2wenty Dungeons Official Blog

[SmartBoy16]

I know I said some things in the past about how I would start up on this project but then just leave it behind. Well, I made a blog at http://2wentydungeons.tumblr.com that shows the current process of this game. I think for sure I can finish this, but I can't do it without any support. All I need is something that assures me that somebody out of the 3,000,000+ who use the internet every day who will take the time to listen to what I have to say. A simple follow on the blog would help, please.

But anyways, I'm finally starting this up again. At this current time, I'm planning on using XNA (maybe flash) as an engine, but if I find something better, I'll use that instead. I'm making it a goal that I complete a playable demo of this game by the time I graduate from college (Spring 2012).

If there is anybody who still visits here left, please let me know if you support this game. This has been my lifelong dream and I can't do this alone and I'll need any help that I can get.

[EDIT 10/18/2011 1:27PM] Please follow my blog at http://2wentydungeon.tumblr.com or RSS Feed: http://2wentydungeons.tumblr.com/rss

With love, hatred and respect,
Joel Green
AKA SmartBoy16

PS: For those who don't think I've started on this yet, here is some concept art.

[Vincent]

Hi,

I'm not quite sure what to make of your post...  I mean, you seem committed to your project, so why wouldn't you be able to do it alone?  If it is your lifelong dream, you can do it.  Just take one step at a time and you'll get to the finish line eventually.  There's no rush, why should you give yourself a deadline right off the bat? 

I don't see how I could support you.  I mean, I have my own stuff to do and I won't learn XNA or flash to help you.  Isn't there flash or XNA communities where you could ask for help?

Good luck with your project.

[SmartBoy16]

Well, there are a few ways you can help even if you don't know XNA. You can let others you know who might be interested on what I am doing like friends, family, or even your fanbase. Word of mouth IS the most powerful form of advertising

Also, I would appreciate a follow on my blog so I am not convinced that my project does not fall on deaf ears. In the past, I have kept my projects more or less a secret hoping that someone somewhere would randomly come across one of my projects, but sadly that is not how it works. I need the help of anyone who has interest in what I do such as Adventure/RPG fans, those who like indie games, or those who are game developers themselves.

Before, I never realized how well word of mouth worked until I discovered Minecraft via my sister telling me about the game. It was then I was convinced that word of mouth works really well. Actually, this reminds me how I discovered the Nintendo 64 when my cousin brought it over once when I was in 2nd grade.

So if you know someone who might like what I am doing, link them to my blog. I would need all the support I can get.

[Vincent]

I'll speak of your project around me.  By the way, I didn't find any way to "follow" your blog.  Do I need to open an account on Tumblr for that?

[SmartBoy16]

I could have sworn I saw an option where you could follow without tumblr, but I could be wrong. If you don't want to make your own tumblr, there is an RSS feed you can follow too: http://2wentydungeons.tumblr.com/rss

[EDIT 10/18/2011 1:40PM] Google Chrome users! Install this! You can now use RSS Feeds! https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/nlbjncdgjeocebhnmkbbbdekmmmcbfjd I just discovered this today...

[Vincent]

RSS: Done!

[bluemonkmn]

I think word of mouth only works really well for the best of the best.  If word of mouth worked so well, there wouldn't be advertising.

[SmartBoy16]

Word of mouth is free compared to advertising

[bluemonkmn]

Not all advertising is non-free.  I got a free Google Adwords Trial.  And creating a web site is a form of advertising.  That could be considered free if you already have a web host, or if you use a free web host.  And posting messages in relevant forums is also advertising.  But advertising and word of mouth both usually work better when your product is complete.

[Vincent]

bluemonkmn has a point: it's often better to advertise when your project is completed or near completion.

While I was working on LoK:Revival, I joined a website for another lok fan game called Lok: Prodigal Sons.  The guy working on this project launched his website maybe two years before I started on my project and said that it would take a year to complete.  I don't know how he did it, but he got a wide fanbase that joined his site, like 300+ members and a lot of activity in the forums.  Now, around 4 years later, his project is still nowehere near completion, he doesn't give new information often (like once or twice a year, no more than that) and most of the fanbase he had abandoned the website or are completely pissed at him.

That's why I launched my website for my own project a couple of months before it was completed.  I didn't want to fall in the same trap.  But then again, I never tried to make a "development diary" out of my website and it looks like that's what you want to do.  So maybe it's okay.  But, if I was you, I would really avoid announcing release dates that you are not 100% sure to meet.

[SmartBoy16]

Not all advertising is non-free.  I got a free Google Adwords Trial.  And creating a web site is a form of advertising.  That could be considered free if you already have a web host, or if you use a free web host.  And posting messages in relevant forums is also advertising.  But advertising and word of mouth both usually work better when your product is complete.

Well I guess that's true, too. But of course, there are those who completely avoid advertising (like myself) so there's that risk of simply being ignored. I guess in a ways I've created a website by making a tumblr. Eventually I'll make a dedicated website for all my games, but I want to wait until I make significant progress on this game first.

bluemonkmn has a point: it's often better to advertise when your project is completed or near completion.

While I was working on LoK:Revival, I joined a website for another lok fan game called Lok: Prodigal Sons.  The guy working on this project launched his website maybe two years before I started on my project and said that it would take a year to complete.  I don't know how he did it, but he got a wide fanbase that joined his site, like 300+ members and a lot of activity in the forums.  Now, around 4 years later, his project is still nowehere near completion, he doesn't give new information often (like once or twice a year, no more than that) and most of the fanbase he had abandoned the website or are completely pissed at him.

That's why I launched my website for my own project a couple of months before it was completed.  I didn't want to fall in the same trap.  But then again, I never tried to make a "development diary" out of my website and it looks like that's what you want to do.  So maybe it's okay.  But, if I was you, I would really avoid announcing release dates that you are not 100% sure to meet.

I don't know if you were here when I started, but I tried to make a game on SGDK1 that I gave myself a deadline of right before I started college. It wouldn't take long before I started to come up with excuses that I would not finish it like the software was too buggy or it wouldn't be that great anyways. Whenever I updated, it was usually because I changed like 1 or 2 lines of coding. I've learned from that experience, so I'm trying not to make those same mistakes again.

I still want to make a few a few deadlines for myself so I can make significant progress though. That's why I'm merely focusing on finishing a prototype (gameplay, 1 dungeon, some enemies, boss, ect.) by the time I graduate. I'll worry about the story line a bit more once I finish that.

[Vincent]

Hum, I see that you registered about a year before me.  But I was never really interested in SGDK1, I registered here soon after SGDK2 was released.  Also, I really got involve in my project at least a year after I registered.  Before that, I was just fooling around with SGDK2 and wasn't on the forum very often.  That might be why I don't remember your works with SGDK1.

If giving yourself deadlines is a way to push yourself forward: why not?   As long as you don't advertise them, there's no problem with that.  That's what I did with my own project after taking forever to make the second level (6 months on a 2 years project): I gave myself deadlines to complete the next levels in a shorter amount of time.