Hello all!

We’ve just passed our second major milestone of the project: the release of the second Alpha Demo! This month’s post will be another short retrospective, chronicling the changes and improvements that have been made during this most recent development, as well as teasing future additions to the game.

Compared to the first Alpha Demo-which only included a single cutscene and one enemy-this second pass is much longer and more fleshed out. During its 10-15 minute run time, players will see much of the town of Grandline while utilizing four different playable characters to defeat a horde of enemies and their boss. The purpose of this demo is to introduce players to the setting, cast, and combat system in a way that more closely resembles our vision for the completed game, particularly through the implementation of more advanced combat mechanics, such as the selection wheel (picture below).

While the release of this second demo is a major accomplishment for our team, it still only showcases a small sliver of the world of Drifter Dynasty. A third Alpha Demo is currently in the works, scheduled to be released in September of this year. It will continue to build on the first chapter of the game as you all have seen in the first two demos, but will add a number of features to the combat system.

The majority of my work for the next few months will continue to revolve around animation. I have already begun work on different variations of the melee attack, including an uppercut and cross punch option. These animations will tie into a melee combo system that is currently in the works. In addition to new offensive options, we will be adding block, cover, and evasive animations as well. Players will also be able to use a healing ability while controlling characters such as The Patcher.

More information concerning the new features will be posted as the release of the Third Alpha Demo approaches. Make sure to continue to check in here, on our Instagram, and Twitter pages for updates. Thank you!