Naikari: Eye of Chaos

Well there’s quite a lot to the point that listing the similarities would probably be easier than listing the differences. The version 0.1.0 release notes list a bunch of noteworthy differences compared to Naev ~0.8:

https://diligentcircle.itch.io/naikari/devlog/344951/naikari-010

Of course, though, Naev 0.8 isn’t the latest Naev release, and if you compare Naikari to the latest Naev release, it’s pretty clear that Naev has moved in quite a different direction, in particular introducing more and more RPG-like elements, completely changing the balance of the game, and adding things that, to my mind, amount to feature creep (like the stealth system and the visual novel interface). Naikari is deliberately eschewing a lot of that, and developing from what was roughly Naev 0.8 (actually slightly before 0.8) in a different way.

Since the point of Naikari is really where we’re taking it, I think it’s more useful to describe how our approach differs to Naev’s approach than to enumerate exact differences. In particular:

• Less focus on flashy new features, more focus on using what we already have effectively. For example, we continue to use simple text-based dialog boxes for story, rather than Naev’s visual novel interface; it’s simple and elegant, and we don’t think a miniature visual novel belongs in this kind of game.
• Focusing on making a solid space trading and mercenary sandbox game, rather than trying to make an RPG and incorporating random elements from external genres. For example, we’ve put a lot of focus on generic missions over the years and actually created the modern bounty hunting and patrol missions (which were originally locked behind story parts years ago in Naev). For Naikari, we’ve also created a new generic mission already, the Love Train mission.
• Carefully balancing and testing the game, working to ensure that all ships have a purpose and that traveling throughout the galaxy and earning credits isn’t a frustrating or tedious experience. For example, we changed the way ships jump in so that that getting ambushed and blown up by a new ship while you’re trying to jump out almost never happens.
• Ensuring the interface is as smooth and easy to learn as possible. For example, we made improvements to the aiming lines and turned both those and “fire only in range” on by default, and we added indications showing exactly what services in a system are available and which are restricted.
• Focusing on accessibility. For example, we were originally the driving force behind colorblind accessibility in Naev, and we continue to do our best to ensure colorblind accessibility in Naikari. For Naikari, we also introduced a game speed slider, to more effectively assist those with disabilities affecting motor skills, or who otherwise have difficulty with the game’s speed, than the “slow mode” we had introduced into Naev previously. We’ve also been working to improve the early game experience for newcomers. (Side note, this isn’t something we’re doing per se – rather, something we’re not doing – but Naev is really hurting its accessibility with things like distracting animations above textboxes and that horrible damage effect that gives me a headache and I can only assume must be a photosensitive epilepsy trigger.)

Hopefully that gives an okay idea of what distinguishes Naikari from Naev. Feel free to ask if you have any further questions. 🙂