#a game dev blog?

[zirkkun]

this is partially just to hold myself accountable to doing this by telling people I'm going to but lol

I plan to delete @ut-polyship semi-soon-ish -- but dont worry, I'm gonna back it all up and post its content elsewhere, either on this blog or on a different sideblog in the future, ive yet to decide. I'm just sick of looking at the sideblog I'm never going to use anymore lmao so i figured i'd start it fresh

Still definitely working on stuff for the polyship au even though i rarely post it 😂

[bioware]

We asked the game team what jobs our #DragonAge companions would have if they worked at the studio. Check out where our devs thinks their favorite heroes would fit into the BioWare family!

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Teehee! (Spritesheets your Wangxian)

[brightatmidnight]

Hey Tumblr, do you want to live out your space smuggler fantasies, piloting your very own ship in a galaxy full of adventure? Do you enjoy casts of diverse oddballs and misfits with lots of heart? Do you like Star Wars-esque universes and the writing style of Kid Icarus: Uprising? Do you want to support two queer game developers? Then we have the perfect game for you!

The Chaser's Voyage is a 2D single-player space flight adventure game where you have to pay off your debt to a notorious pirate lord before it's too late. Shake off hostile pursuers while transporting clients to earn money. Pilot your ship while also managing your systems to survive your voyage!

Cool things our game has: • Random Runs! Your clients and encounters are procedurally generated, so no two runs are the same • Fun and lovable characters! Fully voice-acted and with lots of backstory • Cool, creepy, and cute aliens who all have a story for why they need your help • Multiple difficulty modes for gamers of any and all skill levels (Including one-life modes for those seeking a challenge) • Tons of written lore, split up into over 300 entries, complete with crew commentary • 23 unlockable modifiers that drastically change how the game plays • Complete control customization for gamepads and mouse and keyboard • Customizable ship colors • An escalating war between two galactic factions • Asteroid fields, ship graveyards, minefields, and other obstacles await • Face bloodthirsty pirates, ruthless bounty hunters, and more!

Buy the Chaser's Voyage on Steam now!

[carnyx-int]

The wait is over! (Finally) Introducing Carnyx Interactive, a BRAND NEW game development studio made up of queer and neurodiverse game and art industry powerhouses. Founded around the goal of amplifying voices hushed by colonialism, our games emphasize the innate worth in every being. 

As a studio, we are passionate about making the games we want to play, and driven by the lightning-in-a-bottle feeling of experiencing our favourite games for the first time. We’re very intentional about the stories we tell and choose the genres and gameplay that will best support those stories, rather than the other way around. This allows us a flexibility to creatively explore all ideas and the constant ability to grow our skills, game after game. 

The third pillar of Carnyx is mentorship - each of us is coming in with a unique set of experiences and skills, and we strive to create an environment where we both play to our strengths and leave space to mentor and be mentored in return. We grow best when we grow together. 

This ethos drives every part of our business - from the stories we choose to tell, to our approach to research, to the way we treat our coworkers - every person is worth the space and time they occupy. To this end, we strive to create and uphold an environment of compassion, where every voice and idea is considered equitably.  We’re very excited to share our journey with you! Stay tuned for our first two project announcements (one launching this year) and check us out at https://www.carnyxinteractive.com/ and https://carnyxint.itch.io/ for more information and dev blogs.

Also! Join our Discord!

[devsgames]

I'm sorry but for people who cheer on mass game industry layoffs because they think it's some kind of upheaval that is going to "topple the AAA industry" or "teach them a lesson": I hate to break it to you but AAA studios have a metric shitload of money and despite what their press releases say, they really aren't hurting as much as they'd have you think right now. Thousands of jobs lost is a temporary setback to them; if it was actually a last resort move they wouldn't have all simultaneously put themselves in a position where they had to do it in the first place. These studios have been around for decades and will continue to be around, and they will continue to operate just as they have for the last thirty years because they have huge vaults and no morals. They aren't learning a lesson from this because most of them saw it coming but would never admit that.

Know who is being permanently impacted by games layoffs?

It's the indie studio making sick ass games you'll never get to play because they laid everyone off when a publisher tried to save money by pulling all their funding. The hundreds of workers who woke up one morning and found out they suddenly have no job to put food on the table for their children. The international workers who were let go from the job that supplies their visa that helps them stay in the country. The thousands of students who now have to compete over a pool of a dozen job openings, who will work in studios where all the senior staff and leadership who would normally be there to help mentor them into their roles were fired. The disabled workers who now no longer have health or insurance coverage for their survival. The workers who didn't get laid off but survived to see all their friends and coworkers lose their livelihoods for completely arbitrary reasons and whose morale has all but been completely obliterated. The workers in the Global South working for outsourcing companies who were relying on cancelled projects from AAA studios to put food on their tables.

So whenever you're inclined to assume that the suffering of workers is somehow teaching rich people a lesson, remember that no, it doesn't actually and almost never will. All it does is teach thousands of talented workers in the video game industry that games were never - and will never - be worth it.

[omeletcat]

I have had this joke stuck in my head for weeks now and i finally decided to crudely draw it i'm sorry y'all this is the peak of my comedy skills.

[necroticspider]

Hi everyone. I've just created this page. Here are some screenshots from the game i am making in Godot.

Wishlist Dungeons of Blood and Dream on Steam

[dividedskiesrp]

welcome to divided skies we have fun here

apply now and perhaps you too can join in our next Game Night (serious business) !

[kcamberart]

A random assortment of major characters from my current project! Can't show off everyone because spoilers, but you'll see them when you see them.

[obligatory demo link here]

[qwertyprophecy]

Boss vs Player

– The core story design of The Dark Queen of Mortholme –

A game about being the end boss of a game. A hero comes in to challenge you, and even after you mercilessly destroy them, they return. That's because they're the player character, and each time they become stronger as they figure out your mechanics, upgrade their armour, find health potions, etc.

That's what it says in my old design notes, and although the idea's gone a lot further than that, it's still pretty much on point. The game starts with the final boss fight with the slight adjustment that you're playing as the boss. The so-called hero you're facing dies in one hit, unceremoniously. A pathetic attempt against your vastly superior power.

But you've barely made your way back to your throne when they're at the door challenging you again. They might be immortal, but also clearly an idiot. Except this time, they dodge out of the way of your massive weapon. No matter, you crush them on the next swing.

They come back and prickle you with their sad toothpick of a sword. First it was funny, now it's getting annoying.

They keep coming back. It feels too ludicrous to admit, but you're getting a little nervous.

---

It's a story about someone who's been given no room to grow and no ability to learn from mistakes trying to understand someone who has nothing but that. It's the stubborn force of change versus the might of the status quo. The unstoppable force against the immovable object, except the immovable object starts to notice she's crumbling.

If you were a boss facing down your inevitable death after a long dance with your ever-improving opponent, would you begrudge the them for dealing it to you? Would you be proud?

[project-sekai-facts]

Pre-broadcast station commentary

The next Broadcast Station will be on the 29th, featuring Yukki, Yuichan, and Furirin! No VOCALOID Music SEKAI segment was announced, so it looks like the main stream will be starting half an hour earlier than usual. There is a reason for this, which we will get to.

Next month will be the Virtual Singer WLE! It will be held towards the end of the month, with chapters being 2 days long instead of 3 this time around.

There's room for one unit event next month, which is looking very likely to be Airi's 5th event. Due to its proximity to the vsinger WLE, the lineup will be entirely MCs. I reckon Shizuku for one of the other rateups, since she's behind on 4*s, and got spammed with lims last year so deserves some perm cards as a break. I reckon Minori could be the other 4*, since her only rateup on an Airi event was back in 2020.

This month's mixed lim event is likely to be either kamikou fes 2, or emu mixed 2. If it's the first one, I reckon the lineup could be Mizuki/Toya (maybe with An, Ena, or Rui as the other card), and serve as the 2-B mixed event. If it's Emu, Haruka/Nene seems like the most likely rateup. Next month's lim is hard to call, but will likely have a Rui lim unless he ends up on this month's event. If he isn't July or August, he's fes.

Now onto why the stream's starting earlier. I'm sure everyone has heard about the teaser for a new project already, and this is scheduled to be announced at 8pm JST, aka halfway through the stream. Given the heavy use of Miku in the promo, as well as this being retweeted by the official Miku account, it's pretty likely this will be vocaloid/piapro related. CFM has already said they'll be announcing vocaloid 20th anniversary stuff soon. PJDiva also turned 15 recently, and while that series is, let's be honest, dead, a PC/console game in the same vein but under the project sekai franchise wouldn't exactly surprise me? It's still a franchise beloved by many, so a rebrand of sorts wouldn't hurt.

A lot of people on twitter have been bringing up colopale's job listings, but imo it's not pointing to anything. Clpl has been vagueing about working on more mobile games for years, job listings confirm some sort of RPG, and there's some listing that suggest it could have a gacha. kinda like genshin? Based on images from their blog posts and job applications for a costume and armour designer, we're talking medieval-ish which. doesn't seem in-line with this teaser at all. though some of their job listings seem to be for multiple different projects, so i might be talking about two different games here. it's worth noting that colorful palette is not bound to CFM and Sega and they are free to work on their own projects outside of prsk, and very likely already are. feel free to laugh at me later if we do get miku rpg or miscellaneous other game that could be either a platformer or open world or something else entirely.

[akabaka-dev]

Destiny beckons, little one.

Chromatose, coming soon! Wishlist on Steam!

Discord // twitter // website

Chromatose (Demo Available) // Sucker for Love: First Date (out now) // Sucker for Love: Date to Die For (out now) // Dark Were The Clouds (free on itchio!)

Hi! We're Akabaka, a small solo indie dev studio that focuses on stylish-as-fuck, narrative-first games, with a love for blending horror, comedy, and drama.

Ask us anything! Love to talk about the games, the technical or business side of game dev, fan creations, progress updates, horror, comedy, or whatever else.

Studio Team:

Akabaka- lead dev, creator, artist, programmer, sound designer, everything creative and technical, etc etc

AkaTsuma - producer, business manager, creative assistant, does the taxes, manager of this blog

We are a husband and wife team with 1 very happy dog and 2 grumpy middle-aged cats.

Have fun playing!!!

[yellow-yarrow]

I listened to the podcast that was linked here. quick summary cause i want to talk about it

as a fan of Elysium and NGE it was fun to hear Robert Kurvitz say that NGE is is first recommendation when asked what inspired disco elysium and what could give a similar experience to the viewer

he likes its reckless take on christianity, and its take on human souls

and how "colossal" it is

he imagines the world revolution to be like the Third impact in the End of evangelion ("forming a unified red ocean")

NGE and EoE inspired the apocalyptic pale side of the story and the larger setting

maybe this will help us understand the world of Elysium a tiny bit more? so that means the pale apocalypse isn't only referencing the bible but nge too. and the "reckless take on Christianity" is present with the St Miro apocalypse & the Perikarnassian churches. The comment about the world revolution makes me think of Nilsen saying "it was a loss of self [..] It ran through the world like happiness intoxication". I think the "God is in heaven and all is right in the world" is probably referencing nge too and not the original source of the quote

[griem]

ijbol idk man releasing screenshots of very polarizing things said in a private discord server between friends in a public "callout" post is #the most #tumblrific thing ive ever seen LOL.

#opinion 😱 in tags

[devsgames]

HOT GAMEDEVS DON'T GATEKEEP

Inspired by this post by @midwinterhunt, here's a compilation of all the game dev resources I have come across, most of which I use fairly frequently. Most of these are free, some are paid but fairly cheap. Feel free to add your own resources. ✌️

Important reminder: When using basically any works or programs someone else created in your games, make sure you thoroughly understand the licenses and terms it has been shared with. If you don't know what the terms are, reach out to the resource and ask. Don't be lazy about this; it's not only dishonest but it can come back to bite you.

Engines

Unity - Best suited for mobile and multi-platform.

Unreal - Tailored for shooters and high-fidelity experiences.

PICO-8 - Virtual console for simple games

Godot - Open source and free!

GameMaker - Good for 2D games

Bitsy - Great little engine for making simple games and experiences

Construct - Never used but have heard nice things

Scratch - If you've never coded before, this is the best place to start. Great for young devs and those who want to get their feet wet.

Adventure Game Studio - Best suited for adventure games

RPG Maker - Best suited for top-down classic JRPG style games

Twine - Text-centric games like Interactive Fiction

Assets

OpenGameArt - Many assets, various licenses, and plenty of CC0 content.

Unity Store - For Unity only. Some free.

Unreal Store - For Unreal only. Some free.

Godot Asset Library

Jean Moreno's Toon Effects - Some of the best effects available on the Unity store. Unity only but I've used them in basically every project.

Steamworks.net C# Wrapper For Unity - Unity only C# wrapper for integrating Steam compatibility to your game

Itch.io - Plenty of free art assets and game dev resources

Kenney - Kenney makes tons of open-source assets for devs to use.

Art

Mixamo - Generates rigs for your humanoid models and lets you apply a library of free humanoid animations to them. Super helpful for prototyping. Adobe.

Blender - Free, open source and fully featured 3D program.

XNormal - Free offline normal map generator

Normal Map Online - Free online normal map generator

Crocotile - Cheap tool for building 3D models from sprite sheets

MagicaVoxel - Free voxel modelling tool

Piskel - Free online sprite drawing tool

Aesprite - Paid sprite drawing tool

TurboSquid - Not always great quality, but can be good source of free placeholders.

Textures.com - Limited texture downloads per day but free for personal use.

Pexels - Free stock photo resource. Most are free for commercial use. Check licenses.

Clipstudio - Good for illustration or graphic design. One time payment.

GIMP - Image editing program a-la Photoshop. Free.

Audio

Audacity - Free and fully-featured DAW/audio editor.

sfx.me - Free 8-bit synth-style sound effect generator for games.

CastingCallClub - Easy forum to find amateur voice talent for your project (p.s.: you should pay them).

FreeSound.org - Free sounds, searchable by license. A go-to for my audio needs.

Incompetech - Royalty-free music by Kevin McLeod.

Scott Buckley Music - Royalty free with conditions. Generally more on the cinematic side of things but very good stuff!

SoundCloud - 'Search -> By Track -> Filter: Use Commercially' leads to songs posted with allowance of commercial use. Always reach out to the artist to understand their terms and confirm that it's okay to use with your project.

Project Planning

Keymailer - Handy for mailing keys to influencers (don't expect a lot of traction unless you're paying for some of the features though).

Trello - Kanban board. Great for organizing tasks, managing bugs, etc. Free.

Notion - Private text and wiki page editor. Good for project organization, note taking, and fleshing out ideas. Free.

Obsidian - Alternative to Notion, with similar features.

Miro - Free whiteboard for organizing thoughts, images, brainstorming, etc.

Wave - Free Bookkeeping site. Great for keeping finances organized.