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OCTOBER 14TH, 2015

Game prototyping – Garbatron

Hello game lovers,
Coming back from summer vacation we decided that we should spend a month or so to prototype different ideas that’s been floating around. That month has now come to an end, and it resulted in a strong and interesting concept that we will now develop further. But we thought you all would be interested in getting a glimpse of all the crazy stuff we’ve been doodling with. In a number of blogs we will take a closer look at these ideas. So, without further ado, Mediocre presents…

Garbatron!

One of the first ideas we explored was called Garbatron. A game where the player slices objects with the purpose of recycling the parts in return for energy. You got energy whenever you managed to get parts to fall through the holes in the floor, and you lost energy for the parts you did not manage to get through the holes. Red objects which explodes when sliced were added as a method to get rid of small pieces, which had a tendency to stack up in corners and other hard to get to places. However, getting any part of the red objects through a hole also mean a loss of energy. The idea was that this was going to play out in some kind of junkyard, and the player would be tasked with slicing up bigger and more absurd items the further the game progressed; Coffee cup -> Laptop -> Microwave -> Fridge -> Sofa -> Car -> Mini van -> Shipping container -> House -> Ferry -> Aircraft Carrier and so on. Also objects with different effects were envisioned; like a water tank dropping water when sliced which could be used to wash down leftover parts, propane tanks for explosions and so forth. Unfortunately, there was a couple of issues with the idea which ultimately led us to scrapping the concept:

  • Slicing objects was fun and very rewarding but also very difficult to do in a controlled and predictable manner (from a gameplay perspective, not technically difficult). It kind of felt like the equivalent of button mashing in Street Fighter.
  • A lot of pieces were stuck on flat areas and in corners. This was somehow mitigated by the exploding objects, but not completely. It felt unfair to lose energy due to parts the player had very little possibility of salvaging. Creating sloped floors was considered, but it would likely just mean that the game became a test of how fast the player could slice up objects small enough to automatically slide down through the holes.
  • To retain long term interest the game would need to be very content heavy with lots of detailed objects of different kinds and sizes.
  • It was difficult to see how the game could be expanded to retain interest after the first few levels.

Please enjoy this short video of an early prototype Dennis whipped up in the Smash hit engine:

Signing off,
Emil

I love SmashHit
October 14, 2015 at 4:22 pm

Hi Mediocre Team
I love the idea but I am waiting your new update to see more details about the Garbatron Prototype.
But First I want to know If they are new Levels and mods to SmashHit in the way(Levels 12,13,14,15,16……25,26…)

Reply 
Mediocre Moderator
October 14, 2015 at 4:34 pm

Hi I love SmashHit!
There probably won’t be more details about Garbatron, since it was a prototype that we felt didn’t work out.
About Smash Hit, there will be news in the not to distant future, but it’s too soon for us to talk about that yet.

Cheers!

Reply 
Anonymous
October 17, 2015 at 6:07 pm

Hello Mediocre Team
I am very exited for a new levels (level 12,13,14,15…20,21….27,28….and more) and mods to SmashHit.
Please can you post a little video of 10 second about this new levels or mods.
PLEASE…PLEASE
THANKS YOU

Reply 
Mediocre Moderator
October 20, 2015 at 7:56 am

We understand your thirst for Smash Hit news. But you just have to hold out a bit longer.

Reply 
Jack
November 8, 2015 at 2:38 pm

Is the new levels coming to smash hit game coming soon. I’m excited to play them when they are out soon of the next update??

Reply 
Mediocre Moderator
November 23, 2015 at 10:04 am

Hi Jack,
Keep checking this page for updates. It’s not that far away :)

Cheers
Emil

Reply 

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