independent development

Cally’s Caves 3 Free Expansion “Melvin’s Prototype Factory” Coming Next Week!

~ callyscaves ~ 4 Comments

After a busy couple of months, we’ve just submitted a huge new content update for Cally’s Caves 3, “Melvin’s Prototype Factory.”  The update should be out for iOS and Android next week.

Screenshot 2015-09-28 18.32.27

This is the biggest update we’ve ever done for a game, and will include a bunch of new features:
Screenshot 2015-09-26 16.46.53

Massive New Zone:
We’ve added a whole new 34-level zone, with all-new art, a fully functional map and lots of Checkpoints.

Screenshot 2015-10-05 14.52.33(2)

New Weapons: 3 new weapons and their final forms can be found in the new Levels!  Try using the power of the Slimes for your own benefit with the Slimegun, trap enemies and prevent them from hurting you with the Web Shooters, or use the Bow and Arrow from Cally’s Caves 2 to pepper enemies with arrows.  All of the new weapons have 4 evolution tiers, and can be used throughout all of the other game modes.

Screenshot 2015-10-02 12.23.41

New Enemies: Melvin has been creating bosses in his prototype lab for years, and to destroy him, you’ll have to defeat them all!  5 new enemy classes with unique behaviors mix up the combat and test your skills.

Screenshot 2015-10-01 13.52.25

Beyond all of the new content, we will have a ton of bug fixes and optimizations including the following:

iOS

  • fixed issue where Final Bladegun isn’t being awarded for beating Survival Mode
  • fixed issue where Bera would sometimes transform into Cally in “Bera: the Long Way Home”

Android

  • greatly reduced frequency of video ads
  • fixed missing Sniper Rifle issue – find it in level 101
  • fixed rating message in pause menu
  • fixed several small resolution bugs
  • several new tracks on the soundtrack

We are also happy to announce that the expansion is totally free and is not an in-app purchase or anything like that.  We wanted to find a way to thank all the people that have downloaded and supported Cally’s Caves 3.  We will have at least one more free expansion out before Christmas, and an announcement of our next project shortly after.

melvinszone

Cally’s Caves 2 Development Blog #8 – More on Level Design in a 2D game

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We already posted on some of the thoughts behind the level design in Cally’s Caves 2 a while ago.  In the time since that blog came out we’ve made a number of crucial decisions regarding how the levels will be laid out.  Also, the overall level design is such an important part of developing a 2D game that we figured it would be worth another post to discuss some of the decisions we’ve made.  We’ve already written about how we approach tutorials, the smaller level sizes, and increasing density of objects in a level, so this time we are going to focus on the smaller things that go into making a level for Cally’s Caves 2.

cally and big bear

Hazards 

A good 2D platformer should always be fun to run and jump around in.  Player movement mechanics are incredibly important, and part of developing player movement is figuring out how the player’s interaction with the environment works.  If the player stands on a brick block, they shouldn’t fall through it.  If the player runs into a wall, horizontal movement should stop.  Basic stuff, right?  But if that’s all there is to the game, it might get a bit boring after a while (although plenty of games don’t, and are awesome).  Introducing hazards allows a designer to inject some danger into a level design, which helps keep the player on their toes.  It also increases the reward value for a player when they beat a level.  Would a player feel more satisfaction if they ran down a level that was designed like a hallway, or if they navigated through a maze-like level filled with spikes and lava pits?  We believe the latter provides more opportunity for player satisfaction, although there isn’t an objectively correct answer.

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