New Portfolio is online!

April 8, 2013

Though I don't look forward to leaving Eugene, where my little family has happily camped out for almost six years, it may be time to go. The latest industry shifts and contractions have left studios in this small city -- with their focus on AA and social games -- really struggling. So I'm casting seeds and waiting to see what pops up, and a fresh portfolio is part of that process.

I've done a lot in eight years, it turns out. Huh! Open Portfolio Download Resume

This Is How It Ends

December 17, 2012

Submitted for the latest Ludum Dare competition, where the theme was "You Are The Villain." It starts at the end of the world -- after you've destroyed it. You can read about how you did it, read how it affected others, and then decide whether to go back in time, before the disaster. And you can do this several times, discovering the path that led you to come to the conclusion that destroying the world was really the best option. Only as the disasters get less apocalyptic with every step back, the personal cost for not taking action is ratcheted up and up. Where will it end for you?

I hoped to tell a story, using game mechanics to make the player a participant and feel more empathy towards the character. So far, it seems to have been effective: only a handful of people (I track gameplay stats) have made it to the very, very end. It's not nice. It's actually brutal and terrible. But then, that's how villains are born.

Ranked #10 out of 425 entries for Mood, and #15 for theme. The post-mortem is worth a look if you're interested, and the Ludum Dare entry page has screenshots and comments from users. Play it on the Web Ludum Dare Entry Post-Mortem

Ninja Baseball on the NES

November 25, 2012

The latest Charity Game Jam featured an NES theme, and as it occurred during the Thanksgiving break, I figured I'd give it a go. And emerged with... a version of Ninja Baseball! Don't hold your breath or anything: this isn't a comeback for that venerable ghost franchise of mine. =) But I did have a great time applying everything I've learned in the past year. I was able to crank out a 100% new code and tiny 8-bit art, and the tight time constrictions forced some constructive design changes that streamlined the flow. Plus: an excuse to buy chiptune apps for my iPhone! (sadly, only had time to compose a wee ditty for the title screen) Play it on the Web

Buffalo Joe Unleashed!

August 27, 2012

I love game competitions, because it's a chance to abandon the Earth for a bit and fly into the wide open void of Making Games. My goal is never to "win" or score points; it's basically to indulge myself in another fit of learning. By that measure, Buffalo Joe delivered in spades for Ludum Dare 24!

Joe is the leader of a herd of Baby Buffalo, and they need to eat grass to grow the herd. But watch out for wolves! You can read more in the Post-Mortem, but in short, I took on new concepts like flocking, 3D modeling and texturing in Blender, and moving 3D models over terrain in Unity. Did I win a medal? Hah, no! But I had a great time. Ludum Dare Entry

Video Interview on 5 Inch Floppy

June 29, 2012

A few weeks ago, I sat down with Jeremy Ray (aka Junglist) for a Skype interview about Ninja Baseball. Specifically, we talked about why it failed, when things seemed to be lined up so well. Not only is Jeremy extremely interesting to talk to, he fashioned a pretty awesome show from the interview pieces, as well as some pretty funny bits that were filmed outside of the studio. Thanks for the interview, Junglist, and the rest of y'all should check out 5 Inch Floppy for insightful, funny game reviews and commentary.

Whether or not this is the last time Tim Schafer and I are mentioned in the same paragraph is an exercise left to future viewers! Watch It

Circus Flea Gets Tiny Trophies

May 24, 2012

Out of the 1072 entries in Ludum Dare 23, Circus Flea was voted #12 in Humor and #13 in Audio! I'm completely stoked, as this was not only my first entry, but I was absolutely going for those categories. I did fairly well in the other ones as well. Nothing to crow about, but I didn't get totally demolished, either. You can read more about it here, or check out the link below, and see comments from other folks! Ludum Dare Entry