Muffles' Life Sentence News

[p]Hello gamers,[/p][p][/p][p]It’s too hot in the world right now. I want a freak blizzard to hit my house and bury me in snow. [/p][p]Anyway, today I’m going to talk about the tools I use to make games. Some obvious, some I don’t hear people talk about much.[/p][p]Some have taken me years to master, and others take nary more than a button click to use. But to be an indie game dev is to dabble in all the trades.[/p][p]It’s tooooooool time![/p][p][/p][h2]Game Engines [/h2][p]- RPG Maker MV[/p][p]My chosen game engine recently. It is very easy to get into, and through plugins and scripting can be highly customized. Uses visual coding. Lots of support for things like battles, simple 2D tile mapping, sprite based art, etc. RPG Makers have been around for a while and the iteration from all those years has created a well thought out system. If you aren't sure about this whole ‘making a game’ thing, it’s a great place to start.[/p][p]- GameMaker 2[/p][p]A great engine that uses its own language called GML that I found intuitive with my limited C++, Python, and Java experience. Unlike RPG Maker, you’ll have to build every feature yourself, but you’ll be much better set to build real-time games with things like action combat and platforming. [/p][p][/p][h2]Art[/h2][p]- Aseprite[/p][p]Aseprite, my love. An exceedingly simple way to get pixels on the screen. I hand draw most of my art, and I’ve yet to find a better tool to use for it than this one. Make custom brushes, it supports dithering stuff, mirror, make animations frame by frame, etc. If you’re making pixel art and/or you hate Gimp like me, it’s a great choice. [/p][p]- Gimp[/p][p]Okay so I do hate Gimp, but in a way where it’s like ‘hey man I appreciate all you do to help but like, can you communicate better about stuff? And like, I never have any idea how what I do is going to affect you.’ I thought [/p][p]Paint.net[/p][p] was going to be my savior, but it lacks some critical features that Gimp has. Dang it.[/p][p]- NewPixaTool[/p][p]This is what I use to easily convert royalty free art into limited color pixel pieces. Very little of my game art uses it, but it's great for making promo stuff.[/p][p][/p][h2]Music/Sound[/h2][p]- FL Studio[/p][p]I love FL. Been using it since I was like 14. I don’t know if I’d start here without any MIDI or tracking experience, but this is a solid 2nd or 3rd choice down the line of learning music making. You can find lots of YouTube tutorials. [/p][p]- Audacity[/p][p]Great for batching a bunch of files from OGG -> WAVE. And stuff like that. [/p][p][/p][h2]Video[/h2][p]- DaVinci Resolve[/p][p]Make a YouTube short. Or an entire movie. Seriously. It's free and does a frick ton. Don't try to be too fancy starting off- just focus on clean cuts, picking the right shots, and using high quality audio.[/p][p]- OBS[/p][p]What I use to record gameplay, certain bugs, and for recording streams (when I remember). I don't even know what people use besides this.[/p][p][/p][h2]File Mgmt[/h2][p]- WinMerge[/p][p]‘Oh no my most recent build somehow destroyed everything and nothing's working. But my backup from a week ago works! WHAT DID I DO?! PLEASE TELL ME I DIDN'T LOSE A WEEK OF WORK!!!’ WinMerge will check between 2 files and highlight every difference. It’s a powerful tool that can also combine files together, though I don't use it for that very much. [/p][p]-GrepWin[/p][p]‘I want to find every instance of the word ‘Timmy and replace them with Jimmy. Oh but not on this map. Oh and only if found in THIS file type.’ GrepWin can do it all and more. Use it. Please.[/p][p][/p][h2]Planning[/h2][p]- TickTick [/p][p]My chosen scheduling and to-do list app. Has a good PC and phone app. Supports a bunch of different views and separates things into Tasks and Habits. I pay a cheap monthly fee to unlock the calendar views.[/p][p]- Trello[/p][p]Am no longer using, but is a great tool for the whole Agile thing. I was able to plan out my weekly tasks in a pleasingly visual way. [/p][p][/p][h2]Creative[/h2][p]- Whiteboard[/p][p]The most powerful tool of all time. A necessity for me. Stream of consciousness thoughts that would have been lost can become actualized and processed in mere moments. Don’t by bogged down by a notebook you are continuously adding to- use a whiteboard and embrace impermanence![/p][p]- Notecards[/p][p]Can for concepting turn-based stuff, grid based stuff (use scissors), and card based stuff. David Lynch use to write an idea on like 30 of these bad boys and then that would be his next movie.[/p][p]- Google Docs/Sheets/Keep[/p][p]Google apps > Microsoft apps. They can still be annoying as hell but everyone uses them (because they work). There are people that make 90% of a game in a spreadsheet. I’m not even joking. I use Keep because I’m an IPhone + PC user, and it lets me access things between both ecosystems (unlike Apple Notes).[/p][p]- Pinterest[/p][p]I’m a slut for Pinterest. I spend too much time there. But when ideas for a new project emerge, having a place to find references, color theory ideas, character concepts, etc. is so helpful. Can sometimes be more fun than helpful. Don’t spend too long in concept land- it’s not actually real.[/p][p]- Chat GPT[/p][p]Will mostly ask it convoluted questions to get unhelpful responses like (I literally did this one) ‘Design a horror survival game that is Binding of Isaac meets Don’t Starve where you have to survive 10 days.’ Can be more helpful for helping you code, but it has the unfortunate side effect of you will hinder your ability to write code.[/p][p]- Voice Memos[/p][p]Simple Apple recording app. Anytime I have a music idea, I hum it or play it. I favorite the best ones, and then use them to base my FL Studio sessions on. I have 1150 recordings and 174 favorited. Which means I should probably go and delete some. [/p][p][/p][h2]Networking/Social Media[/h2][p]- Discord, X, Bluesky, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Patreon[/p][p]Lumping these together just to say I use em. Success with social media is a whole different post and frankly, I’m not sure I’m the person to ask about it. Consistency is key, and it’s all to easy to get distract when you’re trying to be productive on these sites. [/p][p][/p][h2]Health[/h2][p]- Hevy[/p][p]Exercise has been proven to be super good for you. As effective as medication on helping depression. Plus you get to live longer and feel less kinda ‘ehh.’[/p][p][/p][h2]In other news…[/h2][p]Jackbox tomorrow on the discord! Hyped. Hope you all are well. I’m working on Episode 4 I proooomise. MLS is in China right now for ChinaJoy. How cool is that![/p][p]Adios~[/p]

[p]Hello to all the gamers! Long time no see. [/p][p][/p][p]There’s been a ton of stuff happening behind the scenes, including work on Episode 4 of Muffles’ Life Sentence! Character design is usually pretty early in the process and has been on my mind A LOT, so why not talk about it with y’all today?[/p][p][/p][p]It’s time to make some misfits! Or produce some people? Illustrate some inmates?![/p][p][/p][h2]Methods to the madness[/h2][p]First off, what do I mean by ‘designing a character’?[/p][p][/p][p]I’m talking about the art, personality, plot arc, and relationships that a new character has. Some of these things evolve over time (just think about Shatter), but a surprising amount gets figured out before they’re even put in the game![/p][p][/p][p]I don’t just use one method to design new characters. But new characters tend to be created out of one of three major categories:[/p]

• [p]1. A specific need in terms of plot[/p]
• [p]2. Messing around with character art[/p]
• [p]3. Influenced by other media[/p]

[p]Now, there’s a ton of overlap within the three in terms of the process of MAKING a character, but it gives a good idea of where the design process STARTS.[/p][p][/p][h2]The plot demands it! (Best way)[/h2][p]It is my overwhelming opinion that the best way to design a new character is by having a need, and then tailoring a character to fit that need. [/p][p][/p][p]Have you ever been playing a game with lots of characters, like an open world adventure game, and there’s characters that have no point to them besides filling empty space? If the game has a town, it should probably be filled with people, right? But because gameplay isn’t focused around knowing the people of the town, the people end up being more set dressing than anything else.[/p][p][/p][p]Now let’s take that same example for Muffles- I’ve designed a few towns over the course of three episodes! The first was Blind Eye- an old timey western style town in the middle of a desert. I needed characters to live in the town, but the new setting really demanded something new and interesting, while at the same time not taking me a ton of time (dev work takes so much time).[/p][p][/p][p]And thus, cowpoke, miner, and fancy clerk Pettys were born! They fit the context, had a reason to be at Blind Eye, and made it really easy for me to create new and interesting dialogues because they were baked in with ideas.[/p][p][/p][p]Another example would be Director Suzan. I needed a character to act as an antagonist early on who would represent the sort of harsh prison reality Muffles’ is waking up to. If she was direct and absolute and angry, she would be the perfect person for other, more lighthearted characters to play off of (Dee).[/p][p][/p][p]And so I started playing around with character art revolving around one eye, I made her dialogue all caps, I gave her a vendetta against Dee, etc. Because Suzan was occupying a specific role in the plot, I could figure out the role she needed to fulfill, and then have a ton of fun filling that space. [/p][p][/p][h2]Starting with the arting (okay method)[/h2][p]Sometimes (rarely) I work on art without a particular character or plot need in mind. I’m just sketching out ideas, making my interpretation of a piece of reference art, or just doodling in pixels.[/p][p][/p][p]The amazing thing about creating characters this way is they come to life without any preconceived notions or plans. Your subconscious plays a role in art creation, and this seems like the truest method to let ideas and concepts rise up without you trying to pigeonhole everything based on preconcieved, arbitrary criteria (pursuing ego instead of a truth, or whatever).[/p][p][/p][p]This means new characters can break the mold and be super unique! A great example of this in Muffles would be Dee, who I drew before the game was even a solidified idear in my mind. Marcelo would be another good example- as I worked on his smug little face and beady eyes, and kept leaning into that direction, I routinely asked myself ‘just who is this guy?’ And then when an opportunity for a problematic jailer arose, he was the perfect fit for the job.[/p][p][/p][h2]Drawing from your influences (the worst way, imo)[/h2][p]I think using a lot of reference and media influences to design your characters is hard to do well. When you think about fully formed characters that you REALLY like, it’s hard to be objective about them, and to pull out specific pieces of them to make your own, unique thing. The danger is you copying wholesale, but more likely you’re making something derivative. That in itself isn’t awful, but it can be a disservice to yourself and the new world you’re trying to create.[/p][p][/p][p]OFF is a huge inspiration for Muffles, and to bring up Director Suzan again, there’s definitely a bit of Dedan going on as an influence. Another example could be making Constant an Analyze-able character based on loving Paper Mario, where your first character is a studious little Goomba who can analyze enemies and NPCs.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Feel inspired and follow that feeling[/h2][p]Everyone’s going to have their own process, but for me I tend to:[/p]

• [p]Write characters into my initial episode script based on whatever shenanigans are occurring[/p]
• [p]I’ll find good visual references and collect some interesting ideas[/p]
• [p]Then I draw them up with some interesting expressions[/p]
• [p]When I add them to the game I feel it out and change things a lot to fit the moments I’m making[/p]

[p][/p][p]It’s worked well for me thus far, and with the number of characters in MLS, I needed a good method to keep the characters coming![/p][p][/p][h2]In other news…[/h2][p]Life’s been so busy. It’s good, but… I’m looking forward to some slowdown soon. Some big announcements are upcoming.[/p][p][/p][p]I’m so thankful to all of y’all who believe in Muffles, believe in me, and believe in positivity and hope and spread those things in our discord. Thank you. [/p][p][/p][p]I know at times things can be frustrating, and sometimes you don’t feel heard or respected, and that really sucks. But I believe in you and I believe things get better with time and effort. [/p][p][/p][p]Until next time~[/p][p][/p]

Hello to all the gamers,

We are squashin' all sorts of bugs in this patch! I got some more fun updates upcoming soon, but making sure the game is playable is priority #1 right now.

SPOILERS BELOW

Patch Notes:
- Fixed softlock if you get behind FrankenDee while running from it
- Stash achievement triggering early should be fixed
- Touched up Marcelo's sprite artwork
- Kunie dialogue about secret way in dungeon only plays if you enter from main path
- Made Dee less likely to ferk up the route from Shamanka's Hut to Spookum's Knoll
- Text edits

Thanks to allaya'll playin' and spreading news of MLS :)

-Bossy

[p]E3 Hotfix patch (spoilers below!!!):[/p]

• [p]Nightmare Fuel dialogue now only shows up post episode 2[/p]
• [p]Fire sound no longer persists outside the pot room[/p]
• [p]Eye of Humor now reads: Cannot Guard. Duplicate Humors. Gain Panic.[/p]
• [p]Fixed weird collisions post FrankenDee chase[/p]
• [p]Fixed a bunch of Kunie clipping issues[/p]
• [p]Issue with walking during first Kunie CS fixed[/p]
• [p]If you interact with radio with Headless Dee they will try to protect you from the darkness now[/p]
• [p]Can't leave the grove without Kunie's sword[/p]
• [p]Fixed issue where spamming continue during doll cutscene caused it to restart[/p]
• [p]Fixed disappearing tracks in the Unseen Village[/p]
• [p]Added a little hint to be Constant for talking to Isabel[/p]
• [p]Re-visiting dreams now is locked to Muffles[/p]
• [p]Many text edits[/p]

[p][/p][p]-Bossy[/p]

Itty bitty hotfix patch:
- Nightmare Fuel dialogue with Onyore now only shows up post episode 1

:)

-Bossy