A Postmortem of Inago Rage

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A Postmortem of Inago Rage

• Ichiro Lambe
• Dejobaan Games
• www.dejobaan.com

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Summary

• Ichiro Lambe, Dejobaan Games
• Topic du Jour Inago Rage Postmortem
• 3 best decisions we made during dev.
• 3 worst decisions we made during dev.

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Background Information

• WPI, Class of 1998
• Enjoyed playing games...
• Enjoyed creating games...
• A career in game development Perfect!

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Dejobaan Games

• Founded in 1999
• 9 Titles
• 7 PDA Titles
• 3 PC Titles
• (Theres some overlap.)
• Most recently Inago Rage
• Larger, more immersive than our previous PDA
  games.

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Inago Rage

• Began in 2002
• First-person shooter for Windows
• Players create the levels in which they fight.
• Released about 3 months ago.

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Good Decision 1 Differentiation

• We differentiated the game from others in the
  genre.
• Pac Man clone wont sell.
• First-Person Shooters tough market.
• Noticed building is popular but inaccessible to
  casual gamers.
• Differentiated by allowing all players to build.

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Good Decision 2 Middleware

• We used middleware right for the scope of our
  project.
• ...and we used it wherever possible.
• Conitec A6 Gamestudio for 3D
• Saved us development/debugging time.
• Improved over time.

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Good Decision 3 Reusable Framework

• We created a code base that was re-usable in
  future projects.
• Have been doing this for PDA games too.
• Example Last Man on Mars
• Benefits
• Less work in the future.
• Concepts not in first title can be in subsequent
  ones.

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What We Learned

• Differentiate your game.
• Use middleware appropriately.
• Create re-usable code.
• Lesser advice
• Back up regularly.
• Get plenty of rest.
• Hydrate.
• Go dancing occasionally.

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Mistake 1 Poor Design

• Architects design buildings before building them.
• Prototypes
• Blueprints
• We failed to do this.
• We started off right, with Killgame prototype...

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Mistake 1 Poor Design

• The prototype evolved into the actual game.
• Code, art assets added piecemeal.
• Failed to separate design and implementation.
• Design decisions clouded by technical
  considerations.
• Had to re-create systems.

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Narrative/Walkthrough

• Outline
• Player launches Inago.
• Title screen appears.
• Pre-game slideshow.
• Player begins game.
• First-person view we see platforms, gems.
• Timer countdown.
• (Etc.)

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Mistake 2 Marketing Woes

• We switched from PDA to PC games.
• Lost an audience receptive to our games.
• Lost journalists receptive to our news.
• Four problems we ran into
• 1. Had to develop new code.
• 2. No existing fanbase on PC.
• 3. No press contacts for PC market.
• 4. Greater competition.

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Mistake 3 Playtest? Us?

• We failed to do external playtesting
  consistently.
• Internally, we played the game one way.
• New players played it differently!
• Our way was more fun.
• We therefore had to backtrack and re-implement.
• And Inago Rage suffers for it to this day.

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Postmortem Summary

• Do
• Create gameplay that differentiates your game
  from others.
• Use middleware where appropriate.
• Create reusable code.

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Postmortem Summary

• Dont
• Start development in earnest without a design
  plan.
• Underestimate the effects of millions of people
  who have no reason to listen to you.
• Assume everyone will play your game the way you
  do.

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Project Summary

• Released November 11, 2004
• Demo released January 30, 2005
• 2 years from official start to completion.
• Budget 11,000
• 18 people involved in one way or another.
• 2 Artists
• 2 Voiceover actors
• 1 Dan
• Playtesters, models, and me.