Hey guys! Krayfishkarl here and welcome to another Droplet: States of Matter update! Early access 1.30 is now available! This update gives a second pass to the layout of the Cretaceous Caldera level.
Cretaceous Caldera takes place in a muddy swamp next to a volcano. Mud is one of the main obstacles – cloud and ice forms pass through it, but water does not. You’ll also find water geysers which work similarily to whirlwinds in that they shoot you upwards if you touch them. The only catch is that water geysers are only usable in water form. You’ll have to make careful use of switching between the states of matter to successfully navigate this area. That, and watch out for the dinosaurs.
Although I graphically improved Cretaceous Caldera in a previous update, I felt it was necessary to give the level another pass to bring it up to quality standard with the rest of the game. The level’s aesthetics remain the same, but I’ve expanded it to feel more open and naturalistic. This gave the advantage of having a camera with more breathing room, allowing the player to not only better appreciate the landscape but to also get a sense of where objects in the level are located. Additionally, I designed some areas with verticality in mind. This not only makes for a more interesting, varied landscape, but it also makes use of space more efficiently in terms of modeling out the level’s geometry.
One of the other things I changed was the T. rex chase sequence. T. rex’s now function more like regular enemies as I felt the original sequence – while a neat homage to the likes of Crash Bandicoot – no longer fit within the rules established by the rest of the game. As a replacement in order to replicate the original sense of peril, I’ve designed a new enemy that the player can recognize as more dangerous than normal. You will now find ankylosaurs that not only are armored like rock but are also covered in moss and plants. It’s established that water form cannot defeat plant enemies and cloud form cannot defeat rock enemies. As such, this enemy is invincible until you manage to somehow turn into ice form in order to defeat it.
That’s all for now! And with that, thank you for following the development of Droplet: States of Matter!
Patch Notes
Gameplay
- Reworked the layout of Cretaceous Caldera with new obstacles and enemies.
- New enemy: Ankylosaurs. They are immune to both water and cloud forms.
- Relocated an artifact from Cretaceous Caldera to Particle Accelerator.
- Roses now shoot directly at the player.
- Lava geysers now destroy frozen surfaces.
- Repositioned lava geysers in Brimstone Temple.
- Certain enemies will now instantly perish when touching toxic or lava.
Graphics
- Graphical updates to Cretaceous Caldera.
- Graphical update to the T-rex, raptor, triceratops and pterodactyl.
- Graphical update to lava geysers.
Audio
- Purple plants and roses now have sound attenuation.
Text
- Updated some hints for a few levels.