Volume Control

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 30, 2015

Okay, I’m not an expert on polishing games. I wish I was. Maybe after I have another dozen games under my belt, I’ll know more. We’ll see. But here’s something to me that appears obvious, but maybe that’s just because I haven’t made a game for Android yet: When a game runs, it should respect […]

Filed Under: Geek Life - Comments: 7 Comments to Read

RPGs and Fear of Commitment

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 29, 2015

Once upon a time, computer RPGs were expensive. Retailing for as much as $79 – which was around $150+ in today’s inflation-adjusted dollars – they were a serious money commitment. They tended to stay reasonably close to full price until the sequel was released – maybe dropping down as low as $45 (which is still […]

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Appearance: Salt Lake City Comic Con Fan Xperience

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 28, 2015

I’m going to be at the Salt Lake City Comic Con “FanX” convention this weekend at the Xchyler Publishing booth. At least part of the time. Sadly, I’m fighting off a cold right now, but I hope to be in good shape at least by Friday. Not sure about Thursday yet. There won’t be any […]

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Daggerfall in Unity?

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 27, 2015

There have been several projects to remake Daggerfall. But this is… different. Although I know it can’t be as good as I imagine, I am excited about the potential of this toolset. I guess that’s how I know I am a game developer at heart. I see something like this, and I don’t think, “Ooh, I […]

Filed Under: Retro - Comments: 3 Comments to Read

Shut Up And Take My Money: Yet More Classic RPG Series Reboots

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 26, 2015

I have faith. Proven teams & talent. The IPs… maybe a little less so, mainly because it’s been so long. But if the success of Wasteland 2 or Might & Magic X: Legacy are any indication, a committed team dedicated to classic old-school games can create worthy successors. Now we have two more classic RPGs […]

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

Utah Indie Night, January 2015

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 23, 2015

Indie Night this month was at my alma mater, Brigham Young University. It was cool to hit the ol’ stomping grounds again – I spent many, many hours at the James E. Talmage building getting my Computer Science degree. It seems smaller, now. But mainly it was cool. Anyway, the night was kicked off by […]

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Human Extinction Simulator

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 22, 2015

Human Extinction Simulator. As I’ve heard it, that was only a working title, until Dave Toulouse of Machine 22 came up with a better one. But the truth was… that was a pretty awesome title. So he kept it. And it’s finally released. Human Extinction Simulator is a turn-based tactics game of space fleet battles […]

Filed Under: Game Announcements - Comments: 4 Comments to Read

The Era of Enhanced Game Re-Releases

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 21, 2015

I remember in the “good old days” (which were neither that good nor that old…) how we’d wish that somebody would remake an old classic game with no changes except improved technology for modern (at the time) systems. Of course, nobody ever did that. If you got a “remake,” it was a complete reboot. There […]

Filed Under: Biz, Retro - Comments: 7 Comments to Read

The Indie Gold Rush: Ending with a Bang or a Whimper?

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 20, 2015

There have been a few articles recently about the demise of the small indie game developer. Jeff Wofford’s “The Rise and Fall of the Lone Game Developer” probably made the most rounds last week, but “How Do You Make Money Making Games Again?” is another excellent post on the subject.  At Gamasutra.com, Kris Graft notes in “As […]

Filed Under: Biz, Indie Evangelism - Comments: 2 Comments to Read

Frayed Knights: Spell-Checking

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 19, 2015

I think I have the coolest, weirdest spell system ever in Frayed Knights 2: The Khan of Wrath. Of course, I’m biased. It’s not that I literally have an infinite number of spells. For practical purposes, for each spell class there are probably four or five dozen meaningful spell variants per level without going into […]

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RPG Codex Picks their Top RPGs of 2014

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 16, 2015

RPG Codex has released their top picks for PC RPGs of 2014, including audience picks, editor’s votes, and individual editor picks. They also have a short list of the most anticipated releases for 2015. RPG Codex 2014 Game of the Year Awards Not exactly the same picks, but a very similar grouping from RPGWatch’s choices. And […]

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RPGWatch names the best 3 RPGs of 2014

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 15, 2015

If you are a fan of classic western style computer RPGs – the kind that seemed to be in an unending supply from companies like Origin, SSI, Sir-Tech, Mindcraft, Westwood Studios, and Interplay – then for a while, it may have seemed like the golden age of computer RPGs was far behind us. Through the […]

Filed Under: News - Comments: 5 Comments to Read

Interview at City Weekly

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 14, 2015

Okay, I don’t think anything here is news to any long-time readers here on the blog, but it was fun to talk about Rampant Games as well as reminisce about the old days at SingleTrac in this interview I did with Salt Lake City Weekly. You can check out the interview here: Rampant Games: Talking […]

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When Radio Shack was cool…

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 13, 2015

It’s funny. As mush as I might embrace change and improvements, there’s still a part of me that still expects the world to be exactly the same as it was when I was fifteen. At least the parts I interact with. When I walk into a mall, a part of me still wants to seek out […]

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Productivity: The Group of Three

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 12, 2015

The middle 50%+ of game development is the hardest for most people, I’ve found. At the beginning of the project, the game is being built up from nothing and is making rapid improvements daily. It’s exciting and motivating. And at the end, even though it’s a hard slog, you can see the light at the […]

Filed Under: Game Development, Production - Comments: 5 Comments to Read

Steven Peeler on Traits in Zombacite

Posted by Rampant Coyote on January 9, 2015

Steven Peeler of Soldak Entertainment – the dude behind Depths of Peril, Din’s Curse, and Drox Operative, has a bit to say about a new mechanic in the fantasy-zombie-apocalypse RPG in development, Zombacite. The mechanic is traits – special passive abilities that can be acquired via increased stats. He hopes that it will help encourage […]

Filed Under: Design - Comments: 2 Comments to Read



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