Hello again!
Thanks for checking in the fifth week of Ascent's development journey. This week was all about honing our game mechanics, polishing the UI, and enhancing the sound design.

October 17: Feedback & Ideas

- Post our meeting with the TA, we got some valuable insights: 

- Introducing mechanics that make gameplay more forgiving, such as clutching onto ledges and being able to yank back up. 

- Adding environmental interactions like moving platforms, slippery surfaces, and natural elements (trees, rocks, animals) that impact player movement. - Allowing one player to launch the other player. 

- Potentially introducing character-specific powers or specialties.

October 19: Art Style Improvements

- Mooho made more refine concept arts of stone pillars solidifying the overall art style of our game.

October 22: Audio & Art Enhancements

- Aaron finished the warm sounding music track that we will use for the first level.

- Moonho presented intricate concept art for the scaffolding; it's now set for modeling.

October 23: Mechanic Refinement Discussions

- The CS team delved deeper into refining the 'yank' mechanic and its possible distance restrictions. We brainstormed:

1) Rope/Light Mechanic: Activating a visible connection between players when they're within the yanking distance. This promotes gameplay where players are continuously aware of their proximity.

2) Distance Boundary: Preventing players from moving too far away from each other. This might bring in elements like hanging, pushing, and pulling.

3) Rope Snap: If players stray too far apart, the rope breaks. To re-establish the connection, they'd need to come close and initiate a reattachment.

We're leaning towards the first option.

October 24: Game Enhancements

- We gave the game's introductory scene and UI a fresh look.

- Improved the settings menu for smoother respawns.

- Rolled out the checkpoint system.

- Brought in sound effects for player movements and integrated background music for the first level.

October 25: Player Model Updates

- Reznel finished rigging the player model 

What’s Next?

- Finetuning player movements, specifically the yank and throw.

- Introducing more interactive environment components.

- Implementing camera movement via the right stick.

- Introducing instructive signage for the tutorial segment of the first level.

Thanks for reading!