I'm busy wrapping up development of the new Brainiversity game which is cleverly titled "Brainiversity 2".
The first Brainiversity game was released almost 2 years ago and is still selling well. I developed the game in my spare time for over a year while working at a console game development company. My day job was always top priority and sometimes I never touched a line of Brainiversity code for weeks on end. But whenever I got a spare moment I would do some coding, be it half an hour at night or a whole weekend afternoon.
A lot has changed since then... I'm now working full time in the casual/social games space and loving it! Making the sequel has been fun, and I've enjoyed working with a team of really smart people.
One of the potentially challenging aspects of making the sequel was the decision to develop the Facebook app at the same time as the retail version. To do this we made the call to switch to a complete Flash development environment. The previous version was developed using the PopCap Framework. One upside of using Flash was that I could finally unshackle myself from Windows and work on a Mac.
Doing FB simultaneously also meant learning lots of skills that have potential beyond just making a brain training game. As a team we've had to grasp PHP, SQL, JavaScript, the whole complicated Facebook environment and of course Flash and ActionScript 3.0.
We've also gained a deep understanding of the dynamics of social game development as well as how to use microtransactions. And we're still learning new stuff everyday!
And now, as the retail version gets closer to launch, we'll begin honing our skills on marketing our new game.
Now, if you enjoy reading my blog, check out this list of other great game development blogs: Top 50 Best Game Design Blogs. I was chuffed to find mine at number 4 :-)
www.passfieldgames.com
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Agent Duski is go!
It's always great to see people you know and respect do something cool.
Today, Matt Clark and his team at Voxel Agents released their first iPhone game, Agent Duski: Dolphin Hero.
Matt and his team emerged from SIF90, the guys who won the 48 Hour Game Making Competition two years in a row with their awesome Sticky Geckoes and Melonauts game.
I was also lucky to have worked with Matt at Pandemic Studios in Brisbane on an awesome Wii game. The team behind that ill-fated game was the best game dev team I had ever had the honor of working with* - everyone was producing amazing stuff.
Unfortunately EA decided to close the Brisbane office... well, actually, for Matt that was probably a fortunate thing as he is now making cool iPhone games and is in charge of his own destiny.
Well, enough of me tripping down memory lane... go download the game now and support an indie developer.
www.passfieldgames.com
* Until now of course :-)
Today, Matt Clark and his team at Voxel Agents released their first iPhone game, Agent Duski: Dolphin Hero.
Matt and his team emerged from SIF90, the guys who won the 48 Hour Game Making Competition two years in a row with their awesome Sticky Geckoes and Melonauts game.
I was also lucky to have worked with Matt at Pandemic Studios in Brisbane on an awesome Wii game. The team behind that ill-fated game was the best game dev team I had ever had the honor of working with* - everyone was producing amazing stuff.
Unfortunately EA decided to close the Brisbane office... well, actually, for Matt that was probably a fortunate thing as he is now making cool iPhone games and is in charge of his own destiny.
Well, enough of me tripping down memory lane... go download the game now and support an indie developer.
www.passfieldgames.com
* Until now of course :-)
Saturday, May 30, 2009
iPhone/iPod Touch Amazon Queen Review
This is my favorite quote from the Amazon Queen review at AppVee:
And I love the user reviews - the majority are 5/5 stars!
This AMAZING game will give you days of fun, laughs, smart riddles and great adventure. - Anatt
This game is Amazing and the new interface of the new version (1.2) is just GREAT for the iPhone ! - TheNiceGuy2
This is a pure, quality puzzle-based story and NOT easy for those people who are looking for a casual iPhone game. It's challenging and super fun. - GoodGirlGamer
At long last, someone has brought a classic SCUMM based adventure game to the iphone. This is a great game and well worth the money. - KanedaZero
The great thing about the iPhone is that it's easy to update your game. The team are working on improving the interface yet again so this will be the ultimate point and click adventure on the iPhone!
www.passfieldgames.com
The game has now officially been ported to the iPhone and iPod Touch and is every bit as awesome as the original as far as gameplay goes.
And I love the user reviews - the majority are 5/5 stars!
This AMAZING game will give you days of fun, laughs, smart riddles and great adventure. - Anatt
This game is Amazing and the new interface of the new version (1.2) is just GREAT for the iPhone ! - TheNiceGuy2
This is a pure, quality puzzle-based story and NOT easy for those people who are looking for a casual iPhone game. It's challenging and super fun. - GoodGirlGamer
At long last, someone has brought a classic SCUMM based adventure game to the iphone. This is a great game and well worth the money. - KanedaZero
The great thing about the iPhone is that it's easy to update your game. The team are working on improving the interface yet again so this will be the ultimate point and click adventure on the iPhone!
www.passfieldgames.com
Thursday, May 28, 2009
New Facebook Brainiversity Update is Live!
Woo hoo, it's up!
As mentioned before, the update includes the awesome new Trophy system that rewards you for doing all sorts of cool stuff - you can even view your friends and other Facebook users achievements from the Scoreboard.
We also have a tutorial system that explains the important parts of the game for first time users. If you think we've left anything out, or something doesn't make sense, please let us know (and you might even earn an Order of Edison trophy).
And of course we have a brand new game, "Odd One Out", plus a whole bunch of little tweaks here and there.
I have to say a big thanks to those people who helped with suggestions for this update. You'll find an Order of Edison Trophy waiting for you when you start playing :-)
www.passfieldgames.com
As mentioned before, the update includes the awesome new Trophy system that rewards you for doing all sorts of cool stuff - you can even view your friends and other Facebook users achievements from the Scoreboard.
We also have a tutorial system that explains the important parts of the game for first time users. If you think we've left anything out, or something doesn't make sense, please let us know (and you might even earn an Order of Edison trophy).
And of course we have a brand new game, "Odd One Out", plus a whole bunch of little tweaks here and there.
I have to say a big thanks to those people who helped with suggestions for this update. You'll find an Order of Edison Trophy waiting for you when you start playing :-)
www.passfieldgames.com
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
New Brainiversity Facebook Update Imminent!
A new update to Facebook Brainiversity will be launching within the next 48 hours.
We've added some exciting new features to the game including a Trophy system that lets you show off all the cool stuff you've achieved, a new game called "Odd One Out" and a whole bunch of little tweaks here and there.
Odd One Out game
Odd One Out is a fun game that can be quite challenging. Deceptively simple, you have to pick which item doesn't have a matching partner - and like all good Brainiversity games it gets progressively harder as you play.
I'm especially excited about the Trophy system - you can see what Trophies other people have earned from the Scoreboard - and we have a special trophy for the players who have been helping us with valuable feedback: the Order of Edison.
I'll update as soon as the new version goes live. In the meantime, head over to Facebook and start playing!
www.passfieldgames.com
We've added some exciting new features to the game including a Trophy system that lets you show off all the cool stuff you've achieved, a new game called "Odd One Out" and a whole bunch of little tweaks here and there.
Odd One Out gameOdd One Out is a fun game that can be quite challenging. Deceptively simple, you have to pick which item doesn't have a matching partner - and like all good Brainiversity games it gets progressively harder as you play.
I'm especially excited about the Trophy system - you can see what Trophies other people have earned from the Scoreboard - and we have a special trophy for the players who have been helping us with valuable feedback: the Order of Edison.
I'll update as soon as the new version goes live. In the meantime, head over to Facebook and start playing!
www.passfieldgames.com
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