Esoteric Update #251 - There's Something In The Walls?

There's not much new to report today, and that's mostly because the bulk of the work happens to be of the behind the scenes nature. But let's talk about it for a bit.

So firstly, about the more visual things... the map is ready, and I'm also working on a positioning system to signal where certain sounds or sights are coming. Now, if you've seen the version that I posted on Discord, this one is a bit different. And that's just because I've been working on the system still. This is likely closer to the finished version of what it will look like, but it's also still subject to change.

(Sound clue coming from behind a wall before the entire map is explored.)

Secondly, we have a full write-up of what happens in this location. This includes an overview of each room, an explanation of what can be found inside, and a number of problems for the player to solve, including one that is more significant and moves about on its own (yes, we'll be having a monster here). The problems we're introducing focus on a few aspects that are best for the game, we feel, including such aspects as:

• Information discernment/noise filtering (figuring out what matters and what doesn't);
• Logical thinking/common sense (we've tried to mostly avoid very game-like logic instead trying to give everything a legitimate reason to be where it is);
• Freeform exploration/procedural generation (while the map is set, there are many ways to explore it, and the problems use certain items placed in different spots, depending on the initial setup).

I've mostly cleared the details with people, but I want to review the write-up once more, clean it up and present it to people. Now, we'll implement all of it into the game over Christmas.

Speaking of, I likely want to take a week off to spend with my family, but I'm not sure about the details; I think I'll just put it like this: the next update is on 01.01.24. I'll figure out the family situation along the way.