Sketchbook #002 - Chapter 1 Pt.2 (Patreon)

Hello again~

It's been a bit of a slower week due to some social activities, but work is continuing to progress, with work on Episode 2-5 underway.

In the meantime, please take a gander at a few more Chapter 1 sketchbook pages!

WARNING: DEMO SPOILERS!

Turn back if you haven't finished the demo!

1-4 (1-3?)

In the previous sketchbook devlog, I mentioned 1-4 was originally 1-3. You can see here that 1-3 was originally 1-4. ...That's a bit confusing.

Before, the tumor operation was 3rd, and the hybrid kidney (pictured here) was 4th. But as it is in the demo today, the hybrid kidney actually comes before the tumors.

I felt the flow was better this way. You'd learn about the final tool (the SLED) sooner, and you'd also get a taste of how dual organic/synthetic surgeries play out.

Anyway, you can see the general layout of this operation stayed similar, with the synthetic bits appearing on the right (patient's left). The idea of the faulty implant causing high blood pressure resulting in hemorrhaging, as well as the chip replacement procedure, also survived.

The internal layout changed a bit to include more circuit-looking doodads, like capacitors. I do have to say, it does seem a little bit odd seeing "mundane"-looking components on the circuit boards inside these devices. I almost feel like they should look a bit more sci-fi. At the same time, I want the parts to be recognizable and also not clutter the device. (There was actually a far more compact version of this synthetic device that you might see later.) What do you think?

Moving on, you can also see the first sketches of what SLED programs could look like. Originally, I wanted for there to be more "official"-looking programs with sleek UIs, and more "bootleg" ones with the more console-like appearance you see in the demo. I might bring the alternate visual style back later for certain programs, but for now, it's scope creep.

The first version of the SLED was landscape, not portrait, so you can see these designs using that orientation. Shown are the VOLTAGE and MATCH programs. Their core designs remained mostly-intact.

Also visible are some 'intermediate' screens: a Cobaltric Industries splash screen (placeholder name for Kobold MediTech), general error screen, and potential "disconnected" screens (this was before Spark tacked on an additional side-screen).

I do really like making SLED program interfaces and could spend way more time than I have on them, but alas, I have the entire rest of the game to make. So they'll likely keep the simple style, for now at least.

(Fun fact: I had the idea of having a pixel-style Spark "Tamagotchi" avatar appear on the SLED while disconnected. Maybe I'll revisit that idea later!)

1-5

Dr. Larsen's arm changed quite a bit.

For starters, the exterior panels would've been exposed and there would've been twelve (!) screws. That seemed really unfun, so it was reduced to four, and synthetic skin to cut/restore was added.

The arm interior itself was a bit... uninspired? Busy? There were too many rectangles. There wasn't a clear distinction between each of the parts I wanted players to be drawn to, and too many of the items did nothing.

Those triangles would be 2x3 = 6 screws, and the rectangles 2x4 = 8 screws. On top of the 12 screws from the start... that's 26 screws! And if you have to also screw them back in, it's 42! Way too many!

So to improve this level, I decided to make each of the components more clear, separate, and not behind panels. I also made sure there was something arm/bone shaped behind everything to create a sort of anchoring effect, while making the shapes more interesting than just rectangles.

Oh, by the way, "OF" on this page stands for "Old Friend" - in other words, Spark.

The bit with the fan also changed a bit. Originally, you'd have to scrape away at the corners at Spark's suggestion, which would reveal screws underneath (the paint, I guess?). After removing the panel, you'd need to then stop the fan using the coolant trick.

Scraping would introduce a new Scalpel mechanic (i.e. places to cut that you'd need to use a bit more effort to do), but it felt out of place and I really didn't want to add even MORE screws (what is this, Satisfactory?), so this idea was scrapped.

(A slightly older screenshot - note there's no difficulty icon on the RATING UI, and the background lacks the techy circles.)

I think the final product turned out pretty nicely.

(If you must know, let's say that fan exhausts air through small openings... in Dr. Larsen's armpits? I guess that could make sense. I dunno, don't quote me on this.)