Horror Game Jam

This time around, we supplemented our Game Jam with horror films, in the spirit of our game. We watched:
Descent
Ghost Ship
The Craft
Silent Hill
The Last Exorcism

Other than that, we pretty much just worked on our respective parts of the game, no whiteboards this time around, but here are some pictures of working through the day:

 Clockwise from top: Paul, Frank, Ryan, Tyler, and Danny.

 Branden and Danny.

 Frank and Ryan ignoring Ghost Ship (if I recall correctly).

 Paul in the kitchen.

 Clockwise from top: Frank, Ryan, Branden, Danny, and Paul.

 Ryan and I discussing something while Danny, Paul, and Frank work.

 Ryan deep in thought.

Danny and Paul.

On Assembling a Team, Part 1

Hello all, I'm here to talk about a very important, and not very frequently discussed, aspect of making a game: The team.

Before I get into that, however, I'd like to bid farewell to our dear friend Paul. He's found himself an industry job, and unfortunately doesn't have time to dedicate to a second project. We're, of course, happy he found employment doing what he wants to do (Congrats, Paul!) and wish him all the best at his new employers!

 Back on the subject at hand, now. Teams and team-building are things that, in my experience, often fall by the wayside in project planning. Obviously a game (or any large scale project, really) needs more than one person to make it succeed. And therefore, a good, strong team is ideal. The two biggest components of this are: Skill sets and personalities.

Skill sets are the aspect of teams I see neglected least, simply out of necessity. If none of the team members have a specific, needed, skill, then the team can't complete that part of a project. So if you need, say, a programmer and none of your team members can program, your game isn't going to get very far.

Personalities are where I have seen many teams struggle and fall apart. It can be difficult to work with someone who clashes strongly with your personality, and this problem is compounded if only one member of your team doesn't fit. It's not to say that you can't work with someone you don't agree with, or even get along with outside of work, merely that I find that teams are stronger and work goes smoother if everyone gets along. Nor is it to say that everyone on a team should have the same (or even similar) personalities. The important aspect is compatibility: Can the individual members of a team get along and get work done without regularly having serious conflicts of personality, minor conflicts are to be expected and perfectly acceptable so long as they aren't so constant that morale and production are hindered.

As a result of these two things, when Ryan and I first began discussing Project Kassa, and the potential of making the jump from idea to product, one of my first concerns was finding team members that not only fulfilled the required skill sets, but could get along well. Before actually joining the team, we tried to have what were - essentially - informal interviews for each member. Both to give them an idea of what the game we wanted to make would be like, and to gauge their personalities for potential compatibility with the team. After the informal interview, next step was to introduce them to the team as a potential team member and look for conflicts there, since neither Ryan nor I can be 100% certain of how well a person will do with a team without seeing them with said team. And then, finally, officially have them join the team.

Prior to all of this, though, was the real hurdle. Finding people. Ryan and I were (and are) in the fortunate position of having gone to a school where the majority of our peers also wanted to make games, so we had a good start there at the very least, as well as already personally knowing and being friends with several potential members. We already knew and were close friends with Frank and Paul, so they joined up quickly. We tried using Craigslist, though got no serious responses from it, as well as relying on our connections to friends and peers from DigiPen, which proved to be much more useful. Unfortunately, the programmers we knew at the beginning were either uninterested in the game itself, or were far too busy to take on such a time-intensive project. The same problem occurred with concept artists, and an animator. I then was fortunate to meet and work with Branden through a friend's senior projects team, and he was interested and would have the time after the semester was over. Through him, we found Danny, which brought our team total up to six.

 We, fortunately, have yet to have any serious issues with disagreements or conflicts of personality, so we haven't had to actually solve any of that sort of thing yet.

Since this has already turned out a fair bit longer than I anticipated, I'll discuss team-building and morale in a future post about teams.

Biweekly Games Proudly Presents

Hello all,

We’re Biweekly Games, a burgeoning independent studio, and we’re happy to announce the first game in our series:

Shove Aside is an co-operative episodic adventure series following brother-sister duo Gabe and Dani Kassa as they adventure throughout the pacific northwest, facing off against all variety of supernatural creatures. Think a mixture of the show Supernatural and the game Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem. Shove aside offers great characters who will grow and change based on your choices; choices that have a lasting, meaningful effect on not only the characters but all of the world; co-operative gameplay including puzzles, conversations, and exploration; a pacific northwest setting, and elements of horror directly relating to the evils you’ll be facing. The evil's you'll be facing each episode are based on a different emotion, the first installment is Grief.

Characters

Players will take control of Gabe (Gabriel Kassa) and Dani (Danielle Kassa) a brother and sister from Arizona. After a litany of mistakes over the past few years, the two have been recently reunited. Together they’ve taken on a strange responsibility, putting their faith in each other to overcome the trials that lie ahead.

Dani is the muscle. She’s playful, headstrong, forward, and instinctive. Always the outgoing life of the party, shes acquaintance to many, friend to few. She keeps her guard up, never wanting anyone to close. She’s always looking to solve problems blunt and quick, often great short term, but with big consequences in the long run. Working as mechanic since she dropped out of college she’s been yearning to get out and see more. Shes excited to tackle the world with her dork of a brother, one of the few shes close to.

Gabe is the brains. He’s snarky, charismatic, thoughtful, and philanthropic. A studious orator Gabe has a way with people, but a problem with authority. Gabe will often get in trouble bending the law, and stepping on the fortunate. Often to prove a point, or help out the vulnerable. Gabe tends to think patiently things through, but can easily lose his focus in the face of injustice. On the run for white collar crime, Gabe found his way home looking for direction. He’s eager to put a smile on his sisters face, as they face the trials ahead.

Gameplay

At it’s core Shove Aside is a narrative adventure game, with the gameplay focusing on investigation. You’ll have to solve the mysteries behind the supernatural entities you’re trying to defeat. You’ll accomplish this through exploration, dialogue with townsfolk, and the the occasional puzzle.

We want your experiences with NPCs to be rich and open, encompassing more aspects of a conversation than just the dialogue itself. You will be able to approach the dialogue in different ways.  If a hobo asks you for money you can be aggressive or caring. If a cop asks for your information you can be open or guarded. Whatever choice you make will set the groundwork for the conversation. You can also make actions during conversation. Pacing could make someone feel nervous, or sitting down next to someone could make them comfortable. Along with all this Gabe and Dani will have some different options in conversation, reflecting their unique personalities and experiences. All this will give the player a wide range of tools to run a conversation however they please.

Choices

While you are investigating the world still moves forward, changing and reacting depending on the choices you make. As you explore a church the tide may come in a cove you we’re interested in investigating. Breaking an entering may have the police waiting for you on your return. Threatening a pastor may result in a run in with his crazed followers down the road.

Your choices are determined by your actions, big and small, and not just a cut and dry dialogue choice. Choices also affect more than just the flow of the plot, they can affect the relationship between Gabe and Dani, bringing them closer or driving them apart.

We don’t want these choices to be an obvious fork in the game, you won’t be shown a dialogue box and have to choose between left or right. Rather you are shown left and right, each hallway silently implying what lies beyond. Some may be as subtle as this, while others are more obvious, the outcome relying on what action you take, if any at all.

Setting

The Pacific Northwest has a rich history, legends, and locations untapped by most television and video games today. Many of us have grown up here, while others have moved here, but at the end of the day we all have a strange love for the drab beauty of this place, and we want to display  that love to everyone!

We will be using real world locations, but taking some creative agency where it better suits our needs. This first episode will take place at Cape Disappointment near Illwaco, WA. We urge you to take a trip yourself to check out some of the rich naval and native american history.   

Horror

Gabe and Dani will be facing off against the unknown, the frightening, the supernatural. We want the powers of these creatures to be beyond the physical, you won’t be able to just shoot at them to win. Because of this we want our horror to be creeping, and tonal.

We feel horror isn’t about bombast, or making a player jump, it’s about setting a tone and building tension. We’ve taken a lot of inspiration from games like Eternal Darkness and slow building horror movies like Alien and The Thing. There will be no visual indicator that scary things are about to happen (like a horror meter, or screen effects), but places and situations. Dark corners, being alone.

We of course can’t tell you everything now, but we hope this is enough to catch your interest as we move forward. We’re updating every week and always happy to answer your questions. So keep an eye out however you like as more news comes your way.

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Email: biweeklygames@gmail.com