How it started and how it's going

Video can't really show how the mechanics evolved, and the visuals haven’t changed much. I'll explain the real changes in text

v0.1

What we had:

• Four weapons
• Right-click shooting
• Switching between weapons with 1, 2, 3, 4
• Lots of enemies - shape defined behavior, color defined stats

Summary:

• Played terribly, as it was my first attempt at making a 2D shooter

v0.2

Shooting with the basic four guns was boring, so I went further and tried adding a mechanic to introduce a "puzzle element."

What we had:

• Six weapons, three always available (red, blue, yellow)
• A charging mechanic for the other three (orange, green, purple). You could only charge them by killing with the basic weapons (e.g., kill a red + kill a blue = one shot for the purple weapon)
• Too many weapons to switch with 1, 2, 3, 4... so I added a weapon wheel
• Enemies got worse because the charging mechanic was too complex

Summary:

• The weapon wheel made players focus more on it than the actual gameplay
• The charging mechanic was overly complicated and slowed down the pace
• The enemies weren’t interesting at all

v0.3

I needed dynamics - lots of it. The two main enemies of fast-paced gameplay were the weapon wheel and the charging mechanic.

Weapon Wheel: I scrapped the concept of weapon switching. Now, all six weapons could be fired instantly without selecting them. Here’s how it worked:

• Red: Right Mouse Button (RMB)
• Blue: Left Mouse Button (LMB)
• Yellow: Shift
• Orange: RMB + Shift
• Green: LMB + Shift
• Purple: RMB + LMB

Holding two buttons simultaneously triggered a different-colored shot without distracting the player with extra keys.

Puzzle Element: Weapon charges were removed and replaced with an ultimate dash. It could only be performed into an enemy, and here’s what happened:

• The player dashed forward.
• The targeted enemy was destroyed.
• A temporary buff was granted based on the enemy’s color.

The dash required three mana charges, which were restored through eliminations - encouraging aggressive gameplay.

What We’ve Got:

• For the first time: level transitions, unlocks, and tutorials. It started to feel like an actual game.
• A shooting mechanic where all six weapons could be used without switching.
• A buff system working in tandem with the dash.
• An aggressive mana restoration mechanic - the faster you kill, the quicker you regain mana.
• Six unique buffs, allowing situational adaptability.
• More diverse enemies - now their color determined unique behavior instead of shape. Each weapon had its "ideal" enemy type. This was a breakthrough.

Summary:

• "Piano-style" shooting (pressing multiple keys) didn’t resonate with players - it required too much memorization.
• Buffs and enemies weren’t designed effectively. Some buffs felt optional or useless, and while enemies were unique, they were also limited.
• Level structure and tutorials were well-received.
• In-game situations felt finite - I could only squeeze out 40 levels. Increasing the challenge beyond that point without simply raising difficulty was impossible.

v0.4

I genuinely think you should give it a try - this is the first public release on itch.io and the first time it truly feels like a game. Despite having fewer mechanics, it offers real complexity.

The number of colored weapons has been reduced, which not only allowed each one to shine but also revealed new layers of depth. There are more enemies than ever, each with unique behavior and a specific role on the battlefield. I believe I’ve finally struck a balance between fast-paced action and tactical puzzle elements. 

This kind of content is really lacking online, and I’ll keep working to fill that gap. I hope this text helps someone create the game of their dreams. I hope it encourages you not to lose heart if, at the start of your journey, you struggle to deconstruct and bring your chosen genre to life.