{"author_name":"Kali Purr","cat":"LD #24","comments":[],"epoch":1346315880,"likes":3,"metadata":{"p_key":"51598","p_author":"Kali Purr","p_authorkey":"14999","p_urlkey":"87292","p_title":"Guide Head Postmortem: Scope is KEY!","p_cat":"LD #24","p_event":"LD24","p_time":"1346315880","p_likes":"3","p_comments":"0","p_status":"UPD5","us_key":"14999","us_name":"Kali Purr","us_username":"kali-purr","event_start":"1345766400","event_key":"12","event_name":"LD24"},"text":"
\"The<\/a>

It helps to stay relaxed when making a game all on your own.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

My first Ludam Dare\/game jam\/non-tutorial aided game<\/a>, and I gotta say, this was a blast! I asked a lot of seasoned game devs in my city for tips, and at the top of the list was scope. So the first thing I did was to get things moving on screen! I didn’t even write a design doc, I just drew one, and even then it wasn’t much to begin with.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Design<\/a>

Yup, this is some wizardry right here!<\/p><\/div>\n

Once I decided to make the head follow the player character, things started rolling. I added a few obstacles, and a way to progress. All this took about two hours. After that, was level design!<\/p>\n

I didn’t expect to have much fun with making levels, but it turned out to be the best part of all. I often caught myself playing for about 30 minute stretches, just testing and tuning for fun and difficulty. By this point I was confident I’d finish my game. That being my only true worry from the very start. Not how cataclysmic my game mechanic would be, not the number of plays it would get, but just getting it finished. That’s one skill I want to hone.<\/p>\n

\"Enemy\/Obstacle<\/a>

Sprite sheets are kinda satisfying to look at. Kinda.<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

I can go into more detail, but I’d rather just sum things up here.<\/p>\n

Suceeeess(es)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Getting the damn game done! – I wasn’t too sure about this, but the small scope of the game almost ensured it would happen<\/p>\n

Coming up with a mechanic that was simple, yet fun. – A rabid rabbit head hounding it’s body, as it grabs food and dodges death on the way. And guess what? You’re the body on the run! I actually feel I can take it a bit further and make a polished game out of it, but that’s for after I make a few more games.<\/p>\n

Making all the content myself – I managed to make the music, sfx, art\/animation, and coded (simple as it may be). I had no idea what a time sink each element would be! But I learned a lot in the process.<\/p>\n

The art! – I can draw just fine with a pencil on paper, or with a tablet on screen, but this time I was confined to the mouse. For I picked a style and toyed with symmetry a bit. this saved me a lot of head aches.<\/p>\n

I kicked the editor and agent out of my room! – I didn’t judge myself unreasonably, or start thinking about “the market.” \u00a0I just got up each day, and made the game. It was as natural as natural as a kid crying for candy at the super market (whatever that means XD).<\/p>\n

To Be Improved…<\/strong><\/p>\n

Even after the successes that have been mentioned above (and more), I still definitely need to gain more command of programming. there were a few things I wanted to add, but I ran out of headaches to spare, during the jam.<\/p>\n

The volume of my sound wasn’t as I’d expected! The music was low, for some reason I didn’t have time to look into in time of the deadline. Poooooo!<\/p>\n

*****<\/p>\n