3, 2, 1, Contract!

 Yes, I meant to write "contract", instead of "contact" :D

The past few months have had me spending time on two new secret projects! They are quality, original, action Mommy's Best Games productions and I'm super excited to share them! Sadly, I've decided to not share them prematurely. They must remain in secret for the time being. Which means, for November, December, as I worked on them, I couldn't find a way to do a blog post, without sharing information about those games. 

 

But in the meantime, I've taken on another contract game design job. I've worked with Girls Make Games for several years now. They are a good company which helps get teenage girls into game development. The girl teams create an idea, and as a bonus, GMG contracts out the final development to finish their concept and release it! It's a pretty neat thing to be a part of. 

Previously I've finished several games with Girls Make Games. Most recently we released "Find Me" onto Steam and consoles. It was great to see that project come to life on my own PS4! And it's gotten some great reviews as well. 

Here is the PS4 store link.

Steam Link : https://store.steampowered.com/app/1263060/Find_Me/

 

 

I ended up doing a lot of the programming, gameplay design, and level design for the game.

I'm happy to say Indie Gamer Chick reviewed it and loved it! 

 

https://indiegamerchick.com/2022/01/02/find-me-ps4-pc-review/

Find Me has remarkably tight and responsive controls and some of the most intuitive jumping physics I’ve seen. That double jump? Perfect. One of the best I’ve ever seen, indie or otherwise. I’ve played games by seasoned pros who couldn’t get the movement, speed, and precision as fine-tuned as Find Me has. Sublime effort, everyone. The best thing I can say about Find Me is the controller will vanish in your hands. It’s a total non-issue, as it should be.

I'm pretty thrilled with that review of the gameplay controls! I feel proud about that. 

 

My current contract project is for "What They Don't Sea". It's a new Girls Make Games fully funded project. I'm heading up programming and design again for that. I can't reveal the new look of the game, but it's shaping up great. The game is about a young girl that is exploring the ocean and looking for renewable resources.

But rest assured I am also still working on completely insane Mommy's Best Games original games! I plan to reveal some news bits of them in the next few months.

Finger Derpy Nominated for IMGA Award!

Doubly Nominated

We have fun news! Our mobile horse-racing game, Finger Derpy, has been nominated, in *two* categories, for an International Mobile Game Award! The 12th IMGA competition recently announced the nominations, and your favorite drunken-horse-racing game is up for "Best Multiplayer Game" and "Guilty Pleasure"!

Finger Derpy nominated for Guilty Pleasure

Finger Derpy for Best Multiplayer!

Here's the trick: The final awards are determined by a crowd vote!
That's where YOU come in. Yes, YOU!

Do you like Mommy's Best Games? And/Or do you like video game development in Indiana/Kentucky? Then please vote for Finger Derpy!
Winning awards helps us with future and current projects. It will help Finger Derpy continue to succeed, which feeds our future games.

Finger Derpy is a game made in the Louisville area, and it features the city of Louisville!
The game is really well received and we love that people enjoy it. To see it nominated out of thousands of games is certainly exciting. But to have it confirmed with the award would seal the deal.

I ask you, I implore you, please take 5 minutes of your time to help our very tiny, indie team win this international game award.

How to Vote for Finger Derpy 

Here's where to vote:
http://www.imgawards.com/awarded-games/12th-imga/

It takes a few steps, but that means each vote is even more valuable.
You do have to register an account and confirm it and all, but then you can vote with one click.
When you register, and it asks you what "You Are" just pick "A fan of IMGA!"

The odd part is you only get to vote for *one game* in any/all categories! So make it count.
Please vote for Finger Derpy in the Best Guilty Pleasure category!
This is not a situation of "vote early and often".
You get one vote, it's very quick once you register, and it really, really helps us.
Thank you very much, I really appreciate it.

Pig Eat Ball Most Innovative at Casual Connect 2014

Just returned from the Casual Connect conference in San Francisco and it turned out pretty great. Pig Eat Ball won "Most Innovative Game" at the show! The awards ceremony was really nice too, like our own little Emmy's but for indie games at the conference. Each award had a video introduction, and the three finalist games had their trailers played, while the game and company were announced by the woman running the show. At the end, the winner was called and you went on stage, got your picture taken and even got to say a few words!

I was pretty surprised, but excited to win, so when I got up on stage, I was in a bit of a blur. I managed to say something about "liking barf and pie".. and "long live indies". It wasn't coherent, but hopefully entertaining.

The venue was amazing too. It was in the San Francisco courthouse which was gorgeous. It was filled with police officers whom I'm not sure if they were thrilled to be baby-sitting game developers that were drinking and carousing but then again nothing got out of hand.

I met some fun new devs there too. I shared a booth with Glowstick Games who ended up winning "Best in Show: Audience Choice" with their horror Oculus rift game. It's called Dark Deception and is definitely scary with the addition of stereoscopic 3D. There game is on Greenlight too, so give them a vote!

Also made friends with the Whispering Willows team who ended up winning the "Best Story" award at the show. And I roomed with Jon from Mijikai Games, who's game Heroes of Rune was nominated for "Most Promising". Turns out he's not only a good developer, but a fantastic dancer!

The Casual Connect show is an industry show which means no public was playing our game, but we had plenty of industry folks enjoy it. And between the award and new business contacts, it was definitely worth participating in.

Casual Connect About to Get Sick

Pig Eat Ball was selected to compete for the Indie Prize Showcase at Casual Connect!

I'll be showing the game next week in San Francisco at the Casual Connect conference. If you're going to the conference please stop by to try it out to see what this whole barfing thing is all about. And I'll have our one-of-a-kind "butt rumbling" RMP SHKR controllers there next week for the 4-player Party Mode!

Each too many barfies too quickly and you'll barf again! Just wait to burp a little after each.

Lecture Time

And at the Casual Connect show, in addition to having Pig Eat Ball there, I've been asked to speak. July 22nd at 3:30pm I'll be giving a talk about transitioning a concept from a game jam entry to a full-fledged commercial product. Come by for an earful!

Pig Eat Ball heads to Radius!

Pig Eat Ball won a slot to show at the Radius Festival coming up June 19th in London England!

Radius Festival is a festival of video games, including the best part--the public showcase of new games such as Pig Eat Ball!

Pig Eat Ball International

Who's demoing the game? Well, I looked and would really LOVE to go, but it costs around $1,700 just for the flight! (Indiana to London) That was a bit expensive, so I reached out to some friends and found my old buddy Moo, who lives and works in London. He'll be demoing the game for us. Cool, done!

But it's never that easy.
I wanted to show the game with our one-of-a-kind "butt rumbling" controllers. Called the RMP SHKRs, when you get attacked in the game, your butt vibrates in real life! We use these in the 4-player Party Mode, and it's a really unique experience. I made them specifically for public events like this--I really wanted to make this work!

So now I have to ship them to the UK in time by the 19th. After some crazy confusion at the Post Office sorting out post codes in the London, we got them sent.
Okay, done!

Special controllers, Pig Eat Ball balls, cards, and more!

Four controllers sent by postal mail, and the game was sent digitally, everything's ready.

But wait.. what about voltage conversion? Crap!
I've only made four RMP SHKRs so far, but I've started on a new set. The new set's AC adapters actually already account for 110V and 240V. But unfortunately the current set I've built only handle 110V. 
And with that, it was time to research voltage step-down converters.

The outlet plug shapes are different in the UK, and my friend Moo already has several of those simple converters, but he does not have any spare "voltage step-down converters" that actually change the voltage from the UK ~220V to the US 110V. I found this model, it seemed robust enough, and was fairly cheap, but the shipping was killer.

Approximate cost:
$91 to ship the controllers and box.
$120 for the converters and to ship them.
~$210 is costly, but I believe showing them there is worthwhile and and much cheaper than flying me out!

Special Spot

There's still some kinks to work out but at a minimum, Pig Eat Ball will be showing in some form, a week from today at the Radius Festival. And at a maximum, it will have butt-rumbling controllers with 4-player Party mode!
It's a lot of work to participate in a show like this, but knowing the organizers behind the festival selected Pig Eat Ball from hundreds of other entries feels really good.

Shoot 1UP Nominated for Pocket Gamer Award!

Our very own Shoot 1UP has been nominated for a Pocket Gamer award!
That's pretty great, but it'd be even more amazing if it won and you can help with 3 simple clicks.

Pocket Gamer is an influential site, and it would be a HUGE deal to win an award from that site. Shoot 1UP is in the "Windows Phone Game of the Year" category along with some really big games like Call of Duty and Halo, so every vote counts!

Just visit here and follow along:
http://www.pocketgamer.co.uk/pgawards2014.asp

Voting ends March 7th, thanks for helping and tell your friends!

And if you've not yet bought the game, it's in a special sale, for only $0.99!  (Till March 6th, 2014)
http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/store/collections/red-stripe-deals/db534788-8a1a-4f31-9a1d-bd9bdeddc467

Shoot 1UP travels the globe

Shoot 1UP has been loved the world over, come see the global shmuppreciation!


First off, and truly international, Shoot 1UP has been honored as a Top 20 finalist in Microsoft's Dream Build Play 2010 competition!

A.R.E.S. - Thailand
Abaddon - United States
Abducted! - United States
Alien Jelly - Australia
Armor Valley - Singapore
Beat Hazard - United Kingdom
Capsized - Canada, excluding Quebec
Creed Arena - Australia
Duality ZF - Canada, excluding Quebec
Dysnomia - United Kingdom
JoyJoy - United States
King Spray - Australia
Lumi - France
Mind Over Metal - Australia
Ninja Garden - Ireland
Prismatic Solid - Japan
Shape Shooter - United States
Shoot 1UP - United States
Soul - France
The Shadows in the Underworld - Canada, excluding Quebec

The bolded games are forced-scrolling shoot 'em ups; impressive to have 3 of the top 20 from such a "niche" genre!


USA
There's been tons of great reviews in America, and here's a sampling.

"The Best Possible Way to Spend a Buck."
Game Critics review

A-
"Shoot 1UP- the latest release from Mommy’s Best Games offers shmup fans the largest dose of originality seen since 2003’s Ikaruga."
Tech-Gaming review

B
"A super-cheap, accessible, and worthwhile Indie shoot-em-up on XBLA."
1UP.com's review

9/10
"Shoot 1UP delivers an excellent shooter experience, and is compelling enough to hold the honor of being the best indie space-shooter available on xbox live!"
Gamespot user review

5/5
"Shoot 1UP is a marvel in game design, a game so addictive and fun that it’s hard to pass up
RunDLC review

9/10
"If this sort of action remotely interests you, then the full game of Shoot 1UP should already be on your hard drive"
Console Obsession review





UK
8 out of 10
"...it'd almost be rude for shooter aficionados not to destroy the mechanical-tentacle hybrid forces responsible for your pain"
Eurogamer review

Indie Pick of the month
"Games have been trying to perfect the life and death mechanic for years, and Shoot 1Up has a simple, elegant solution"
Digital Spy recommendation

Odd Bob can barely tear himself away from the game.
"Go buy your own, I’m still playing!"
XNPlay round-up (#67)

"There’s also a boss that fires boobies. 11/10?"
NTSC-uk review



Australia
While Indie Games are not officially available in Australia that didn't stop The Go.

"...a sleek 16-bit design that brings you right back to the golden age of arcades."
The Go Indie of the Month



FRANCE
16/20
Shoot 1UP's equal to Ikaruga by their measurements! That's some amazing company to keep.
Xbla360 France's review


99/100!
"A phalanx plus chocolate", probably missing something there, but what could be better than ships and chocolate?
CF-network review



SPAIN
Indie recommendation
"I could write a review or something, but it's best to just go and immediately buy it."
No vale dar en pajaritos recommendation



BRAZIL
"A trailer for the frenzied shooting game"
Crie-jogos trailer viewage



GERMANY
"Shoot 1UP is a 2d shooter with a fresh taste" and "Brilliant nonsense"
Spieletipps review



ITALY
"I mean, oh, a chick with steel boobs and a laser ... really beautiful, yes yes"
Indie Vault review


JAPAN
This is a massive fan post covering most aspects of the game with tons of pictures and explanations.
Most Ultimate Shoot 1UP JET Extreme Extra story!

NSFW Ads, the game has been lumped in with Hentai naughtiness!
New Akiba coverage
I guess we can thank Mecha Lilith for that.

Game*Spark's controversial review
This Game*Spark story apparently sent the commentors into a real frenzy with the game's review of 4.5 out of 5!

And finally a super Japanese fan sent me a scan of the April 22nd, weekly Famitsu magazine (No. 1116)--Shoot 1UP has it's very own page! Though he didn't translate it all for me , he said the title reads "XBL Indie Games is the last frontier for Underground Games".
Also, I can sort of make out "1996", and "HAHAHAHAHA", and they have Mecha Lilith and wrote a bunch, so I think they really liked it!



There you have it, around the world with one plucky little shoot 'em up's coverage in the gaming media.
Auf Wiedersehen!

Weapon of Choice in Guinness World Records 2010

We're proud to share that Weapon of Choice was recently entered into the Guinness Book of World Records 2010 Gamer's Edition! On page 57, on the two-page spread for Run and Gun Shooters, Weapon of Choice blasts it's way into history.


In a "Fact" section Weapon of Choice is listed as having the highest professionally rated release on the (then) Xbox Live Community Games channel, as aggregated by Metacritic. Weapon of Choice's Metacritic rating is 74.

The most exciting news comes in the form of a top ten list. I've always loved David Letterman's Top Ten lists, but never before did I imagine one of our games would be listed in the Guinness Book of World Records!

Under the heading "Ten Games You Should Play in this Genre", Weapon of Choice is number 4--above even the mighty, and legendary Contra III!

Here's a pic, and the list in full:
Ten Games You Should Play in this Genre

1. Metal Slug (1996)
2. Gunstar Heroes (1993)
3. Turrican (1990)
4. Weapon of Choice (2008)
5. Contra III (1992)
6. Green Beret (1985)
7. Vectorman (1995)
8. Bionic Commando (1987)
9. Ikari Warriors (1986)
10. Alien Soldier (1995)

Keep in mind, this game is a list covering the run'n'gun genre throughout the history of video games! (Needless to say, I'm pretty excited about it)

Can Shoot 1UP live up to this attention? Who knows, but Shoot 1UP's already got a GameRanking rating of 83%!

'08 Ends in a BLAST!

We are beginning to see the light of day as the tinsel and confetti begin to settle. With that, Nathan and I wish you a happy new year.

To reflect, 2008 was a great year, which ended with Weapon of Choice landing on some pretty sweet 'Games of 2008' lists:

• IGN's Best XBL Community Game 2008
• Nominee for IGN's Best XBL Action Game 2008
  
• Honorary Special Mention on Console Arcade's XBLA Game of 2008,
• GamerBytes & XNPlay's Top 10 XNA Community Games Of 2008.

Oh, and we should mention the pieces in The Official Xbox Magazine: Independents' Day is in the January edition on newsstands now (pdf version) and Opinion Editorial in the February edition. Plus, we are expecting future articles in Paste Magazine, Official Xbox Magazine-UK, and 360 Magazine-UK.

In addition, we received some excellent reviews (Weapon of Choice has now 'arrived' on Metacritic but needs more reviews to get an final score):

• 4 out of 4 stars on The Toronto Star ,
• 4.5 out of 5 with Cheat Code Central.
  
• We also recommend you read the review on Wonderwallweb - we do not know how something that sounds so fun, only equals 6.7 out of 10.

We are pleased that Weapon of Choice has been in the top 5 of best selling Community Games since the launch of the channel. Unfortunately, we have no idea what that means as far as actual sales numbers, but within top 5 for six weeks sure sounds cool.

We shall close with information about a pending podcast. Nathan is scheduled to be on the AVault podcast on Friday, January 9th. Tune in-- Nathan will be announcing details for the upcoming WoC Speed Run Contest.

Contest Results and Launch Party

Hello, Amy here. As the marketing and business side of Mommy’s Best Games, I decided to write this week's entry. Plus, as we shoot for the November 19th launch of Community Games, Nathan has his hands and head full of many other important tasks. As you have read in prior devlog entries, we entered Weapon of Choice into Microsoft’s XNA Dream Build Play 2008 international competition. We were very excited to learn that we earned THIRD PLACE!!!! We are the top American team. Check out the other winners; they all look great and are fun. It is definitely worth your time to check out.

We were also invited by Microsoft’s XNA Team to attend the Xbox LIVE Community Games and XNA Game Studio 3.0 Launch Event in San Francisco on October 29th. What an event! Also in attendance were the Word Soup and Colosseum teams. The room was set up with more than 15 high-def flat screen TVs with ready-to-play Dream Build Play and other XNA games. The press came, and we were ready. Although it was tough in one week to pull off schwag, we rocked it! Through Ebay, I ordered 50 1GB flash drives to create digital press kits. Although we would have desired to have our logo imprinted, it would have taken too long to print, ship and save data before the event. Instead, I created a sticker that had the WoC logo and Mommy’s Best website. The digital press kit included a welcome letter, two game trailers, three tracks of original music composed for WoC, screenshots and concept art, Mommy’s Best and WoC logos, unique gameplay features document, pertinent websites, and a partridge in a pear tree. We also ordered flexible flyers with the WoC title screen imprinted on it, in black, which were tossed around the party by the end of the night. Again, the lesson learned was, 4-color imprint is what is desired; it is expensive, especially when you have a rush order on it. We also provided the community and press with our promotional game cards, game card magnets, and business cards. The trick to getting all of this together so fast really relied upon 3 day shipping straight to the hotel instead of trying to get it here first, then take it with us to the hotel.

Nathan and I were very excited to talk with journalists from Gamasutra, MTV, WIRED, Gamespot, IGN, Joystiq, and Destructoid. Heck- we even have a piece in the New York Times. The press we have already received has been phenomenal.

However, we will still not abandon our original marketing plan: 1) get on as many blogs and websites as possible, 2) get friends and fans to deliver game cards to local game stores, college bulletin boards and any place that gamers frequent. Although, Microsoft's hospitality sure did help boost Weapon of Choice's marketing plan.

So, as high as we feel, onward we go, to finish Mommy's Best Weapon of Choice by November 19th.