Stage atmosphere

Status: idea and planning; no new effect has been approved or built.

Goal

Make each stage feel more alive while keeping enemies, attacks and the ground easy to see.

Ideas

• Explore wind, rain, fog and moving shadows where they fit the stage.
• For Stage 2, explore cave-like light and shadow as a replacement for the current vignette. The final look needs the owner's review.
• Keep the pixel-art look and allow effects to be reduced or disabled if they make play harder to see or affect performance.

Approach

1. Review the existing stage setup and effects before choosing a technique.
2. Make one small sample in the test stage, using a stage-like backdrop rather than running a real stage.
3. Ask the owner to review readability and the look before expanding to other stages.
4. Check player count, performance, settings and Linux/Windows behavior before shipping.

This is visual atmosphere work; it does not include changing the stage's balance or layout.