School and educational stuff (Post) I'll be "going to" Full Sail University for my Bachelor's in Video Game Design. "Going to" is in quotations as such because I won't be leaving my apartment, haha. Online college is the shizzle.

Skunk'd: Live Your Dreams (Post)

The game's undergone several insane stylistic changes as it is, from way too silly and lighthearted to absurdly and depressingly grim. With the current script, graphics, and mechanics, I think we've struck an awesome balance.

That said, the game now leans toward a more whimsical type of story and play style, heavily influenced by anime and manga, with a heavy emphasis on making the characters endearing and believably flawed. When I said the game is "not for kids," I meant it--but with the more mature themes comes a responsibility not to overuse them, and so now I think the game should exude from its players more a sense of 'Wow, that's awesome!' wonder rather than 'Wow, that's effed up' repulsion.

That's my aim, at least.


EDIT: Upon rereading my story summary, it does indeed seem like a dark and gritty tale; however, I insist it's really more charming and fun than anything. You might question my sanity; can't say I blame you, but you need to see the characters in motion with the dialogue used to really get a feel for the true atmosphere in the game. A plot summary limits me to premise, and doesn't give me as good of an opportunity to show off the characters, haha.

Skunk'd: Live Your Dreams (Post) 'Ey, people! Atnas (the artist for this game) has been working his butt off to vastly improve the graphics for the game, which is why the screenies have suddenly vanished. In addition, while the story remains intact, it's just there to serve as a general idea of what the game's about until I can write a better summary, which will most likely be right after I finish this post. A new major character has been introduced to the story, and some major plot details have been changed or removed entirely due to a general inability to suspend disbelief at the absurdity of it all, haha.

In other news, the engine has been completely finished and spit-shined, save for importing in the new sprites and tiles Atnas made. Rest assured, the next time you see Skunk'd, it will not only be looking like a glorious remake of itself, it will also be in motion. As soon as Atnas is satisfied with the quality of his work, I will be uploading both screenshots AND a video teasing the first level.

Once again, if you have any criticisms, comments or praise, do NOT hold back. Feel free to tell me "this thing is awesome," or "that something totally blows and should be removed or changed." I can't guarantee I'll use your suggestions, but I can guarantee I value your opinions and hold them as very important to the project. And just so you know, the first post has been heavily edited and story summary refined. Take a look!

Just putting this out there, people (: (Post) Wow, I unwittingly created a lame paradox. Pretty impressive.

And as for what the best way to approach the subject is? Say exactly what you did in whatever way works for you. In other words, just say you don't give a flying hoot. ^__^

TinEye (Post) I found this a couple months ago and thought it was the coolest thing, then forgot about it. Thanks for bringing it up! It's a good way to identify if an image is truly one-of-a-kind or just copied from somewhere on the Internet, lol.

Just putting this out there, people (: (Post) Well, I feel incredibly silly for posting this now. I didn't mean to come across as dramatic, but I suppose you're correct, Kesha, in saying that coming-outs in general are just melodramatic by nature and are largely unnecessary, especially in a place where sexuality doesn't really come up often (if at all).

That said, it's more surprising and refreshing than you'd think to have people irritated with the idea of coming out due to apathy (as opposed to the usual reason for being irritated).

Just putting this out there, people (: (Post) Haha. I figured I'd get the "uh, what?" response from at least one person, which is what I assume you're essentially saying from that one-word reply. Like I said, I'm not trying to start controversy or anything, I just wanna be sure I'm not gonna get verbally stomped out in the future if someone were to find out. Yeah, pretty insecure, I guess, but confidence has never been one of my more prominent qualities n.n;

Just putting this out there, people (: (Post) Hey folks, I know I'm still not the most well-known member either here or at MFGG, but I've gained some attention for the topic about my indie game, Skunk'd, not here but on MFGG specifically, and I've also been spending most of my free time working on Skunk'd, and thus am on the computer quite often, which means in turn I'm spending lots more time on BibbyTeam and MFGG, getting to know some of the members pretty well.

There's just something that's been bothering me, and it will come up in conversation at some point, so I thought it might be better if I just brought it up and see how people feel about it. Some of you might find it silly or unnecessary for me to post this, and hell, you might be right. But seeing as how I'm starting to become friends with some of you, I just want to make sure I won't come under fire for this at a really inconvenient time.


So... the point of that whole rambling was this: I'm an indie game developer, a guitarist, a songwriter, a music lover, a fun dude with a good sense of humor; I'm a lot of awesome things, and, oh yeah, I also just happen to have an overwhelming, one-sided preference for men over women.


Now, I don't want any of you to think I'm doing this for attention or to start fiery debates about the legal implications of gay marriage or views on religion. Not my intention at all. I just want to make sure that, even if you find my orientation offensive or whatever, that you won't let it affect the way you reply to me and will like me for who I am. 'Cause honestly, liking dudes is a very small part of me, and I guarantee that I don't get flirty or perverted with uninterested parties unless I'm joking. And joke I do; I probably make more gay jokes than half the homophobes in this world. You gotta learn to laugh at yourself, at least in my opinion.


I'd like to point out a member of this forum for being particularly accepting; Dazzle, during a conversation we had last night, dismissed my assertion that I was in fact gay as purely unimportant. That's the best reaction I could ask for from someone, honestly. So thank you very much, Dazzle, for being an accepting person.


There, I've said my piece. tl;dr? xD

Skunk'd: Live Your Dreams (Post)
INTRODUCTION


Hullo! MeliSoft Games here, reporting on my first ever indie video game, which will hopefully come to fruition later in 2011, but most likely in early 2012. I'm plugging away at it, spending 4-6 hours a day programming my life away. This has become sort of my baby, and I'm very proud of how it's turning out so far, so I thought I'd share it with this community.


THE STORY


Skunk'd: Live Your Dreams is the story of a teenage "emo" boy, Thommy Summers (nicknamed "Skunk" due to the albino stripe running down the middle of his pitch-black head of hair), who has quite a bit on his plate. His father is a deadbeat, drug-dealing loser who leaves him home alone most of the time, and he is tortured at school by a stereotype-defying bully who is actually much smarter than he is. And yet life goes on; Skunk keeps himself chugging along with daydreams of his classmate and love interest, the plucky, nerdy writer Lilly Hartwell.


One fateful day, however, Skunk opens his eyes to find himself in the land of dreams he used to escape to as a child, a magical world called Lucidia. Here, he comes across a ghostly figure greatly resembling Lilly, who urges him to wake himself up and save her, as she has been brutally attacked and left to die somewhere in their town. Upon trying to wake himself, however, he is told it is not possible by his childhood imaginary friend, the sadomasochistic and self-mutilating teddy bear Kid Snuggles. After an emotional reunion for the two old friends, Snuggles reveals that he is now Skunk's guardian angel, and that the only way to awaken from his slumber is to defeat the "imagination killer" who has taken over the Spire of Dreams. Skunk is shocked and horrified to find out that the "imagination killer" is actually Japanese-American boy genius Satoshi Kuragame, who is his real-life bully!


Determined to confront his fears, Skunk, joined by the restless soul of Lilly and his self-abusive teddy bear-made-angel, decides to traverse the seven realms of Lucidia, climb the Spire of Dreams, and put an end to the imagination-killing bully once and for all. Then and only then will he be able to wake up and save Lilly from her otherwise inevitable death.


THE GAMEPLAY


Skunk'd: Live Your Dreams is a platformer that takes place across 7 puzzle-filled realms, each with its own mechanic to alter your surroundings and solve mysteries. Each level is named after a specific type of dream:


I. Sweet Dream (candy and dessert themed level)
II. Pipe Dream (level in a giant hookah complete with altered states of mind based on which 'clouds' Skunk walks through)
III. Wet Dream (ahem, it's a water themed level a la Water Temple in OoT)
IV. Day Dream (day-night mechanics)
V. Bad Dream (horror-themed level with darkness, flashlight required)
VI. Double Dream (level in a castle with one entire side made of a giant mirror, introducing playing as two Skunks at once)
VII. American Dream (level in a New York-style city, weather plays the biggest role here)


Once all seven realms are completed, you must climb the challenging Spire of Dreams and confront Satoshi in a sure-to-be-epic battle!


CONCEPT ART



The main cast of Skunk'd, improved version. Art by Clement Swennes.


SCREENSHOTS


Screens are not available at the moment; here is some temporary pixelart of the characters:



Pixelart by Clement Swennes.


BOTTOM LINE


This game is being programmed in Scirra's Construct Classic, an alternative to Clickteam products that works similarly but ultimately produces much prettier and efficient results, in my opinion. I'm currently looking for feedback and, actually, a musician to write the score for the game (a paid position). Thanks for reading, lol, if you got through all this you're a better man than I. <3

Hey! It's me Vette! (Post) Time to crash dis here topic.

...No just kidding. It's a pleasure to have met you, Vette, and I hope you have a good time on here! I already am (: