Dev Log 3 - Beta Build

I was going to open this entry with “it’s that time of the month again”, but that carries with it connotations perhaps not quite appropriate for this dev log. The weather grows colder, our days become shorter, and we flip the calendar one month closer to the end of the year: what a perfect time to write (and for you to read) a developmental journal entry! 

So, where were we? Last time, I waxed about developing some of Eighteen Hour’s characters, namely our protagonist (she has a name now! Everyone say hello to Lenore). While character development and design is still happening, the main focus is the thing I dread most: coding. Well, kind of. It’s implementation time, which means that I get to figure out all the quirks and weird things that make Twine such a special software to work with. I’d like to think that I’m not doing anything particularly complicated in-engine, but I think Twine disagrees. As frustrating as things have been, though, I’ve been learning a //lot// about how SugarCube works and have been problem solving fairly effectively. It’s cool being able to look back on code you wrote only a week ago and realize you already know how to optimize it better!

Though my design work has slowed down considerably as I take to HTML and CSS, I’ve had a bit of code respite in the form of finally making the logo Eighteen Hours. It’s a simple piece of UI, one of the few elements Twine allows you to easily edit, but I had a fun time animating and implementing it. Something about the scribbly-esq “font” (my handwriting) sells the somber forest-y atmosphere of the game. I’d love to add some additional UI elements in this sort of style, but it’s not high up on my priority list. 

Let’s see… What else has changed? Basic artwork (character portraits, title image, some backgrounds) has been implemented. We have four music tracks, with a fifth to be added soon. More writing and paths have been developed, with even more to come. Beyond more writing, drawing, writing, composing, writing, and writing (can you sense a theme?), I will continue researching SugarCube and its quirks, hopefully having the entire “home” sequence finished by testing on Wednesday. 

Things are slowly coming together... Exciting!