Devlog #2 - 01-12-23

Overview:

Project FRAG introduces a dynamic weapon customization system, allowing players to tailor their arsenal to suit their playstyle. The core of this system lies in the implementation of Core Mods, which determine the base weapon type, and Weapon Mods, which provide specific enhancements to the chosen weapon. Additionally, Character Mods influence the protagonist's passive abilities, contributing to a personalized and strategic gaming experience.

What's New:

Core Mods:

Overview:

• Core Mods define the base weapon type that players start with.
• Players can choose from five core mods: Pistol, Sniper, Assault Rifle, SMG, and Shotgun.
• The core mod determines the fundamental attributes and characteristics of the weapon.

Examples:

1. Pistol Mod:
   • Mechanics: Offers a balanced and versatile weapon suitable for precision shots at a shorter range.
   • Modifiers: Increased accuracy, faster draw/holster speed.
2. Sniper Mod:
   • Mechanics: Specializes in long-range precision shotsm.
   • Modifiers: Higher damage per shot, slower rate of fire, reduced hip-fire accuracy.
3. Assault Rifle Mod:
   • Mechanics: Designed for medium-range engagements with automatic fire.
   • Modifiers: Moderate damage, controllable recoil, customizable fire modes (full-auto, burst, semi-auto).
4. SMG Mod:
   • Mechanics: Ideal for close-quarters combat with high fire rate.
   • Modifiers: Increased hip-fire accuracy, faster movement speed while equipped.
5. Shotgun Mod:
   • Mechanics: Emphasizes close-range, high-damage encounters.
   • Modifiers: Wider spread, increased damage, slower reload.

Weapon Mods:

Overview:

• Weapon Mods provide specific enhancements to the chosen weapon, procuring unique effects with associated trade-offs.
• Each weapon type has its set of available mods, encouraging diverse playstyles.

Examples:

1. Thunderclap Scatterizer (Shotgun Mod):
   • Mechanics: Amplifies shotgun blasts with an electric charge, increasing damage and stunning enemies.
   • Trade-off: Reduced reload speed.
2. Precision Burst Augmenter (Assault Rifle Mod):
   • Mechanics: Adds a precision burst mode, increasing accuracy for a short duration.
   • Trade-off: Slower overall fire rate.
3. Temporal Ricochet Matrix (SMG Mod):
   • Mechanics: Bullets gain a temporal ricochet effect, bouncing off surfaces to hit enemies behind cover.
   • Trade-off: Increased recoil.

Character Mods:

Overview:

• Character Mods influence the protagonist's passive abilities, enhancing overall performance.
• These mods contribute to the strategic layer of the game, allowing players to tailor their operative's strengths.

Examples:

1. Shadow Stride Enhancer:
   • Mechanics: Enables a short-distance teleportation ability for quick repositioning.
   • Trade-off: Increased stamina consumption during teleportation.
2. Adaptive Reflex Booster:
   • Mechanics: Enhances reaction time, granting a brief slow-motion effect during intense combat.
   • Trade-off: Increased cooldown between activations.

Challenges Faced:

While deciding the core, weapon and character mods, we had to multiple paths to take while deciding and finalising the mods for each gun. It was difficult to design eye-catching and fun mods whilst not making it completely overpowered in a way that all the players just incline towards one mod. Everyone in the team came up with really great ideas, especially for the weapon mods but then we also faced the challenge of trying to balance multiple mods on the same gun to try and not make them in a way that makes the gun extremely overpowered. 

Another challenge that we also faced was trying to make the mods in certain ways so that the player base for the game would also be attracted to the lesser-used guns, which in our case seemed to be the pistols. We're trying to design the pistol and its modifiers in such a way that people consider them to be viable options in comparison with bigger guns like rifles and sub-machine guns. 

What's Next:

Up next, we plan on having a meeting on the 10th of December regarding the discussion of the basic concept of the game. Since we've been trying to follow a bottom-up approach for the development of the game, we're going to try to set down a basic structure of how the game is supposed to be, what flow it's supposed to follow, and finalize a pipeline for the game.

Closing Thoughts:

If you've read this far, we really appreciate you joining in on the fun! We'll be thrilled to share further progress through the devlogs that we'll be posting continuously. You're support means everything to us! We'd also be glad if you have ideas for core mods, gun mods or character mods that you'd love to see incorporated in our game. You can leave them in the comments!
Stay tuned for future devlogs where we will be discussing the base mechanics for the game, exploring the basic pipeline and much much more!

Pookie Bear Studios