[WSS] Dropping out of Ludum Dare

I've decided to drop out of the Ludum Dare for a few reasons.  

• First is:  I don't like the theme too much.  This wouldn't be a huge issue if I could get behind what I was working on and put out something fun.
• Second:  I couldn't put my heart into my project.  About 4-5 hours into development I found that I just really didn't like my project.  I don't know, I just realized that I hated the game I was making and when I realized that, I knew I couldn't work on it any longer.  It's not the idea, it's an idea I've had for a while but I just didn't enjoy the project at all.
• Third:  I wasn't going to turn out a decent project.  I was trying to make something completely beyond my abilities and realized that.  
• Fourth:  I was getting stressed and eating tons of junk food and energy drinks.  This is more just my fault for not taking care of myself but I was so focused on "Ludum Dare yeah!" that I didn't take care of myself properly this weekend.  (And the wife was out of town).

The Idea:

The game was going to be called Tzarr and was based off of a board game idea I've had for a while.  Basically it's kind of like a turn based strategy chess, where you have various units (soldier, lancer, archer, etc) and then you have your 'Tzarr' or king.  Units within 1 space of the Tzarr have bonus abilities so it's balanced around keeping your king safe but keeping him close enough to empower your units.

I like the idea, but I think it's best left to staying a board game idea.

What I learned:

Dropping out of the LD was a tough decision.  I don't like quitting things, but I was doing to the Ludum Dare to have fun and turn out a fun game, and neither were happening.

I fully intend to join up in the LD competition again, but I should probably plan it better and not just hop in when I'm already quite invested in pushing out another title.

So a few things I can take away from this as a learning experience:

1. I need to focus on my current game.  I'm releasing SBX:Invasion in a few weeks and that needs to stay my focus and what I put my energy into.
2. Scope.  Will I make something similar to Tzarr in the future?  Probably, I really like Strategy games, but I'll do it if I have the resources and time to.  I was trying to do something new with the Ludum Dare and that wasn't the best idea.  I didn't have the time or energy to figure out all the new things I needed and it was stressful.
3. Planning.  I need to plan out what my options are for game types and practice making smaller versions so I know exactly what I need to do when the game starts.  Having set of game types to choose from will make coming up with an idea easier and make starting the game less stressful overall.  
4. Eat properly.  I was kinda  just binge-ing on junk food and didn't think too much about what I was eating (I normally eat pretty healthy too) so my body just kinda crashed and burned as well.

I enjoy game Jams but this one just didn't click with me.  I'm certainly looking forward to seeing what people make for LD though and kudos to all those that finished a game!

For now my focus will stay on shipping SBX:Invasion.  That's what I need to do for now, and when the time comes when I can put my focus into the Ludum Dare, I'll do it.

Cheers,

WakeskaterX

[SBX:I] Late Week 7 blog + New Ship Graphic

SBX:Invasion:

 Little late on my weekly blog post for last week but a bunch of new stuff has been done.

  First I put out a press release on Saturday but it didn't go TOO great.  Some things I probably should have done differently:

• Not doing it on Saturday when a bunch of the people I sent it to aren't working
• Make a better polished video, it was my first time making a promo video and it wasn't the most polished so it probably didn't grab people's attention enough.
• Better explain some of the features of the game in the press release.

That said, I don't know if I'll get a better response over the next week, I'm hoping to get reviewed by at least a medium site, so that I can start to get known.

It's the beginning of a long journey to getting recognized as an up and coming indie dev.  

Anyway, I'm not discouraged, just pondering how it could have gone better.  I've read a lot about marketing but experience is the best teacher.

So about the game:  I've been working on the Custom Map Editor.  I've got the map creation finished.  And I've got the loading capability and editing capability added, all that's left is to actually make the maps from the map file and create the waves.  This will be the difficult part.  I have the data all there exactly how I want it but now I need to put it all into action and tune the wave creation process (that's the actual hard part).

Also, I just made a new player ship graphic.  The old one just didn't look ALL that great.  I'll probably be streamlining my graphics and updating some of the older stuff until the game is released.  I'm trying to rework graphics to keep them similar thematically (such as buttons, etc).  Or at least have thematic groups (to avoid monotony in graphics).

The new Ghost Mode looks a lot better than the old one and it fits a bit better with the enemy graphics.  The old ship model was too pastel compared to everything else.  I may rework some of the enemy graphics and turret graphics as well but they're less of a concern than the player ship.

The reason you have ghost mode (secret lore tidbit) is because you have Fuscian Powered tech on your ship.  There won't be any story secrets within THIS game, but part of the Fuscian back story (if you play SBX [Space Blaster X]) is that Fuscian energy was discovered and humans attempted to harness it's immense power by fusing it with various alien lifeforms.  But it got out of hand and Fuscian Parasites started taking over machines and other lifeforms.  Yadda yadda, you have to go save the galaxy, that's the first game.  SBX:Invasion is kind of a side story separate from the lore.

But anyway, that's why you have the Fuscian Tech on your ship.

This week I'll be trying to finish up the Map Creation from the save file and getting the game into it's final state where I just need to polish it up.  (Bug fixes galore, though I don't have any on my list atm, but I'm sure they're out there hiding.)

Also, I'll be going to the Boston Post Mortem Summer BBQ on Wednesday and I'll be taking part in LD48 # 27  (Ludum Dare Comp 27)  I'll be streaming my entire FIRST Ludum Dare Comp at twitch.tv/wakeskaterx

Also follow me at my new twitter:  @WakeStudio

I'll try to post sooner this week,

Cheers,

Jason Carter

aka WakeskaterX

[WSS] Ludum Dare Coming up and Press Release

SBX:Invasion

  Well I'm gearing up to do a press release soon for SBX:Invasion.  I've got a list of a bunch of reviewers and writers for various websites and what not and I'll be pushing out info on SBX:Invasion to all of them probably  this weekend!


Also I'm going to be taking part in the Ludum Dare this year and I'm super excited!  It will be my first Ludum Dare and I'll be streaming the entire process.

I'll also be streaming for a few hours on certain days to start building up a stream audience and let people see what I do on the game.

You can check out the Ludum Dare here:

http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/

Cheers!

-Jason Carter-

WakeskaterX