Last week’s achievements

* Mostly set up new computer (installed programs, copied files over, etc.)
* Restructured hidden stats in a more sensible fashion
* Created numerous new stats to flesh out the fashion system further
* Redid all previous fashion effects, redid various formulas, and made other fixes stemming from tweaking the stat system

Current focus

The status menu followed by the equipment (fashion) system.

Weekly goals

* Finish setting up new computer
* Learn how to configure and tweak a status menu; if I get far enough, create the prototype layout for it

Comments

After last Monday, I’m so happy I made the call to redo the stats again. It took time, but couldn’t have been more worth it since I got not only a smoother system like I expected, but a couple new ideas in the process. The main one was fleshing out the Fashion Profile stats, which had 14 flavors before and 26 now, plus over 70 new fashion effects to go along with them.

Until now I’ve focused on internal calculations since they’re the gameplay foundation; I’ve disregarded graphics, animations, sound, music, map design, GUIs, player movement, and almost everything that isn’t calculating numbers (damage formulas, equipment bonuses, stat growth on level up), with flavor text being my only exception. But I’ve realized that understanding the ways in which I can present stats externally to the player can influence how I handle them internally, so I should tackle it sooner than later.

This is new ground for me, though! I’m hoping I can figure it out within a few days, but as an amateur programmer I usually can’t tell when something will be easy or difficult, never mind the degree of difficulty, and double never mind that I’m not even the programmer of this framework, so I really don’t have a solid basis for my expectations. Point is that I’m giving myself some leeway here and making that the single goal. =P

In other news, I’ve copied over 90 GB of stuff to my new computer over the past few days… Very few things left to move or install now. Other than that, my excellent artist Flora has finished a crazy month, so we might be getting moving a bit more on that front. : D Completion of Celty‘s design—just one or two rounds away now—will herald the opportunity to draw the title screen with her and Leaf, so that should be especially cool!