Mizuki and the Crimson Moon - Devlog

Here's a bit of Mizuki and the Crimson Moon gameplay for you to enjoy! Featuring features that will be added to the November demo patch!

The combat has been getting a lot of attention lately, but that's because the first boss has been getting worked on. Adding big fights really make you reflect on how fluid the combat feels. Still trying to find that perfect balance, but hopefully I'm getting closer.

If you're wondering what this gameplay is, it's of the game I'm developing! Mizuki and the Crimson Moon is an action-platformer that uses teleportation as a movement and combat mechanic! I can't say I've seen another game like it, but it takes inspiration from games like Hollow Knight, Luna Knights, and other platformers.

I got a demo you can play; you should check it out! I'd love the feedback / wishlist / review if you got the time! Steam ItchIO

YAAAAAAAAA- *gasp* HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! It's time for Devlog 50. Number 50. It's finally here. It only took me...nearly 9 months. Regardless of that though, a lot of good progress has been made on Mizuki and the Crimson Moon, and it would mean the world if you checked it out! Here's a summary of what's changed:

Controller and Gamepad Support Mizuki and the Crimson Moon is now playable with most* controllers! Movement, combat, and teleportation have been improved to allow for enjoyable gameplay with a controller. *Nintendo Switch controllers are incompatible.

Quality of Life Features and Improved Gameplay Lots of standard quality of life features have been added to gameplay to give more responsive controls and hopefully a more enjoyable experience playing the game.

Lots of Other Bug Fixes and Improvements This section is hard to sum up because throughout everything listed up above, so many small changes and improvements were made. It would take a lot of text to list them all (and there are quite a few that I lost track of).

What's Happening with the Demo Now? The demo is on track to be completed this year. 'Completed' means that the first area (The Yokai Forest) will be 100% completed from a gameplay perspective. That includes the fabled and soon to come boss fight with the Yokai Hunter. A lot of big life events have happened to me recently, so demo progress has been slow, but I am still committed to weekly progress and continual improvement to Mizuki and the Crimson Moon. Once the demo is completed, I will continue work on my game until Mizuki and the Crimson Moon is released! So until then, thank you for sticking around. If you have any feedback or suggestions for Mizuki and the Crimson Moon, please let me know! You can contact me over in the Mizuki and the Crimson Moon discord channel or in the other methods listed on my Tumblr page!

Until next time!

Hey, one more devlog and we'll hit 50! I'll need to do something special for that.

I have 100% finished the training area within the Yokai Forest, so now the player can learn and practice their skills!

And of course, these will become much more difficult challenges in future areas.

The other bit of work that I'm super proud of is this opening cutscene! Mizuki and the Crimson Moon - Opening Cutscene

It took lots of work to put together, but I'm very happy with it. Now the player will have a lot more context for the setting and such.

Next up on the list: - Polishing and adding more NPC conversations - Bug fixing - And of course...

Continuing work on the first boss!

That's right. I may have made a ton of progress on him in the past, but now I'm adding even more.

Thats all. Have a great night!

Trying out 64x64 pixel art. Not for the game, but just for fun.

Happy Friday!

This is Mizuki and the Crimson Moon! A teleportation-based Japanese-inspire action platformer I'm making.

I've been doing lots of devlogs here on Tumblr for a while (and I probably still will), but now I just want to showcase my game and hopefully find some people who will find it interesting! If you think a game like this is pretty cool, please wishlist it and try out the demo! Or you can follow me on here and listen to my solo game dev journey and see what else I'm cooking up.

Here's to a good weekend of game development!

Steam Demo Itchio Demo

From my past self: "// Making a choice system with multiple/varied options was too difficult, so it's just a yes/no system"

I freaking love proving my past self wrong.

That's right, Mizuki and the Crimson Moon has a brand-new branching dialog system complete with a dialog loop, randomized replies (for chatting), and the potential to execute code after specific branches. Very excited for all the potential this has!

If you think code like this is cool and want to implement something similar yourself, let me know! I'm happy to share some code.

I've also be working on the training area, which will have a lot more purpose than its name implies. You can also hide in it.

That's all for this week. Stay tuned for more!

She just needs to remember to not do it during patrol...

Happy weekend everyone!

This week I've been working on a training ground! (Design not final)

The training ground is run by the local tengu, Yuto, and is essential for honing your skills with teleportation and combat! As you collect Yuto's lost feathers throughout the Yokai Forest, you'll unlock for challenges for you to do!

My plan for 'training ground' type areas is to have them as a place that a new player can use to practice or learn more complex skills early on, but then in future areas become a place for experienced player to take on difficult challenges. Let me know what you think!

And trust me, those dummies aren't just going to stand there and take it...

Happy Month of March everyone!

It's time for a nice update for Mizuki and the Crimson Moon. No big gameplay additions or changes, so sorry if you were looking forward to that. This time it's all about the art and sound of the game! The main tileset used for the Yokai Forest has been updated and I've been busy at work adding sound effects and better sound design into the game. If you haven't tried out my demo yet, now is a great time to do that!

If you read this and have played my demo, let me know what you think!

More sound effects are in Mizuki and the Crimson Moon! Take a listen below:

Featured above are the attack sound, BREAK effect, and new teleport effect. I gotta say, the forest really has a different vibe with no music playing though.

I'm planning on adding and showcasing lots more sound effects in the coming days / weeks. Maybe even a new demo update? We'll have to see.

If you got feedback drop it down below!

Have a great weekend!

It has been a while. Time to get back to a weekly posting schedule with a good reintroduction post!

Hello! I'm CritsOnAStick, the solo programmer working on my 2D action-platformer Mizuki and the Crimson Moon! Follow Mizuki as she leaves her beloved forest home to track own the humans who attacked her village!

Mizuki and the Crimson Moon is a platformer that creatively uses teleportation for movement and combat purposes. Combat also has special attacks and a 'BREAK' feature which allows you to flinch and stun enemies with precise attacks.

In case you can't tell yet, this game is heavily influenced by Japanese culture and folklore. It's full of it! Everything from yokai, charms, celebrations, history, and everything in between.

I've been working on the game for over two years now and am getting it ready for Steam NextFest in the summertime. It will take a few more years for the game to be 100% done unless I am able to move into game development fulltime (which I can't at the moment). However, this is a project that I can 100% guarantee will be completed! If you like games, give me a follow and check out what I have so far! I am ALWAYS looking for good feedback :)

Steam Game Link ItchIO Game Link

Until the next time... Bye!

Edge of the Yokai Forest. A location in my game, Mizuki and the Crimson Moon.

This is one of many backgrounds that I am redoing to help my game look a little nicer.

Thoughts?

I've always enjoyed a little back and forth dialog during boss battles. Something about the player and boss having a conversation about stuff while fighting is just fun. I added the mechanic to the first boss fight and it's looking pretty good! I'm definitely going to have some fun coming up with little chats for this fight and others.

It’s not my best work of art, but it was really nice to work on as a break between all the coding.

Have you played the latest patch yet? If you have, let me know what you think! Lots of stuff was added which made me pretty nervous about everything working well together.

New update for Mizuki and the Crimson Moon! New mechanics and plenty of bug fixes. Even if you've played it before, you going to want to check this out!

Some of the big changes include: - The ability to BREAK enemies. Attack most enemies just right to stun them for a couple seconds. - A healing ability for Mizuki! Spend all of your remaining wisps to recover some health. Just don't get hit! - Many gameplay balances - Lot of bug fixes

Check out my demo on Steam and ItchIO! Even if you've played it before, you're going to want to check it out again! If you enjoy it, please leave a review or tell me your thoughts! Stuff like that goes a long way in helping a small indie developer like me.

I'm going to go enjoy my weekend now. Until next time!

Development on Mizuki and the Crimson Moon has been going smoothly this week. Also! I've noticed that several new people/names have been taking interest in my game, so thank you! I hope you'll tune in and follow my game dev journey.

I've added the Break mechanic to every enemy in the Yokai Forest (at least the ones who need it).

This sprite lost a bit off the top...

The Human Guard definitely got the least work done for his animation, but a simple one will work for now. If you want more details on this Break mechanic, check out my previous post.

Other than working on the Break feature, I've been doing some good work on the first boss, so expect some big updates on him in the future!

I'm also trying to focus a bit more on social media / getting word of my game out there. I'm studying up and trying to figure out how to do it, because I have no idea how other people / game devs are about to get 100+ reactions on a post... Wish me luck!

Last weekend I watched a really good friend of mine play through the demo and found a lot of things that I could change and improve! This friend isn't super good at video games (he said it not me), so it revealed a lot of small things that I don't think many other people would have noticed.

My bit of wisdom for you all is to have inexperienced people play your games and watch them! Nearly all the notes I got down were from things that he didn't bring up but that I got from observing.