Boghog's bullet hell shmup 101 - Revision history

Trilkin at 21:36, 30 April 2023

2023-04-30T21:36:33Z

Boghog at 03:05, 28 September 2022

2022-09-28T03:05:34Z

Boghog at 03:04, 28 September 2022

2022-09-28T03:04:13Z

Boghog: /* MOVEMENT & SPACE */

2022-09-21T21:30:54Z

MOVEMENT & SPACE

Boghog: /* The Play Area */

2022-09-21T21:28:45Z

The Play Area

Boghog at 21:28, 21 September 2022

2022-09-21T21:28:08Z

Boghog at 21:27, 21 September 2022

2022-09-21T21:27:41Z

Boghog at 21:27, 21 September 2022

2022-09-21T21:27:10Z

Boghog at 21:26, 21 September 2022

2022-09-21T21:26:59Z

Boghog at 21:23, 21 September 2022

2022-09-21T21:23:09Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:36, 30 April 2023
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	The idea is to give the player a simple, easy to understand game plan upfront and then let them discover additional nuances and complications at their own pace.		The idea is to give the player a simple, easy to understand game plan upfront and then let them discover additional nuances and complications at their own pace.
		+
		+	[[Category:General Guides]]

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 Compare this to '''enemy attacks in other action games''' - you don't want there to only be 1 way of dealing with them. Ideally, you want to '''give the player a range of options''', each with their own '''semi-unique pros and cons'''.
-[[File:Bh-lanes.png|frame|center|A common mistake - having patterns entirely block off huge chunks of the screen and forcing players to stay outside and either wait them out or kill enemies from weird angles.]]
+[[File:bh_lanes_small.png|frame|center|A common mistake - having patterns entirely block off huge chunks of the screen and forcing players to stay outside and either wait them out or kill enemies from weird angles.]]
 == ENEMIES ==

← Older revision		Revision as of 03:04, 28 September 2022
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	The x/y coordinates of the emitters can either be preset and unchanging (which guarantees that the patterns are clean and consistent), or they can change based on the enemy's movements (which allows you to create very dynamic and unpredictable patterns by bending and distorting the patterns).		The x/y coordinates of the emitters can either be preset and unchanging (which guarantees that the patterns are clean and consistent), or they can change based on the enemy's movements (which allows you to create very dynamic and unpredictable patterns by bending and distorting the patterns).
		+
		+	=== Lanes ===
		+
		+	When designing '''dense patterns''', thinking of them as a '''collection of "lanes"''' that players can take is very helpful.
		+
		+	Think of each lane as a '''micro-challenge''' that '''players opt into'''. They can either '''commit''' to one lane or '''move from one to another''' in real time. Additionally, the '''lanes can change over time''' and force the player to '''adapt'''. Each lane can have '''its own pros and cons''' - some might be safer but give you less damage opportunities, some might be very risky but rewarding, some might give you less space to move around, some more. Ideally, '''their properties''' will become even '''more meaningful''' when you '''combine enemy types'''. Obvious safe spots that let you quickly kill enemies can also be very rewarding.
		+
		+	Compare this to '''enemy attacks in other action games''' - you don't want there to only be 1 way of dealing with them. Ideally, you want to '''give the player a range of options''', each with their own '''semi-unique pros and cons'''.
		+
		+	[[File:Bh-lanes.png\|frame\|center\|A common mistake - having patterns entirely block off huge chunks of the screen and forcing players to stay outside and either wait them out or kill enemies from weird angles.]]

	== ENEMIES ==		== ENEMIES ==

@@ Line 19: / Line 19: @@
 === The Play Area ===
-'''This is where all the action happens'''. The play area can either be contained by the screen, or it can be wider thanks to horizontal panning seen in many vertical shmups.
+'''This is where all the action happens'''. '''The play area''' can either be '''contained by the screen''', or it can be wider thanks to '''horizontal panning''' seen in many vertical shmups.
 The size of the play area is relative to the size of the game’s objects and hitboxes.
@@ Line 35: / Line 35: @@
 For consistency’s sake, it’s best to avoid different directional movement speeds, such as the ship moving faster on the x axis than the y axis, or faster diagonal movement. Don’t forget to normalise your diagonal movement! There are some great games with faster diagonal movement like Battle Garegga and Armed Police Batrider, but they are rare.
-'''Movement inertia should be avoided entirely because it adds an unnecessary layer of lag to the movement that players have to adjust to, without adding any interesting gameplay dynamics. Even the smallest amount of acceleration will be noticeable to experienced players.
+Movement inertia should be avoided entirely because it adds an unnecessary layer of lag to the movement that players have to adjust to, without adding any interesting gameplay dynamics. Even the smallest amount of acceleration will be noticeable to experienced players.
+If your movement doesn’t “feel smooth”, then it’s most likely the result of lacklustre visuals rather than a lack of inertia. Some tricks that can make movement feel smoother - beef up your shot/rate, add an afterimage (see Symphony of the Night/Megaman ZX), match your ship’s banking animation speed to movement speed, have the ship leave trails (see Danmaku Unlimited 3), give your ship’s options (floating bits near your ship) some inertia.</sup>
 === Normal/Focus Shot ===

@@ Line 19: / Line 19: @@
 === The Play Area ===
-'''This is where all the action happens'''. The play area can either be contained by the screen, or it can be wider thanks to horizontal panning seen in many vertical shmups. The size of the play area is relative to the size of the game’s objects and hitboxes.
+'''This is where all the action happens'''. The play area can either be contained by the screen, or it can be wider thanks to horizontal panning seen in many vertical shmups.
-The tiny hitboxes of Danmaku games make for relatively large play areas which allows them to fill the screen with bullets. This has downsides however - large play areas funnel games into relying on lots of projectiles for challenge. It makes it much harder to rely on simple patterns.
+The tiny hitboxes of Danmaku games make for relatively large play areas which allows them to fill the screen with bullets.
 [[File:0.png|frame|center|The same kind of challenge with different hitboxes, the Danmaku style example has more than twice the bullets.]]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 <small>This is the wiki version of [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iM9Fc2DsPppedlJVDYQ3g1VB5sFfilomGIYFIwJka9w/edit# this doc]</small>
 This doc covers the '''fundamental aspects''' of designing a bullet hell (danmaku) shmup. This is heavily skewed towards CAVE’s style of games, but a lot of the things discussed here can be carried over to other styles.
@@ Line 12: / Line 11: @@
 '''And don't forget, first hand experience is everything! Play shmups a lot, you don't have to get 1cc's or good scores but getting to a point where you can watch a good replay of your favourite game and understand what the players are doing is a must.'''
 '''Game design requires good intuitions for what feels right, and the best way to build that intuition is through experience.'''
 == MOVEMENT & SPACE ==

@@ Line 7: / Line 7: @@
 '''Knowing these fundamentals is important''' even if you’re going to break every rule in the book, because it helps you make '''informed choices''' instead of taking shots in the dark.
-I’ll include examples when appropriate but for practical purposes, I will avoid too many counterexamples, edge cases and other complications. The goal is to give a good idea of how to make a typical CAVE-style shmup. If you want to branch out past that & make something different you’re on your own!
+I’ll include examples when appropriate but for practical purposes, I will avoid too many counterexamples, edge cases and other complications.
-'''And don't forget, first hand experience is everything! Play shmups a lot, you don't have to get 1cc's or good scores but getting to a point where you can watch a good replay of your favourite game and understand what the players are doing is a must. Game design requires good intuitions for what feels right, and the best way to build that intuition is through experience.'''
+'''And don't forget, first hand experience is everything! Play shmups a lot, you don't have to get 1cc's or good scores but getting to a point where you can watch a good replay of your favourite game and understand what the players are doing is a must.'''
 == MOVEMENT & SPACE ==

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:27, 21 September 2022
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−	~~<small>This is the wiki version of [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iM9Fc2DsPppedlJVDYQ3g1VB5sFfilomGIYFIwJka9w/edit# this doc]</small>~~
−
−	~~'''[[Help:Glossary\|A glossary to get you started]]'''~~
−
−	This doc covers the '''fundamental aspects''' of designing a bullet hell (danmaku) shmup. This is heavily skewed towards CAVE’s style of games, but a lot of the things discussed here can be carried over to other styles.
−
−	~~'''Knowing these fundamentals is important''' even if you’re going to break every rule in the book, because it helps you make '''informed choices''' instead of taking shots in the dark.~~
−
−	I’ll include examples when appropriate but for practical purposes, I will avoid too many counterexamples, edge cases and other complications. The goal is to give a good idea of how to make a typical CAVE-style shmup. If you want to branch out past that & make something different you’re on your own!
−
−	'''And don't forget, first hand experience is everything! Play shmups a lot, you don't have to get 1cc's or good scores but getting to a point where you can watch a good replay of your favourite game and understand what the players are doing is a must. Game design requires good intuitions for what feels right, and the best way to build that intuition is through experience.'''
−
−	~~== BULLET HELL SHMUP DESIGN 101 ==~~
−
	<small>This is the wiki version of [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iM9Fc2DsPppedlJVDYQ3g1VB5sFfilomGIYFIwJka9w/edit# this doc]</small>		<small>This is the wiki version of [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iM9Fc2DsPppedlJVDYQ3g1VB5sFfilomGIYFIwJka9w/edit# this doc]</small>

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:26, 21 September 2022
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		+	<small>This is the wiki version of [https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iM9Fc2DsPppedlJVDYQ3g1VB5sFfilomGIYFIwJka9w/edit# this doc]</small>
		+
		+	'''[[Help:Glossary\|A glossary to get you started]]'''
		+
		+	This doc covers the '''fundamental aspects''' of designing a bullet hell (danmaku) shmup. This is heavily skewed towards CAVE’s style of games, but a lot of the things discussed here can be carried over to other styles.
		+
		+	'''Knowing these fundamentals is important''' even if you’re going to break every rule in the book, because it helps you make '''informed choices''' instead of taking shots in the dark.
		+
		+	I’ll include examples when appropriate but for practical purposes, I will avoid too many counterexamples, edge cases and other complications. The goal is to give a good idea of how to make a typical CAVE-style shmup. If you want to branch out past that & make something different you’re on your own!
		+
		+	'''And don't forget, first hand experience is everything! Play shmups a lot, you don't have to get 1cc's or good scores but getting to a point where you can watch a good replay of your favourite game and understand what the players are doing is a must. Game design requires good intuitions for what feels right, and the best way to build that intuition is through experience.'''
		+
	== BULLET HELL SHMUP DESIGN 101 ==		== BULLET HELL SHMUP DESIGN 101 ==