Devlog #2 - Research

Welcome back to another exciting chapter of the Penguin Game development! Over the past week, a lot has been happening behind the scenes, as we continue to shape and refine the game. We will be sharing all the progress made between 25/02/2025 and 04/03/2025, including key changes and improvements. Let’s dive in  and take a look at what’s new!

ART

Animation

We tested the Blender to Unity and Mixamo to Unity rigging / animation pipelines. Now we're able to set up and play around with animated characters in Unity. We can swap between Animation Controllers, use Shape Keys to exaggerate actions, and add completely new Animations to our already present characters.

Decals

Testing how decals work in unity and how to get them to move with characters.

Subsurface Scattering

We played around a bit with mimicking subsurface scattering. Our current protoype uses the URP (Universal Render Pipeline) from unity and this render does not have it built in comparison to the HDRP (High definition Render Pipeline). This is the result of trying to mimick it. (edited)

Environment Shaders

Procedural shader test for the environmental elements inside Unity. From left to right:

• simple gradient with minimal noise and without texture,
• gradient with texture,
• gradient with texture, posterized effect, and exaggerated light reflection/fresnel (leaning towards cell shader effect).

DEVELOPMENT

Soft & Heavy Attack

Implemented a basic hitbox system for soft attacks, allowing players to land quick strikes with a button press. Additionally, I introduced a heavy attack mechanic that requires picking up a special item—currently a fish—before it can be used. This adds a layer of strategy, as players need to find and secure the item before performing stronger attacks.

Item Pick-up

Designed and implemented an automatic pickup system for the fish item. When a player collides with the fish, it attaches to them without needing a button press. The fish remains attached until used for a heavy attack. Additionally, the fish now aligns with the player’s rotation when picked up, ensuring it moves naturally as the player navigates the environment.

Player Bounce

I implemented a player bounce system where players knock each other back on impact. This adds a new layer of strategy and chaos to the gameplay.

Player Colors

To improve clarity in co-op gameplay, I added a system that assigns unique colors to each player. This makes it easier to distinguish between players, especially in fast-paced combat scenarios. The color system will be useful as more customization options are introduced later.

Breaking Platform

We implemented breaking platforms, these will all have sunk by a specific time. This will make sure the game won't go on past a certain point of time. The segment that breaks of is decided at random. We might tweak the timing to balance difficulty.

What's next?

• Adding ragdoll physics.
• Adding jumping mechanic.
• Adding item throwing mechanic.
• Maybe trying out a hot potato game mode?
• ....