Re: [Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule
Well put and thought out. With the holidays upon us time gets shorter by the day. Take the time you need to do it right and don't hurry. If they want quality games they can wait. And no! You can't be blamed for North's actions. i warned everyone on this list about that and was told I didn't know a thing, and that he was the nicest guy on earth. Well the hardship he left you with wasn't needed, and proved me right! So enjoy the holidays, spend time with your son, because they grow up before you know it. At 12:43 PM 12/4/2009, you wrote: Hi everyone, As this issue comes up off list quite often I thought I'd share this with the list, and perhaps I can save myself some trouble repeating myself time after time regarding Mysteries of the Ancients and Raceway. Please, no flame wars etc over this, but I do think my repplyto the original person's e-mail needs to be seen and read by all concerned parties. Perhaps this may get the point across that I'm not a Borg drone or a slave working for the masses here. Hi, Keep in mind when I took over those titles from Alchemy I thought it would merely be a matter of completing the work that James North had started, and I wouldn't have to start over from scratch with either game. As it happened both games were heavily written in Visual Basic 6 which was already beginning to be phased out of mainstream use, and the fact the Raceway track editor and Montezuma's Revenge level editors were not accessible at all. So I decided to start over from scratch with a newer programming language and newer development tools. As a result a project i thought would take only a few months at most has in fact become years. Definitely far more time than I was willing to commit to this project in the first place. Second, when I agreed to take over these titles I made no promises when they would get done or released, or how much time per day I would devote to working on them. Fact of the matter is I have a life too, have a son to raise, a wife and family, and things like that that have nothing to do with these games at all. If I take a little time out of each day to read and respond to my e-mail that is my right to do so. If I spend Saturday morning with my son watching Saturday morning cartoons again that is my right to do so. If I want to take a couple days off of game programming to do something else I should have the right to do so without your or anyone else's input in the matter. Thing is I write these games purely for my own entertainment value. USA Games is more or less a hobby and not a business where I get paid a weekly, monthly, or yearly pay check for writing these games. Therefore I'm not compelled to work 8, 10, 12, or 16 hours a day just to sell a game for a couple thousand for all of my time and hard work. I'm not getting paid enough by you or anyone else to treat it as a full time job, and you have to understand that. Third, you mentioned the fact that people have paid good money for Raceway. I'll remind you of the fact you paid James North for Raceway, and he kept all of the money for those orders, including my own, when I took over the project. I have not received one cent for Raceway, and therefore trying to hold me accountable for that money is just plane wrong. I didn't hold a gun to your head to order the game, i didn't take your money for Raceway, and all I agreed to do was complete the game as soon as i could. I didn't agree to work around the clock 24/7 on that or any other game just to keep a few people happy. However, I do take your point that by responding heavily on list I appear to be lazy, neglecting the games I'm suppose to be working on, whatever. It is certainly true time spent reading and writing e-mail could be used for game programming, but you appear to be over looking the time, money, and energy I've spent on working on these games already. So if you want some facts here are some facts to consider. First, I generally try my best to spend at least four hours each day working on the games I create. Some times it is more and sometimes it is less. Some days I don't have any time at all to spend on games like going to church with my family on Sunday, playing with my son on Saturday, or I just take a day or two off to play games, watch TV, play my guitar, read a book, or something else I personally would like to do better. Everyone needs some time away from the computer, and just to give it a break. Second, I spent considerable time between March 2006 and December 2007 creating one of the games you mentioned, Montezuma's Revenge, and in mid January, just before final release, I got sacked with an order to cease development of the game or face a copyright infringement suit. I felt i had no choice to comply with that order, and to make it right I started over with a new game, Mysteries of the Ancients, which would be given to those on preorder status instead of Montezuma's Revenge. That entire
Re: [Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule
I agree. Thomas has done enough for this community out of free will that he deserves a break from everyone. Trouble wrote: Well put and thought out. With the holidays upon us time gets shorter by the day. Take the time you need to do it right and don't hurry. If they want quality games they can wait. And no! You can't be blamed for North's actions. i warned everyone on this list about that and was told I didn't know a thing, and that he was the nicest guy on earth. Well the hardship he left you with wasn't needed, and proved me right! So enjoy the holidays, spend time with your son, because they grow up before you know it. --- Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/gam...@audyssey.org. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org.
Re: [Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule
Tom: You put it very honestly and well. And, as for the person you wrote in reply to, all I have to say is this: You expect quick results? Heck, I wouldn't complain if I were you, because you don't even take the time to correct your own spelling or grammar through the use of a spell checker or grammar checker. It would have made you more credible if you had done so.. --- In God we trust! - Original Message - From: Thomas Ward thomasward1...@gmail.com To: gamers@audyssey.org Sent: Friday, December 04, 2009 7:43 AM Subject: [Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule Hi everyone, As this issue comes up off list quite often I thought I'd share this with the list, and perhaps I can save myself some trouble repeating myself time after time regarding Mysteries of the Ancients and Raceway. Please, no flame wars etc over this, but I do think my repplyto the original person's e-mail needs to be seen and read by all concerned parties. Perhaps this may get the point across that I'm not a Borg drone or a slave working for the masses here. Hi, Keep in mind when I took over those titles from Alchemy I thought it would merely be a matter of completing the work that James North had started, and I wouldn't have to start over from scratch with either game. As it happened both games were heavily written in Visual Basic 6 which was already beginning to be phased out of mainstream use, and the fact the Raceway track editor and Montezuma's Revenge level editors were not accessible at all. So I decided to start over from scratch with a newer programming language and newer development tools. As a result a project i thought would take only a few months at most has in fact become years. Definitely far more time than I was willing to commit to this project in the first place. Second, when I agreed to take over these titles I made no promises when they would get done or released, or how much time per day I would devote to working on them. Fact of the matter is I have a life too, have a son to raise, a wife and family, and things like that that have nothing to do with these games at all. If I take a little time out of each day to read and respond to my e-mail that is my right to do so. If I spend Saturday morning with my son watching Saturday morning cartoons again that is my right to do so. If I want to take a couple days off of game programming to do something else I should have the right to do so without your or anyone else's input in the matter. Thing is I write these games purely for my own entertainment value. USA Games is more or less a hobby and not a business where I get paid a weekly, monthly, or yearly pay check for writing these games. Therefore I'm not compelled to work 8, 10, 12, or 16 hours a day just to sell a game for a couple thousand for all of my time and hard work. I'm not getting paid enough by you or anyone else to treat it as a full time job, and you have to understand that. Third, you mentioned the fact that people have paid good money for Raceway. I'll remind you of the fact you paid James North for Raceway, and he kept all of the money for those orders, including my own, when I took over the project. I have not received one cent for Raceway, and therefore trying to hold me accountable for that money is just plane wrong. I didn't hold a gun to your head to order the game, i didn't take your money for Raceway, and all I agreed to do was complete the game as soon as i could. I didn't agree to work around the clock 24/7 on that or any other game just to keep a few people happy. However, I do take your point that by responding heavily on list I appear to be lazy, neglecting the games I'm suppose to be working on, whatever. It is certainly true time spent reading and writing e-mail could be used for game programming, but you appear to be over looking the time, money, and energy I've spent on working on these games already. So if you want some facts here are some facts to consider. First, I generally try my best to spend at least four hours each day working on the games I create. Some times it is more and sometimes it is less. Some days I don't have any time at all to spend on games like going to church with my family on Sunday, playing with my son on Saturday, or I just take a day or two off to play games, watch TV, play my guitar, read a book, or something else I personally would like to do better. Everyone needs some time away from the computer, and just to give it a break. Second, I spent considerable time between March 2006 and December 2007 creating one of the games you mentioned, Montezuma's Revenge, and in mid January, just before final release, I got sacked with an order to cease development of the game or face a copyright infringement suit. I felt i had no choice to comply with that order, and to make it right I started over with a new game, Mysteries of the Ancients, which would be given to those on preorder status instead of Montezuma's Revenge. That entire affair cost me a full
[Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule
Hi everyone, As this issue comes up off list quite often I thought I'd share this with the list, and perhaps I can save myself some trouble repeating myself time after time regarding Mysteries of the Ancients and Raceway. Please, no flame wars etc over this, but I do think my repplyto the original person's e-mail needs to be seen and read by all concerned parties. Perhaps this may get the point across that I'm not a Borg drone or a slave working for the masses here. Hi, Keep in mind when I took over those titles from Alchemy I thought it would merely be a matter of completing the work that James North had started, and I wouldn't have to start over from scratch with either game. As it happened both games were heavily written in Visual Basic 6 which was already beginning to be phased out of mainstream use, and the fact the Raceway track editor and Montezuma's Revenge level editors were not accessible at all. So I decided to start over from scratch with a newer programming language and newer development tools. As a result a project i thought would take only a few months at most has in fact become years. Definitely far more time than I was willing to commit to this project in the first place. Second, when I agreed to take over these titles I made no promises when they would get done or released, or how much time per day I would devote to working on them. Fact of the matter is I have a life too, have a son to raise, a wife and family, and things like that that have nothing to do with these games at all. If I take a little time out of each day to read and respond to my e-mail that is my right to do so. If I spend Saturday morning with my son watching Saturday morning cartoons again that is my right to do so. If I want to take a couple days off of game programming to do something else I should have the right to do so without your or anyone else's input in the matter. Thing is I write these games purely for my own entertainment value. USA Games is more or less a hobby and not a business where I get paid a weekly, monthly, or yearly pay check for writing these games. Therefore I'm not compelled to work 8, 10, 12, or 16 hours a day just to sell a game for a couple thousand for all of my time and hard work. I'm not getting paid enough by you or anyone else to treat it as a full time job, and you have to understand that. Third, you mentioned the fact that people have paid good money for Raceway. I'll remind you of the fact you paid James North for Raceway, and he kept all of the money for those orders, including my own, when I took over the project. I have not received one cent for Raceway, and therefore trying to hold me accountable for that money is just plane wrong. I didn't hold a gun to your head to order the game, i didn't take your money for Raceway, and all I agreed to do was complete the game as soon as i could. I didn't agree to work around the clock 24/7 on that or any other game just to keep a few people happy. However, I do take your point that by responding heavily on list I appear to be lazy, neglecting the games I'm suppose to be working on, whatever. It is certainly true time spent reading and writing e-mail could be used for game programming, but you appear to be over looking the time, money, and energy I've spent on working on these games already. So if you want some facts here are some facts to consider. First, I generally try my best to spend at least four hours each day working on the games I create. Some times it is more and sometimes it is less. Some days I don't have any time at all to spend on games like going to church with my family on Sunday, playing with my son on Saturday, or I just take a day or two off to play games, watch TV, play my guitar, read a book, or something else I personally would like to do better. Everyone needs some time away from the computer, and just to give it a break. Second, I spent considerable time between March 2006 and December 2007 creating one of the games you mentioned, Montezuma's Revenge, and in mid January, just before final release, I got sacked with an order to cease development of the game or face a copyright infringement suit. I felt i had no choice to comply with that order, and to make it right I started over with a new game, Mysteries of the Ancients, which would be given to those on preorder status instead of Montezuma's Revenge. That entire affair cost me a full year and a half of development time and energy. So I've had one heck of a major setback that I think gives me an excuse for being rather slow on releasing either game you want. Finally, do you have any idea how much money I've put into these projects? How much I've paid for sound effects, music, not to mention the time spent on working on them? Well, here is a clue. Game music is quite expensive. For a commercial license for a music track it can cost a developer anywhere from $20 for a single track all the way up to
[Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule
Right on, Thomas! It's evident from your posts that you're working your tail off creating good accessible games. The posts themselves are often valuable technical or business guidance that are certainly appreciated at our end. Having recently emerged from 6 months of constant work getting our own Visit Salem game out, I can heartily endorse the notion of you Getting a Life. Now go watch cartoons with your family! John Bannick Geek --- Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/gam...@audyssey.org. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org.
Re: [Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule
wow what is this game? is it an adventure game, visit salem? On 4 Dec 2009, at 22:08, John Bannick wrote: Right on, Thomas! It's evident from your posts that you're working your tail off creating good accessible games. The posts themselves are often valuable technical or business guidance that are certainly appreciated at our end. Having recently emerged from 6 months of constant work getting our own Visit Salem game out, I can heartily endorse the notion of you Getting a Life. Now go watch cartoons with your family! John Bannick Geek --- Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org . You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/gam...@audyssey.org. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org. --- Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/gam...@audyssey.org. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org.
[Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule
William, Nope; Visit Salem is not an adventure game. It's a travelogue of Salem, Massachusetts. Totally inaccessible, I'm afraid. See my screed on the subject in the Audyssey post You can make a Difference I am scheduled to resume work on Sinister Cities this summer. That's a series of CYOA games. Think Casablanca or Indiana Jones, set in the 1920's. They will be blind accessible. Maybe with SAPI, if I can get the time. John www.7128.com --- Gamers mailing list __ Gamers@audyssey.org If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to gamers-unsubscr...@audyssey.org. You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/gam...@audyssey.org. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to gamers-ow...@audyssey.org.
Re: [Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule
Hi, I fully understand, you can't spend all day on the computer programming games. Also I know that sounds are damned expencive. I can wait. While I wait I can make a bit of money somehow to purchase that game. *laughs* You can take every break you need to finnish off this thing. - Original Message - From: Thomas Ward thomasward1...@gmail.com To: gamers@audyssey.org Sent: Friday, December 04, 2009 6:43 PM Subject: [Audyssey] My Game Development Schedule Hi everyone, As this issue comes up off list quite often I thought I'd share this with the list, and perhaps I can save myself some trouble repeating myself time after time regarding Mysteries of the Ancients and Raceway. Please, no flame wars etc over this, but I do think my repplyto the original person's e-mail needs to be seen and read by all concerned parties. Perhaps this may get the point across that I'm not a Borg drone or a slave working for the masses here. Hi, Keep in mind when I took over those titles from Alchemy I thought it would merely be a matter of completing the work that James North had started, and I wouldn't have to start over from scratch with either game. As it happened both games were heavily written in Visual Basic 6 which was already beginning to be phased out of mainstream use, and the fact the Raceway track editor and Montezuma's Revenge level editors were not accessible at all. So I decided to start over from scratch with a newer programming language and newer development tools. As a result a project i thought would take only a few months at most has in fact become years. Definitely far more time than I was willing to commit to this project in the first place. Second, when I agreed to take over these titles I made no promises when they would get done or released, or how much time per day I would devote to working on them. Fact of the matter is I have a life too, have a son to raise, a wife and family, and things like that that have nothing to do with these games at all. If I take a little time out of each day to read and respond to my e-mail that is my right to do so. If I spend Saturday morning with my son watching Saturday morning cartoons again that is my right to do so. If I want to take a couple days off of game programming to do something else I should have the right to do so without your or anyone else's input in the matter. Thing is I write these games purely for my own entertainment value. USA Games is more or less a hobby and not a business where I get paid a weekly, monthly, or yearly pay check for writing these games. Therefore I'm not compelled to work 8, 10, 12, or 16 hours a day just to sell a game for a couple thousand for all of my time and hard work. I'm not getting paid enough by you or anyone else to treat it as a full time job, and you have to understand that. Third, you mentioned the fact that people have paid good money for Raceway. I'll remind you of the fact you paid James North for Raceway, and he kept all of the money for those orders, including my own, when I took over the project. I have not received one cent for Raceway, and therefore trying to hold me accountable for that money is just plane wrong. I didn't hold a gun to your head to order the game, i didn't take your money for Raceway, and all I agreed to do was complete the game as soon as i could. I didn't agree to work around the clock 24/7 on that or any other game just to keep a few people happy. However, I do take your point that by responding heavily on list I appear to be lazy, neglecting the games I'm suppose to be working on, whatever. It is certainly true time spent reading and writing e-mail could be used for game programming, but you appear to be over looking the time, money, and energy I've spent on working on these games already. So if you want some facts here are some facts to consider. First, I generally try my best to spend at least four hours each day working on the games I create. Some times it is more and sometimes it is less. Some days I don't have any time at all to spend on games like going to church with my family on Sunday, playing with my son on Saturday, or I just take a day or two off to play games, watch TV, play my guitar, read a book, or something else I personally would like to do better. Everyone needs some time away from the computer, and just to give it a break. Second, I spent considerable time between March 2006 and December 2007 creating one of the games you mentioned, Montezuma's Revenge, and in mid January, just before final release, I got sacked with an order to cease development of the game or face a copyright infringement suit. I felt i had no choice to comply with that order, and to make it right I started over with a new game, Mysteries of the Ancients, which would be given to those on preorder status instead of Montezuma's Revenge. That entire affair cost me a full year and a half of development time and energy. So
