ENEMIES OF HIGH ON LIFE (& How To Combat 'Em)

High On Life: The #1 intergalactic bounty mission in the galaxy. Get ready to encounter some of the most lethal alien enemies your screens have ever seen. Fear not, you've got a nice big, hot load of skills waiting to infiltrate your gameplay experience. Since you're here, you probably want some insight into all that cool $#!+, right? Yeah yeah that's all below, but first:

Are you following High On Life on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook? If you answered, "YES" proceed to the following Q&A. If you answered "NO" ...are you serious right now?

Gr8. Now that that's settled, get to reading

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So, what role do you play in the creation of High On Life anyways?

We’re Andy Kibler (Senior Gameplay Designer) and Alex Smith (Junior Combat Designer)!

What are the dangers that lurk throughout High On Life?

The main danger the player is going to run into in High On Life are the G3 cartel, who have invaded Earth to harvest humans as drugs, but you’ll also run into some hostile lifeforms native to the planets they explore. Each will present their own challenges as the player progresses. In order to keep things lively after taking down bounties, players will also run into other challenges if they return to previously discovered areas or explore the levels even more deeply. We have side content hidden in every nook and cranny for players to discover!

Will players be able to modify difficulty depending on skill level?

Yes, we will have 3 difficulty levels players can choose from: one for players looking for some challenging shooter gameplay, one for those who just want to hear the story and the jokes, and one for those somewhere in between.

From weaponry to skill development, how will players prepare for enemy combat?

Players will obtain new guns through the main story and be able to modify them as they earn rewards and currency from gameplay. Each of the mods will have a noticeable effect on the gun, allowing players to explore different play styles. New abilities will crop up throughout the story, along with some purchasable ones.

What types of defensive and offensive skills will players learn throughout gameplay?

Mobility is a big part of High On Life gameplay and allows the player to pull off awesome moves as you’re running around. Each weapon also comes equipped with its own abilities that can be used for traversing the world or stopping enemies in their tracks.

How can players improve their combat skills ahead of approaching major enemies and boss fights?

Hidden throughout each environment are Lugloxes (see below!): living chests full of loot ready to be killed! These can contain upgrades ready to be used for your bounty hunting needs, or currency to buy upgrades from the shops around the game. Players can find or purchase upgrades for their suit, like more fuel or more armor, or buy mods for their weapons that change how they function. The boss fights are unique fights that will test players’ skills at the end of each bounty. 

How was humor integrated into the story of encountered enemies and combat?

We have many handcrafted moments in our combat and throughout High On Life in general, but we also have a dynamic system that does a lot of heavy lifting for combat. This dynamic system handles everything from enemy chatter to guns calling out important events for the player to pay attention to. We’re constantly iterating on this system to get it to feel just right for players.

What makes the first-person shooter experience superior for navigating High On Life?

A key part of High On Life are the talking guns the player character has in their hand, so while the player is able to project themselves onto the main character à la Half-Life, they still have a means of communicating with the world. The player is up close and personal with the cast of weapons that represent them, and as far as we know, most of them don’t have bad breath. One of them definitely does.

In what types of environments can players expect to engage in combat?

There’s a whole stack of different biomes and landscapes, including, but not limited to, thick jungles, arid deserts, back alleys, and winding research labs. Players will have to use their entire ability set to not only fight but outmaneuver.

How do the enemies of High On Life fit into the Squanch Games universe?

The phrase “charmingly gross” comes to mind. Each of them has a bounciness to their movement, but the G3 enemies are covered in goopy armor, and other enemies are huge bugs. The extra bump in squanch factor comes from how occasionally you’ll just catch them talking about themselves, either in the heat of combat or outside. Sure, they’re gross, but they’re also people.

Except for some of the fauna; those are just bugs. Still gross though!

Do you have a favorite moment that came from developing enemies and combat throughout the creation process?

The Hunk’s introduction is especially fun. The Hunk went through a lot of iteration, but we always knew he had to be a showstopper when he appeared. To live up to expectations, we made sure the spotlight was on him in his debut. He slams into the arena taking out a few of his allies on the way in, but he’s tough enough that he doesn’t need them to kick some ass.

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