Throwing shade(rs) on tutorials

Hi all!

Feb flew by as all months do but work continues. I have been consistently chipping away at the game and worked all month on the tutorial system. Unfortunately, there is lots more to do but once again I have a very strong foundation. The aim of these month-long "walks" is to get at least a POC on what I was working on. Sometimes I smash it out the park and get something properly done, but more often than not there is more to do but I have a great foundation. One of the reasons I take so long for stuff is my strict policy of full unit test coverage in the "backend" (ie not the front end). It adds considerable time to work but I think it pays for itself in the long run. Eventually, I will want a similar setup for the UI (there is a unit testing framework someone has made for Godot), but that will come in time once I am ready to polish the game.

It was my first time properly using shaders which took me the first third of the month to accomplish a basic masking of a tutorial. Something so simple for some was quite the grind for my brain but once I got the concepts down pat it became fairly easy. After that, it was a case of setting up the backend system, and then finally integrating the backend tutorial system with the UI. I also took the opportunity to work on the startup/loading of the game so that was some nice extra bonus work.  The tutorials will be able to be created from json files which will make creating them much easier.

The goal is still a playtest with friends, and with the tutorial system nearly up to a basic point of usability I can really start working on that goal. I have also extended the expected release date to Q1 2025, though it will probably end up in Q3 or 4. It gives me more time for marketing which is very neglected and it means I can see how the game goes at Strategy Fest. It will give more time for polish too which I think is important. The wishlist rate is not high at the moment but that is not unexpected. Once the playtests (friends and G-Round if that's possible) are done and the demo is out, I'll re-review where we are at as I would expect some form of increased daily wishlist count.

Things I got done this month:

• Basic tutorial backend and front-end structure
• Json file loader for tutorial jsons

Things I want to get done in March:

• Finish the basic tutorial system
• Expand on the main menu (e.g. new game options)
• Dev main menu button (to let me load game states to test. This will be the basis of the load game button)
• Loading screen
• Win condition info on the hud (ie 5 turns left of King of the Hill)
• Win condition tweaks (make King of the Hill need an army on the hexcell)