Moved

For those who haven't picked up on this yet: the blog has moved.

I started a small company, Hecticware, and therefore rebooted my blog and website.

They can be found here and here, respectively.

CGC: Atlantia by Hecticware and ReFlux

Long time no post! But work has not stopped, of course.

After a couple of nights working very hard and sleeping very little, Atlantia is done. Well, sorta.

It has become a nice little adventure platformer, with the emphasis off of instant action and instead on story and setting.

You are trapped in a sunken city, filled with lot's of treasures. Also, there is a sort of mystical power present, able to transform reality.

You can download it here:

Download Atlantia.exe [10MB] via Dropbox

Normally I would reference you to the download page, but after founding a small company, I am in the process of moving my site. Or, well, I have yet to begin. This blog will also see some changes in the near future.

Truth be told, Atlantia is a bit buggy. The platforming doesn't run as smoothly as I had hoped, and people have had some rather bizarre errors occuring. I am not quite sure what to do about this, as there isn't an obvious cause for these problems.

I hope you have fun nonetheless.

Atlantia: teaming up with Cheat Master

Recently, Atlantia has gone through some game design changes. I have been thinking about what I want the game to be. I have come to the conclusion that, taking place in the underwater city of Atlantia, I should make a more tranquile game. Less focus on action, more on setting.

I want Atlantia to be a game about discovering this mystical city. About being alone, being lonely. Darkness, being trapped in a lost city. Hope. Ancient gods, long lost treasures.

That being said, I want to make a game with less emphasis on actual action, and more on telling a beautiful story in an awe-inspiring enviroment. As my graphic skills are less than inadequate, I was chuffed to bits when Cheat Master agreed to team up with me.

He will be doing the entire graphic side of the game. We have shallowly discussed my plans for the game (as far as I have any), but I'm sure we'll work on creating a stunning setting together.

Percy placed 9th because it was "too difficult"

*grumble*

Percy placed 9th (out of 13) in the dutch gamemaker community contest (GMW27).

I am displeased, I guess. I would have thought it'd end up higher. But it's not just the number. I am more displeased about why it ended up at 9th place.

These were the judges comments (in translation):

• Because of the high speed, the game is barely playable; you fly over platforms a lot.
• At some jumps you need to jump both horizontally and vertically accurately to the pixel, or you won't make it.
• I was not able to pass the point in level 3 [Sky High] where you get blown back.
• The gameplay is [simplistic], really annoying, but I guess that's the intention. I find it disappointing that the third level [Sky High] is undoable; at least I haven't been able to figure out how.
• The checkpoints aren't really coordinated properly; they are strangely spread, instead of right before the difficult parts.
• The graphics were [simplistic] as well. There wasn't much to see. And I couldn't make a robot out of the little square (out of Percy?).
• The music was fine. Nice and 'strange', not too distracting

No offence to the judges, they have the right to have their own opinions, but it basically says that they didn't like the game's difficulty, doesn't? It's not just me?

"I was not able to finish Sky High."

"At least I haven't been able to."

And they even notice that "that's the intention."

By the way, the GMW version of Sky High is not at all impossible. This vid proves that you can finish it. Within a minute. Without dying. Admittedly, I kill myself twice, but that doesn't really count.

So what exactly is wrong with Percy? Ok, the graphics are simplistic, and the game is horrendously difficult. 

I completely agree that the game looks bleak and dull, and that Percy (the character) looks uniform and standard. But that's the whole idea. "I couldn't make a robot out of the Percy." Seriously? Isn't everything about robots dull and uniform? Isn't uniformity the very essence of robots?

I can understand that people don't like this game, because it's too difficult. Because it screws you over. But why would that make this game any less good? Is it a bad game just because it pushes players to the edge, instead of making them feel all good, without actually achieving anything.

The whole purpose of this game is to make people feel proud for trying hard, trying again and then actually achieving something. And then let them realise what idiots they are for putting up with it, and that it's too late to take back the time they spent playing it.

In fact, I want players to hate this game. To despise Percy. But then long for it just the same.

Percy Gameplay with Commentary

I've made another gameplay vid of Percy; this time it's 12 minutes long. I recorded my voice on the spot, so you can hear my anger and utter frustration. It's not that spectacular; I simply fail at doing one jump a hundred times. Still, I'd recommend watching it. I also show you how to ace "Sky High".

At the moment I've been working on a small project for my fathers work (it involves consignments being scanned and then transported); which works out pretty good. I don't reckon it's worth your attention, though.

I am also working a bit on Atlantia. I have somewhat redesigned it's main idea: I've gone from puzzleplatformer to a story-based adventure platformer. I am thinking of a more dark, find-the-exit game with less action than usual.
However, this would require some good tension building, which includes good music and good graphics. I am for instance looking for someone to do some character animations. I'll look/ask around, but if you're interested, by all means, feel free to ask me.

Percy Levels Trailer

I've made another video, showing some gameplay from all six levels:

Percy: Progress Bar

I have removed a coin from the 'Leap of Faith' level, as there were six coins in total in that level.

Also, I have adjusted the menu a bit, switching the Gallery and the Timer option and changing the level layout a bit.

Furthermore, I have added a feature that saves an image called "Percy Progress Bar.png". It shows your current skin, and how many coins you have collected. Also, it shows you what levels (0 till 5) you have Completed, Aced and Double Aced.

Percy: Complete

I've finished creating the last level, "Shocking". It features electricity; getting zapped will stun you, removing any upward or sideway speed. It also causes you're wires to overload, which will make you explode.
This is also a way to self destruct; if you're stuck, you can shortwire yourself by holding down the Delete button for a second or two.

Some details: I have added a short period after you've respawned in which you can't move. This prevents you from falling of a checkpoint when the camera / your focus hasn't returned.
Also, if your FPS (framerate) drops, the screen will darken and some vertical bars will appear. If you're seeing this frequently, you're pc isn't strong enough; please contact me so we can look for a solution. Don't worry about 59 or 58 FPS's, though, that occurs on my pc as well.


It's been little over two weeks since I started this game, and I must say, I'm happy with what has become of it. I might add some extra features, but then again, I might not.
I must confess, I haven't fully played all six levels yet, let alone ace them. That's what I will be doing next. I'm gonna play it fair and square, and I'll see how far I can get.

I'd love to see you join me; I'm pretty sure a lot of you can beat me to it. The first to show off the Elite skin gets major awesome points.
If you find any bugs, encounter any errors, got any suggestions or simply want to know how to pull off that one jump, feel free to comment.

Percy: Time Is Key and LastGame

I have finished the fourth level (excluding the tutorial): "Timing Is Key". The new obstacle is the drop-block, a block that disappears when you stay on it for too long. This means you have to pass obstacles in fast repetition.

Also, I've added a feature that makes a LastGame image. The LastGame image shows you how you did the last level you played. It shows where you went and where you died. Also, it tells you how many times you died, and how long it took you to complete (or abort) the level.

Make sure to save (i.e. rename) any LastGame images you want to keep; they'll be overwritten the next time you start a level.

Percy: Transportation and Gallery

I have made a new Percy level called "Transportation". I have also made some changes in the old levels, because you were either able to cheat or not able to complete.

In transportation, you get three new obstacles. The first is the airvent which gives you a little upwards boost; the second is the conveyer belt that makes you go sideways and the last is the grinder. The grinders are the second way to die.

Furthermore, I have redone/updated the gallery a bit. There are now 42 skins to choose besides the standard. They are unlocked by collecting all 30 coins and acing and double-acing all 6 levels.

To 'ace' a level, you need to activate Ace-mode and then finish the level. When Ace-mode is activated, all checkpoints are gone. Yes. All of them. So you need to get from start to finish in one life. If that isn't hard enough, double-acing requires you to collect all of the coins as well.

As the game isn't complete yet (i.e. levels 4 and 5 are missing), you will not yet be able to get all skins; however, the timer option, the gallery and the ace-mode option are available sooner than in the final version.

New Percy Version

I've send in my GMW27 entry last night.

Some changes I made since the day before:

• "Sky High" level
• Timer option
• Gallery
• Ace mode
• Improved tutorial

Also, I've made a little gameplay video with commentary.