Magic Is Hard

An absurd, flight-based platformer, you play as a wizard who already knows the magic, but isn't the best at using it. Learn to fly with no cartoon-y safeguards or easy spells: humans are squishy, and magic is hard.

Current Build

The current build includes 2 levels to build on previous mechanics. There are no new mechanics or feature changes.

Controls

When on the ground: AD to strafe, W to jump. 
When flying: Space to fly, AD to turn side to side. 
Instant Respawn: R

Return to menu: Escape

Skipping Dialog: Click, press space, or press enter to skip through dialog. This will be made evident on screen in a later build.

Game Description

You're a wizard! But it turns out casting spells isn't so easy. You know all the spells, but apparently this stuff takes talent, and you'll need to get the hang of using them if you want to complete your quest!

An absurdist platformer, you play as a wizard who already has the book-smarts, but has never cast a spell before. Learn to fly with no cartoon-y safeguards or easy spells: humans are squishy, and magic is hard.

Changelog

30-01-21 - 2 New Levels

This build introduces levels 13 and 14. 

For debugging, it also changes how level skipping works; the 1-9 buttons still take you to levels 1-9 respectively, and 0 takes you to level 10, but to access higher levels holding Shift will increase the level number by 10. That is, holding Shift and pressing 1 will take you to level 11, Shift+2 = level 12, etc.

27-01-21 - Antigravity + Death Counter

This build introduces one new level that is mostly using old mechanics, but also has some antigravity traps that fall upwards and are highlighted blue. In future these objects may glow if I can get it looking aesthetically pleasing.

It also replaces the text for the difficulty in the upper right corner with a death counter that resets between levels. This is not recorded anywhere, and does not display in Time Trial.

21-01-21 - Level Tweaks

There won't be a devlog for this one, but a few levels have been tweaked:

• Removed the door in level 1 as players tried to interact with it
• Removed the camera switch while falling in level 1 in favour of changing it at the first checkpoint
• Added extra spikes on Hard at the end of level 2
• Tweaked the timings of lava rising/falling in level 6 to remove delay during speedruns
• Lava at the start of level 7 starts half way down to remove 2 second delay before starting the level
• Extended the range of the additional crossbow at the start of level 10 on Hard mode
• Removed second crossbow at the end of level 11
• Added additional spikes at the end of level 11 on Hard to force the player to fly instead of just falling straight down

19-01-21 - Crossbows & Scores

This build adds a crossbow mechanic that targets and shoots the player every few seconds, as well as two levels that expand on older mechanics in addition to demonstrating the crossbows. It also adds scores in the form of the player's best time in a given level, recorded either on Normal or in Time Trial.

13-12-20 - Drop Traps & Swing Traps

This build adds drop traps and swing traps, in addition to two new levels to demonstrate them.

• Drop traps are primarily spiked balls that fall when you walk under/get too close to them. It also includes axes that fall towards you when you move in front of them
• Swing traps are axe pendulums that move fairly quickly, and hang from ceilings.

12-12-20 - Lights, Lava, & Levels

This build contains various changes in several areas.

• 2D lighting is now used for ambience
• 2 new levels, using Lava created with ShaderGraph
• A new Level Select menu
• A new setting: "Amount of Traps"

13-10-20 - Feedback Build

This build contains several changes in response to feedback.

• Respawn points are now visible;
• Moving obstacles now reset their positions when you die on the first checkpoint;
• There are more checkpoints for the Easy difficulty on Level 4;
• Furnaces on Level 4 now have full sized hitboxes;
• The 'R' key will now respawn the player instantly so they don't have to wait after dying if they don't want to;
• The "Respawn Amount" field on the Settings screen has been renamed to "Amount of Checkpoints" for clarity.

24-09-20 - Menus, Settings, & Time Trial

This build introduces menus for changing settings, skipping to specific levels, and beginning a timed run of a specific level. In levels, whether or not you're doing a Time Trial, a timer will be present in the top left corner.

The font introduced in this build is "Almendra", which may be found here, and its license here

24-09-20 - Graphical Tweaks & Extra Level/Mechanic

This build includes several bug fixes, including the spritesheet bleed issue through use of an automated tool, and also includes a graphical effect for changing between scenes. It also includes the introduction of moving traps, in the form of fireballs that kill the player on contact, and an additional level to demonstrate them. 

17-09-20 - Dialog & Level Iteration

This build introduces 2 new levels as well as a dialog box feature. It also makes minor changes to several areas of gameplay, including two changes to the tutorial/intro level to make them easier. There is also an easter egg in the second new level!

09-09-20 - Levels, Mechanics, and Iteration

Second build. This build introduces a demo level and makes use of several new mechanics that will continue to be iterated on over time.

Mechanics introduced include:

• Respawning in the form of checkpoints
• Traps that kill the player upon collision
• "Velocity Damage" mechanic that either stuns or kills the player when they collide headfirst with a solid object, depending on their speed.
• Stun state, which prevents the player from casting spells (such as flying) for a few moments

Iteration was also done on the movement system to remove glitching into floors, and increase predictability by preventing the collider from rotating with the sprite, as it could cause unexpected results for players.

25-08-20 - Basic Movement

Initial build; basic player movement with test level for experimentation. Controls are currently hardcoded. 

When on the ground: AD to strafe, Space to jump.
When using basic flight: Left Shift to fly, AD to turn side to side. 

You should be unable to strafe while in the air, and should only be able to rotate to control flight.

Known Issues

• When returning to the Settings menu, the current difficulty displayed is not shown until interacted with.
• Ceiling overlay tiles missing in the king room on level 1
• Spikes collider clip through roof on level 5, where the moving horizontal spikes slide in and out.

Credits

Tileset art: @JoeCreates on Twitter

Player & Fireball spritesheets: GrafxKid on OpenGameArt.org

Font (Almendra): Retrieved from fontsquirrel, at this address, with its license here.