I made a game I would love to share with you guys!

[Duck in a Top Hat]

Hello! I'm back to revisit Spiderweb because since I've drifted away, my life has changed in a lot of exciting new ways and I owe so much of what I've become to this community, and Jeff's games.

 

With the advantage of the Internet's collective knowledge, I taught myself to program video games and I enjoy it so much that now I've basically dedicated my life to game development.

 

So I drifted away from this community and into new ones, focused on game development. But this community taught me so many of the skills that have enabled me to enjoy life and push the limits of my creativity. You taught me to value intelligence and learning, discussion and debate. Through Blades of Avernum, I had my first experience with actually writing and programming games. Together, Jeff's games and the many Blades scenarios I played taught me good storytelling is just as important as fun, and that talented and dedicated individuals can make unique and beautiful creations.

 

When I first came here as "Uber," this community taught me proper etiquette for forums and the Internet in general, which I use all the time when I write emails or use social media to connect with other game developers. I want to say sorry now for the immature way I acted and how I spammed the forums. I was much younger then, and those mistakes taught me some painful lessons, but I learned them, and I grew as a result. I'm also sorry I subverted the rules and assumed a new identity as Duck, although I still think the transformation was for the best.

 

But the main reason I came back tonight is that I've made a game I'm really proud of, and I think it really demonstrates the influence of Jeff's games and the Blades community on my work. I want to share it with the community.

 

I made this game for the Public Domain Jam. This was a week-long challenge to make games based on writings from the Public Domain. I chose to work from my favorite story by H.P. Lovecraft, The Whisperer in Darkness. I think I mentioned the story on these boards once, because I love it. I adapted the story as an interactive fiction. It's mostly dialogue, with lovely painted illustrations by one of my classmates, and it has brief sequences of exploration in ASCII-drawn environments.

 

It's free, of course, and you can download it here. I really want to hear your thoughts and reactions, though I hope to keep this thread as spoiler-free as possible, for those who aren't familiar with the original story. I'd also love to answer any questions you might have about the game's development, or anything else, really. I might stick around here for a few more days.

 

EDIT: There are some incredible other entrants, and you can see them all at the bottom of this page. I'm also compiling a collection of my personal favorites here.

[Earth]

what player is supposed to do in that game? click around and find hotspot?

 

screenshots look well done.

[adc.]

I'll try it today, haven't posted for almost a week here, so um, I hope this would suffice

[Duck in a Top Hat]

It's interactive fiction. You mostly read passages of dialog and view paintings (like in the screenshots) and in a few brief sections you walk around to advance the story. It's not really a game in the traditional sense.

[Sudanna]

Really neat, Duck. I loved the final walk to the study, and all of the paintings were really nice.

[Duck in a Top Hat]

Thank you! I know there were a few problems with the walking sections because there was nothing to discover or accomplish besides progressing the story by moving slowly to point B, but I included all of them to introduce the player to those mechanics, preparing them for the final walk.

[adc.]

The art looks amazing, about to download the game.

 

It is guaranteed not to have those "jump scare" stuff yes?

 

Dawwww, sorry I have no credit card yet. I might be able to donate at 2016 perhaps?

[Duck in a Top Hat]

Well it's an atmospheric horror story, so the music, sound effects, visuals and writing may disturb you, but there's very little action and it's pretty slow-paced.

 

[spoileralt=As for jump scares...]There's only one, at the very end. You've been warned.[/spoileralt]

 

Don't worry about donating anything. I enjoyed making this, and I'm happy sharing it for free.

[Slawbug]

Duck, welcome back! And this game looks awesome!

 

It's funny to hear you talk about the Uber days. You certainly did become much more aware of everything that is involved in interacting with others, back then! I think it was clear even early on that you were very young but that you were really trying. I know that I've held your name up more than a few times as example of why it pays to be kind to our youngest members. Anyway, it's sort of touching to hear that you feel so positively about the community's impact on you. I hope you know that those feelings are reciprocated.

[Duck in a Top Hat]

Thanks so much, Slarty, that means a lot to me.

 

Hoping I'll have time to play Avadon 2 over the summer, also. Last Spiderweb game I played was Nethergate: Resurrection after I bought the SW Humble Bundle a couple months back.