In case you haven't heard, iPhone and Facebook games are, like, huge. And whenever I am interviewed for an article or a website, or I get into a design discussion with a fellow gamedev, the question inevitably gets asked: "Dude, why don't you port your games to the iPhone or iPad or Facebook?"
It's a reasonable question. iPhone and iPad games are earning bagazillions of dollars. For some, anyway. But me? I have no intention on going there. At least not yet. There are several reasons for this, which essentially boil down to:
1 - I am not a programmer by trade. I muddle through by using middleware tools that are specifically geared to make my types of games (point-and-click adventure games) on the PC. There are no middleware tools for making these games on the iPhone.
2 - So there's no middleware. Why don't I go and make some? Well, yeah. I guess I could, but that would cost quite a bit of time, effort and money. Not only that, but once the tools are made we'd have to completely program the games from scratch, which would also take quite a bit of time, effort and money.
3 - Even assuming I could manage #2, I would have to sell the game for 99 cents after spending all that time, effort and money. Which is absurd.
4 - As I said a few posts ago, I am a coward. Even though I sell PC games, I earn enough to live on. It's asking a lot to risk everything for such an untested (for me ) market. I like being able to pay my mortgage and eat. I'd rather spend all that time, effort and money on something that's proven, rather than something I have no experience with.
5 - Couldn't I just make a small game to test the waters? See #1 and #2.
So that's the gist of it. It seems perfectly logical to me, but whenever I voice these reasons I am met with skeptical looks. Apparently I am crazy for not jumping on the bandwagon. Do iPhone games mean instant success? Certainly not. Unless you are Apple, or a major developer, or extremely (extremely!) lucky, it's a gamble like everything else.
True, the PC market has been neglected while major developers move onto greener pastures, but it certainly isn't dead. It's just hungry, and indies like us are in a good position to feed them. The iPhone market doesn't need our help. It is well-fed enough.
-Dave
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Context is everything
One of the great things about creating programmer art is that I can indulge my narcissistic desire to post screenshots without revealing anything at all of substance.
What is this? A wedge of cheese? A network of caves? A bad attempt at juggling? There's no way to tell!
What is Joey so impressed by? A blank wall? The back of Rosa's head? Or something else? What the heck is this room anyway? Thanks to my amazing art, THE MYSTERY REMAINS.
-Dave
What is this? A wedge of cheese? A network of caves? A bad attempt at juggling? There's no way to tell!
What is Joey so impressed by? A blank wall? The back of Rosa's head? Or something else? What the heck is this room anyway? Thanks to my amazing art, THE MYSTERY REMAINS.
-Dave
Monday, August 16, 2010
Coming up short?
Once in a while, a big indie game comes out to fantastic reviews but ends up being criticized for one specific something. Then I take that specific something and talk about how it applies to my own work. Last January I wrote about VVVVVV and how it was criticized for being $14.99, which led to my own thoughts about indie game pricing.
If you follow indie games, you might have heard of Limbo, a recent platform game available now on Xbox Live Arcade. It is deliciously atmospheric - you play a lonely little boy jumping his way through a minimalist black and white world that manages to be hauntingly beautiful without being pretentious. Limbo has been universally praised by reviewers, but there has been one universal criticism: it's a little on the short side.
Like VVVVVV, this is a criticism that has been leveled at my own games more than once. "The game is great - but it's too darn short!" the critics say. To which I can only respond... "Well, you're right." There's no denying it. A typical Blackwell game can take you from 2-4 hours to complete if you are a hardcore adventure gamer. Maybe 6-8 if you are more casual. There are those who even play with a walkthrough handy on their first go-round, and they zip through it in no time at all - often faster than me!
So yeah, my internal games tend to be on the short side. Why is that? There are a lot of good reasons for short games - they don't overstay their welcome, people don't have as much time to play games these days, or simply because the game is better served by being a smaller experience (Portal is the game that is usually used as the best example of this).
But for me, the reason is simpler than that. I am a trembling abject coward.
Read any indie developer blog and you'll often hear that they are "one flop away from going out of business." As an indie developer, and an indie adventure game developer at that, I don't like those odds. Adventure games are a tough sell even for mainstream AAA companies, and they have bigger marketing budgets than I do. If I spend a year or more on just one game, spending lots of money and man-hours on it, only to have it sell poorly... well, that would be the last you hear of me.
So... I tread carefully. To make a game, a developer can spend money to pay someone to do the work, or spend time doing it him/herself. If I spend more money, I will have to earn that money back. If I spend more time, it's time that the game is not earning any money (which I will still have to earn back). As a result, I tend to keep my games tight and lean - making them deep instead of broad. So if I screw up and the game bombs, then it won't be too much of a financial burden for my little studio to bear. I can just make another game and move on.
This is not to say that my games can't be long, epic works of grandeur.. It's just that they won't be long, epic works of grandeur yet. As I've gained more customers and fans I have slowly increased the length of my games. Convergence was easily longer than Unbound or Legacy, and the upcoming Deception is shaping up to be significantly longer than Convergence. Baby steps, kids. Baby steps.
So to answer the question of "Why are my games on the short side?" The simple answer for me is because I want to keep making games. I love making these games. And, for some strange reason that I am eternally thankful for, enough people like them enough to spend their money on them so I can continue to do this full time and make more (even during these crazy economic times). It's a great way to live, but there is always that little ever-present fear that it could all end if I am not smart. I'd have to - gulp - get a real job. And we can't have that.
-Dave
P.S.
This blog post is one in a series of posts for what we've called "Size Doesn't Matter Day." For other blog posts on this topic, check out:
http://positech.co.uk/cliffsblog/?p=810
http://24caretgames.com/2010/08/16/does-game-length-matter/
http://2dboy.com/2010/08/12/too-short/
http://blog.wolfire.com
http://brokenrul.es/blog
http://gamesfromwithin.com/size-matters
http://macguffingames.com/2010/if-size-doesnt-matter-where-do-you-get-the-virtual-goods
http://mile222.com/2010/08/a-haiku-about-game-length/
http://retroaffect.com
http://the-witness.net/news
http://www.copenhagengamecollective.org/2010/08/17/size-does-matter/
http://www.firehosegames.com/2010/08/how-much-is-enough/
http://www.hobbygamedev.com/
http://spyparty.com/2010/08/16/size-doesnt-matter-day/
If you follow indie games, you might have heard of Limbo, a recent platform game available now on Xbox Live Arcade. It is deliciously atmospheric - you play a lonely little boy jumping his way through a minimalist black and white world that manages to be hauntingly beautiful without being pretentious. Limbo has been universally praised by reviewers, but there has been one universal criticism: it's a little on the short side.
Like VVVVVV, this is a criticism that has been leveled at my own games more than once. "The game is great - but it's too darn short!" the critics say. To which I can only respond... "Well, you're right." There's no denying it. A typical Blackwell game can take you from 2-4 hours to complete if you are a hardcore adventure gamer. Maybe 6-8 if you are more casual. There are those who even play with a walkthrough handy on their first go-round, and they zip through it in no time at all - often faster than me!
So yeah, my internal games tend to be on the short side. Why is that? There are a lot of good reasons for short games - they don't overstay their welcome, people don't have as much time to play games these days, or simply because the game is better served by being a smaller experience (Portal is the game that is usually used as the best example of this).
But for me, the reason is simpler than that. I am a trembling abject coward.
Read any indie developer blog and you'll often hear that they are "one flop away from going out of business." As an indie developer, and an indie adventure game developer at that, I don't like those odds. Adventure games are a tough sell even for mainstream AAA companies, and they have bigger marketing budgets than I do. If I spend a year or more on just one game, spending lots of money and man-hours on it, only to have it sell poorly... well, that would be the last you hear of me.
So... I tread carefully. To make a game, a developer can spend money to pay someone to do the work, or spend time doing it him/herself. If I spend more money, I will have to earn that money back. If I spend more time, it's time that the game is not earning any money (which I will still have to earn back). As a result, I tend to keep my games tight and lean - making them deep instead of broad. So if I screw up and the game bombs, then it won't be too much of a financial burden for my little studio to bear. I can just make another game and move on.
This is not to say that my games can't be long, epic works of grandeur.. It's just that they won't be long, epic works of grandeur yet. As I've gained more customers and fans I have slowly increased the length of my games. Convergence was easily longer than Unbound or Legacy, and the upcoming Deception is shaping up to be significantly longer than Convergence. Baby steps, kids. Baby steps.
So to answer the question of "Why are my games on the short side?" The simple answer for me is because I want to keep making games. I love making these games. And, for some strange reason that I am eternally thankful for, enough people like them enough to spend their money on them so I can continue to do this full time and make more (even during these crazy economic times). It's a great way to live, but there is always that little ever-present fear that it could all end if I am not smart. I'd have to - gulp - get a real job. And we can't have that.
-Dave
P.S.
This blog post is one in a series of posts for what we've called "Size Doesn't Matter Day." For other blog posts on this topic, check out:
http://positech.co.uk/cliffsblog/?p=810
http://24caretgames.com/2010/08/16/does-game-length-matter/
http://2dboy.com/2010/08/12/too-short/
http://blog.wolfire.com
http://brokenrul.es/blog
http://gamesfromwithin.com/size-matters
http://macguffingames.com/2010/if-size-doesnt-matter-where-do-you-get-the-virtual-goods
http://mile222.com/2010/08/a-haiku-about-game-length/
http://retroaffect.com
http://the-witness.net/news
http://www.copenhagengamecollective.org/2010/08/17/size-does-matter/
http://www.firehosegames.com/2010/08/how-much-is-enough/
http://www.hobbygamedev.com/
http://spyparty.com/2010/08/16/size-doesnt-matter-day/
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Deception Design Diary #1: Where I try to expose a phony psychic
Those of you who follow my Facebook or Twitter feed probably already know that the next game in the Blackwell series - entitled Blackwell Deception - is underway. Things are moving a bit slowly while I get the last few design issues sorted out, but I envision things to start taking off very soon. I am aiming to get it done before Christmas, but I'm not going to officially announce a release date until I am sure. This has been the first time in a long while that I've been able to design and produce something completely in-house without any distractions from a publisher, so it's very exciting. I feel like I've got my indie cred back. Anyway, I thought I'd start a design diary to talk about the ups and downs of making it.
The Inspiration
A few years ago, I got a call from a friend. She needed a favor, but was embarrassed to ask it. To respect her privacy, I'm going to use a fake name and call her Cindy. For around six months or so, Cindy had been seeing a psychic. One of those storefront psychics that you see on every other block in this city. At the time, she had been drifting a bit aimlessly, unsure about her career choices and her place in life, and the psychic totally took advantage of that. The psychic told Cindy that her aura needed energy work, which cost about $200. After Cindy paid this amount, the psychic said that she would immediately buy a special candle and meditate on it. From there, Cindy just went deeper. By the time Cindy wised up, she was about $5,000 in hock to the psychic. Angry at herself, she decided that she was going to expose the scam and prevent the same thing from happening to others.
So, she called a news network.
The news network was interested, and they wanted someone to go in with a hidden camera and get footage of her defrauding someone. Did Cindy know anyone who'd be willing to do that? Yes, it turns out, Cindy did. I had just finished the first Blackwell game and she knew I was interested in that kind of thing. "I figured you'd think it was cool," I remember her saying. She was right.
I met up with Cindy and the news crew and they affixed a button camera to my shirt. It was pretty slick, even though it was a slightly different color than the other buttons. "Don't worry," the news lady said. "You just look like a guy who doesn't care about his appearance." Fair enough.
So I went into the psychic's office to get defrauded. She asked me a bunch of questions about my personal life and did something with tarot cards. Sure enough, the psychic eventually told me that I needed energy work and it would cost $200. I told her I'd think about it, and I left feeling proud of myself for getting it all on camera. Unfortunately, my life as a spy was a short-lived one. I had aimed the button camera one inch too far to the left, and ended up with 20 minutes footage of her wall. James Bond I am not.
In the end the network decided not to pursue the story, but the experience opened my eyes to a subculture in New York that not many know about. Cindy's story is not an isolated one. Fortunately for her, she got out before any major damage was done. She's now kicking butt and taking names in the self-esteem department. Others... are not so lucky.
The inspiration becomes a Blackwell story
In the years since this happened, it's stuck with me. I would walk around the city and I would see one of those psychic storefronts and I'd flash back to what happened to Cindy and what the psychic attempted to do to me. I have read reports of victims who got totally brainwashed by these psychics; giving over their life savings and breaking off from their families, simply because their psychics told them to. They attract the kind of people who are confused or lost, and then milk them for all they are worth untill they are dry.
I knew there was a Blackwell story in this somewhere, and as I've seen more and more of these storefronts my imagination began to wander. It's weird, I'd say to myself, there sure are a lot of them. I know of four psychic storefronts in my neighborhood alone. Move up towards midtown and you'll see them even more frequently. They've all been in place for as long as I have lived here. Even in this economy, they are still around. How come major bars, restaurants, and shops - which have been in existence for 50 years or more! - are all going out of business left and right while all these parasitic phony psychics remain open?
Surely, I felt, they must be organized. There must be some kind of unifying power behind them. Something beyond the mere storefront. Something even more sinister behind the scenes. But what could it be?
I think Rosa and Joey are about to find out.
-Dave
The Inspiration
A few years ago, I got a call from a friend. She needed a favor, but was embarrassed to ask it. To respect her privacy, I'm going to use a fake name and call her Cindy. For around six months or so, Cindy had been seeing a psychic. One of those storefront psychics that you see on every other block in this city. At the time, she had been drifting a bit aimlessly, unsure about her career choices and her place in life, and the psychic totally took advantage of that. The psychic told Cindy that her aura needed energy work, which cost about $200. After Cindy paid this amount, the psychic said that she would immediately buy a special candle and meditate on it. From there, Cindy just went deeper. By the time Cindy wised up, she was about $5,000 in hock to the psychic. Angry at herself, she decided that she was going to expose the scam and prevent the same thing from happening to others.
So, she called a news network.
The news network was interested, and they wanted someone to go in with a hidden camera and get footage of her defrauding someone. Did Cindy know anyone who'd be willing to do that? Yes, it turns out, Cindy did. I had just finished the first Blackwell game and she knew I was interested in that kind of thing. "I figured you'd think it was cool," I remember her saying. She was right.
I met up with Cindy and the news crew and they affixed a button camera to my shirt. It was pretty slick, even though it was a slightly different color than the other buttons. "Don't worry," the news lady said. "You just look like a guy who doesn't care about his appearance." Fair enough.
So I went into the psychic's office to get defrauded. She asked me a bunch of questions about my personal life and did something with tarot cards. Sure enough, the psychic eventually told me that I needed energy work and it would cost $200. I told her I'd think about it, and I left feeling proud of myself for getting it all on camera. Unfortunately, my life as a spy was a short-lived one. I had aimed the button camera one inch too far to the left, and ended up with 20 minutes footage of her wall. James Bond I am not.
In the end the network decided not to pursue the story, but the experience opened my eyes to a subculture in New York that not many know about. Cindy's story is not an isolated one. Fortunately for her, she got out before any major damage was done. She's now kicking butt and taking names in the self-esteem department. Others... are not so lucky.
The inspiration becomes a Blackwell story
In the years since this happened, it's stuck with me. I would walk around the city and I would see one of those psychic storefronts and I'd flash back to what happened to Cindy and what the psychic attempted to do to me. I have read reports of victims who got totally brainwashed by these psychics; giving over their life savings and breaking off from their families, simply because their psychics told them to. They attract the kind of people who are confused or lost, and then milk them for all they are worth untill they are dry.
I knew there was a Blackwell story in this somewhere, and as I've seen more and more of these storefronts my imagination began to wander. It's weird, I'd say to myself, there sure are a lot of them. I know of four psychic storefronts in my neighborhood alone. Move up towards midtown and you'll see them even more frequently. They've all been in place for as long as I have lived here. Even in this economy, they are still around. How come major bars, restaurants, and shops - which have been in existence for 50 years or more! - are all going out of business left and right while all these parasitic phony psychics remain open?
Surely, I felt, they must be organized. There must be some kind of unifying power behind them. Something beyond the mere storefront. Something even more sinister behind the scenes. But what could it be?
I think Rosa and Joey are about to find out.
-Dave
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Cafe Pick Me Up
Several months ago, someone suggested I do reports of the cafes I go to and rate them based on their "laptop friendliness". I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but I can't think of a better place to start than this place.
As I wrote in my last entry, I tend to wander around more now that I just have to carry my notebook and pen. And since I wander around quite a bit, I discover lots of new places around my neighborhood. Usually I walk west towards Greenwich Village, but lately my feet have been pushing me east toward Alphabet City.
Most people are familiar with the number grid system of NYC. If you hear the phrase "8th street between 5th Avenue and Broadway", something about it sounds very New York. But there's a section of the city where the Avenues are given letters instead of numbers. It's a small stretch of city in the far East Village, north of Houston and south of 14th street. It starts at Avenue A and goes to Avenue D. Hence, Alphabet City. I love wandering through there, as it's grungy and dirty and still has an old New York vibe despite the gentrification.
Anyway, last week I found myself checking out a cafe in Alphabet City. It was a little indie place, which is unusual. It had huge wall-length windows that were wide open, and several ceiling fans, so it was nice and ventilated despite the scorching heat. I got a coffee and sat down and whipped out my notebook, where I whiled away an hour or two.
Normally I wouldn't mention this place at all, but I decided to go back the next day and I stupidly didn't have any cash on me. They didn't take credit cards, so I asked where the nearest ATM was. The woman at the register said "Eh, don't worry about it. You were here yesterday. I trust you."
So, yeah. That's never happened before, and certainly not on my second visit. Since they gave me a free cup of coffee, the least I can do is give the place a mention on this blog. I've gone back several times since then and the place is definitely worth visiting. It's called "Cafe Pick Me Up" and it's on the corner of Avenue A and 9th street. It's laid-back and unpretentious, the staff is super friendly, and it's got a great view of the street. As a bonus, the iced coffee is really tasty and comes in an actual glass, plus they've got an Italian menu that's even better (and wicked cheap!). The gnocci is especially good.
Anyway, to bring this blog post back on topic, they are very "laptop developer friendly", as they've got plenty of electrical outlets and will happily let you stay there for several hours as long as you order something. Their internet isn't free, but if you're looking to sit and work and not get distracted by web surfing, it's a great place to be.
So... who thinks this cafe review thing is a good idea?
-Dave
As I wrote in my last entry, I tend to wander around more now that I just have to carry my notebook and pen. And since I wander around quite a bit, I discover lots of new places around my neighborhood. Usually I walk west towards Greenwich Village, but lately my feet have been pushing me east toward Alphabet City.
Most people are familiar with the number grid system of NYC. If you hear the phrase "8th street between 5th Avenue and Broadway", something about it sounds very New York. But there's a section of the city where the Avenues are given letters instead of numbers. It's a small stretch of city in the far East Village, north of Houston and south of 14th street. It starts at Avenue A and goes to Avenue D. Hence, Alphabet City. I love wandering through there, as it's grungy and dirty and still has an old New York vibe despite the gentrification.
Anyway, last week I found myself checking out a cafe in Alphabet City. It was a little indie place, which is unusual. It had huge wall-length windows that were wide open, and several ceiling fans, so it was nice and ventilated despite the scorching heat. I got a coffee and sat down and whipped out my notebook, where I whiled away an hour or two.
Normally I wouldn't mention this place at all, but I decided to go back the next day and I stupidly didn't have any cash on me. They didn't take credit cards, so I asked where the nearest ATM was. The woman at the register said "Eh, don't worry about it. You were here yesterday. I trust you."
So, yeah. That's never happened before, and certainly not on my second visit. Since they gave me a free cup of coffee, the least I can do is give the place a mention on this blog. I've gone back several times since then and the place is definitely worth visiting. It's called "Cafe Pick Me Up" and it's on the corner of Avenue A and 9th street. It's laid-back and unpretentious, the staff is super friendly, and it's got a great view of the street. As a bonus, the iced coffee is really tasty and comes in an actual glass, plus they've got an Italian menu that's even better (and wicked cheap!). The gnocci is especially good.
Anyway, to bring this blog post back on topic, they are very "laptop developer friendly", as they've got plenty of electrical outlets and will happily let you stay there for several hours as long as you order something. Their internet isn't free, but if you're looking to sit and work and not get distracted by web surfing, it's a great place to be.
So... who thinks this cafe review thing is a good idea?
-Dave
Monday, July 19, 2010
Design mobility
So I'm in the midst of what I call the "design phase" of development. For me, this is the most fun and also the most challenging part of the process.
On the one hand, I've got a lot of creative freedom. I let my mind go nuts and my pen follows suit. If what I come up with sucks or doesn't work, I just cross it out and start again. It's quick, it's dirty, and it's very satisfying. I think I have about a dozen notebooks of cross-outs and scribbles on my shelf.
On the other hand, I rarely feel like I'm accomplishing anything substantial. During proper production, you have a list of tasks you need to accomplish and you get the satisfaction of ticking them off one by one. You have a large goal that is broken up into smaller goals, and it's much easier to digest.
The design (or pre-production) stage isn't like that for me. I can't break up the game into smaller chunks, because I have no idea what the game is going to be. It's some nebulous, insubstatial, raw thing that's floating out there in the ether. So there are days where I feel great that I get to be all artsy and creative (this is fun), but there are days when I pound my head in frustration when I see that a whole day has gone by and I've only designed half-a-puzzle that I may or may not keep (this is not fun). Time is money, and all that.
But the biggest perk to the design phase? I don't need my laptop. No longer do I have to lug that thing around. I just grab a working pen (usually two, just in case) and a notebook and off I go. A laptop gives you great mobility, but a pen and notebook is even more so.
In the last week, I've done design in the following places:
- on the subway
- Washington Square Park, while a live jazz band played
- on a bench overlooking the east river
- a park overlooking the Hudson river
- the back seat of a taxi
- the bathtub
So yeah, the design phase can get frustrating but it certainly has its moments.
-Dave
On the one hand, I've got a lot of creative freedom. I let my mind go nuts and my pen follows suit. If what I come up with sucks or doesn't work, I just cross it out and start again. It's quick, it's dirty, and it's very satisfying. I think I have about a dozen notebooks of cross-outs and scribbles on my shelf.
On the other hand, I rarely feel like I'm accomplishing anything substantial. During proper production, you have a list of tasks you need to accomplish and you get the satisfaction of ticking them off one by one. You have a large goal that is broken up into smaller goals, and it's much easier to digest.
The design (or pre-production) stage isn't like that for me. I can't break up the game into smaller chunks, because I have no idea what the game is going to be. It's some nebulous, insubstatial, raw thing that's floating out there in the ether. So there are days where I feel great that I get to be all artsy and creative (this is fun), but there are days when I pound my head in frustration when I see that a whole day has gone by and I've only designed half-a-puzzle that I may or may not keep (this is not fun). Time is money, and all that.
But the biggest perk to the design phase? I don't need my laptop. No longer do I have to lug that thing around. I just grab a working pen (usually two, just in case) and a notebook and off I go. A laptop gives you great mobility, but a pen and notebook is even more so.
In the last week, I've done design in the following places:
- on the subway
- Washington Square Park, while a live jazz band played
- on a bench overlooking the east river
- a park overlooking the Hudson river
- the back seat of a taxi
- the bathtub
So yeah, the design phase can get frustrating but it certainly has its moments.
-Dave
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