GB Jam 12 Post-Mortem
Last week I participated in another game jam, GB Jam 12. In the span of only 10 days, I was to create a game for the original Gameboy, with the limitation of displaying up to only four colors on the screen at one time. The theme for this jam was “Spooky.”
Admittedly I was already in the throes of game development before the jam began, working on a broader (yet still manageable!) game. Also admittedly, I had been eyeing participation in this jam for several months, but made my final decision the night before it began - the reason being the aforementioned broader game I have on the proverbial workbench.
But I realized: I can use the game jam to hash out the design for part of the game already being developed.
After all, everything should (and often does, if we’re paying attention) build upon each other.
I’ve mentioned in previous posts that my current game engine of choice is a free program called GB Studio, designed specifically for making games for the original Gameboy (and Gameboy Color). As I continue to use GB Studio, I’m learning more ways to utilize its features while circumventing its limitations, AND I’m now starting to get a firmer grasp on programming logic in general. Like I said, everything builds upon each other.
Using previous game jam experience, considering my current skill level in developing games, and taking into account the realistic time I had to work on the game, when the jam officially started I created a rough sketch - a macro outline - of the design for the game I was about to make. I knew it would be a Zelda-like dungeon-crawler, which meant there would need to be multiple rooms, a progression path, monsters, and combat.
All of this was considered on the first day. My initial task for this macro-outline was to determine the size and scale of each of these elements. How much is too much? What is achievable with the time I have? What are my goal(s) for the jam?
All important questions.
Now, I mentioned that GB Jam 12 lasted 10 days. I did not work on my submission all 10 days. Looking back at that week, I (at best) worked with the submission on seven of those 10 days.
I did my best upfront to keep the scale of the game in-check. Present Jacob is grateful to Past Jacob for doing this - as the clock grew shorter, it meant there was much less that I had to cut out of the final submission.
Yes, there were some elements that needed to be scrapped.
The original idea included three different enemy types, but I realized I could get away with only two. The third, I realized, was going to be a headache to program and I wanted to spend my time on making other aspects more robust. During the jam week, on my breaks at my Day Job™ I wrote out an updated behavior for the final boss, but I didn’t have time to implement it. Lastly, I was hoping to add some music to the submission, but my experience with the music tracker included in GB Studio is in the ballpark of zero. Ultimately I decided no music was better than including something that was boring or annoying to hear while playing.
I was fine cutting out those elements, largely because I kept in mind that the submission was just a prototype for part of the other game - the one on the proverbial workbench - and I can add those scrapped elements into that game later on.
Everything builds upon each other.
Title screen for Haunted.
And it that vein, here is a list of my personal high points from my experience in GB Jam 12:
I made a short yet full game, which can be played from start to finish.
I used recently-learned features within GB Studio, incorporating them into the game.
I kept myself and my time in check, making sure to scrap elements early on if I had any reason to believe they would be a time sink.
I finally implemented a successful color palette swap - something I’ve attempted before but which went unsuccessful.
I made and implemented my first dungeon boss.
I spent some time making a detailed and relevant title screen, which I haven’t really done before.
Oh yeah! I also had fun. Can’t forget that one.
When all was said and done, Haunted was my submission this time around. It’s short, a lil spooky, desktop- and mobile-friendly, and can be played here. Give it a try. If you love it? Let me know! If you hate it? Let me know! I can take the criticism.
As a bit of an afterthought, I’m reminded after every game jam that I never regret participating in game jams. The seasoning sprinkled throughout this blog entry is that everything builds upon each other, and I certainly find the truth in that with each jam I participate in.
