The Rhoul (2D Game Prototypes)

I had this idea for a title called “The Rhoul” (A my invented name, as I always do, hahah). I wanted to make it using engines like GameSalad or others. Before settling on one, I tried many different engines, until eventually I ended up using Construct 2 again to develop the game.

At first, I had an idea that wasn’t really connected to that title. It involved a soldier who wasn’t the protagonist but the enemy. He would shoot at you, and you, the protagonist, were some kind of entity or sphere. The goal was basically to dodge the bullets or something like that.

When I first tried it in the GameSalad engine, I used a Matrix-style image, sprites, and things I found online. It was an attempt to make something like that, but it didn’t go very well.

After a while, I decided to remake everything in Construct 2, creating all the sprites myself. The protagonist became a radioactive green sphere, and the soldiers—who I oddly decided to turn into stickmen—had weapons and shot at you.

It was kind of a platformer, where the sphere (which is the player) could move around while the stickman soldiers attacked. The goal of that prototype—because it is just a prototype—was to survive their attacks and avoid the bullets for 70 seconds. If you reached 70 seconds, you won the prototype.

That was the first prototype. At first it was called “The Ball,” and later I renamed it “The Rhoul.”

The Construct 2 engine wouldn’t be bad if it weren’t so clunky, and if some things that should be simpler to implement and available by default were actually there. Because of that, I had to improvise, and it’s not exactly the best of the best.

Then I made a second prototype, where I added two more monsters. They were strange flying hybrids, like flying robots mixed with flesh—some kind of purple creature that slows you down. So that element was added too.

The second version was basically an evolution of the first one. However, there was something about the first version that I liked, something that the second one didn’t quite have. Because of that, I decided to keep both versions and include them together in a downloadable file where I will put the first, second, and third versions.

The third version I want to make in the Clickteam Fusion engine. It will still use the same sprites and the same sphere, but the player will have to go through a level while escaping from a stationary soldier who keeps shooting at them. There will be many bullets trying to hit you, and you’ll have to avoid them. Then there might also be a second phase where the purple creature appears and tries to slow you down, and you must avoid getting caught.

So that would be the third version, made in a different engine—Clickteam Fusion instead of Construct 2.

All three versions will be included in the downloadable file.

As for the story, there isn’t really a deep one. Basically, there are soldiers trying to defeat this radioactive sphere, which was born from some kind of moment or event. The sphere wants to eliminate other human creatures, and the soldiers are trying to save humanity. So in the game, we are basically the antagonist.

One thing I really like, even in Construct 2, is the behavior of the enemies. Yes, the sprites, movement, and everything are a bit strange, funny, and bizarre. But what I find interesting is the AI behavior. I know people might say it isn’t really intelligent, but there’s still a bit of intelligence in those soldiers, especially in how they sometimes manage to chase you, climb over things, and eventually catch you.

It’s like when you make a bot: you give it rules and instructions, and it simply tries to handle the situation as best as it can. In the same way, this bot or entity tries everything it can to catch you, even if it’s a bit difficult for it.

That idea really intrigued me, and that’s why I wanted to include it, because also if it's just a prototype, it offers really much. :)

In the Clickteam Fusion version I added a new character, a yellow stickman, and I made it so there is only one level, but it has about 4–5 phases. It’s obviously not easy — it’s quite difficult — but it’s clearly meant to be a challenge game. It’s a challenge prototype made with Clickteam Fusion, so it’s definitely much better than the Construct 2 version in terms of making what I wanted.

In Construct 2, you know already that there's an audio bug, so I couldn't put audios, but in ClickTeam Fusion I put many sounds and ambients!

I wanted this to be the third and final version, but in reality each version — the first, the second, and the third — ends up being different from the others, because each one offers different things. So in the end, I think it makes sense to try all three, because they’re still different versions.

Tags:

#other #platformer #survival #arcade #altgame #retro #adventure #action