War Elephants & Bare-Fisted Brawls: Biggest GLAD Update Yet!

Hey!

I just realized that I forgot to share an update about the latest version of my game, so I’m going to start a development journal. This will help me keep track of ideas and content for the game, especially if it starts to get some attention. Plus, I think it’ll be fun for anyone following along to see what I’ve got planned for the future.

Right now, I’m just hoping that someone downloads the game and provides feedback. I’d love to know if anyone besides my friends enjoys it. Let’s get started!

Version Highlights

Version 0.2 (Dec 14–Jan 2)

NPC System & WarElephant

• I added a whole NPC system (starting with a WarElephant!) that can charge, knockback, deal area damage, and be attacked—though it’s still missing a full death sequence. 

• I played around with AI Navmesh and Behavior Designer to make the elephant’s movements feel more realistic. (still needs some work but I am happy with it for now)

Status Effects & VFX

• Thrown weapons can apply status effects now, and I’ve got a bunch of VFX to show things like fire, stun, etc.

• There’s also a new immunity system and defendable vs. non-defendable attacks, so some attacks you can’t just block!

Combat Mechanics Tweaks

• Parry mechanics are here! They’re not perfectly balanced yet, but you can parry if you’ve got a shield (even if you’re holding another weapon).

• Bare-hands punching is in. Time to throw some fists!

• Added a knockback feature, you can test by using bare hands Heavy Attack.

• New Render Pipeline & Weapon Database

• Switched to a new render pipeline, which meant converting some materials. Everything looks a bit smoother now.

• Built out a small database for weapons so I can organize them and plan out new additions more easily.

Elephant Fun in the Debug Menu

• You can now spawn an elephant straight from the debug menu! It uses a placeholder model, but it’s hilarious in playtests.

VFX Instancing

• Fixed an issue where VFX instances were piling up instead of destroying themselves.

Playtest Notes

I’ve been having a blast testing this with some friends. Some highlights:

• They love spawning the elephant just to see how it charges around the arena.

• Punching each other when they run out of weapons has become a favorite pastime.

• Some combos feel overpowered, especially if you time your parry just right. But hey, that’s half the fun!

After a few matches, people began to feel quite competitive about the game, and some of the testers even wanted to bet on who could beat each other! Haha!

What’s Next?

• Elephant “Death” & More NPC Types 
  • Currently, the elephant remains in the arena after it has died, but I am working on a better way to handle this.
• More NPCs
  
  • I plan to add a variety of NPCs with different behaviors, but I still need to figure out how they will be integrated into the game. Perhaps players could destroy the arena to release animals, or the crowd could pay to release some animals into the battle. This aspect is still in the design phase, so I have more work to do on it.
• Add More maps
  • Different maps would give you different possibilities for weapons sets, animals, arenas, modifiears, and even a different Crowd that would interact with the battle.
• More weapon sets

  
  

  • I am considering adding additional weapon sets, such as Viking, Samurai, and Aztec, among others. This could enhance the game's replayability and allow room for many exciting mechanics I want to test.
• Proper Crowd system 
  • Currently, the crowd dynamics are based on simple randomization. I aim to develop a proper Fame system that enables players to gain crowd support and potentially receive cool weapons thrown their way.
• Shaders to see when your character is behind an obstacle 
  • (it should be there already xD)
• Avoiding a Shooter Game
  • I want to avoid turning this into a shooter game. I may test some ranged weapons, but I will likely limit the ammunition or the availability of these weapons.
• More Status Effects & Refined VFX: 
  • Everyone loves crazy visuals in the arena, so I will work on adding more status effects and refining the visual effects

PLAYTESTING! One of the greatest joys I've experienced with this project is seeing people enjoy the game together. I’ve observed players who weren’t friends bonding through the game, using it as a tool to connect and get to know one another. It’s been rewarding to witness new friendships form through this project. Additionally, I've garnered many ideas from playtesters, making this process incredibly fruitful. I plan to continue playtesting as much as possible!

and for the future...

There are still many larger systems I need to create to finalize this gameplay.

•  Combo system;
  • Currently, the combo system is quite basic. It works, but not in the way I envisioned. I would like to have the option to add two-handed combos, special weapon combinations, and, of course, better animations. However, this will require some artistic refinement, which I plan to tackle after establishing most of the base systems. (References from Elden Ring / Souls games)
• Meta About Slaves:
  • This is still just an idea, but I have been considering the characters we control as being slaves—resources that you could potentially lose in battle. They would each have their own personalities and traits. (Inspired by Darkest Dungeon)

That’s it for this  update! Thanks for reading. If you have any suggestions or questions, hit me up—I’m always open to ideas!

Stay tuned for more ALEGRIA!

— Lokasta