Developer Interview: Aluna Rift

Thanks! Honestly, I'm not an artist by trade and have a pretty limited set of artistic skills. But I was adamant I wanted to do as much as I possibly could myself with this game. So early on, I decided everything had to be kept really simple. Abstract shapes, minimal detail, avoid key-frame animation where possible, etc. The bloom effect I settled on was something I stumbled upon really after completing the initial prototype and playing around with the aesthetics. It worked really well for me because it ticked all the boxes for my needs, and I really liked the way it looked. I hadn't decided I was going to mix this arcade style with realistic-looking backgrounds at all by this point. For the backgrounds themselves, they're just something I iterated on over time. I started out with a completely plain black sky in the early days, then created my own very basic night sky, which looked alright but not something I was completely happy with. Again, I had no real "vision" for the art style at this point, I was just toying around with different ideas to see what worked. I kept trying new things, practising my drawing, adding & removing stuff bit by bit until I eventually found the right blend! I still have some work to do with it, there's a fair amount of placeholder art still kicking about, but I'm happy with how it's shaping up.

I'm just a sucker for co-op! It's an [1980's] kid's thing, I reckon. Multiplayer to me is sitting on the couch with your friends, belly-laughing at your buddy that stopped dead after lap two of Mario Kart because they thought it was the final lap. I just love it. And I try to incorporate it into every game I make where possible. Also, I actually haven't played many of these types of games at all in my time, and this was my first game dev venture in the genre. So whilst I did my research into the genre, I personally enjoy approaching things as a "noob" with a completely fresh perspective. It can often lead to more interesting results!

How complicated something is completely depends on the experience a developer has with it before they begin really. For me, it wasn't overly complex this time round, as my first game – Must Dash Amigos – was designed entirely around couch-multiplayer, so I had a bunch of experience from developing that. Having said that, implementing co-op in Aluna Rift has certainly increased the scope of what I'm trying to achieve. It adds an extra layer of complexity to the game design, the way systems work, how I manage users, handling controller types for each user, and much more. On top of that, it also increases the number of possible bugs there could be, which in turn bloats testing time. It really can add a lot more for a dev to think about! I can't speak for other developers' thoughts on co-op, but I imagine avoiding it could be down to the impact on development time, budget, technical feasibility, or whether it would even resonate with your target audience. For some studios, it also doesn't make sense financially for them to do so these days. There's a great video by NakeyJakey that discusses this topic in more detail (just search NakeyJakey the Death of Couch Multiplayer.)

Actually, I would never have considered doing so before, it was just a wave I decided to ride, and I'm still going! Long story short, I applied for a job at a small indie game studio, and as part of the application process, they set me a technical challenge to "Recreate Asteroids in Unity". I did, they liked it, hired me, then fired me (another story for another time). But before I started that role, I kept working on the clone I'd made; there was just something about it that felt good. So I kept adding new features, coming up with design ideas, and it steadily evolved into what it is today. I'm really happy with it; I've had a great time making this game!

Yeah, as I said, the very first build of this game was literally my attempt at recreating Asteroids in Unity as part of a job application. And whilst there are elements of Asteroids that have certainly inspired the game in its current form, it actually wasn't the biggest influence. When I started designing the game, my number one inspiration was Tetris. I said before, I really wanted to keep the game as simple as possible but somehow make it engaging, replayable, and addictive. Tetris is the undoubted master of achieving all of those things! So I definitely used that as a strong marker for my own aspirations when building Aluna Rift. Other than that, I've used sprinklings of various games that inspire me as both a gamer and a developer along the way. Games like Hollow Knight, Cuphead, and even Mario Kart have all played a part in shaping bits and pieces of Aluna Rift's design.

Space is a big place! I wanted it to feel like you were never seeing the same part of it too many times. I also wanted to give the player as many reasons as possible to keep coming back to play the game. Adding a small element of space exploration helps with this I feel. I've actually been toying with the idea of including a captain’s log-style 'Journal' that documents every part of space you've discovered. Your journal could capture an image of an area with a short description about it, I could tie the number of discoveries you've made into achievements, and possibly even an Easter egg Boss Fight. Having procedural generation also gave me a chance to make the game more colourful. I was getting tired of the same bluey/purple colour palette in the early stages of development when testing, so that was the catalyst for switching things up. Changing the colour scheme of the environment you're playing in semi-regularly hopefully helps to keep the game visually stimulating. On top of all of that, I kept coming back to my 'Tetris Benchmark' when I was designing this part of the game. I wanted the gameplay to be the number one reason why you keep playing. Everything else should be secondary, even the environments. So whilst the worlds you play in do play a part, they are not the most important thing. Progression is tied more to the stats of your ship and the colossal bosses you manage to find and defeat.

Other than finding the time to work on it (being a family man with kids), I'd say that getting visibility for the game is unbelievably tough. Reaching an audience and building a community that are interested in the game is very, very challenging, and something I haven't had much success with thus far. It's hard to tell whether I'm just not doing the right things, my game doesn't appeal to people, or some other factor. Marketing feels like a mystic art to me for sure! But I keep learning and trying new things.

As with any game I make myself, I find such joy in just going with the flow. Having ideas, trying them out, keeping them in if I like them, removing or changing things that I don't. It's really, really satisfying to be able to experiment, adapt, and pivot with every single part of the game when you have creative control. So I can't single out any one thing, I just love making games; the whole development journey has been a joy so far.

The only definite plan is to keep an eye on the game post-launch to make sure any bugs get resolved in good time, that I react to any overwhelming or critical player feedback, the typical stuff, really. Other than that, it's going to be a case of seeing how well the game does before committing to anything else. I'd love to be in a position where I could justify adding more features and content to the game, but only time will tell whether that will happen or not. No other plans for new titles just yet, but I have two strong ideas in particular that are burning away in the back of my mind! I'll have to think about what the next project will be once Aluna Rift is finished.

Tricky question. As this is my first bullet hell game, it's hard to say what challenges people may not think about. For me personally, I hadn't really considered just how finely balanced everything needs to be. Balancing is always tricky, but in a game like this, it seems absolutely imperative to get right. If something feels slightly off or unfair to the player, it can ruin the whole experience. That has certainly been a challenge thus far and something I'm still iterating on — I imagine it will be something that will keep being refined even after the game has launched.

No, great questions! I really enjoyed answering them. The only thing left to say is if you'd like to support the game, then the best way you can help is by wishlisting it on Steam! The more wishlists the game has, the more chance it has of being visible to other Steam users, which would help tremendously with visibility!

It has to be film. I love watching movies in general, and there are just so many great sci-fi movies. Unfortunately, my better half is not into sci-fi cinema at all, so I have to find time to watch them solo. First-world problems!

I'm currently playing Horizon Forbidden West on PS5 whenever I can! I've been trying to get hold of a PS5 for the longest time and finally succeeded in the last few weeks, so that is high on the list of spare time fun right now. But more often than not, I'm spending time with the family, doing dad duties or gaming.