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“Psycho Bean” was my entry into Reddit Game Jam #6. The theme was “energy”, which threw up a few interesting ideas. The finished result ended up quite differently from the first draft, and underwent a major rewrite near the end.
The original “psycho bean” is an idea my brother came up with many years ago during one of our sugar-fuelled game idea sessions. This challenge seemed like the perfect time to bring that idea to life.
Getting Started: Mind Mapping
Below are computerised versions of the two mind maps I used when coming up with ideas for the game. There are plenty of dead ends, but a few of the ideas filtered through to the final game. The decreasing energy seemed like a good way to go, and the transformational aspect tied into the whole “psycho” idea.
The original game was going to be a platform game with shooting elements (i.e. Mario with guns). As you can see, things didn’t end up that way.
A Brief History
I didn’t make a time lapse video, but instead took screenshots at key times of development.
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Version 1
The very first screen, taken about 2 hours into the coding process. Most of the assets were borrowed from Monster Mash to help get something playable as quickly as possible.
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Version 2
The first version with shooting and collision. At this point in development it was possible to spawn enemies, shoot them and jump onto the platforms. |
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Version 3
This was taken at 8:30 on Sunday morning, roughly 10 hours before the deadline. The platforming was gone (as explained in “what went wrong”), and replaced with top-down shooting instead.
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Version 4
Two hours later, and the bullets were flying. There was still plenty left to do (more enemies, the weapons, points etc), but it was playable and more fun than the platforming. |
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Version 5
This is the version that was entered. Bullets, AI, “Sugar Rush” mode and a statistics screen at the end.
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What Went Wrong
I made most of the mistakes from Monster Mash, and some new ones too!
Even Slower Start — Saturday was the Reddit Triangle meetup, which took up most of the afternoon. Needless to say, not much code was written until the evening.
Scrapped Everything — When development ended on Saturday night I wasn’t happy with how the game played. The platforming didn’t feel right, and every now and then the player would stick to the ground after jumping. I didn’t think I’d be able to fix things in the morning, so a total rewrite was in order.
Graphics Dictated Gameplay — Switching to the top down perspective had a few side-effects. The biggest was the lack of diagonal movement and firing, which made the game less enjoyable than it could have been.
What Went Right
It Got Done — Like Monster Mash, at the end of the jam I had something playable. There were a few features that didn’t make the cut, and a lot of the game is unpolished.
Development Screenshots — Although I didn’t make a time lapse, I did want to capture what the game looked like at various points in development.
Scrapped The First Version — Moving from a platformer to a top-down shooter meant a lot of time was wasted, which can be a killer when there’s a tight time limit. Fortunately the changes made the game far more playable which is the most important part.
Lessons For The Future
Lessons for next time:
- Iterate faster. Get it playable. Make it fun.
- Don’t be afraid to throw things out if they’re not fun.
- Don’t worry if it looks stupid. It’s not a beauty contest (although having a nice looking game certainly helps to attract votes)
You can play the latest version here: Psycho Bean.
View all of the entries here: Reddit Game Jam #6: Final Submissions
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At the end of 2010, Steve Pavlina released the copyrights on all of his website material. Seeing as Dexterity.com is no longer available, I’ve added the old Dexterity Software articles to the developer articles section of the site. These made a huge impression on me when I first read them, so I’m happy I can share them here.
These articles are very dense, so it’s a good idea to either print them out or bookmark them for when you have some time. Even though the world of software has changed a great deal since these were written, they’re still full of valuable information.
I recommend starting with Cultivating Burning Desire and How to Get More Done in Less Time. The articles on marketing and sales are also well worth the time to read, and you’re sure to find at least a few actionable ideas to improve your site.
Product Development
Building a Successful Indie Business
Marketing & Sales
Personal Productivity & Motivation
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A few weeks ago I took part in the 4th Reddit 48 hour game jam. I’d never taken part in a game jam before, but it’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while. To make things a little more interesting, I set myself the target of building my entry in Flash, a language I’ve never used before.
The theme was "Metamorphosis", so straight away I was looking at things like Dali paintings, insects and mutations. My first idea was to mix a puzzle game with a festive picture, such as decorating a tree. I’m not much of an artist though, so a game where art is the primary feature wasn’t a good fit.
One idea that constantly came up was changing the appearance of something over time, either main character, the enemies or the world. I really liked the idea of attaching enemy parts to make yourself stronger, almost like Cyborg Justice or Biomotor Unitron.
In the end I settled on a simple version of "half minute hero", with some mutation bits thrown in for good measure. There’s lots of room for improvement, but the game was playable and pretty fun after a bit of tweaking.
What Went Wrong
Slow start — I didn’t actually start coding until about 16 hours in, which didn’t turn out to be a big problem, but those 16 hours would have been handy for polishing things up at the end.
Awful balance — The number one comment I got was that the game was far too hard. I’d originally intended to have about a dozen enemies to fight, but only had time to sprite 3 mutations so the rest were cut. This left the level caps and final boss out of balance, so the game was impossible to finish (although this was fixed shortly after the final submission).
Hidden Stats — There was no way to find out how much experience you had, your level or how many of each enemy you have defeated (to figure out how you’ll evolve). Again, this was planned but was cut at the end.
Unintuitive — Probably the worst part. There’s no obvious explanation of what’s going on, or how to get the various enemy parts, it just happens as you play.
What Went Right
It got done – This is the big one. At the end of the 48 hours, there was a playable game. Considering it was my first Flash, I was super excited. More importantly, it was a big confidence boost.
Planning saved a lot of time — I did jump in to code at the start, but took a break a few hours in to design the screen layouts and game flow. All the features I wanted were listed on a piece of paper in order of important, which really helped towards the end when things got tight.
Lessons For The Future
There were some excellent games entered, and I’ll admit the high quality really surprised me, especially given the short development time. Presentation played a big part in the higher rated entries, so that something to work on next time. Having a distinctive style is important to help you to stand out, although having a fun game is the key factor.
Lessons for next time:
- Spend time polishing and play testing. If possible, have someone else play the game too. I knew the rules inside out, so I couldn’t see the bigger problems.
- Join in. I worked alone and missed out on chatting with other developers. Next time I’ll hook up a second monitor and join the party.
- Make a time lapse video. I didn’t make one this time as it would mostly be me reading the Flixel documentation to see how things work, but I’m sad that I missed out on seeing how the game evolved over time.
- Start early, design more, get it playable ASAP. As soon as it’s designed, get something playable working. This helps with motivation, but also lets you know if you’re onto something fun.
You can play the latest version here: Monster Mash.
View all of the entries here: Reddit Game Jam #4: Final Submissions
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Downtown, Streets of Rage 2
Apparently today is the most depressing day of the year, so here’s the Carnival of Video Game Bloggers to cheer you up! As always there’s a lot of great articles to read through and new sites to discover.
The first entry goes to the baglady over at schlaghund’s playground, who looks at Rock Band’s uncanny valley. There’s quite a distinct degree of separation between fantasy and reality when playing games with a keyboard or a control pad, but games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band can blur the line. An interesting look at how this convergence of the game world and the real world can effect the playing experience.
Next up is Blue Skelton, who looks at The Best Video Games of 2007. It’s a video that showcases some of the best video games from last year. With so much quality in 2007, it’s easy to get overly excited about what this year will offer.
NES fans are in for a treat, as raptor looks at SydLexia.com’s 100 Best NES Games at Listosaurus Rex. There’s some classic games on the list, and the number one will come as no surprise.
If you’re a fan of multiplayer games, then you’ll love Danogo‘s fascinating History of Online Games With a Big Featured Gallery. All of the classics are there, such as Neopets and RuneScape, as well as mentions of the Dreamcast which always earns bonus points in my book ;)
Chris George presents a review of Phantasy Star at Retro Gaming Hub. The original Phantasy Star really pushed the Master System, with 3D effects in the dungeons and an epic story. Be sure to check out the other reviews on the site too for a real dose of nostalgia.
If you have some spare cash and you’re wondering What technological things should you have, then bennie from Technology Matter has just the list for you!
Scott Davis from ZombieChatter.com is next in line with two articles. The first is a very positive Contra 4 Review, and the second looks at The worst NES games of all time. It’s part one of a series, and the first featured game is "Cybernoid".
As if psychically alerted to Scott’s list of bad games, the old-wizard (from Old-Wizard.com, of course) gives us his own list of the Top 20 Worst Video Games of All Time. I don’t agree with all of them, and it’s quite obvious which game is at number one, but it’s always nice to be reminded that terrible games are not a modern phenomenon.
Dale from The Gamers’ Chronicle submitted "Dan Hsu versus The Video Game Industry", which looks at how 1UP.com’s Editorial Director, Dan Hsu, responded to Midway, Sony, and Ubisoft’s banning of Electronic Gaming Monthly from receiving press material for coverage in their magazine.
The ever-reliable Jigsaw hc returns with his Blacksite: Area 51 Review. Be sure to visit Jigsaw hc’s Rants & Reviews for more rants and reviews.
John M takes a slightly different approach to video game blogging, with the "would you like to use the Internet to earn a PS3?" project at Earn a PS3. There’s a lot of ways to make money online, but if you’ve thought of giving it a go you might like to read John’s blog.
And finally, Write the Game‘s K Peney gives us A History of Computer Games: The Multiplayer Years. There seems to be a lot of excitement about MMPORPG’s these days, but it’s nice to look at some of the older games and see that they’re still kicking around.
You can submit an article for the next carnival of video game bloggers using the carnival submission form, and view past and previous editions at the blog carnival index page. The deadline for submissions is February 22nd, so play some games and get some inspiration!
Technorati tags: carnival of video game bloggers, blog carnival.
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It’s 7pm on Christmas Eve, so I think I can be excused for using the cheating “InstaCarnival” this month :P I hope you’re all having a great Christmas so far, but take my advice and get away from the computer and spend some time with the people you love (although I’m flattered you’re spending your time here ;)). Enjoy the rest of the year, and I’ll see you in 2008!
Samuel presents
>Nintendo Wii Controlled Smarthome posted at
>Game Villa.
James Nicholls presents
>Crap Internet Games Syndrome | Gaming Legends posted at
>Gaming Legends.
nitesh123 presents
>Which would you rather play? | MyWorldOnly posted at
>Nitesh, saying, “Also includes the new 6.49 dota maps”
Michael Rosen presents
>Bioshock Review posted at
>The Gaming Critic, saying, “One of the most hyped games of 2007, Bioshock turned out to be one of many games to live up to most of it’s hype.”
Michael Rosen presents
>PORTAL posted at
>The Gaming Critic, saying, “One of the most enjoyable and thought provoking experiences you will encounter in 2007.”
Dan-O presents
>How to Make Real Life Money in the Second Life Virtual World posted at
>Danogo.com – Discover. Inspiring . Media, saying, “People are making millions of real dollars in the virtual real estate business. Are you missing out on the next Web gold rush?”
Samuel presents
>Video Games for the Brain posted at
>Game Villa.
old-wizard presents
>Old-Wizard.com / Games / Video Games / Reviews / Pac-Man posted at
>Old-Wizard.com.
panvamp presents
>Danger of violent video games? posted at
>Panvamp’s Digital Palace, saying, “This is my opinion on an recent article that compared violent video games to smoking.”
panvamp presents
>On Mailboxes and White Houses posted at
>Panvamp’s Digital Palace, saying, “A review of Nick Montfort’s Book about the rise of interactive fiction, some of the earlier computer games.”
Samuel presents
>Halo 3 The end of a saga…NOT posted at
>Sam’s View, saying, “My impressions on Halo 3 after playing through the game with a friend.”
blue skelton presents
>Video Game Production Book posted at
>Blue Skelton Publications, saying, “The Gamers Guidebook is a good book on video game production that provides you with a behind-the-scenes view of what it takes to succeed in the game industry with this unique guide written specifically for producers. I just ordered it from Amazon yesterday. I am taking writing for interactive media next semester and would love to write scripts for a video game someday.”
Eric Frey presents
> » Quake Wars Enemy Territory: Is It Worthy? Eric Frey Dot Com: Hopes, Dreams, Ambitions And Things of Interest posted at
>Eric Frey Dot Com.
Ashton presents
>6 Unusual Games You Should Play Before You Die posted at
>Blogs Blow Dot..
Eric Frey presents
>WARHAMMER 40K: The most frustrating fun you will ever have. posted at
>Eric Frey Dot Com.
Shiv379 presents
>Games to look out for… posted at
>Taming Entertainment, saying, “A roundup of upcoming pc games to keep your eyes peeled for.”
Shiv379 presents
>Game Demos – The Decline posted at
>Taming Entertainment, saying, “A critical look at the state of game demos today.”
Shiv379 presents
>Game Demo Reviews posted at
>Taming Entertainment, saying, “A review of some of the most popular pc game demos around at the moment.”
Ian Richardson presents
>Would you like an Ezy way to manage multiple WordPress Blogs? posted at
>Make Everything EzyAs123, saying, “While a typical website can take hours to update, a site built around a blog can be updated INSTANTLY and search engines quickly take notice…”
Ian Richardson presents
>Hosted WordPress Is FREE To Install, and YOU have complete control! posted at
>Make Everything EzyAs123.
Alvaro Fernandez presents
>Brain Training: No Magic Bullet, Yet Useful Tool. Interview with Elizabeth Zelinski posted at
>SharpBrains, saying, “Newsweek says that “computer-based brain training has shot up from essentially zero in 2005 to $80 million this year, according to the consulting firm SharpBrains”. Here goes an interview with a leading scientist.”
ppassion presents
>Yoku Ruta Flash Puzzle Game posted at
>Passion for Puzzles, saying, “Yoku Ruta Flash Puzzle Game”
So that’s it for this year. A big thanks to everyone who submitted articles to this carnival over the year, and I look forward to seeing you all again in 2008!
You can submit an article for the next carnival of video game bloggers using the carnival submission form, and view past and previous editions at the blog carnival index page. The deadline for submissions is January 21st, so grab those keyboards and get writing!
Technorati tags: carnival of video game bloggers, blog carnival.
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