Apteryx II : Project status

Comments and bug reports may be mailed to: michael at this domain.

• New weapons that will be in the final version:
  • Spy drone: in the current version, the "emergency hexagon" weapon in fact fires a spy drone, which can be controlled just like an enemy that you have captured using the virus. Spy drones cannot harm enemies or switches, but are useful for scouting out territory.
  • Retriever: a robot that fetches nearby upgrades and returns them to the player. I haven't decided whether enemy drones will attack the retriever or not.
  • Scrambler: an enemy affected by the scrambler will begin flying around at random, continuing until it crashes into something. Fire one into a room to cause chaos.
  • Phase shift: allows the player to pass through a force field. This is quite risky, because there may be no way to get back.
  • Atomic screwdriver: destroys anything. This includes switches.
  • Teleporter / telereceiver: As in Flashback, toss the telereceiver somewhere and then use the teleporter to teleport to it.
  • Decoy: A projectile that enemies will attack, thinking that it is the player.
  • Blackout: Blinds an enemy. It will continue to target the last location where it saw the player. This will last much longer than the emp, making it useful versus turrets, among other things.
  • Goo bomb: Permanently reduces an enemy's acceleration.
  • Other things: more energy-powered projectiles to replace lasers? Homing weapons?
• Ideas for new enemies:
  • Hunter: Slow, but has a more intelligent AI that can track the player even around corners. There's one in the tutorial level (go up from the starting position) if you want to test it out.
  • Turret: Cannot be destroyed (except by the atomic screwdriver). Fires lasers rapidly. These will be a strategic element; you will need to find ways to get around them. Some may be capable of sensing the player even when cloaked.
• Other additions I'll make eventually:
  • A title screen
  • Key customization.
  • A tutorial level.
  • Unlimited saved games, instead of the current single freeze / defrost slot.
  • Mouse control. Right now you can toggle "cheater mouse" control on and off with Command-C. In cheater mouse mode, there is no limit on your hovercraft's acceleration. The velocity is simply controlled by the mouse position, as in Crystal Quest.
  • Game preferences: change difficulty setting, toggle shadows on and off (currently done by pressing the 'V' key), toggle sound on and off, etc.
  • Map editor. The data files are human-readable, but not easily.