Game Dev - Apr 2025 #03 - Enemies Galore

The latest game dev update is all about enemies.

The general theme of this batch of enemies is to provide a tiny bit more challenge to players, as one of my biggest criticisms of the last demo is how most enemies don't provide enough friction - players can simply walk right without much though. Thus, the general design idea behind these enemies is to provide players with more diverse "things" to do when playing.

New Enemy: Surveyor

An artificial organism that flies across the sky, surveying & transmitting information. Though they can still pose a serious threat, swooping down to strike enemies with its sharp talons.

Much like the rest of the enemies shared in the most recent updates, they exist to create a bit more friction for the player. Their pattern is very simple and they can still be killed quite easily, but being an airborne enemy means they put a bit more pressure on players to act.

Although I'm not sure about it just yet, due to the fact that these enemies only have 1HP, they can be killed by the shield. Though a firm, but patient whip strike will also do the job.

New Enemy: Bat

You fools, haha... Hahahaha! Did you think you were safe from the medusa sine wave pattern just because the previous flying enemies had a gentler pattern? Fools! Foolish fools!

Behold... The Bat! In a twisted turn of fate, THEY (the basic intro enemies in classic CV) are the true Medusa Head proxy! For who else but they could claim to be closest to the power of the fearsome vampire?! Also, they move WITH the camera - ensuring players can't outrun them.

New Enemy: Mudman

Although less dynamic in its movement, the mudman can still catch players unaware.

The mudman takes multiple hits and splits into (weaker) variants upon destruction, basically acting as a mini damage sponge. She has the highest HP of all the enemies so far. I would like to refine the enemy behavior a bit more, but she's already functioning as expected.

I actually drew this enemy sprite a long time ago, but only recently added it to the game. I'd like to add particles effects whenever the enemy takes damage, and maybe have some small character sprites for the weaker variants.

That's the bulk of my latest work. At this point, I've basically created a proxy for almost every type of enemy in the original CV bestiary, as well as a few extras. I'd like to add a few more, but I guess I'm almost done with the pool of basic enemies in my own game engine.

Here's some additional sketches & concept art, but otherwise, don't forget to eat & sleep.