@JasonW2810

Devlog 4 — First Combat Pass, Orbit Fang, and Room Flow

Today I worked on turning the Snack Cellar from a movement test into an actual playable dungeon.

In the last devlog, the main focus was the connected room layout and the Panic Twirl Dash.

The player could move around and test the bigger room space, but there was not really a full combat loop yet.

This time, I started building the systems that make the dungeon feel more like a real run.

I added enemies into the Snack Cellar rooms and started setting up how combat rooms should work.

Instead of enemies just appearing randomly, each room now uses a short countdown before the fight begins.

After the countdown, warning effects appear on the floor to show where enemies are about to spawn.

Then the enemies pop in with a small dust/spore effect.

This makes the room feel more fair because the player can see danger before it appears.

I also added the first main weapon system.

The weapon is called Orbit Fang.

It floats around the player while idle, then shoots out toward the player’s aim direction when attacking.

After it attacks, it snaps back and returns to orbit around the player.

I like this more than a normal sword or projectile because it feels more unique and fits the weird handmade dungeon style better.

It also makes the player feel like they have something active around them during combat instead of just shooting from nowhere.

I also worked on room clear logic.

Rooms now stay locked while enemies are alive, and once all enemies are defeated, the room clears and the player is guided toward the next doorway with a subtle arrow.

I removed my old room design and added better more unique room styles. It also functions a lot better than before.

I removed a glowing light to show the path to the new room instead of confusing players but it didnt look good and was very buggy, so instead I added an arrow which is simpler and works better as a small reminder of where to go next.

Another big change was adding real player damage.

Before, enemies could touch the player, but it did not really matter.

Now enemies can actually hurt the player and remove hearts.

I also started polishing the hit feedback so getting damaged feels more readable.

The player now has knockback, invincibility timing, and heart UI feedback instead of damage just feeling like a background number change.

I also fixed a few gameplay issues while testing.

One important bug was that Orbit Fang could disappear if it was thrown during a room transition.

Now the weapon is supposed to reset back to the player instead of getting lost between rooms.

The biggest changes today were:

• added enemies to the Snack Cellar rooms

• added a countdown before enemies spawn

• added enemy spawn warning effects

• added enemy spawn dust/spore effects

• added the Orbit Fang weapon

• made Orbit Fang orbit around the player

• made Orbit Fang attack outward and return back to the player

• made rooms lock during combat

• added room clear logic

• added subtle arrows to show the next usable doorway

• added Dungeon Complete placeholder flow for the final room

• added real enemy damage

• added heart-based health UI

• started polishing player hit feedback

• fixed a bug where Orbit Fang could disappear during room transitions

• started adding crate collision so rooms feel more solid

Next, I want to add loot explosions so defeating enemies feels more rewarding. But i might make a lot more before my next devlog like this devlog.

Devlog 3 — Player Dash + Connected Dungeon Layout

Today I worked on improving the player movement and testing how the game feels inside a bigger dungeon space.

I updated the Snack Cellar from a single room test into a more connected dungeon layout. Since the map is now using full hand-drawn room backgrounds instead of a tileset, it fits the hand drawn style much better and feels less stiff.

The goal is to eventually have customers send the player into different dungeon layouts, so I’m starting to test how connected rooms might feel early.

I also worked on the player’s dash. I didn’t want a boring generic dash, so I made it more like a Panic Twirl Dash.

The player spins forward, uses a goofy dash expression, and leaves transparent afterimages behind. I’m still tuning it because the dash needs to feel useful in bigger rooms, not just look cool.

The biggest changes today were:

• tested a connected Snack Cellar layout
• improved player scale/readability
• worked on the Panic Twirl Dash
• added stronger dash movement
• added visible afterimages
• tested the dash inside a larger room space

Next, I want to keep polishing the dash feel, then move toward the first attack or enemy so the room starts becoming playable instead of just movement testing.

Devlog 2 — Player Movement + Animation Feel

Today I added the player into the Snack Cellar room and focused only on making movement feel good.

I set up the player with separate body, shadow, and eye sprites so I can animate expressions later. I added smooth WASD movement, diagonal movement normalization, camera follow, a soft shadow, idle bobbing, walk bobbing, and basic eye changes between idle and moving.

I’m trying to make the character feel alive instead of just sliding around as a static sprite.

Next devlog, I’m going to work on the dash and make it feel snappy with stretch, eye changes, and a small trail effect.

Devlog 1 — First Dungeon Room

Today I built the first MVP dungeon room for my customer based roguelike, Dungeon Desk.

The first dungeon is called Snack Cellar. The customer request is: “My snack cellar is full of bouncy slime mushrooms, and they keep eating my lunch boxes. Please clear it out before they multiply.

”For this devlog, I focused only on making the first room visually exist in game. I made and drew the room with a simple handmade cartoon style, open combat space, chunky walls, snack crates, a lunchbox, mushrooms, slime puddles, a drain, and subtle floor details.

I also learned that I should not draw all the art at once. Instead, I’m going devlog by devlog and only making the assets needed for the next feature.

Next devlog, I’m going to work on the player base, movement feel, scale, and animation polish inside this room.