Gemstone Keeper Switch NSP + Update (eShop) Free Download Romslab

Gemstone Keeper Switch NSP free download Fortunately, the way Stoddard built the game made it a solid fit for the Switch: Gemstone Keeper uses an engine Stoddard created himself, called the Vigilante Game Framework, and the set of libraries it’s built on use OpenGL – something the Switch happily supports. With a little help from Swiss developer Ironbell, Gemstone Keeper took around three months to port across to Nintendo’s hybrid console. “The biggest challenge was the audio library since the code it uses had no support on the Switch,” Stoddard says. “We ended up having to rewrite most of it with Nintendo’s native audio functions. In total, it took us nearly three months to get (the libraries) feature-complete and fully operational on the Switch. By the end of March (2019), I had Gemstone Keeper running on an actual console, which was just a fulfilling moment as a game developer.”ROMSLAB.COM Best Switch Games

Gemstone Keeper Switch NSP + Update (eShop) Free Download Romslab

If Gemstone Keeper has an experimental look about it – all blocky ASCII art, eye-searing colours, and monitor scan line effects – then that’s partly because it began as a tech demo, designed to show off a tool Stoddard made for his final year thesis. “The tool was used to create and preview procedurally generated levels by setting and changing the parameters of multiple algorithms,” explains Stoddard. “The demo was much different from what Gemstone Keeper ended up being; the exploration was a part of it – because I wanted to demonstrate the level generation – but because I’m a fan of arcade shoot-‘em-ups, the gameplay in that demo was much more rigid and focused.

RPG

Stoddard continued working on Gemstone Keeper once his thesis was completed, adding a handful of RPG and roguelike elements to what was initially a straight twin-stick shooter. “I was getting more interested in roguelike games, where there is more of an emphasis on preserving your character and planning your route, as opposed to the games I typically play where you go straight in, guns blazing,” Stoddard says. “As I got more into them, the more I felt I should focus on the exploration and relaxed vibe, and that was part of the reason why the game has its ASCII aesthetic.”

Gemstone Keeper Switch NSP + Update (eShop) Free Download Romslab

Those ASCII graphics, where a 2D world is created from a shimmering assortment of hashtag symbols, guillemets, and at signs, provided their own challenges. “There was a lot of experimentation and trial-and-error to get the ASCII art to look right,” explains Stoddard. “All the ASCII art is generated in-game using a single font file: the design of sprites, objects, and walls were planned out and then I wrote out which characters should be rendered and where individually. Unfortunately, with the nature of fonts, you can’t guarantee that the individual characters would be rendered in the right place, so eventually, I wrote out a function to print out all the generated textures so I could properly inspect them and make necessary adjustments.”MY HERO ONE’S JUSTICE 2 Switch 

Graphics

Porting Gemstone Keeper to the Switch also gave Stoddard the chance to give the graphics an overhaul, with the resolution doubled to 720p; as a result, he says, “all the positions, sizes, the movement calculations, and other details had to be checked by hand, line by line.”

Gemstone Keeper Switch NSP + Update (eShop) Free Download Romslab

While all this was going on, Stoddard also decided to beef up the game with a new survival game mode – a hectic side attraction that adds some multiplayer competition to complement the solo campaign. All told, the new mode took three weeks to build – a pretty impressive feat, given that, like the rest of Gemstone Keeper’s development, it was all put together in Stoddard’s spare time.Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin Switch

Solo Project

And with the game due for release on the Switch this November, Stoddard is already thinking about his next solo project; this time, he says, it’ll be a Switch exclusive. “It’s a great console to make games for, and I think it deserves more indie stuff that is built (with) the system in mind, instead of just being ported over for the sake of it,” he says. “I’ve been writing out one game concept that I want to start trying out as soon as Gemstone Keeper has set sail, so maybe next year I’ll have something to show.”

Gemstone Keeper Switch NSP + Update (eShop) Free Download Romslab

Although we often look back on games of the past with a nostalgic eye, Stoddard points out that there’s also a practical reason for returning to the classics. “I think it’s important for developers to look at early games to understand how they have had a lasting appeal,” he says. “(They were) able to create something so creative and enjoyable despite being restricted to the technologies of the time they were made. I’m personally a firm believer of the idea that you are more creative when you have constraints set against you, because those constraints take more effort to work within than having little to no constraints at all.”Genesis for Switch 

Add-ons (DLC): Gemstone Keeper Switch NSP + Update (eShop) Free Download Romslab