Some Kickstarters of Interest

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 31, 2012

Happy Halloween folks! And completely unrelated to today’s fun holiday, but definitely related to yesterday’s post, here are some crowdfunded projects that may be of interest to you. All of yesterday’s warnings are in effect – these are all in varying stages of development, and some might not ever see the light of day even […]

Filed Under: Game Announcements - Comments: 3 Comments to Read

When Is It Too Early to Talk About an Indie Game?

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 30, 2012

Many years ago, when the blog was young, I was trying to decide how I’d talk about upcoming games in the exciting, growing indie games field that hardly anybody knew about. I faced a little bit of a quandary. At the time, something like 95% (or more) of all indie game projects failed. Early on, […]

Filed Under: Biz, Indie Evangelism - Comments: 13 Comments to Read

Matt Chat: Interview with Lori and Corey Cole and Dave Marsh

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 29, 2012

Matt Barton interviews Lori and Corey Cole of Quest For Glory and Shannara fame, and also Dave Marsh, designer of Shadowgate. They are all doing Kickstarters right now. It’s a biggie:  

Filed Under: Adventure Games, Interviews - Comments: Comments are off for this article

Torn on Ratings

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 26, 2012

I have two problems with ratings (of the parental guidance variety) for indie games: #1 – The industry standard ratings system was unreasonably painful and expensive for small, indie studios. In a field where the median iPhone game makes less than $1000, spending hundreds or thousands on a rating doesn’t make much sense. #2 – […]

Filed Under: Biz, Politics - Comments: 5 Comments to Read

Frayed Knights 2 Update: Cranking Spells Up To Eleven

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 25, 2012

I wanted to run an idea off you. This kinda runs contrary to my talk about simplification, but not really. Technically, I’m already going down this path, but nothing is final. But now that it’s looking more and more feasible (and likely), I thought I’d solicit some input on the spell system – definitely one […]

Filed Under: Design, Frayed Knights - Comments: 15 Comments to Read

Something Old, Something New… And Everything Else!

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 24, 2012

I recently confessed that I really don’t know what “old-school RPG” really means, mainly because it’s something that represents different things to different people. In the latest issue of Knights of the Dinner Table, comic creator Jolly Blackburn confessed the same kind of quandary in an editorial about the “old-school” mentality of dice-and-paper gamers. He […]

Filed Under: Design, Mainstream Games, Retro - Comments: 5 Comments to Read

Links from Behind the Scenes of Game Development

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 23, 2012

Some stories of game devopment, from AAA to indie, some good, some horrible, all informative: As terrible as I know the games biz often can be, I still really, really want this to be a fictional story: Have a Great Time! Starcraft – the untold story. Except I guess it’s told now. And why a […]

Filed Under: Links & Tidbits - Comments: 2 Comments to Read

Picture: Worth 1000 Words, Costs 5000

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 22, 2012

My favorite death in the original Zork adventure game came from my attempt to brush my teeth using a tube of what appeared (according to the description) to be toothpaste.  Apparently, it was actually “All-Purpose Gunk,” a kind of fast-acting glue. The result was… well, it was actually hilarious, and not entirely unexpected. But one […]

Filed Under: Adventure Games, Art, Retro - Comments: 6 Comments to Read

Loot Drop’s “Old School” RPG(s) Canceled

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 20, 2012

Brenda Brathwaite and Tom Hall have announced that they are canceling their Kickstarter for the Old School RPG which had since been renamed “Shaker.” While they did get an impressive amount of money pledged to the Kickstarter, it clearly wasn’t enough of a trajectory to get to the minimum amount, let alone double that as […]

Filed Under: Biz - Comments: 9 Comments to Read

My Former Boss Goes to Jail

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 19, 2012

In the news today: Utah Game Developer Jailed for Not Paying Wages This was where I worked for a while. It was a period of time when Frayed Knights: The Skull of S’makh-Daon received precious little work, because I was working from 9 in the morning until midnight, one, two, occasionally even  four in the […]

Filed Under: Biz - Comments: Comments are off for this article

Rocksmith vs. Rock Band 3 Pro Guitar

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 18, 2012

I have waited a while for Rocksmith. Specifically,  for the PC version, which was finally released Tuesday, about a year after the console version. I was looking forward to it when it was first announced. I was waiting for it even longer than that – since I heard about the never-released Guitar Rising, which also allowed […]

Filed Under: Impressions, Mainstream Games - Comments: 9 Comments to Read

What “Non-Open” Looks Like

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 17, 2012

Do not mock Apple or the current marketing buzzwords, or you will be denied! By itself, it’s a pretty minor thing, and Terry removed the offending comment and has since been accepted for the app store. But I do think this serves as a reminder of the inherent risk of building a business whose existence […]

Filed Under: Biz, Indie Evangelism - Comments: 3 Comments to Read

Parlay?

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 16, 2012

You know what few RPGs have anymore? Or really, what few RPGs ever had, the D&D Gold Box games by SSI being one of the more prominant counterexamples? The ability to talk yourself out of a general encounter. Or to parlay, in general. Nowadays, you may get the option as a special, ‘canned’ option. But […]

Filed Under: Design - Comments: 12 Comments to Read

The Next Great Desktop Gaming Platform?

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 15, 2012

It’s no secret to regular readers that I am a desktop gaming junkie. Computer games have always held a higher place in my heart than console games, even when I was a full-time professional making the latter.  That’s not to say I disliked the latter — I was jealous of my friends’ Ataris and Colecovisions, […]

Filed Under: Biz - Comments: 17 Comments to Read

Interview with Driftmoon developer Ville Mönkkönen, Part 2

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 12, 2012

Here is the continuation of Ruber Eaglenest’s interview with Driftmoon and Notrium developer Ville Mönkkönen from yesterday. Today they discuss more of the nuts and bolts of developing the game, influences, and a little about the “indie scene.” Enjoy! Ruber: Let’s talk about the graphics. Driftmoon’s graphics feels indie, in the sense of being a […]

Filed Under: Guest Posts, Interviews - Comments: 2 Comments to Read

Interview with Driftmoon developer Ville Mönkkönen, Part 1

Posted by Rampant Coyote on October 11, 2012

It’s Guest Post time! Ruber Eaglenest, a regular community member, recently interviewed Finnish indie developer Ville Mönkkönen of Instant Kingdom, and offered to share the interview here at Tales of the Rampant Coyote. Driftmoon is an RPG that’s been in development for a long time (kinda like Frayed Knights…), but has some pretty exciting potential and […]

Filed Under: Guest Posts, Interviews - Comments: Read the First Comment



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