Finally Something to Post - 04/10/14
Since Dayle's vacating the company, it's been a real struggle to find a programmer to pick up the slack on It Hungers, Swipe Attack, and SL'UP. Thankfully, I've found a programmer to take on It Hungers and another programmer that was really intrigued by SL'UP. Things are pretty slow going on It Hungers, but progress is being made. SL'UP on the other hand, has come a long way in just a couple of weeks! It's only using placeholder art, but the dynamic lighting is a thing of beauty!
The only project that Dayle's allowed to work on, Slipshot, has also been slow going. We'll get there eventually, but my day job and my newborn daughter are front and center right now, as they should be!
Stay tuned, folks, Greater Good Games lives on!
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The only project that Dayle's allowed to work on, Slipshot, has also been slow going. We'll get there eventually, but my day job and my newborn daughter are front and center right now, as they should be!
Stay tuned, folks, Greater Good Games lives on!
Slipshot++ - 01/07/14
We've got some great news on the Slipshot front, but first I'd like to offer some clarification about why we have a few unfinished titles still lingering. For those of you that have been following us closely, you know that I took on a job that doesn't allow me to work for Greater Good Games anymore. This meant that Noah was going to have to find someone to pick up the programming side of things on It Hungers and Swipe Attack. He did find a few people, but reliable programmers tend to not work for the possibility of future pay on any projects that are not their own, so there has been little to no progress on that front. I'd love to just finish up those titles, but as soon as I touch them again, my employer could seize ownership of them. Consequently, I started looking at doing new side projects, which brings us to Slipshot.
The good news about Slipshot is that Noah is now able to join in on the project thanks to a "Side Project Exception Agreement" that my employer was nice enough to work on with me. Another positive outcome of this agreement is that I can make a full-fledged polished game project, put it up for sale, and just pay some royalties off it to Metamoki. In light of this, I decided to really analyze the Cube 2: Sauerbraten engine and I have found it to be insufficient for a retail game. Discussions with Noah led to deciding on the Source engine with the intent of working out some sort of licensing agreement with Valve at some point, pending we have a successful Kickstarter campaign. We have also brought Oliver back onto the project, who has done some art for us on Swipe Attack. We have also carried over Ossian who was the only artist working on the Cube 2 version of the game. We are now 4 members strong and hard at work putting together a much better version of Slipshot. You can watch our development progress on our forums!
Lastly, this means that we're not planning on publicly releasing the Cube 2 version of Slipshot, but if you'd like to give the concept a whirl with me, just drop us a line: contact@greatergoodgames.org
Discuss this DevBlog on our Forums
The good news about Slipshot is that Noah is now able to join in on the project thanks to a "Side Project Exception Agreement" that my employer was nice enough to work on with me. Another positive outcome of this agreement is that I can make a full-fledged polished game project, put it up for sale, and just pay some royalties off it to Metamoki. In light of this, I decided to really analyze the Cube 2: Sauerbraten engine and I have found it to be insufficient for a retail game. Discussions with Noah led to deciding on the Source engine with the intent of working out some sort of licensing agreement with Valve at some point, pending we have a successful Kickstarter campaign. We have also brought Oliver back onto the project, who has done some art for us on Swipe Attack. We have also carried over Ossian who was the only artist working on the Cube 2 version of the game. We are now 4 members strong and hard at work putting together a much better version of Slipshot. You can watch our development progress on our forums!
Lastly, this means that we're not planning on publicly releasing the Cube 2 version of Slipshot, but if you'd like to give the concept a whirl with me, just drop us a line: contact@greatergoodgames.org
Introducing Slipshot - 12/01/13
After many hours hacking away at the Cube 2: Sauerbraten engine and playtesting with numerous friends, I am proud to finally publicly announce Slipshot! The game is a unique take on the first person shooter which every single tester has loved! I know numerous people have claimed to offer a new take on a shooter and it's rarely much different, but we slowed down the bullets and scaled them up to the size of grenades! We added strategery and dodging to the typical high speed, exhilarating FPS! The end result is an adrenaline pumping series of 1 on 1 battles that can go minutes without a death, but still keep you on the edge of your seat trying to land another hit!
When will you be able to play? Well, honestly, very soon! The game's still in rough shape, but the Dueling Tournament mode should be entirely playable. The game is going to be in fully open public alpha for an undetermined amount of time! Even better, the game will continue to be freely playable until it is released. We're even toying with having a free version of the game available forever, with incentives to buy the full version of the game(more playmodes, extra weapons, visual only player progression, etc).
Discuss this Announcement on our Forums
When will you be able to play? Well, honestly, very soon! The game's still in rough shape, but the Dueling Tournament mode should be entirely playable. The game is going to be in fully open public alpha for an undetermined amount of time! Even better, the game will continue to be freely playable until it is released. We're even toying with having a free version of the game available forever, with incentives to buy the full version of the game(more playmodes, extra weapons, visual only player progression, etc).
Where'd We Go?! - 09/24/13
First, I, Dayle, must apologize for our little news feed blackout as of late. Life has taken a drastic turn for both of us due to my landing an amazing job at Metamoki, creators of Mob Wars. Those of you that have been following us closely know that I have been working at various companies throughout the life of Greater Good Games, so what makes this job any different? Well, Metamoki had this minor stipulation on the job: no side work allowed! When I first heard this, my immediate reaction was "No frickin way! Not interested!" But, rather than immediately saying "no", I decided to discuss it with Noah, who would be all but out of a job if I took the job. Despite this, Noah was adamant about me taking the job, which was just astounding to me. So, with a heavy heart, I decided to take it.
What does this mean It Hungers and Swipe Attack? Well, Noah has decided that he wants to get those 2 games out there, both for his portfolio and because they have potential to be frickin awesome. So, he is continuing development on those 2 titles with some programmer friends of his. It's slow-going, however, as Noah has had to return to having a full-time job and working on Greater Good Games' projects on the side.
What does this mean for the future of Greater Good Games? Perhaps, this could be the end of the road for Greater Good Games as a not-for-profit entity raising money for good causes through our passion for games. BUT, Metamoki does allow side projects that advance the skill sets of their employees, so I have been cooking up a little free, open-source project. Stay tuned folks, things might have dramatically changed, but Greater Good Games will not die!
Discuss this DevBlog on our Forums
What does this mean It Hungers and Swipe Attack? Well, Noah has decided that he wants to get those 2 games out there, both for his portfolio and because they have potential to be frickin awesome. So, he is continuing development on those 2 titles with some programmer friends of his. It's slow-going, however, as Noah has had to return to having a full-time job and working on Greater Good Games' projects on the side.
What does this mean for the future of Greater Good Games? Perhaps, this could be the end of the road for Greater Good Games as a not-for-profit entity raising money for good causes through our passion for games. BUT, Metamoki does allow side projects that advance the skill sets of their employees, so I have been cooking up a little free, open-source project. Stay tuned folks, things might have dramatically changed, but Greater Good Games will not die!
Moving the needle - 06/20/13
It's been a while since we posted anything, and we wanted to share our progress! Dayle has been implementing more and more features into It Hungers, and I dare say is nearly done! All of the food...erm, characters, are imlemented now., the UI is almost 100% complete, and mechanics such as health and character interaction are all done! Now we just need some sound! Here's a little gameplay video where I eat a few humans before getting caught and causing some folks to run away!
Swipe Attack is moving along as well. I've been getting more and more familiar with the ins and outs of Unreal Development Kit. Recently, I've been working on the basic level that will come with the Swipe Attack free download. I was able to solve a lot of the problems I'd been running into including difficulties with the particle system, and troubles with lighting. Also, the visual look of Swipe Attack has moved forward a great deal, if I may say so myself. In fact, I think it's actually starting to look like a proper game! I'm pretty excited! Just like It Hungers, Swipe Attack is in need of a composer and a sound designer. We thought we'd found someone, but it looks like it's not going to work out. So, if you're reading this saying, "Hey, those games look cool," and you'd like to contribute, let us know! You can reach me at noah (at) greatergoodgames (dot) org. Here's a video of me showing off some of the changes to Swipe Attack. It's kind of hard to play against yourself, so forgive the lack of action!
I have some more I want to reveal, but it's not ready for public consumption just yet!
Discuss this DevBlog on our Forums
Swipe Attack is moving along as well. I've been getting more and more familiar with the ins and outs of Unreal Development Kit. Recently, I've been working on the basic level that will come with the Swipe Attack free download. I was able to solve a lot of the problems I'd been running into including difficulties with the particle system, and troubles with lighting. Also, the visual look of Swipe Attack has moved forward a great deal, if I may say so myself. In fact, I think it's actually starting to look like a proper game! I'm pretty excited! Just like It Hungers, Swipe Attack is in need of a composer and a sound designer. We thought we'd found someone, but it looks like it's not going to work out. So, if you're reading this saying, "Hey, those games look cool," and you'd like to contribute, let us know! You can reach me at noah (at) greatergoodgames (dot) org. Here's a video of me showing off some of the changes to Swipe Attack. It's kind of hard to play against yourself, so forgive the lack of action!
I have some more I want to reveal, but it's not ready for public consumption just yet!
A new look! - 05/17/13
You may have noticed things look a bit different around here. In an effort to make the site a bit friendlier to our expanding portfolio of games, we made a few changes! I'm really happy with the way things look (thanks, Dayle!) - and the best part is that we did away with the Flash elements to make everything a bit friendlier for mobile devices.
We've also been hard at work developing Swipe Attack and It Hungers. Dayle has been chugging away at It Hungers recently using the Unity engine. So far, so good. The game is shaping up nicely with several of the key actors implemented into the game. There are of course, some tweaks that will need to be made, and more gameplay that's to be added, but I can definitely say that I'm excited that the game is now in a playable state! Here are some screenshots of the latest It Hungers development screenshots.
The Swipe Attack team has a new member, Olivier Brault. He's a 3D artist and game designer with experience using the Unreal Development Kit. We've been ironing out kinks and defining exactly what can be accomplished with UDK's mobile engine. I've been really happy to have him along, and I can't thank him enough for his effort so far! The initial environment for Swipe Attack is a space level, and that's really almost done at this stage. We're missing the layer of effects in game that add that punch and dynamism to the experience, but the fundamentals are really coming together. Here's a first look at the Space Level!
Discuss this DevBlog on our Forums
We've also been hard at work developing Swipe Attack and It Hungers. Dayle has been chugging away at It Hungers recently using the Unity engine. So far, so good. The game is shaping up nicely with several of the key actors implemented into the game. There are of course, some tweaks that will need to be made, and more gameplay that's to be added, but I can definitely say that I'm excited that the game is now in a playable state! Here are some screenshots of the latest It Hungers development screenshots.
The Swipe Attack team has a new member, Olivier Brault. He's a 3D artist and game designer with experience using the Unreal Development Kit. We've been ironing out kinks and defining exactly what can be accomplished with UDK's mobile engine. I've been really happy to have him along, and I can't thank him enough for his effort so far! The initial environment for Swipe Attack is a space level, and that's really almost done at this stage. We're missing the layer of effects in game that add that punch and dynamism to the experience, but the fundamentals are really coming together. Here's a first look at the Space Level!
What is Swipe Attack and who is it for? - 04/21/13
This weekend I was able to share a really early, proof of concept build of Swipe Attack with my family and the response was really good! I am really excited about this project; I think it has a lot of promise. What was really fun for me was playing this game with my stepfather. He is over 60 and he's never played a videogame in his life, but he was able to pick Swipe Attack up instantly. He mastered it so quickly that he was able to outscore me in our first game!
I feel like this is the real power of tablet devices. From my young niece who zips around on her grandmother's iPad, to my mother-in-law who immediately grocked photo editing on her iPad using the touch interface, touch computers remove that layer of abstraction from the user interface.
So what was this game we were playing? Swipe Attack is a two player iPad shoot-out game. Just like games of yore, you and a friend play together locally. Each player shoots at the targets and tries to knock them into their opponent's goal to score points. Because this is an electronic game, we can exceed the limits of a traditional game with features like power-ups, dynamic levels and cool, immersive effects!
As development continues, I will share cool sketches, videos and recounts of play-tests and challenges.
I can't wait to share more about Swipe Attack with you!
Discuss this DevBlog on our Forums
I feel like this is the real power of tablet devices. From my young niece who zips around on her grandmother's iPad, to my mother-in-law who immediately grocked photo editing on her iPad using the touch interface, touch computers remove that layer of abstraction from the user interface.
So what was this game we were playing? Swipe Attack is a two player iPad shoot-out game. Just like games of yore, you and a friend play together locally. Each player shoots at the targets and tries to knock them into their opponent's goal to score points. Because this is an electronic game, we can exceed the limits of a traditional game with features like power-ups, dynamic levels and cool, immersive effects!
As development continues, I will share cool sketches, videos and recounts of play-tests and challenges.
I can't wait to share more about Swipe Attack with you!
Hit a stumbling block, but making good strides! - 02/04/13
We expected to have "It Hungers" wrapped up quite a while ago, but we ran into some unforeseen troubles. That said, we seem to be building up a head of steam again on the project, so that's good news! In addition, we've begun some preliminary work on our next project (no title for it yet) which will be a local multiplayer tablet game. I'll share more info on that as it evolves.Wish us luck!
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Bwaaaarrrrrr!!!!! - 12/05/12
It Hungers - 11/28/12
As I mentioned in my last post, "A Shift in Focus," we're looking into games we can create in shorter intervals. Our first attempt at this is a game entitled, "It Hungers," which follows the tragic life of an orphan child who just wants another bowl of gruel.
Oh wait, no, that's not it at all. In It Hungers, you play as an alien with an appetite. Set in the crowded streets of a city, you run amok trying to feed your insatiable appetite for humans. You will have to avoid detection for as long as possible, and eat often so you don't end up dying of starvation. There are various factors that can alert the people to your presence, but the most common of these is simply looking back to see a giant, slavering alien bounding up behind them.
Our goal with this game was to keep the gameplay simple. Aside from the inclusion of an item system, this game can be played with one button, and has rules that are easily understood and are low in complexity. Essentially, you press a button to run, and upon releasing the button, you will stop running and start looking nonchalant.
Greg Felber has begun working with us to make this project a reality, and while he's getting all of the code together, I made a video mock-up of what the gameplay would look like based off of the assets I had available at the time. There's no sound, and limited interaction, but it should be enough to get the idea across. So without further ado, I present to you, "It Hungers!"
Oh wait, no, that's not it at all. In It Hungers, you play as an alien with an appetite. Set in the crowded streets of a city, you run amok trying to feed your insatiable appetite for humans. You will have to avoid detection for as long as possible, and eat often so you don't end up dying of starvation. There are various factors that can alert the people to your presence, but the most common of these is simply looking back to see a giant, slavering alien bounding up behind them.
Our goal with this game was to keep the gameplay simple. Aside from the inclusion of an item system, this game can be played with one button, and has rules that are easily understood and are low in complexity. Essentially, you press a button to run, and upon releasing the button, you will stop running and start looking nonchalant.
Greg Felber has begun working with us to make this project a reality, and while he's getting all of the code together, I made a video mock-up of what the gameplay would look like based off of the assets I had available at the time. There's no sound, and limited interaction, but it should be enough to get the idea across. So without further ado, I present to you, "It Hungers!"
