Polish (final devlog!)

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This week, I added some final polish to Wings & Whiskers in preparation for my testing session. This included level decoration, an end screen, sound effects, music, volume settings, hints, an easter egg and some bug fixes.

List of additions:

Decorative elements added to each level
Ending screen/cutscene
Sound effects for coin collection and magic stone activation
Volume sliders on the main menu
Hints that appear after ~30 seconds (in levels identified as tricky in playtesting)
Particle effect for hay pile on level 2
An easter egg for collecting all coins (see below!)

List of fixes:

Adjusted weight distribution of seesaw in level 8
Changes to levels 8, 7 and 5 to reduce difficulty
Hid the background crease as best as possible
Fixed a collider issue in level 5 that made it temporarily unbeatable

Process:

My main goal this week was to ensure that each level matched the cozy theme I outlined in my concept devlog. This involved adding both decorations and audio. Decorating each level using the remaining props from Cainos’ Pixel Art Platformer - Village Props pack was surprisingly fun! I enjoyed placing small details like blades of grass (which layer in front of the characters) and combining larger props to create inviting little scenes. Decorating more compact levels, like Level 5, was particularly satisfying because it forced me to think creatively within limited space.

Figure 1: Examples of decorated levels

I also needed a final “winning” scene to wrap up the game and return players to the main menu. Returning to the main menu would also allow players to see how many collectibles they missed, potentially encouraging a second playthrough. I really wanted to include a nighttime setting. Earlier in development, I’d considered having later levels take place at night to show time passing, but I didn’t get around to implementing it—so this was a nice way to work that idea in! I used a nighttime sky image from Vecteezy, which seems to be by the same artist who made the daytime sky I’d been using, helping keep the aesthetic consistent. I darkened the level sprites slightly and added light sources (e.g., a campfire and lanterns) using Unity’s Light2D components. Then, with the help of ChatGPT, I created a script that pans the camera to the right when both characters enter a collider near the campfire. As the camera pans (toward an off-screen target), “The End” fades in, followed by a fade-to-black transition that returns players to the main menu.

Figure 2: End screen (couldn't upload a GIF because of file size restrictions)

Lastly, I added music to the main menu, a looping playlist across levels, and a special track for the end scene. All music was sourced from Uppbeat and I’ll include direct links in the game description. ChatGPT also helped me create a script that manages the music depending on the current level.

Figure 3: Audio manager script within the unity inspector as well as a script for volume settings

To make music volume adjustable, I implemented sliders in the main menu. I also added a small easter egg for players who collect all the coins—if they do, the main menu visuals and music change slightly. This was achieved with a script that checks for collectible completion, then disables “NormalMenu” GameObjects and enables those tagged “CompletedMenu.” I initially had trouble with this feature, likely due to having some elements disabled by default, but thankfully, the issue resolved itself with some tinkering.

Figure 4: Secret menu screen unlocked when all collectibles are found (different music too)

I had hoped to add one more level, but due to time constraints and other work, I may need to postpone it. That said, I have several new level designs sketched and ready to go once I have time! :D

Feedback:

Feedback from my official testing session this week was super positive. Heres a summary:

"Love the visuals, looks really great. The environment perfectly matches Wings and Whiskers!"
"Music was super nice, relaxing, SFX descriptive and helpful. Loved them! Some extra SFX for small stuff like jumping/landing/etc would be nice, but also understand that doing so takes so much time"
A lot of responses indicated that their favourite part of the game was the puzzles
One person voted that the game was slightly too hard- highlighting some difficulties with playing movement and possible confusion on some levels
"I think when there was a moving swing, Wings and Whiskers should have moved along with it"
It was also suggested that the players only keep each collectible if they survive
I also got some cool suggestions for future levels such as an additional animal or some enemy obstacles

To address the feedback:

I'm incredibly happy to see how much everyone likes what I've made and that all the effort I've put in was worth it :D
As for difficulties with movement, I made a few small changes in levels 8, 7 and 5 and added some hints that pop up after a while to avoid players from getting stuck (and because I won't always be around to give hints myself lol)
Regarding the swing, I tried scripting Wings and Whiskers to move along with it by temporarily parenting them to the platform, but this didn’t work as intended—so I decided to leave it for now
The suggestion about collectibles only counting if the character survives is a good one. However, I personally prefer using collectibles to encourage exploration rather than add difficulty—especially since most of them are fairly easy to collect without risking death anyway

Thank you for reading my final official devlog for Wings & Whiskers!

ChatGPT Usage: (some are quite long and contain other stuff, sorry!)