itch.io

This is super sweet. Highly recommend.

A few years later and I'm desperately trying to win my own game and failing. What on earth. I WROTE YOU

Hello, everyone! This is my first real serious project, so I'm excited to share it here :)

What is it?

A short, free top-down shop management RPG inspired by Recettear, created in Unity2D. You play as Marcille, a monster who needs to make 800 coins to buy her wife a new ring after she was robbed--but she needs to propose in just 4 days, so she doesn't have much time!

What's the gameplay?

Sell items to a variety of customers by figuring out their tastes through dialogue, or talk to the Goblin in his cave to get higher-quality items in the next day. Moderation is the key to success!

Where can I play it?

Here on itch.io: https://serendipital.itch.io/dungeon-shopper

I'd really appreciate any feedback you all could give. Many of the assets were made by me, and the dialogue system, etc was made by hand, with the basic framework altered from a TA's code (this was a project for a class). So it was very much an in-depth passion project! It took about a semester of work, and I polished it as nicely as I could. Some minor issues and workarounds are in the README though. Thank you for stopping by!

Update #1

So. I didn't necessarily bite off more than I could chew (I still think this is definitely doable within two weeks), but the game jam did come at a reaally bad time. I didn't expect my summer classes to be as time-consuming as they are, so I've come up with a new plan that unfortunately falls outside of the scope of this jam. Basically, I'm going to have this game jam...but alone and also next week.

I think these threads are locked down once the jam's over? If not, I may still update here. I'm really disappointed, but unfortunately I gotta tend to my grades first. 

Thank you to those who commented--I did end up at least starting the preliminary research for the game, and you guys really made me want to push through! Hopefully you can follow along with me after this jam is over. 

Best of luck to everyone!

thank you! I’ve done a biiit of 3-D modeling, but current plan is to make everything very simple and plain until I’ve got uh, a game going haha. 

I ended up getting really sick the other day, which is just the way haha. Feeling better though so hopefully I can make up for lost time.

Haha, thank you! I guarantee it won't be very spooky--I'm a bit of a wimp, even though I really like horror. Today's my binge tutorials day, so hopefully I can have something of note by tonight!

Who am I?

Seren, 20, she/her. I'm a CS major but I want to try to make something tangible, so here I am!

What is it?

You walk around a clinic. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

This is largely an excuse to learn 3-D modeling and the basics of an interactable environment. There's also gonna be some cool sound design hopefully, to help with the atmosphere. There's gonna be some mild horror vibes. Maybe I'll work in "pride" somehow, who knows.

Inspired by me waiting in the doctor's office alone during a nasty storm and wondering if all of the staff would suddenly just...not be there anymore if I opened the door.

Checklist

1. Clinic room fully modeled
2. Player character implemented -- can walk and look around room (1st person)
3. Hallway fully modeled
4. Lobby fully modeled
5. Animated objects -- weight scale, blood pressure cough, finger pulse recorder
6. Cutscene created -- name called, follow nurse down hall, weighed, enter room, blood pressure + pulse, told to wait for doctor
7. Interactable objects -- ???
8. ????
9. Make game easily run on various computers, release

I literally don't have a clue how to do any of these things. Wish me luck!

1. Hi there! What's your name? Want to introduce yourself?

Hey, I'm Seren. I'm 20, and a computer science major. I've been wanting to do 3-D models and Unity for a long time, but it's been really daunting. I finally convinced myself to try it out when I saw this jam was going on again!

2. Did you participate in the last jam we held? If so, what do you plan on doing better this time? If not, what's your reason for joining?

I participated in a jam, I forgot when. I plan to make something that really teaches me a new skill...I haven't touched Unity ever, so trying to make a game will be a challenge.

3. What games are your favorites? Did any of them inspire you, or made you want to make your own?

I like tycoon games like Megaquarium, farming/life simulators like Harvest Moon and Animal Crossing, and games like Legend of Zelda or Skyrim. I kinda grew up watching my sister play Donkey Kong 64 and Majora's Mask, so I'd say that's inspired me a bit to want to try it out for myself. I'm doing a walking simulator, but I actually haven't played many of them, haha. Those games just have what I'm trying to learn in Unity.

4. Do you have experience with game development? What did you do/with what engine?

Not really. I've messed around in Ren'py.

5. Tell us about something you're passionate about!

No one likes earthy colors or deserts and that's a crime. :( They're so pretty.

6. What are your goals for this game jam?

1) Successfully create a decent 3-D model

2) Create a fully rendered 3-D room a player can explore

3) Make at least one object interactable

1. Hi there! What's your name? Want to introduce yourself?

I'm Seren! Nice to meet you. I like video games and movies, and reviewing them, mentally, because I haven't worked up the courage to make a blog or Youtube channel. I'm studying computer science but would love to join some indie game company after graduation. 

2. Did you participate in the last jam we held? If so, what do you plan on doing better this time? If not, what's your reason for joining?

Yes! I'm hoping to make my game a more satisfying experience this time (the last one was "finished" but not really, yanno?), and to make it from mostly-scratch. Last time I used Ren'Py, but this time I'll just be using straight-up Java. 

3. What games are your favorites? Did any of them inspire you, or made you want to make your own?

Honestly, too many to count, and I have some favorites across all genres. Overwatch and Borderlands for shooters, Mario Odyssey for platforming, BOTW for sandbox, Professor Layton and Phoenix Wright for puzzles, Dangan Ronpa for visual novels, um...there's a lot more. I think all of them collectively have inspired me, especially the early Zelda and Pokemon games which I played religiously. I just want to give people a fun time.

4. Do you have experience with game development? What did you do/with what engine?

Nooot really! Just the last game jam, which was a visual novel/kind of  memory-puzzle game in Ren'Py. 

5. Tell us about something you're passionate about!

Animal husbandry! I care very much about animals and would like them all to be treated well with all the misconceptions out there cleared up (especially with fish!!!!). I'm also very into clean energy and stuff like that.  Can't have a good time if the planet's gone, yanno.

6. What are your goals for this game jam?

To present a finished product and to provide multiple routes in the story! I'm hoping to make an overall satisfying experience, something more polished than my last attempt. I'm also going to be basically self-teaching myself all the stuff you need to know to make video games in Java--I've never done anything but class assignments in it!

7. Any advice to new jammers (if you're a veteran)?

Don't be afraid to cut back! Last jam I cut what must've been 3/4 of my game, but I'm so happy I did it, because I walked away with a finished product. Having something you can really share with others and present as something "finished" is a great feeling, and those features you cut out can always be added later.

8. If you're a returning jammer, what can the admins do to improve your jam experience?

Can't think of too much! Maybe more forum interaction as far as updates with people's games go? I honestly didn't go on the forums much last year (so I don't know what would need to be improved) but I will be this time.

I really liked the way you used the cellphone! I haven't seen something like that before, so it was really cool.

8/4/17, 3:00 PM 

I've been making a ton of progress, and though I've had to cut a couple things back, I feel like I'm on track to finish. Here's a sneak peak of the main room of the game:

It's pretty messy, but I'll be cleaning it up later. On that note, does anyone know how to easily find coordinates that your mouse is pointing in paint tool sai or a similar program? The imagemap is going to be a PAIN to make otherwise.

8/2/17 11:00 PM

First big update! No real images or anything to show, but conceptually, this thing has received a pretty big overhaul! I think it'll really push me to create the art I've been struggling with.

So, I thought I had a pretty solid concept from the beginning. I'd even made a flowchart for the game. But for a room escape, I really had no idea how to do the puzzles...so I kept procrastinating. Because to do any of the art, I needed to know what the puzzles would be. And to design the rooms, I needed to know what the puzzles would be. But no matter how hard I tried, I just could not think of any puzzles that weren't "click around the room until you find a key", which didn't seem very entertaining at all. It was really discouraging.

Finally, I realized I could just change the game. So...that's what I did, basically. The concept is the same, but it's less of a room escape now. Basically, you still need to go through the villain's head to beat him, but now it's more of a memory game--the more you learn and remember about the villain's life, the more successful you are! I'm a lot more excited to work on this now, and I've made a huge breakthrough in terms of room design, since I now have a much more solid theme revolving around the villain's superpower. 

I'm excited to continue working on this! I don't think it'll be an incredibly polished experience, especially since I'm changing the concept last minute, but I think I'll be able to produce something by the end of this, now. Wish me luck!

Thank you!

Thank you! I'll be updating soon, as soon as I think I have enough for a nice post. :)

Thank you! I can't promise anything super psychological (it's my first time doing that sort of thing), but I'll try my best!

The Genre-Confused Room Escape Game, a Visual Novel

Join yourself on your quest to gain entry into a superhero league! Travel a villain's mindscape, unlock its secrets, and flirt a bit along the way. 

---

Hey there! Just got back from a trip, and I'm ready to jam! Since I'm coming in late, I've scaled down quite a bit...since my goal this jam is just to put out a finished product, I'll be using an engine I'm familiar with, Ren'Py. Here's the general flow of the game:

Opening cut scene -> first room -> interim cut scene -> second room -> interim cut scene -> third room -> final cut scene

Each room will feature a simple point-and-click room escape puzzle with the theme of the villain's psyche, and each cut scene will both give you a bit of story and offer a tiny dating sim, flirting with the judge who's alongside you for the journey.

I've done a bit of concept art, but in light of the reduced deadline, I've decided just to digitally alter stock photos instead. Here's some anyway:

Concept art for the player character, who appears as a shadow in the villain's mind

I'll try to write in this as much as possible, and I hope you enjoy reading along! I'll be posting separate, more formal posts to show my progress and ask questions, but I also put a little progress tracker here for more informal thoughts.

---

Learning Goals:

• Creating custom UI
• Implementing custom art/assets
• Time management strategies and planning

---

Ultimate Goal:

__ Finish and publish a game!

---

Progress Tracker/Journal:

7/28, 1:30 AM - Wrote this post and psyched myself up. Still have the rest of the day ahead of me. Current thoughts: Should I make the love interest's gender ambiguous? How am I going to do an imagemap in the context of a room escape game? Will image manipulation really work? I found some tutorials on inventories and custom UI, so I'll need to look through them. To do: sleep.

7/30, 12:45 PM - Busy past couple of days, not a ton of time to work. Managed to tinker around a little bit and set up a good position for the player character sprite. Working on each room's concept and execution. Current thoughts: Should I stick to regular digital art, which I'm more familiar with? To do: finish room concepts/puzzles and begin writing interim scenes.

8/2, 1:33 PM - Making progress on the code and script...not so much on visuals and sound. I've decided to scale down, so it'll be more of a demo than an actual game. It will probably only have one room, or maybe two rooms with recycled assets. Current thoughts: How on earth do I make text appear one character at a time with sound? To do: do things.

---

About Me:

I'm a beginner game-maker who has one class on Java (from 4 years ago) and one class on Python (last year) under her belt, as well as some idle dabbling in Ren'Py and RPGMaker. Although I've started a lot of projects, I've never actually finished one--or even gotten partway. So this year, I'll be trying to finish and publish a game, which will hopefully lead to me finishing and publishing another game, and so on. Wish me luck!

Sorry! I was on a trip, but now I'm back, and I'm glad to see your reply! Did you end up writing the post? 

1. Hi there! What's your name? Want to introduce yourself?

You can call me Seren! I procrastinate a lot.

2. Did you participate in the last jam we held? If so, what do you plan on doing better this time? If not, what's your reason for joining?

I don't think I participated in the last jam, but I participated in last summer's. Basically, I'm going to plan and schedule much better this time!

3. What games are your favorites? Did any of them inspire you, or made you want to make your own?

Well, at the moment, Breath of the Wild and Overwatch are my favorites. My long-time ones though are Thousand Year Door, Majora's Mask, Windwaker...lots of Nintendo games. It's what I grew up on! I'm also a huge Borderlands fan. They've definitely made me want to make my own games, and inspired me in other areas as well. 

4. Do you have experience with game development? What did you do/with what engine?

No, I've mostly just messed around in Ren'py and RPG Maker.

5. Tell us about something you're passionate about!

I really love media and entertainment! They don't get nearly enough credit. I'd also love to see video games incorporated into education.

6. What are your goals for this game jam?

I want to finish a game, regardless of how short or bad it is. That's all! Every game jam before this, I've quit very early on, but I'm determined to make it to the end this time.

7. Any advice to new jammers (if you're a veteran)?

I wouldn't call myself a veteran, but definitely plan out your game kind of thoroughly. Draw a diagram. That way you can schedule when you should work on what think. It'll be much easier to stay on track that way!

1. Hi there! What's your name? Want to introduce yourself?

Hi! I go by Seren. Not much to say, really. I like reading, writing, drawing, and computers! So games are a nice combination of those things. I'm also a big fan of animation. I want to go into animation, software development, or indie game design, probably! I like dogs.

2. Did you participate in the last jam we held? If so, what do you plan on doing better this time? If not, what's your reason for joining?

Nope. I joined this time because I was actually looking around for a game jam, and this one seemed perfect for me! Although, I will have some trouble with the deadline, ha ha. I've got a week, really.

3. What games are your favorites? Did any of them inspire you, or made you want to make your own?

I'm not sure I could really name favorites, but I love Legend of Zelda, Borderlands, Phoenix Wright, Professor Layton, Pokemon, Dangan Ronpa...there's a lot more, but those are the series I follow. One of my absolute favorite games is probably Paper Mario and the Thousand Year Door, alongside Legend of Zelda: Windwaker, but I'm not sure how much of that is nostalgia, ha ha. Oh! And Kingdom Hearts is a ton of fun - I think its combat system is absolutely amazing. Okami is good all-around. Honestly, I'm probably missing my absolute favorites here, but I'm awful at thinking up this stuff off the top of my head. If I wrote this tomorrow it'd probably be completely different. Dangan Ronpa and Phoenix Wright are my inspirations for this jam, but in general I think Nintendo games have influenced me the most, since I grew up with them. I can't actually peg down when I started wanting to make my own, though.

4. Do you have experience with game development? What did you do/with what engine?

A little? I've experimented a bit in Ren'Py and RPG Maker before, but the games were always incomplete at 5-10 minutes long, if that, and often used the default or free assets. I have tried to make a Game Dev Club, if that counts as experience? Basically we were trying to develop a fairly simple tower defense-ish game all together, with everyone combining their knowledge, but it fell through for various reasons (some of which I'm trying to fix here).

5. Tell us about something you're passionate about!

Animation! Video games! Other things! Specifically, I guess I'm pretty passionate about media in general. It's really important for children growing up (I can't imagine just how much of me comes from what I did as a kid), and for teenagers/adults to relax and be inspired themselves. With animation, I think it's really important to make sure kids cartoons are intelligent, enough so that the whole family can watch it and the children can still be taught, but not in a "count along with me 1 2 3" kind of way (though those shows have their place too). With video games, I think it's absolutely amazing how far they've come in such a short amount of time, and I can't wait to see where they go in the future! I think game mechanics deserve more love - a good story is a lot of fun, but it should be fun to play, too! And I'm excited to see where VR goes, especially in non-gaming related fields. Um...I'm also very passionate about hibachi-vegetables. I think they're really tasty, especially the zuchinni.