overall.  Thoughts on this?

First update of the summer

Summer has finally started, and that will definitely mean Maize will progress much faster.  Barring misfortune, I expect Maize to be released this summer, possibly within a month or so.
Here's a screenshot of the in-game story objects:

I've settled on a draft for the story and the voice recording should take place pretty soon.

I've also done a lot of optimization; the game should tun a lot faster now.

All in all, progress is good.

To the readers:

Does anyone have any questions about anything related to Maize?  I guess I could do a sort of "Q-A" session.  Ask away!

As far as progress goes, I've been working out the technical aspects of the story these last few days.  I overcame an especially tricky bug this evening.  (Unity Quaternions are irritating.)

Here's a quick screenshot:

Another story promo

Here's another screenshot of the story objects.  I'll be recording the voices soon.

Unfortunately, you won't find the real sounds in any beta builds.  It wouldn't be nearly as terrifying, then!  You'll have to wait until the release.

Story!

Sorry I haven't posted in so long!  I've been busy this week.  I have, however, done a lot of modeling (specifically the items that take part in the story) and writing for the story of the game.  Progress is good, and with summer quickly approaching I'll be able to work on Maize more than ever.  I have the jist of the story down and as I speak I'm writing the specifics.  Later today/tomorrow I'll try to have some promos out for the objects I finished this weekend.

About the Kickstarter, that is all TBD.  Still no idea when I'm going to try that.  Any comments/questions about it?

Question for the readers:

I finished cutting the paths in the maze today (they are a lot better now) and need a new task to start on. I figured I'd ask you, faithful readers, for some input: what do you want to see most in the next Maize beta?

Could be something along the lines of
-Match item hand images
-A start on the enemy
-Start on the story
-More in-maze objects and pickups
(Or whatever else you can think of.)

Quick Update - Maze Paths

This weekend has been a little busy, so I've only had a little bit to work on Maize, but I figured I might as well update you all.
Today I filled in all of the paths of the maze.  If you've played one of the betas (which will go semi-public alongside the Kickstarter, open to donators) you may have noticed the paths did not collide perfectly.  Redoing the paths more carefully should fix that, so expect that to be fixed in the next beta.
Speaking of which, I plan on starting the Kickstarter pretty soon (although I've ben saying that for a while now).

So yeah, it's going well.  I'll try to update more this coming week, but it may be difficult with Driver's Ed.  Stay tuned.

Driver's Ed/GUI Promo

So I started Driver's Ed today.  Good, except the fact that the class runs until 7 PM after school every day for the next three weeks and that means I'm pretty much swamped with other non-Maize obligations.  That, unfortunately, means I might be a bit occupied for the next few weeks and won't update as frequently :(

Good news: this blog is really gaining popularity, and that's awesome.  Please don't hesitate to share this with your long-lost relatives on Facebook/G+/Twitter/whatever.

Maize is coming along very well.  The hand, GUI, and pause menu are coming along very nicely, and I think I'll have those done sooner than I expected.  To celebrate, here's a sneak preview of them:

Can't wait for these three weeks of occupation to be over.  But don't worry, I'll keep you guys updated.

Hands and Enemies

Today I've been working on the GUI hands that will appear in the game.  They're coming along very well so far.  Those should be done in, maybe, a week.

Another thought: after this is finished, I'll move on to working on the enemy.  Even after three months, I'm a little unsure as to what exactly the enemy will be.  The good people of reddit gave me some great ideas; feel free to show them up and leave some ideas in the comments.

So yeah, all is well.  I might be a little slow to update next week as state standardized tests approach, but I'll do the best I can.

Pause Menu

Finally finished the pause menu!  So far so good.  One step closer to the ultimate goal of the Kickstarter.

I'm also really glad the blog's gaining popularity.  Keep on sharing!  The more people that visit the better, of course.

Bugs

So there's this bug I've been battling for the last week.  Turns out it's a Unity editor only bug.  (Screen.lockCursor for any Unity users out there.) Whoops.

Since it's conquered, however, I'm finishing with the pause/main menu screens.  Up next is the game GUI.

When I finish with either I'll be sure to post screenshots!

Main Menu

Finally, after several squished bugs and a couple hours of hard work, I present to you...  the main menu!

GUI! Menus! Kickstarters!

Yesterday I spent about 8 hours designing the main menu of the game.  Next beta release it will be functional, and I'll release a promo later today.
This is rather monumental; after this, the only thing left before I start the Kickstarter is the GUI, and that should be relatively easy.

Right now I'm trying to gauge a realistic goal amount for the Kickstarter; if you could, what would you donate?  Of course, there would be very nice rewards for each donor  : )
(I'm also considering breaking it into several phases.)

For now, though, I'm stranded at school...

Kiosk Promo

Finally finished the mini-project I've been working on the last few days.  New kiosk!

The Kickstarter is ever approaching; I only have a couple more things on my 'countdown' list.  Next up is a GUI.

To quote an older post newer readers may have missed:

"The funds could cover software/model costs as well as iPhone and Android Unity licenses.  That means there could potentially be a Maize app for both smartphones!" (And, now, potentially the Ouya.  What do you all think of that?)

"$1,000 would cover everything above; $1,500 more could buy a Unity Pro license; $3,000 more would buy iPhone and Android Pro licenses.

And any backers would get access to awesome Maize beta builds as well as other rewards. :)"

EDIT:  Whoops, sorry about that formatting problem.

Promo - Lanterns!

Maize is still steadily progressing.  In celebration of spring (and why not), here's a new promo.

Lanterns!

Spring Break

Leaving for a spring break vacation tomorrow.  Unfortunately for you guys, that means no updates for a week.  On the bright side, I have some really cool stuff in development now and the maze paths are finally finished!  I'll keep you posted about that when I get back.

Just a little update

Just thought I'd give you guys an update.  Right now I'm continuing to cut paths in the maze.  Almost done with that; I made it nice and next to impossible to navigate.
To celebrate this, have a promo.
Notice the new dirt texture?