I figured we'd make a card game, and Angel (my partner and codesigner) came up with the idea, sharing it with me Saturday morning. Since then, I played with cards and came up with an idea for the game, then playtested it a bunch. We both came up with added details and such, and then I spent the next like 24 hours (well, the 24 hours I spent working on the game lol) writing.

The writing took me on a lot of twists and turns, and this will be the most narrative-driven game I've made thus far. It's clearly inspired by Alan Wake (the darkness, the struggle against the self, giving into our darker instincts, reshaping reality, light vs darkness...), but I'm proud of how separate and unique it is too.

This first draft is rough as heck, and a simple Google Doc. So I still need to: * Convert it to Canva and make the game itself easier to play * Rewrite it to make it more cohesive, bring out the threads of the narrative, add more light stuff on top of that * Playtest and proof with any remaining time

Either way, this is yet another Ludum Dare where I'm very proud of what I did. It amazes me that, outside of Ludum Dare, I question my ability to make mechanic-driven games. I mostly stick to solo journaling stuff. But almost every Ludum Dare, we create something mechanically driven in a single weekend! Why do I think I'm incapable when I have far more time? 😅

So, thanks for the jam! This time I'll keep this in mind and stop telling myself I can't do this outside of the jam 🧡