Despite my moderate involvement in indie development, this year I mainly worked on projects that are still far from release. Some of them, as always, can be seen on X where I sometimes post videos and screenshots. I hope to be able to talk more about these games in the future.
However, this year we managed to make 3 releases for all three Ludum Dare events taking place this year.
Ludum Dare 52 theme «Harvest» – In The Rye
I already talked about this release in a separate post at the beginning of this year. I can only add that this project, made mostly in a frenzy, remains one of the best in recent times, receiving a lot of praise from players.
I really, really want to repeat the success by doing something narrative-trash. Unfortunately, I still can’t find a place for such projects – neither among the players, nor among my other ideas. Maybe just doing something from the heart will work out, but I don’t feel the energy from space for it yet.
First of all, regarding the name: I tried to make the longest possible name that would fit the rules of LD and itch. And practically the only storytelling in this game. And a great reason to order pizza during the jam.
Despite the lack of strength and motivation, I managed to make a small game in which I was able to successfully test a couple of hypotheses and make a few mistakes.
The most important thing is that we managed to achieve a sense of dynamics from a turn-based game to a rhythm game through music. The beat, by the way, was simply generated in GarageBand by the Drummer tool. I also experimented with rendering, creating pixel art from 3D through a low-resolution camera. I screwed up a lot with the UX, especially at the end of the game, where many players simply didn’t realize how the menu worked. On a funny note: a small bug in the game, when some Armageddon levels occur immediately after the previous one, creates one of the most interesting moments in the game.
The best compliment the game has received is comparison to the game Into The Breach, which I am a fan of.
Ludum Dare 54 theme «Limited Space» – PUNCH
The best actual result was shown by the last release of this year, which received the award for #1 in the Fun category, as well as the top 10 Overall among a couple of thousand participants.
I have a mixed opinion about this game: I can't say that I put a lot of effort into it, but I do like some aspects of it. The most important thing is the recognition of the audience. The game still gets hundreds of views every day on itch.
There are currently a couple of ideas in work for further development of this project. It is possible that I will be able to release something next year. I don’t want to make any promises, because I know from experience that time can significantly change priorities.
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Otherwise, I’m trying to maintain my indie spirit despite the big changes in my life this year. The last couple of years have not been the easiest, but what doesn't kill us makes us stronger. I really want to fucking good release in 2024, which is what I wish for everyone. Happy New Year, good luck to everyone!
