A quick update on what I've been doing while on vacation, since it's 3 AM in my time zone, I can't fall asleep, and I have been working for a couple hours.
The changelog will be updated very shortly, as soon as my Google Drive syncs all the game files in a low data zone. (Still working with no WiFi in this house)
I've taken what time I haven't been spending taking a break and starting with some graphical upgrades before I get into the heavy changes.
For starters, Reimu now has an original sprite, as well as all of her shots (orbs pending for a little bit). Unfortunately they are all made by yours truly, so they probably don't look as good as they could, but I think it's better than seeing standard Reimu sprites for everything. These sprites were made based on the main art in the new style that I currently have, which is Reimu on the title screen.
Next up, I have incorporated a handful of particle effects which will become more numerous as I continue work in the next few days. This is surprisingly my first time working with them, as I've been using sprites and objects for them for some dumb reason up until now. The new particle effects as of this post are shot deletion effects, enemy and boss explosions, and graze. (I may be forgetting one or two...) Soon to be added are the weather effects in the first stage, delay clouds, laser particles, and some other miscellaneous effects.
Another small graphical change (particularly for Rika and Magic Stones, which is the only other boss to not have spell cards) is that I will be including on the boss' healthbar a little blue mark instead of changing the color of the second part of the bar to avoid confusion in thinking that this attack was a spell card.
Finally, I would like to announce a shift in how danmaku and stage patterns will be handled from now on. It's been brought to my attention something that I haven't been really paying attention to, even though it's something I should be making a priority. Up until now, I have been trying to make patterns that are extremely similar to the ones from the original game, with a few things added here and there to add flavor to some boring patterns. What I should have been doing from the start is using the original patterns as a base and flexing my creative muscle a bit by making the patterns more differentiated. This will be evident in the next balance release (for balance testers) and the trial version when that is eventually released.
Speaking of, I'm setting a goal for myself to finish the trial version by the end of July or early August at the very latest. Ideally I will be able to finish the game by the 20th anniversary of SoEW but realistically that may not happen. It all depends on how often I can work this summer and how much time I have at my disposal. Stages (and potentially bosses) can be finished relatively quickly but if I'm making big changes to my engine that could be slowed, thanks to the necessity to change each individual object. Nevertheless, I think it was important to give a quick update since when I was receiving a lot of these posts I was not able to communicate very effectively.
Thank you all so far for checking out my project and being patient with me! More details as soon as they arrive.
(Quick note to A_Bro and Tyrz, since you're awaiting details from me, PMs will be delivered asap. Just so you know)
