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Tag: myself

I did it, I used the Story Mode today

Published by Paolo on 16/02/2022

I did it. I was tired of challenge. Still I wanted to play the game I am finishing first this 2022. Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order.

I was playing at “Jedi Master” difficulty, but today I realized that my enemy was too strong for my stress of the moment. So that I switched to “Story Mode” (easy) and I defeated it. I did it.

Should a “Story Mode” be present in every game? That question makes no sense. Every game is in a different context.

How do I feel? Well, I feel a little like a cheater, still I had the chance to have a relaxed moment of gameplay in a 20 hours videogame. I do not have too much time to play, every stress I can save is a chance more to complete a game.

So, why not?

the moment I did it at 21:08. Shame on you (for judging me! xD)

World of MMO is changing and I have to accept it

Published by Paolo on 15/02/2022

When I was a young player I used to play a lot to Ultima Online. I played in an Italian shard, with real life friends. Good old times.

You started as a simple peasant with a class and lot of illusion. Then you set your goals. Most of the time I was interacting with other people. That was very interesting to me. Being able to play with a 56k connection. Good old times.

I downloaded yesterday Lost Ark from Smilegate. I don’t know if the product will be successful, but:

  • Loading time is extremely long and the game is extremely heavy.
  • You already have demonstrated (according to the story) that you are the hero. During the tutorial some god says that you are the chosen one.
  • Characters are hyper-sexualized
  • Combat system is all about crowd control, which is cool but you put let’s focus on the beauty and nobility of each monster
  • You have a mount from the very first moment you join the others in the server

Before you had to sweat to get things, now you have just everything. Or, at least, that is the feeling. In fact, it is a free-to-play game and I guess they will cash at some point. For sure mounts, pets and cosmetics.

My trouble is with the game experience itself. You are not the small fish trying to become a hero and then a semi-god. You are already the hero, the chosen one. What are you trying to achieve, apart from showing-off your combos and powers?

Today is Valentine’s day, do you love your job?

Published by Paolo on 14/02/2022

“Love, love is a verb. Love is a doing word.”

Massive Attack, Teardrop

I love my job because in the first place I love to see myself immersed in creating playful experiences. I love this job because I love people who can then play the games I help design. I love this job because I love the people I can talk and work with every day.

I believe that love for a job, as well as love for other things, has a very important component linked to other people. Starting with ourselves.

Today for Valentine’s Day, the day of lovers here, I want to celebrate the love for the people who make my work great every day and therefore myself. I hope that my daily action will improve your life somehow.

I also share the love scene that perhaps contributed most to forming the will to become who I am today.

Vampire Survivors – Small game, well made

Published by Paolo on 11/02/2022

I am completely engaged to Vampire Survivors. Made by few people, it’s a game about power creep. I am totally engaged. Here my last gameplay:

The goal is to collect experience and level up, becoming stronger and unlocking new characters and scenarios.

Tower of Wants

  • I want to kill monsters to get experience
  • I want to get experience to unlock the next power
  • I want to unlock the next power so that I can survive more time
  • I want to survive more time to get more gold
  • I want to get more gold to unlock more characters
  • I want more characters to have new play styles
  • I want new play styles to unlock more achievements
  • I want to unlock more achievements to complete the game

It’s a simple idea, built around a retro theme (Castelvania). I admire people who build this kind of things. It is so smart and make me always thing: why didn’t I made this?

Learning from the history

Published by Paolo on 09/02/2022

I learn about game design more from the history of videogames than from podcasts, videos and experts speaking about the next big thing.

One has to really know how things were made back then.

Documents like this one are pure gold.

Are prizes good for young game designers?

Published by Paolo on 03/02/2022

My social networks are filled with celebrations and local prizes given to people at their first experience. Then I look for the game itself and sometimes I find a demo on itch.io. Some other a bad rated game on Steam.

I lived that. You feel like the new Hideo Kojima for a minute or two and then? Then the reality returns back and you have nothing really. Wouldn’t be better to work for a company learning from people better than you?

Some reality is hard, videogames are hard to make. But you should focus on making games and avoid feeding your ego the best you can if you want a bright future. A prize is a cake for the ego.

Local communities want to foster their local talent, I get it. But is give a small statue the right way of doing that? Should they expect for some kind of return in terms of visibility or actual game revenue first?

Often happens that there are people getting prizes and other making a good career and eventually earning money.

Is it really worth to get a prize?

I sell you this cloud!

Published by Paolo on 01/02/2022

I am selling you this cloud. Do you want it? 100 euros, please.

Your for 100 euros

What can you do with it? You can look at it, you can photograph it and maybe use photography to create an image. You could use this image as a desktop background. Or you could choose to use it as a profile picture on your favorite social network.

Fast, now! The opportunity is passing by. Do you want it?

What is it for? Well, obviously a cloud is for the nature to keep working as it should. A cloud could generate water for the world. A cloud is good for the World. And this cloud can be yours.

Then does it disappear? Well, sure, but in the meantime it’s yours and yours alone. You can also sell it to other people. I will only take 5% commission as the issuer of the cloud ownership contract.

Don’t you understand? Come on, but it’s the future! Are you really not able to understand the future? Ok, come on there. But buy it, it’s 100 euros. Then you will understand what it is for. A Filipino lady earned $ 1 million on a cloud last week. What are you doing, are you missing it? You would be the only fool, I can assure you.

Me? I have many. And with that lady I earned 50,000 euros. The lady helped improve the world, that cloud of hers probably generated good drinking water. The lady can now be rich with her family.

And then the cloud disappeared.

(This NFT business story reminds me a lot of the casino business. I remember the words of an old boss I had: The best way to win at the casino? Open a casino!)

Look mama: I’m in the metaverse!

Published by Paolo on 26/01/2022

I am looking to move the first step on the concept of metaverse. So that I:

  • Created an avatar on Ready Player Me. It is a new standard proposal for open avatars. Pretty cool!
  • Downloaded on Steam the application Animaze
  • Imported the Ready Player Me avatar into Animaze
  • Used OBS Studio to put the Animaze avatar with green screen on the final video
  • Recorded a 4 minutes video with my early exploration in CYBR

Here it is the result:

The games industry does not exist

Published by Paolo on 03/01/2022

It is what I think. In fact, any software industry is a concept. An idea, an adaptation of something physical that does not have a concrete form in our context.

People does exist. I mean, people making software. People making games. So why do we care so much about the industry? People matters, not abstract concepts.

Life is a great adventure, and as every great adventure you need people to live it fully. Good characters for your plot. Good writers. We should care more and more about the well being of the people of the industry.

My resolution for this year

Published by Paolo on 02/01/2022

My main professional resolution for the next year is to try to build a new reality. A new metaverse, where millions of people will use their cryptocurrencies to buy NFTs and trade them… no, I am joking.

I feel the need of build something, so that this new year I will try an experiment: invest in young talents to make simple games. We will start from mobile, but I do not exclude to try other platforms, too.

Barcelona is a city full of high-level games studies centers. A lot of people every year comes out from universities and private schools. Many of them are real talents, but they struggle in finding their job in the industry. The industry asks to be a “ninja”, to become a “unicorn”, to have “talent”, without defining anything of this. Then they ask for 5 years of experience, which is almost impossible for a junior professional. Only the best joins directly the industry.

What about the others? The others, I believe, have their talent too. Maybe we should stop asking for a lot of references and just believe in the people. Leave them grow, make their mistakes. Support them.

That is my resolution for the next year. I want to build the talents of tomorrow. I want to create a team capable of completing very simple games. And of course, I want to dedicate part of my time in find funds for it.