Developing Epilogue: A 2D Platformer Made on Godot

Abstract

Since the inception of video games, two dimensional games have captured the imaginations of players worldwide. From more cartoonish platformers like Super Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong Country, to even more cinematic platformers like Another World and the Apple II Prince Of Persia games, brawlers like Splatterhouse and Double Dragon, and shooters/run-and-gun games like Contra and Metal Slug have left their mark on thousands of game developers around the world. Though at a layman's glance it may seem that the world has moved onto more three dimensional endeavors started as far back as the pseudo-3D effects of ID Software's seminal classics Wolfenstein 3D and Doom, the market and gaming interest in two dimensional space, especially in independent game development cycles still remain fresh. With recent successes of Cuphead and Hollow Knight providing a great template for modernization of said older concepts, and more retro styled games such as Streets Of Rage 4 and Shovel Knight (with a few modern tweaks for better player enhancements) shows that interest in retro pixel art games still remain as fresh as their supposed market hay-days during 3^rd and 4^th console generations. In the meantime as the independent game development cycle increases, engines and asset packs become more widely available and easy to use. No longer do you need to create a framework from scratch or have to buy a licensed engine from a proprietary retailer, and can instead use an existing framework of engine and its features, and utilize it for your game. That is why using the templates of level and game designs of older successful platformers and shooters – cinematic, cartoonish, brawlers, and otherwise, and mixing them with modern enhancements and features, alongside the framework and features provided by the Godot engine, we attempt to create a two dimensional game with the working title of Epilogue, and mix the concept of a melee combat with the shooting, and mix them under one satisfying loop of gameplay – where instead of one contradicting or being any alternative for each other, they both work in tandem of each other and encourages the usage of one when the other's use has subsided.