Robson has been focused on building out foundational systems for Paper Crown, ensuring that the core gameplay loops are functional, stable, and ready for further development. This week's work centered on implementing player health, a reliable respawning mechanism, and establishing clear internal documentation for the programming team.

Health System Implementation

A critical step for a 2D platformer with combat elements is establishing a robust player health system. Robson successfully implemented the following features:

• Health Variable: A core health variable was created to track the player's current state.
• Damage Integration: The system is now integrated to register damage when the player collides with objects marked as hostile (currently represented by a "damage square" for testing).
• UI Health Counter: A corresponding UI element was created and is actively updated to display the player's current health, giving immediate feedback.
• Full Loop: The system manages the full health loop: health variable reduction, UI update, and triggering the respawn sequence upon reaching zero health.

Reliable Respawning

To complete the player death cycle, Robson implemented the respawning mechanic:

• Functionality: When the player’s health variable hits 0, the game triggers the respawn process.
• Mechanism: This is achieved by resetting the player’s position. The player character is instantly teleported to a predefined respawn point in the level, and their health variable is simultaneously reset to full. This ensures that the player can quickly get back into the action after an encounter. 

Streamlining Team Collaboration: The Instructions File

A significant contribution to the team's workflow this week was the creation and maintenance of an internal documentation system:

• Addition: Robson introduced a central insctruction.txt file (or similar document) into the project.
• Purpose: The rule is simple: when Robson (or any other programmer) adds a new feature or system, they must document instructions for how to use or replicate that feature's code.
• Why it Matters: This is a vital practice for team development. It prevents other programmers, like fellow programmer Diego, from getting lost or spending time reverse-engineering code. This shared documentation helps ensure that the entire team is on the same page and speeds up the integration of new content.

These technical updates provide a solid, functioning core for Paper Crown to move into the next stages of development. Stay tuned for more updates on art and code!