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Max McGee
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CloseWill there be a theme or anything or is it just "make games go nuts"?
I'm one of those people who actually finds a theme or some kind of artificial constraint to be actually liberating rather than restrictive...as long as the theme isn't like, so stupid it's actively toxic.
I'm one of those people who actually finds a theme or some kind of artificial constraint to be actually liberating rather than restrictive...as long as the theme isn't like, so stupid it's actively toxic.
author=Max McGee
Will there be a theme or anything or is it just "make games go nuts"?
I'm one of those people who actually finds a theme or some kind of artificial constraint to be actually liberating rather than restrictive...as long as the theme isn't like, so stupid it's actively toxic.
Gamejams usually have a theme, and I had intended a different theme for each new one of these. Right now though, Id like to at least get some basic framework setup as far as how to set teams up, though some feedback on how to go about themes wouldn't be bad either, as I would hate to wind up setting a frivolous or downright stupid theme that would have most people dropping out in droves.
author=Liberty
Find a common ground. Design a game with the best of both worlds. That's part of the issues with having a team - being flexible and getting the job done. ^.^
That's part of the fun and challenge~
While this is easier said than done, I only used the WRPG and JRPG example as a broad statement. To put it into perspective:
> Different game design beliefs. Someone loves some RNG (e.g. Persona games) while some hate the very notion of RNG (we even have an event about it). This could possibly cause demotivation/fights especially when both parties are into battle design. Speaking from experience. :p
> The difference in interest in setting. The other prefer fantasy and doesn't even want to play with the notion of guns and ships while the other doesn't like any trace of magic and wants logical conclusions to the events of the game. To put an example, remember the game Muse? As far as I recall, AZNChipmunk likes the supernatural aspect of that game but YDS wanted more of a psychological horror, no ghosts allowed. And we all know what happened to that game (cancelled/trashed).
> Same Skillsets. Well...this is a given haha.
While these may not be the primary reason, if one of the parties wasn't happy in working on the game, which beats the point of this event too, the game will get nowhere. I guess this event is about how well certain people could work together. But I figured I should say something about it <:3c
Thinking of this an exploration of paths is not a way way to look at it, and with that said, some paths are better off not explored, hence the strong emphasis on voluntary collaboration.
I'm not sure why you felt the need to tell me the strong emphasis on voluntary collaboration there, since I'm fully aware of that :)
But what I'm saying is that just because people volunteered to do some gam mak collaborations doesn't mean that their predetermined bias, such as the reason I want to make games is to do x/y/z and not like a/b/c, wouldn't get in the way. Especially when the two parties are extremely different from one another. I just said that is a possible issue.
But what I'm saying is that just because people volunteered to do some gam mak collaborations doesn't mean that their predetermined bias, such as the reason I want to make games is to do x/y/z and not like a/b/c, wouldn't get in the way. Especially when the two parties are extremely different from one another. I just said that is a possible issue.
I was making a more general point actually, and I thought your point was actually a good one. Sorry for the misunderstanding.
Ah alright, I wasn't sure if you were referring to my post. I did have an idea though on how to setup the randomization I guess.
What if people are categorized based on their favorite thing to do?
For example, but nothing concrete since this is just on the top of my head:
Mapping & Writing (they enjoy this aspect the most because they can't make gameplay)
Gameplay Dudes (doesn't want to do anything else but puzzles and battles)
Jack of all Trades (meaning they don't mind any aspect of game design)
So when randomization happens (assuming we go by groups of 3), you have one mapping/writing dude, one gameplay dude and one jack. So that the clash of interest is minimized to some extent.
.......Another thing would be to switch out teams.
For example, after the initial team there's a week buffer to see if the team is going to work well. If not, there's an option to switch members and see if they will work better on another team.
Well, that's just a thought. I'm just speaking outloud, lol.
What if people are categorized based on their favorite thing to do?
For example, but nothing concrete since this is just on the top of my head:
Mapping & Writing (they enjoy this aspect the most because they can't make gameplay)
Gameplay Dudes (doesn't want to do anything else but puzzles and battles)
Jack of all Trades (meaning they don't mind any aspect of game design)
So when randomization happens (assuming we go by groups of 3), you have one mapping/writing dude, one gameplay dude and one jack. So that the clash of interest is minimized to some extent.
.......Another thing would be to switch out teams.
For example, after the initial team there's a week buffer to see if the team is going to work well. If not, there's an option to switch members and see if they will work better on another team.
Well, that's just a thought. I'm just speaking outloud, lol.
Yeah! It's a cool structure. And yeah, those points you brought to the table are all very true. But still, by mixing the best of both worlds we can get an event that is both bold and exciting in its randomness, without disappointing anyone. 3 person teams seems like one way to do it! But in the end I think we could potentially sort it out with a poll. Oooooor allow people to choose their partners unless they don't want to -- in this case they'll kinda be pressing the random button of fighting game, assigned to other people who did the same! ^-^
So work through the issues. If one person likes RNG and the other doesn't, then split the difference - have RNG for some things and be more structured and plans with others. Give and take. Learning to balance each others' ideas is a part of learning to work with people - nobody can have everything their way. There's no team leader in this exercise so just sit down and talk. Maybe one person gets their RNG but the other person gets the feature they aimed for.
It'll be good experience whichever way the ideas fall. And working on something you don't like for a week isn't the be-all end-all. It's great experience. You might find a different way to think about things. Or you could reinforce your dislike of said thing. Either way, you've learned something new and personally, I think that's the biggest and most important point of an exercise like this one.
Besides, this would be a chance to step way out of your comfort zones so that you can do something completely different. Embrace it, even if you hate it. Experience is never wasted.
It'll be good experience whichever way the ideas fall. And working on something you don't like for a week isn't the be-all end-all. It's great experience. You might find a different way to think about things. Or you could reinforce your dislike of said thing. Either way, you've learned something new and personally, I think that's the biggest and most important point of an exercise like this one.
Besides, this would be a chance to step way out of your comfort zones so that you can do something completely different. Embrace it, even if you hate it. Experience is never wasted.
Motivation is also a huge part of game design. Even if one is willing to compromise to the situation, the essential dislike to work on the thing will feel like a chore/work and could potentially turn someone off from team projects as a whole.
While the experience is not wasted, I am throwing my thoughts in a way that assuming we want people to finish the games in 2 weeks than a demo.
That being said, I'm just stating issues with randomization and to minimize the feeling of dislike. Especially since this is a crunch mode type of event. It tends to have the longest psychological/emotional effect on people.
I don't want people to give up on game design because of a project that ruined the experience for them.
ps. libby I'm just being the non-optimistic person here to make up for Decky's space.
While the experience is not wasted, I am throwing my thoughts in a way that assuming we want people to finish the games in 2 weeks than a demo.
That being said, I'm just stating issues with randomization and to minimize the feeling of dislike. Especially since this is a crunch mode type of event. It tends to have the longest psychological/emotional effect on people.
I don't want people to give up on game design because of a project that ruined the experience for them.
ps. libby I'm just being the non-optimistic person here to make up for Decky's space.
First off, lemme say that I like this idea a lot! The idea of a game jam focused on working with someone new sounds like a blast :)
Anyway, I've done a couple of game jams like this before - where we had ~20-40 interested people with varying skill sets and levels of experience, and different interests in game design. Having a list of people's skillsets is a really good idea, so that you can form sensible teams. I would say totally random teams is probably a dangerous idea (in case people have bad blood between them?) but it's also good to go into a game jam knowing you may not be working on your favorite type of game, y'know? There's gonna have to be some compromise - and it's good experience to work on something outside of your comfort zone, anyway! Plus, with a short time frame (3 days, or a week) even if you're working on something you're not into, at least it's not for very long.
I guess my advice for people going into a jam would be:
1) If you really aren't into the overall project, find a piece of it to work on that you really like, even something small, like a particular character, etc. so that you can at least have fun with that.
2) Game jams aren't about as much about competition as they are about challenging yourself and learning new things. The vast, vast majority of jam games are sloppy and goofy and terrible anyway!
3) Be honest about what you can and can't get done in time! Better to surprise your teammates by overachieving than to mislead them by overcommitting yourself ;_;
Anyway, this idea sounds really cool! I'll join, if I can!
Anyway, I've done a couple of game jams like this before - where we had ~20-40 interested people with varying skill sets and levels of experience, and different interests in game design. Having a list of people's skillsets is a really good idea, so that you can form sensible teams. I would say totally random teams is probably a dangerous idea (in case people have bad blood between them?) but it's also good to go into a game jam knowing you may not be working on your favorite type of game, y'know? There's gonna have to be some compromise - and it's good experience to work on something outside of your comfort zone, anyway! Plus, with a short time frame (3 days, or a week) even if you're working on something you're not into, at least it's not for very long.
I guess my advice for people going into a jam would be:
1) If you really aren't into the overall project, find a piece of it to work on that you really like, even something small, like a particular character, etc. so that you can at least have fun with that.
2) Game jams aren't about as much about competition as they are about challenging yourself and learning new things. The vast, vast majority of jam games are sloppy and goofy and terrible anyway!
3) Be honest about what you can and can't get done in time! Better to surprise your teammates by overachieving than to mislead them by overcommitting yourself ;_;
Anyway, this idea sounds really cool! I'll join, if I can!
Yeah, I remember Jams usually keep the theme hidden until the event starting date to throw off everyone and try to make something cool with it.
I think this works if there's a group of people, but that's also why I suggested the Jack of all Trades since if someone just isn't into it, their involvement would be super less and someone can still carry the weight somehow.
1) If you really aren't into the overall project, find a piece of it to work on that you really like, even something small, like a particular character, etc. so that you can at least have fun with that
I think this works if there's a group of people, but that's also why I suggested the Jack of all Trades since if someone just isn't into it, their involvement would be super less and someone can still carry the weight somehow.
I'll give you guys a few more things I've been pondering to talk about.
1)In case this does go towards random team, keep in mind I will have a couple of buffers to help make a less desired team up more improbable, such as a) a voluntary dossier type thing that gives you a rough idea of a particular entrant, in their own words. It would just have some very basic interest stuff as what Nessy and Libby were talking about. b)team member swapping. Not the most polite thing probably, but it could save some people some stress.
2) Bear in mind that if this goes well and this is done more than once, that there wont be the exact same members in a team in proceeding McBacon Jam. Example, lets say Nessiah, Liberty and Unity were teamed up for Event #1. Nessiah and Liberty could team up again with someone else in events after that, but just not Unity unless there was an extremely good reason. Hopefully that made sense.
Edit: As slash pointed. gamejams aren't so much competition, and this wont be any exception. If a spare participant is needed, Ill join in, no questions asked, though whether or not I join in as a normal participant as well as the one managing it I'll leave up to everyone else.
1)In case this does go towards random team, keep in mind I will have a couple of buffers to help make a less desired team up more improbable, such as a) a voluntary dossier type thing that gives you a rough idea of a particular entrant, in their own words. It would just have some very basic interest stuff as what Nessy and Libby were talking about. b)team member swapping. Not the most polite thing probably, but it could save some people some stress.
2) Bear in mind that if this goes well and this is done more than once, that there wont be the exact same members in a team in proceeding McBacon Jam. Example, lets say Nessiah, Liberty and Unity were teamed up for Event #1. Nessiah and Liberty could team up again with someone else in events after that, but just not Unity unless there was an extremely good reason. Hopefully that made sense.
Edit: As slash pointed. gamejams aren't so much competition, and this wont be any exception. If a spare participant is needed, Ill join in, no questions asked, though whether or not I join in as a normal participant as well as the one managing it I'll leave up to everyone else.
That sounds fine to me! I'd prefer picking teams but I certainly don't mind now that a decent way of randomizing has come up.
Well, you could also have people willing to step in and help out in case someone does flake - kinda like I do with my elf helpers come the Secret Santa.
author=Archeia_Nessiah
To put an example, remember the game Muse? As far as I recall, AZNChipmunk likes the supernatural aspect of that game but YDS wanted more of a psychological horror, no ghosts allowed. And we all know what happened to that game (cancelled/trashed).
Man, that game was AWESOME. One of my favorites EVER! Is creative differences really the reason it was trashed? I assumed it was more the usual, i.e. real life rearing its ugly head and demolishing the best laid plans of chipmunks and men.
author=Ziegried McBacon
1)In case this does go towards random team, keep in mind I will have a couple of buffers to help make a less desired team up more improbable, such as a) a voluntary dossier type thing that gives you a rough idea of a particular entrant, in their own words. It would just have some very basic interest stuff as what Nessy and Libby were talking about. b)team member swapping. Not the most polite thing probably, but it could save some people some stress.
Just off the top of my head, I'd love to work with any of the following: Unity, SnowOwl, Archeia_Nessiah, or Liberty (in case anyone's wondering that's in the order that they posted in this thread at least I think so). Of those people only SnowOwl works within anything close to my ideal "comfort zone" in terms of theme and genre and that's kind of the point because fuck my comfort zone it's just a game jam anyway let's get weird--I included SnowOwl in the list because comfort zone be damned the graphical stuff he makes is gorgeous, GORGEOUS. He makes exactly the kind of games I've wanted the ersatz putative Ghostlight brand to be releasing ever since 2006.
There are another three or four people who've posted in this topic that I totally wouldn't mind working with and would kinda dig it and basically no one who's posted in this topic so far that I'd be violently opposed to working with. With my luck this will change as soon as this post is up lol.
More about me (I guess we are at that stage? no? well might as well get it over with)...I love writing (I am literally a professional writer), eventing, and designing battles/gameplay. I don't need to be the idea guy! In fact, sometimes--often, even-- I actively want not to be the idea guy, as long as the idea person has ideas I can get behind. That said, in past collabs, while I don't need to come up with the overall concept, I have noticed in the past that I get pissy when I can't decide what things are called or choose the music for a specific boss fight. Little stuff like that. But only when I happen to feel strongly about it. In most of my past collabs I have been the team leader but I am really looking forward to being just an equal or even a subordinate with no more responsibility for the final project than anyone else.
I'd have to call myself a Jack of All Trades overall, although I object to the pairing of Writing and Mapping in Nessy's proposed categories because one is my favorite thing and one is my least favorite thing.
I'm also good at sound design and have a keenly developed musical taste but I am not a composer. I pretty much hate mapping but I am capable of doing it competently (well, depends on the tileset). A few years back I learned how to do parallax mapping and while I don't use it because it's a pain in the butt it's a skill I've got in my back pocket.
I love science fiction, fantasy, horror, both straight and where at least two of the above intersect! Dark, borderline horrifying science fiction, dark fantasy, and science fiction/fantasy blends are my favorite genres, and one of my most life-consuming works is a blend of all three genres.
I have no capacity for creating original graphics whatsoever besides minor edits, frankensprites, recolors, and the like. I've been slowly getting better at graphic design over the years. I'm nothing special but I've reached a point where I can make a logo or an HUD element without it being a horrible cancerous mess of eye-gouging artifacts and aliasing.
My greatest weakness is the possibility I will flake-out/just forget this jam exists and happen to vanish for the week it starts due to health issues or other irons in the fire.
My apologies Max; That was... more than I was intending and jumping the gun a bit. If anyone feels like referencing that for future use though, I won't get in the way.
Heres a rough template of what I had in mind
Name: The participants name
Main skill: The persons main skill to bring to the table(or whatever they feel it is)
Other skills: A list of other things said person feels they are at least competent at. (great for when fall back roles are needed)
Engines/Languages/framework preference: Hopefully, this speaks for itself.
Prefer to work on: This should give you an idea of what this person wants to work on, genre/style wise.
Prefer NOT to work on: The exact opposite of prefer to work on; this is what the person wishes to avoid working on and may drop out.
I may wind up implementing this for people who wish to drop out, but not totally drop out.
Heres a rough template of what I had in mind
Name: The participants name
Main skill: The persons main skill to bring to the table(or whatever they feel it is)
Other skills: A list of other things said person feels they are at least competent at. (great for when fall back roles are needed)
Engines/Languages/framework preference: Hopefully, this speaks for itself.
Prefer to work on: This should give you an idea of what this person wants to work on, genre/style wise.
Prefer NOT to work on: The exact opposite of prefer to work on; this is what the person wishes to avoid working on and may drop out.
author=Liberty
Well, you could also have people willing to step in and help out in case someone does flake - kinda like I do with my elf helpers come the Secret Santa.
I may wind up implementing this for people who wish to drop out, but not totally drop out.
author=Max McGee
More about me (I guess we are at that stage? no? well might as well get it over with)...I love dancing (I am literally a professional dancer), cooking, and designing furniture/decorations. I don't need to be the always-at-office-never-at-home guy!
It did sound kind of a dating site description LOLOLOL HAHAH
CashmereCat's right this whole thing sounds like us admitting our school crushes.
But well yeah I'm all in for this, be whatever way it is ~ <3
@Bacon:
eh what I gave covers all the fields you need plus other useful info so whatever. doing it now means I don't have to do it later.
i refuse to acknowledge this analogy
i refuse to acknowledge this analogy
i refuse to acknowledge this analogy
eh what I gave covers all the fields you need plus other useful info so whatever. doing it now means I don't have to do it later.
It did sound kind of a dating site description LOLOLOL HAHAH
CashmereCat's right this whole thing sounds like us admitting our school crushes.
i refuse to acknowledge this analogy
i refuse to acknowledge this analogy
i refuse to acknowledge this analogy
Aww, I wanted to do a big profile like Max did :3
Just wanted to say that A) I'm completely and totally flattered that you want to work with me :DDDD and that B) Despite my normal output, I really love sci-fi and horror, I just haven't made any as I'm not as confident in my ability to do so (I have some vague ideas tho, haha)
For fun, I'm gonna fill out McBacon's list.
Name: unity
Main skill: Hmmm... I'm kind of a jack-of-most trades. I'll break it down here:
Characters: I ABSOLUTELY LOVE designing characters, both story-wise and in-battle function. I live for characters. They are my bread and butter.
Art: I can do custom tilesets, system graphics, monster sprites, and even battle animations. I can also do character sprites or face art, but I frankly think I'm not so hot at those (I can frankenstein sprites pretty well, tho XD )
Mapping: I feel like I'm at least a little above average at mapping, and I'm comfortable mapping any sort of environment.
Battle Systems: I'm pretty confident in my ability to come up with decent or better battle systems that will be fun for the player.
Other skills: I feel like I'm a decent writer and have a few story ideas. I feel like I can make decent title screens and icons.
Engines/Languages/framework preference: I'll work with anything RPG Maker. I have 2000, 2003, XP, and VX Ace, and while Ace is my pref, I'm cool with any of them. I don't even mind working on a more complicated or custom engine, as long as the rest of the team realizes that I can't code or anything like that.
Prefer to work on: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Horror, Puzzle Games, Dating Games, just about anything, really. Character-centered pieces are a plus, but not a requirement.
Prefer NOT to work on: Something with no characters. :P (Like, a shoot-em-up with a robot ship and no dialog or something)
EDIT: I also like long walks on the beach, candlelit diners, and snuggling <3 XD
author=Max McGee
Just off the top of my head, I'd love to work with any of the following: Unity, SnowOwl, Archeia_Nessiah, or Liberty (in case anyone's wondering that's in the order that they posted in this thread at least I think so). Of those people only SnowOwl works within anything close to my ideal "comfort zone" in terms of theme and genre and that's kind of the point because fuck my comfort zone it's just a game jam anyway let's get weird-
Just wanted to say that A) I'm completely and totally flattered that you want to work with me :DDDD and that B) Despite my normal output, I really love sci-fi and horror, I just haven't made any as I'm not as confident in my ability to do so (I have some vague ideas tho, haha)
For fun, I'm gonna fill out McBacon's list.
Name: unity
Main skill: Hmmm... I'm kind of a jack-of-most trades. I'll break it down here:
Characters: I ABSOLUTELY LOVE designing characters, both story-wise and in-battle function. I live for characters. They are my bread and butter.
Art: I can do custom tilesets, system graphics, monster sprites, and even battle animations. I can also do character sprites or face art, but I frankly think I'm not so hot at those (I can frankenstein sprites pretty well, tho XD )
Mapping: I feel like I'm at least a little above average at mapping, and I'm comfortable mapping any sort of environment.
Battle Systems: I'm pretty confident in my ability to come up with decent or better battle systems that will be fun for the player.
Other skills: I feel like I'm a decent writer and have a few story ideas. I feel like I can make decent title screens and icons.
Engines/Languages/framework preference: I'll work with anything RPG Maker. I have 2000, 2003, XP, and VX Ace, and while Ace is my pref, I'm cool with any of them. I don't even mind working on a more complicated or custom engine, as long as the rest of the team realizes that I can't code or anything like that.
Prefer to work on: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Horror, Puzzle Games, Dating Games, just about anything, really. Character-centered pieces are a plus, but not a requirement.
Prefer NOT to work on: Something with no characters. :P (Like, a shoot-em-up with a robot ship and no dialog or something)
EDIT: I also like long walks on the beach, candlelit diners, and snuggling <3 XD
