Design

DevLog: Creating a Platformer Pt.1

Zack Bell5 Comments

DAY 1

I would like to work on a project, publicly. I think it would be cool to show off what goes through my mind as I am both programming and designing the “feel” and mechanics that go into a fast-paced, action platformer.

As usual, I am going to be using Game Maker Studio for this project. When creating a new project file, my first steps are to get some placeholder art into the build, asap. I want to be able to test code as it is completed so I quickly make a standard 16×16 pixel block, two 45-degree angle slopes, and a bounding box for the player.
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DevLog: Creating a Platformer Pt.1

How To Make A Platformer “Feel” Good

Zack Bell7 Comments

Super Meat Boy and Spelunky sit atop my list of all-time favorite games. These games are popular platformers that were wildly successful upon release. The theme, design, audio, and visuals are important, but what pushes these games over the top is how they feel.

Platformers are often very difficult, which requires the controls to be very fluid and precise. I have had the pleasure of programming two rather challenging, fast-paced platform games and I would like to share what I think makes those games stack up to some of the platformer greats.
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How To Make A Platformer “Feel” Good