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Spelunky 2

LESS T_T

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Codex 2014
http://www.mossmouth.com/spelunky2/







Sequel to the game that started rogue-lite craze, announced in PS Showcase at Paris Game Week with non-gameplay trailer:

The sequel to the critically-acclaimed roguelike platformer Spelunky is in development and coming to PS4 and Steam! In Spelunky 2, the story deepens as more randomly-generated adventures beckon. What new secrets are lying in wait...?

Creator Derek Yu's post on Playstation blog: https://blog.eu.playstation.com/2017/10/30/spelunky-2-is-real-and-its-coming-soon-to-ps4/

Yes, that’s right! I’m happy to announce that Spelunky 2 is in development and coming to PS4! This was a hard secret to keep, as we’ve received quite a few requests for a Spelunky sequel over the years. A sequel has been on my mind, too, but I knew I had to wait for the right time.

After Spelunky was released, I took a break from game development, got married, and became a dad! During this period, I wrote a book about Spelunky’s development and my design philosophies, but mostly I spent time with my wife and daughter. As my daughter got older and the chaos began to subside, however, thoughts of Spelunky 2 started to take real shape inside my head.

Given what I wanted to do with the sequel, I knew the only way it could possibly get made is with my friends at BlitWorks. Sony first introduced me to them in 2013 to port Spelunky to PS3, PS Vita and eventually PS4. I had a great experience working with them on the ports – they’re extremely professional, easy-going and good at what they do. As far as I was concerned, Spelunky 2 would get made with Blit or it wouldn’t get made at all, since Blit was familiar with the original game and also had the skills and manpower to do the sequel justice. The only thing I wasn’t sure of was whether they would want to build a game from scratch with me, since their specialty was porting.

Thankfully, they were excited to work together again! And so, along with Eirik Suhrke (Spelunky’s musician), we began working on Spelunky 2 and have been at it for a couple of years now. Andy Hull, Spelunky’s lead programmer, is working on his own game, Dunk Lords, but I’ll definitely be picking his brain for feedback, as well.

As you can see from the trailer, parenthood has had a big influence on Spelunky 2’s story and themes. For now, I’ll leave it to your imagination what it all means, but I will say that there are similarities between being a parent and working on a sequel. Both involve a lot of reflecting on the past as well as thinking about the future. With Spelunky 2, we get a chance to examine in depth what makes Spelunky unique and draw it out even more. At the same time, we need to move forward and take some risks with new ideas, keeping the series fresh for longtime fans and for ourselves.

I’m sure you have a lot of questions about Spelunky 2 and we have a lot more to share with you in the months to come about what’s new, what’s returning, and when you’ll be able to play the game. For now, we just wanted to let you know that yes, it exists! Many thanks to Sony and all the PlayStation players who have supported us over the years. We can’t wait to bring you back into the world of Spelunky!
 
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McPlusle

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All that "story and themes" talk has me concerned. I just want an even bigger and better Spelunky.
 

Unkillable Cat

LEST WE FORGET
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The original freeware Spelunky was awesome. The commercial release lost a lot of its charm for me, but is still an enjoyable game.

It's unlikely the sequel will have the charm, but I'll keep an eye on it and see how it turns out.
 

Drakron

Arcane
Joined
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As you can see from the trailer, parenthood has had a big influence on Spelunky 2’s story and themes.

Last game I recall were parenthood had a big influence in story and themes was Fallout 3 (and 4 by proxy) so excuse me if I dont feel exactly trilled about "I am a dad" influenced storylines.
 

LESS T_T

Arcane
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Codex 2014
Gameplay trailer, coming 2019:



Interview: https://blog.us.playstation.com/2018/08/29/first-look-spelunky-2-gameplay-mossmouth-interview/

First Look: Spelunky 2 Gameplay, Mossmouth Interview
Spelunky creator Derek Yu shows us what's new (and what's not) in the surprise follow-up to one of gaming's most influential experiences.

Oh, wonder of wonders: Our first look at Spelunky 2 gameplay has arrived! And you can play it this weekend in the PlayStation booth at PAX West!

If you never played the original Spelunky, you missed one of the greatest platform games of all time. It’s a remarkably hard act to follow, but it looks like Mossmouth and Blitworks are bringing out the big guns. Rideable mounts! Online multiplayer! And a lush visual overhaul that retains the simple beauty of Spelunky while adding in visual flourishes like gloopy new liquid effects and particles out the wazoo.

We caught up with Derek Yu, creator of Spelunky, to learn more about what’s in store when Spelunky 2 launches sometime next year.



Left to right: Ana Spelunky, Margaret Tunnel, Colin Northward, Roffy D. Sloth

PlayStation.Blog: So, first things first: What is Spelunky 2?

Derek Yu: Spelunky 2 is the sequel to the roguelike platformer Spelunky and takes place after the events of the original game. Since Spelunky 1 was released a lot of great roguelike-inspired games have come out and pushed the genre in cool new directions, but I think Spelunky is still very unique in terms of the freedom it offers the player and the way different elements interact, where one event can trigger a cascade of consequences that have to be dealt with. That’s something we’ve been building on – not just adding lots of new things (which we’re doing!), but also making the world feel even more interconnected. And that includes storytelling (both developer-created and player-created) as well as game mechanics.

PSB: I understand this game is very, very different from Spelunky 1 – why? What guided that decision? Why not be safe and just do another like he already did?

DY: At its core, Spelunky 2 is not too different, actually. My opinion about sequels is that they are extensions of the previous games, so I want fans of Spelunky 1 to jump in and feel like they’re playing a continuation, both storywise and mechanically. The big question on my mind was “What makes Spelunky, Spelunky?” I wanted to figure out what those ideas were and take them to their limit without anything getting in their way. Sometimes that means adding, sometimes that means remixing – it can also mean subverting expectations created by the original game.





PSB: What will Spelunky fans “get” about the game right away? What’s similar? What’s different?

DY: I think they’ll immediately get into the flow of playing the game. Which is great, because with Spelunky 1 we had a hard time explaining that to people. Now that they get it, we can spend more time making the experience deeper and richer. There are a lot of differences that, when added up, really make the game feel different. For example, each level will have a second layer that you can go back and forth between. Sometimes the entrance is right there and sometimes it’s a hidden shortcut. Even though the gameplay is still 2D platforming, this adds a feeling of a third dimension to the exploration.

We’ve also added liquid physics that are really fun to play with – combined with the destructible terrain you get things like dynamic water or lavafalls that you have to deal with on each run. The world breathes more. And then there’s all the expected new areas, items, monsters, and traps. It really is a lot.

I’m still very much thinking about new players, though. But my philosophy has always been to attract new players by making the world more interesting and inviting instead of focusing on tutorials and things like that. Spelunky is still Spelunky and it will be very challenging – my hope is that new players will want to persevere because we made the effort worth it. Spelunky 2 will have very strong themes of family and friendship and I want new players to feel cared for even as we put tough obstacles in their way.



PSB: Are the levels randomized? That’s super hard to do; what was the approach?

DY: The approach is the same as with Spelunky 1 where we generate a “safe” path to the exit using room templates. However, with new features like the second layer we’re finding lots of surprising new ways we can make random level design even more interesting. As I said before, it feels like there’s a new dimension to it. And BlitWorks is doing the programming on Spelunky 2 and has built tools for creating and testing levels that we didn’t have the resources to build the first time around. It’s been a lot of fun going back “into the lab” with our previous experience and a lot of new technology.

PSB: How is the flow/pace? How does that change when moving to this new gameplay style?

DY: To me it feels more fast-paced but also more expansive. I imagine that runs may take a little bit longer beginning to end, but the main goal is not extending the game’s length but making the stories that emerge even more rich and personal.

PSB: Is it safe to assume there will be lots of secrets?

DY: Oh, of course!
 

Unkillable Cat

LEST WE FORGET
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Mechanics-wise it sounds like they're just going through a list of stuff that Terraria does.

What bothers me is the emphasis on speed in the trailer. I prefer a cautious playstyle, as the alternative tends to lead to chaotic shitstorms brewing that even follow me into future levels... which seems to be the direction Spelunky 2 is heading.

Time will tell.
 

LESS T_T

Arcane
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Codex 2014
:necro:

GDC interview, talking about changes in systems, branching path, dual layer of dungeons, new enemies, liquid physics, and mount:
https://www.shacknews.com/article/110576/spelunky-2-hands-on-preview-from-gdc-2019

Spelunky 2: Hands-on preview from GDC 2019
This year's Game Developers Conference provided a first opportunity to go hands-on with Spelunky 2 and Shacknews wasn't about to waste any time trying it.


There's treasure as far as the eye can see. But it's heavily guarded by an unspeakable number of dangers. Wild creatures, ancient traps, and even flowing lava stands to kill you at every turn. That's the setup for Spelunky 2, the next roguelike from developer Mossmouth, which was on display within the Day of the Devs area at this year's Game Developers Conference.

Spelunky 2 is a true sequel to the original Spelunky, fast-forward a full generation after the first game. Spelunky Guy is comfortably retired, while his daughter, Ana Spelunky, and a handful of allies have taken up his vocation of exploring dangerous environments in search of fat loot. Unlike the first game, this game started off with a character select screen where more than one person could jump into the adventure. With a handful of caves to explore, Shacknews braved the mysterious depths and went hands-on with Mossmouth's second game in the series for the first time.

The faces may be new, but the main premise of Spelunky 2 is the same. The idea is to explore treacherous caverns in search of treasure, which is either out in the open, contained in destructible pots, available in shops, or otherwise hidden. Each procedurally-generated stage is filled with enemies and various hidden dangers. Arrows might fly out of the wall, moles might dig up from underground or through the walls, and snakes might be hiding inside pots waiting to strike. If all of this sounds familiar, that's intentional. Spelunky 2 isn't meant to stray too far from the original formula. In fact, my very first life saw me confronted by a familiar sight: the killer ghost from the original game, which cornered me and swallowed me up.

While elements like the ghost will harken back to the original game, Mossmouth has a few twists in mind for certain returning features.

"In Spelunky 2, we change it up a bit," creator Derek Yu told Shacknews. "In Spelunky, the ghost also had a special property where if it touches a gem, it'll change it into a diamond. So people would use the ghost to increase their high score. It's a risk/reward type of thing. It was actually a big part of scoring runs in Spelunky. So in Spelunky 2, if you let the ghost stay on the screen long enough and you dodge it long enough, it'll actually split into two ghosts. So it's much more dangerous and the epic part of that was to make the technique of using the ghost to increase your score more challenging."

Several other elements of the original Spelunky are in place, including killer traps, treacherous falls, dimly-lit areas that require torches, and guards who will fire off a shotgun indiscriminately at the sight of vandals. A newer feature has every stage operate with multiple layers. Certain tunnels or doors will take players into a stage's background, where additional treasure awaits. Of course, Spelunky 2 is certainly no easier than the original game, as I failed to get past the opening caves.

spelunky2-2.jpg

The world of Spelunky 2 does open up past the caverns. Players are prompted to select between one of two different environments: the jungle or the volcano. More dangerous enemies await in the jungle, with Yu describing a new enemy type called the Witch Doctor. If players are spotted by the Witch Doctor, it will pull out a voodoo doll and cast a spell. If the player is afflicted, the Witch Doctor can poke at his voodoo doll from anywhere in the map and cause instant damage anytime.

The volcano is home to one of Spelunky 2's most intriguing new features: liquid physics. Lava will flow throughout the level and if certain parts of the stage are destroyed, the lava will flow towards its new open path, potentially creating deadly waterfalls.

"We've got lava, which was in Spelunky, but we've got actual liquid physics in Spelunky 2," Yu added. "So if you blow up a hole underneath a pool of lava, it'll actually fall using real water physics, versus in Spelunky where it was kind of faked. The liquid physics are another thing where it makes the game feel more dynamic. You get these lava waterfalls that just get naturally created as you're playing. There's a new robot in the volcano area where if you step on its head, that'll activate it and then the robot will explode after a little while. A lot of times, that'll work with the lava and create those lava waterfalls. But there are new items and things that you can use that'll help you past these new obstacles."

spelunky2-1.jpg

One of those new things comes in the form of ridable mounts, which players can either ride or hold in front of them like a shield. Given Spelunky's propensity for traps and killer enemies, I did have some trouble discerning between friend or foe. Hey, that bulldog might have its tongue out and have this goofy look on its face, but considering almost everything is out to kill you, it was a little tough to tell that it was a ridable mount. One doesn't think of these things when they're in the moment and have only a limited time to play.

This is just a small slice of what players can expect in Spelunky 2. Yu alluded to several other new features that he can't discuss at this time. Look for those to be revealed at a later date. Get ready to adventure with Ana Spelunky and friends, as Spelunky 2 comes to PlayStation 4 and PC later this year.


And in this interview, he explains what it means Spelunky to have storytelling and NPCs. More like mini-C&C, I guess: https://www.pcgamesn.com/spelunky-2/gameplay

A good example of this cropped up in my time with the game when an NPC tasks us with rescuing his missing turkey. It doesn’t take us long to find them, but they’re stuck in a hard-to-reach spot. Endeavouring to return to this side task later, Yu and I continue our spelunking and happen upon a darkened doorway to the second layer nearby which, when we returned to the surface, allowed us to access some treasure. This, it turns out, was the treasure our turkey-free NPC would have given us had we completed the job.

Yu assures me, however, that this may not necessarily be the last time we encounter turkey man in this run. It’s possible that we now might not benefit from having rescued his rafter later on. There are more NPCs like this dotted throughout Spelunky 2, following the success of the legendary Shopkeeper, who would notoriously pursue you with a shotgun if you stole from him.

For Yu, this is his way of telling a tale that works for the series. “The point of this is to increase the feeling of dynamism and to make the world feel more rich,” Yu tells me. “It also gives people more personal stories. That’s in the Spelunky sense, as opposed to a set linear narrative.” In the case of the NPC we encountered, we could attack, help, or just ignore him. The first game changed the map each time, now this is more the case with the story, too.

Sounds like it takes a few steps closer to one of its inspirations, roguelike.
 

Unkillable Cat

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I look at those screenshots, and my words from not just last year, but two years ago as well, apply just as strongly now as they did then.

Meaning, it's an absolute crap shoot whether this sequel will be any good. And to repeat myself once more, only time will tell...
 

LESS T_T

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Codex 2014
New look: https://blog.us.playstation.com/2020/03/11/spelunky-2-developer-shares-new-screens-progress-update/

Spelunky 2 Developer Shares New Screens, Progress Update

49629147947_5dab6e85d8_k.jpg


Development is going well on the sequel to Spelunky! Enjoy an update and some new screenshots.


Hey, everyone! Derek here. It might feel like it’s been awhile since our last update — to the Spelunky 2 team, however, it feels like almost no time at all, since we’ve been hard at work and seeing the steady progress we’ve been making each day. I wanted to share some of that progress with you here right now!

First off, we’ve been working on making the game look even nicer, adding more details to each area and making sure that the ones that were already in there popped out better. Thank you to the fans who gave us their feedback about that after viewing the last trailer! I think we’ve struck a good balance now, where the graphics are crisp and easy to parse, but the details still stand out enough so that you can easily soak them up as you play the game. Effects like lighting and liquids are more vibrant now, too, contributing to that feeling of a dynamic, living world that has been our goal since day one.



Content-wise, one of my goals with Spelunky 2 was to make each run feel even more like a personalized adventure. Of course, players of the original game created a lot of their own stories through their choices during the game, and in my opinion those are still the most meaningful. We want to keep supporting that kind of creativity by adding more variety to the game.

This can come in many forms — new items that, in the Spelunky style, are carefully designed and have a lot of obvious and non-obvious interactions with the rest of the world. But there will also be more characters in the vein of the shopkeeper, who can help or hinder the player in unexpected ways. Fans who have been following Spelunky for a long time may even spot some familiar faces within the vibrant community of new NPCs that will be joining them in Spelunky 2!



One thing we haven’t talked enough about yet is audio. Eirik Suhrke, who worked on Spelunky 1, is creating a dynamic, multilayered soundscape that is much more immersive than the first game. Each area not only has its own unique musical theme, but every creature, trap, item, and surface has its own suite of sound effects associated with it. Landing on grass in the Jungle will sound very different than landing on a conveyor belt in Volcana, for example. It’s perhaps a more subtle change but adds a lot to the distinct feel of each area.



There’s so much more that I could talk about! Deathmatch, which was a bit of a sleeper mode in the original game — we’re trying to expand on the concept and make it stand tall next to Adventure Mode. Or the ways we’re tying the feeling of progressing through the caves into the feeling of building a small community of friends and family. Or even our improvements to the journal and menus, which don’t seem as important but nonetheless contribute a lot to the overall experience. But I’ll save it for another time.

Thanks for reading and thanks for your patience. Although we’re not quite ready to announce a release date, we’re getting closer and closer, finally getting to implement the deepest parts of Spelunky 2 that have been collecting dust in my notepad for years. From me, Eirik, BlitWorks, and Lollipop Robot (our amazing QA team) — we can’t wait for you to join us on the adventure!
 

Ash

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Oct 16, 2015
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Incline. Hope it's as good as the first if not better. Only 1 month to wait too.
 

Ash

Arcane
Joined
Oct 16, 2015
Messages
6,226
Damn, PS4 first. I want the PC version. Guess I'll have to wait for the steam release rather than get the game twice.
I don't give a shit about online (only local multiplayer) and that's the cause of the delay. :negative:
 

CryptRat

Arcane
Developer
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Sep 10, 2014
Messages
3,548
I want to ride a turkey.
 

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