Devlog #2 - Cats, Camera, Action!

After a number of difficult design decisions, we have settled upon a creative vision that we can use to work towards completing Cat Island's Alpha. At this stage in Pre-Alpha, we need to get all of the core mechanics of the game— cats, photography, items, et cetera— integrated together as quickly as possible so that we can start fine-tuning these mechanics later. As the art and audio teams work independently to create and rig the assets needed, the programming team is creating prototypes of the proposed mechanics in a slightly more refined way than in Game Jam #2.

A major theme of our team meetings has been the problem of integration. As discussed in Devlog #1, integration has been a struggle for our team in the past, so we have been working to make sure everyone on the team is up to speed regarding Git version control.

Organisation has also been a theme. As all the departments will often be working separately and may not be communicating regularly, we have set up a spreadsheet where team members can request assets from other departments, and individuals can claim said tasks. We are also looking into creating a centralised task board with micro deadlines to keep us on track. 

With our Proof of Concept now complete, all there is to do is keep working. Progress is strong, but we must remember that at this early stage of production, almost anything can (and should) if it's not coming together. Alpha is for mechanics, not content.

Completed in Week 4:

Programming

• ✅COMPLETED Basic camera and album proof of concept
• ✅COMPLETED Basic terrain-based cat navigation
• ➡️STARTED Advanced cat behaviour and treat reception
• ➡️STARTED Distinct personalities between cats

Art

• ✅COMPLETED Several cat models
• ✅COMPLETED Several environmental and structure models
• ✅COMPLETED Rigging and textures for cats
• ➡️STARTED Cat animations

Audio

• ✅COMPLETED Sound effects for player items
• ✅COMPLETED Looping soundtrack for game
• ✅COMPLETED Ambient coastal sounds

Objectives for Week 4:

Programming

• Flesh out and finish treat behaviour
• Create a standardised way to distinguish cat behaviours with numeric statistics
• Start rolling out completed assets from Art and Audio departments
• Set the groundwork for terrain and a more complex level

Art

• Complete all cat models
• Complete 2-3 animations
• Complete models for player hand and camera

Audio

• Talk with the Programming department about implementation pipelines