BLACKMASK-COMICS

Been a while since I wrote one of these... Ok, first things first... The new game project is finally getting off the ground a bit, and I'm making tremendous strides in the pixel art department. You can check out my gallery for more on that subject. Still haven't started proto-typing a demo yet, but that will soon be in the works.

For this update, I want to share a few indie games I've been playing via the Steam platform gaming service. These are titles made by very talented independent game devs that I follow on social media like Twitter, and deserve a spotlight and a few choice words as well. So let us begin with the praising, shall we?

HYPER LIGHT DRIFTER



I absolutely LOVE Shigeru Miyamoto's The Legend of Zelda NES game... As a lad I would spend countless hours playing this title on the weekends, trying to find every little secret I could before having to complete my homework for school the following morning. It was one of the sole reasons I decided to become an indie dev and make my own games presently. With that said, when I received word that Heart Machine's Alex Preston was making a game that paid homage to Zelda, I couldn't pass up an opportunity to play Hyper Light Drifter. With amazing pixel art that feels like first/second gen 8-bit pixel graphics, and a score composed by "legendary" musician Rich Vreeland aka Disasterpeace, HLD is an epic experience that needs to be recognized by the entire gaming community... by AAA and indie fans alike. It's available for PC and console for around twenty USD...

AXIOM VERGE



The brain child of "one man dev team" Thomas Happ, Axiom Verge is a love letter to the genre dubbed the "Metroidvania" and feels similar to the game that made protagonist Samus Aran a household name. It's an amazing title in my opinion. It's one of those games that refuses to "hold the hand" of the player, letting you try to figure out how to advance through the levels. I'm not afraid to admit that I had to google a few of the walkthroughs just to get further in progression. Since it's modeled after Metroid, expect a lot of back tracking for power-ups and other secrets. Another title that can be found on PC and console for about $19.99 USD. Well worth your time and money if you have it to spare...

TRIALS OF AZRA



This title is a puzzle/platformer created by Argentinian game developers Onion Core, and will definitely test your ability to traverse through the game. I did a review of it on Steam: 
steamcommunity.com/profiles/76…
Feel free to check it out... The game has really awesome retro 8-bit pixel art and the idiosyncratic gameplay mechanics is perhaps my favorite aspect of the experience. This game is only available on PC for about ten USD... If you enjoy a good puzzler, pick this up immediately.

VIKING SQUAD



What can I say... This title is like the Behemoth's Castle Crashers had a baby with Sega's Golden Axe... You get Viking Squad, a comic book styled brawler/beat 'em up that is a blast to play solo or online with a few of your buddies. The art behind this game is the driving force in my opinion. It's vibrant color scheme meshes well; sprites and background assets alike. It's like a playable cartoon/comic book experience and the music is top notch as well... really adds flare to the game. Produced by the gentle giants at Slick Entertainment, the title is on PC and console and can be had for $14.99 USD... (as of this posting, the game is on sale on Steam for 35% off) If you are into arcade button mashers, pick this one up as soon as possible!

And there you have it, four excellent titles I'm currently enjoying on my PC... Next update will mostly be about the dev progress of my own title, which I hope to have on Steam eventually... That's all folks. Thank you for reading this, and please support my development dream by following me on Twitter: twitter.com/ICHNICERO
Follows really help me get my content to more eyeballs on the web

Fellow deviants... Have a good day/evening/night, and thank you all for your much needed support!!!

Ok... This will be a "short and sweet" journal...

First, want to share some "coding" I got going on for the next game... Developed in Construct 2. I love the editor!!! It's very intuitive, and yet powerful enough to make some really complex game mechanics. Very novice friendly for game dev beginners. I recommend you look up SCIRRA on the web if you're truly interested in making video games yourself!!! A link to get you started:

www.scirra.com

Well, here's a look at the events I have for the current stage I'm working on...





I still have a few more stages planned, so it may be a few weeks before the game is ready to go live... As I get closer to completion (playtesting will take place for a day or so, gotta catch those nasty bugs!!!) I will make an announcement on DA so stay tuned!

Everyone have an awesome and safe weekend!!!

O-Town... Stay Strong. 

Ok... I'm back with another journal/blog/update "thingy"...

First, I'm still working on some fan art of sci-fi toons drawn by ...
I got a sneak peek for you guys right below:





... hopefully, I'll have that finished in the next week or so... Can't wait to share that one with you guys!!!

Moving on, I finally uploaded my first game to the www.SCIRRA.com website, which you can check out here:

www.scirra.com/arcade/other-ga…

you can also check it out on www.kongregate.com ...

www.kongregate.com/games/gamea…

that's if you prefer one over the other...

It's a clone of retro, arcade games like PONG, Breakout and Arkanoid... Pretty basic, simplistic stuff. I made it with a very handy game dev tool called Construct 2. It's based in HTML5, and files can be exported to multiple platforms, including mobile. It truly takes the "stress" of writing codes away, and the developer can focus mostly on mechanics and game design. I LOVE this program!!! With all that said, I ran into a small issue when I thought about exporting "AXG" (name of my game) to www.newgrounds.com ...

Newground only supports flash files on their site, so I decided (started Friday night) to learn how to create games in flash using (AS3) Action Scripts. After a lot of "trail n' error" I finally started getting the hang of the complex "syntax" structure, and started implementing gameplay controls for the tutorial game I'm working on... (multi-tasking isn't my thing, but I'm getting the hang of programming logic, and that will serve me well in future projects)

Anyway, I'll show you guys the script so far:


 


95 lines of code just to make "Link" walk up,down,left,right lol!!! But I'm enjoying the lessons, so I'll hopefully be able to craft a nice size game in flash very soon!

Well, got a lot to do, and it's getting late here... Got to get ready for the weekly grind at the day gig tomorrow... (sigh) I hope to have that fan deviation, and game development related updates very soon.

Have a great day/evening/night when/where ever you are!!!
Keep creating great deviations: Deviant Art community!!!

... Well..... It's been a long time since the last one I submitted... Been busy... speaking of:



New web comic I'm working on when I'm not creating art assets for my primary endeavor, game development. It's pretty much about the gaming industry, and the people who work for a certain "AAA" development company... I'm pumping them out fast since the art work load is relatively low. Please enjoy the show It's paying homage to "Code Monkeys"... a show that I really enjoyed watching.

Moving on, I'm still working on a new IP... I can't show any footage yet since I still need to work out the legal situations, but I'm working on that as I type More so, I have been working on assets and level designs for a hundle bundle gaming package I plan on releasing for free once the pack is complete. The games will be really simplistic, both in gameplay aspects and graphics... I may show off a few screenshots asap, so stay tuned

Lastly:



R.I.P to the ICHNICERO game demo as plans for the game have been suspended indefinitely... to focus all the energy and effort on the new IP project, which is a "love letter" to the first gen 8-bit classic games of the NES. I promise this game will be amazing once I'm done working on it... Other than just working my 9-5 gig during the work week, grinding on art once I get home, and grinding all weekend, nothing to exciting to tell folks... lol! Watching a lot of Twitch in my spare time, Super Mario Maker if you're wondering, and playing a lot of indie RPGs on my 360... I'm also enjoying a mobile title!!! SLayin' is a very cool game It remind me of the LCD games from Nintendo (and other companies) back in the 80's... Hours of fun BTW, working on some additional fan art for an indie game title... Stay tuned for more on that

Ok, back to work people!!! Till the next installment!

..... Been a long time.



Now that I'm in the ballpark of finally upgrading my PC, I'm relieved enough to update my progress... The ICHNICERO demo will probably be cancelled. I may just finish it since I was 95% near completion, but I've turned my attention towards another project. In the year or so since my PC broke down, I've made progress in my pixel art skills using my trusty mac... I've finally created an 8-bit pixel style similar to those found on the NES back in the 80's... My new project will be a puzzle game in the same manner as HEART MACHINE'S "Hyper Light Drifter" as far as visuals and gameplay mechanics go. I'm very excited at how my game looks, especially the early levels... I have a medieval theme going on; think the Legend of Zelda II if you need a concrete reference. I also started work on a RPG that encompass all features of the genre, has a "wacky" story arc and very distinct characters, each with their own personal story arc... Been grinding... extremely hard lately. Short update for now... Will be back ASAP...



Peace.