The level "terrain" is still edited as a PNG file in Photoshop. Maybe one day I'll make the terrain editable in my custom editor too, but for now, Photoshop works just fine and is actually pretty handy.

The level editor is implemented as a custom editor extension in VS Code. I run the game in a small window next to VS Code to see my edits live when I save the file. It currently only works on certain types of game entities like moving platforms, levers, containers etc.

☝️ Thanks @xordev.com for a great article on blurs that helped me get started!

For the nerds interested: along the way, I implemented every kind of blur there is, starting from box blur, going through 2-pass gaussian blur and finally arriving at dual Kawase blur to make it performant enough with the kind of large blur radius that I wanted.

Fun fact: I've made most sound effects to the game by tapping on various surfaces around the house. 😅

Inspired by Animal Well, I have wild ideas of turning the game into a metroidvania. I've been a bit stuck for a while trying to extend the game as a precision platformer. Maybe the grappling hook mechanic would work better for exploration than precision platforming.

Made the swoosh sound with Oscillot modular synth. 🤓

Now, here on Bluesky, I'm slowly and carefully letting myself engage again, but I'm constantly being wary and expecting everything to turn to shit again.