A Necrobump (and a bit of
a crosspost from RHDN) to let folks who don't subscribe to
know that this game isn't dead. Also, check the previous link for most of Optomon's soundtrack to this game, some of the best NES BGMs I've ever heard (but I may be biased, haha).
After a long and thoughtful process, with dozens of titles considered, we've decided to change the name of the game to Pyronaut, as that's what Pyron had always been short for. Here is the updated title screen to reflect that change:
(Pay no attention to the "Demo" on the screen, as there is no demo floating around. If I understand correctly, it was to be displayed at this year's Portland Retro Gaming Convention, but those plans fell through for some reason or another.)
For those new to the thread or previously unfamiliar with the project:
Pyronaut is an elaborate ROM hack of Simon's Quest, featuring an entirely original intellectual property, gameplay, music, graphics, story, etc. For all intents and purposes, it is a completely new NES title built upon the bare bones of the CV2 engine.
Optomon began work on it sometime in 2011, and I joined the project at the beginning of 2013. Initially, just for graphics, but since then, we've been working together to really flesh out the story, atmosphere, and gameplay, with the hopes of the final project being on par with a high-quality 3rd party titled released late in the NES's lifespan.
In the game, you play as Romeo Ratuno, a recent graduate who has taken a job out-of-his-field on a ship of pyronauts, a type of intergalactic construction crew, in an attempt to pay off his student loans. During a routine job on a small asteroid, your crew receives and responds to a distress signal from a nearby planet.
The following video shows off the demo screens and introduction, which explains this and more:
The resulting gameplay is an open-world action platformer full of solitude, incineration, and despair. Burning your way through six unique biomes and countless alien life forms, you must travel deep into the planet to unravel the mystery behind the transmission. As you do so, you will collect items and equipment to level up five player stats, receive seven types of pyrotechnics, (upgrades to your jetpack and side arm), and defeat at least six guardians, each allowing access deeper into the planet.
The game also features an entirely new password system and in-game map screen which displays player stats as well.
Although it has occasionally taken the backburner to some other projects, It's been on full burn lately. To mention a release date now, would be as meaningless as any we've mentioned before, but it is safe to say that the scale of the project has grown, and that we're on track to bringing it to fruition, most probably within 2015.
Also, earlier this year, I redesigned the main player sprite once again. Venturing further from the previous design, I wanted something more specific and memorable than what I had made prior, and quite honestly, through working on this and some other projects, I was getting better at making pixel art.
Below, you'll see the evolution of the main player's sprite:
From left to right: Optomon's original sprite, my original sprite (late 2012), the updated sprite (early 2014).
In terms of graphics, I'm hoping for something very unique and identifiable: not as cartoon-like as the Nekketsu (RCR, Super Dodgeball) series, but not as serious as, say, Contra. Perhaps with a cute:creepy ratio similar to Monster Party, but with a somewhat more modern art style.
Optomon's been very welcoming and on board with the evolution of the art style, and the state it's currently at. As always, feedback is not only welcome, but encouraged.
Also, considering its prominence, we decided to make the flames and explosions the stars of the game, and have devoted a very large amount of graphics and sprite data toward them, as there are numerous types of flames, bursts, shots, explosions, sparks, etc.
There's a ton of work in progress I'd love to show, but I think it'd be best to wait and reveal further work in large chunks, as Optomon's been doing through his Youtube channel.
In the meantime, below is a look at the new player sprite, with jet pack enabled, utilizing the flame thrower upgrade:
Anyway, just wanted to hype this up a bit. My motivation to work stays higher as I know folks are seeing the results, but I also don't want to spoil too much of the sprites and stuff before release.
Also, Optomon's working with a Powerpack for testing to ensure console compatability, but I'd appreciate it if the thread were to stay focused on the game itself for the time being, and not be derailed with talk of repros, etc.
