The Indie Game Magazine August 2015 | Issue 52 | Page 9

built itself on top of the ruins. With the fire effect now in place,
the idea has gone from concept to functional in-game mechanic.
After some careful consideration, the team also decided to adjust
the way that memory sequences are presented in Lost Ember.
Originally, the idea was to cut to a flashback each time a new
shrine was activated. But now, players will experience these sequences during any pivotal moment of gameplay, even when not
near a shrine. “As the player wanders the world, they encounter
certain key areas or objects that trigger a memory from a former
life,” Graff revealed.
Delving deeper into this IGM-exclusive revelation, Graff detailed
that, “In this memory, they see the world as it was in the ancient
times when the Inti civilization was still alive and in power, before nature reclaimed the land. In the current level, the player
comes across an old mine where the Inti forced their Avani slaves
to quarry minerals of important value (the Avani were another
culture that were conquered and enslaved by the Inti).” The plot
certainly thickens, eh? There are more secrets and exclusives on
the way in the coming months, so be sure to stay tuned to Game
Watch each issue.
alike. According to Tobias Graff, the CEO as well as a programmer for
Mooneye, “the last two months were quite productive.” Specifically,
the team managed to “build a new and bigger level for the vertical
slice, with various distinctive areas,” which is a major step forward.
Beyond that, the team also developed working prototypes for each
of the game’s core mechanics. This includes the switch mechanic,
which allows players to swap between certain animal types.
“The player can now catch birds with a nice burn and dissolve effect
and fly through the woods,” Graff revealed. When asked about the
specifics of what the new vertical gameplay slice entailed, he explained
that “there are things to do in the world, like the activation of the
first shrine that burns down foliage around it with automatically
spreading fire, and we included the first memory sequence.” We
had previously reported that as the wolf activated shrines to restore
the Inti civilization, it would come at the cost of the jungle which

As a final send-off for this month, Graff said with a sigh of relief
that “Lost Ember is finally starting to feel the way it’s supposed
to feel. However, everything is still very rough, and so in the next
couple of months we will try to polish all of these mechanics and
hopefully have a first playable demo that might be presented
at some local indie developer gatherings here in Hamburg, and
finally have a real trailer for the web that can convey the feelings
that we are trying to create.” Until next time folks, enjoy the rest
of IGM’s August issue!
Developer: Mooneye Studios
Website: www.mooneyestudios.com
Twitter: @MoonEyeStudios

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