December 30, 2012

If I were to give this weekly update a name it would be "The Year In Review". Basically I am going to take this weeks update to review the year 2012 for Blue Fire Games. There were many good things to be thankful for. First I actually published six paid games and one free game this past year not including the lab entries (of which there were several). Most of the published games were released during the last three months of the year which shows next year has a lot of potential. I also started publishing games for my first mobile platform (Android) instead of concentrating on publishing everything on the internet. This past year did see several larger games started but not finished for one reason or another (that is one area I plan on improving next year).

Overall I am happy with the way 2012 turned out and am looking forward to 2013. In next week's update I plan on revealing my plans for 2013.

December 25, 2012

Just an extra quick short update wishing everyone a very merry Christmas. May your year be filled with joy, happiness, good health and peace (not to mention many hours of good game playing). I hope you have much to be merry about not only this year but in the upcoming one as well.

December 23, 2012

Just a short update today. This past week as a result of working 60+ hours in 6 days at my regular full time job (I deliver packages) I got very little accomplished on my next game. I hope to spend more time creating games this next upcoming week after Christmas. The progress I did make was on the next childrens game as well as another casual game. I hope to go back to doing more adventure games in the not too distant future.

December 15, 2012

This week I actually got a good deal of work completed considering I worked many hours at my full time job. First I finished my latest game (BALL FALL) which was the first time I used the tilt control in a game. I also managed to destribute it to the current App Portals I use. I have listed a description of it in the (ARCADE GAMES) section of the web site. I also rewrote the game engine for Quasito changing the game play balance to the original vision I had when I designed the game.

This next week all the spare time I have available will be spent either on continuing making Quasito (more assets and starting the levels) or making another kids game I have in mind. Right now I am leaning more toward the kids game because it will can be finished much quicker the Quasito.

December 8, 2012

This past week was spent submitting Kids Animal Memory match to the various app stores. I did not have much extra time to do anything extra due to having to work 57+ hours at my full time job this past week. From now until Christmas I will have to work 55+ hours a week at my full time job (I deliver packages) so I do not expect to get much done game wise except on the weekends.

I did do some work on another new game and I might be able to complete it in a day or two. More details on this game in next weeks update. I also have decided to change the balance of play in Quasito. I originally imagined the game to be played a different way but when I created the game engine I made some changes that resulted in Quasito having a totally different feel to it. I plan on sticking with the play balance originally planned for.

December 1, 2012

This past week I completed another game. It is called Kids Animal Memory match and, as the name implies, it is designed to help children improve their memory. This is the first game for children I have done in a long time and I have an idea for another game for children that I might do in the not too distant future. I am also very satisfied with how quickly this game was created once I decided to do it. I also done some work on Quasito this past week as I accumulated some of the games assets (mainly graphics).

Next week I plan to submit Kids Animal Memory match to the various portals while continuing work on Quasito and possible working on another game. I have also discovered there are many mobile app portals so I will continue to gradually add my games to new portals as time goes on.

November 24, 2012

This week was spent submitting my latest game (OverRun) to the various mobile app stores. In addition to submitting it to the app stores I also updated this web site to list it in the Arcade Games section. I also managed to do some work on another new game (call Quasito) totally completing the game engine this week. I am sure I will expand the game engine with new features as I introduce them in the game but up next will be getting the assets (mainly graphics) for the game.

Next week I plan to spend some time submitting all my completed games to newly discovered mobile app stores (this will probably be an ongoing task as new app stores are discovered and started all the time). In addition to app submissions I also hope to get some more time in on actually making games during the next week.

November 22, 2012

Just a quick intra update to say Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. I hope everyone not only has plenty of turkey and dressing but (more importantly) also has plenty of reasons to be thankful. You can find my last regular update (November 17, 2012) on the Old News page if you are looking for that.

November 17, 2012

This week was again spent putting a new game (in this case Fruit Slice) in the app stores. In addition to putting it in the app stores I also updated this web site to include information on it. You will find a detailed description of Fruit Slice (along with a link to get the game) in the Casual Games section.

Not being one to sit around idly I also started (and completed) another game this week. The newest game (called OverRun) is an arcade shooter type of game. I will now spend some time uploading it to the various app stores and I should also have a detailed description of it on this web site by the next update. The game is basically about destroying as many enemies as possible before you are destroyed.

In addition to OverRun I also started another game (which is currently entitles Quasito) but it will take longer to finish because it will have levels which must be build. The new game will be a skill game and is being developed slowly on the side while I complete other projects.

November 10, 2012

This week I not only finished submitting my latest game (Marble Match) to the app stores but I also created another game called Fruit Slice. As you can guess from the name fruit slice is a casual game where you have to cut fruit by slicing them with your finger before they exit the screen. If more then 3 fruits fall off the screen the game is over. There are also bombs which are thrown onto the screen and if you slice one of them the game is immediately over. It also has a high score system that allows players all over the world to record their scores regardless of the device they are playing on or the country in which they live. The game is different each time it is played. I will be releasing it through the app stores in the upcoming week.

November 3, 2012

This week I finished releasing another mobile game (called Free Sudoku) to the major app store. I also almost finished another mobile casual game which is a newer style of match 3+. The next game will be a paid game which is free of advertising. I still have one problem to fix and then I will be releasing it. The problem is I am not exactly sure what is causing the problem but I am trying to fix it. I am very happy about how fast this last game was produced. This shows I am getting more familiar with the Unity game engine.

October 28, 2012

This week I finished my most recent game called Free Sudoku. In addition to being able to generate new Sudoku puzzles you can also check to see how many of the numbers you have gotten correct, restart the puzzle, reveal the solution to the puzzle, set the clue weight and set the maximum number of clues displayed in a region. Simply tap the desired square to increase the number in the square.

October 20, 2012

This week I have completed my next game except for the icon. I am trying to design the icon myself but if I am unable to do a good job I will hire an artist. The game is a casual game called Free Sudoku. As the name implies it will be available for free and will primarily target the Android platform. I done an earlier experiment with the game as a lab entry but I took the lab entry and created a full game with it and while the lab version only works in a browser the full game is a normal Android game which will allow the user to install it and play it like regular Android games.

October 15, 2012

This week I ran into some problems with the game engine I have been using to create my most recent game (Unity). Games created with it are now crashing in landscape mode. I have submitted a debug report but there is not much I can do until this is fixed by Unity. The engine did not used to do this on older builds so I suspect it is connect to something that was introduced on the most recent build. I have finished creating my next game but I am having to wait until this bug is fixed before I can deploy it.

UPDATE: I have since discovered the problem was not a bug with Unity but was caused by a setting on a third party object I imported into the game. I changed the setting and now everything is working fine. I should be able to start publishing my next game shortly.

October 7, 2012

This week I came close to completing another game. It is a casual game that was featured in the lab several weeks back but I will add a main menu to it and release it for the mobile market instead of just the web. The game will be called Free Sudoku and I will probably release it for free (as the name implies) on most stores. I may release a second paid version which will not contain any advertising but I have made a final decision on that yet.

September 29, 2012

Regular visitors to this site may have noticed that there is a new menu button on the left side of the page entitled CASUAL GAMES. I completed a web demo of my Word Find game and created a new category to place it in. Just click on the link and you will see a description of the game. Now you do not need a mobile device to test the game and see what it is like. The web version is also playable on mobile devices with a build in web browser (which is just about all mobile devices these days) by using the web browser. I plan on adding other casual games (as well as other types of games) as time goes by.

September 22, 2012

I have spent most of this past week creating a demo for my Word Find game. I am making the demo so that the same words are listed each time but are hidden in a different order. The full version of the game not only hides each word differently each time but also uses different words each time. The demo will be given away free of charge and I will probably call it Word Find Lite. I will probably leave the high scores in the lite version so that players who play the demo can also enter high scores. I hope to have the demo available by next week.

September 15, 2012

Most of this week was spent uploading my latest game (Word Find) to the various app stores and starting promotion for it. I am new to doing promotion and am basically learning as I go. I have started considering what game I want to finish developing next and I am leaning toward finishing the adventure game I started awhile back. I made a lot of progress on it but I have since learned a lot of things about game production and as a result the adventure game will probably be free to play and free of advertising. The only item I will allow players to purchase in the game is game currency so they can get items for their character quicker then having to wait to accumulate them in the game. Purchasing game currency will only be an additional option that will not be required to finish or enjoy the game. I may change things before the game is finished but that is the way I am leaning toward now.

September 8, 2012

A quick update this week. I have released my next game (called Word Find) and I am now in the process of uploading it to the various app stores. You can find a link to the game HERE which is located at the Amazon Android store. The game is a word game where you compete with your friends to see who can find all the hidden words in the grid. The words you will be searching for change with each new game so not two games are the same. The words you are trying to find are listed on the left side of the puzzle. Slide the mouse while holding down the left mouse button to select letters or use your finger to select letters on a touch screen. Words must be in a straight line. Release the left mouse button or remove your finger from the screen to see if you are correct. Words can be horizontal, vertical, diagonal, run from left to right or from right to left. Press the reset button (located at the bottom center of the screen) to reset the timer to zero and try with a new puzzle. Your score will be equal to the total number of seconds it takes you to find all the words. Lower scores are better then higher scores and you will be competing with players all over the world for high scores. I think the game is a very good game with a lot of replay potential and I will now be spending some time promoting it.

September 1, 2012

And I start this month with wonderful news. I have completed my next game. It is a word game and the only thing I still have to do is acquire the game icon (which I am in the process of doing). I definitely plan on releasing the game this weekend (or Monday at the latest) and after that I will be spending some time promoting the game. I may still work on another game "in the background" as time permits but most of my effort for the next while will be putting the word game in the various app stores and promoting it. The main game will be paid (I am thinking $1.49) but I am debating releasing a free version that is add supported.

August 26, 2012

This week in my spare time I almost got another game ready to publish. There are only two or three things left to do (finish the high score system, implement touch controls in the game and possibly change the splash screen that displays when loading). I am not sure if I will change the splash screen or not. I will tell you that this game is a word game that changes each time it is played which will give it great replay value. As far as the class project (Mobile Random Music Player) is concerned I am working on the user interface now. Before long I will get to the coding part which will be the biggest part.

August 19, 2012

I have started the Programming Mobile Apps with HTML5 class and have found it to be much easier then I originally thought it would be. I have already completed the first two lessons (of a total of twelve) without any problems. I have decided to complete a "pet" project while doing the class that is not part of the class. I have decided to do a mobile version of a Random Music Player. I decided on this due to the fact that I keep seeing people working out while listening to music using ear plugs with various mobile devices. I will be releasing this at my other web site (Asah Nekec Productions) instead of this web site because it is not a game. Game news related I have several games that are very close to completion and I work on them as I can with the spare time I have available. It has been awhile since I have released a game (not counting lab entries) so I am anxious to get a new game out before long.

August 12, 2012

This past week I have mainly been in a holding pattern as I get ready to start the new class on programming web apps with HTML5 next Tuesday (August 15). I did not want to start any new game projects till then because I knew I would not be able to finish them. I am looking forward to the class. I have also decided to keep two separate websites going (one for games and another for non game projects) instead of combining everything into one website. The other website is Asah Nekec Productions and has not been updated regularly like this one has. Sometime toward the end of the class I will start updating both websites on a regular basis.

August 4, 2012

This past week I made no progress whatsoever on any games. Why? Because I ended up working a lot of overtime at my regular job which left no time for development on games. I hope to have more time to develop games this upcoming week. I have also decided to take a class to learn how to develop mobile (and web) apps with HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript. I decided to take a class as opposed to learning it the usual way (developing apps using books, online resources and experimentation as I go) because it will force me to spend a lot of time programming work assignments (home work) for the class. I will be doing more then just games so I may start a new website dedicated to more then games. I also hope to create some small apps during the class to help learn the material better which I will be releasing. Do not get me wrong. I am not abandoning Unity for making games. It is a very good tool but I would also like to have other options available to make games - one of which I want to be a regular programming language.

July 30, 2012

After more frustration this week working with the Mini Golf Starter Kit I have come to the conclusion that the Kit needs more work before I can create the type of game with it I want to create. As a result I am going to concentrate on a different game for awhile. Not sure what type but I am thinking of experimenting with a short RPG next (if I do there might be another lab entry before too long). Only time will tell.

July 22, 2012

I had a major set back this past week on my next game. I used a game kit to help make the game and a new version of the game kit was released. I updated the game to the newest version and it messed up all the scenes (holes) that I had completed (all 18 of them). I will now have to redo the holes (or create new ones) and this will probably take an extra week to complete. I should have saved a copy of the game before I updated the game kit but I did not. Next time I will learn from this mistake and make a backup before I update any part of the game. I hope to have the game holes rebuilt by next weekend.

July 15, 2012

Here is where I stand on the next game release. The game is a mini-golf game (similar to the last lab entry) and it is 95%+ completed. All I have left to do is some final testing to make sure there are no errors (which should be accomplished shortly) then add Twitter and FaceBook and finally install a High Score system. While I would like to add Twitter and FaceBook integration I could release the game without them (and if it takes too long to add them I will release it without them). I definitely plan on releasing the game in a few days (with or without Twitter and FaceBook). After that it will take awhile to submit it to all the app stores and then I will be spending some time marketing the game before I start the next game.

July 7, 2012

And this week we have another entry in the lab section. This most recent entry could be considered a mini-game but it is very short. It is a one hole mini-golf game that I created using UNITY. I hope to release my next full game next week (or the week after that for sure). While I have not released a full game in awhile at least I have been able to release some lab entries the past few weeks even if some of them were not full games. That is it for this update but I hope to have a bigger update next week.

July 1, 2012

This week I have entered another entry in the lab games section of the web site. This one is another level created with UNITY as I learn to use it. This time the level is an outdoor scene but again the only thing possible to do with it is to walk around and explore it. Hopefully I will be releasing another game before long probably using UNITY because it is the game engine that I have found to be the quickest at producing games.

June 23, 2012

This week I added another experiment to the lab. It is a short experiment I done with UNITY while I was testing the engine. Use the arrow keys for movement and the mouse to look around.

I am impressed with what I have seen of Unity thus far and I plan on doing further tests in the future which will mean more short lab entries for you to enjoy in the coming weeks. Note that this is not a complete game just a test I was doing to see how easy it is to work with Unity.

June 16, 2012

This week I have added a new game to the lab. You can find a link to the lab on the left. The new game is a prize game. If you beat the game you get a prize. Prizes vary from free programs, free shipping on orders, discounts on products, etc... Prizes are provided by third parties so I cannot guarantee their accuracy. Prizes can also be changed or removed without notice. If this prize game is popular I might create more of them in the future.

June 9, 2012

Last week I promised you a surprise this week. Unfortunately, the surprise turned out to be on me. I purchased a new program (RPGCreator) that is designed to be able to quickly and easily create RPG's. I was hoping to use it to create a short (around 10 room) dungeon and have it available to play online this week. I wanted to host the game on my server and having the ability to download the finished game so it can be hosted on your own server is not available yet (it will be available in the future). Thus I could not make the game available for you. RPGCreator does look promising and I am looking forward to using it in the future but for now I am continuing to develop several of my other games.

June 2, 2012

Just a short update this weekend because there is not much to report. If all goes according to plan I should have a surprise for you next week so stay tuned. No hints on the surprise but you should be able to guess what it will be based on the subject matter this web site deals with. Due to the surprise next week's update might be a day late but I will eventually get it posted.

May 27, 2012

First off, as many of you are aware of without me having to bring it to your attention, this update is one day later then I usually post updates. That was done on purpose so that I would be able to post the first screenshot of my next adventure game (not the shorter game I started two weeks ago). I posted the screenshot on the home page while this entry was on the home page. I will change the screenshot with another game screenshot at some point in the future and it will no longer be availbale. It was a screenshot of the main menu that will list the adventures and characters available for the player to use. The player's saved characters will also be listed among the available characters. Basically the player will choose an adventure from a list of available adventures (which can be expanded with new adventures in the future) then choose a character from a list of available characters. Once the player presses the start game button the program will download the selected adventure from the internet and for the player to play. Due to the fact that adventures are composed of data with very few new graphics to download It will not take long to download adventures (less then two minutes on a DSL connection). Each adventure will be designed to be played in one or two afternoons and I plan on producing a steady supply of new adventures. I think this method is best because it is the easiest method I have found to update the game.

May 19, 2012

While I did not get the shorter game finished this past week I did make a lot of progress on it. I kept adding new features to the game which kept making the game bigger and more complex. I have finished the main menu, game setup, game movement and half of the combat system (yes, combat will be a big part of the game). I still have to finish the other half of combat, the trap system (yes, traps will also have a big part in the game), the social aspects of the game, the system to load and save games as well as any smaller details I have forgotten. Despite the games complexities (and this game did turn out to be more complex then I originally thought) the game is coming together much faster then any of my previous games. Due to the random elements I added to the game it has tremendous replay value so it will be a game that can be played many times over a long period of time.

May 12, 2012

My full time job gets very busy the week before mothers day (which we celebrate in the USA tomorrow (5-13-2012)). Due to this fact I did not have much time to spend on game development this past week. After some study I have come to the conclusion that I should be able to finish most of the small game (the one I mentioned last week, not the big adventure game I started several months ago) next week. While the new game may be short it will still contain a lot of game play making the game useful for a long period of time. The next thing I will do for the adventure game is to convert the lair data to another format that will be easier to insert into the game. If I do it correctly I will not have to change the game engine very much which will speed up its release.

And happy mothers day to all your moms out there.

May 5, 2012

I am now in the process of converting the lairs already created (a total of two) into two separate adventures that can be downloaded and played independently of one another. I also have to figure out how to allow the player to save their progress from one adventure to the next. The most likely choice for saving games is to use an online database. I have come to realize that this game is going to take much longer then I suspected to finish it. This is due to the fact the game has had many new features added to it that were never originally planned for the game.

I am seriously considering starting a shorter game (I already have two very good ideas) that can be completed in a much shorter time period. I would continue to work on the original adventure game but would do so at a reduced rate while I completed one of the other games.

April 28, 2012

After looking into it I decided to create the game so that adventures are download from the internet as they are played. Basically it will work as follows: The player will download and install the game engine (which will contain no graphics, music and so forth but will only consist of the game code) then they will choose an adventure from a list of adventures. After they have chosen an adventure the adventure will be downloaded (including graphics, music, sounds and so forth) then the player will play the adventure. This makes it very easily to add new adventures in the future. As a result of this decision I will have to rewrite the game engine but I am hoping this will not take too long.

One change I am making is to include some short note each week about what has been accomplished that week so that everyone can see the progress being made. For the game engine there will be one file that lists all the available adventures (including a short description of each) and this week I have finished that file. I have also programmed the engine to be able to download that file as well as being able to download the file for the selected adventure.

April 21, 2012

I thought of a new possibility this week. Creating the basic game engine as a standalone program and allowing the players to download individual adventures through the core game engine as they wanted to play them. Downloading game levels have been done before in other games but I will have to make sure it can be done while being able to expand the game engine with new monsters, items, powers, etc... If it could be done it would make the game much smaller to download and would also greatly increase the replay value of the game. I have decided to pause development while I look into this possibility. If I can find a way to do it but also discover doing it may take a long time I may move this game to the backburner where it is still developed but at a slower pace and create some other shorter game as the main project first. I do want to get a game out before too long.

April 14, 2012

This week I successfully added the ability for a player to gain a new power in the game. Speaking of powers there are currently five planned for the first game. They are minor healing, heal wounds (which is similar to minor healing but heals more damage), zap attack (which does a small amount of damage), increase armor and ice bolt (which does more damage then zap attack). It costs power points to use powers and the player will start the game with a set number of power points (probably five). The stronger powers will require more power points to use. Power points will be renewed with power potions or as the player explores rooms inside the game.

Next I will probably start creating lair 3 which may take some time because I would like to add some new monsters to the game for this lair.

April 7, 2012

This week I finished creating lair two. It ended up having a total of seven rooms so it is much smaller then the main lair (which has a total of 34 rooms) but it gives the player a good place to improve his character's skills before he goes into the main lair.

Next I need to add a few more game engine features (namely the ability for the player to add new powers to his character such as advanced healing and attack powers such as Ice Bolt). I hope to have this part finished by next weekend then on to lair three.

April 1, 2012

This week I have done some more work on lair number two. This has resulted in me adding three new monsters (opponents) to the game that players will face. These three new monsters are a Giant Bat, a Ratling and the Chief Ratling. The Giant Bat is basically a giant version of a normal bat. They have good speed with a bite attack that does moderate damage. A Ratling basically looks like a cross between a human and a rat. I originally created the concept of Ratlings years ago for another game that I done but I decided to reuse them in this game. In addition to these new monsters I already created a Giant Rat and several different versions of Goblins (normal, bodyguard, female, guard and chief) for use with the game.

I am continuing to develop the rooms for lair 2 after which I will move on to lair 3. This game is turning out to be more complex then I originally thought.

March 24, 2012

After some deliberation I have decided to create more lairs for the adventure game. It will take more time to release the game but it will make the game value greater. I am considering including a total of four lairs plus the tutorial. Each of these additional lairs will not be as big as the main lair (which has 34 areas or rooms) but will probably range from seven to fifteen rooms or areas each. Due to the way the game engine now works adding these extra lairs will not increase the size of the game that much.

March 17, 2012

This week I have made good progress on the next game. I have completed converting all the old rooms to the new format and added some new rooms which completed the original 34 rooms that were originally planned. I have also made some tweaks in the game engine removing bugs and streamlining things. I still have to finish the tutorial, do the background page and acquire many of the game assets but I am getting closer. I am still debating on whether I should give the game away free and include ads in the game or charge for it. I am also considering adding more monster lairs to the game. The original game had one monster lair plus the tutorial. I may make a free version and a paid version with the paid version having more lairs while the free version only has the original lair with the tutorial. I am not sure yet.

March 10, 2012

This week has been a very productive week. I have completed the rewrite of the core game engine and converted all the rooms that were created for the old engine (22 total) to the new engine format. I now have to finish creating the rest of the rooms (there are currently a total of 34 rooms planned), create a tutorial, create a screen for when the character is killed allowing the player to replay the game, acquire the game assets (graphics, music, and so forth) and create a background page for the game.

I am also seriously considering expanding the game to more then 34 rooms. With the new game format being smaller then the old game format this is easy to do without increasing the size of the file dramatically. I am considering making the tutorial a lair in itself and guiding the player through the first half of that lair and letting them finish the last half on their own. I still have not decided for sure though.

March 3, 2012

This past week I discovered a big problem with the current game I am creating. It uses arrays to handle items and monsters in the game and the number of arrays required to make the game work was causing the game to be too big (the arrays were going to compose more then 50% of the total code by the time the game would be finished). As a result I went back and rewrote the game engine. I have already rewritten the combat system and I am now in the process of rewriting the player interaction part of the game (which controls players dealing with items). I also took the liberty of making a few changes to the combat system making it better and easier to expand upon in the future. While this rewrite did delay the release of the game it was necessary and will result in the game engine (and thus the game) being better.

February 25, 2012

Just a fairly short update this week. I added a few new things to the game engine powering the next game and corrected a few bugs. I also started on the rooms for the game and have determined there will be a total of 34. I hope to complete all the rooms by the end of next week. I still have to create the introduction, tutorial, acquire some game assets and do a few other clean up jobs. I have also decided on the story surrounding the game (you did not think the game was going to be a simple point and click adventure game without any story or goals to achieve did you). More on that next week.

February 19, 2012

I have made steady progress on the point and click adventure game. I have completed combat and most actions that have to deal with items such as equipping items, picking items up, inspecting items, and so forth. I still have one or two more actions dealing with items to finish then I will start building the rooms. I estimate there will be between 25 and 50 rooms in the adventure. The final number of rooms present will depend on how large the game file gets as each new room is added. I am restricted by most app stores to a maximum file size of 10 MB. I am also seriously considering not having music in the game in order to add more rooms. Time will tell.

I mentioned in an earlier update that the next game I released would be another prize game but with the progress I am making on the point and click adventure game I have changed my mind and will be releasing the point and click adventure game next. I am still not going to issue a release date but I estimate that it is not very far down the road.

February 11, 2012

This week I have made more progress on the development of my next game. I discovered a lot of the game code was repeated throughout the game so I spent some time rewriting the code and in the process reduced the size of the total game in addition to making the game run smoother and faster. While I was at it I also redone the arrays holding the game data into smaller arrays which will also make the game run smoother and faster. The rewrite of the code will also make it easier to reuse the game engine to create more games like it in the future. I have now completed almost all actions involving items (picking locks, finding traps, disarming traps, inspecting items, etc...) but I still have to complete the GUI (graphic user interface) and create a tutorial as well as complete the game rooms. The GUI is a fancy name for what the player sees when they play the game. It will consist of a series of buttons at the bottom of the page displaying inventory that is currently equipped as well as vital information displayed at the top of the page such as life points, power points, and so forth. Overall I have enjoyed making this game more then any other game I have made in the past and that is a good sign.

Till next week,

February 5, 2012

Another week has passed so it is time for another update. This past week I finished submitting Jumping Jill to the arcade portals that accept all game submissions. If you own an arcade portal that did not have Jumping Jill submitted to it but you would like to include Jumping Jill in your portal send me an email at the address listed at the bottom of this page and I will send you the information needed to add Jumping Jill to your portal. And no need to worry about the cost - it is free.

And a few quick notes on my next game. I have completed the combat section (which includes player powers) and the game code needed to handle items such as treasure chests (which includes finding and disarming traps). I still must build the rooms and finish several other areas of the game such as picking locks, using keys on items, etc... The game is coming along nicely but I will not venture on when it will be finished. I will be publishing it in the various mobile app stores for a wide variety of platforms. I am very happy with the progress I have made thus far and am looking forward to releasing the game.

January 29, 2012

Just a short update this week. This past week seen me submitting Jumping Jill to more portals. I hope to finish this up next week. I also continued to make progress programming the adventure game as well as creating the next prize game. The next game released will probably be the prize game because it is a shorter game then the adventure game.

January 21, 2012

Since last weeks update was so long I will try to keep this one short.

I am continuing to upload Jumping Jill to game portals. Perhaps I might finish this in two weeks if everything goes good. I have also started another Prize Game. The next Prize Game will have the dimensions of 300x250 and will have a small maze in it. I have also made a few changes to Prize Game 1 to make it a little easier to beat the game. I have also been working on the next Adventure Game but I have came to the conclusion that using C++ and making the game a native application will make it easier to distribute the game once it is created and using this method to create the game is not much harder then using byte code. I am now in the process of getting the tools needed to do this.

January 14, 2012

This week has seen several important developments. First I discontinued the Superior Online Games game portal (http://www.superiononlinegames.com). Despite my effort at reducing the amount of time needed to keep the web site open it was still taking up too much time which was causing a slow down in the number of games I was producing. As a result I decided to permanently pull the plug on the game portal which will result in me being able to produce games quicker.

And speaking of producing games quicker this past week saw me complete another game. It is a new type of game know as a prize game. The idea is that if you successfully beat the game you will get a prize of some sort. The prizes include such things as free items, free shipping on orders, discounts on products, etc... The first prize I offered through the game is the ability to purchase some $80.00 sunglasses for $29.99. Jumping Jill was the first game intended to be a prize game but I discovered it was too large and had too many prizes in it that had to be constantly updated. The idea of the current generation of prize games is to make the games smaller and do limited releases so that the games will not constantly have to be updated with new prizes. Basically run a prize game for a short time (one week or less) and the remove the prize game until I set it up with a new prize. All the prize games are currently HTML5 games but that could change in the future. Currently the prize games are an experiment. If they are well received I will create more of them and if not I will discontinue them.

I also started work on my next regular game. I quickly discovered the game is going to be much larger and more complex then originally expected so it will take longer to complete then I had originally planned. I will also target mobile devices that have large screens (such as android tablets) as well as HTML5. This will be the first game that I charge money for instead of giving it away free but there will be no ads in the game.

I also made the decision to only submit Jumping Jill to portals that automatically accept new games and not submit Bug Escape to the rest of the normal portals. I made this decision after realizing how much time it would take to fully distribute both games to all the portals. I did not want to spend that much time on distribution instead of game development. Portal owners should take note of this and start finding ways to make it easier and quicker to submit games to their portals. I would recommend using a PAD file which is basically a file containing all the game information (including a link on the internet where the game file can be downloaded) and the portal would simply parse this information. PAD files are small in size and the same PAD file could be used for all portals and thus it would greatly reduce the amount of time needed to submit games to portals

This update has been rather long. Maybe next week I will not be so long winded.

January 8, 2012

This week I have been busy uploading my latest game (Jumping Jill) to the portals that automatically take all game submissions. While I have not finished this part of the submission process progress has been made. After this I will finish submitting a previous game (Bug Escape) to the rest of the game portals and then finish submitting Jumping Jill to the rest of the game portals.

I have also started my next game. I have also decided to target mobile devices (specifically mobile devices that have large screens) instead of HTML5. I may eventually release a version of the game on HTML5 but this might come later. Thus far I have worked on the core game engine and I will continue to develop it as time permits.

January 1, 2012

First of all let me start off by wishing everyone a very happy new year. I hope the year 2012 is much better for you then the year 2011.

This week I started the process of distributing Jumping Jill. I will distribute it through all the "automatic" portals first then distribute Bug Escape to the rest of the normal portals then follow that with the final distribution of Jumping Jill to the rest of the normal portals. To be honest with you I will probably start (and maybe finish) the next game before these two games are fully distributed. I have decided the next game will be an HTML5 game and will be similar to a point and click game but it will also be an adventure game (not an escape game like most other point and click games). I may keep the size of the next game to a fairly small size but I will have to wait and see on what the final size will be.