Hello! Today I am making my first detailed post of my next big project - Dark Times Reborn 2, Operation Purification. First, some background: back in December 2011 I played a level called The Virus by scooby73. This showed me the potential of what was possible in LittleBigPlanet. Now I had always wanted to make a game; at one point I was going to make a Half Life 2 mod that was a zombie co-op shooter set in a war torn city. Eventually I abandoned that aspect, instead refining a short story I wrote to later be a guide. It ended up being decently long (30,000 words) and it was then I discovered my talent of writing. 

So now, realizing I could make my game, I started playing around in create mode. My first level was horrid. It was an attempt to create a sort of hub level where I could later link in levels. I still have the level saved on my PS+ Cloud, as a nostalgic piece of my history. 

I realized that making levels required logic, and so I looked around on YouTube and found comphermc's LBP2-Torials. This gave me confidence and I started making levels. They were really detailed, as at the time I didn't know a good balance between visuals and thermometer; every rug was a diffferent sponge and there were decorations everywhere. But still, I kept making levels. Each iteration was more refined and detailed. Then in August I got scooby73, my idol, to play the first level, which he liked. By this point I had redone every level of my series by scratch. 

Then in October 2012 I 'finished' the project, calling it Dark Times, and took a break. But I didn't feel satisfied, I felt... empty. Outside of LBP, I rewrote my story, adding in details I made in the LBP adaption. The story was far darker with an emphasis on the war setting, and ended up being 45,000 words. I typed it up during winter break and also got Skyrim, which I lost myself in. I was bored of LBP by this point so I left it for the first time. After months of playing Skyrim and Oblivion (still my favorite game of all time) I saw one day that Scooby73 was on LBP2. Now I admired him from afar, I had only played with him twice even though I followed him religiously. I joined him while waiting for the Dragonborn DLC to release and rediscovered my love for making things in LBP. 

Over spring break I made new friends and toyed around in create mode, using it to explore additional scenes from my story. Using the CC/Sci-Fi pack I played around to find a new level of detail that I fell in love with. I also experimented with the 3D glitch. Then in April I got the game I had always wanted - Fallout 3. I played the crap out of it, playing it nonstop till June and getting the platinum. And then at the end of the school year I got Fallout NV (which still is my favorite Fallout game) and did the same thing. 

It was the beginning of July and I was in my kitchen when I noticed a mug - it had a picture of the world on it. For some reason it reminded me of my story, and I remembered how fun making levels were. And yet again, Scooby73 drawed me back in. This time I made a trailer, which got very good reviews, notably from Tynz21 (who if you remember, took play requests on his profile but had high standards. He gave me 8.5/10) and scooby73. And then came my golden days, the best time of my life. I was pumping out highly detailed, although lacking in gameplay, levels. By the end of the summer I had made 15. 

But then came my first year of high school. I became stressed and depressed, and made levels slower and slower. Eventually I was just making joke levels, and then I left LBP entirely to focus on school. My friends missed me, asking when I could return. I said I would return in the summer, and I did, but then I got sucked into Borderlands. From July to December I was grinding in Borderlands, until the terrible nerds of TPS, and I left. 

I got LBP3 for Christmas and was very disappointed in it. I thought it was cheap, how all the characters you could make in LBP2 with logic, how they made individual logic gadgets for things you could do in LBP2. Then I left for The Binding Of Isaac Rebirth, which I still love. I then got a laptop and played old RPGs until it broke. Later in September 2015 I got a PS4 for Fallout 4, which I played the absolute crap out of. (I seriously know the game like back of my hand, one of my saves has 722 hours, so ask me anything about it) 

About a year later I was bored, so I saw that (guess who?) scooby73 was on. I had gotten LBP3 but hadn't really played it. So I popped it in and he showed me the things he was working on. And it was pretty cool! But then I was playing Skyrim and other things, but during Christmas break this year, I had an epiphany - all those new logic things were just to make the game easier to program. And it all clicked, the potential of what I could do. I could finally, truly make the game I wanted. 

And so I started to rebound, get my items again,but now... everything's empty. Almost all my friends don't even go on PSN anymore, let alone LBP. Now the reasons why I am making this project are several things: I am bored and this will give me things to do, I need to explore the world of my sequel to help make it more concrete in my mind for when I write it, and lastly I feel my fans deserve a full project from me, not just an interactive cutscene. 

Wow, that was long. So, let's get down to brass tacks. The project, with what I've planed out, will be 15 levels long, with multiple player characters, a perk system using points as currency, a sackpocket gun system, a stealth mode, a main quest line with optional side quests, and gameplay equal parts plstforming, shooting, and puzzles. 

So far I've published an early tech demo, mainly so I can play around with the new tools, and am working on a more detailed demo on the gun, perk, and combat system, and later, memorizer implementation. I hope to create a true RPG. 

Links - 

Tech Demo 1 - https://lbp.me/v/q0tk8-6/trailer?p=1&l=12

YouTube Demonstrations - https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XK8GeVGezNI

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pdvASL6X_Bc

Sorry for it being so long!

I plan on making a trailer with a monologue detailing a simplified version of the lore of the series and a summary of DTR1. Here's the script.

In the mid 21st century, humanity was embroiled in the most deadliest conflict to date. It was not a war over resources, or invasion, but an attempt to unite the peoples of earth under a single government. They promised equality, abundance, peace, but at the cost of individuality, privacy, and choice.

Some nations collaborated with the growing union, while others resisted. Europe was fractured and leaderless, proving an easy target. The Middle East was pacified and all sparks of radicalism and terrorism were extinguished. Aggressive biological weapon attacks provoked the few remaining countries to launch nuclear missiles, causing the collapse of what was left of the forces allied against the union.

From the ashes of the Americas rose a challenger - General Morisey. He rebuilt the United States from the squabbling, riotous cities, turning it into a fascist military-industrial dictatorship. In the name of the war effort, he absorbed the remaining nations of the Americas, Australia, and numerous smaller islands in the Pacific. Due to the treacherous General ‘Inferno’ Blair, the Resistance was fed the illusion of a winnable stalemate and their campaigns devolved downhill has another biological weapon was unleashed.

The Resistance became a lost cause, their territory shrinking every day as millions died. Years later, when only pockets of the Resistance remained, concentrated near the coasts of the Americas, did the end seem near. A final biological weapon was used - the Grey Flu - turning infected into rabid, violent husks of their former selves. This would seem to be the final nail in the coffin, but when Morisey, on death’s door, used the infected’s bloodthirsty frenzy against the soldiers of the Union. His plan worked, and he began to retake the world. However, he had inadvertently spread the plague throughout the globe, and was soon fighting both the Union and the infected. And finally, the world went dark.

On that fateful day, when the Resistance seemed to teeter on the brink of defeat, a group of teenagers hid in a bunker to wait out their impending doom. When they emerged they found a devastated, lonely world, free from the oppression of both the Resistance and the Union. The were picked up by a group of survivors, and due to a misunderstanding, the group had to prove themselves worthy of the sanctuary.

However their supposed safety was unraveled, as the dead city woke up. People showed their true colors as this last colony of humanity tried to escape to the mountains nearby. The remaining people took refuge in an old missile silo, and they rested easy that night, until they were woken up by the chaos left in the wake of the traitor. One last time the teenagers were sent out, and confronted the traitor, who had planned on bombing the temporary refuge to gain the attention of his masters. Stopping him, they proved they were worthy of protection, and took on the mantle of leadership among the remnants, leading them to the nearby ruins of Morisey’s headquarters, Fort Harney.

It is now June 23rd, 2060. Rick has assumed leadership of the survivors of Safe Zone Echo after organizing the effort to secure the ruins. Scarlett, forgiven for her trespasses against who was revealed to be the traitor and her mission fulfilled, became the warden of For Harney, making sure that its secret horrors were kept hidden. Henry became the leader of the runners, using his skill and speed to obtain information and items. Harold, wanting nothing more of the danger he faced in St. Newell, became a sniper in the militia. Crystal, having recovered from her encounter outside the bunker, became a member of the runners and discovered a new passion - beating up zombies with baseball bats. Whinnie became the main doctor of the survivors, leading the FEMA agents in efforts to organize relief. Jerry, ever the tinkerer, explored, repaired, and fortified the Fort… with the guidance of Scarlett, of course. Major Nixon, saddened by the losses in St. Newell, the treachery of General Inferno, and the extremism of Major Palmer, became the leader of the militia, using the Fort’s facilities to train them. Jenny, impressed with Harold’s bravery, became fast friends. Luke, shameful of who his father really was, retired from being the deputy of the group and became a recluse. Harold, having recovered from his fight with Inferno, is on the last group of survivors riding to the paradise of Fort Harney, and so it begins.

I've been working on a good many things, programming the specifics of gameplay elements. I've made 21 sack pocket weapons, including 15 guns, each with different fire rates, reload times, damage, and magazine size. Perks scale the damage and the reload time. I've also made 4 melee weapons and 2 grenades.

I have also made enemies, like zombies and soldiers. Both have different tiers, like how zombified soldiers can't damage you, but are tanky and can still drag you around. For the soldiers, they are dividing into ranks which determines their weapon and behavior, like how scouts are found guarding the outskirts of outposts, and are armed with automatic pistols, while shock troopers are armed with shotguns and are highly aggressive. Enemies also react to stealth differently; zombies are dumb and thus you can sneak around them forever, while soldiers are smart and will seek you out if you shoot them.

Lastly, I am working on a perk system that activates perks on 9 of the 11 playable characters and remembers what perks you have for that particular character. The system uses points and is completely optional, so you get a higher score if you use fewer perks.

Videos - https://youtu.be/FT1aVqj8TsU
https://youtu.be/C6gJkE3mmGw
https://youtu.be/YQLxSnQzVv4

I'll check out that lvl. Good luck with that.

I've finished most of my programming, and to celebrate I have made an arena to help train players in the combat system. It randomly spawns enemies, from zombies to soldiers with sniper rifles. To fight them, it randomly activates ammo and health boxes and drops random weapons. As you kill enemies, you gain points, which you can use for perks. The level ends when you die.

https://lbp.me/v/q0wdm48/activity

I've made a gameplay demo, and finally finished it this Friday. I've learned a lot about Dynamic Thermometers.



https://lbp.me/v/q0z-tmy/topreviews?p=1&l=12