Cogger’s Revenge concepts-01:  faces & status indicators development 

The gears begin to turn:  …It had started that a friend, Renges65, and i would start creating a game together within a 2~4wk time-limit―parallel to other game design, art&design, and scripting projects―during the month of may in 2o14.  In accordance with the fate dealt to us by the almighty Wheel of Doom, our game theme was to be “cogs.”   Crunchy, oh-so-munchety cogs―sounds delicious, does it not?

(In case any of you wish to bypass all the shameless, self-promotional rhetoric―regarding Cogger’s Revenge
―that shall inevitably follow and just get on with the game and engage in some cog-bunny devouring, click HERE to play the game.)

Cogger’s Revenge  is basically a variant of the infinite runner, one that Renges and i like to think of as an “infinite eater.”  Personally, to be perfectly  honest , i’ve never been much a fan of infinite runners, as i tend to relish exploration in games.  I’ve been a long-time fan of the Legend of Zelda, Mario, and Metroid games; even Spelunky, with its Ghost-enforced “time limit,” offers much exploration elements, largely due to its randomly-generated levels, the player character’s cartoony-yet-superhuman physical prowess, and the fact that much of the treasure to be found was out of the way the “direct path” to each level exit/goal.  It’s not simply a matter of getting from point A to point B: half the fun is in discovering the twists and turns and diverging paths along the way, the loot and secrets that might be found upon such divergent paths, and―sometimes―there’s even an optional point C to reach instead.

Infinite runners generally appeal to more “arcade-y” gaming appetites.  They―by design―tend to be relatively more linear.  Even though some runners offer multiple paths, the emphasis is generally on perpetually moving forward: the tireless hero or heroine presses forth with nary a chance to stop, observe, and plan where to go next; it’s a very twitch experience, and while there are still elements of strategy, the emphasized skills for success are quick reflexes over observation & planning.

But i digress, as is my wont to do.  Back to the genesis of Cogger :
With the basic theme of “cogs,” the first thought that came to mind was, naturally, that cogs turn.  A cog is a variation of the wheel, though cogs are seldom―if ever―directly  used for travel; in a toy car, cogs/gears may help turn the wheels, but they generally do not have direct contact with the surface upon which the vehicle travels, as such would likely result in a rather bumpy ride.  But what if a cog―bumpiness be damned―WAS directly used for travel?

…So formed an image of a cog rolling across an as-yet-undecided landscape within the desert of my mind.  I’d decided that perhaps in trying to create an infinite runner, i might learn to better appreciate this popular game genre.  I’d pitched the idea to my friend, and after bouncing around some ideas like a side-scroller view, the character’s basic design, and what obstacles one might encounter during play, we’d agreed upon the idea of a top-down perspective and a dual-geared character that would “infinitely eat” ( ←  this awesome moniker was Renges’ idea) Cute Cog Creatures.
Renges would handle much of the heavy lifting like the game design + scripting + animations, while i would create the art (which includes the character design & UI design), various chicken-scratch, and some of the conceptual parts―rather than the practical implementation―of the game design.  And we were off to a start, cogs a-turnin’ in our respective heads.

 Cogger’s Revenge was first published on Newgrounds.com on in mid-may of 2o14.
After a bit of a hiatus during the month of june, we shall be making biweekly updates (once every 2 weeks) to the game.  An update should be due about july2nd around july22nd around july30th (it would seem that quite a few particularly tough  bunnies have gotten caught in the gears…), so pls check back for new features & improved gameplay…and more consumption of Cute Cog Creatures (CCC)!  We’re open to comments & suggestions for improvement, so feel free to spill yer thoughts!

If you have any questions or suggestions that you’d like to offer about this “infinite eater” game, pls feel free to comment here or PM omegaCarotene at newgrounds.com .
…and i leave you with one tip:  ☢ don’t eat the Cactos~  happy gaming, folks!

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 – cog-Bunnies!  so who wants to take a bite?       >[:)