Art Asset Overview #24
November 4th, 2011
Instead of working on more test levels for Overgrowth (which you can preorder here), I decided to work on trying to make a "real" level. While it may not appear in the final game, it uses a lot of the ideas I have been working out lately about structering a level to make playing through it more interesting. The other ...
Art Asset Overview #12
April 25th, 2011
This week for Overgrowth (which you can preorder here) I finished the "sphere" crete set and started doing concept art for a new arena set. I also have been working on a physical sculpture to help expand my modeling skills. Finally, there is a little something extra on account of the holiday! Be sure to watch it in HD! Expect ...
Humble Bundle 2 Design Tour
December 20th, 2010
For the last year or so I've been hoping to bring back the design tour series, but this time I wanted to try focusing on specific design details instead of full reviews. The Humble Bundle 2 seemed like the perfect way to test that idea! Here is my design tour where I touch on my favorite aspects of the ...
Are Games Art? The Aftermath
December 6th, 2010
The following is a guest post by the always thoughtful and provocative game developer known as Wilbefast. Even if you haven't being following the "Games are art" debate you've probably heard about Roger Ebert's claim, in 2005, that no game can ever be "art". In 2007 Ebert backed-down slightly, then stayed silent until last April, when he ...
Real life locations
September 6th, 2010
As I mentioned before, the locations for Overgrowth are inspired by real-life locations. While a lot of good research can be found online, there's no substitute for actually visiting places in person. Important aspects of the experience can be lost or misunderstood when relying solely on descriptions and photos. For example, I recently visited Yellowstone National Park while traveling ...
On the road again
August 27th, 2010
I have recently decided to relocate, and I have been using the opportunity to visit some of my favorite places that inspired the terrain in Overgrowth! This is not actually one of those places, but rather a shot of Lake Shasta in northern California. Not saying I wouldn't love it, if I had taken the time to stop. This ...
Avoiding artificial gameplay restrictions
August 20th, 2010
Lugaru levels were designed differently from most games. Most of the levels had the same set of rules and the same objective: kill everyone. The variety came from the layout of each level: how the enemies were placed, how they were equipped, and how the blocks restricted their sight lines. There are things I would like to add to this ...