Grim Earth
Grim Earth : Release Day!
I'm delighted with the game, it feels like the right time to release the full version. Of course I intend to keep working/polishing and bug fixing, but yeah, feels good : D
Please let me know what you think if you play it ... and if you like the game and have a way to mention it somewhere, please do. I have a sense that this may be one of the quietest game launches of all time! Isn't it supposed to appear somewhere on Steam now that it's launched? Hmm, 20 other games released today are appearing, but not Grim Earth. Will wait an hour or two, and then full on panic!
All the best everyone :D
George
Release Date : 44th September!
I'm really sorry ... but I'll have to delay the release of Grim Earth by two weeks (Oct 14) : (
I'm working on things that could possibly wait for an update, but with so many games coming out I feel it's important for the game to make the best first-impression it can. The Steam launch might be the game's only shot, which is kind of terrifying!
It's all play testing and level polishing from now till launch, adding lots of hidden stuff : D
Thank you!
George
0.96.0 Update Notes
30th September 2021
I've updated all the assets on Steam (well, for my game at least) and even the trailer says September so it must be true : )
The game is in a releasable state right now, although I'll be revisiting the audio and I'm frantically trying to reach out to anyone who might review the game. Even made a press kit : https://Grim.Earth/Press.htm
All the best!
George
0,95,2 : Quick bug fix
Updated build with 'Spoilers'!?
I've just uploaded a new Early Access build, which features the latest gameplay/graphics.
Although there are fewer levels in this build, I've included a Spoilers option which lets you try out later levels, set in locations which have not been seen before.
The game is 100% feature complete. I've just added a close-up of the watch (the one Hub appears in), mainly so I can have a scanner which lets you know what things are/do, rather than have Hub explain everything ... he'd gotten a little explainy : )
I know I say this a lot, but the game really is near completion ... almost to the point where I could just release it and be happy. Going to give myself a month to try generate some interest though!
Thanks again for your patience : )
George
Update & Release Date/Price
The game's going well, still developing it full time!
I've been working on levels for the last few weeks, continually playing the game and fixing/polishing things as I find them. There's been zero mods/refactors made to the engine, so I think it's finally stable enough to make games ; )
I've decided to add a few things that I was going to leave as updates. There are three new locations (ice, meat, worm), hidden levels, challenge/timed sections, arenas, shops, hidden items/collectables and I've added mist/fog/backgrounds to most levels ... there are 135 of them.
So, it really is almost time to release Grim Earth. With this in mind I'll be setting the final price next Monday, which will give me a month before I'll be able to release the game. I'm going to use this as a deadline, so I guess mid July is the date!
Anyway, with the price going up x3, now's a great time to grab Grim Earth ... although if you're reading this you almost certainly have it already : D
Thank you,
George
Grim Earth == Beta : D
I've finished the last section of the game (!) and played through the whole thing, title screen to title screen (!!) ... there's no placeholder art and everything worked (!!!)
It really feels like a different game all of a sudden, I can now see it as a whole, a complete entity. It's suddenly obvious what needs to been improved, added, subtracted, and what just needs leaving alone.
This means I can now develop the game as a series of polishing passes. Start with the obvious stuff, and use finer and finer grains until it's done. For example, I just updated the clouds on all levels (based on a new technique I used for the end levels) and everything suddenly looks 14.3% better.
It's going to be a few weeks yet, but from past experience I know the game will just say to me one day ... 'I'm done!' ... although I have a bunch of stuff in mind for the updates ; )
Thanks!
George
Grim Earth : Getting there ...
First, I hope all who read this have had the best 2020 possible, it's been a strange year for sure.
I'm sorry for the complete lack of updates. I have been working on Grim Earth full time, the whole year, it's just that I'm maybe too focused on the development side of things and don't take enough time to talk about the game.
Four Years ...
... is a long time. I've written 15 games as an indie, several of which took a year. Grim Earth is now four years old (what!?), it wasn't supposed to take this long!
I guess the problem is I'm thinking of Grim Earth as a series of games. This means the game engine has to be spot on. I can't be working on the third game and need to change something that breaks multiple games. So, a lot of this year has been spent on the engine and its multiple editors.
For example, I've used the same particle effects code for fifteen years. A month ago, I decided to rewrite it, making it more flexible, giving it a visual editor, it's going to be great going forwards and will speed up future development. Problem is, it's can of worms time and you end up rewriting everything that depends on that code. Then you have to reimplement every, single, effect in the game. Argh!
Progress ...
The game is going well however and I'm really happy with it. It's possible to play all the way through now and it's polished up to the 75% mark. Here's some screens from the third section, although I'm looking at the game as a whole now since writing the overview editor (which took weeks!)
Release Date
I used to think I was months away and it turned out to be years. Now I think it's weeks away, so I'm going to assume I need at least a couple more months. I wish it was sooner.
All the best,
George
It's derelict spaceship time ... in space!
It was great to get such nice feedback when Grim Earth first launched ... I really hope you like this follow-up section. It's quite different, mainly because for most of it you're floating around, a bit odd for a platformer.
The next section has been designed, but as I mentioned in my last post, I wont get sucked into creating a bunch of temporary levels this time. So, in a month's time, someone please tell me to release what's currently available and I should be able to! (Disclaimer ... unless I'm not able to).
Finally ... I have no idea of how to find an audience for this game. So if you like it, please consider mentioning it to a friend, or leaving a quick review.
Thank you : )
George