SpaceWreck - Fallout inspired isometric retro indie RPG

[Kamaz]

If you want to get rid of a character or need an item it is holding, murder is not the only option. For example, while he's not looking, you can spike his drink with sleeping pills

 

[Kamaz]

I am working on quests, so there's not much to show of that. However, here's small visual update to one of the maps:

Asteroid ore hauling rockship showing heavy damage to the bow. Tiny speckle in the middle there is you.

 

[Kamaz]

While I'm working on quests without much of a visual output, the artist is updating older assets, like this shuttle:

Previously

New shuttle

 

[Kamaz]

In two and a half minutes I try to broadly explain what this post-apocalyptic space role-playing game "Space Wreck" is all about. There are also plenty of fresh visuals in the video.

 

[Kamaz]

A very short clip from the intro sequence we've been working on. Shows you arriving to the starting location - wreck of the rock ship KURBADS.

(If you watch with sound on, you'll get a sense of atmosphere I am going for)

 

[Kamaz]

Another short animation clip from the intro movie: main protagonist (player) arrives to the wreck of the rock ship KURBADS in a small shuttle.

 

[Kamaz]

The tiniest thing, really - you can ask NPCs to move aside. However, whether they will comply - that depends on your SPEECH skill roll.

 

[Kamaz]

Sneak peek into the new ...uh....sneak peek system. Principle is simple: the better your sneak skill, the smaller NPC detection area. If you step into their FOV, roll for each tile.

TL;DR

Actually, it's the difference between your sneak skill and NPC's PERCEPTION attribute that determines the extent of the FOV field. However, when you step into the FOV, your sneak is rolled against NPC's FOCUS. Then there's also the concept of alertness - NPCs can have level of alertness and what it means is that sneak roll has to fail multiple times before NPC spots you. The less alert they are, the more forgiving they are (hence FOCUS). Also, if you are sneaking past some non-hostile humanoids, your CHARM plays a role as well - it decreases or increases NPCs alertness depending on how charming you are. If you are likable person (high CHARM), they will be more lenient, however if you are repulsive bastard (low CHARM), they'll be looking over your shoulder all the time.

 

[Hulk'O'Saurus]

Sneak peek into the new ...uh....sneak peek system. Principle is simple: the better your sneak skill, the smaller NPC detection area. If you step into their FOV, roll for each tile.

TL;DR

Actually, it's the difference between your sneak skill and NPC's PERCEPTION attribute that determines the extent of the FOV field. However, when you step into the FOV, your sneak is rolled against NPC's FOCUS. Then there's also the concept of alertness - NPCs can have level of alertness and what it means is that sneak roll has to fail multiple times before NPC spots you. The less alert they are, the more forgiving they are (hence FOCUS). Also, if you are sneaking past some non-hostile humanoids, your CHARM plays a role as well - it decreases or increases NPCs alertness depending on how charming you are. If you are likable person (high CHARM), they will be more lenient, however if you are repulsive bastard (low CHARM), they'll be looking over your shoulder all the time.

I like it.

Do you have like a demo of the game?

 

[Kamaz]

Do you have like a demo of the game?

No, not yet.

 

[Hulk'O'Saurus]

No, not yet.

Could you say that this could be played as a full-fledged game. I am a big fan of indie RPGs, practically my only real favourite genre of video games, really.

 

[Kamaz]

Major changes to the combat flow - now there are no "basic" attacks anymore - you always have to make a decision as there are multiple options with nuances. Kind of like JRPG a bit.

TL;DR

In the GIF you can see two ranged options: STEADY SHOT and QUICK SHOT. This whole combat rework stems from the combat problem in Fallout - at some point I realized that the best strategy is to run to your enemy close and then shoot her/him/it in the eyes. Max out precision and damage. While it does not take away from the enjoyment of Fallout, I decided to try to mitigate this problem in my version. That's where the STEADY SHOT and QUICK SHOT flow comes in.

STEADY SHOT is actually your base shot, without any modifiers. (At least, at the moment.) It is quite deadly if successful (a lot of damage and char HP is usually low). But the caveat is - you can use it only if you are standing still, actually, if it is your first action in the turn. As soon as you spend some AP, you cannot have STEADY SHOT that turn. You can shoot and then move, sure, but shot must come first. The logic being that you must be steady when discharging a weapon, not moving or reloading or smth.

QUICK SHOT however is available at any time, yet it is less efficient (half the precision or damage - I am working it out atm). But then, again, it costs only half the AP of a STEADY SHOT, so you could squeeze twice as many in one turn.

So, if you see an enemy, you now have the option to either shoot it from the distance or run closer to it and then attack with better hit chance. However, if you do so, your damage/precision would be significantly limited and, if you fail to land the killing shot, you will find yourself in compromised position close to the enemy who now can just take a full power/precision STEADY SHOT at you (which could kill you instantly). And then retreat with spare APs. On the other hand, if you keep your distance and try STEADY SHOT, you engage with an enemy in a firefight which - to me at least - seems a bit more realistic and interesting. That's also where your skill prowess comes in handy - if you have higher RANGED skill or/and PERCEPTION, you'll have an edge. Then, again, if you have a lot of AP and EVASION, you might still try rushing an enemy, because you could do a lot of QUICK SHOT's per turn and just overwhelm your opponent with bullets.

That's my reasoning. And that's actually the whole point I changed the system to JRPG-like combat menu. Those now offer more possibilities, not only for shots but MELEE skill as well. But more about those some other time.

 

[Kamaz]

Evasion is not exactly automatic - if you end turn with action points to spare, every 2 of them grant you a roll. Or you can use COUNTER move proactively, to be ready for an attack and retaliate on success.

 

[mobucks]

Looks neat just cam across this.

 

[Kamaz]

Looks neat just cam across this.

thanks! I am glad you did.

 

[Kamaz]

You can shove enemies, granted you have enough mass (carrying) and pass the roll. That allows for some tactical opportunities when fighting outside.

 

[Kamaz]

The lo-fi NPC portraits have become a significant part of SW's visual identity. And recently I have started to use artificially created human faces instead of real photos. For this I am using a service called https://generated.photos/use-cases and when they learned about my game, they reached out to me to learn more and later added Space Wreck to their use case section, which, I think is pretty cool for a small project this game is.
Here's excerpt that lists reasons why are we starting to do this:

It is not easy to find a suitable portrait for every character in the game, especially since we have a limited budget and cannot afford models and photo shoots. Even though we have a pool of photos to work with, sometimes you need something very specific - ethnicity, hair, age - and the right angle. That can be a big problem and the one that Generated Photos solves well - you can specify quite detailed parameters and then have a selection of consistent portraits to choose from. And another less common but important aspect is that there are times when we need to portray less than admirable characters, and then it is safer and worry-free to use artificial "actors"."

Below are some of those generated photos in game:

 

[Kamaz]

The most recent addition to the Space Wreck fleet - "Sprīdītis". With a crew of up to 12 and space for cargo, this small relay ship was usually dispatched to fix mining equipment wherever needed.

 

[Kamaz]

I am currently working on a content and thus there's less to share. However there's a tiny bit of general gameplay to show off: crit fails.

As many role playing games, Space Wreck sports dice rolls and when you roll very low, it is a critical fail. This can happen with many interactions, most common being combat, but it also can happen to your character when trying to engage in a conversation. There are two rolls - CHARM and speech. CHARM determines whether the other person is actually willing to engage you and if you fail it, it means she/he perceives you as ugly, repulsive, maybe frightening and does not want to talk to you.

You can, then, try to force conversation by speaking to him/her but that's a speech roll and if you fail it, then you cannot muster a word out of your mouth, basically you are frozen, overwhelmed by anxiety. If you have failed both of those rolls there's a third way out - take a sip of any alcohol. That'll boost your self confidence and allow you to force yourself upon the other person even if they don't want to talk to you.

Worth noting that if you have above average CHARM/speech (3+) then you'll never fail this way, these outcomes are reserved for people who sacrifice those social stats. This also may force you to look for other ways to achieve your goal.
My ultimate goal was to improve the role-playing experience, to change a little bit of your game play if you decide to have low stats.

 

[Kamaz]

Like in many RPGs, there are vents in Space Wreck. However, there's a twist - they have a size parameter attached, so you can be "too big" for that opening.

I think this adds another role playing nuance to the game - if you want to play as a tanky character with lots of HP and carry weight, you can not squeeze through the tight vents. Lighter characters, in turn, can take advantage of this - e.g. navigate around enemies, access locations, get loot.