PINPIN #3 — Summer Vacation Spots

Hey everyone! Happy Friday and happy June! We hope everyone is kicking it back at the pool, firing up the grill, chowing down on ice pops, and staying cool as we head into summer.

Over on our end, notice anything different about the blog? If you head over to our main page too, you'll find some super snazzy changes! Big thanks to our guys working on the web for giving us a sleeker look. (It all makes me feel very elegant).

In terms of the game, we're putting in a bit of elbow grease into our narrative and figuring out some more of the themes. Yes, even in our fun little pinball world, our heroes have a story they want to tell! The larger story is grand, but let us focus in on our vertical slice and the stuff we've been tinkering with there:

As discussed in our last post, we're finding our footing through the development of Playfield Park. A big ol' regular amusement park wasn't scratching our itch as much as we wanted it to, though. How about a park by the seaside, though? Yes! Let's get a little more Coney Island with it, why don't we?

Wave goodbye to Playfield Park, and say hello to Playfield Pier!

Pino looked out from the boat toward their next destination. The castle in the distance was daunting, regardless of the blinking lights and colorful balloons that danced around. Its' spires loomed over the various roller coasters, Ferris wheels, carousels, food stalls, statues, and fountains that painted the valley in a sea of vibrant colors. It sat overlooking a vast ocean, the boardwalks lined with rows of animals shuffling to and fro in an almost mechanical manner. The amusement park was grander than life, a destination of dreams. It would be the highlight of someone’s childhood. Some would even call it the happiest place on the planet. For Pino, Playfield Pier merely looked like an over-stimulation nightmare.

Our concept artists have been hard at work testing out our art pipeline with some props and buildings to place in the environment (applicable in both battles and the over world).

(Pino finally earned color privileges. Way to go, Pino!)

If the fountain and food stall look a little bumper-shaped to you...don't worry about it (because that's the point!) We're having lots of fun figuring out more of the style for PINPIN, and we hope that this sneak peak at a few props is equally as appetizing.

What's an amusement park without the workers that make all the magic happen? Say hello to some of the the enemies Pino and friends will encounter as they traverse Playfield Pier. Do they get paid enough to get beat up by a bunch of young adults wrecking havoc on a busy Tuesday? Not at all, but it's that or getting their hours reduced. Pick your poison, fish!

In charge of the operations of the entire park sits our head honcho: Mr. Playfield. Known for his generous tax write-offs—I mean charitable donations, Mr. Playfield is the man in charge of ensuring Playfield Pier stays a place of dreams for all (especially those that opt for a fast pass). I'm sure that he has a heart as huge as his piles of cash, right?

Moving away from Playfield Pier, our designers have continued iterating on our gameplay board, refining how information about the player's party and the enemy's party should be communicated during the action-packed PINPIN battles. Take a look at a more refined look:

And speaking of UI changes, lots are happening under the hood as we switch around our workflow and try out new tools. Take a look at a modified dialogue box and text:

We love our textures, and we're hoping to have even more fun with them in the coming months.

That's all for now, folks! Thanks for reading and sticking around. And, seriously, take care with these temperatures. We'll see you all again the in dog days of summer.

See ya' next time.