The Last Spire
- Solo project
- Made for the 39th GM48 48-hour game jam (2021)
- First-person 3D arcade shooter
- Made in GameMaker Studio 2
Overview
The Last Spire embodies some of my favorite things to do in game development: working under limitations and thinking up ways to create new fun visual ideas and effects.
My goal with this game was to create a 3D gamespace without any of the 3D functionality built into GameMaker to create an authentic retro look... and just for the sake of testing my skills.
I had a blast conceptualizing and building the infrastructure for this game (which could be seen as an extension of the approach I took in The Final Frontiersman)
from its multiple coordinate systems to the rendering pipeline. I love talking about how I've implemented this sort of thing, so please ask if you want to hear about it!
Lessons Learned
Don't assume it'll just work out, PLAYTEST!
Having run through most of my development time, the end of the jam saw me scrambling to implement a few last minute features without properly playtesting them all. As such, the final product ended up with a wild difficulty spike around wave 6. While I had fun developing these systems, it was disappointing to see players unable to spend much time with them due to the game's poor balancing.
Keep evaluating what adds or takes away from the experience.
Alongside the 3D effect, I also adhered to the same input limitations seen in the GBJam just for fun. While I enjoy designing under such constraints, the most consistent feedback the game received was that it would feel much better had it supported mouse controls. Such a thought never crossed my mind during development, but it serves as a reminder that what I have the most fun with as a designer doesn't necessarily result in the best player experience.
Having run through most of my development time, the end of the jam saw me scrambling to implement a few last minute features without properly playtesting them all. As such, the final product ended up with a wild difficulty spike around wave 6. While I had fun developing these systems, it was disappointing to see players unable to spend much time with them due to the game's poor balancing.
Keep evaluating what adds or takes away from the experience.
Alongside the 3D effect, I also adhered to the same input limitations seen in the GBJam just for fun. While I enjoy designing under such constraints, the most consistent feedback the game received was that it would feel much better had it supported mouse controls. Such a thought never crossed my mind during development, but it serves as a reminder that what I have the most fun with as a designer doesn't necessarily result in the best player experience.