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Slender Man -- WIP

Discussion in 'Works In Progress - Archive' started by AgentParsec, Jun 2, 2012.

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  1. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    New version available again, same links as before: PC / Mac

    This build fixes the whole "SM is teleporting outside the level" bug. Also ,for testing purposes I decreased his teleport range by 10 units. He should hang out a lot closer in general now. If it's a problem on the larger map, I'll raise it back up again.

    *EDIT* Oh, awesome, top of page.
     
    Last edited: Jun 17, 2012
  2. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    At this point, I honestly can't think of any improvements to the base game. Once the modelling is done for the props, I'll start building the actual map.
     
  3. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    ... I say that, then I keep working.

    So for testing larger areas, I'm doubling the length and width of the test area (basically copy pasted everything so that it appears 4 times). This will serve for longer term testing until I can get the actual play area done.

    I'm also modifying the sanity drain calculation. Previously it just subtracted the distance from 40 and divided the result by 40 to get the sanity drain amount. If it was a distance greater than 40, it simply had a zero drain. Now, I'm calculating it as 2 to the power of (negative distance divided by 10). The result is a curved graph that is most dangerous when you are at 10 or closer (the range at which it now makes the 'dramatic' sound when you spot him), but in addition, there's always a tiny bit of drain if you can see him, even from a very long range. But it would take a very long time of standing there staring at him in order for it to have any noticeable effect (and looking away for a second would 'cure' it immediately).

    I'll get the new version posted once I'm sure everything's working.
     
  4. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    Ok, uploaded newest version. Use the same links from the first post on this page (or really, any of the links throughout the thread).

    Changes in this one:

    1. Much larger test area, as stated in the previous post.
    2. Sanity drain modified, again as stated in the previous post.
    3. Your eyes adjust to the darkness gradually when your flashlight is turned off, but the flashlight is still superior.
    4. The flashlight grows gradually dimmer as the battery drains, then starts to flicker shortly before it goes out completely. Turning off the flashlight saves battery. It starts out slightly brighter than in previous builds in order to compensate for this drain.
    5. You have slightly more stamina than before (the maximum stamina doesn't drop as quickly).
    6. You skip the intro now by clicking the mouse button (previously it was pressing Esc, but I decided to change it).

    *EDIT* I just noticed a bug, didn't see it before for some reason. There's a black shape visible when you're looking down, I think it's probably the player object rendering for some reason (it's not supposed to render, I might have accidentally enabled it). Will fix and reupload.

    *EDIT EDIT* Okay, fix uploaded. It was exactly what I thought it was.

    *EDIT EDIT EDIT* Okay,there's ANOTHER bug, and that's that the camera was getting moved upwards for some reason at the start of the game. It makes the player look taller than usual (and is actually why the player object became visible). Fiiiiiixing...

    *EDIT EDIT EDIT EDIT* Fix uploaded. The problem was that somehow the camera got moved in relation to the object. My bad. You are NOT the same height as Slender Man, honestly.
     
    Last edited: Jun 19, 2012
  5. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    Uploading another new version. SM wasn't pursuing the player like he should have. Also, I made it so that he starts appearing after a little over 2 minutes if the player doesn't pick up a page, to help prevent scouting them all out before grabbing any.

    *EDIT* All of a sudden, it's been quiet on this page of the thread, I've been the only poster...
     
    Last edited: Jun 19, 2012
  6. pivotraze

    pivotraze

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    I've been lurking this thread :) I'm loving it

    Oh, and btw, something I've thought but haven't yet posted, I think the flashlight radius is much too large. I am downloading the newest version, seeing how it looks, but I think a radius quite a bit smaller (somewhere around 25 or 17, mine is 17) is a bit better.



    More... flashlighty looking :)

    P.S. I still had to skip the intro by pressing ESC?
     
    Last edited: Jun 19, 2012
  7. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    Yeah, I know the flashlight is bigger than a normal flashlight would be. The problem is, when I'm dealing with code that involves whether or not you can see the enemy, there's no way for me to know whether or not your flashlight is illuminating him, so I try to compensate by having a wider flashlight beam. Even as large as it is, it still has a dead area to the left and right that it may be possible to "see" SM but not actually see him.

    It should be mouse click to skip intro now... ESC just quits the game.

    *EDIT* Yeah, just tested, ESC does quit the game as intended, and left mouse click skips the intro.

    *EDIT EDIT* By the way, where'd you get that skybox? I'd prefer a more bluish sky like that instead of the one I'm currently using.
     
  8. pivotraze

    pivotraze

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    Erm... it's in the udk hahaha. My Unity version of my horror game isn't as good... Unity has a good built in skybox though:



    *EDIT* I downloaded the one from this page, and the first page, and both make me click ESC to skip the intro, not left click? Lol. ESC quits the game too
     
    Last edited: Jun 19, 2012
  9. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    They're all the same link. But still, you should be getting the newest version. Make sure it's not downloading some cached version; the newest version has a larger test area (I added the larger test area at the same time that I made the intro skippable with left click).
     
  10. Finjitzu

    Finjitzu

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    Not sure how you are determining LOS but you might wanna check this script out.

    http://answers.unity3d.com/questions/15735/field-of-view-using-raycasting.html

    With this you can change the field of view to any angle you like plus change the ray origin to the flashlight position.
     
  11. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    I determine line of sight by testing to see if it's rendering on a camera, then shooting some raycasts at specific points on the SM model to see if it hits. It works well enough to get the job done.

    I've decided to set July 4th as my deadline for finishing this (but preferably before then), since it's 2 months from when I started actually working on it in Unity (May 4th).

    (Heh, it's still called "New Unity Project", too.)
     
  12. ludiares

    ludiares

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    New WIP of the building. Added decals and some chairs. Also, the build is taller now. You can test it here.
    It will be up in a minute or two
    *EDIT* I don't know why, but dropbox isn't working well, it will be a little more until it's up
    *EDIT**EDIT* Working now. The wip is now testable
     
    Last edited: Jun 20, 2012
  13. Amuse1

    Amuse1

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    Good game so far, i got 7/8 pages then i started going to the next one and pop slender man came around the corner and freaked me out.My rating is 9/10 so far :D.
     
  14. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    I like how it's looking!

    I was looking through the asset store, and I found a rusted tank that was a free download... I might use that somewhere, maybe have a few of them side by side in a clearing near the complex. Also found some good textures to use for the ground and paths. Now I just need to find a decent skybox, and a fence. (They had a chain link fence model on the asset store, but for some reason its design has part of the fence missing, and that would look weird seeing the hole repeated over and over on each segment of the fence. Seriously, I don't know why the hole was put there, it ruins an otherwise perfect fence.)
     
  15. AgentParsec

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    I built a test terrain to see how well enemy movement works in actual woods. Turns out not so well; there is extreme lag whenever SM is close by. After some more testing, I discovered it was caused by the capsulecast I'm using for his movement. I may have to use something else, such as raycasting, although I have to figure out a way to make sure it'll still have room to move.
     
  16. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    Ok, I think I have the chasing bug fixed. Instead of capsulecasting, I'm doing it with raycasts, and it seems to work just as well. Bullet dodged.
     
  17. AgentParsec

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    I may have made the woods too big. Oddly, it's the right amount of walk time I was expecting between landmarks (enough to set mood), but it's really easy to get lost, mostly because whlie swinging your view around to look for SM, you can easily forget which way you were walking down a path. The paths themselves are hard to spot from the woods, too, so if you get off-track, you can easily get lost. I may have to rethink the landmark positioning and put them closer together. Or at least put more landmarks, but then it could be frustrating trying to locate all the pages.
     
  18. AgentParsec

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    Ok, I shrunk the woods a bit, and I scattered some landmarks. At this time, it's "semi" complete. By that I mean, I have a few temporary objects which could do for some actual model replacement. Also, I'm using some free assets from the asset store.

    I will upload the latest version shortly. Please remember that all object placement is temporary.
     
  19. AgentParsec

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    Okay, it's uploaded. As usual, the links are: PC / Mac

    (I will record a video shortly as well.)

    The map is considerably larger than my test maps. It's not meant to be exactly clear-cut where you need to go from the first playthrough; after exploring, you can find all the landmarks and should be able to locate a page at each one.

    Things that still need to be fixed:

    1. The outer wall needs to be replaced with a chain link fence. I'm having trouble finding such a model, as I mentioned before once.
    2. The inner walls of the complex are extremely shiny... so much so that they shine even when your flashlight is turned off. I need to figure out why and fix it. Similarly, the center hallway also seems to do the opposite: it absorbs light at most angles.
    3. If SM spawns inside the complex, he's often partway through a wall. I need to fix that, naturally. He potentially does this with trees as well.
    4. As mentioned in my previous post, there are temporary fixtures until I can decide on something to put in to those places.
    5. More page spawns for the "silo" and the creepy dead tree. Right now, both of them only have a single spawn spot on them; I should at least put potential spawn spots on different sides.
     
  20. ludiares

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    To make the tiles less shiny, make the tile material a bumped diffuse, not bumped specular, as I did. That should get rid of that. But I can't figure out what happens with the hallway, that happened to me too
     
  21. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    Also, another odd thing... the sanity loss appears to be messed up again, and I'm not sure why. It doesn't always drain as fast as it should, and I haven't modified it since the last time it was working correctly.

    ALSO also, I'm not entirely sure, but it's possible that not all the pages are spawning all the time either.
     
  22. AgentParsec

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    Switching it to Bumped Diffuse helps a little, but it still seems to glow in the dark. I do have a point light source at the player's position so that the player can "see" in the dark, and I think that's causing it to think it needs to illuminate, but I don't understand why it's illuminating so MUCH.

    (*EDIT* Adding to my list of things to fix, I really ought to make the two trucks a bit larger so that you can't see over them.)
     
  23. ludiares

    ludiares

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    Strange bugs over there
     
  24. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    Here's a quick video I shot:

     
  25. TehWut

    TehWut

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    I haven't played it recently, but you should add this somewhere in the map:


    along with the Silo in marble hornets where this symbol is found, just to add a little bit of spice to it.
     
  26. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    No, I'm purposely avoiding the Operator symbol from Marble Hornets (in the page drawings as well), because while the Slender Man mythos is pretty general, that's more of a copyrighted thing for Marble Hornets.
     
  27. AgentParsec

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    Ok, something weird going on. Sometimes sanity drains normally, other times it seems very low for some reason. I have no idea why, it should be using the same distance calculation for all sanity drains. When it's having the problem, it has it for the whole game it seems, and when it's not, the game works normally from start to finish. Very puzzling.

    Also, I still think pages might not always be spawning. I had a good run that got me 7 of the pages but I couldn't find the 8th anywhere, and I thought I had doublechecked all possible spawn locations.
     
  28. bigmisterb

    bigmisterb

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    Ur developing it, just pause the game and go find the game objects. ;)
     
  29. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    I found what the problem with the pages is. It's my own stupidity... the concrete texture I used on the pillars and the wall sometimes causes the pages to blend in, and I set the spawn positions a little too high. The end result is that if I don't look up, I might not notice them at all. So yeah, problem solved.

    Still don't know why the sanity drain is sometimes off. I have no way of testing it either since it's very intermittent.
     
  30. yls

    yls

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    The walkthought is pretty amazing (and i'm difficult) but not being familiar with this mythos i don't really understand the rules. Moreover us player don't know where the pages are supposed to spaw and the environment doesn't really help us.
     
  31. AgentParsec

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    If you follow the paths, you will pass (or come close enough to see) all the landmarks. Taking shortcuts through the woods is only advisible if you know where you're going.

    That said, I don't want to make it too obvious where everything is, because I want the exploration to be an element of the game. Your first times through are more exploration and survival than actually trying to win.
     
  32. AgentParsec

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    After much experimenting, I still can't tell why the complex lights itself. I've turned off all light sources, including the nearby point light that's used for seeing in the dark, and it still lights up. The roof of the complex doesn't, so that's working right, but I can't figure out why the rest of it does this.

    I noticed in the package, however, that there are some 'lightmaps'. What are those, and could that be causing it? Logic would tell me 'yes', but these objects aren't referenced in the actual complex object anywhere.
     
  33. AgentParsec

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    Reuploading, same links as before.

    Changes:

    1. Temporary fence texture applied to wall. It's not going to be the final one, because right now it's just a seamless chain link, no 'posts'.
    2. Made the trucks bigger. Also, moved one of the trucks and the little trailer thing to a different location.
    3. Only one page should spawn per 'landmark'.
    4. Adjusted page spawn positions and darkened the concrete on the pillars and cross wall things in order to make the pages easier to spot.
     
    Last edited: Jun 26, 2012
  34. virror

    virror

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    Lightmaps are premade lightning, sounds like those are the cause of your problem, just try to remove them and see what happens.
     
  35. ludiares

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    Remove the lightmap folder and maybe that gets rid of it
     
  36. AgentParsec

    AgentParsec

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    Just tried it, did not work.

    *EDIT* Just in case it updated the prefab and not the one I had placed, I placed a new prefab in, still had the same issue.

    *EDIT EDIT* I placed the untextured complex object, and that works with lights normally. It's the textured version that doesn't. Comparing now to see what's different about them.

    *EDIT EDIT EDIT* I placed a new copy of the complex and started messing with it. If I change the textures, it still has the lighting issue. Change the type of material (such as switching it to a regular Diffuse), same issue. Replaced the material itself, same issue. Tried not making it static anymore, same issue. I'm literally out of things to try.
     
    Last edited: Jun 26, 2012
  37. AgentParsec

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    Ok, I found a workaround. I replaced the fully textured model with the untextured one, then just applied the correct textures to it. I moved the decals out from their previous positions before I did this, and moved them into the new object so that they're all still in the correct places. Now it MOSTLY works. There are still a few spots where the light gets absorbed oddly, like that long hallway.

    Also, there's something else I didn't notice before (since I don't look up much >_>). The leaves on the trees will light up whenever the flashlight is on, regardless of whether or not the flashlight is facing them...
     
  38. AgentParsec

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    Newest version is ready, same links as always.

    This has the semi-fixed complex ("fixed enough", we'll call it), adds new textures for the pillars and cross-wall areas, and adds two new landmarks: a collection of large stones and a large concrete pipe/tunnel. There are now 10 total areas for pages to spawn, which means two of the areas will not receive pages.
     
    Last edited: Jun 26, 2012
  39. AgentParsec

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    You know, the simple objects and free asset store models were supposed to be temporary, but I'm actually liking how everything looks. I might just keep it as it is. Also, I'm getting lost a lot less, now that there are enough landmarks to go around. It still took me a few attempts to beat the game.

    I need some feedback though so I can make minor tweaks to the game. Some things I'm still testing:

    1. Is the stamina level enough, and does the maximum stamina level drain at a good rate? I wanted to encourage walking, and so far it seems to be doing the job; if you sprint too much early on, the latter stages become practically impossible.

    2. Does the flashlight battery last too long? Maybe it's just because I was moving with a good amount of focus for where I was going, but I never seemed to be in danger of the flashlight running out of battery. That's probably a good thing though, I intended it to prevent people from wandering forever, or camping out in "safe" spots.
     
  40. ludiares

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    Maybe the walk speed it too slow, just a little bit faster(not much), would make it better. Just my two cents
     
  41. virror

    virror

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    1. I think this is good.

    2 I guess you move a lot faster than normal players because you find your way around. A new person would probably play longer so i think this is ok too.
     
  42. Mechanoxx

    Mechanoxx

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    Maybe add some camera animation, to make it look like the player is walking. And as the slender man draws near and the sound gets creepier the animation should get more exaggerated
     
  43. AgentParsec

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    Newest version ready, same links as before. (Give it about 25 minutes before trying to donwload.)

    I've finished making the fence around the outside edge, and I've slightly tweaked a few more things here and there.

    The flashlight battery drains SLIGHTLY faster, and I've also made the flashlight beam narrower, but I've boosted the normal ambient light a bit to compensate. SM should now be slightly visible on the sides of the screen when nearby even if the flashlight isn't directly on him. Navigating with the flashlight off is now much easier due to the boost in lighting, but still not recommended because SM can potentially teleport right next to you if your flashlight is off.

    Honestly it plays as I'm expecting right now. Unless there are no major issues, I'm thinking of releasing a public 'beta'.
     
    Last edited: Jun 26, 2012
  44. AgentParsec

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    I've tried messing with head bobbing and such, but I could not get it to come out right. Now I'm so used to it moving smoothly that I don't really mind anymore.
     
  45. AgentParsec

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    Something just hit me. While looking back over my scripting, I suddenly realized that my sanity drain script is running on an OnWillRender routine, instead of a FixedUpdate like everything else. I'll bet THAT'S why sanity doesn't always drain correctly. If anything slows down the graphics of the game, it runs less, and consequently drains slower. Makes SO much sense all of a sudden (and also why I couldn't reproduce it).

    *EDIT* And now it suddenly hit me why it was happening to me only sometimes. I was running FRAPS at the time to record the playthrough, and it causes framerate to drop when I do, in turn causing OnWillRender to run less frequently.
     
    Last edited: Jun 26, 2012
  46. AgentParsec

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    The fix works! I tried running it with FRAPS, the framerate dropped significantly, and the sanity drain rate stayed the same.

    Alright... I think I might go ahead and release a public 'beta' once I put the next build together. I'll call it "Slender v0.9". More in a bit.
     
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