Hello! Austin here, posting the first devlog for Inchie! We've actually been developing on this for a while, but for now, I'll just make a brief post about what I've been working on recently: the shop!
The shop is a really important part of the game, as it's how players buy new items, backgrounds, and food for Inchie. It's important that it's easy to use, accessible, and reads well on the tiny virtual screen on which Inchie is played.
Of course, this has many challenges; To get around them I chose to employ a full-screen UI that strongly evokes the "shop" feel. It slides onto the screen with a two-tone chime similar to a lot of shop doors, and presents the user with just three categories. You can navigate between categories with [UP ]and [DOWN] on the dpad, while [LEFT] and [RIGHT] select items within the category. To buy, you hit the center button (please ignore that they're unlabelled on the device model currently..)
If you can afford it, you're greeted by a friendly confirmation screen, as the controls are admittedly a bit strange for some users
Otherwise, you get a short, wise-cracky random message
(These are just a couple examples)
After purchasing an item (aside from food, which is used immediately to simplify and avoid the need for an inventory screen) it will appear with a closed box icon instead of a price, and an informative bit of text depending on what you can do with it:
Pressing the "B" (middle) button on a furniture item in this state will enter a placement mode, allowing you to place it into Inchie's enclosure. This isn't implemented yet, but here's Inchie chillin on a rock.
If the furniture has already been placed, it will show an open box icon and allow you to PACK the furniture back up, freeing up a room for other furniture! :D
We have a lot planned, so look forward to future devlogs!
