Overview: Our Inspiration
The idea for Drodian’s (De)Fault came from one of those old games that’s lived rent free in my head for years. I don’t remember how I stumbled on The Tower of Druaga, but it’s often brought up whenever we talk about hard games that have a lot of potential. It was originally an arcade cabinet that was later rebuilt on a number of other platforms.
The truth is, it’s mean. The Tower of Druaga boasts multiple enemies, 60 levels, and a secret objective that unlocks an item upgrade for each level. Back then, they were kind enough to let you know the first 10 or so secret objectives and related item by putting them on the side of the cabinet. Every objective after that had to be discovered by the player base which, likely, cost an untold number of hours and coins.
The mechanics aren’t obvious to the player and one wrong swing of a sword can ruin a run. Just when you get the hang of it, you get blasted by a billion wizards that don’t care about your feelings. If you like challenging games, then I recommend giving it a try, but if you want to keep your wits about you, please use save states (The Switch Version was helpful).
The Tower of Druaga - Arcade
So, why would we make a game inspired by something so cruel? Because we’re gluttons for punishment, but also because it’s a really neat idea. For an arcade game back in the day, there’s a surprising amount of depth. Climbing the tower and learning how to overcome the tougher objectives feels rewarding. The enemies bring their own challenge and unlocking powerful items give each map its own flavor. Overall, the element of discovery is satisfying, which has its hand in Drodian’s design.
The goal is to lean into the unique ideas that make ToD what it is, while removing a lot of the frustrations. We’ve kept key components like movement (with improvements), the importance of the shield and blocking, objectives and upgrades per level, and general game loop.
ToD - Famicom
We’re in the works of making a lot of adjustments too. The plan is to have a more diverse group of enemies, a boss at every 10 levels, a built-in menu to explain the objectives, and secrets within secrets. We want Drodian’s (De)Fault to have that challenging edge, while mitigating those cumbersome elements from ToD.
What’s Next
We have some new art to implement (as seen above) and we’re taking a first pass at some SFX/music. The trap tile is mostly done which brings us to three bad guys, and I desperately need to get the score timer in. This puts us closer to our first major milestone, not gonna lie, it’s pretty exciting!
'Til next week!
-Nathan
