Contest Entry: Christmas Carolyn

Time's up for the contest.  I didn't get as far as I'd like.  I really overestimated how much free time I would have.

That said, it's short and incomplete and available for play.
Christmas Carolyn (Incomplete 2)
TFGS Thread

I guess the main problem was when I did have some free time, friends and family were around.  So working on the game during that time proved very difficult.  After it was clear, I can't finish on time, I just tried to clear it up as best I could and find somewhere to stop.

Anyways, enjoy it.  I need to caught up on sleep and get back working on SJ.

Update 12/18

Update on the progress so far on the contest game.

Had a block for a while.  I didn't like the gameplay and the options presented to the player.  It felt interesting to me but didn't feel very interesting to the player.

I changed up a few things and I like where the game's at and the direction it's taking.  I have a very clear view of how to proceed with the game.

Some bad news

Got some bad news.  I found out there's a tfgamessite contest going on.  Normally, I'm well aware of any contests on the site, but somehow it slipped past me.

In case it wasn't obvious, I love contests.  Deadlines give me something to go for, otherwise, I become too much of a perfectionist.  I have yet to release a non-contest game.  Even SJ started as a contest game.

What this means is I'll be focusing whatever little free time during the holiday season on getting a contest game done (hopefully) and not much so on SJ.

SJ puzzle plan

For the Seraphim Javelin puzzle I mentioned earlier, I'm going to make it open ended.  I'll check to see how it goes when I release the next version.  I might have to do a limited release to see how people deal with it.  If enough people struggle on it, I'll change it.  Hopefully, that won't happen.

Quick Update 12/5

Quick update.  Just 2 things.

First, one of my ideas is panning out well.  It's going to be a Twine game since the concept doesn't lend itself well in Rags.  This does run me into problems with css and how I want the game to look.  I'll need to browse around and find a scheme I like.  Not a big fan of the default look, but I seem to lack the skills to come up with something better.

Second, I know how I want Seraphim Javelin to continue, but ...  There's a little puzzle between missions.  I'm a bit stuck on how to present the puzzle.  I worry if I do multiple choice it'll become too obvious.  But if I open ended ("type a word"), I'm certain a lot of people will get it wrong.

I think I might have to come up with a few red herrings and make it multiple choice.

Another thought I had was to actually test it.  See how many people can figure it out without any hand-holding.  (This will spoil the puzzle for the testers though)