DevBlog - Update 02 - Map Overhaul
Tags: showdev, gamedev, devjournal, development
Published: 2023-05-25 21:57:36

#Introduction

Hello and welcome back to my Development Blog about whatever I'm currently working on, which is currently the Project "The Farm".
It's been 2 weeks again, so here is the promised Blog about the Map Overhaul!

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#The Changes
When I first started working on the game it obviously didn't have any map (to be fair, it wasn't even supposed to have a character to control in it aswell).
But after finishing the Crop-System I decided that I would need a map to keep the player inside of.
But after spending so much time on StoryIdeas, a full on ItemSystem (if anyone is interested in me explaining how I did that feel free to leave a comment about it or just msg me somewhere else :) ) and a way to place any type of object I would give the Player, the time was right to make a change to the Map.

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##Tutorial
The TutorialMap was the first one I worked on and therefore had the most changes throughout the project (with a few more being planned and currently in development).

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###First Version
The first Image I would like to show here is the first Version of the Map, even before I added PlayerAnimations or even the PlayerSprite which is currently being used (and yes I drew the Character myself, there's a reason why I'm a programmer and not an Artist yet).
The most noticeable difference to the next Versions is my try of using a Shader to lead the Player through the Tutorial (which might be added in a similar way in the future).

![A picture showing the first Version of the Tutorial Map](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/e95wx2rodtqj4zkiixlf.png)

###Feature-Demo Version
The next Version of this Map is the one I used for the first official Upload on [itch.io](https://justlev1.itch.io/the-farm).
The changes leading up to this Version were that the Player finally got Animations and 2 new Boxes.
Those Boxes were placeholders for the bookReading and placing of Objects, which have been changed in the newest Version to fit the meaning better.

![A picture showing the Feature-Demo Version of the Tutorial Map](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/1ax8tl8yze5em1ozxa1v.png)

###Current Version
The current Version of the TutorialMap features changed Walls (making them connect properly to each other), new Sprites for the Chest, Book and Trade, and finally the most obvious change, *the House*.
The whole Idea of the Tutorial Area is to be the original home of the main Character, so adding this house should make a lot more sense than just a random piece of land without any meaning.
Here one could ask why even bother adding all those things into the Map and where did the FenceGate in the bottom go, but I won't give you the answer now, so stay tuned for the future DevBlogs to find out about all those things.

![A picture showing the current Version of the Tutorial Map](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/m0vz9jqar9eyx1zp718s.png)

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##Dome
Before talking about the Dome in more Details I should mention that this place is not anywhere close to being done and should be considered in a similar state to the first TutorialMap.

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###Entrance Room
When entering the Dome the Player is going to wake up in a strange unfamiliar Room in which the first Interaction with the second main Character will happen (which isn't shown yet, since I'm going to make a separate Blog about the Storyline, so check out the newest Blog about this Project).

![A picture showing the Entrance Room of the Dome](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/r3wi7kzj2m2jhlc6m5fg.png)

###First Room
This Room is currently kept extremely simple and only to the most important aspects.
The overall shape should give the impression of some type of unfamiliar structure, maybe from a different culture or even a different Planet? (*foreshadowing intensifies*)
Regardless of that there will be more than just the one Entrance on the bottom. If I'll stick with the Exit on the top or add one to the right hasn't been decided yet and I'll talk more about Room-Layouts when that has been already added to the game.


![A picture showing the First Room of the Dome](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/grspontce3dc391uqlbt.png)

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#What's next?
Since the Game is currently working and able to be played until the end of the "early-game" I will take some time to polish as much as possible to make the part as smooth and interesting as possible.
While not working on the polishing I spend most of my time writing about different ideas for the Story, ideas for new Features and so on.
If you have any ideas for anything that you would like to see in the game feel free to comment your ideas or feedback down below.
If you would want to test out the currently available FeatureDemo (which as of writing this Blog doesn't have all the mentioned new UI and Maps yet) you can download it on [itch](https://justlev1.itch.io/the-farm).
And if you would like to stay updated on this Project or on any of my future projects follow me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/JustLeviDev), where I will post about any new Blogs, Updates on itch and everything else.

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#Outro
Thank you for your time, I hope you enjoyed this short little Blog and I'll see you in the next one, have a good night.