An Introduction

Hello World!

I'll go by Foggy, the guy behind the scenes of all this.

This whole little GameDev foray really started for me at the tail end of 2023.

Something made me start to do some soul-searching and I realized that I was in a routine and I didn't want to keep perpetuating it. So I took a step back, took some time off from work and started to redesign my trajectory.

I've always had a desire to make video games. I know that's not unique, but it's been there ever since I first played Super Mario Bros and Duck Hunt (On the 2-in-1 combo cartridge). I've been mesmerized by the graphics, the technology behind the hardware/software interaction, the design of interactive experiences, and more recently the charm and appeal of the indie game scene and using game development as an outlet for creativity and expression.

My first "game" was back in high school in probably 2006. I downloaded some version of Game Maker and followed a tutorial to create a stupidly simple game about clicking a bear that moves all around. I remember buying a C++ game programming book to learn the fundamentals of programming. In college I would constantly put-off homework to be messing around in Unreal Engine, and later on I would dabble in Unity.

I also had some college courses in programming with C, C#, Java and I went through a teach yourself Python book. I have also been playing around with music production off and on for almost 15 years now.

I felt like I was ready to give it a shot, so I downloaded Godot this time (seriously a problem how I jump around so much).

I followed along with some tutorials to get familiar with the engine, and started following developer streams. My first cool thing I made was a movement system where you controlled the direction and intensity of thrusters to move around an astronaut. I then made a quick trial run at coding something simple so I did a rough and dirty Tic-Tac-Toe (with exquisite hand-drawn graphics).

OK, now time for a game jam.

The concept was simple. I can't remember what the theme was but it was going to be a simple memory game where you are shown a set of "cards" and then you are tasked to recall them in a specific pattern from memory.

It was a 3 day slog. It was my first real attempt at making a full, playable by someone else, game. I felt like I was at my computer all day, every day and when I did get outside for a walk the wheels were spinning. I hit a ton of road blocks and the code is far from anything I'd show another developer, but hey...its a playable game.

So anyway, after that I tried another game jam but lost motivation and started thinking about making my first real game. Something that I can take my time with and make good.

I was really inspired early on by successful games like Brotato and Vampire Survivors, along with the moody charm of games like Hollow Knight, Dredge, and Limbo. I thought the relatively simple design of a game like Brotato should be a small enough scope for a solo developer and maybe I can integrate some cool visuals into it as well.

I found a tutorial catered to these types of games and started going through it. As I was coming up with ideas for my own game(s), I was messing around in Photoshop and I realized that I really wanted to start creating my own vision, not follow a tutorial. So, for better or for worse, I scrapped the tutorial and dove head first into crafting my first true game. And after weighing the pros and cons and having tried all the most popular game engines, I am going with Unity.

I've spent the past few months reintegrating into a full-time job and creating visions, concepts, plans, narratives, themes, you name it around a vague kind of direction for an IP. I finally feel like I'm honing in on something and have the first main character animated (spent way too long on that, hopefully I get faster) and integrated with the movement system. I am just getting around to setting up an online presence before the real development begins.

For the duration of this process I'll also be testing strategies and methodologies that I have come up with through my research. More on those specifically to come...

My aim with this blog is to be informative and transparent about development. So let's talk about art.

I have a vision for a moody and immersive game and have almost no art skills. It is the biggest weakness on my resume. So...what's my plan for that?

I have spent significant time pouring through free and paid assets online and reiterating/updating the mood-board to fit with the assets and vice-versa to come to a close representation of what I want to accomplish. Compromises will have to be made in this regard. Game Art that is purely created by me will likely be rare in this endeavor. Credit will be given to any artist who has an asset appear in the game, legally. I foresee this as a topic of contention, but I believe that using assets thoughtfully and intentionally can be done. We stand on the shoulders of giants. Not everything has to or is done from scratch.

SIDE NOTE: I do want to learn to draw in a cool 2d isometric style, but this will likely take years to get decent at. So its a background pursuit for now.

Beyond preexisting assets, I have spent some time learning to use DALL-E and Midjourney to create concept images and even some pretty good stills that could be used in the game. These take an insane amount of time to break down and get just right. But this is another method that I have found out how to fit into the vision.

In addition, I am planning on contracting some artwork out to freelancers. This includes things like the Steam Capsule, possibly an image for a title screen. I am open to doing the same thing for individual pieces of art as they are needed. This will be on an "as-needed" basis to try to keep costs low.

If things are successful and really get off the ground I would absolutely love to hire a dedicated art team. But that's getting way too far ahead.

I'll also be open and try to lean into how I'm leveraging AI as a tool while documenting how I use it in gamedev, and in my personal life.

So there it is...I have a rough plan to bull-rush development of this and get a quick win out the door before starting a 2nd game. It will be interesting to see what kind of traction it gains as I want to keep a short timeline and release it or launch early access late this year.

I plan to release an Introductory YouTube video soon. It will be showcasing what I have done so far, and go more into my vision for what Solwood will be, so stay tuned for that.

The first playable build should be out by the end of Q1 this year 2025.

Stay Frosty

--Foggy