Development Update: The Isle of STEEM - A Satirical RPG based on the STEEM blockchain
Hello!
It has been quite some time since I last published an update for The Isle of Steem, a satirical Role Playing Game, based on the STEEM blockchain, and all its characters (and people) - which I have been working on for quite some time.
This post is not going to be a calvacade of excuses as to why I haven't been working on it, but rather some facts.
- I was heavilly involved (for the past two months) - in a very important audit at my day job.
- @steemmonsters has been taking up a lot of my STEEM time.
- Most recently (in the past few weeks) - I've lost some of the drive to "complete" this project, having become overwhelmed by the scope of it.
So instead of complaining, and stopping development entirely - I'm going to set some parameters to complete a minimum viable product, or if you will, a first (and potentially only!) chapter to give the game some semblance of a beginning, middle and end (in an episodic way).
So far, I have several areas developed, and these are in varying stages of completeness.
Map 1: Prologue
Status: Complete.
Play time: ~2 minutes.
This is the starting area, where you find yourself shipwrecked onto the Isle. You journey through this area into...
Map 2: The Cave of No Return
Status: Complete.
Playtime: <1 Minute
This area is a transitional area (and packed with a secret!) that you can't access if you miss it after leaving the area.
Map 3: Where am I?
Status: Complete
Playtime: <5 minutes
The first area where you encounter a NPC, and a quest giver. You are instructed to write an introduction post, journeying to the South.
Map 4: The Robot Lands
Status: Complete
Playtime: <1 Minute
Another transitional area, here you encounter your first taste of combat, perhaps chancing upon evil, destructive "Introduction Bots", who attempt to flag you to death.
Map 5: The Robot Cave
Status: Complete
Playtime: 5-10 Minutes
The Robot Cave is where you fight more introduction bots, and make your introductory marks upon the STEEM blockchain. You fight your first boss here, which unlocks you access to the next area.
Map 6: Adelaide
Status: In Development
Playtime: 5-20 Minutes
This is a highly stylized representation of the city of Adelaide. There's a functioning inn - a zoo - manned by @ryivhnn (complete with custom sprite - not pictured above) - and a single quest accessible from the overworld map. This quest involves destroying some evil upgoats, before obtaining a stat-boosting item.
Map 7: The Adelaide Inn
Status: Complete
Playtime: 2 minutes
A typical J-RPG Style Inn. Play some SBD (the in-game currency) - and restore your health.
Map 8: The Jade
Status: In Development
Playtime: 5-10 minutes
A reasonably faithful representation of The Jade, where the Monthly (except December) Adelaide STEEM meet is held, on Flinders St, Adelaide - on the last Thursday of each month (except December). If you're ever in town, come and meet us. See how remarkable and life like my digital version of The Jade is! (Or isn't!)
Here, in this area, you'll meet NPCs like @o07, @lordnigel, @mattclarke, and several others of the #mallsballers crew.
There's even @wildflowerjessi, who gives you a custom quest to retrieve henna powder, and without spoiling the story, @mattclarke is there to give you a quest as well. It doesn't even relate to Flesh Golems.
Map 9: A Castle
Status: Complete
Playtime: 5-15 Minutes
The location where @wildflowerjessi's quest plays out. I won't say much more in order to not spoil the story. There's a quest here that gets you a permanent bonus for the player character.
Map 10: The Forest of Despair - 1
Status: Complete
Playtime: 3 minutes
An area that gets you a quest to go and find @lauralemons. @stitchybitch gives you the quest, and off you go, in search of her. I won't spoil more of the story here, but share more screenshots of the upcoming areas.
The Forest of Despair - 2
Status: Complete
Playtime: 4 minutes
A transitory area, leading to the next part of the Forest. This area plays an important role in part of the @lauralemons quest arc.
The Forest of Despair - 3
Status: In Development
Playtime: 2 minutes
An area where a lot of storytelling takes place, and some scripted events occur, leading you into the next area, which leads you to meet the elsusive @lauralemons
The Tower of Despair - 1
Status: Complete
Playtime: 2 minutes
An area that introduces you to Laura's character. There's some cool scripted events going on here, and its my idea to initially spook the player, and drive them forwards.
The Tower of Despair - 2
Status: Complete
Playtime: 10 minutes
This is the area where you meet @lauralemons, and she gives you a quest, taking you back through the other areas from before.
The Art Room
A dedicated studio for Laura. Some quest stuff happens here.
That's all the areas that have been developed so far!
Throughout this project - which I've spent approximately 60 hours on so far! I've created custom sprites, learned how to use RPG Maker VX Ace, and learned some basic scripting. It's been a bit of a journey.
Shut up, how do I play what you have so far?
You'll have to go to GitHub, and follow my instructions there.
Alternatively:
Go to: http://www.rpgmakerweb.com/download/additional/run-time-packages
Select RPG Maker VX Ace
Install this on your computer
Download the entire history of this game's development. The latest version will always be the one with the largest number.
Put this somewhere on your computer.
Run Game.Exe to play
Controls:
Use the arrow keys on your keyboard to move. Enter interacts with opbjects within the world. Escape brings up the menu.
This game remains in pre-pre-pre-pre-Alpha state, and is in ongoing development.
I'm sorry for those of you on Apple OS, or Linux. The game only works on Windows, unless you use a visualization program to make it work on your operating system. This won't change, due to the version of software I am using to make the game.
I also have an extensive list of things that I am yet to implement, and want to implement. I can't do a lot of this without time, which I am growing increasingly scarcer of. You can view all my future plans and ideas for the game here:
While the software I am using for this title is Closed Source, the game itself is open source (as you can see from all my files being available on github! I'm not a software dev, programmer, or particularly intelligent individual when it comes to commits / gits / and all that stuff - but I know enough that I've "shown my work" with the incremental versions throughout development.
So what comes next?
There's going to be a finale developed into this "chapter" of the game, and then, I am likely to close the book on the development cycle of "The Isle of Steem", for a number of reasons.
- No one is going to play a 40 hour EPIC RPG based on the STEEM blockchain, no matter how good it is.
- My time can be better invested in other projects and ideas that I still want to continue to pursue on the block-chain!
- I've learned (as I suspected) - that developing a game solo is hard, long work - inclusive of testing, sound, art, and keeping oneself motivated enough (and interested enough) - for the long run.
- Without financial incentive and motivation to do all of the above - it isn't viable for me to spend time making an elegant painting that no one will want to look at, anyway.
I want it to be bite sized, fun, and not get old - I'd rather people experience the whole thing - like an icream cone - instead of the entire fridge of dizzying arrays of flavour options.
I'm not a triple A game studio, and will probably never be one. I'm not Todd Howard, and I'm not Bethesda. I don't want to promise people things that I cannot deliver. I don't want to have a cloud of "this guy never finishes anything he starts" - and most of all, I want closure on this project for me, more than anyone else.
If you made it this far, thank you for reading, and I appreciate your time!
I am really interested to see how this pans out. I didn't know that you were learning new software as you were going along. That's always impressive. But I also hope that this project does well.
It will help to put Adelaide, quite literally 'on the map' on the block-chain.
It started as a stray idea at one of the #mallsballers meetings and has grown into something. Just think of the sense of completion once you're done. And there's nothing stopping you marketing the hell out of it once you're done.
Where’s my tavern!? In all honesty though, glad to see you making some progress again. :)
Whoa you've done a fair bit since last update, otherwise I've been missing a hell of a lot more than I thought I was (which is quite likely because reasons).
I totally would play a 40+ hr rpg based on the steem blockchain, but I am nobody :D (this was established after I got my sp4 and really noticed the difference in pressure sensitivity between it and my cintiq; several reviews by professional and hobbyist artists I'd read prior to buying it had asserted that "nobody" would notice and the numbers were some gimmicky thing made up by Wacom to sell more tablets)
I am also working on an animation series by myself (and have been for the last...14 years :S) and am nowhere within the same universe as being professional...or anywhere close to starting never mind anything else XD so totally understand you not wanting to commit that much time to such a massive project (and even small rpgs are massive projects) especially when there's other things that you'd prefer to spend time on. So don't feel bad about ditching/cutting it short, it's not like you couldn't poke at it somewhere down the track if you ever feel the inclination again :)
And I still think you've done a fantastic job on what you've done :)
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