LD page: https://ldjam.com/events/ludum-dare/55/circle-of-life

Itch page (with cool pets and WebGL version): https://thespinningsofa.itch.io/circle-of-life

We'd like to shared some thoughts and sneak peeks to our dev process!

Before the jam

For someone in our team it was the 2nd Ludum Dare, while for others it was the 1st jam ever.

We already were waiting for Ludum Dare two months before it started. We participated in LD53 and made a little game called Souls Delivery (unfortunatelly, we didn't stand out that time). So I, being a GD and PM, seeked for some tips, tricks and other sorcery about jams, game design, project management (т.т) and even something useful for team members.

We had quite a big team in this jam (three 2D-artists, sound- and level- desinger in single person, GD and very talented programmer), but even there some problems can appear. Everyone needs to have a role, all of us must have a single and clear vision for the game, everything must be connected and organized well.

And for the first time we nailed it almost perfectly (even though I was a bit anxious about jam before start)! You probably won't believe me, but it's possible to do a game in team with decent organization, with little to no misunderstanding, and with no conflicts between members.

Development milestones

We'd like to share some images and footage of several development milestones:

1. Concepts of chreatures and monsters His name is Pyrik. He's our favourite one.

He's a Freaking Hunter (literally, that's his name).

He's a middle-sized bad guy. Untitled. No name.

2. Magic circle

Um, that's just a test scene. Nothing to see here.

3. Auto-battler and summon animation

First auto-battler and cool summon animation!

*4. First game balance *

With some trial and error we managed to balance game to the playable state... But not on the first try 💀

Bestiary

For those who want to see all available creatures, but who cannot get all of them in-game: A Bestiary!

| Portrait | Name | Stats | Description | | -------- | ---- | ----- | ----------- | | | Ratoroo | Low HP Low ATK Low SPD | Based, has personality of chihuahua. Will bite you without hesitation. | | | Pyrik | Low HP Low ATK High SPD | Very polite, curious and silly. | | | Emo | Low HP High ATK Low SPD | Timid guy who doesn't like violence but does like to eat berries. | | | Freaking Hunter | Low HP High ATK High SPD | Acts like older brother, serious and protective. | | | Bloomba | High HP Low ATK Low SPD | Friend-shaped | | | Mr. Uptight | High HP Low ATK High SPD | Tense fella, has anger issues. | | | Kusok | High HP High ATK Low SPD | Nobody likes him. | | | Just-a-dragon | High HP High ATK High SPD | Looks wise but has not a single thought behind his eyes. |