It's a bit maddening. The way i've been making this game, the moment something is fun and starts to work... I take it out of the game. I am constantly iterating on the things that are bad and broken. But this is how we make the game better.

I THINK we are on the precipice of starting to add things to the game. The entire design paradigm will be inverted, we will seek to finally add things that are good! The game will very quickly become playable and we will add all the fun little toys.

We often find that adding new things is more of a headache than anticipated. I added some new NPC item durability mechanics, and I think they really add a lot to the game. If an enemy has a shield. you do far less damage to them from the front... UNLESS YOU BREAK THEIR SHIELD! I have a lot of tuning to do, but attacks will cause item damage to NPCs. Once a piece of armor breaks the enemy takes more damage, if you break their weapon they will retreat.

Projectiles behave differently, you can target the piece of armor you want to destroy, if you line up yoru shot properly you can hit  multiple pieces of armor and deal damage to the enemy. BUT shields will eat the projectile, so you have to be a bit more strategic with those.

Here's a little clip of the new system in action:

It still a bit wonky, I just got it in yesterday, but hopefully it looks kinda cool. In fact, just recording this video I realize that I need to ensure enemies agro when you shoot their items with sniper bolts!

I've happy with how all these systems work in tandem to make fighting enemies interesting. I feel as though I am creating a new and fun version of old school item mechanics. Instead of all these various #'s that enhance crit chance and damage and attack speed which are all really over done, i've got a lot of mechanics that work in real time, like movement speed while charging, how fast you can eat enemy armor durability, how fast you regen when you stay still, damage reflection, how fast your charge attacks charge up, etc. I think we're on the path of creating a fun, unique experience that isn't as prone to cookie cutter builds, and allows for just as much depth and fun, if not more so (that's the point of all these late nights), we're only clocking in at around 6 hours a day lately, but those are a solid 6 hours!

I've talked in the past how I'd been looking for my "goomba" that one well tuned fish that exemplifies fun. Well I don't think I found a goomba per say, but I do feel as though I have discovered the systems and setups that makes enemies fun, and not just 1! I think there are a lot of quality combat and spawn systems here, more than enough to make the fighting interesting, in fact, if anything. I need to dial things back and simplify things out of the gate. It's a good problem to have.

I'm always looking ahead too much, worrying too much of the game finally becoming successful, about finally getting a damned win. But this tends to just make me miserable, as I stop thinking about how to make the game better and instead obsess about the world that is out of my control. The only thing I can do is bust my ass to make the game better, everything outside of that is distraction.

I'm not happy with how items and bonuses are displayed, I want to revamp the system, but I also really hate dealing with this system because I didn't set it up well and I'm worried if I open it up I'm going to want to revamp the whole damned thing.

I think i'm going to compromise on just adjusting some core things. Try to improve the existing system just a bit. I need to figure out how I can display more upgrades, but upgrade tooltips need to be large enough that the player can read their descriptions and see how much bonus they apply. It's a pain trying to make an ARPG roguelike with compelling mechanics without any interactive UI.

One idea I had is when the player looks directly upwards (which brings up the UI) they could look at a specific item. Like if you looked up and to the left, it would bring up your weapon stats and the  bonuses on it. If you look up and to the right it could be your ring, and if you look directly in the middle it would bring up your armor and the bonuses it has. BUT! There are going to be tons of bonuses and upgrades that do not exist on your armor that you can purchase or find as bonuses in the game. So this kinda invalidates that bit of polish.

I don't know what the answer is, I honestly haven't thought about it too much. Maybe the answer is to just polish what exists. Make a few adjustments to the UI, make certain panels smaller, some larger, and make some nice looking icons for weapons, armor, rings, etc. I DUNNO!

Think i'm going to take a nice long shower and listen to some ambient music and just think about it after I generate some items and remind myself why the current system is so broken.

Pulled in so many directions as ever. All these damned hats are really weighing me down... but at the same time, if you want something done right, you do it yourself! The only way to get this sort of cohesion across so many game systems is to be intimately tied to the project. At least that's what I tell myself so i'm able to churn through all this drudgery.

Overall, really excited for everything finally coming online, but tempered by the weight of this crazy world and all that needs doing on the project.

I keep saying "it doesn' t matter what I get done tonight, so long as we get work done." and now I find myself pulled in many many directions. I need to start checking things off the list. I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed with all the things that need doing.

And in the back of my head I keep wondering... What's it all matter anyway? This world is corrupt and stupid, why even try? Not sure what else to do. Wish we lived in a world where you saw an enthusiasm to make good games, to find hard working teams and support them. It's pretty debilitating, just working endlessly as life passes by... but focusing on this does no good.

Just a bit further to go before the game shows its promise. We'll worry about getting the game out there and turning heads when the game is worth playing. No one ever said gamedev would be easy, shame the world's become so divided and insane on top of this already trying journey.