Script Updating

We're nearing demo mode.

Most of the art has been finished.  I've been tweaking the background art with the background artist.  He's doing mock-up animations which we might use for the final version.

The character art is, for demo purposes, finished.  I could use one or two more pieces, but I'll wait until everything needs to be compiled to decide whether I want to invest another two weeks of art time.

Then again, maybe I should review the art again.  Hm.

The script is being reviewed.  There's a lot of logical errors left to correct.  I have thought recently (or at least for the next version) investing in a script writing software.  I do a lot of mock-ups and a basic word editor doesn't really cut it anymore.  It works for now, but when you start getting a 50-100 page script, it starts getting a little creaky and sometimes buggy...and the last thing I need are corrupted files.  (I would jump off a very tall building if the file corrupted.  Back-up files are my friend.)

The hardest thing about being a producer of a game project is that you are there to motivate everyone else, but when it comes near to the final product (and when I mean near, I mean annoying final hump near) the last thing you do is feel motivated.  It's the long weekend in Canada and all I want to do is turn off Netflix and let the game coalesce on its own without me.

Which will never happen.

...

Unless I clone myself.   But that probably wouldn't turn out that well.

Making Stories in Video Games

Many video games have had ground-breaking, successful stories that captivated their audiences.  I can think of several that come to mind on console: Xenogears, FF7, and Street Fighter, of all things. (All three of these have had multiple movies and spin-offs made from them.)

I'm making a game that's a mash-up of mythology, anime concepts and graphic novel, so it's important for me to consider a lot of elements that don't always have to go into video games to make them fun.  I'm limiting myself even further by making it for a mobile console.  (Anyone that thinks making for mobile isn't limiting is stupid or lying.)

I just finished watching Fate/Stay Night's prequel, Fate Zero today.  It didn't live up to the original series in my mind, but there's a couple things it did right that always, always capture a large audience.

1. They used mythical heroic characters that are interesting and vivid.
2.  Each hero has a persona.  They are not a Hero, but a 'hero class.'  It makes for an interesting shift in dialogue and scenario. There's a meta-level to the hero story.
3. Instead of being about survival, like the first show was, Fate Zero is more about the deep personalities each Servant have and fleshing out the content involved.  By comparison, the Master characters are much, much less interesting.  That was clearly a design choice in this series.  (probably due to the popularity of characters like Sabre, etc.).  Anime watchers, and fantasy lovers in general, usually love deep fantasy. This series and (Fate/Stay Night) is a pretty good example of that.
4. Each of the characters steal the show in their own right.  The Caster class duo are both the comic relief and the source of tension for the entire series.  The Rider Class and Lancer class are both bold and herioc.  The was very much a series about being heroic, which is a huge contrast to the original series, which was about kicking the crap out of different heroes and villains. 


This show was a gamble from the normal story structure of a hero anime, which is good, since I think anime is changing the way it does its storylines.  (Not such a bad idea, since the formula hasn't changed in decades.  I'm looking at you, Bleach.  You used to be a good show.  Then you had a second season.)   I feel it paid off well, and I have decided to incorporate several story elements into the game that I didn't plan to that have more anime inspiration to them.  Hopefully it will balance out the story structure and simplify it a little bit.

Had a phone call with the copywriter this eve

He's ready to move onto the next section, so that's good news....I suppose I should hand him back his chunk of the story (it's about 40-some odd pages now for one storyline, so 20 pages of text without any spaces)

By time we're done this, it looks like I'll produce a novella worth of content.


I've thought about starting a video blog about this.  Since there's only that guy (girl?) from Alaska who reads this blog, and my friends (sometimes) I'm curious to know if people would actually want that.


I need a couple more week that I don't have for the story dev stuff.  Sigh.

Working through this script is a nightmare

If this takes this long every storyline, there's no way I'll push this out by February.

In other news, Apple has finally accepted Interra Games Inc. into the developer program (sign up here to get on the beta test list for when the game is ready...someday soon I will finish the website.)

On the bright side, the first part of the second half (a separate quest) of the game is already done (since it's pretty much the same as the first half)

And I've 'mind-plotted' a lot of the second half, so it won't be as hard. 

Not sure what I should have the copywriter do next.  But I think for the next things, I should give him sample text for characters before I let him go crazy....