With the happiness of the holidays and the sadness of some life events behind us, I come to provide another update on the progress of Dehoarder 2.
One long-planned new feature that I implemented since my last post are community events. These events happen periodically, with exact starting times and the exact events chosen varying from playthrough to playthrough. Many events are positive, offering a windfall or an opportunity to meet a challenge to receive a reward. Some events are negative, draining resources.
For the events that present a challenge, there is a new “hyperfocus” mode. When in hyperfocus mode, interaction is limited to a specific type of item that is needed for the challenge. To help these items stand out, the rest of the items will fade to grey. Hyperfocus mode is timed, and if time expires before the goal is reached, the challenge is lost. This mechanic will also be used in other challenge circumstances besides community events, for example, during the alien encounters when Harry is given an energy rifle for shooting at junk.
Another planned feature that has been implemented is junk transmutation. Using the power of a Philosopher’s Stone, Harry can cast a transmutation circle, which will upgrade or downgrade all of the junk inside the circle. It can be a bit unpredictable, but the general rule is that transmuting a small number of items will result in a larger number of less valuable items (which will be easier for Harry to part with), and transmuting a large number of items will result in a smaller number of more valuable items (which are harder for Harry to part with, but generally may be worth more money).
Now that the set of junk items is pretty stable (save a last few book/dvd/product variants I am still seeking inspiration for), I have started the daunting task of re-balancing everything for the release of the game. Junk items have been properly stratified into different sentiment levels, and the next steps will be to re-evaluate monetary values of items, and work out how the items will be re-distributed throughout the house and yard.
The last couple of weeks have been a sad time for my wife and I. After being diagnosed with early-stage kidney failure last February, our sweet 18-year-old cat Freya’s health began to decline more significantly over the holidays. We enjoyed her company as much as we could over those weeks, while she still seemed to feel pretty good and was still herself. Last weekend, though, she took a turn for the worse and began losing appetite and withdrawing from us, and this week we had to put her to sleep since it was clear that she was beginning to suffer. While many of those who visit us never saw any trace of her due to her skittishness around other people, with my wife and I she was the sweetest kitty that you could ask for. She was the type of cat who would lay down on my hand at night nestled up against my wife’s head, and purr me to sleep. She kept us on a tight schedule, scolding us if we were late in preparing dinner or going to bed. She is already greatly missed.