August 21st, 2008 by Sharky

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Howdy all.

Well the 1 September deadline for Dream-Build-Play contest entries is fast approaching and I’ve been working really hard to get Air Legends worthy. Yes, I’m going to enter this time.

I never entered the previous DBP contests but this time I feel the essential ingredients are there to call it a “game”.  Not a prototype, concept or half-baked effort, but a game.  

This brand new Rocket & level-up feature really doubles the fun, adding a variety & thrill that was missing before.  They are of the Insta-kill variety which adds emotion to the gameplay I had not really appreciated until now.

  • the buzz of an instant kill
  • the relief of a near miss.
  • funny moments that just seem to happen when chaos & carnage mix.

But enough talk, here’s what’s new…

  • ROCKETS!!!
    • While you spawn with a couple of Rockets, you’ll want to earn additional rockets with hit streaks. Every hit you inflict earns progress to towards the next Rocket Award.  (try not to die or that progress is reset)   You also Level-up increasing the number of rockets awarded next time.
  • Improved survivability / reduced frustration…
    • Flying through an explosion no longer causes death.
    • Collisions with other planes are no longer instant death. Instead your health get’s sapped rapidly.  So you’ll still want to avoid collisions, but you may just live to fight another day.
    • both player names now show where before it was only the “other” players’.
  • Bullet visibility improved.  darker, slightly bigger and longer.

Go grab this version from my Latest Build page over here.

I’m expecting this release to be the last prior to the final contest entry.  Between now and then I do not expect to add any major gameplay features. It’s really time to refine and polish. Rinse and repeat.

Your feedback is most appreciated, and as you can see – I take it all in and fulfil what I can!

So please don’t be shy.

Average Rating: 4.6 out of 5 based on 204 user reviews.

2 Responses to “”

  1. Barry Dahlberg Says:

    Nice work, much more stable than the previous build I tried too. A huge improvment for me would be an indication of where the off screen enemies are, perhaps an arrow at the edge of the screen or something.

    Good luck.

  2. Air Legends trailer! | Sharky’s Blog Says:

    [...] Sharky’s Blog Home of “Sharky’s Air Legends”, XNA game development journal & other madness « Air Legends gets ROCKETS and significant gameplay improvements. Out now! [...]

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