Reworked UI

The big goal for March was to rework the UI. I wanted to go through all the screens and make them more consistent. The plan was to make the layout and behavior final while making the visuals better.

Updated Layout

I already had a consistent structure across the project. In total, the game has 29 screens and 3 popups. Even though I am using prefabs, and it's all done the "right" way, it was a lot of work to go through them all. Still, it took me longer than I expected.

Shop - Before and After

Title - Before and After

In terms of layout, I focused on a consistent setup. I decided to have the Title at the top left, a selection right below that, and info to the right. I have zero artistic skills so I need a simple and modular approach.

Updated Fonts

Since I already had a scriptable object for UI settings, I added one field for the Header and another for the Body font.

Then, I created a script that hooks up a target text component to the font on the settings scriptable object.

Updated Font Sizes

With the font setup, I needed flexibility on the size. Looking at any writing tool, you can see that there are always multiple headers. I took that approach and also added multiple Body options.

The final result was fantastic. Since the font might still change, I can update all font references in the game from a single place.

Updated Colors

I also created an area with all the colors I use on the UI. Unity has a built-in swatch solution, but I find it too cumbersome.

For each color, I have a descriptive name. Then I can use the color picker or copy the value.

Dialogues

I wrote the first draft of all 24 dialogues. For the most part, the dialogues will play at the beginning or the end of a level. Some will be story related, while others will explain a mechanic or unlock some content.

A few dialogues will play when you enter the shop for the first time. This way, I can give the player more context in a subtle way.

Writing all the dialogues showed me that the dialogue system lacked a few features. Also, it's a way of committing to what I have now. I can make adjustments, but I won't add a new dialogue or character.

Boss Animations

Finally, some new animations for the boss got completed. The artist I am working with had a few issues with his PC. Because of that, progress has been slow. Nonetheless, I am happy working with him. I want to continue working together until the game is released.

What's Next

For April, I plan to submit the game to Pixel Heaven and approach 3 potential publishers. I made a list with a few publishers that would be awesome to work together. I hope one of them is interested in the game and our plans align. 

To increase my chances of success, I will playtest and iterate on the first part of the game.

Follow my progress on Twitter @brightflask.