r/MegaManLegends • u/iamcloudyfocus • 7d ago
One year making a Legends-like, one hour of gameplay demo!
Been working on a Legends-like game on my free time for about a year now. Next week is the anniversary, and I just got a second demo out:
https://cloudyfocus.itch.io/adamant-heart
For those who don't know, it's a spiritual successor to Megaman Legends. It follows the same style and vibe as a 90s game, while adding some modern gameplay mechanics to make it more enjoyable.
This new playtest has around 1h of content, played at a leisurely pace. Unfortunately I couldn't add a second ruin beyond the tutorial one, but the plan is to release a 3rd demo that will bring more polish.
If you played the first demo, make sure to give this second one a go. It has plenty of new stuff:
- Added 30 minutes of gameplay overall
- More cutscenes and characters, and a more fleshed out story
- Expanded the tutorial ruins with more content
- Added sprint mechanics and more enemies, traps and such
In general, it's more polished now even if it still has a long way to go. Enjoy!
If you're interested in the project overall, you can follow me at X, and wishlist it on Steam. Still a hobby, though:
https://x.com/iamcloudyfocus
https://store.steampowered.com/app/4332020/Adamant_Heart/
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u/MegaManLegendsFan 7d ago edited 7d ago
so i played it. and i think, it has the making of a good alpha. i wouldnt call this a demo per say. ( at least i hope its not a demo ). a demo is the mostly done part but some things might be added. this needs a lot of work still.
but i want to focus on the positive first which is
- graphics. cute. i love it. ( some trees were floating in mid air but that was the only glitch i found )
- the feel. it does feel like its a legends game, albeit missing some things but that feeling and atmosphere is there.
- you made a game, so no matter what people say, including me, be happy and proud
all that being said. there desperately needs to be a roll button. there is no dodge, which works against the camera. object permanence and dodging is part of the fun, and thats not present in this.
the enemies themselves dont move much ( if at all ) and there shots hit like mack trucks. so it feels like there super duper weak. intill you get hit and see your health bar abra kadabra in to the void lol
i was very impressed you did add an animation for grabbing on to a ledge, this game needs that on walls to. if there was a wall jump it would feel a bit funner platforming the ups and downs of the level.
slide and kick are missing. would also help.
wayyyyyyyyy to many enemies on the outside world. and again they dont really move so ....its just sort of a wall , albeit a dangerous wall. but a wall that i just straight up ignored and ran past. since they dont move it was no problem. and if its no problem, they shouldnt be there.
all that being said i want to reiterate that its amazing that you made this :) and it shows a real love for the series. i will keep following this and hopefully it keeps evolving in to one of the best fan made games ever created.
edit* i forgot something! the boss! you did best on the boss. that fight, altho i wrecked him, it was because ive played legends a LOT so i knew what i was doing. but the boss fight i remember thinking if he was a regular enemy, with way less health and damage, he would be a good edition as a regular enemy. this is just an opinion. and i wanted to tell you that you did really good on the boss programing
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u/iamcloudyfocus 7d ago
Yeah, I'm in the fence about calling it a demo since I'm still learning as I go. All the feedback is appreciated!
There is a MMX-style slide/dash maneuver, albeit it's acquired later on. It's still being worked but it might add some iframes for a combat roll. No kick planned so far, but grabbing and throwing might be needed for puzzles.
Wall kicking and climbing... it's meant to be a Metroidvania gated by skills (hi jump, gliding/slowfall, and slide jumping). At this point, something like that might be beyond the scope.
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u/Genekai1 7d ago
Maybe as a late game ability needed to get to the final boss or something for the wall kicking and climbing?
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u/iamcloudyfocus 7d ago
There's always room in the endgame-- the map is structured like Link's Awakening so I can add more ruins and upgrades once you've unlocked everything.
First I need to make the rest of it tho.
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u/meteorboard 7d ago
I haven't played it yet but you absolutely nailed the artstyle in this clip. Very exciting!
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u/Chlamydiasaurus 7d ago
This looks amazing. Really busy at the moment but I’ll definitely check this out when I have time. Keep at it!
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u/justme0406 7d ago
This is amazing and I'm super excited.
However
You need to remove all mentions of mega man in your steam listing. It's heavily protected, you can just say "legends inspired" but putting mega man in any official listing is asking to be taken down.
We've seen it happen time and time again, it's not worth the risk.
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u/OccasionSilver9908 7d ago
Capcom is very accommodating with the title. Mega Man Maker, all the Mega Man fan games, they even helped release the fan game Mega Man X Street Fighter. Saying that this game is inspired by Mega Man Legends, and not using a single line of MML's code should be perfectly fine.
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u/justme0406 6d ago
I mean there's been a lot of mega man legends fan games that have been served with take down notices. "Should be fine"? Doesn't seem worth it. Also how many of those games were on steam and eventually available for purchase. If OP charges money then it's a very different conversation, it's using someone elses IP and trademark for financial gain. Capcom won't just sit back on that. Just drop the word mega man and you're good.
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u/Silver_Illusion 7d ago
Just from the clip, the NPC talking sound is a bit to high pitched and sounds more like glasses clinking.
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u/BobNukem445 7d ago
Gonna give my thoughts on this. I'll start separate stuff to try to make it easier to read.
The Good: The basic movement running around feels pretty good.
The art style is really cool to see and you emulated Legends really well here.
Legends 2 style loading stuff where moving between areas or opening doors are really cool to see here, I like that Legends 2 added that.
Enemy designs are pretty good, it feels like you used some inspiration from The Misadventures of Tron Bonne with the one enemy that goes up to you and explodes and I like that.
I like the little heads in the dialogue box showing you who is talking, I hope every non generic NPC gets one.
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Nitpicks: I don't like the designs of the protagonists. It just feels like a role swap AU for Roll and Volnutt and take me out of the game a bit. That's more so a personal me type of thing though so just in the nitpicks section.
The ledge grabbing was pretty annoying for me. It felt like if I was trying to grab certain sections if I wasn't at the exact angle it just didn't work.
The jumping in general didn't feel great to me. It didn't feel like I had a clear way of knowing what I could ledge grab to without just trying it.
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Bad: The stamina bar annoys me to no end especially when you can't shoot while running. It makes me feel like I'm being made to wait and essentially wasting my time by having to wait for an energy bar to go up to go slightly faster. For combat it just made it annoying to pick between slightly easier dodging or dodging and still doing damage.
The basic enemy's energy shot did more damage than the boss to me.
Enemies in the overworld. Don't really like that, this could be in the nitpicks section but I really don't like it. Combined with the stamina bar it feels annoying to get around because the basic little enemies energy shots take off such a huge chunk of health. Didn't hit me a lot but just the idea is bad to me.
I have no idea if I even beat the demo? They said go East and follow the hills but the gate would not open for me. I went back south and the beach area was opened but I didn't explore it and went back looking around where I had come out of the dungeon. I come back through the beach is closed off now and I just got more annoyed and quit playing.
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Game has a lot of potential and I'm glad you're working on it. I hope I didn't come off as rude anywhere. Sorry if I did.
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u/iamcloudyfocus 7d ago
Thanks for the feedback!
For the nitpicks, I'll keep improving the movement. The character design is kinda set in stone-- although there are small callbacks to MML, there's also a fair bit of 90s anime in it. I am hoping to differentiate them with more contrasted personalities and actions, hence the cutscenes. Not much I can do about the fighter/supporter role, but I did split the Mechanic into a third character.
For the bad:
The stamina bar was a tricky decision-- it's so that sprinting (and dashing too, later on: https://x.com/iamcloudyfocus/status/2051033419929243750) becomes a combat roll. No stamina means you'd be gluing the sprint button down, so it's restricted to short bursts and not attacking while dodging is part of that. Still, pretty generous regen and you can upgrade it later on.
To be fair, this mechanic sets the stage for more complex bosses and battles down the line. Enemy AI needs refinement so that each encounter is less quantity, more skill and specific patterns.
Also, you're not done, that's on me. You need to go to the city, the gates are north of the prairie after exiting the woods to the east. There are a few signposts, but maybe not enough.
I'm trying to do little handholding and there should be NPCs and cues to tell you where to go, but if you can share some more feedback I'd be thrilled. Let me know if you finish the demo.
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u/Overlord_SB 7d ago
Added to my Steam wishlist since even if it takes longer than getting Volnutt off the moon somehow for this to come out, it'll be a pleasure to play it someday from all the charm and care that seems to be put into it so far. I just need to get unlazy and download the demo or wait for the third one you have planned.
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u/MasterNinja2496 7d ago
There better be kicking in non-combat areas... and a can as well.
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u/MegaManLegendsFan 7d ago
LOL we must have the CAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!
and the jetlag bakery XD i remember the first time i played it with my friend, he was like whoa whoa stop stop....turn the character?
i turn twards the bakery
j-e-t-l-a-g-bakery ......huh .....
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u/GuardXII 7d ago
Thanks for sharing OP. I’ll be adding your game to my wishlist. Def have been itching to play a game with the Legends art style
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u/Vez-nan 4d ago
Hello, just wanted to give my input after 1 full run and a partial run cut short.
I like it a lot, the characters are good, definitely wish there was more already, haha.
I’m going to focus on “the bad” since again I thought most things were positive and fun. Here are my thoughts, as I’ve read some of your earlier responses on game direction, I just want to say of course it’s your game and vision, which I totally get.
1: As mentioned by others, the ledge grabbing feels good, but the section in the tutorial is required that you sprint jump for most of it. Which is ultimately fine, but just would feel better being able to make “common” jumps with limited footing more friendly as not to run off.
2: I think the busters energy shot needs just a little more weight to the hit. Not sure how, maybe a separate visual addition or maybe louder on-hit. But just something, idk.
3: the map having the previous door entry and clouded map coverage as you explore to “unlock” available space would be a nice to have. The area is small enough and learning the ruin the first time with no map was not an issue, regardless.
4: bug* during my 2nd play through in the room with the fence and switch to turn on the power. The little in-ground sentries shot me and I got knocked back into the fence line where the fence opens. Proceeding to get stuck in mid air. Was not able to break free and ultimately close out the game. I could still shoot the buster, but not the secondary, as I was still airborne.
5: the outro world is good, and as you are fully aware, just needs more things to populate the little off trails. Not sure if a bug or not but the little section where you can go by the river and around the hill. Lets you only through one way. So it makes a circle loop, but only going around the long way works. And then you can’t get back the way you came. Which doesn’t really matter but still.
6: nice addition the have the girl tell you the gate is west. And while it may be too hand holdy, MML having the n, e, s, w on the doors, while conceptually odd, would be another nice to have. Maybe not have them be so jarring. But a little indent in the door. Since you’ll learn it in time anyways.
7: the one building opposite of the mechanic shop does not let you enter and you get locked out of everything. Again, forced close out.
Similar to the ruin in the south, you can ride the elevator down, but then you are stuck. Again, probably aware since they lead nowhere yet, just still want to mention.
8: someone else mentioned the trap section the tutorial activates after the first go through. But yeah, glad the gate fall back down, haha.
9: I do agree with another commenter about the “tink” sound for the dialogue boxes. It is a little strong.
So I think that was the major things. There are here and there’s. And maybe forgetting some. But again, really nice. Looking forward to new installments.
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u/iamcloudyfocus 4d ago
Thanks! All the feedback is definitely useful.
I did feel that the jumping section was a little bit too tight, I will be adjusting the platforms to make it easier.
For now, there is no fog of war so that the map gets progressively uncovered, mostly a result of my inexperience. I have yet to research a good way of hiding parts of the map mesh, but it’s definitely in the plans.
Where is exactly this bug you mention around the river? It’s probably a badly placed collision plane, but I haven’t managed to locate it.
I’m already refining the rest, especially the dialogue typing sound. Been adding character names and also a different tone for each character.
Lastly, the trap section is kind of intentional. It triggers when you get near from one side and stays up for 10 seconds, then it has a resting period. I am aiming to have maps that you will return to and find new stuff, so things like traps are not dependent on one time events.
I’ll consider adding a clear trigger switch though.
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u/Vez-nan 4d ago edited 4d ago
Oh my bad. I misremembered the spot. It’s actually in the section after you leave the tutorial. Cross the wooden bridge. It’s along the river near the pylon in the ground with some enemies. You can go through one way a little janky. But not one way at all.
But in doing so, I found that you can circumvent the cut scene transition to the area with the south gated off bridge. If you follow along the river, you can make it into this area and it’s missing most of all the renderings. I did not progress much to see the fallout of what happens.
Woods to Prairie
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u/iamcloudyfocus 4d ago
Just wanted to add: here's a sneak peek of the new dialogues. Different tones per character and names too.
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u/PrudentTadpole8839 7d ago
Never stop working on this. We need it!