Finishing off a hectic week, we wanted to squeeze a little update in before we yanked ourselves from the "comfort" of our desks and put ourselves in close proximity of a fireplace (albeit a digital one for some of us). We gotta celebrate the warmth this season brings!
Although this week was extremely productive we will keep this post short and sweet with the new Monk and Nun models we came up with, finishing off the basic portraits we started last week, and giving you a bit of lore as to the imposing mountains around the Abbey! Finally, if you ever wondered what's the deal with festive beers, you might want to stick around till the end of this post ;)
Without further ado...
-- Developing new Monk/Nun characters
Ale Abbey being a tycoon game with Monks and Nuns brewing happily would require some kind of variety... wouldn't it? As much as we adore Sister Pinta, Brother Cornelius, and the rest of our brewers, we also strongly believed that building on those archetypes to create discreet character variations would go a long way in making Ale Abbey all the more enjoyable all the while alleviating aesthetic repetition by bringing some randomness to the characters' appearances.
Some of these variations will make Monks and Nuns look more traditional, while others might be a cheeky wink to the world of beer, old and new; like the example of the more "hip" and contemporary stripe-socked, specs-wearing, stache-sporting Monk found below ;)
We are very happy with the process so far and we can't wait to make these characters as loveable and peculiar as the ones you are already familiar with!
-- More characters portraits
Last week we showed you some early work on the character portraits, an asset that is and will be vital when used alongside the rest of the UI we're hard at work with.
With the new character variations we produced this week, we will also have to think of ways of streamlining the generation of these portraits in-game, based on the characteristics of each Monk/Nun. But, for the time being, we are more or less done with the Abbey's "archetypal" portraits.
-- That mountain over yonder
If you've had the chance to see screenshots of a zoomed-out Ale Abbey in the past you most probably noticed that the background seems quite prominent and distinguished...
This is indeed the case. The mountain range that adorns Ale Abbey's background is inspired by the very real Watzmann mountain in the Berchtesgaden Alps, south of the village of Berchtesgaden. The inspiration for this came from Hammer & Ravens' intrepid Lead Dev, Emiliano, as he is the one losing himself in Germany's mountainous wilderness looking for Monasteries and beer - AKA "research".
This week our pixel artists started working on the mountain range once again since it was more or less produced as a very true-to-life placeholder for the time being. More on this as we pixelate more peaks!
-- What makes a beer "festive"?
What started with preparing lambswool and wassail a long... long time ago, is today a more mainstream process of brewing a beer with more character, that can still carry some of those traditional flavors straight from the bottle. Yes, it's not just a fancy bottle or an appropriately colored label that makes it different.
Christmas ales - for example - are today brewed to have a higher alcoholic content (you know... making it more festive!), including some dark-flavored malts, and quite often adding traditional herbs, spices, and fruit in the recipe. To the initiated, the results bring back some memories of old...!
If you want a suggestion of where to start - although not as typically heavy as a more festive alternative - we would recommend the winter-y Altenmünster Winterbier Dunkel.
You can find more recommendations in Emiliano's very own "unofficial" advent calendar now showcasing on our Discord server.
Thank you for your time and we wish you an amazing time spent amongst friends and family! As always, enjoy responsibly ;)
-- Hammer & Ravens
PS For those inquiring about IndieDB's Indie of the Year Awards for 2022, where we made it to the Top 100... We are also at the edge of our seats waiting for the final results of the Player's Choice awards! We will make sure to let you know if a good placement comes our way! If you're interested in the Editor's Choice awards, which are already out, you can find the amazing games selected here!
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