Hey friends! I've decided to be much more transparent about the development and future of Mini Map. I'm going to be updating the community a lot more on our Discord so please join if you want more regular updates. So what is the roadmap for Mini Map? First I'll go over what has been finished then what is in progress and finally what is planned for the future. I have been developing the game with a sprint system so I will separate everything using that.

Completed:

Sprint 0: jam version

this is all that was created during the jam:

• all 8x8 sprites and animations
• all core code and mechanics 
• main menu
• scene transitions
• keys and locks
• chests 
• spikes
• stairs 

I was super happy with the jam version and it's why I decided to keep working on the game.

Sprint 1: portals and traps

this sprint was focused solely on adding a second dungeon. here is what was added :

• portals
• traps 
• SFX and VFX for both 
• 9 levels that feature portals and traps

I'm very happy with this dungeon. It needs more play testing and definitely a few more levels but overall I think it is going in a good direction 

Sprint 2: visual upgrades

This sprint added no new content as far as levels go, but it added a ton to the feel of the game. This update included:

• Upgrading all sprites and animations from 8x8 to 16x16
• hero emotes 
• Post Processing effects 
• moved restart to right click
• pause menu 
• level select screens

This sprint improved the quality of the game a ton and I'm pretty happy with the results. There is definitely still more visual improvements to be done 

Sprint 4: visual demo 

This is the most recently finished sprint. The purpose  was to make an enhanced version of dungeon 1 that featured all the quality of life stuff added in Sprint 2 plus some more. This was a simple update but I still added:

• A new key pickup animation 
• Particles when opening a lock 
• Refined the main menu
• Credits 
• a poem in settings (no one has commented on this yet)

Overall I think this is a great first Demo 

In Progress / Coming back to later

Sprint 3: buttons and doors

This was another almost purely content based sprint. Here is what was added:

• Buttons
• Doors 
• SFX and VFX for both
• 8 levels based on the new feature + one challenge level
• screenshake
• new circle scene transition
• hero focus marker

I am not happy with the results of dungeon three whatsoever. It is going to need some major work in the future and I foresee that most of the levels will probably be removed and redone. It is also all but untested by anyone except me. This one definitely belongs in the "coming back to later" category. I do really like the focus marker, screen shake, and new scene transition.

Sprint 5: two heroes??

This sprint has only just been begun. Here is all I plan on adding:

• Two heroes to control separately with separate pings 
• at least 10 levels using this new feature to it's fullest extent
• Color schemes for each dungeon

it may not sound like a lot but levels are harder to make than you would think 0_o

Plans For the Future

Sprint 6: world map and themed dungeons

This one is pretty self explanatory. Here are rough plans:

• A world map to replace the boring level select screens
• A distinct name and theme for each dungeon. This goes along with the color scheme plans in sprint 5
• Possibly other aesthetic features to further differentiate the dungeons and make them unique
• I would love to rehaul the progression to be better than it is at the moment

This is by no means set in stone and more features will probably be added to this sprint as it is planned in detail 

Sprint 7: dungeon 5

When planning the full version of Mini Map, 5 dungeons was my goal and still is. This sprint is pretty much just a placeholder at the moment with no specifics. I am certainly willing to consider more dungeons after number 5 but for now this is all I am planning for:

• A new puzzle feature (yet to be decided)
• at least 10 levels featuring the new mechanic 

Sprint 8: wrapping things up 

I plan on this sprint being all about adding final touches, adding more levels to old dungeons and anything else that need to be done. No solid details yet.

So there you go! a full guide to the development of Mini Map. I know most of you probably didn't read the whole thing and that's ok but  for those who didn't here is a high level TLDR:

TLDR

Completed:

• Dungeons 1, 2 and 3 (though 3 will likely be redone)
• Major visual upgrades and quality of life improvements
• A visual demo to replace the jam version

In Progress:

• Dungeon 4 with two heroes 
• Color schemes for each dungeon

Future plans:

• World map and themed dungeons 
• Dungeon 5
• extra levels for all dungeons
• Steam release!

Thanks for all the support!