Spelunky (2012)

This page details pre-release information and/or media for Spelunky (2012).

This page is rather stubbly and could use some expansion. Are you a bad enough dude to rescue this article?

To do: Derek Yu's book on Spelunky contains information about ideas scrapped during development, including an endless mode.

Early Screenshots#

During the development of Spelunky's remake, small updates and previews were posted on the official website, spelunkyworld.com; some of these updates contain images of earlier builds of the game. For the following section, the 2008 original will use the official name Spelunky Classic, while the 2012 remake will be referred to with the unofficial community name Spelunky HD, to avoid confusion.

March 8th, 2010#

The March 8th, 2010 update has the earliest screenshots of Spelunky HD. Being taken over 2 years before release, it has a lot of differences.

• The HUD is nearly identical to Spelunky Classic, with the health, bomb, rope and gold counters in a row without the worn-out paper behind them. The font used for the numbers is embossed rather than the flat white coloring of the final design.
• The terrain tile graphics are less refined, with very noticeable tiling.
• The gray rock tiles at the edges of the Mines are more detailed but have a more notiecable loop. These tiles also have a brown stone border that matches the terrain.
• Spelunky Guy's design differs slightly: he has a larger nose, his eyes are farther apart, the brim of his hat is smaller and his hands are simple circles, lacking any fingers. He also has a different jumping pose.
• Large gems have a simple diamond shape that more closely resembles their appearance in Spelunky Classic.
• The level entrances are simple, closed-off stone doors, like in Spelunky Classic. An updated version of this design is found unused in the final Mines tile graphics.
• The 2x1 stone idol platform in the Mines has a different design with a face on it. The large statue behind the idol is missing some details, such as the chest plate armor and muscles on the hands and legs.
• The trees in the Jungle look much rougher: the detail on the wood is different (with more noticeable vertical looping), the roots only take up one tile and don't have a green tint at the bottom, and there are fewer leaves at the top of the tree.

October 7th, 2010#

The October 7th, 2010 update has 4 additional screenshots. Still a good amount of differences, but it's starting to resemble the final game more closely.

• The HUD received an overhaul, with the same worn-out paper design of the final game. There are differences though, such as the paper being less bent, with more grain and texture; the rocks under the paper are missing highlights and have thinner cracks; and the heart casts a shadow onto the paper and rocks, with the overlayed number of health having a dark red outline instead of black. The placement of the HUD elements also differs, with the stats and gold counter closer to the edges of the screen.
• Spelunky Guy's design has been finalized.
• Large gems are still diamond shaped.
• The terrain tile graphics are a lot more polished, with the tiling being much less noticeable. The brown stone border on the Mines' edge tiles is now gray stone.

A shop is shown in the second image; it features a handful of changes:

• Shops are missing the unique wooden floor tiles, with only the top half overlayed above the level's standard ground tiles. The Specialty Shop sign's magnifying glass symbol is a bit simpler looking. The top half tile overlay is found in the final normal maps.
• Two of the items in the shop look different: Bomb Box has a "B" on it instead of a Bomb, and the Mattock is lying sideways instead of diagonally. Both resemble their appearance in Spelunky Classic more closely.
• The Shopkeeper doesn't have fingers, like Spelunky Guy in the March screenshots. The counter in front of the Shopkeeper is also missing.

The Jungle also has changes to note:

• The Kali statue is missing certain details, such as the muscles in the hands and neck, and the head being held in Kali's hand looks more akin to a hollow mask. There's also harsher shading between Kali's eyes, and she has a thinner tongue. Lastly, there's a vine next to the held head that was removed and replaced with a different one on the statue's left side.
• The blocks under the Golden Idol have a different design; they have an Idol instead of a skull and a rectangular frame around them. This early look is still found in the final's normal maps.
• The tree graphics have been updated but aren't quite final yet. While the leaves at the top have been finalized, the root still takes up only a single tile (though it now has the green tint and leaves at the bottom like the final trees), and there's different detail on the wood. Like the Golden Idol trap blocks, this tree design is also found in the normal maps.

April 23rd, 2011#

This update only has one screenshot, showcasing multiplayer in action. According to the metadata on the image, it was taken almost two months before the update was posted, on February 28th, 2011.

• The HUD hasn't been updated since the October 2010 screenshots, so the same differences apply. This screenshot does showcase a new difference in the HUD, though: the skull that replaces the heart when a player dies is rougher looking.
• The level entrance's design is now final.
• The flag on the player with the camera's focus has a different appearance: it's missing the cap on top of the mast, the flag is longer and waving, and it has blue shading.
• The red player that was killed by the explosion doesn't have the closed-eyes expression and isn't dark from the explosion hit.

June 17th, 2011#

The last update with screenshots posted before release.

• The HUD has been updated compared to the previous screenshots; the paper is now bent, and the rocks below the paper have highlights and thicker cracks (though there are still very subtle changes to the shading). The placement of the HUD elements is still closer to the edges of the screen and the number of health still has a dark red outline.
• Large gems are still diamond shaped.
• The skeleton under the royal grave doesn't have a golden crown.

Spelunky XBLA Debut Trailer#

Watch on YouTubeA trailer for Spelunky was posted on YouTube on June 14th, 2011, featuring footage of the game at that point in time. Gameplay of the Xbox 360 version starts at 00:43.

• The HUD is identical to the June 17th, 2011 screenshot. It showcases a difference not seen in the screenshots, though: the yellow text below the gold counter when treasure is picked up uses a different font and has a gradient. The skull that appears when a player dies has been finalized.
• Large gems are diamond shaped, like all the early screenshots. Small gems are also shown in the trailer (when a chest is opened at 01:08), and they too are diamond shaped.
• The whip swinging animation is different, matching the one found in the normal maps. The Mattock swinging animation is also different, and it matches the normal maps as well.
• Many sound effects are missing: the whoosh when throwing objects (such as a bomb); the bomb hissing sound; the Tiki Trap spike stab; the Jetpack hover; the beeps when a mine is activated; the Monkey noises; the splat when an enemy dies; the whoosh of the Boomerang spinning; and Mummies spewing flies.
• A shop can be seen at 00:46. It now has the unique floor tiles, but the other differences from the October 7th, 2010 screenshot remain (Bomb Box with a "B" on it, Shopkeeper with no fingers and no counter in front of him).
• The RB button prompt that appears when a player is next to the level exit has a different graphic; the button is shorter and wider, and the "RB" text is smaller.
• When picking up the Book of the Dead, Anubis II appears instantly without the red portal animation.
• In the Deathmatch part of the trailer, which starts at 01:41, the Spelunky Classic-styled doors that are unused in the Mines tile graphics are marking the players' spawn points.
• The Crysknife, seen at 01:42, doesn't instantly kill the players that it hits; it functions like the Machete instead, dealing one hit point of damage. The swinging animation of the Crysknife is also different, but unlike the whip and Mattock, it is not the same as the version found in the normal maps, instead it resembles the Machete swinging animation more closely.
• The lava in the "Fire Walk" Deathmatch stage has a different appearance, with a lot more yellow streaks below the lava's surface.

Spelunky XBLA Debut Trailer	Final

The end of the trailer showcases the title screen. It has some differences:

• The rocks in the background are missing detail, with no cracks.
• The wooden beams behind Spelunky Guy are missing.
• Spelunky Guy's illustration is less polished.
• The logo is slightly larger, missing the ® symbol, and has a different bevel on the arm of the K.
• The "Press Start to begin" (the Xbox 360 version has Start instead of A) text is missing, though it may have been removed for the trailer.

Unused Concepts#

Flooded Mines#

Along with the snake pit and dark level implemented in the final release, a flooded mines variant was planned. A large percentage of the level would have been underwater, more so than in the Jungle's "I hear rushing water!" level feeling. Though it was intended to be included up until the last minute, it was ultimately canned for various reasons: the level felt too different, the work involved would have been too great, and it wasn't considered fun enough.

Dark Ice Caves#

The Ice Caves were originally intended to allow dark levels, like the other three main stage types. The idea was canned because such levels were considered to be too difficult. The stage music exists, however, and is included in the official soundtrack as "Ice Caves dim".

Unused Music#

Eirik Suhrke's Spelunky soundtrack contains early drafts, alternate versions and cut tracks, including the aforementioned dark Ice Caves, and early versions of the Cemetery, Jungle and Mines.