Happy New Year!

So, 2010 comes to a close and it's time for the usual Looking Back post.  It's been an interesting year!  Many changes, many lessons learned, and many things to look forward to.

Let's get the only "down" out of the way.  It came early and was over with quickly, with our publisher dropping our in-the-works project due to it not being casual enough.  While disappointing, it has proved to be a blessing in disguise. We are focusing more on the games we and our customers like, instead of what someone else says is popular.  While the security of having a publisher with deep pockets is missed, we're enjoying the freedom much more. We might work with a publisher again, but only if their goals coincide more directly with ours

2010 has also been the first year I can safely say "we" instead of "I" without sounding pretentious, since my wife Janet has joined me full time.  Our long-term project is something we're both very excited about.  It's something completely different from what we've been doing so far, but it's also a natural progression.  You'll probably hear more about that mid-late 2011.

2010 has marked our first release as a publisher, with Erin Robinson's Puzzle Bots. It's proved to be a  critical success, rocketing Erin to indie stardom.  I am extraordinarily proud of her, and am pleased to have had a small part in getting her there.  The game also secured a place on the Steam service, making it our first internally developed game to be accepted by them.

I've learned to accept my major weakness: PR and outreach.  In a nutshell, I suck at it.   So I bit the bullet and hired someone to help me with that.  Emily Morganti, former PR manager at Telltale and now working freelance, is helping us out and has become practically indispensable.

As for what's next?  We've got another game coming out in February, which we should be announcing in a few weeks.  Like Puzzle Bots, it was developed by somebody else and we were asked to sell it on their behalf.  We've spent the last several months adding voice acting and adding a few graphical improvements here and there.  It's a gorgeous piece of work, and it will probably be the biggest game we've released to date. 

Also coming in April is the fourth Blackwell game, which I've called Blackwell Deception.  I haven't announced it officially yet because I want the focus to be on the game we're publishing first.  Once that's released, you will be hearing lots more about Blackwell.

And after that?  Wait and see!  All-in-all, 2011 is already shaping up to be a very exciting year.  And it will mark our fifth year in business.

I couldn't have made it this far without any of you .  To those of you who followed me since my freeware days, to the loyal customers old and new, to my friends and family (and my sister's unborn twins!!), to all my colleagues in the biz - a big sloppy thank you.

And HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

-Dave

Holiday sale!

In case you missed it on Twitter, on the official website, or on facebook (yeesh when did I become a social networking hound?), we're having a holiday sale!  Until January 1st you can nab all three Blackwell games for $9.99.  Here's the official press release:

Wadjet Eye Games Announces Holiday Sale on Blackwell Mystery Game Series

Through Jaunary 1, get three great indie adventures for just $9.99 from www.wadjeteyegames.com

NEW YORK, December 20, 2010 – Independent developer and publisher Wadjet Eye Games is announcing a special holiday price for their Blackwell adventure game series. Now through January 1, the 3-game bundle is on sale for only $9.99—a 60% discount on the usual $24.99 price. The downloadable PC bundle, which contains The Blackwell Legacy, Blackwell Unbound, and The Blackwell Convergence, can be purchased from http://www.wadjeteyegames.com.

The Blackwell games are atmospheric mystery games reminiscent of the “golden age” adventures from Sierra and LucasArts. When Rosa Blackwell’s only relative dies after languishing in a coma for twenty years, Rosa thinks the worst is over. Then Joey Mallone, a sardonic ghost from the 1930s, blows into her life and reveals that she is a spirit medium. As much as Rosa wants to turn her back on her family legacy, it’s now up to this unlikely pair to assist tortured souls and cure New York City’s supernatural ills, whether they like it or not.

The Blackwell games were created by a small indie team led by Wadjet Eye Games founder Dave Gilbert. Features include retro cartoon graphics, a point and click interface, voice acting, a fully orchestrated soundtrack, and unlockable extras such as concept art and voiceover blooper reels. The story-driven gameplay focuses on investigation, character interaction, and puzzle solving. Throughout each game, the playable character alternates between medium and spirit, with each character possessing unique abilities.

Since its debut in 2007, the Blackwell series has developed a cult following among adventure and casual gamers. This year The Blackwell Convergence won an AdventureGamers.com “Aggie” award for Best Dramatic Writing. A fourth game, Blackwell Deception, will release in 2011.

To learn more about the Blackwell games, view screenshots and trailers, or purchase the bundle at the $9.99 holiday price, visit the Wadjet Eye Games website at http://www.wadjeteyegames.com.

What?

Sorry for the delay between posts.  Been crunching on a project and there hasn't been a lot to talk about aside from "Woke up.  Turned on the computer.  Worked for 12 hours. Went to bed." 

I've entered the world of publishing a second time and am going to be publishing another developer's game, a la Puzzle Bots.  We'll be announcing it in January, so stay tuned.  It's looking pretty sweet.

But, to tide you over here's an old picture of me with pens in my ears:

-Dave

Playing cupid

In one of my first entries on this blog, I wrote that I have become an expert on the location of every electrical outlet in all the cafes within a five block radius of my apartment.  As laptopping in cafes becomes more and more common (these days there are more cafe people with laptops than without), this knowledge is necessary for survival.  There's no worse feeling than lugging your laptop to a cafe, waiting in line, and then turning around with your drink to see that all the tables by the outlets are taken by other people.  Seats by the outlets are coveted positions, and nothing brings out the worst in people when others are doing the coveting.

Several months ago, I went into a local Starbucks and gleefully nabbed the last table by an outlet.  I ordered a coffee and bagel, set up my gear, plugged myself in and got to work.  Five minutes later, I heard an angry "Hey! Excuse me!" from in front of me.  I looked up, and there was a pert blonde lady in her late-twenties, looking down at me with daggers in her eyes. 

"I reserved that table," she said through a deepening frown. "It's mine."

I blinked and removed my headphones.  "Reserved?" I asked, genuinely confused.  "How?"  Could you actually do that?

"I put my jacket on the chair," she said.

I looked behind me and saw nothing.  "I don't see a jacket," I told her truthfully.

"Yeah, it's over there." She answered, and then pointed to a jacket - which was hanging off the chair of an entirely different table.  "See? It's right there." 

"Um," I replied, talking slowly and trying to find the right words. "That's not this table.  That's another table."

"Well, I *meant* it to be this one."  She retorted, as if it was obvious.  "So could you get up?"

I debated for maybe half a second. I looked around at the crowded cafe, where every table (bar the one with her jacket) was taken.
"Sorry," I said.  "If you wanted this table you should have put your jacket on this table."

Her eyes narrowed into slits. "You are SUCH a gentleman," she huffed. Then stormed over to the empty table to collect her jacket.  Just then a guy at another table waved at her and said "Hey, there's an outlet here.  I'm not using it. You can share this table with me, if you want." She looked at him, looked at her stuff, huffed again, and then reluctantly agreed.

Normally the story would end there, but today I went to the same cafe and I saw her again.  Not only that, but she was with the same guy!  They didn't recognize me (why would they?) but for some reason I recognized them.  I couldn't tell if they were a couple or not, but I'd like to think that they were.  That on that fateful day, they shared a table and made a connection.  That he hesitantly asked her out and she agreed, and after a short time love bloomed. 

Maybe they'll get married one day, and decades from now they'll tell their grandchildren about that jerk who enabled them to meet by not giving up his table.

-Dave

The Blackwell Guide to NYC

It is no coincidence that many of the Blackwell locations are places that I visit quite frequently, or places that I enjoy.   

Blackwell Legacy had Washington Square Park, which is a park very close to my apartment.  I pass through there almost every morning while walking the dog:

The dog in the image also looks suspiciously like my own.

Blackwell Unbound had Roosevelt Island.  I used to take walks there quite often, as the tram going over there was close to an improv club I used to go to. The improv club moved, so I don't make it over to Roosevelt Island as much as I used to.

This is my wife Janet, who is not in the game.

 And Blackwell Convergence had this awesome tree in Central Park, by the Gothic Bridge:

A few months ago, my wife and I took a walk on the High Line, an old elevated train track that was recently converted into a park.  It's become one of my favorite places to go, so it was inevitable that it would end up in Blackwell Deception:

 

Maybe I should write a Blackwell Tourist Guide.

-Dave

Café people: Creepy sleeping guy

There were times - especially back before I was married - when my schedule was thrown hideously out of whack. I'd wake up at 3am, full of vim and vigor, strangely itching to work but not wanting to hang around the apartment.  So I'd walk the ten minutes to Union Square and enter a 24 hour Starbucks.  Late at night, it's like a different world.  I'd see drug addicts, drunks, late-night partiers just coming out of the nightclubs or bars, and yes - a homeless guy or two.  The staff would crank up the music to ridiculous levels in order to prevent patrons from falling asleep (which they did, often). 

My schedule is pretty normal these days, but if you ever play Blackwell Legacy or Blackwell Unbound, you can play them knowing that a good chunk was programmed while some frazzled drunk was at the next table, squinting at my screen and wondering what the heck I was doing.

Anyway, I was reminded of those carefree days when I entered one of my usual cafés this morning.  It was a Cosi's, one of several that are scattered downtown.  I went to this one because it is close to home and it was absolutely pouring rain outside.  The staff know me (I go a lot) and it has a wall-length window that gives an awesome view of the street.  The only problem is that there is only one decent electrical outlet.  If the table is free, it's a sweet spot to work.  It's tucked away in the corner and nobody bothers you.  For some reason, this table is usually free in the mornings when I show up.

So this morning I enter the cafe, drenched from the rain, and see that the table is free.  I make my way over, but then notice one small niggle.  The outlet was partially blocked by a chair - one of those big, faux leather things.  Normally not a big deal, as I'd just maneuver my electrical cord around the chair.  The problem was what was IN the chair - an overstuffed, scruffy, middle-aged guy in dirty clothes who was snoring away with his head slumped on his chest.  Next to him was a small coffee - evidentially purchased to justify his staying there - but he wasn't planning on drinking it any time soon.  The staff at the place were looking at him with distain, but were saying and doing nothing about it.  I asked one of the staff ladies, and she said that the "Manager said it was OK, since he bought a drink."  Like it or not, the guy was staying.

So, I had a choice.  One - I could go to the table and start working without plugging in my laptop, hoping the creepy guy would get up and leave before my battery ran dry. Two - I could actually WAKE the guy so I could move his chair and plug my cord in. Or Three - go back out into the torrential rain and go somewhere else. 

I took another look at the guy. He was starting to drool. My mind made up, I chose the third option.  I walked out into the drenching downpour and made my way to another place.  So I began my day significantly wetter, but significantly less creeped out.

What would you have done in this situation?

-Dave

From programmer art to final art

Hey, who remembers this?

One month ago, I showed off this lovely piece of programmer art for Blackwell Deception.  I drew it myself, using such high-tech drawing tools as a white piece of printer paper and a ballpoint pen.  I then scanned it into my computer and incorporated it into the game so I could program the basics of the location.  I made sure to add the words "This is a yacht" for the benefit of anyone unlucky enough to actually try it out. 

Eventually, Pepe (the background artist) took pity and did a preliminary sketch of the room:

It actually looks like a boat now!  Kinda.  You can faintly see Chelsea Piers in the background, which is where the boat is docked before setting off.   I greedily incorporated this sketch into the game so I wouldn't have to look at my own artwork.  Eventually, after several bouts of going back back and forth with the coloring, the final product emerged:

Overall, I am very happy with this.  It's the very first scene in the game, so I wanted to make a good impression.  There are clouds that drift by and a water reflection that shifts around.  When the boat starts moving there's a nice image of the George Washington Bridge that scrolls in the background.  Simple effects, but they do the job nicely.

Like with Convergence, I plan on releasing a free stand-alone demo to show off the game.  You should see this background (along with a few others) incorporated in that demo a month or two before release.

-Dave