Penny Arcade

We were threshing GDC news when we came across a LEGO Universe article, and when I say "article" of course I mean "the most rudimentary kind of impressions," because I don’t think they’re ready to let people really see the guts of this thing.  Flynn’s interview at Kotaku has a few more details, I’m not sure how much there is to know - but none of this has stopped me from building a nest for it in my heart of hearts.  The only advice I would give NetDevil at this point is to maybe beef up their stock of community managers. 

After savoring Iron Dukes, I began to slaver for more indie fare.  Was there something similar out there - for example, was there an Iron Ducks?  This journey necessarily sent me back to the IGF page, where long tables groan under great heaps of roasted games, skin crisped at the edge like some honeyed medieval haunch.  I came away with Quadradius, a hot hunk of somethin’ that plays like the most bad-ass kind of space checkers.  Then, wandering over to Lost Garden, I was directed to completely different approach to tactics games:  Ballistic Wars.  It took 3rd Place in the 4th Casual Gameplay Design Competition, which took place months ago, but I completely missed it.  The hook is incredibly hot:  it’s a tactics game where your units play and move like marbles, physically striking opponents for damage.  Why this isn’t a retail proposition already I have no idea.  Playing it really made me wonder what people mean by "casual games" these days.  Does it describe an audience, a product, or a developer?  I’ve never especially liked the term, and games have been wriggling furiously out of that moniker from the moment it was coined. 

Patapon hits the PSP this week, and I was invigorated by the prospect until I played the demo.  I would recommend that you do so before you pick it up, and you should anyway because the demo features a unique piece of equipment you can carry over.  I love the art and tone, but the audio these infernal creatures create fucking harrows my spirit.  It literally scrapes away what makes a person human.  I’d seen the videos, and was not scoured by them, but it’s a different thing when you are hearing it constantly, actively searching it for beats.  If there is gameplay worth noting here, the demo does not sell it.  It’s only twenty dollars I suppose, a savings over most games on that platform, but you can save an additional twenty dollars if you don’t buy it at all. 

(CW)TB out.

  they’ll inherit your blood

So I need to apologize her to Ted Mathot for a mistake I made with some concept art for our game. If that doesn’t sound interesting to you feel free to stop reading now.

We started working on the game back in 2006 and at the beginning obviously I had no idea what it would like like. Whenever we start a new project I start by looking around for some kind of inspiration. In the case of our game it was one image. The cover to a comic book called Rose and Isabel. It had the exact pallet and "feel" that I though would be good for the game. So I sat down a did the very first piece of art with Gabe and Tycho and FF Prime in the background. I used the pallet and even the composition from the Rose and Isabel cover. When it came to do the ruble I couldn’t get it right.  My rocks looked like shit and I loved the way he did his. So I used them. In my head this piece was just something to kick start the project, to supply a direction and help visualize the world.

It might not make sense but I had to do that piece before I could do my own pieces like the one below. I realise they are not very similar but in my head there is a direct connection between the two. I could not have gotten the one without first doing the other.

The problem is I allowed it to go out as a "sneak peak" image at PAX back in 2006 before I had done any other art for the game.I never intended it to be the cover or even be the "official" artwork for the game. It just happened to be the only thing I had at the time. It was the first thing I made and really not Representative of the final art. So I need to give my honest to God most sincere apology to Ted. This is difficult for me because "obviously" I’m a huge fan of his work. I should never have let the piece get off my hard drive. Totally 100% my fault.

I’ve always said my work is very derivative of Stephen Silver. I look at his work daily and try and learn from it. recently I mentioned that I had started trying to get better at expressions and "acting" after looking at John K’s stuff. I look at Kazu and try and improve my pacing and colors. I look at Kurtz and try and copy his fluid lines. Sometimes I will literally redraw some of Ben Caldwell’s stuff just to try and figure out how he does it. I’m not as good as these guys but I’m taking from as many places as I can in an effort to improve. That stuff is always just for me though and the problem this time is that I let it go out. Again, Ted, I am really sorry.

-Gabe out

Just a reminder, tomorrow night is Pokemon night at the Comic Stop. We start at 6pm and go to 8pm. Bring your deck and any extra cards if you want to trade. New players are welcome, just pick up a starter deck.

-Gabe out