They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so if you like reading lots of words read my posts (1, 2) on the design development of Desktop Bomberkid! Otherwise stick around and scroll down to see the latest animations for the game!
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(Click on the images to enlarge and view animations)
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Above we have some progression with the main enemies you'll find in World 3. The Pirinjas (or Nijates, I haven't made up my mind) are foes that embody the characteristics of pirates and ninjas at the same time. Specifically, they're ninja-pirate anthropomorphic shark clones from outer space. If their premise seems ridiculous, that's because they are. Following the teachings of Captain Sensei, they live by a code that includes haikus such as:
Surrounded by foes
the best way to retreat is
leave no survivors
And who could forget this one:
A surprise attack
How can it truly be one
if don't yell "Surprise!"
Their appearance and animations reinforce this basic premise: intimidating, yet absurd. They strike a fierce pose, ready to attack! Then flail their arms and move forward. It was not my intention, but they characters are... adorable. I feel bad about blowing them to smithereens and kicking them in the face! <3 In version 2 (the right gif above), you can see the middle enemy looks a bit more shark-ish. But I didn't have the room to slap the headband on anymore; the one pirate accessory to go along with their ninja outfits. But a good friend I was talking to during a Skype call gave me an edit that I was able to go off of!
I'm pretty satisfied with these guys, so I set out to work on another Pirinja. Before I go into detail, check out the gif. Just wait for it.
Based on the fabled art of disguise that ninjas are so good at, I created this... "threat". If you look closely, you can see some movement under the sheet the Pirinja is hiding under. The pattern on the block is also unlike the others. This is all to say that it's not very noticeable - which I cannot determine is a good or a bad thing. Even if you don't notice the block is hiding a Pirinja, you should be able to dodge in time. Or maybe that's still to easy. Well this is what playtesting is for! Eventually! On to more art:
Above we have Dread Flood, one of the four bosses of the Dread Ring organization attacking Planet Bomber and leader of this particular band of Pirinjas. And the boss of World 3. He, too, follows the teachings of Captain Sensei. Since I made the other enemies more shark-like, I am in the middle of overhauling his design to make him more distinct and intimidating than his underlinings. But you won't even see him in that form for long since he transforms for the boss fight; a homage to a couple of Bomberman games that had transforming bosses.
From place holder art to giant shark man, Dread Flood saw a range of changes. I went overboard on the second one and made it way more detailed compared to my other characters. So I scaled back the details and added "arms" and legs. But I thought it looked dumb, so I made a real shark. Which also looked dumb, so I made him a buff bipedal shark. Which looked really dumb. So I'm kind of stuck on this boss, so I've moved on to other things and will revisit the issue.
The last enemy is a bouncing water thing. It wasn't moving so erratically before and I can't quite figure out what I changed in the code to cause this. But it still looks nice.
Below is some more work I have done to embody the pirate-ninja theme. I've been looking at a lot of feudal Chinese architecture. It has been difficult to mix in the pirate, but I've "spray painted" some Jolly Rogers on the wall. I'll need to figure out some more creative combination moving forward. Down there is also a blue kickable switch that opens the blue door. And that's it for now!
Below is some more work I have done to embody the pirate-ninja theme. I've been looking at a lot of feudal Chinese architecture. It has been difficult to mix in the pirate, but I've "spray painted" some Jolly Rogers on the wall. I'll need to figure out some more creative combination moving forward. Down there is also a blue kickable switch that opens the blue door. And that's it for now!