DIYGamer » movie

Issue 23: July 2012 is Available Now

Mike Gnade — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 18:49:50 +0000

In this explosive issue of IGM, we interview the veteran game developers behind the upcoming RTS game, March of Oz, take a look at all the upcoming indie games for Nintendo’s Wii U, preview Intrusion 2, Cardinal Quest 2, and Steve Swink’s Scale and review a ton of awesome new independent games. Check out our reviews for Splice, Home, Ether Vapor, Velocity, Gratuitous Tank Battles, McPixel, Tiny and Big, Indie Game the Movie and more all in this colossal 46 page issue.

This is our first monthly issue and it shows off what we can do when we’re not bound by a page count to make print subscriptions financially feasible. Another sweet new development is that we have been accepted into the MagCloud Advocates program which means that all of our old print issues prices have been slashed.

Now is a great time to get old issues in print at a great price!

Here’s a quick walk through of all our purchase options. So just answer these questions to find the right purchase link. If you are interested in subscriptions, please click the link above and check them out!

Do you want this Issue in Print or do you want a simple PDF download link?

If you answered Yes, Magcloud is where you want to place your order. You can order a direct PDF download or a Print issue from Magcloud. Ordering in print comes with a free PDF version of the issue as well so there’s no waiting!

Indie Game Magazine:

Remember that you can keep updated on new issues by following us on MagCloud:

Do you want to read the Magazine on your iPhone/iPad?

If you have an iPhone/iPad, you can grab our App for Free and download individual issues. You can buy future issues or get a subscription from right within the App. Plus the app allows us to embed some sweet indie game videos, trailers, and reviews – which is pretty cool.

Do you want to read the Magazine on your Android Device (PC, Mac, and iPhone)?

If you have an Android Device, your best bet is to purchase a Zinio subscription. Zinio works on Mac, PC, iPhone, iPad, and Android Devices. All you need to do is download the Zinio Android App to read our magazine on any Android Device.

‘BeatBuddy’ Heading For Full Digital Release In 2013

Richard Glenn — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 21:16:45 +0000

Music-loving PC players can expect to get their funk on now that BeatBuddy, a unique music/action-adventure hybrid, has secured a publishing deal with Reverb, allowing for its eventual release on a number of digital distribution platforms.

A music-driven soundscape to test the wits, the senses and the reflexes, BeatBuddy offers players the reigns of the titular BeatBuddy, who’s described by German development studio Threaks as a “musical creature.” With the in-game soundtrack, expected to comprise several reasonably high-profile urban tracks from a range of eminent record labels, fuelling the on-screen action, BeatBuddy must attempt to traverse the course of each level whilst keeping an ear out for the beats and melodies that dictate the speed, flow and layout of the level design in question.

Although we might have to wait until closer to the game’s release date, currently estimated at some point during 2013, until details of each and every distribution platform on which the game will appear becomes apparent, but players anxious to savour the BeatBuddy experience will be pleased to know that a pre-alpha demo version is already available to download for free through Steam. Furthermore, while the IGF Award-winning game has only been confirmed as a PC title for now, Threaks remain open to the idea of releasing it on “a wide variety of platforms.”

More information on the game can be found on the official Threaks website, whilst its ongoing development process can be monitored through its Facebook page.

Capybara Games: Know Your Limits When It Comes To Promoting Your Game

Chris Priestman — Fri, 25 May 2012 01:37:39 +0000

Nathan Vella of Capybara gave an interesting talk at Nordic Game 2012 today entitled “Promoting Games…On Your Terms”. This was directed at indie game developers specifically and focused on the art of promoting and marketing your games without pushing things too far.

“We have a tendency to try and do everything ourselves,” he said in the talk. “It works in development, but not in promotion. Icons are the App Store’s primary form of promotion, the first and sometimes only thing players will see…but they’re often ignored and brutalised in terrible ways.”

“If you don’t have a good graphic designer on your team, go find one. Don’t just hack an icon yourself. It can be extremely low-cost: go to a local art school and you’ll find a kid who would love to make an icon for a really rad game.”

Nathan applied the same practice to making trailers too – that of attempting it yourself but if you really don’t know what you’re doing, to then look for help. He was urging for developers to understand their limits essentially. Nathan outlined his passion for trailers, which shows as it was Capybara’s trailer for Super T.I.M.E. Force that we picked out in our Marketing 101 article as a prime example of a good indie game trailer.

“A trailer is the single most important thing in promoting a downloadable game. YouTube is a search engine, especially for an educated downloadable gamer”, he claimed.

“If you actually believe you can make one yourself, go for it. If you’re using Sony Vegas, or Microsoft Movie Maker then stop. Close your computer, and find someone else to do it. It’s not a high-cost investment; a couple of thousand sounds crazy, but the value you get out of that can dwarf that by a factor of a million.”

Nathan also encouraged developers to get stuck into promoting their game to the intended audience too. Whether this be using social media, or big concentrates of players in places like Reddit of NeoGAF; the developer should get involved and tell them about your game he says. However, he warns that you shouldn’t just go straight in with the freshest marketing lines as you’ll be tossed out and shamed.

“Downloadable gamers are some of the most educated purchasers of games. They want to know who you are. Don’t just be active on your game – give opinions on other people’s games, build the belief that you want to be part of that community.”

You should be prepared for the worst of it though. Gamers, especially the ones in certain forums, can be very aggressive and critical. What’s Nathan’s response to this? You might want to ready yourself this one, it’s a cracker:

“Grow 10 to 12 extra layers of skin – people will shit all over your face, but in a weird way it’s actually kind of awesome.”

That’s one way of putting it. The advice is pretty clear though – you need to get stuck in to promoting your game and dedicate some time in doing so. Be aware of your limits though, so don’t stretch yourself in places of inexperience as the results are likely not to be good. Though, if you’re stuck with no choice but to hire someone but can’t afford them, maybe it’s time to get really creative!

Via Edge Online

You may be interested in:

No related posts were found, so here's a consolation prize: Wallace and Gromit: Episode 1 Fright of the Bumblebees Review.

Astonishing ‘Thomas Was Alone’ Motion Capture Documentary Released

Richard Glenn — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 20:52:58 +0000

Astonishing ‘Thomas Was Alone’ Motion Capture Documentary Released

Back

April 1st, 2012 | By Richard Glenn

Tagged in: documentary | Mike Bithell | motion capture | Thomas Was Alone

Thomas Was Alone may have been labelled a “minimalistic game about friendship and jumping” by its developer, Mike Bithell, but that doesn’t mean that the development process wasn’t a gruelling labour of artistic trickery and technological bedazzlement.

Bithell has now revealed how he joined forces with video capture extraordinaires AudioMotion to ensure that the polygonal platformer was as realistic and authentic as a rectangular (sorry, quadrilateral) video game adventure could be. In a startling new video documentary, the entire process, which, in Bithell’s words, wasn’t “a waste of time, money, and the incredible expertise of all concerned,” is outlined.

Enlightening stuff, eh? Let it never be said that indie game development can’t be as extensive, or expensive, as the AAA big guns out there.

Subscribe Now

Support the little guys and the geeks who write about them! Just see what's on offer! Latest news and reviews! Exclusive content! Website Insider login! Plus much, much more!

Subscribe Single Issue

Mega64 Spoofs Indie Game: The Movie

Mike Gnade — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 05:11:21 +0000

Mega64 Spoofs Indie Game: The Movie

Back

March 27th, 2012 | By Mike Gnade

Tagged in: GDC 2012 | igf 2012 | indie game the movie | Mega64

The hilarious spoof of Indie Game: The Movie by Mega64 has finally hit Youtube. It was originally shown at the Indie Games Festival / GDC 2012 earlier this month.

It makes a lot more sense if you’ve seen Indie Game: The Movie but is still funny either way. In either case, click here to see the original trailer that they are spoofing. The videos by Mega64 were definitely a highlight of the IGF / GDC awards. Hopefully they’ll follow-up and release their “Indie-Man” video from the awards ceremony, but until then here they are mocking Minecraft and Notch:

Subscribe Now

Support the little guys and the geeks who write about them! Just see what's on offer! Latest news and reviews! Exclusive content! Website Insider login! Plus much, much more!

Subscribe Single Issue

Indie Game: The Movie to Become Indie Game: The Show

Geoff Gibson — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:05:02 +0000

This past weekend Indie Game: The Movie premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. According to some early reviews it’s been very well received so much so, in fact, that it’s going to be spun off into a half-hour television show if HBO has its way. Earlier reports had it as a comedy show, but the producers of the film have clarified that it will not be a comedic show rather just a fictional show.

In any case, I’m not entirely sure how I feel about a fictional show just yet. I guess it really depends on how they do it. As a comedy I was certainly not going to be happy with it. The indie game industry certainly doesn’t need to be marginalized like that. However, I’m also having trouble figuring out what sort of half-hour fictional show they could do with regards to indie game developers that isn’t a comedy.

I guess we’ll see… or maybe not. For those unfamiliar with Hollywood, there are plenty of examples of a studio picking up an option and then just never having anything materialize out of it. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

[Indie Game: The Movie]