Off-Peak News

Off-Peak fans,

I'm pleased to announce the official release date for The Norwood Suite -- October 2nd, 2017.

It's been an intense two years, but I'm excited to finally deliver this work. I'm getting the soundtrack mastered now and it's exactly as I'd envisioned - full, rich, focused.

Full trailer below:

https://youtu.be/yG3YIq2MIcM

A new steam page will go up sometime next month. In the meantime, stay tuned for more info!

cheers

-cosmo d

Hi all,

Seems like the right time for an update on the Norwood Suite's current status, in a bit of detail.



Music is fully implemented and getting mastered, but still needs mixing with sound design in-game. All sound effects are done, save for a few stray effects.



Gameplay is complete but still needs polish to address edge-cases.

Players can save progress in this game, unlike in Off-Peak. This was a doozy to implement but ultimately has helped the game logic stay tight. That said, all potential edge cases are still being tested.

Most importantly, the story and arc of the game are finalized, including the ending, which went through several iterations. I’m pleased with it now.

In my playtest last weekend, my colleague Owen talked to me about the whole experience for another two hours after playing the game, interpreting its themes and subtexts with enthusiasm as the night wore on. I take this to be a good sign that the game is doing what I intended: giving the player a rich world to dive into, while leaving room for players to observe and interpret in their own way.



As a writer, my first instinct is to not give too much away, avoid the obvious, but the risk there is that you can easily fall into being too subtle, which the first iterations of Off-Peak and Norwood definitely were. There’s a balance that can only come through honest feedback and willful iteration. Hence, my current status on the game.

More news to come as The Norwood Suite moves closer to the finish line. In the meantime, enjoy this tune:

Excerpt - Pool Gaze

Here's an update on how The Norwood Suite is coming along, with some new GIFs and a teaser track.







Right now I'm actively implementing music to the game, and that's proven to be intense... in a good way. As many of you might know, music has always been my primary vocation. Re-focusing on it after some time spent on other facets of game design has been like a return to the home base.

One thing I'll mention is that whereas Off-Peak's soundtrack was derived from Archie Pelago tracks that had already been floating around in some form on the ol' hard drive, Norwood Suite's music is, to a degree, more intentionally crafted for the game.

I say 'to a degree' because there's still an element of just making the music for its own sake, but now that process feels more purposeful and directed, with an arc in mind.

Here are the opening chords to one of the new pieces, just to give you a taste:

https://soundcloud.com/cosmoddd/blue-moose-man-excerpt

I'll be using these chords in a myriad of different ways, and in different contexts throughout the game. They become 'characters' in the game in their own right, and part of the world, helping reinforce the viewpoints people you'll meet, and provide wordless commentary on the environments you find yourself in. I won't say much more beyond this.

Knowing how I work, Summer feels like the most appropriate time frame and once I can get more specific with a date, I will.

thanks as ever for your support
-cosmo d

Hi,

I'm posting gifs to give you an idea of how my next game, The Norwood Suite, is coming along. For those of you just tuning in, The Norwood Suite is the direct follow-up to Off-Peak and is set in the same world.







I'll be at the Game Developer's Conference at the end of the month talking about narrative design and how it relates to my approach to sound design. I'll post a link to that talk when it becomes available to the public. I'll have more to share in due time. I'm deep in it.

-Cosmoddd

Hey everyone,

I just updated Off-Peak based on recent user feedback and requested features. Inverted Y-axis support, Linux support and more... full details can be found at this thread.

Last week, Vice's Waypoint and Killscreen both interviewed me. The interviews are quite in-depth, covering different facets of how I came to make games. If you're curious to know more about me and where I'm coming from with Off-Peak and how I'm approaching my next game, The Norwood Suite, these two articles paint a clear picture, from different angles.

Waypoint:


Killscreen:


If you have any questions / concerns, reach out to me at cosmod -at- cosmod -dot- net or follow me on twitter at @cosmoddd