Game Concept Document

- Demon’s Conduit -

Introduction
Demon’s Conduit is a 2D side-scrolling, hack and slash game which forces the player into the role of a dual swords wielding mercenary, where a simple reconnaissance mission thrusts you into one man’s war against an army of demons.

Description
The game starts you off shortly after you arrive on the island where you are hired to investigate an increased number of monster attacks on traders. As your character moves, jumps and attacks you are slowly eased into the basics of the gameplay. Enemies will gradually pour into the screen, where you can dispose of them with combinations of attacks, and as each of them die they will leave behind health restoration items that instantly take effect. As your health depletes the screen will blur and change into a red tone, and the character’s stationary animation will change, but this will slowly revert to normal if you stay out of battle.
As the story progresses you will then come across a high official’s destroyed trade carriage where you pick up a magical stone. This stone allows you to use an energy blast that puts you in a reaction based mini-game that determines the severity of your attack. This power requires recharging after each use, which is done by battling through hordes of enemies.
When your skill increases, new attacks, abilities and magic will become available to you.

Genre
Demon’s Conduit is a fast pace Fantasy 2D Side-scrolling, Hack and Slash game.

Environment Scouting

Side scrolling games with multiple layers, especially little big planet where you can interact with the different plains.

AXAUR controls

Axuar in Flash



left arrow = walk left
right arrow = walk right

(hold) up arrow = jump
(hold) down arrow = crouch
(hold) spacebar = breathing

(The background image is a modified version of a picture from the site www.kriyayoga-com)

Don't know how to upload SWF

I don't have a web host at the moment and so I don't know any other way of uploading it to blogger.

Finalizing Axaur

Finalizing the design of Axaur by the compilation of its design.

And this is a character design sheet includig the digital art ,walk cycle and the final character design.

Action Pose - Axaur

Walk Cycle Planning

AXAUR is the name - And this is it's story

After going through all the different names like Axorilla, Axulu and Gorizl, I've decided on Axaur. Because Axolotl is an ancient creature stuck in the process of evolution, African being the original man and Gorilla being the species that man originate from, I just think the name Axaur talks about evolution a lot.

And also being linked to the Dinosaurs makes it sound powerful and expresses it's brute strength. It is an omnivore, but because the male are usually very active vegetations can only sustain them for a period of time, not that they need to resort to it as they are a very skilled hunters.

Like mentioned before it can survive in most environment that has a consistent supply of water. It prefer living in some dense jungle where it is moist, so it can keep itself hydrated. It has a soft skin but hard shell like forearms and lower legs, which often is used as a shield in a fight or as a hard melee weapon.

It can swim at high speed because of its tail and fin. It usually walks on its hind legs, but at times you will see it running at high speed on all fours. It breaths through its hair like gills on its head. The colour of the gills represents its health, which is also used to attract its mate.

The armbands are a representation of a warrior member of the tribe. And ones that wear beaded necklace usually means that it has obtained an officer like rank.

Colour inpire

Now that I got an idea for the character I need to pimp him out.
No animal is a bigger pimp than a Poison Arrow Frog.
Blue, Yellow and Red that's the primary, THAT'S PIMP!!!

Adding the Zulu-ness

So the thumbnail is the character design , which included the Zulu Warrior Brass Armband, which in the culture is only awarded to those who has shown their bravery in battle.
And the beaded necklace is added too.
I've also been thinking about the weapon that this creature will be using like spears, sword or brute force.
I've decided on the brute force because of it's relation to a gorilla, and the creature's large forearms design.

ACTIONSCRIPT 3.0 SUX!!!

After hours of looking through actionscript tutorials, days consulting java programmer and days of stressing out..... I still can't figure it out. Why does my character animate like 5 frames then stop. Then just float through the screen?

Axolotl Zulu Gorilla Warrior = Coolness +10

Now to say I'm obsessed with the Gorilla's is not quite correct.
Because after closely studying the built of the Gorilla and the proportion of it's body, I've found that its limbs' structure is quite proportionate. LIKE MEGAMAN.SO! a Gorilla is to be used in the design of the character. Thinking of it as the realistic version, which helps with me trying to make the character more organic.

The Human quality

Thinking throughto the idea of the concepts of neanderthals, origin of man, water like terrain, Amazon, and so on.... Then it hits me AFRICA. Then more specifically the Zulu tribe.And now we got Axolotl Zulu Warrior

Kah's rejection

These are images of the sketch of what the walk cycle would be like as an Axolotl man as it walks like a gorilla.
After showing it to Kah, he said it was too animal like and not enough human.

Development of Axolotl-Man

This is the first proper draft of the Axolotl-man.
The eye design I got from the picture I saw of the Atomic bomb cataract patient.

Axolotl "LOCK IT IN"

I've decided on the Axolotl mixed with human. And because I'm stubborn it's gonna have a bit of gorilla in him too.

So what I'm thinking is that it will be an Axolotl-man but its movement is like a gorilla. Because its a very cool way of moving.

MEGAMAN!!! and or ROCKMAN

When I first showed Kar my drawing he said it has the megaman like qualities. Megaman (in Thailand we call him Rockman) was one of the coolest game I've ever played as a child, on my gameboy. And so I did more research into that and it's character designs.

Because Megaman is a robot, my character will be a more organic type creature based on the unproportionate anime character design of Megaman.

Two Concepts

What do you get when you cross a man and an elephant?
An elephantman of cause.

Short trunk like nose. Big ears. Thick skin. Extra tusk like limb coming out of the elbows as weapons.
Lives in the savanna like terrain. Keen senses like hearing, smell and sight, but slow.

Kinda cool. But I can't help but think that it's been done. But I'll keep thinking.


Another idea was an axolotl man. This idea came from my previous flatmate having an axolotl it seemed like a pretty cool creature being stuck in that state of evolution and all.

So now we got Axolotl-man. Agile swimmer. Strong physical strength. And has a tail. Can survive in most terrain where there are sufficient source of water. Especially thrive in the Deep jungle, like the Amazon.

Another sketch

This time its a DRAGON. Dragon is the definition of cool. But a dragon just seems to be over done in my opinion. There are millions of designs for a dragon. And I don't think it is what I want from this project.

So Dragon = Not this time.

Researching Ideas

I started looking at random ideas and sketching out images as I see it of human form to animals, from magazines I have laying around.

This is images of wolves. It's arguably one of the coolest animals around. In some culture it is considered a godly creature.

At home I have some magazine laying around and saw an images of a Gorilla which was one of my ideas so I put that on paper, and then I saw an elephant, and thought who hasn't heard of the elephantman but I took it down anyway in case I can think of a cool new elephantman.

This is just a guy in a magazine. It made me wonder why I had never thought of creating a female character. Why does it always have to be a male all the time?

Then the thought passed. And I just don't have the answer.

Class Sketch

The idea of combining human and animals, I instantly thought of a Gorilla because of its close relationship to human, but still has its animalistic qualities and stature.

Then I thought of the neanderthal which is of human being but with animal qualities.

So my first sketch was of a Neanderthalic human gorilla type creature.



After class I starting thinking of what type of creatures that have already been design which has this qualities, and its vastly available in myths and legends.
Things like werewolves, vampires, Medusa, minotaur, centaur etc...

What was interesting though is when I came across the Legend of "Hanuman". Where a half monkey, half man god led an army of monkeys to fight a Demon King.