Removing the Reef

Look at this beautiful Crayon BEL/S.

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I have decided to remove an area called The Reef from the game.

This is because I'm a little behind schedule in finishing the Deep Web.

And because I only have a tenuous idea of what it would contain.

That tenuous idea can be summarized as: Underwater Harvest Moon.

And honestly, that's probably its own game.

I shouldn't try to shoehorn it into this one.

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Also implemented the ability to hug fairy royalty.

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"In this game you'll be attacked by gibbering horrors from beyond space and time, and just like you usually do when that happens, you'll have to solve word puzzles to stay safe." - Josh Harrison

Awash in Gibbering Madness

I am implementing an area called Awash in Gibbering Madness and it is so much fun.

Designed a Sea++ area called the Light House.

It needs one more puzzle. A biggie.

Continuing to work on synesthesia puzzles.

My game contains the phrase "unholy beeswax."

On Twine

I've been going hard on EMERGENT, so no Sea++ update. Instead, have this short essay on my instrument of choice.

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I love Twine.

I love Twine despite its primitive IDE because I'm used to working with javascript in Visual Studio, and as gloriously useful as VS is for working in C#, it still is pretty much just a syntax highlighter when you're working in javascript.

You gotta debug with console.log and the dev tools. I tolerate the dirt because I'm used to rolling around in the mud.

I forgive Twine a lot because I just like the idea so much--a one html-page game of interactive text. It's so utterly portable and lightweight, does exactly what I want creatively, and I can use all the tricks I've learned from web development to make cool shit/copy from the MASSIVE library of neat things people have done with javascript and CSS.

I find the Twine node structure a highly intuitive way of keeping myself modular and I really like having a visual structure of my program instead of just lists of files. Twine has gotten better at searching with the last update and incorporating javascript, which is what I use whenever I'm doing anything complex, is now easier.

Caveats: Undo in Twine still kind of sucks, which is why I do most of my text editing in Sublime (a beautiful text editor). I also am not a super fan of the last twine update--I feel like it made editing in-window much clunkier and I'm hoping that will be rectified.

Also, I have had to hack up the Harlowe library in many warranty voiding ways to make it do what I want. I'm kind of using my own, hacked twine library at this point.

Sea++ Screens

A couple of screenshots from Sea++.

The Deep Sea map.

And the Steam Engine of your webship.

Mysterious Projects and Online Resume

After working on it for a week, I realized my mysterious new project needs to happen next year to fall smoothly into the tempo of the story I'm telling.

So. Back to Sea++.

I've made an online resume for myself to showcase my game design and writing skills:

Abigail's CV

Tarot and Pie

I've mostly finished the area called the Lost Soul's Diner.

Eat pie, talk to lost souls, and play with a tarot card shark.

I needed (read: really wanted) graphics for the tarot cards, so found this non-copyrighted 18th century deck.

I'm not quite satisfied with it. If anyone has suggestions about how to get a bunch of quality major arcana images on the cheap, lemme know.

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Will probably be putting Sea++ mostly on pause for a month or two to work on EMERGENT and another little project I have in mind for the Christmas season.

EMERGENT Group

Mostly worked on EMERGENT these last weeks.

I'm gonna talk less about it from now on, cause we're posting updates to this group:

EMERGENT Group

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In Sea++, I've been writing the Deep Web and programming a map for navigating in your web ship.

I've designed the Cthulhu of my game-world and she comes with her own puzzle.

Dark Ocean

Hookay! Back to Sea++

I've planned out the Deep Web and done writing and coding work for the darkest area.

I'm working as I go along on making all the areas mobile compatible.

It's tricky because I keep adding more custom mini-game type things.

But it must work because I love having the game on mobile.

EMERGENT

Here are some screenshots of the new game I'm developing with Josh Harrison.

It's gonna be a subscription based ARG (Alternate Reality Game) where you defend the world against an invasive force of demon aliens by roleplaying online, doing mini-LARPs, completing twine games, moving units on a gameboard that spans the nation, and picking up litter in your local parks.

We're scheduled to start testing the system in September.

We're pretty hype.

Miss Opal's Clockwork Heart

No new Open Sorcery update today.

Working on other things for a couple of weeks.

But here's something else with my writing.

I wrote the first story in the collection: Miss Opal's Clockwork Heart.

It is a story about losing your heart and how girls can be engineers.

Quick Break

The first large area in Sea++ is finished and with my alpha testers.

Here are some of the things they have said to me.

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"I mean, I fixed the gardener, and took the memory, getting 1 life, which I used to heal the octopus."

"Someday I'll hate myself enough to solve 1000 crosswords to save the selkie that I accidentally made hate me via calling them out on their bitterness."

"I want you to know I am having an actual moral dilemma here on whether or not to kill this asshole."

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I love my alpha testers.

I am taking a short break from working on Sea++ to write an articles, do a little freelance work, and work on a project I'm making with Josh Harrison.

It's called EMERGENT and we'll put out more details when it's closer to being complete.

Sea++ Music

I'm almost done with the first big area in Sea++.

I'm almost ready to blast off from the bottom of the ocean and start making new places.

I spent WAY too long implementing this super pretty randomized spiderweb.

Also, sneak preview of some music from the game.

Composed by Maggie Frost

Darkness and Web Ships

Implemented the ability to search clots of pure darkness for magical Matter.

Made some web ships.

Planned a ghostly love triangle. Or is is a polycule? It's partially up to you!

Made a pet for you, and something to eat you.

Pro-Open-Sorcery-Tip: If the menu option disappears, you are in a timed section and something bad is about to happen.

Open Update

Mapped out the Abyssal Plain--a 10x5 grid of dark ocean floor that you can explore.

Implemented the map and started populating it with interesting things that can help/kill you.

Created next spell and the memories you need to make it.

Implemented interactions with first minor villain.

First Fanart

Fixed issues with tutorial.

Wrote about a character called the Packet Rat.

Made intro and menu compatible with mobile-displays.

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Made the intro-logs display in pretty shades of gray.

Only 6 though.

I'm not into too much moral ambiguity.

Or poorly negotiated S&M.

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Have the first piece of fan art for Open Sorcery: Sea++

Drawn by one of the beta testers.

Meet the main character.

Play the game and maybe you can cheer her up. :)

Tutorial Done

#OpenUpdate

Finished the tutorial area.

(woo)

Talking to some musical friends about maybe making music for some areas. :)

Memories and Spells

#OpenUpdate

Ironed a whole bunch of kinks out of the inventory system.

Implemented a word-search mini-game for searching debris.

Implemented memories. (now doesn't THAT sound meta)

Implemented spells.

LOTS of bugs.

Added two sections to tutorial area.

As I knew I would have to, I'm redoing Twine's saving system--basically taking saving and loading out of the twine library's hands because it doesn't do it optimally. It flattens maps into arrays, for goodness sake.

I wonder if I'll reach a point where Harlowe is holding me back more than it's helping me. I'm not at that point. I still love the GUI and the scripting is lovely when all I need is scripting. But this library is not meant to be hacked like I'm hacking it.

Inventroy and Spells

Got the inventory system working.

Is a little complicated because you can collect ship part to trick out your web-ship, and I wanted to pre-implement a quality filter and how you equip them.

Also have half-implemented spells.

Not sure if I will control when you can use spells, or let you cast them willy-nilly. Will decide based on implementation of first world.

Slow Going for Now

Still working on the tutorial area.

Things are going slow because, in addition to writing descriptions and puzzles, I'm designing how basic things work, like the inventory system, how you cast spells, movement, and what speed-mode controls.

Laying the foundations for the game. Taking what I learned in OS1 and expanding on it.

Also, I'm leaving my job and just got four wisdom teeth out, so that's taking up some of my attention.

TV Tropes

Finished the intro to Sea++.

It's acceptably beautiful. Will def return to it.

Working on the tutorial area.

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Do you know TvTropes?

It's an awesome website, and actually a super-good way of connecting people to content they're interested in.

Someone made an Open Sorcery page. I spruced it up a little, but it could use more trope examples.

If you have a moment, I'd super appreciate it if your could add stuff you remember and like about the game to the page:

Open Sorcery on TvTropes

Introductions and Podcasts

I've started Open Sorcery 2.

I have completed the intro and planned out the first area and setup a vague plan for the game.

The intro is currently NOT BEAUTIFUL ENOUGH.

Intros are very important.

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Also: Ken Gagne of IndieSider interviewed me for his podcast!

I got to talk about my game and interactive fiction for like an hour. Ken asked thoughtful questions that made me think and edited out all my mistakes. It was pretty much the best.

Check it out below on youtube or on your favorite podcasting service.

The Future and Funbuns

PAX is done. Most of the OS errors are handled. I've started work on "Open Sorcery 2: Sea++".

It will be a Water-themed game. I anticipate it being longer and more open than OS. A little more like 16W2KaV@McD.

I have a vague sense it will take a year to make, but I thought the original OS would take a month to make. So, take my estimates with a grain of salt.

In other news: OH MY SWEET BEJEEZUS, LOOK AT MY NEW WALLPAPER

Funbuns created by the steam user currently known as a kind, caring skeleton.

PAX East

I am leaving tomorrow to attend PAX East!

I have a booth for Open Sorcery in the Indie MEGABOOTH.

Come and visit me if you are also there!

I am trotting out the old, familiar riddles because Boston has yet to solve them.

Will post pictures.

Next Steps

Okay. Open Sorcery is out.

Here is what is coming next:

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1. Lots of work fixing all the bugs that have come to light now that a lot more people are playing the game on a new platform. I also have requests for a x86 version and a port for linux, which I am going to try to satisfy.

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2. I really enjoy making tiny games. So to relieve the stress of working advertising/business stuff over the last month, I made an Undertale fan twine called Clean Hands:
bit.ly/CleanHandsGame

This is actually a fan game based on a fan comic of Undertale:
http://zarla-s.tumblr.com/post/139516306171/okay-i-get-a-lot-of-questions-about-what-order-the

I'm pretty meta.

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3. I will be spending the next few months experimenting with advertising.

I will post any banner ads I think are amusing.

Steam Trading Cards

The Steam website  is up.

And I just finished making the updated mobile version, which will be released on the 22nd as well.

I have scraped together all of the art assets I have for my text-only game and made Steam Trading Cards. Collect enough trading cards, and you can get OS profile backgrounds and emoji.

I used some fan art generously donated by Sarah Mae Goebler and the artist known as Fish.

Here's a preview of how one of my favorite pieces will look on your Steam page:

All Fixed Up

OS is beta tested and fixed up.

Now I'm porting it to all the systems I want it to run on. My advertising lady Julia Salvati is figuring out advertising things.

I ended up not putting in a couple of things I was originally planning on. The combos I mentioned a while ago felt very superficial, so I left them out.

And while I tried writing it a few times, Janet and Sarah just really weren't interested in becoming friends.

Toby and Pyreworm, on the other hand, are TIGHT.

The Open Sorcery LARP at Glimmerdark was tiny (we were competing with room parties) but LOTS of fun and I'm looking forward to the second draft at Dreamation.

February 22nd.

Set your computer on fire.

Release on 2/22

Most of the beta testing results are in.

Most people seem pleased with the additions. There are functional issues that I'm fixing now.

Now that I've ironed out the Steam Page, I feel comfortable setting the release date for the Steam game.

I'm planning to put it out on February 22nd.

2/22

So all you have to remember is 2.

LLCs and Fairies

It was not the IRS! It was me!

I foolishly assumed that because my LLC has a single member, that I was a Single Member LLC.

This is not the case.

I have fixed things.

I am currently setting up the Steam page. :)

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Other news, I will be giving a talk and running a LARP in the Open Sorcery universe at the Glimmerdark convention in Princeton in a little less than two weeks.

If you're interested tickets are here:
http://glimmerdark.com/

And my event is here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1641901199170113/

Open Sorcery has been error tested a bunch and made into a windows executable.

I'm waiting on beta testing because I want to distribute it to beta testers via Steam, since that will be as close to the final product as I can get. So beta testing will happen as soon as the Steam page is up.

A bunch of stuff will suddenly happen when that happens. I have so much prepared.

I also updated the website:

Open Sorcery Games

My favorite part is the icon for the vampire game.

Planning Fallacy

So! The good news is the game is about a week away from being done. I'm error testing and polishing now.

All the rest of the news is mildly frustrating.

Slight complication: The translators can't parse my text from my code, so I needed to strip out all my code. This means I'll have to reinsert the Chinese translation line by line. I will look at this as an opportunity to find a proper javascript translation service in anticipation of maybe someday doing this again with other languages.

The IRS still hasn't seen fit to publish my tax information so that Steam can verify it. I may call them. Because of this I can't do any of the advertising I was hoping to do gearing up for the release since I have no Steam page to direct people to.

Because of these complications I'll probably need to hold off on the release another month, meaning it will be out in February. This frustrates me because I'm going to HAVE the game ready, but it's just the things around it that aren't lined up!

Ah well. Classic planning fallacy. I should have budgeted more time for things not going as expected.

I'll take that month and use it to add neat animations and more sound effects.