OLD NEWS 2016

December 25, 2016

First off I will start this update by wishing everyone a very merry Christmas. May everyone have a very enjoyable, fun, happy and safe Christmas with family and friends. It seems this year has flown by with 2017 looming in the near future.

Last week I set one goal which was to complete the save game system for my next game (Gem Collector). As stated in last weeks update I knew I was going to have to work many hours at my full time job and I did not know if I would have enough time to even achieve this one goal. As I suspected I did not have enough time to achieve that one goal.

I am going to set two goals for next week. The first is to create the save game system for Gem Collect and the second will be to write a special year in review post which will take a look back at 2016 to see how I done. I am also thinking about making a few major changes to what I am doing with game creation (and publishing). The update in two weeks will touch on that.

December 18, 2016

First off to review the goals I set for myself this past week. The first goal was to fix a major bug in the new game I am working on called Gem Collector. Upon investigating this bug I discovered instead of it being a bug it turned out to be a major weakness in the game system I was using which will require me to rewrite a major part of the game. That will take some time so needless to say I did not achieve this goal.

The second goal was to modify the game when a player fails a level. This goal was achieved so the player will have the option of restarting the level without leaving the level which makes it faster for the player.

The third, and final goal for last week, was to add a save system. This goal was not achieved due to the lack of time I had available to develop the game.

To be honest due to my full time job I will have very little time to spend developing games the next upcoming week so the only goal I will set is to create the save system for the game. The save system will be a simple system designed to only save which levels are completed. I hope to have enough time to achieve this goal but time will tell.

December 11, 2016

First off those of you that are regular readers will notice that this update appears to be a day late. I usually post an update on Saturday but I have decided from now on to post the update on Sunday instead. Why? Simply because I have more time on Sunday then I do on Saturday which makes it easier.

Now onto this weeks update. First off I only had one goal to accomplish this past week which was to create the next 12 rooms (levels) for Gem Collector. This goal was accomplished. Now all 24 levels of section 1 (of 6) are finished.

While I was considering starting another game this past week I did not get around to doing that. Instead I concentrated on finishing goal one.

While testing some of the new levels I discovered a major bug in Gem Collector that is causing problems. Next week my first goal will be to find and fix this bug. My second goal will be to make a slight modification to what happens if the player fails a level. I was planning on sending the player to a defeat room when they fail a level which would give them a chance to restart the same level or go to the main menu but instead I think I will give the player the options of restarting the level or going to the main menu without leaving the level. As a third goal I will also try to implement game saving system which will save the players progress after each level is successfully completed. I think those three goals are enough for next week.

December 3, 2016

And to start this weeks update in the normal fashion I will first reveal if I succeeded at accomplishing the goals set last week. The first goal was to update The Collector in all the app stores. That goal was accomplished. The second goal was to finish the first 12 rooms (levels) of Gem Collector. Not only was that goal accomplished but I also done some more work on other components of Gem Collector. Last week was a very productive week.

This week I will only set one goal. The goal will be to complete the second 12 rooms (levels) for Gem Collector which will finish all the rooms planned for section one. I would set a second goal but there are no big projects that need to be completed in addition to finishing Gem Collector.

As a side note I am wanting to do another game in the Amazonian Battles game would be a little different then the previous ones in that I would make all the models larger and split the battle out over several levels instead of having the entire battle occur on the same level. As an alternative I am also considering creating another battle game similar to November 26, 2016

First off a quick review of the two goals I set last week to be accomplished this week. The first was to submit Amulet Recovery to all the App Stores. That goal has been accomplished. The second was to complete the game engine on Gem Collector and complete the first room. That goal was also accomplished (though the game engine will probably be added too and modified as work on the game continues). I have attached a screenshot at the end of this update showing one of the rooms. In addition to these goals I also found and fixed a bug in The Collector and have an update ready to be submitted to the App Stores. Overall last week was a very productive week.

Now for a few words on Gem Collector. The goal of the game will be to collect a single gem on each level (room). There will be monsters opposing you and you will have a variety of weapons to help you defeat the monsters. It is a 2D turn based game that will require some planning on the players part to collect each gem. The game is also designed to use different monsters and weapons each time each level is played though the map for each level will remain the same. This way each level will be different each time it is played. There will be a total of six sections with each section having 24 levels. The game will be initially released after the first section (with it’s 24 levels) is completed then it will be updated about every three months or so with a new section (with it’s 24 levels), new monsters and new items added each update.

Next week I will set the following goals. The first goal is to publish the update to The Collector in all the App Stores. The second goal will be to do the first 12 levels (rooms) on Gem Collector. The first release of Gem Collect will have a total of 24 levels so that is why I choose 12 levels (half of the total) to complete as goal two.

Below is a screenshot of one of the levels in Gem Collector. The screenshot is not to scale and could change drastically before Gem Collector is published. Click on the image for a larger picture.

Gem Collector Screenshot 1

November 19, 2016

First off let’s start with a review of the goals I set in last weeks update that were to be accomplished this past week to see how I done.

The first goal was to publish The Collector in the various app stores. That goal was accomplished and The Collector has already been published in some of the app stores and is being reviewed in other app stores.

The second goal was to update Amulet Recovery to remove a few bugs and fix it so that it works on mobile devices. That goal was also accomplished.

The third goal was to update Amulet Recovery in the HTML5 portals. That goal was also accomplished.

The fourth, and final, goal was to work on the RPG MAKER MV experiment. I decided to change this fourth goal due to the fact that I have too many partially completed projects already started and I would like to finish some of them. I decided to take an earlier game that I started (called Gem Collector) and take some steps toward completing it. And I did achieve that goal by getting the game engine almost finished.

For the next upcoming week I think I will only set two goals. First will be to publish Amulet Recovery in the various app stores (or at least get it submitting to all the app stores). The second will be to complete the game engine for Gem Collector and create the first game room. I have decided I will release Gem Collector in a totally different manner then what I have released all previous games. I will explain my plans for this in more detail in the next update.

November 12, 2016

This past week I had several goals that I set to achieve. Below is a summary of how I did.

The first goal was to update this website. I succeeded at that. Not only did I add The Collector to the web site I also added a new web page called Friends which contains a list of other websites that I am not directly affiliated with but have asked me to provide a link to their website.

The second goal was to publish The Collector in the HTML5 portals. I succeeded in accomplishing this goal. If you know of any other HTML5 portals that I did not get The Collector published in let me know and I will try to have it published in them as well.

The third goal was to make The Collector mobile friendly. I succeeded at that as well. It now runs very well as normal apps on mobile devices as well as in browsers on mobile devices.

The fourth, fifth and sixth goals were to publish The Collector in the mobile app stores, to update Amulet Recovery and then publish the update in the HTML5 portals and to do more work on the RPG MAKER MV experiment. I did not get anything accomplished on these three goals.

I liked the way I made several smaller goals this past week so I think I will repeat that again this week. The first goal will be to submit The Collector to the Android app stores. The second goal will be to update Amulet Recovery with the needed changes. The third goal will be to update Amulet Recovery in the HTML5 portals. The fourth goal will be to do more work on the RPG MAKER MV experiment. That should be enough to keep me busy for the week.

November 5, 2016

This past week I finished creating my latest game called The Collector. I discovered a few last second bugs that had to be fixed so it took a little longer to finish it then I expected but it is now fully finished. Next I will upload it to HTML5 portals and I have also decided to make a few modifications to make it more mobile friendly then upload it to the Android app stores. I did not get to do any more work on the experiment with RPG MAKER MV but hopefully I will get more done on that in the near future.

Next week the first goal is to update this web site adding The Collector to it. The second goal will be to publish The Collect in the HTML5 portals. The third goal will be to modify The Collector to make it mobile friendly. The fourth goal is to publish The Collector in the various Android app stores. For a fifth goal I need to make a few changes to Amulet Recovery and update it in the HTML5 portals. As a final sixth goal I hope to do more on the experiment with RPG MAKER MV. As you can see I have a lot of goals for the upcoming week. Next week we will see how many of them I manage to accomplish.

October 29, 2016

This past week I almost completed my latest game (called The Collector). I have just a small number of things to finish and then it will be ready for publication. This past week I also made a few minor changes to the website adding a new page called PORTALS which lists some of the HTML5 game portals where some of my games are published at. In addition to the above two accomplishments I also done some experimenting with a new RPG engine designed to create RPG games. While the engine seems to be very good at creating 2D RPGs I am wanting to create more 3D RPGs and as a result will probably use another tool. I might take the experiment I was doing and post it in the LAB section of the website in a couple of weeks. I have to admit that for 2D RPG games the engine is fairly good and quick to work with. For those interested the engine I am experimenting with is RPG MAKER MV.

Next week I hope to finish The Collector and at least start publishing the game. I am seriously thinking about publishing The Collector on both the HTML5 and Android platforms. If I do this it will take longer to publish the game but will give it a wider audience. I may also finish my experiment with RPG MAKER MV but that is a secondary goal.

October 23, 2016

This past week I had two main goals. The first was to publish Amulet Recovery on as many HTML5 web portals as possible. This goal was completed. I was surprised how quickly and easily it was to publish it. Some of the web portals were not interested in the game and I still have a portal or two left but overall it was quicker then submitting an app to the various app stores.

The second goal was to do as much work on another game (currently called The Collector) as possible. As of last weeks update The Collector was about 25% finished and this week it is about %75 completed. I am happy with the progress made on The Collector this past week.

Next week I will try to do a small update to the web site (nothing big, just a few minor changes) and do more work on The Collector. It would be great if I could finish The Collector but I am not sure if that will happen next week or not. I also would like to experiment with another game engine I have been watching for awhile to make a short HTML5 RPG.

October 15, 2016

This past week I discovered a work around for the bug preventing me from playing music in one of my latest games (Amulet Recovery). In addition to this I also discovered and fixed several other smaller bugs in the game as well. As a result Amulet Recovery is now fully finished and available to play HERE. Amulet Recovery is an HTML5 game so it is playable on all devices that have modern web browsers and I will now start publishing it in the various HTML5 portals. I am very happy with this progress. Amulet Recovery will be the fifth game I have released this year.

I also made a lot of progress on my next game (tentatively called The Collector). I would estimate the game is about 25% finished at this point but progress is steadily being achieved.

My goals for next week are simple. First will be to publish Amulet Recovery in all the HTML5 portals I can find. Secondly will be to make as much progress finishing The Collector as possible.

October 8, 2016

This past week I started work on a new game. It is a little different type of game then what I have produced before with luck playing a larger role in the game. It is a card game where the player is trying to collect tokens in order to win. The strategy involves letting the player push his luck to try for more tokens before he decides he has enough tokens to win the game. The number of tokens each player has will not be revealed until the end of the game. Some cards will also have other affects in the game. The game is still in the early phases of development and has a ways to go before being finished.

I am also searching for a new tool to use for all my development needs. The requirements for the tool is to be able to export to Windows, Android and HTML5 (canvas and WebGL) from a single code base, it must be in active development (receiving regular updates) and it also must have a way for me to expand it with third party SDKs and APIs. I would also like to use it for both game development and non-game development. There are many different tools out there to choose from and I am starting to look into them.

October 1, 2016

I spent most of last week working on my latest game (Amulet Recovery) creating the work around for the bug that was preventing me from releasing it. I finished the work around and was about to start publishing it when I discovered the music had stopped playing in the game. After working on this bug for awhile I discovered it is another bug in the game engine used to create the game. I submitted another bug report but I cannot do a work around for this bug so I must wait until the bug is fixed or release the game without music (which I do not want to do).

As a result I have decided to switch to a new game engine to create all (or most) future 2D games with. I will put Amulet Recovery on hold until the music bug is fixed then I will publish Amulet Recovery. I have used the new game engine in the past that I am switching to so the learning curve is not too great. I will start by creating and releasing a shorter game that will not take too long. The new game engine also publishes to the HTML5 and Android platforms so I will be able to target both markets with the same engine.

September 24, 2016

A very short update this week. I spent the majority of the week researching the problem with my latest game (Amulet Recovery) trying to find a solution. I have finally found a work around for the problem but it is going to take some time to apply it. If I had not had this problem I would have already published Amulet Recovery and been working on another game (perhaps even having the next game finished). While this is frustrating it is almost behind me. Because I spent this week working on Amulet Recovery I do not have any other news to report.

This next week my primary goal will be to apply the fix to Amulet Recovery. My secondary goal will to be finally publish Amulet Recovery. Anything else I succeed in doing beyond those two goals will be extra.

September 17, 2016

This week has been a very frustrating week for me as far as game production goes. Just when I was about to release my latest game (Amulet Recovery) I discovered a major but in it. The bug turned out to be in the game engine I was using instead of the game I created with the game engine. I submitted a bug report and started looking into the cause of the bug to see if I could find a solution. After a lot of research I suspect I have found a possible workaround which I am now in the process of trying. If it works I will be able to publish the game if not I will keep looking. This week has definitely been very frustrating.

Next week I either hope to fix the bug in Amulet Recovery and publish the game or to start on another game. If the bug is not fixable I have already chosen another HTML5 game engine that I will use for general HTML5 games in the future and I will abandon the engine I have been using.

September 10, 2016

I am just now putting the finishing touches on the point and click game (now named Amulet Recovery) and this next week I will be publishing it in the HTML5 web portals. After that it will be time to publish it in the Android App Stores. The goal of the game is to recover an amulet stolen by some Draklins (monster). You will do this by exploring their lair (a dungeon naturally), defeating monsters encountered (both Draklins and other monsters) until you find the amulet. You will have several items you can use to help you achieve the quest (from healing potions to bones which can be used for weapons to hides which can be used for armor). This is the fifth game I am releasing this year and it is the first game that I am trying to create the dungeon with a 2D isometric view.

My primary goals this week is to publish Amulet Recovery and update this website with that game. Anything that gets done beyond that is just icing on the cake.

September 3, 2016

As you might have already figured out I managed to finish updating the website with the Amazonian Battles series of games. You will find a link on the left side to check out the new part of the web site. I will probably add more app stores to the listing of app stores where the various Amazonian Battles games can be found when they are published in more stores.

I have also made a decision not to do Amazonian Battles 4 at this time. Why? I am not able to add all the future features I want to the game because it is primarily designed to be a grid based combat game. I want to add treasure chests (that need to be de-trapped and unlocked to obtain their contents), new powers that affect objects and add more interaction choices with objects, plus a lot of other things. All these require me to use another method which I will start looking for.

So what is next? First I have a point and click adventure game almost finished. It will be available for both HTML5 and Android and should be released within the next two week. It also has a new style of floor plans.

Second, I have another 2D game (tentatively called Gem Collector) which is finished except for the levels. I plan on having a small number of levels available initially and allowing players to add more levels in the future.

Third, I have been wanting to modify AG1 to be browser friendly and release it as an HTML5 game in addition to the Android platform. This would not take too much work.

Finally I also have another RPG game engine I am wanting to try out with a short game. The new engine has a lot of potential and I am looking forward to trying it.

The above items do not include new ideas I have for games. The future looks bright.

August 28, 2016

This update is one day late for a good reason. I done a lot of work on the next major website update. I would estimate I am about half way done adding the new Amazonian Battles series of games to the website but I also found a few other areas that could use an update as well. Next week I will try to finish the website update and get it posted.

In addition to working on the website I also spent some time working on a point and click adventure game but I am seeing that it is taking so long to complete the game rooms that I will probably not use it for a template to create other games from. It is turning out to be a great learning experience thought.

Next week I will try to finish the website update and see what other work I can get done on other game projects. I might also start doing some preliminary work on Amazonian Battles 4 (AB4) while I am at it. I have given some thought on making AB4 a sci-fi game set in a space ship but this would require me to introduce some player units that had futuristic weapons as well as aliens for the player to fight (and that is in addition to creating a space ship for the players to explore in). Currently I am only thinking about going that direction with AB4 and I have not fully decided to for sure.

August 20, 2016

This past week I finished Amazonian Battles 3 (AB3). It took a total of 18 days and the goal was to complete it in 17 days or less but there was a one day delay in finishing it when I discovered a few bugs that had to be removed. Overall I am happy with how quickly AB3 was created. I also added two new opponents for players to face (a Wolf Spider and a Zombie) and there are a total of 20 combat encounters the players must survive in order to win the game but I laid the combat encounters out in such a way so that players will have to use strategy to keep from facing too many opponents at once.

This next upcoming week I will set two goals. First is to submit AB3 to all the app stores and the second is to update this web site showing the new Amazonian Battles series of games I have created. The web site update is long overdue and I am looking forward to finally having the time to do it.

After that there are a few other goals I would like to accomplish this month (August 2016) including finishing an HTML5 point and click game (or some other HTML5 game) as well as investigating the possibility of releasing the Amazonian Battles series of games on other platforms in addition to Android.

August 13, 2016

Just a short update this week. This past week excellent work was made on Amazonian Battles 3 (AB3). I finished the dungeon (it has a total of 20 combat areas) and added two new opponents for players to face. The first is a Wolf Spider (fairly hard to kill with a smaller bite attack). The second was a Zombie (which has average attack abilities and life points but does great damage). I also created some of the artwork for AB3. I plan on finishing it and releasing it next week. All my effort was put into finishing AB3 this past week so no progress was made on any other goals. The plan is currently to release a new Amazonian Battles game each month until at least January 1, 2017 with other new games getting finished and released being optional (though I would like to release some others finished and released). Now back to finishing and releasing AB3.

August 6, 2016

This past week some progress was made on Amazonian Battles 3 (AB3). I say some progress because the original idea was to set AB3 in a set of ruins but when I started creating the ruins I discovered I was going to have to create a terrain to put them in but the terrain was going to have to be flat due to the way the squares work. When I started creating the terrain to put them in I discovered it would be too hard to do this due to my lack of experience creating terrains in Unity (the game engine I am using). As a result I decided to put AB3 in a dungeon again. I did succeed in adding a new opponent for the players to face (spiders) and I did start creating the dungeon (it is about 1/8 completed) so all was not lost. I also have another chance at adding a reward for those who defeat all the monsters. I am still hoping to finish AB3 in 17 days or less.

As you can tell by looking around the web site I still have not updated the web site to reflect the Amazonian Battles series of games. I just did not have enough time. Now back to work on AB3.

July 30, 2016

The biggest thing I accomplished this past week was doing a lot of work on the point and click game (PC1). I finished all the rooms and added a bunch of items to the game. I am currently trying to figure out the best way to implement the items in the game. The goal is to have the item disappear in the game once the player uses it so the player cannot get that same item again. I am looking for the best way to do this but there is one complication. There is text displayed at the top of the screen in each room and that text will change based on what items are in the room. Changing the text according to the items is proving to be the challenging part.

On 8-1-2016 I will start on Amazonian Battles 3 (AB3). The goal is to finish it in 17 days or less (because it took 18 days to finish AB2). I have also decided to place AB3 in a set of ruins instead of a dungeon. There will also be new monsters to fight and perhaps a few new items to discover and use. A secondary goal will be to add a rewards system that rewards players for winning the game and a tip system for those that do not want to watch a video in order to play the game. These last two goals are optional.

This past week this web site did not get the update I was hoping to do. Maybe I can finally get around to it this week.

July 23, 2016

This past week I finished Amazonian Battles 2 (AB2) and submitted it to the app stores. In addition to this I also fixed a bug and made a few small changes (including adding a medkit for players to use). I did not get any work done on updating my web page (other then the weekly news update).

One other thing I got done was doing a lot of work on the point and click game (tentatively called PC1). At this point all the rooms have been created (20 total) and I am now in the process of creating the items for the game (weapons, armor, etc…). After that I have graphics and a few other things to finish and the game will be completed. I am going to aim for HTML5 as the primary market for PC1 and Android as a secondary market.

One of the reasons I made such good progress was because I was on vacation from my full job last week so I had a lot more time to work on gaming projects. I took a total of 18 days to complete (AB2) which is 8 more then I planned. Hopefully AB3 will take less time to complete. Next week I hope to finish all the items for PC1 (which will probably get a new name before it is released) and update my website to reflect the Amazonian Battles series. Either way August 1 I will start AB3.

July 16, 2016

This past week I did add one more monster to Amazonian Battles 2 (AB2). It was a zombie. I made the skeletons a little easier to defeat while making the zombie a tougher opponent. I failed to add a rewards system and a donation system to AB2 (maybe I can add them to AB 3). At this point I am going to publish AB2 to the app stores. It took about a week and a half longer to complete and publish AB2 then what I originally planned but I hope the lessons I learned on AB2 will help me make AB3 quicker.

Next week the only goal I have is to publish AB2 in all the app stores. I also need to create the web page for AB1 (as well as a general web page for the entire Amazon Battles series). This would make a good secondary goal.

July 9, 2016

This past week I created the entire dungeon which will be used in Amazonian Battles 2 (AB2). There are a total of 18 combat encounters in it (spread out over 17 rooms and one hallway) which is three times more then AB1 had. I also added Skeletons for players to fight against and a MedKit to help players heal wounded units to make winning the game easier. I am also considering adding another undead monster or two (a zombie perhaps) . While the theme of AB2 is going to obviously be undead there will probably be an encounter with a small group of Goblins and a Bane Dog or two to keep things interesting and give more variety. I also added a new play element to the game by making the skeletons less vulnerable to certain types of weapons (piercing and edged).

At this point I have created enough of the game to launch it at any time but I will try to add an optional in-game donation for players to use instead of watching a video and I am still trying to add some kind of reward for successfully defeating all the monsters. These two items are optional and the game will be released without them if they are not completed in time. AB2 will be released sometime in this month (July 2016).

July 2, 2016

This past week all the work done on the newest Point and Click game was centered around finding the proper size to make items in relation to the room size. I did not have much time to work on it until I started Amazonian Battles 2 (AB2).

There are several goals for AB2. The first is to make the game larger then AB1. In AB1 there were a total of six different enemy groups to encounter and AB2 will have a total of 18 different enemy groups to encounter. This will basically triple the size of AB2 giving it a much longer playing time.

The second goal is to introduce some new monsters with a few new rule changes around armor. I plan on making different types of weapons have different effects with the various armor types and monster types in the game.

The third goal is to give players the option of either watching a video each time they play the game or tipping me a small amount (probably 25 cent) to play the game. One tip will allow the player to play the game from then on so they will not have to continue tipping me when they replay AB2 in the future (the tip will only apply to AB2 and will not apply to other games in the Amazonian Battles series).

A final goal is to provide players with some kind of reward if they defeat all the monsters in the lair. I am thinking about something like a free song, a discount on a purchase or some other free item.

While the first two goals are things I am definitely going to add to AB2 the final two goals will only be added if they do not delay AB2 being released in July 2016.

June 25, 2016

This past week I finished submitting AB1 to all the app stores that I can currently submit it to (some were being updated and I will come back to them later). I did not get around to creating a web page for the Amazonian Battles series of games. Hopefully I will get around to that next week.

I also resurrected a point and click game I started working on awhile back. I made some minor changes to it giving it a better look and feel. I have finished the combat part and am now starting to create rooms for it. I plan on using a different type of visual artwork to create the rooms for this game. The basis of the game will be to defeat monsters while gaining treasure and exploring the game world. And yes, like previous games the first few games in this series will be set in dungeons (you can tell by now I like dungeons). This game will primarily be aimed at both the HTML5 and Android platforms.

Next week I plan to get as much done as possible on the point and click game but on July 1 I will start developing AB2. In addition to this I also hope to get the web page for The Amazonian Battles series of games posted.

June 18, 2016

This past week I made a few minor changes to AB1 and started releasing it to the various app stores. I am roughly about half way through the list of app stores. Most of the app stores are in the process of reviewing it before it is released in that particular app store but a few of them have already released it. If you have a favorite app store you would like to see AB1 in send me an email at the link below and I will do my best to submit it to that particular app store. Next week I plan on finishing the submission of AB1 to the app stores and create a web page for it. I still plan on releasing AB2 in the month of July 2016.

In other news I have been considering what the next game should be. I have several unfinished games as well as ideas for other new games so I have many choices to choose from. Time will tell.

June 11, 2016

This past week I finished AB1 (the first game in the Amazonian Battles series). This included doing making a few last second changes in the game but everything went well. I will now start publishing it in the various app stores and this might take awhile because I am going to put it in as many as possible. At the bottom of the page you will find a screen shot of the finished game.

I am planning on releasing a new game in the Amazonian Battles series each month from now until January 2017. I will do it by stopping whatever I am doing at the first of the month to create the next game in the series. After the next game in the series is created and published I will then continue with the project I was working on from the previous month. Because of how the game was created I expect each game in the series to take a maximum of one week to finish. This will result in a steady stream of new games being produced and released from now on.

AB1 Screen shot 3

June 4, 2016

This past week I almost finished the Turn Based Tactical Combat game. I have just a few more things to do and then I will be publishing it. I have also decided to keep the game freely available to all that want it. I have decided the to name the game series Amazonian Battles (because all the starting player units are female) and the name of the first game in the series is The Goblin Dungeon. I am using a dungeon in the first game because not only am I very familiar with and like them but also because they are very easy to create. The next game in the series may not be in a dungeon. The naming convention will be AB1 - The Goblin Dungeon while the next in the series will be AB2 - Game Name followed by AB3- Game Name, etc… This will make it easy for players to find other games in the series after they have played one game in the series.

I did not get much work done on other games this past week because the vast majority of my time was spent on AB1. Thus the screen shot I was hoping to post in this weeks update was not created. I was also on vacation this week so I did not have any lunch breaks where I could work on 2D games.

I have one goal for next week. Finish AB1. If I start publishing it as well that is even better.

May 28, 2016

This past week I discovered some changes I needed to make to the players units in the Turn Based Tactical Combat Game. I am new to using 3D models and it took awhile to learn enough to be able to make the changes. Despite this delay I still made some good progress on the game involving adding more player units to the game and modifying the ones already there. I have finished adding all the monster units for the first game and am still improving and adding more player units. And you read that correctly. This is going to be the first game in a series of games and the game has been designed from the ground up with that in mind. It has also been designed so that subsequent games can be created very quickly. I am still hoping to get the first game in this series finished before long.

I have also been experiment with a few other tools for creating other types of games and I am having some very good success with some of them. Some of these are being created just as quickly as the Turn Based Tactical Combat Game is and that is saying a lot considering how little time I am dedicating to them. I might post a screenshot of one of the games in a future news update. These other games are also being created in such a way that I can create subsequent games very quickly as well.

May 21, 2016

This past week I finished the entire combat area for the Turn Based Tactical Game (I have still not chosen an official name for it). I have also fully finished creating all the opponents the player will face. This only leaves a few other scenes (menu, directions, etc…) that need to be created, finishing the units available to the player (I have already created two units but I have two more to go) and creating a few perks for the player (mainly ways to restore health to damage units using med kits). This game is looking very good.

I have also been doing some preliminary work on choosing the best tool to create new 2D games with on my lunch break. I have several to choose from and I might end up using several different tools. The 2D games will primarily be aimed at HTML5 (using canvas) and Android while the 3D games will be primarily aimed at Android and HTML5 (using WebGL). In addition to having several other partially finished 2D games I also have an idea for a short dice game. I have never done a dice game before and if it looks like that game can be done quickly (within two weeks) I might do it as the next 2D game on my lunch break.

May 14, 2016

This past week success was achieved in changing the Turn Based Tactical Combat game in such a way that all the levels will fit in the same scene. This will allow all the battles to occur in one scene and it also still runs well on mobile devices. The only major thing left to do is redesign the scene to add all the rooms that used to be spread out on multiple scenes. In addition to this I still have to create several other scenes (such as a main menu, directions, etc…) and finish a few other details. This game is starting to get close to being completed.

I have also decided to spend some extra time I have on my lunch breaks at my full time job to finish some of the 2D games I have started (and maybe start a new game or two). This way I will be able to get a few more games done. This will not take away from time spent on 3D games because this time is extra time that I do not normally spend on game creation.

May 8, 2016

This update is one day late because I was busy yesterday and did not get around to doing it.

This past week I done more work on the turn based Tactic Combat game. Most of the work was spent on the modifying the rooms to make a better game. The first game will be in a dungeon setting and I am also looking for a way to include the entire dungeon in one scene without slowing the game down too much on mobile devices. This would include modifying the game in such a way so the camera would jump from unit to unit so the player could choose each unit to interact with. If this slows the game down a lot and I will keep it the way it currently is with the entire dungeon separated into separate scenes.

The real time Tactical Combat game has ran into some problems. I am still looking at different possibilities and considering other alternatives.

Early experiments on the First Person Shooter are looking good. It should not be too long until this gets more attention. Maybe after the turn based Tactical Combat game is released.

April 30, 2016

This month has gone by very quickly. This past week I added the combat units to the Tactical Combat game and finished most of the rooms. I still have a few more details to add to the rooms and they will be finished. This game is intended to be a very short game fully playable in one hour. I am also experimenting on another Tactical Combat game. The first Tactical Combat game is turn based and the second one is real time. The second one will also be a short game designed to be played in one hour just like the first one is.

I plan on producing a series of short of Tactical Combat Games in a variety of genres (including post-holocaust, sci-fi and fantasy as well as several other less popular genres). Some will be turn based while others will be real time. The idea is to produce games that can be played casually in a short period of time. Once I get the ground work done for a particular genre I will be able to produce future games in that genre very quickly.

I am also experimenting with a First Person Shooter game (I have always wanted to create one of these) . This will probably be a shorter game as well and will probably turn into another series of short games. I am thinking about letting this one be a post-holocaust game but I have not made the final decision. There might also be several different genres done as First Person Shooter games as well. Just like the Tactical Combat games once the first game is completed in each genre future First Person Shooter games in that same genre can be created very quickly.

April 23, 2016

I will keep it a short update this weekend.

This past week all my game development time was spent on the Tactical Combat game. I quickly realized the size of the level was too large so I split the level up into smaller chunks with each level now being composed of one chunk. The levels will tie together so when the player finishes with one level they will continue on to the next. I also started adding combatants (units) to the game. I am not sure if I want to have it be a fantasy hack and slash type of game, a post holocaust type of game or a sci-fi type of game. I may make several different Tactical Combat games of each of the above types. I am planning on creating a series of these types of games because I like them so much. Below you will find a screen shot of one of the partially finished redesigned levels.

Tactics 1 Screen shot 2

April 16, 2016

This past week I set three goals. The first was to update the web site for Nuclei with a link to the new store. When I started doing this I discovered I have a free ad supported version of Nuclei on this web site without listing any app stores. I decided instead of listing app stores I would just update Nuclei to the new version (with bug fixes and new graphics). Unfortunately I did not get this done this week. There was just too many other things to do.

The second goal was to complete the tutorials for the maze game. After taking a closer look at the maps I decided the maps were not high enough in quality to use. Due to this fact I am going to keep looking for ways to make better maps for the maze game (and all other games that use maps)..

The third goal was to work on the next phase of the experiment. This phase will be to release a second game on the Amazon Fire TV and Amazon Stick TV platform. I have decided the next game will probably be Par-5 Mini Golf though this might change. Other then that not a lot of progress was made. Read the next paragraph below to see what progress was made on.

All was not lost this week however. I did accomplish making a lot of progress on a tactical combat game. You can see a screenshot of the partially completed game below (the screenshot is not to scale). At this point the entire level has almost been finished (I just need to add combatant units) and I am about to start work on the game wrapper (menu, instructions, etc…). I am very surprised at how quickly this game has progressed. I also plan on making it a free ad-sponsored game.

Tactics 1 Screen shot 1

April 9, 2016

This past week I think I figured out the best way to create the maps used for the levels in the maze game. It is much quicker then what I have used in the past which I am thankful for. The next thing for this game will be to actually start creating the levels (probably starting with the tutorial levels).

In addition to progress being made on the maze game I also made an update to the game used in phase one of the experiment and resubmitted it to the app store. The game was accepted and published. For those interested the game was Nuclei and the changes I made were to update the graphics, fix one bug and made it compatible with the Amazon Fire TV and the Amazon Stick TV. The new platform I am testing is obviously the Amazon Fire TV and Amazon Stick TV. I must say I like seeing my games on a much larger screen.

Next week I will set three goals. The first will be to update the Nuclei web page on this web site to reflect the new store. The second will be to complete the tutorials for the maze game. The third will be to do start phase 2 of the experiment.

April 2, 2016

This past week I had two goals I wanted to accomplish. The first goal was to finish phase one of the experiment I was doing which involves finishing updating an older game for a new platform. I almost finished this but ran into a bug in the software used to create the game. When this bug is fixed the game will be ready to submit to the app store.

The second goal was to do the ground work necessary to start creating rooms for the maze game and then to start creating the rooms. Enough of the ground work was completed to realize the best way to create the rooms would be to use a different approach to creating them. This is currently where I am at the moment.

Next week I will probably only have one goal which will be to figure out what the best way to create rooms for the maze game is and then to start making the rooms. I will have to work more hours then usual next week at my full time job so this will cut into how much work I can actually do next week but I am hoping to make as much progress as possible.

March 26, 2016

This past week the two goals I set were both related to the maze game. The first goal was to complete the tutorials. I completed about 1/3 of this goal. I finished the basic framework for the tutorial system and got to the part where I needed to create the tutorial rooms. I quickly discovered I needed to do some more ground work before creating the rooms (tutorial rooms as well as game rooms) the way I am wanting to create them.

The second goal was to start creating some of the game rooms for the maze game. I did not get this goal achieved. See the above paragraph for the reason why.

One thing I did do in addition to the two goals was almost complete an experiment. The experiment involves modifying an existing game to work on a new platform. Most of the work involved modifying the user interface for the game. I almost completed this and I have just a few small changes left to make and the game will be launched on the new platform. I should call this phase one of the experiment because I plan on testing this new platform with several older games as well as also making all newer games work on it as well.

Next week I will also have two goals. Due to how close phase one of the experiment is to being finished the first goal will be to finish and release the first game in the experiment on the new platform. The second goal will be to do the ground work necessary to start creating the rooms for the maze game and then to actually start making the rooms.

March 19, 2016

This past week I had three goals. The first goal was to create all the opponents for the maze game. Not only did I achieve this goal but I also added several other things to the game as well. This week was a great week for the maze game.

The second goal was to do some work on the experiment. This did not happen. I simply spent too much time on the maze game to do any work on the experiment. I am also realizing the experiment is going to involve expanding the game in a big way.

The final goal was to do some work on one of the non-game projects I have started. I quickly decided that the time this goal would take would be too much time to take away from game development. As a result I spent the time on the maze game instead of one of the non-game projects resulting in this goal not being achieved. These non-game projects are things that I want for myself so in the future I think I might try to do a small amount on them as I have time.

I will only set two goals for the next week. The first goal will be to create a tutorial system for the maze game. A short tutorial is needed for the maze game because the player input that controls the game is slightly different from your typical game. The second goal will be to start creating the rooms for the maze game. Anything I accomplish beyond this will be considered a bonus.

March 12, 2016

Last week I set two goals to accomplish this week. The first was to complete the game mechanics of the maze game and the second was to do a short experiment.

The first goal was accomplished. The game mechanics for the maze game are fully completed. I also started working on developing the opponents (monsters) the player will face. There will be a total of 55 opponents in the game and I have completed the first 15 of them. There was definitely good progress made on the maze game this past week.

The second goal was half achieved. This was due to the fact that as I was working on the game I started seeing new game play mechanics that could be added to the game. I started adding them and as a result I achieved about half of what I wanted. I still see more game play that can be added to the game so this will continue for at least a little while longer.

I think I will set three goals for next week. The first will be to complete creating the opponents for the maze game. The second will be to make more progress on the experiment. A third goal will be to work on one of several non-game apps I have in various stages of completion.

March 5, 2016

This past week I had two goals to accomplish. The first was to complete the conflict resolution system for the strategy game I have been working on while the second was to get as much done on the new maze game as possible. Lets talk about the second goal first.

The second goal was achieved. Achieving the second goal also revealed to me that the maze game is a much stronger game then I originally thought. It is turning into a rogue style game with some extra strategy elements and a small amount of RPG/Adventure game elements thrown in as well. I made so much progress on this game (and it turned out to be such a great game) that I did not achieve the first goal. I am also going to move the maze game ahead of schedule so that it is released before the strategy game.

Next week I will also set two goals. The first will be to finish the primary game play for the maze game. The primary game play is currently about 50% complete. The second goal will be to set up a short experiment. This short experiment will involve modifying one of my older games and once the experiment is set up and running it will take about six months to complete. Once it is running there will be very little work on my part to keep it going.

February 27, 2016

This update is posted very late today due to the fact that I was without internet for awhile while I changed internet service providers. At least I am releasing it on the same day as opposed to a full day late.

I set one goal to accomplish this week and it was to fix the problem preventing me from being able to easily target all planned target platforms (android, windows, etc…) with one version of the game. I achieved that goal. I also done some more work on the strategy game as well as another maze game.

The strategy game is turning into a strategy/battle game. I am now at the point of creating the conflict resolution part. This game is turning into a much bigger game then I had originally planned. That means it will not be completed in February 2016 as originally planned. So much for that new years resolution.

The other game I done some work on is a new maze game. The idea here is to have a game similar to a Rogue style game but different. In each level the player will have to get to each exit while collecting as many gems as possible. There will be multiple weapons to use and multiple opponents to face. I am trying to not turn this game into a full Adventure/RPG game but instead make it more of a strategy game where the player has to plan his moves. I am also planning on creating the first few levels in such a way that they will teach the player how to play the game.

The first goal for next week will be to complete the conflict resolution part of the strategy game. The second goal for next week will be to do some work on the maze game.

February 20, 2016

Last week was the second week in a row that I set three goals to accomplish that week. The first goal was to do more work on the strategy game. I ran into a problem with this game. What I am trying to do is to create one game that can be distributed to different platforms without making major changes to the game. I ran into some problems making this work. I am still working on it and hope to find a solution soon.

The second goal was to submit an older game to a particular app store. This goal was achieved and the app is now going through the review process.

The final goal was to do some market research. This goal was also achieved and it has resulted in me deciding to change my game distribution some. I had switched to a premium distribution method (only release paid games which are free of all advertising) but the market research has resulting in me deciding to release some shorter free games (both micro-games and sub-games) that have advertising in them. This will start as an experiment and will probably be mixed with the release of some premium paid games as well.

I have also volunteered to test a new game creation tool. This testing will start in around two to three weeks but I hope to eventually use the testing as a way to create more games (by using the testing to create more games).

Next week I think I will only set one goal. It will be to solve the problem which prevented me from achieving the first goal I set for last week.

February 13, 2016

Last week I set myself three goals to accomplish. The first goal was to complete a short experiment with another game creation tool. This goal was over achieved. I tested not one but two game creation tools. I discovered that both tools need more work before they are ready to do what I want them to do. The second goal was to submit some older apps to another app store. I failed to achieve this goal. There was just not enough time. The third goal was to do some work on the Strategy game. This goal was achieved. While my first attempt at creating the GUI (graphic user interface) on the Strategy game failed my second attempt succeeded. There is only a few minor things left and the GUI for the Strategy game will be fully finished.

Next week I will also set three goals. The first will be to make more progress on the Strategy game. Hopefully I will get fully finished with the GUI and start on game play. The second will again be to get the older apps into the app store. The third will be to do a little market research which will influence my decisions about which types of games to do in the future.

February 6, 2016

This past week I started a new game. While I was having some thoughts about doing an Arcade game I finally decided on a Strategy game. This is the first full Strategy game I have created but it is going well. I am currently working on the GUI (graphical user interface) making it so the users can react with the game on the new platform I am planning on targeting. After I finish with the GUI I will finish the game play then add the game assets. I am also considering doing a short experiment with another game creation tool. If this short experiment turns out well it might be the next game that gets released.

I have several goals next week. First I want to complete the new short experiment. Second I am planning on submitting two of my older games to another app store. This particular app store has only one of my games listed in it but it has done well. Thirdly I want to make some more progress on the Strategy game (at least finish the GUI and get started on the actual game play).

January 30, 2016

This past week I spent some time working on the point and click adventure game I started awhile back getting it to work on a new platform. I already had combat completed and was ready to start creating rooms, items, traps, etc… Progress made this week was primarily on the GUI (graphic user interface) which is what players use to play the game. I still have a ways to go but it looks promising. I have still not decided what game to do next (which I am still hoping to release in February 2016). I have also been busy working on a couple of non-game projects.

The only goal that I will set next week is to start my next game. I have been looking for sources of new game ideas to help me find a good idea for the next game. I am leaning toward some kind of arcade game though I am not sure if that will be my final decision.

January 23, 2016

Just a short update this week. This past week Alien Shoot 2 was published in another app store (Barnes And Noble) so I added the app store to the list of available stores where Alien Shoot 2 can be obtained at. I also done some research into my next game. While I have not made the final decision I an leaning toward releasing something that will allow me to port it to a new platform. More details in the coming weeks.

Next week I hope to not only make the final decision of which game I will create next but also to make some progress on actually creating it.

January 16, 2016

This past week was an excellent week as far as game production goes. Not only did I finish Alien Shoot 2 but I also published it in several select app stores. Since it is a premium paid game I decided to only publish it in the app stores that I have done well with premium paid games in the past. If you are connected to an app store that has premium paid apps and your store does not have it and you would like it added to that store send me an email using the link at the bottom and I will add it. I also updated this web site by adding a page for Alien Shoot 2. I also discovered one of the other pages was missing (for Nuclei Mobile) so I fixed that. If you notice any other page missing send me an email using the link at the bottom and let me know and I will fix it.

I have also been considering what game to do next. I done more research into the prize game but discovered there were not enough free prizes to give away so I have put it on the back burner for now. If anyone knows of a source that gives away free magazines or other products (not only digital products but especially physical products) where I could get prizes for the game let me know. I am also considering finishing another previously started game (I still have several more of these). Finally I am also considering making Alien Shoot 2 available for Ubuntu (Linux) and Tizen. The only problem is that Alien Shoot 2 was designed from the ground up to be a mobile game instead of a desktop game. This was also the reason Alien Shoot 2 was not a particularly good match for HTML5 so I skipped that platform this time.

The goal for next week will be to decide which game to do next (and hopefully make some progress on it) as well as to possibly publish Alien Shoot 2 to a new platform.

January 9, 2016

This past week a lot of progress was made on Alien Shoot 2. Four new alien enemies were added to the game which also gave the aliens more weapons to use against the player. The player was also given the ability to place bombs which will detonate later. In addition to these expansions mines were also added to the game and I also added a new sound effect. Thus far Alien Shoot 2 is still scheduled to be released in January 2016.

I am also considering what game to make after Alien Shoot 2. I have several alternatives including a prize game (a short game where the player will get a free prize if they beat the game), AG2 and A point and click game (combat is finished for this game but it still needs more game elements and levels created). Several other arcade and puzzle games are also being considered as my next game.

Next week I will probably start making levels for Alien Shoot 2 (there are a total of 18). I also need to get a few new assets for some of the new aliens added to the game.

January 2, 2016

This past week I made the decision to develop and release a game called Alien Shoot 2 as my next game. The original Alien Shoot game was released awhile ago and has been played by many different people on various Android devices. In some of the app stores it is the most popular game I have released. I will add more game play, enemies, weapons and new levels to the next version of the game. I have already started it this past week and have made good progress thus far updating some of the graphics.

My goal next week is to add most of the new game play and be ready to start the new levels. I am hopping Alien Shoot 2 will be released sometime during January 2016 which is a reasonable goal.