Devlog #2

Overall Progress: 

So far, we have decided that we want the flight to be the most fun aspect of our game. We set up a weekly work schedule and meeting time for the entire group and sub groups. Created and presented our game pitch. We also explored various types of controls.

Art Team:

Set up a Miro board to work on the mood board and further brainstorming for the environment. We decided that we are going to use the floating islands that the player is going to travel across to collect collectibles that encourage exploration of our heavily decorated and busy environment while also enabling us to create an environment that allows the player to get used to the controls first and then dive into combat.

We also started creating concept art for the game and also created multiple sketches for our main character kite.

Music Team:

This week the music team explored some sound libraries to make sure that when both of the audio members are writing music, we could have the libraries unified so the music of the game sounds unified stylistically. An excel sheet which is separated from the group asset list was also created to keep things on track. 

CS Team:

This week, our primary focus was on exploring different gameplay mechanics and determining the kind of experience we wanted to deliver. We experimented with a system where the kite was attached to a string, aiming to create movement that felt both dynamic and natural. A significant portion of our time was spent researching real-world kite physics, aerodynamics, and energy conservation principles to inform our implementation.

We wanted to move away from rigid, pre-defined flight paths and instead create a fluid gliding system—one where movement felt reactive to the environment rather than simply controlled by the player. Inspirations included traversal mechanics from games like Batman: Arkham series and Insomniac’s Spider-Man, which emphasize momentum, environmental interaction, and smooth aerial flow.

From an implementation perspective, this meant deepening our familiarity with Unity’s physics system, testing various forces and constraints to simulate realistic gliding, and identifying the best way to balance realism with engaging gameplay. While we made progress in understanding how kites should move, translating that knowledge into a fun and intuitive control scheme remained an ongoing challenge.

Future Plans:

Designing NPC kites. Making the main kite stand out amongst all other kites. 

Figuring out a way to incorporate a combat system once we are done fleshing out the main flight. Use culturally significant objects as collectibles to encourage environment exploration.

Challenges and Discoveries: One of the major changes that our game idea is going through includes turning the game from a battle royale kite combat game to an exploration based game within a South Asian festival setting. However, we still wish to have combat in and are struggling to decide whether exploration and combat work well together.