Thought you might all like to know how Time Gentlemen, Please is coming along. The answer is ’slowly, but really well’.
Ben There, Dan That! took about three months to make and write the main game. Then it was left to fester, and I came back to it and spent another three months fixing it up, polishing it, and writing thousands more lines of dialogue. Seriously - as far as I’m aware every possible combination is accounted for. In fact, some of the best stuff is on utterly improbable combinations of objects that noone will ever try…
I figured Time Gentlemen, Please would be half as long as Ben There, Dan That!, and therefore gave it three months, four tops. Here we are, two-and-a-half months into development, and it’s not even nearly done.
What I’d conveniently forgotten was that for a very large portion of Ben There, Dan That!’s development I was horrendously unemployed, and therefore working on it for about 10 hours a day. My fucking ‘job’ seriously hampers the amout of time I can spend on it - probably three to four hours a day during the week, and then all day at weekends.
I’m about halfway through the game in terms of puzzles, cutscenes and graphics. It’s a lot more involved, in-depth and clever than Ben There, Dan That! so progress is slow going. I’m really pleased with how the game is shaping up, and how it plays.
The puzzles are cleverer, and there are more layers to them. The game itself flows better, it has a much better structure, and it has some neat new touches that work really well.
Ben and I are meeting on Thursday in a top secret London location (pub) to discuss what happens in the second half of the game. Making games is like the ultimate choose-your-own Adventure story, especially if you don’t have the common sense to jot down how the plot ends on Day One, like what proper grown-up developers do.
All in all though, it’s a bit of a treat… but it’s taking a bit longer than I’d anticipated. Hold on to your hats, though, because it’s utterly brilliant.
15 people responded to this post...
Now do the part of the hype where an alpha version gets leaked.
Aaahhhhh
I am so pumped for this game I MAY EXPLODE
Who is the winner of the ’star in an adventure game’- or haven’t you put them in the game yet….
Haven’t got round to it yet. Once I get to that point in the game, I’ll re-read all the submissions and pick my favourite. There was one entry that made me think ‘That’s it!’ but in context I’m willing to re-read all the others, to see if they fit ;)
warning, beware of overhyping your games. no game has yet lived up to what you or your cohort of friends have claimed of your games. it’s dangerous ground to tread on, especially in the game industry. and it’s starting to wear thin.
i always say, let the public decide wether your game is good or bad, and stop trying to convince them its the best thing since sliced bread. let them make up their own minds. and that goes to about 10 people atleast (which i see post in almost every place your games are released). im not trying to be rude, just warning you guys. i dont know, maybe you its part of your humor, then, please continue. some might find it funny.
Warning: well you _are_ being rude, whether you’re trying or not.
Good Lord, lighten up you big grumpysocks prick; it’s one single update on how my game’s going, that’s published on my own website alone, and I’m saying it’s going quite well and explaining that it’s taking slightly longer than I’d expected. CHRIST ALIVE THAT’S SOME SERIOUSLY MASSIVE HYPE, ISN’T IT?
SHOW ME THESE TEN PEOPLE. I WILL KICK THEIR ASS.
Also, can I have my shades back, Johnny?
Johnny, are you that cunt from JForce?
I think he’s just pissy because he couldn’t code his way out of a paper sack.
Not that I know who ‘he’ is, of course.
There are a number of reasons why someone could’ve posted something like that, and unfortunately none of them are positive or benign.
To begin with, what we have here is someone talking about a game they’d like to make, and their progress on it. A game that’s likely going to be free, a game that dan’s putting together in his free time, and knowing the humour (at least, for those that have a sense of humour) it’s going to bring anyone willing to give it a fair go a lot of joy and amusement.
The fact is, if dan were one of those egotistical developers who couldn’t post something about his game without putting other games and other methods down, then I might understand. But I don’t see any of that in this post, it’s appreciably humble.
Why would any rational, healthy, and stable individual attack something such a person and/or their project? Answer: They wouldn’t. That’s my opinion, anyway. So I really wouldn’t pay such attacks any heed.
In conclusion:
Johnny, you’re wrong
Officially
Yes, I think people should stop talking about Johnny and more about how much we want to play this game!
(It is a hype machine, after all)
I want to play it A LOT!
I want to play it THIS MUCH*!
(*My hands are really really far apart!)
“three to four hours a day during the week, and then all day at weekends.”
LUXURY! Try having a job and a wife and kids you lazy lazy-heads! Then tell me how many hours you get to spend on your awesome game!
Oh, and looking forward to it!
Love,
V
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