Voodudes Bomber Warden Notes
The bosses at the end of each level became known as Wardens, because its definition meant an authority using oppression. We likened this unto our bosses by saying they were an authority who ruled the levels with oppression.
Concept of Bomber Warden
The first step in creating the Wardens was for each level designer to choose which of the 8 enemy types would be a template for our level's Warden. After choosing his enemy type, we then documented the three abilities our Warden would use during the final fight. I saw potential in using any of the enemy types, but I chose the Bomber enemy type in order to test my creativity.
The Bomber Warden's mid-air bomb summoning ability became the template for the bomb hazards throughout the Market District. While generating a devastating explosion from himself, the Bomber Warden would continuously suck the player towards him. If the Bomber Warden received enough damage while he was summoning a throwing bomb, then the bomb would fall causing damage to the Warden.
The Bomber Warden
Our artists created custom glowing textures to distinguish our Wardens from other common enemies. As a Warden loses health their glowing texture changes colors from bright yellow down to dark red. This communicated the Warden's remaining health to players as they fought them. Our lead level designer used existing art assets to create the accessories that were attached to the Warden's and further distinguished their appearance.
When the custom code for each Warden was added to
Voodudes, the level designers were able to change its behavior and
appearance based on remaining health. The Wardens only used one ability
while their health was above 66%, but once their health dropped below
66% they used two abilities and if their health was below 33% they
used all three abilities randomly. The documented concept of the Bomber Warden was done by me, but the final scripted implementation was done by level designer Hugo Wu.
Bomber Warden Fight from Dallas Chavis on Vimeo.