Today, I’m celebrating two things: having built, last Wednesday, the very first version of Outsider, which is actually playable and finishing my 47th day of game development in a row. Yes, I have worked every single day, Saturdays and Sundays included, since I started developing the game on August 5th. Weekends are lighter, usually 3-6 hours of work, but weekdays are full 7-10 hour work days. I feel tired but not exhausted (yet), despite having never worked harder in my life. Nonetheless, I might indulge in a single full day off this weekend!
Speaking of Outsider being playable, in hindsight, I should have aligned the end of M1 with this moment. I didn’t because this is more of a psychological milestone than anything else, as I don’t have enough assets to play even the game’s first chapter. Imagine an early version of Super Mario Bros where Mario can run and jump, but there is only a single pipe to jump over in the entire game. It nonetheless feels great seeing it coming together, even if there is still a very long road ahead.
Years ago, before the game details solidified in my mind, I considered releasing an “app version” of the original 2015 Outsider story. If you haven’t seen the original, as most people haven’t, this might not make much sense. But to the few people who have seen it, know this: what I have on my machine right now is almost exactly what you saw back in 2015 but with a TON of upgrades: adjustable pace, configurable fonts, configurable color scheme, auto-scaling for different resolutions/monitor aspect ratios and more. If I still wanted this product to be “Outsider 2015 The App”, I would be around 1-2 weeks away from delivering it!
But “Outsider The Game” goes well beyond its inspiration. You have seen some graphics but haven’t heard much about the gameplay. I will keep the gameplay secret until the very day I release the demo; in this case, saying much more, particularly releasing gameplay screenshots, could simultaneously underwhelm you and spoil the surprise. One of Outsider’s challenges will be able to communicate its nuances through screenshots, and for that, I’ll have to rely on word-of-mouth… But this is a conversation for another day.
After a few more weeks of asset creation, Alex and I will finally be able to play the game for real. To get there, I still need to put a lot more effort into audio, graphical, and story assets. So stay tuned for a new song and screenshots soon!