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PAX East 2014 Reflections

Hard to recap my experience with PAX East since most of my time during the show I was running from appoint to appointment talking to game developers about their games and playing the games. So instead of going into my experience with the night life of Boston I will just post snippets from those previews:

Night In The Woods:

“Night in the Woods is a departure from the Metroidvania that is Aquaria and focuses on a story not told often in video games. The demo started with Mae, a college drop out with an anger filled past, waking up in the late afternoon with the objective of lighting herself on fire to haunt people. Mae is upset that she missed “donut time” with her parents and decides to find her best friend Gregg. Outside of the central search goal Night in the Woods gives the player space to become the character of Mae. To further this freedom, the writing and art style create an inviting atmosphere.”

Hyper Light Drifter:

“Hyper Light Drifter transported me from the busy party to a beautiful but mysterious world where I got to play as Drifter. Heart Machine kept the reasons for why Drifter was scaling this mountain side a secret which is great. Even in a short demo, Hyper Light Drifter was able to express more with the environment than most games can accomplish over several hours. I already got the feeling that Drifter is heading into the belly of the beast as environments get more dangerous with swarming mobs of enemies.”

Mew-Genics:

“Team Meat describes the game as part Pokemon, part Sims, part Animal Crossing and a “dash” ofTamagotchi, and again they are not wrong. Only two shops were open in the demo and the game floods you with enough money to buy plenty of food for the cats. None of the forthcoming customization options were present, because the focus of the demo was on the Pokemon-esque back alley fights.”

Valiant Hearts: The Great War:

“Valiant Hearts: The Great War’s most notable aspect is the fantastic art direction. Every screen is high quality and in motion; the art style looks like a fully animated film. Since dialogue in the stories is non-existent the art style and the world has to tell the harsh story of trying to survive in the trenches. At first the style can be labeled as “cartoon-ish” but as soon as artillery hits your base the serious nature of the world sets in.”

Since the smaller games tend to intrigue more than the big flashy games such as Evolve that drew large lines during the show I got to experience a wide variety of games. These are only four of the games I previewed but they were easily my favorites out of the menagerie of over 100 games just at the Indie Mega Booth alone. Each event has its own feel, this show is opposite tone than GDC which I attended during this semester as well. This show focuses on the people who play and enjoy games while GDC is for developers to continue conversing about new and exciting elements in game or to find a job. 

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The Art of Titanfall Reflections

I find it very interesting that I could probably write and know more about any of the indie games I wrote about before than Titanfall. The largest release of the year so far is something I played only twice and I am probably not the only game enthusiast that has fallen off of the FPS map. There is one thing that I enjoy about Titanfall after reading this book, is the design behind some of the elements. Even though there are a lot of actual game assets in the book there are points when the concept artists shows off the conceptual pieces behind the game. 

A large part of the game are the maps since there is no straightforward single player mode that explains the situation. The story is the conceit to shooting another player with a gun but a lot of story is told through the areas. One of the more apparent maps in the “Fracture” map on page 104 and I would say that is because of the lighting and organic material. This is a game where staging matters in the concept art because designers have to be able to design around buildings so players can maneuver around them and that is told through the battle image in this section. Players surround the two mechs fighting in the street at different angles and that gives the game a theatrical tone for me at least. 

Another interesting section is the creatures section which could easily be missed in both the game and the artbook since the length of the section is from page 34 to 35. However, I wish the game would focus on these interestingly designed creatures because they could have added an element people seem to be missing from the main game, a sense of purpose. The flying creature on page 35 is very interesting in both concept and design. The multi-winged creature offers a somewhat prehistoric take on alien life and there are not a lot of from above elements to the game besides the titan drop. 

This artbook did not convince me to play any more of Titanfall but seeing how this huge franchise got started at least with art is valuable knowledge to have going forward. 

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Awakening: The Art of Halo 4 Reflections

Awakening: The Art of Halo 4 Reflections

While the number after is a four this is hardly the fourth Halo experience, in fact this is the same old experience but only as a swan song for the Xbox 360. I remember going out to the midnight launch of Halo 3 and the cardboard display that I won still sits in my old home. One of the reasons I used to enjoy the series a lot is because of the unique design of the world so getting a chance to look through an artbook was a treat. Both the Bungie and the 343 Studio teams put in a lot of effort into the world surrounding the Halo series, from books to graphic novels and more coming soon the effort paid off. Each location in the environment section of the book is amazing in both how much detail is in each building but the over all style to some of the sections is great. Particularly the concept art that involves organic locations or rock formations because that is material that never get boring but on page 64 there is the meeting of the two minds, both organic and technology. The book quotes the artist John Liberto and he says, “I tried to think of how clouds would react when enclosed between two surfaces. Maybe there is no wind, forming cloud shapes into a very nebula-like state, slowly drifting downwards and separating from themselves as time went by,” (pp. 64).

The character design seems to take precedent in the book and most of these characters have been in several games so not much can be said about them. However, my major draw to actually play Halo 4 comes from the addition of a new enemy, the Prometheans. Later on in the game they are revealed to be a entity that has existed in the series before but the books tracks the creation of the “knight” class from beginning to what they finally model. The impressive part is the ability to design around a human to create a robot suit that does not appear as a typical robot suit. The final design is not very inspired but the prototype versions on page 147 are full of crazy ideas especially the bottom left idea. I can see how it would not work in a game on old consoles but hopefully with the next systems like Xbox One they can go more in this inspired direction. 

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20 or so Essential Indie Games Not Included in the MoMA ‘Indie Essentials’ Exhibit

For this list of the “20 or so Essential Indie Games Not Included in the MoMA ‘Indie Essentials’ Exhibit” I will list the games and then provide references to why they are on the list. This is because the last last went a little long. Here we go:

Amnesia: The Dark Decent (2010)

Antichamber (2013)

Audiosurf (2008)

Bastion (2011)

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons (2013)

The Binding of Isaac (2011)

BIT.TRIP Series (2009)

Broken Age (2014)

Cart Life (2011)

Castle Crashers (2008)

Divekick (2013)

Dust: An Elysian Tail (2012)

FEZ (2012)

FTL: Faster Than Light (2012)

Hotline Miami (2012)

LIMBO (2010)

Luftrausers (2014)

Monday Night Combat (2010)

Octodad: Dadliest Catch (2014)

Papers, Please (2013)

Proteus (2013)

Rouge Legacy (2013)

Samurai Gunn (2014)

‘Splosion Man (2009)

The Stanley Parable (2013)

Thomas Was Alone (2012)

There are a lot more game that could be part of this list and I didn’t expect myself to enjoy making a list like this. Some of the games on this list already have reviews that I wrote so I won’t talk about why they are on the list. Variety is a large part to these essential lists that is why the exhibit had game like Diner Dash but I found there are easier way to tell different stories by using games that were actually a large part of discussion for the gaming community. 

The 2014 releases are more signifiers of movements or studios than being essential; Vlambeer is the studio behind Luftrausers which is a very transparent and often looked upon as the prime example of what an “indie dev” should be and Samurai Gunn represents the new Chicago movement in development culture. Other games on the list started movements (Audiosurf and Limbo) that influenced developers to experiment or give them confidence in taking a risk. Several games are stories of their own because of the developers behind the games being prolific enough to gain journalist interviews, Antichamber, or award recognition, Papers, Please. 

Each game on the list tells a story, not just a basic narrative, even though some games do (Bastion and Thomas Was Alone), but a long journey that gamers and people interested in games will hear over and over again. With this list of games anybody could have a discussion with someone who has been in games for twenty years or maybe their whole life, while teaching them about their blind spots (the BIT.TRIP series seems to fall between the cracks). The list can open the minds to people who may not be interested in games because they don’t see the possibilities that Brothers or Proteus introduce to the game design conversation. To be honest any list with Castle Crashers is no “essential list” because that game is rad and first brought up the thought of the “downloadable” game. 

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Indie 25 Essentials: MoMA Exhibit

So basically I have been into games long enough that I have been around when each one of these essential games came out. Essentially I can write a post for each game so I will just put that all into one post! This could be fun, maybe.

Alien Hominid (2002): Even one of the oldest entries in the essentials list is a game I have a history with ever since the release on Newgrounds. The same time I was getting into internet videos (keep in mind this is before Youtube) such as Egoraptor. This game fit right into my mindset as a kid where I sought out very difficult games (Megaman the prime example) but I never thought this game would be as important to the history of games. When it was released on the Nintendo Gamecube I knew it was a big event but when it came out on Xbox I knew these small games would become a force in the industry. The other example is...

Braid (2008): This is around the time I became part of different internet communities and knew that this was a highly rated game and got it as soon as it was out. For my age and mindset it was perfect, fun puzzles and the ending really effected me. I wanted to know every secret in this game pretty much in spite of the community around the game. I saw how it polarized people and then I started to look to find out what would make me angry. Speaking of angry...

Canabalt (2009): For the record, I don’t like cell phone games. I always like a full experience but every so often a mobile game actually hooks me in and I find time during school to play starting with Canabalt. An example of a game I play a lot but everyone else is playing Pocket Tanks on their phone but the simplicity in both the style and design of Canabalt is spectacular. There is no single player story but I felt like there was a story to this game because of the background. The next game is way more story driven...

Dear Esther (2007): First example of a game on the list that I am not the largest fan of but I recognize the reason it is part of the exhibit. I would recommend a different game/game company that is able to tackle serious material in a different fashion but the problem of Dear Esther is that it is too gamey. The subject matter is a new step forward for indie games but the way it is tackled is informed by games of the past and not trying something new in that department. Another game I don’t enjoy but realize the importance of is...

Diner Dash (2004): There are many restaurant based video games that date all the way back to the NES. I can’t really say much more about this game, very successful but not influential. Moving on to...

Everyday Shooter (2007): One of the last big entries in the “twin stick shooter” genre that came back with a force with Geometry Wars but focusing more on a subtle and laid back approach. As well as one of the first examples of me being really excited waiting for an indie game. That is probably why the game is included on the list as a prime example of people getting excited for a game made by one person. Another large example of the hype machine and indie games...

Flower (2009): Again another game that got me really excited to buy it day one of release basically because I knew it would be different. Not as acclaimed as the studios next game, Journey, but the first example of journalists and players asking the question, “what is a game?” I found myself asking that same question but the emotional experience Flower took me on in the one seating I beat the game colored my position of the game. That question before ignores what makes video games an interesting medium; the constant shift and the dialogue that inspires people to make new experiences. Such as...

Gone Home (2013): I was not part of the zeitgeist of Gone Home even though at this point I am in the industry I knew the experience would not speak to me. However, because of all of the writing and video game media I consume I couldn’t turn without hearing about this game. I finally buckled down to finish the game quickly and I came out of the experience expecting more. An example of when this industry actually colors the experience of one game that tries something new even if that new is not in my direction. Unlike the next game...

Kentucky Route Zero: Acts I & II (2013): Reasons to invent time travel, 1) Stop the dinosaurs from becoming extinct 2) Place bets on large sport events and 3) To go into the future to play through all of Kentucky Route Zero. This game is so hard to sum up and explain why it is great because it is a unique and powerful experience with only two fifths of the content there. Unlike the Walking Dead games where choice is so glaringly obvious it becomes mute, the subtle choices in this game are quite yet powerful. The writing reminds me of John Steinbeck but the player decides what they take away from the game and that makes it magical. Now for something completely different...

Killer Queen Arcade (2012): The No Quarter event Charles Pratt, the NYU Game Center, hosts every once in a while brings together famous developers to create exhibition multiplayer games. The highlight from last year was the first time Killer Queen’s arcade cabinet was playable and it is hard to describe besides simply saying it is a lot of fun. Instantly a group of four people become a team working on several “spinning plates” that could lead to the other teams victory at any moment. A revival of local multiplayer games but more on that a little later...

Machinarium (2009): Amanita Design, the team behind this game, got me into the adventure game genre because I realized what made them special. The simple yet elegant worlds to this worlds make each puzzle not a chore but a nice challenge. Machinarium soundtrack I still listen to this day because the world is told in every piece of the game, and the world is unique and not seen often even in video games. There is no dialogue or major display elements and that is half true for the next game...

Minecraft (2011): The journey of my experience with this game is long because development has been long. I knew it as the weird internet thing that people would make recreations of the Death Star or other pop culture icons. But through podcasts I learned more about the emergent stories that would come from gameplay sections. I am not a fan of this new resource survival based games but I enjoy watching or hearing stories from these games because they are unique. There maybe too much of this mentality where games are being developed to cater towards these “audiences” but that is what makes Minecraft essential. Now for an actual game...

N (2004): Another game that has several sequels at this point (N++ coming out this year) because the core concept is simple but executed on a great level. The age of the game makes it an essential entry because it started the whole perfect platforming craze that lead to games such as VVVVVV and Super Meat Boy. The game did not hit my attention until the first sequel for the DS because the game is perfect for portable formats. For something that is less time consuming...

Passage (2007): Another example where I did not experience this game when it first came out but that wouldn’t have been appropriate. I was a teenager when I first heard the game and would not understand the emotional journey the game takes the player on. A short but emotional story and at the time I was only concerned with shooting another guy on the internet. That is why classes such as Games 101 need to become more prevalent for future game designers. Someone else who has influenced games in her own way...

The Path (2009): All I can do for this section is link to Auriea Harvey’s talk during Indiecade East. She explains the real reason behind why this game is part of the list...

Porpentine’s Twine Compilation (2012-2013): I am familiar with Twine because it is an easy to pick up visual way to make a simple game. Not a lot of good comes from it but this collection is known for being one of the best things to come out of this movement. The great part of Twine is because it lead people to make engines such as Unity that is the new hotness for non-programming designers. Which is the opposite of the game...

Quadrilateral Cowboy (2014): Even though this game isn’t out I still have a history with it mainly from the developer behind the game, Brendon Chung. He is gaining traction in the indie scene specifically for his style adding movie elements to his game design such as jump cuts and flashbacks from his game Thirty Flights of Loving. A game that knows itself as a game...

Spelunky (2009): To start the rouge-like craze is definitely a great reason to be on the essential games list. The cartoon style hooks people in and the style addicts people to get the best score or each to the proper ending. I watched a series where someone who never played, played the game for a month for an hour a day. Over time he got way better and that is the draw for these games, the ability to get better at one obstacle course-eque game. 

I omitted some games due to the length but they are still essential. I was going to do a 25 list of games not part of the essential games list but that will come in with a different format. 

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[SideQuesting] Broken Age Act 1 Review

Broken Age’s opening act delivers on promise while promising more. 

Ever since the start of Tim Schafer’s experiment, the Double Fine Adventure, a cloud of doubt surrounded the studio, starting with the notion that kicked off the Kickstarter campaign, “Adventures games are not dead!” -- as well as a negative sentiment heard on message boards. Act 1 of Broken Age answers this sentiment, providing a beautiful introduction to this world full of charm, wit and mystery that anyone who has ever experienced a point-and-click adventure game will immediately remember upon entry.

Broken Age’s two part delivery only seems fitting to tell the stories of two characters who exist in separate worlds. Shay and Vella wake up at the beginning of the game ready for action only to discover the ramifications of their actions throughout the game. 

The protagonists exist in two different scenarios that are complete opposites from each other. Shay lives on a spaceship that takes control of his every need, much like Sam Bell in the movie Moon. Except Shay does not have any agency on this ship. The AI overseers of the ship are “Mom” and “Dad” and they repeat the same routine day in and day out. 

Vella is not alone, though she might as well be. The village and her family are celebrating the fact that she will be a “guest of honor” for a feast. And by “guest of honor” they really mean to sacrifice her to the giant monster “Mog Chothra.” Vella pleas to her family to fight the monster but the only person who will listen to her is her old grandfather.  Act 1 begins when both Shay and Vella decide to take agency and abandon their lives and family.  

Broken Age’s biggest success is being able to bring all of the themes present in both Vella’s fairytale and Shay’s space epic into one resolutely beautiful package. It's partially due to the          presence of former Psychonauts alumni, including character designer Scott Campbell and composer Peter McConnell who delivers some amazing, memorable pieces that really add to the soundscape. Of course that's not to undermine the contributions of the rest of the development team, for many of whom Broken Age is a dream project: a return to producing an engaging narrative in a genre they love, for gamers that want to experience it.

The ability to switch from Vella’s and Shay’s stories provide those links as an option. The mechanic is never pushed in your face nor are you required to swap at any specific point, and to me that is the best possible option for the feature. 

The first act of Broken Age fulfills the original Kickstarter goal: to make a classic point-and-click adventure game where you click on things and combine said things together. Again, Double Fine does not complicate the formula and even reduces some of the outmoded clutter of old adventure games such as hint systems and verb based mechanics. 

The first act of Broken Age is full of humorous characters, a delightfully crafted world and ends on a touching, beautiful note. There's no room for doubt anymore, Double Fine have returned to their roots and brought us a point-and-click adventure for the modern age. It's only a shame it's been broken in half, forcing us to wait just a little bit longer for the conclusion.

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[SideQuesting] Octodad Review

Octodad Dadliest Catch is the dumbest game that you will play all year that will leave you feeling smarter for playing. 

After looking at any piece of content for this game you may know the surface level of details. Octodad is a lovely husband and father of two children but he is also an octopus who can breath on land. In this cartoon world no one else recognizes that Octodad is really an octopus, not even his family.

That is what makes Young Horses game so endearing. Yes, there are faults but why choose to harp those when the game believes in itself to the fullest extent. Playing is believing so sit back and enjoy your day as an Octodad. 

Dadliest Catch is the continuation from Young Horses IGF submitted experiment, simply titled Octodad, back in 2010 but now we finally get to live a day in his shoes (suckers?). The dad “simulator” in a way; mow the lawn, cook some burgers, make coffee and go to the aquarium. But nothing is simple in the outlandish world of Octodad mainly because of the control system. Meaningful play is a teaching term used to evaluate player action and system outcome to the larger context of the game and whether or not it fits within the designer’s world. There is a purpose behind the obtuse nature of the controls, the unpredictability is part of the game in both the story and the game mechanics.

If you have a Dualshock 4 controller around this is the perfect time to use it because not only does Octodad Dadliest Catch recognize the controller immediately its the closets I ever got to mastering the controls. To move like a “normal” person the corresponding right and left triggers let you lift Octodad’s tentacles and releasing will drop said tentacles. When stationary you can control Octodad’s arm with the analog sticks graphically (remember the x-y-z-graph from school?). The controls are not meant to be described, they are meant to be played which is not something you can say about every game released. Up until the end of the end I was still figuring out new ways for me with my own game style to figure out the controls.  

In a way Octodad reminds me of myself. No, not the uncoordinated part but the attempt at being normal that we all strive for in our day to day lives. The “dad” of Octodad tries every task thrown his way, whether it is the only soda bottle left in the store or trying to win prizes for your concerned wife. He isn’t perfect nor should he be expected to be perfect. 

At times Young Horse replicates the natural excitement of discovering this bright and luscious world by focusing on the “perfect.” Switching from the sandbox to the jungle gym (not the literal jungle gym in the game) is a jarring switch but necessary. The only complaint I have for these sections is the binary nature. Young Horse does an excellent job of easing the playing into the strange world of Octodad but not the world of the “octo.” 

Octodad Dadliest Catch is the reflection of video games. Octodad is a reflection of the player. By playing you realize a gap in knowledge. Whether that gap is the controls, situation, objective or even how to be normal; ultimately all you are is an octopus, in a suit, trying his best to be a great dad. 

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The Art of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag

For the past Assassin’s Creed games it was mainly centered around gothic architecture and stone. The last game, Assassin’s Creed III, set in America during the Revolutionary War was the first entry for the series to steer away from the strictly building based environments with large areas in between towns. The game did a good job recreating the gothic architecture from the colonial era of America but with the Black Flag the Ubisoft team finally went south, to the Caribbean. Outside of taking away the pretext of the story and gameplay where the area seems like a giant playroom for a player, the game takes in a lot of thought behind the actual area and history surrounding the time period. Not only that but their future world where the animus, the Matrix-esque element to the whole series, company is set is also takes the world from the other games but in a perspective we have never seen before. The change from third to first person for these sequences informs a lot of the decisions the team made to detail these sections. I will spend half of this paper in the animus world of the Caribbean and the other on these interesting sections.

Black Flag finally opens up the world to the player and it is not a surprise when in the artbook the section about the three major 18th century Caribbean cities, “A Tale of Three Cities,” because these cities must have enough character to rival the openness of the game. Havana, Kingston and Nassau each have their own specific flavor with Havana have the most intricate design. The book states, “Ubisoft’s artists set out to capture the vibrancy and variation of narrow streets linking baroque and neoclassical landmarks,” (pp. 50) and with the added power of new systems they were able to recreate the concept art fully. The artists state they wanted to create a mood of exploration with their pieces adding a lot of layers to each piece or moods for the designers to gain inspiration. However, my favorite piece from this section comes from the Nassau section with the pirate camp on page 74. Martin Deschbault said he, “like[d] the contrast of the old fort and the canopies at the bottom,” conveying a sense of danger just from the oil painting. 

One of the major carry overs from the previous entry in the series is the ship combat sequences which gain a larger focus in this game. Since a player will be spending a lot of time of the main ship, Jackdaw, the ship had to be a character itself. In the artbook they describe some of the inspirations behind the design and one artist said that classic cars were a large influence. Each ship also needed the same level of time and dedication to design or else the ship combat would not be satisfying. I really enjoyed this section of the book since I didn’t realize from just playing the game how much effort was put into the moods of each ship.

I want to spend some time on the first section titled “Abstergo” because it is the first time the series has done the out of main world sections like this before. They carry over the tropical color scheme from the Caribbean to this section while replicating what the Ubisoft team imagines the future of a video game studio. Starting with an idea for the outside of the building the team handed off the concept to a different team in Ubisoft but with the core idea being, “we wanted to create a strong contrast with the past, so high-tech and modernity are pillars in the design of Abstergo,” (pp. 10). Again some of the pieces in the artbook don’t make the final game since it was handled by a different team which would be one of my complaints with the book. But the actual design of the work stations is scary how believable they are because I can imagine them being used in Ubisoft any day. 

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[IGM] Escape Goat 2: Review

Escape Goat 2 is a nightmare. A beautiful, mind bending and fulfilling nightmare.

Magical Bean Time took everything from Escape Goat, originally released on the Xbox 360 in 2011, and improved upon it all. The most obvious changes are the great new art style and the large amount of new puzzles. But those are not the only reasons that make this sequel so astounding. Underneath the great new art style lies an ensnaring puzzle platformer that is one of the best of the genre and definitely one of the best games staring a goat.

Escape Goat 2 starts with one goat’s simple goal to save his animal friends from a place they once called sanctuary. While the goat and his mouse friend try to figure out the mystery of the tower, they encounter all kinds of things that want to kill them at every turn. At the end of each section a cryptic message reveals more about the fates and desires of the fallen animals. Escape Goat 2 does a great job of never revealing its full hand. Each tease leads you to pursue more information to help you decipher this booby trap of a world.

All of that wouldn’t be possible if the mechanics behind the platformer weren’t tight and precise. The duo, a goat and a mouse, has to figure their way through mind bending 2D puzzle levels, each one more challenging than the last. Magical Bean Time is able to produce quite a challenge from simple mechanics such as running, jumping, and headbutting, but a lot of the genius of the puzzles come from the mouse character. Mouse character’s abilities include multi-mouse, a swap mechanic and several others that make him as important as the main goat character. Although there is only a small variety of fairly simple abilities, a lot of options emerge as the compounding levels offer increasingly complex puzzles, but every at every stage there is really only a single workable solution that you must discover through trial and error. 

Escape Goat 2 is a very cruel game. One hit from the hooded enemies will result in death and death is a forgone conclusion. Death even becomes a major factor of succeeding in the game because in death sometimes the secrets of a level are revealed. One hit will result in death, so memorizing the flow of a level is key in order to escape without a scratch. The constant terror of death results in a lot of white-knuckle clenching moments in Escape Goat 2 but they allow for the great satisfaction of finally succeeding after a series of failures. You might be tempted to bash your goat horns against a problem repeatedly, but you will get nowhere in Escape Goat 2 without trying new solutions. Sometimes leaving the game for a couple minutes and then returning to the level with a fresh mindset results in success.

Magical Bean Time creates a world full of secrets but also offers the choice of circumventing the pursuit of the goat’s friends in order to simply finish the essential puzzles. The information learned from conquering the levels is crucial in achieving the end game with a slightly easier time. Slightly being the key word as a lot of the end game levels supply a substantial challenge even to veterans of the genre. 

The major upgrade from Escape Goat to Escape Goat 2 is the aesthetics. Everything from the music, art style and writing hit the mark with flying colors. Ian Stocker provides a soundtrack perfect for a puzzle platformer where the songs never get tiring and fit the themes of each unique world. A great combination of art design and music composition escalate the atmosphere surrounding the platforming mechanics. 

When I was done with Escape Goat 2 I didn’t want to leave. Magical Bean Time proves that sequels are oftentimes better than the originals because of the experience gained from making the original combined with a more focused approach to the core game design. Escape Goat 2 hooked me in early and never let me go because it is a mysterious game. There are not a lot of games that star a less likely duo than a goat and a mouse but that makes the game so endearing to both the eye and the touch. 

Escape Goat 2 came out on Mach 24th, 2014 for $9.99 for PC, Mac and Linux. Double Fine produced the game and is available for purchase through the Steam store, Humble Bundle, GoG.com or through the Escape Goat 2 website.

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In The Wake of Flappy Bird

If there is one theme that I took away from the second Indiecade East this year that would be that Flappy Bird has changed the conversation. On the second day of the weekend long event there was a special event titled “Flappy Bird Wake” and like a normal wake people from the audience could come up to speak about the passing. Articles have been popping all over the internet looking at this story from all angles but seeing people take the stage put something in perspective for me; the relationship between player, creator and the creation.

Rami Ismail said day one that “there is no right way,” to make a game. On day two Auriea Harvey from Tell of Tales simply asked several questions about the current state of the medium. Bennett Foddy ended the keynote series Sunday night with the history lesson with the idea that “indies” have been around since the start of video games. 

But this simple fact sheet is not the draw of Indicade East; it is seeing developers engage each other and inspire others. To me there are several things I saw during the event that gave me hope. Not just for the future of game making but for the future of game culture. Here I was in the Museum of Modern Art where they have a video game exhibit upstairs highlighting independent developers and an entire first floor full of people who someday could be in that exhibit. 

The event felt very New York. The game scene here in New York is very slow to get up on its own feet so the room is open for the scene to find a voice. Unlike San Francisco and LA there are no major video game developers in the city so people who develop game in  New York are open to experimentation.  Even students currently still in undergraduate programs brought their games to show people at the event and these budding game designers share a room Rami and Sony and Frank Lantz from the NYU Game Center and real conversations occur. 

People kept on approaching me to ask if I made games or if I could show them a game. Honestly at times I felt uncomfortable by this question which in hindsight doesn’t make sense. The designers at the event were very active and excited so hope replaced the uncomfortable.

People are excited to make whatever experiment they want to make. “How do you make a game that is not a game?” While showing off a clip of The Path Auriea Harvey brought up the idea of “imperfection.” Many games in today’s market feed off the idea of this “imperfect” element and you don’t have to look for long; the recently deceased Flappy Bird is a great example. It isn’t some higher level of art that none of us seem to not understand and it isn’t another box that we tend to place games. 

What these imperfect games spawn is play. Thus there needs to be a place or environment that fosters play in all forms. Babycastles is a familiar icon here in New York City and they play an important role providing exhibition spaces for game developers. The developers of Hotline Miami and Nidhogg are notable alumni. They may not be “cool” or at least admit it but they are passionate about giving both player and game maker a place to create and play. Killer Queen is an exciting success story of a game that creates a physical space that fosters these play elements and it won’t be the last. 

Writing one narrative for all of Indiecade East is a ridiculous notion because as Bennet Foddy said in the last keynote of the weekend: “There's a huge diversity in "Indie", not as voices, but methods of production and style,” and later, “The loaded term was misused to begin with, as it was in film/music.” So raise a glass and pour one out for Flappy Bird is dead and games are alive. 

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coming home is bitter-sweet

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Fifths and Smashing

Branding! After watching Mad Men for years I have always liked the idea of how to turn a good idea into an amazing brand. I won't be as intriguing as Don Draper but I can learn how to make my site into a cool brand. Create a design fingerprint, make the site your own unique thing because there is probably many sites about the same topic. Universal design is something I have always liked with websites and glad to hear that Smashing magazine also agrees. The new concepts part of the chapter is always something I have pushed for and that is why I want the College Cast to be something different from normal podcasts. So when they used Diggnation (one of my favorite podcasts growing up and sad to see it finished) as an example I felt good for the avenue I went down because they popularized the idea of building a community around their podcast something I would hope to do with the College Cast. Since our entire website is surrounded by the idea of friendship the same thing should be represent in the attitude the writers have on the website. So not only would we appear friendly, we are friendly. Just like the beginning of the website I used to help around with, Destructoid, where all of the bloggers were genuinely friendly people. This last content chapter in the Smashing book is really interesting because of how designer look at things that I see all the time with websites. Can't wait to move on to the next Smashing book. 

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Smashing Episode 4: A New Design

As apposed to last chapter about optimization that was able to both confuse me and go completely over my head, this next chapter is back to what I like, a design that sells. They make a clear distinction at the beginning of the chapter, "To sell effectively, you have to sell solutions, not products." This I have heard all the time with design and finally Smashing Magazine is explaining what many designers have told me in the past. Attention is the first crucial step in the AIDA because people going on your website will zoom past your entire site unless something grabs their attention. Make something that packs a lot of punch but also is simple so that the audience going to the site actually care about what you have to say. You have to back up the attention step with both interest and desire in order to vividly describe why a person needs what you have to sell then the final step in this "funnel" is action. The rest of the chapter describes a series of things a designer or a website owner can do in order to get their product out in the open. All of these are more business focused than designed focused (i.e. shipping costs, free trials, etc.) but very inspiring when I think my first true web adventure will be and what field to go in. I have ideas swimming in my head but these tips on how to sell solutions is a great way to check to see if my ideas fit the design conversation.  

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This game is pure madness. There were many times I would just sit on the same screen for minutes laughing to myself while looking at a group of fungus like creatures trip out on drugs. The game is Botanicula (a little hard to pronounce) by Machinarium developers Amanita Design. Botanicula follows the same design style that this company is famous for and is also an adventure game but the developers admit that it isn't a true adventure game. The actual screens in the game are more like photo hunt levels where you click on most of the things in the scene and see the madness then move on. Botanicula has been the best medicine during this final season because all that games does is make me happy with the art design, easy progression and is genuinely funny in a children book way. Recently I went to an interview for a game company that wants to make adventure games and I immediately brought up Botanicula as an example of a great adventure that anyone can play. I can't even describe the craziest parts of this game and this game is still part of the Humble Bundle where you can pay any price for this game and Amanita Design's two previous games. Pick up this game and be prepared to have a fun afternoon or a good stress reliever.   

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Ending inspiration on another videogame art. Great design in this game and after reading an article I may pick this game up.

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Part tutorial work, part web design logo work. Tutorial inspired work. 

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Signus Labs art. Amazing artists over there as well as awesome people.