Releasing my first Game Part 1: Letting you taste the Tiramisu
Let me start of by saying anything that’s worth doing won’t come easy at first. Chasing a passion will test your mettle, the very essence of your soul.
From the Ashes, came WurmZ.
During college and post-graduation I was in development of not one, but two game projects with a scope too big for a team with no experience, let alone the money to sustain the development. It was a classic case of being in over one’s head. We crashed and burned hard 🔥🔥
After picking oneself up and consolidating the team we pivoted to a game that would be easier to create and readily available for anyone to pickup and play. The game and main character were christened, ‘WurmZ’ (short for ‘WurmZilla’).
Throughout my career as an indie, more than chasing funding or publishing deals, I’ve learned that the most important thing in game development, is releasing your game. Allowing others to enjoy the experience created.
This may seem obvious , but when in the thick of things I found myself being pulled in every direction to not only create the most kick ass game, but to make millions in the process. Smh.
4 years later, we’re at that point where the game honestly isn’t set up to make millions, but set up so that you, the reader, the gamer, can actually experience WurmZ and taste the WurmZ Tiramisu..
..okay that phrasing may sound unappetizing, but the game is full of “bite-size” entertainment for you to enjoy!
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Promotional plug!
WurmZ is currently in Open-Beta to play today and PLEASE give feedback!
iOS: https://testflight.apple.com/join/aQy5iWv4
Android: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.UEGames.Wurmzilla
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It’s taken 4 years, man.
“4 years.”
Yea.
WurmZ’s Life Cycle
Given the scope of our game it was probably 70% done after it’s first year when we demoed at the Boston Festival of Indie Games (BFIG). All in the first year! So where did the time go..
The Convergent & Divergent Iterations in game design but also in life
Convergent Iterations in Agile development is when your product begins to come together.
Divergence is when you go off the beaten path, imagine and wildly scope creep.
I’ve found it fascinating how these concepts towards product development parallel into the cycle of life.
As an Indie, much of my own life is wound into the creation of WurmZ. Its oscillations and growth were impacted by/impacted my own life, growth and choices.
Divergence.
In making a career choice to move to Japan to pursue Games and Japanese I expanded the playing field (in a hugge way), but fragmented the team and decentralized our development process.
As a result, the game’s lifecycle was drastically prolonged. Velocity was @ zero to the point where it should have been canceled and considered another stalled project.
See, when game development becomes a burden, an Albatross (see: Metaphor), it may be wise to stop, but that would be too great of a loss.
One cannot claim to be a game developer without having gone through the highs, lows, joys and turmoils associated with all stages of the process.
The quintessential journey of an indie gamer requires completion, release. To taste the Tiramisu and let others taste it too.
Convergence.
Thus over time, and more rapidly recently, it’s all been converging and amalgamating. Honing in on not only what this game is to be, but who I am in relation to this game’s journey.
+ Localizing the game for Japanese markets to converge my divergence abroad.
WurmZ 101
WurmZ is a dark-humored, endless-runner, arcade style game for iOS and Android.
You are a radioactive worm, genetically modified, to rid the world of radioactive waste..or destroy humanity.
Yes. A worm. And not a cute one at that.
There IS a deeper story at work, after all creating stories was really my impetus for getting into games in the first place.
Here’s the short version of the story: Our world has a nuclear waste (storage) problem. The answer, is WurmZ.
Thus far our best policy, according to the Nuclear Waste Policy Act (NWPA) for disposing of waste until deemed un-harmful (which takes thousands of years) is the use of offsite geological repositories for storage..this was set in 1987. Yucca Mountain, in Nevada, USA was designated as a key spot for storage. However after countless opposition the action was ceased in 2011.
With Yucca Mountain being the only official action taken in regards to nuclear waste management, America has some 90,000 metric tons sitting around in dry-cask storage, mostly at commercial sites.
Moreover, all this is concerning storage, let alone the issue of places and soil already contaminated.
Despite the vast amounts, The Department of Energy (DOE) has a goal of eliminating the waste by 2025.
So,
“Why not create an organism that can live inside the soil and somehow absorb nuclear waste!?”
- said some Mad Scientist that may/may not work for a company associated with the DOE. (this is made up, btw.)
Thus the concept of “Wurm Fission” became a wildly sought after dream, or at least the premise for our game ;)
Scared to let the Beast out of it’s cage.
There are harsh realities that I must face when releasing this game:
・Downloads will be scarce.
・It won’t make any type or revenue
・It won’t be liked by the community and fellow gamers
・That the game isn’t polished enough or that there hasn’t been sufficient marketing.
・That it was ultimately a failure and a waste of time.
These are real fears when chasing perfection. These are real fears when releasing one’s first game. These are real fears when facing myself.
But logically speaking, if I never release a first there will not be a second. So i’m letting this beast out of it’s cage.
Thanks for reading to the end! Sincerely I appreciate it. Feel free to “Clap” if my 2cents are worth 2cents. Either way we’re g00d money.
Better yet, try out WurmZ today:
iOS: https://testflight.apple.com/join/aQy5iWv4
Android: https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.UEGames.Wurmzilla
