Conviction Chronicles blog post #24 - Animated Intro implemented

Link: https://youtu.be/furcpJI6L5c

Youtube shorts version: https://youtube.com/shorts/M8wYYSRdpYY

 Why make an animated intro?

Part of it is marketing reasons, since it's a short showcase. But also to hype the player up before selecting to play. It also makes the game feel more "premium" as an experience as a whole. It's going to add a lot to people's perception when they first play to make people more invested.

Animated Segments

So I got an artist a couple of months ago to start making 2D Drawn content. Mainly since 3D content might not look the best, 2D animation can be much more stylized/premium feeling. Getting a full minute long intro that is purely animated would have a very strong cost behind it. Doing it the way I did was a lot cheaper, but had some cons to not be as unified as a normal animated trailer, where the risk was making it unified with the editor. Not every character is represented in the intro to allow for some surprises, but also since it would be fucking expensive.

So I opted to get animated segments that were shorter and could be merged together in an intro during editing. I actively tried to make it more varied to help showcase more of the game.

Some of the references/homages used might be a little more obvious than others for the base used for some of these segments. Some are more niche than others.

I also requested that they are more unique in  the art style where they take inspiration from the "Dead Leaves" anime where it's very angular. Mainly to make the game standout even further and to bring some intrigue. If it was an overused style, then people might think lesser, but having more to allow it to stand on it's own gives it more of an identity.  

It would be expensive to have executions from the same artist in the same style, so I'm not really sure if I want to do that with them when the time comes, or if I will do something else instead. But even if it's only for the intro, it adds a lot.

Intro editing

Took a bit to refine everything, but it's like older/lower budget ones where there is more of a focus on editing with effects than showing animated content where it shows enough, but allows for the player to get ready for the gameplay. "Her Eclipse" is used of course. 

I focused on the tech side a little more, due to certain aspects of the game, and how it's meant to have a "new edge" type of feel.

Secondary intro in the future?

Since there is a second credits with a second credits song, I might end up making another intro. I won't reorder new assets unless I really do decide to get more animated scenes commissioned for the game for other reasons, but it's something I will put off for a long while if I wish to do it or not so everything is much more refined, and I have more of an idea of what I want to do for it, along with certain aspects of the trials/executions.

Anything else?

This is being uploaded to youtube/Steam as I write this. I do think it will add a bit to the steam page for a while, at least until I'm ready to make a new trailer. Since the current trailer really does need to be replaced. The thing is that I'm not ready gameplay wise to change it due to the trials needing to be e major vocal point of the new trailer.

I'm going to be focusing on the escape rooms. The demo is being updated to have this as well, which means some of the escape rooms will be able to be played with one finished and some new dialogue and the other having nothing new for dialogue but being finished gameplay wise enough for now.

Overall the pace of development is good.

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