DTRH 0.0.6 kinda looks like a real game!

Just a few days short of a year since the last update, here we go again with a new pre-pre-alpha release of Down the Rabid Hole!

My focus on this iteration was to work on all those features that make a game look like a “real” game. In concrete terms, I am mainly about:

• A nicer title screen. I didn’t say “nice”, I said “nicer”! The pixel art used here still needs a few passes before it becomes acceptable (look at that featureless floor!), but I like the concept!
• Save games! You can now save your progress between stages. This isn’t very useful for now, given that the pre-pre-alpha release is pretty short, but, yes, you can now save!
• Settings screen. Almost all settings can now be changed right from the game UI, without manual edits to the config file.
• Proper input prompts when telling you how to play the game. Now you won’t see a generic instruction like “press Attack”: you’ll see a message matching the actual button or key for the device or control scheme you are using.
• Better logging, with the logs for the last 5 executions saved to files, and more through logging overall, especially for audio. Not something useful most of the time, but super handy when troubleshooting is needed.

Other than those, I implemented a number of other smaller improvements, like:

• Revamped the UI, with new colors, updated look for widgets, and more natural interactions for those playing with a keyboard or controller.
• Sawy! Sawy is your friend in the game. He’s destined to have a bigger role as the game story evolves; for now, he’ll appear sometimes giving you some support and help.
• Smart help system. OK, ok, maybe “smart” is overstating it, but the idea is that Sawy will will give you tips, and he’ll try to avoid telling you what you already know.
• Bunch of other small improvements, some of them invisible for you (e.g., more maintainable enemy AI implementation), others visible (e.g., things hit by attacks now flash in white, instead of some odd, semi-random color).

Get Down the Rabid Hole at itch.io!

See ya! Down, down, and away!