Well, I just deleted two maps. Yes, two whole maps. I had made them in the fashion of the NES Dragon Quest games, but it was just fucking boring. In staying with the oldschool 8bit genre, I still want to progress (or at least make the levels different than the previous two iterations of the series). I'm bummed that I've pulled myself back a little by deleting these maps, but I'm glad that I found something new to make things interesting.

If you've played any of the Avernum games, you'll recognize the new tactic I'm using. In dark caverns, players will now have to navigate their own way through pitch black tunnels. The player does not need a flash light to make things easier, however. As you go along, the character remembers his way back, so the areas you've explored become visible for the rest of your journey.

I'm going to use this on (parts of) the Overworld as well, so you'll feel like you're exploring unknown territory in your travels. By unveiling more of the map, you'll also be able to find secret areas that you wouldn't previously have been aware of. Thus, players (I hope) will feel like they've accomplished more by actually taking the time to traverse the world map. Many have complained about the big empty spaces in my world maps. This one is much smaller than previous games, but I've figured out how to make exploring these areas interesting (finally!).

This also means that I'm going to be posting a screenshot of the overworld very soon before I cover it with blackness. Some of you may have noticed I finally decided to post the overworld of EL2's Valhalla (uugggglllyyy), as well as a few more "real" screens showing gameplay. I know there are still a lot of people who have yet to try these games yet, and I won't have their attention until the fourth game WHEN SHIT GETS REAL, but I'm still going to try my best to make this one enjoyable for 8bit fans.