POSTMORTEM

WHAT WORKED:

Clear Thematic Intentions-

I was able to match my original visions for the aesthetic design of the game. This game’s development and I have a long history together. Before it was a game, it lived in my head. It’s been drawn, painted, written and rewritten. I’ve sat with this feeling for so long, I ended up starting production already having a clear idea of what I wanted this game to convey. 

Many of the design choices I made came easy. I anticipated that turning various scribbles of writing and imagery would be difficult to form into a game, but it actually all fell together. What started off as various short poems slowly formed into an experience. I feel that my in depth exploration and personal ties with the base material have helped create meaningful design choices that have overall positively impacted production.

Mapping Art Tiles-

I chose to experiment with Bitsy for this project. I wanted to create a single large stage that the player can interact with. The goal was to achieve a point-and-click styled game, instead of players controlling an in-game avatar. This perspective change was necessary for the narrative of the game. After a lot of planning to properly figure out how to achieve the look I wanted, I got it to work!

By the end of the project, I had a pretty solid understanding of the grid and space. The hardest sprite was the “mr. inevitable” character, that used over 20 unique tiles to make. Funny thing is that after this sprite, everything else was easy. I think my confidence is showcased particularly well by the cat sprite. Over time I put them in more complex poses.

Sound?-

I made my own sounds! I have done little sound design in the past, but I am proud of what I was able to make for this game. My experience in music is very little. I know the basics from being involved in orchestra, but other than that I mostly go by “what sounds nice”. The main theme went through many changes since I couldn’t get the vibe I wanted. Everything I made was too fast. I was trying to go for a sleepy theme. I luckily was able to go to my housemate for help. He is an expert in music in games (regularly listens to game OSTs), and was able to send me some music inspiration which helped the process greatly. 

WHAT DID NOT WORK:

Tile Naming/Organization-

Since I was creating a complex scene that required many tiles to make one object, I ended up having over 100 unique tiles. Originally I was planning for the game to have 3 rooms. That’s all. Over time however, the game expanded needing 4 main rooms, 3 transition rooms, and an ending scene. My system for organization was functional at first, but did not hold up through the game’s expansion.

From Bitsy’s finder, you are not able to see much, so I leaned towards shorter phrases. I labeled tiles in groups. For example, tiles labeled chair01 through chair07 make the keeper sprite. Things at this point were simple.

Quickly things got out of hand, as the game got bigger. Later in production I had various sprites with slight alternate titles depending on the scene, which introduced letters into my system. Like there is a moon4 sprite, and a moon4b sprite. I was often getting confused and unable to find certain tiles. 

There was a point where I knew I should change how I label things, but I did not think it would be that big of a problem. Later, it was a bit of a hassle and annoyance, and I would have most definitely preferred to have changed things before it snowballed into the hot mess that it became.

LESSONS LEARNED:

Design Expansion Unlocked-

The space that this game provides the player is not one that I am used to making. I had to experiment with various colors, room designs, and dialogue. Usually I make horror games, which so happens to be the complete opposite genre of this game. I am most comfortable when I create unnerving, strange feelings and images. When I finished this game, it was a huge deal for me. I showed myself that I can write and design games outside of the horror genre. 

The Need to Organize-

I have never made a game that required multiple assets before, and by the end of the project I understood how important it is to properly organize and label them. Although it was manageable, things could have gone much smoother. Looking back I can think of several things I could have done differently to improve this system. I could have made the phrases shorter, given an indication to what room they are in etc. For future projects, I would like to be more mindful of the production of the game itself.  

SPECIAL THANKS:

Thanks to the friends who have supported me through the creation of this game, even unknowingly.