After debuting exclusively on Indie Royale's Boxing Day Bundle, L'il Pono's adventure: Christmas Magic+ is now permanently available for purchase on Desura for Windows, Linux and Mac. A single purchase entitles players to all three versions of the game. Also, this special edition includes the OST and the beautiful Concept Art Bundle with the game, making it the best version of the game out there ! We found Desura to be the best platform for our PC release as it is the one stop shop for anything indie and fun !
Here's our little gem shining bright on the front page of Desura:
Here's a link to the game, it will lead you directly to Desura:
Its a joyous Valentine's Day for us and L'il Pono as he continues his journey to spread his magic on all platforms possible :) ! Hoping this brings Pono's magical adventure another step closer to your fingertips. If any of you had been holding out till now, now's there's no reason not to jump in ! Linux, Mac or Windows, whichever OS you play on, Christmas Magic is ready to be dived into !
So, the BIG BIG news is out already :D ! Did you hear it?
Yes , yes, our game "Christmas magic +" is debuting DRM free on Windows, Linux and Mac exclusively on Indie Royale's latest xmas bundle titled "The Debut 8" ! And even greater news which overjoys me completely is that it has been chosen to be a Secret Bonus game for generous users who pay $5 or more for the bundle ! So, technically, we are the best game of the bundle :) ! Way to go L'il Pono, we are one step closer to world domination !
Its an even bigger news locally, as we are the first Indian PC game ever,let alone indie or corporate, to be featured on any kind of bundle, let alone be chosen as a bonus game ! Christmas Magic + has created ripples in the Indian gaming industry and I am sure the news will encourage even more aspire-rs to make their own games and live their dreams ! While scores of gaming studios were busy making clones of other hit games, this unique little game quietly made it into the international circuit.If a game made by two dreamers can make it at the world stage, then nothing is impossible !
We all know that multi-player as well as single player DLC for The Last of Us is coming soon and all wise gamers have already bought the Season Pass for it. As my last article must have clearly shown you all, I am completely in love with this game and consider it the epitome of good game design. The game is so good that either I am playing it or I am always thinking about it.
While on one of those daydreaming trips of mine :) I came up with an idea for a fantastic MP mode for The Last of Us which could retain the multiplayer flavour we love, but also give us a real feel of surviving the apocalypse while fighting with real people and not AI. How can we have the SP mode's world and add real people instead of the AI and have a "real" survival game? How it would really feel in the apocalyptic future with rare supplies, rival factions and the infected roaming the world !
The result, ladies and gentlemen, is what I call the : Apocalypse mode ! :) It is not a co-op mode, it is not a horde mode...
...the rules are pretty simple :
Phase 1:
2 teams start at their basecamps A and B with limited set of 'tickets' or 'spawns', like say in Battlefield
The players rush to pick up supplies from different areas on the map just like in Survival or Raid while fending off enemy players.
along with supplies, You also get "Parts" or "tickets " from these supply points now. The supplies belong to each player for crafting weapons but these "Parts" have to be deposited back into their base to earn more 'tickets' for your team. If you die while carrying them back, your teammates or the enemy players can pick them up again.
The supply points are littered all over the map, just like in Raid or Survival and you scuttle between your base and the next supply point to gather tickets and supplies.
You can have your team to defend you while only one guy does it, or all team members can scuttle off to different supply points to gather as many as they can.
Do whatever you can , plan to get as much supplies and parts and prevent the other team from delivering the parts to their base to keep their tickets down OR just steal their parts and deliver to your base ! Team work gets rewarded.
Phase 2:
After a set amount of time OR when all supply points have been looted, the 'Apocalypse' begins and the infected arrive from two points on the map. Both teams get engaged in surviving the infected wave as well surviving each other.
No supply points exist now. Use whatever supplies you have left from Phase 1 and loot what you can from dead bodies of the enemy team or the infected.
Fight the infected, stealth kill them, bomb them, Do whatever you can and but keep an eye out for the enemy team too. Total survival !
The team which survives till the end of the wave or has more tickets when all the infected have been wiped out, wins the round.
We can have three rounds where in each round the Infected get more and more dangerous.
First round : invaded by Runners.
Second round: Runners + Clickers invade the match
Third Round : Runners, clickers and two Bloaters !!
Each team can go for either collecting stuff quickly and hiding from the enemy team, saving their tickets and bombs for the infected attack or making the other team weak by killing them off as much as they can and looting their supplies and tickets. But then, during fights, they themselves will also lose supplies required for surviving the Infected ! Multiple strategies are possible keeping each round fresh and unique ! The presence of the Infected and 'real world' rival people makes for the perfect "Apocalypse" survival experience possible in the world of The Last Of Us! :) Whatcha say !
Different Map features like hutments, natural landscape features like drop-offs can add to the survival fun while being pursued by the Infected. This can be insanely fun :) ! This could be so much more than just a plain co-op mode against the infected or a tower defence stuff that every game seems to have now.
The rules are simple and so is the implementation and I am really hoping that instead of a straight up co-op mode, ala Uncharted, Naughty Dog listens and incorporates something like this it into the forthcoming DLC. If you guys have more suggestions on improving this or more maps designs, do put them in the comments! Do Tweet it, like or G+ it and let ND hear ! ALso, if you haven't already, check out my previous article on the excellence of The Las of Us:
…and I am back ! …after a week of being submerged in a world
so captivating, soothing, disturbing, thrilling, challenging, intoxicating, mesmerizing
and so magical that returning from it to the real world leaves me just wanting
to go right back into it :)! I am talking about absolutely stellar game by
Naughty Dog called The Last of Us ! Need I say more? Its time to dive in .......:)
The review scores all around had already
prepared us all for a great game but the game’s geatness is far beyond what can
be just measured by review scores or journalist reviews. This is a labour of love,
a tale as much of the two protagonists as it is of the absolutely fabulous team
of people who conceived it and brought it to life. Each and every room, scene,
dialogue, expression and sound has a story to tell, and exists as a robust and independent
entity supporting the other entities as aptly as possible. To find faults in
this game is a waste of time, not because they are obvious or because there are
none, but because that time will be much better spent in appreciating and
learning from what the game has successfully achieved ! The game is what I
would call a masterclass in game making and game design. Each level, each
dialogue and each game mechanic has a specific and precise purpose and combined
together they create a very specific mood which you cannot miss or not feel.
Since there are so many learning experiences in this game
and each element interdependent on others , its difficult to put them in
points, but lets try to list them in a bit of organized manner:
Building a bond with the characters using gameplay: The biggest marvel of The Last of Us is its ability to make you feel for and cry for the characters within its first 10 minutes of game time ! Yes, stories and games make you go through hours ofcut scenes, tears and extremes to make you feel sadness or love for a character. Shadow of The Colossus made you feel for Agro, but it took half of the game to forge that bond. MGS3 made your throat choke, but it took the full game to set you up for that end scene but the Last of Us accomplishes it in 10 minutes ! How? I think the answer lies in the apt use of gaming medium itself. First of all, the very first character you play as is Sarah ! Not Joel but Sarah. Its a brief segment, but it makes the player instantly connect with her. Had she been just a cutscene character there would haven't been the same impact of her death on the player. They used the medium,the controller, the ability to be a character in a game to intensify the impact manifold. Also, you watch all hell break lose as Sarah, as a victim, but as soon as the fear or tension starts building up and you feel the need to act, as a gamer, they instantly shift you to playing as Joel, the Dad, the guardian. You carry her in your hands through the apocalypse. You feel the fear as Sarah but you act as her Dad, so you are the victim but the responsibility is also yours. That controller in your hand ensures you feel that whatever will happen will be a result of my actions. And you do it, you save her and take her away from harm, a satisfaction in your heart and then......the final punch arrives : Sarah isn't killed by the infected but by humans ! You saved her from the apocalypse only to be killed by a human! Even the part in cutscene is handled superbly. You first see that Joel is safe, free from harm, only to realise that it means its Sarah who is hit ! The same feelings are re-invoked at the end by making you play again as Joel carrying his daughter in his arms again trying to save her from , not infected, but the humans again. There was no way I would not kill Marlene or the people in my way. There's no way I would let it happen again to my daughter ! The very beginning was preparing us for the end of the game. The point to note is that all of it was done using the strengths of gameplay as a tool. This was not happening in a long cut scene. Instead, the medium's strength,the ability to interact, was used to amplify every impact of the story. This, my friends, is wonderful Game Design and superb use of the strengths of a medium chosen to tell a story!
Foreshadowing of gameplay mechanics: We all know about
foreshadowing in stories and movies but ND has gone one step further
with foreshadowing of gameplay mechanics. Every gameplay feature or
mechanic that they expect the player to use or be familiar with in the
next segment of gameplay or the next level is foreshadowed casually in
the segment previous to it. They make sure the player is already aware of the new feature before he is expected to use it or be aware of it. For example,
before the boss fight with David, we were made to roam around in that
same room without any danger and introduced to the broken cutlery on the
ground. We walked over it , learnt that it makes sound and breaks
stealth, but it was introduced in a non lethal environment where we can
learn about it without any punishment. Later, when David tries to find
us in that room we are already aware that we are supposed to stay clear
of the cutlery on the ground removing any chance of failure due to lack
of info. If you fail, then you know you were careless, you never
feel cheated.. It might seem very simple but most games would just go by
the "learn by death" mechanism rather than explain in it by
incorporating it in gameplay in a previous section. Its a detail which
dictates level design and hence, can happen only if it is incorporated
in your roots of game design. Another example is the light stealth
section when you just cross outside the wall, before the actual use of
stealth against the infected in the downtown area. The whole purpose of
that section was to inform you that outside the wall, the enemy is
overwhelming in numbers and force. So learn to hide as much as you can.
This could have been said in tutorial message, like in most games, or
via an NPC dialogue but ND knows actions speak louder than words. What
better way than to present a situation where the enemy isn't as deadly as
what is about to follow, but it forces you into hiding. Every gameplay mechanic has a similar foreshadowing in The Last of Us. This is brilliant game design and shows amazing detail in planning levels and mechanics.
The Goal is always in sight: Be it the Capitol building, the Bridge in Pittsburgh,the Radio Tower, the Science Lab in the University or the Hospital in Salt Lake, the goal of the level is always in sight whenever you turn a corner or come out of a building.
Now this is a very small touch in game and level design but one which makes a huge difference. You are always aware of where you need to go, without the need of any UI message or an in-game compass. Not just that, you feel invested in the game all the time as you always have the goal in sight. Ok, thats where we are going ! and designing each level in such a way that every now and then you get a visual of your goal doesn't happen automatically. It means ND invested a lot of time and effort in making sure it happened every-time you jumped out of a building after scourging for supplies. At a time when developers put markers every 20m to keep the player guided in a linear mission, ND achieved the same without any obtrusive UI and it feels so natural that you might not even notice in the subtle way you are being guided around the level. And it isn't just limited to visuals. In the level where we wade through a snowstorm in David's camp, since the snowstorm made sure we weren't able to see anything, ND made sure the bells ringing loud in one the buildings provided you with an aural landmark, so that you could guide yourself in the snowstorm using the sound of the bells !
Storytelling during gameplay: Just like the opening sequence, ND uses gameplay moments to tell most of its story. A particular moment which stands out is how Ellie turns quiet and sullen after her encounter with David. When Joel and Sully reach Salt Lake city, Ellie doesn't respond to Joel's gameplay prompts as she is preoccupied and disturbed after what David tried to do to her. Joel has to go and talk to her to prep her up.Due to the fact that it happened during gameplay, it got noticed by the player and made an impact. Hence,the Giraffe scene that followed had a much greater emotional value as Ellie got back to her own self after that encounter.
There are many more examples, like when Henry reveals his story during gameplay moments as we walk around in a suburban town. Also, the behaviour of Ellie changes from a talkative teenager to a more quiet survivor during winter to a grown up coming to terms with life and relationships by the end of the game. Another example is how Joel refers to Ellie as "the girl" during the initial sections of the game. It changes to "Ellie" during the mid and to "Kiddo" after their Father-daughter relationship gets cemented ! You can literally feel their relationship while playing the game !Also, the death of Tess doesn't happen in a cutscene, but during gameplay ! They could have simply extended the cutscene by a minute and added Tess's death and Joel teeth grinding histrionics into it, but instead , when the sacrifice of Tess became inevitable, they handed the control back into your hands. You were Joel, when Tess died ! You went over to the upper floor and peeked over the ledge to see Tess lying below. It wasn't just some character, it was you ! Whatever reaction that evoked in you , were yours. Had it been a cutscene, the reactions would have been of Joel, not yours, and hence the impact would have been lesser. These are small storytelling touches that add up to the masterpiece we experience in the game.
Down-times were never so enjoyable: Most games, including ND's previous ones, use downtimes to provide breathers between heavy action sequences and I was expecting the same here, but boy was I in for a surprise ! The downtimes are the game here ! Yes, it is the combat segments that feel like they are there to provide break from the downtimes. We spend sometimes around 30 minutes without any action, scavenging for supplies and roaming the beautiful levels, but those are the times when the game's some of the best moments are.
You soak in the environment , the game world and its stories during those serene times.Ellie would start talking to you about her and your past while you are exploring. At one instant I was inside this house and She and Sam sat down on the sofa and started talking, it felt so natural, so real ! Then there are times when we are prompted for conversations during these downtimes. Add to that the stories that are littered around in the form of notes you find in houses, settlements. Some of them were so moving that you actually felt you had just played a mini story inside the main game.For example, Ish's story, the settlement in the sewers where the mother killed all her children to prevent them from getting infected and left a note on the ground saying "They didn't suffer" for the Dad to find if he ever comes back ! To give him the 'comfort' that his children did not suffer in death! It was a chilling tale that was delivered during gameplay spanning around 30 minutes via notes, messages and children's drawings on the walls. There was even a hint in the next town that Ish might still be alive ! The exploration is full of stories and conversations you would just miss if you didn't have these downtimes in gameplay. Not to mention exploration is also always rewarded with collectibles! Me likes them shinies ! :)
Razor sharp combat gameplay: 'Perfect' is the only word to describe the balance of gameplay in The Last Of Us. I played on Hard, with Listen mode turned off, and I always had just enough supplies to scrape by. Never had too much to feel confident and never too less to get stuck. Always barely surviving ! That shows how well the game has been play tested by ND and balanced accordingly. All the levels are open areas with multiple strategy options depending on what you have in your backpack at that moment. If you have Shivs, time to go stealthy and grabbing people. If you have run out of shivs or can't stealth around enemies, there's the Bow, a fantastic stealth alternative. If you have run out arrows, which you won't as you can recollect them after a kill, you have the melee weapons, which can be upgraded for one hit kills. If you don't like stealth, there the whole arsenal of guns. Ammo is limited, but that can be overcome by crafting extra holsters for quick-swapping weapons. Change weapons quickly and you aren't out of ammo so soon. There's always a way to play. In fact, I found the combat as addicting as Demons Souls' combat. They are very different yet very similar in the sense that both have extremely well balanced gameplay, where if u pay attention, you can win any situation.
If I may compare, I find The Last of Us' combat more rewarding and engaging than Demons Souls'. Tackle one enemy, run, hide...find something...craft ...tackle another,
run....hide...wait ...LOU combat is also long drawn and tense like Demons Souls.
One wrong move and your chances of survival go down exponentially. In
fact, if you don't run often you won't find the supplies that are
required to make it through. Running away is an integral part of the combat system, which itself is a unique mechanic. Demons Souls' combat is more about memorising and
dodging correctly, whereas LOU combat is more about finding right
moments for crowd control and using what you have to your advantage in a split second decision. The sudden fights and the panic decisions that ensue are so unique to The Last of Us that they provided some of the most memorable moments I have had in games.
In Demons Souls fights tend to have a pattern whereas in LOU no two fights play out the same ! The magic of LOU is indeed fantastic !You are never stuck and you are never overpowered either. Kudos to the designers who could manage such a balance and could produce such an unpredictable AI. OH, and the perennial decisions: Molotov or Health Kit? Shiv or a nail bomb ? the thrill is amazingly well balanced.
Stellar sound design aides gameplay: The amazing sound design supports the gameplay perfectly. I chose to play without the Listen ability, which meant I had to rely on sounds to make out enemy positions. Many a times it was only the sound that provided me information about my next move. Whether to turn this corner or not. Should I go upstairs or stay below. Each decision was aided by perfect audio information. The gameplay could have fallen apart if the audio processing was not precise as it is now.The fact that I could easily complete the game without the Listen mode, shows that the sound feedback is perfect in this game. Every little sound made by the enemies provides proper positional feedback even on a stereo headset. On a 7.1 channel headset, the experience is sublime ! The thunder in Downtown, the sounds of nature in Lincoln, the eerie underground Infected levels and the open spaces, all resonate with a perfect audio cues.Add to that the surreal sounds by ND and the music of Gustavo Santaolalla, this is one unforgettable aural experience.
The little details, Crafted with Love: I won't talk about the details in the characters faces or models but the little touches like moving clouds. Yes, its not a big deal, but even though we could see these were just skyboxes, the 2D clouds subtly and slowly move if you care to look up and just gaze at them :) ! Ellie tells you little jokes if you care to linger around her. Also, the fact that Joel protects Ellie by shielding her body with his own, whenever they crouch in cover during gameplay shows extreme attention to detail.
Not to forget all the small colour ques to guide the player through an environment, like yellow always means explorable area. Also, the movement of Rats always shows you where to go next! The state of the dead bodies you find always dictates which kindof enemies you will find in this area. When an enemy strangle Joel, his nose starts bleeding and the blood spreads on his face. When Joel kills an enemy, his blood spreads n the shirt and the stain grows. Also, when you switch on your flashlight, the FOV changes just a bit, objects appear just a bit closer, to give you an better illusion of things being more clearer than before !The amount of little details in unbelievable ! I am not even talking about the absolutely sublime ambient lighting and the real-time GI cast by your flashlight.Whether the player notices it or not, these details are always there for him to immerse him in this world. To make him suspend his disbelief. These small touches, little details show the developer's attention to detail, dedication to the experience and the love for the medium they are working with. One feels honoured to have played such a gem of a videogame !:)
A Masterclass of story telling: The prologue itself is a masterclass in revealing the plot.I will just recap how the apocalypse was revealed to us in the prologue. First a phone call indicating something is wrong. Then a newspaper report
about an infection, then a TV report about something wrong(nothing about
infection), an explosion right outside the windows,Sarah is scared now,
Dad is missing and then finally we see a infected enter the house! Now that we know
there's an infection,we are shown the magnitude of the problem increasing
as we ride in the car and then later we are thrust right into it
running and screaming only to realize that it is not the infected who
the story is about, but it is the humans...as it is a human who kills
Sarah, not any of the infected ! In an indirect way the game makes it
clear right at that moment, that this is a story about humans and their decisions, not the
infected. A typical video game would show a TV report showing zombies
rampaging the streets and be done with the introduction.But then would
it be the Last of Us :) !Also, something people might not have noticed, that after every tense or
heavy situation, the game always changes the mood to relief and puts a
subtle smile on your face ! That is fantastic to experience: to smile
right after a major tragedy! For example, when Joel gets wounded badly,
the screen fades to black with a sense of dread about what will happen
to Ellie now ? But the very next moment, after a pause , you see bright
snow-scape with Ellie trying to hunt a deer. Like a child you run after
it here and there, smiling at this play of life. Yes, life is back, the
fear of death faded away the story moves forward :) ! Similarly, after
the dreadful encounter with David, as Ellie weeps and reveals that David
tried to abuse her, the screen fades away and we are left with a dark
sense of an innocence lost to this dark brutal world. But the very next
moment, after a pause to let us feel the pain, the screen comes back to
life with the bright colours of Summer ! :) Life is back and our goal is near, the Salt Lake city! The story telling was special in yet another way too: no one was a hero here, and no one a villian, the whole act of "Winter" was to
showcase that our every heroic act towards Ellie was as villainous as
any other enemy we encounter on our way. The entry of David in the story showcased the cruelty of our "Heroics" and made us see the other side. It also foreshadowed the 'end' of the story where Joel turns into a villian for the whole mankind while being a hero as a Dad. No one was a hero, no one was a villian. Yet we saw every journey with empathy and concern. We invested in every character as much as we invested in Joel and Ellie.
Subtlety : I believe that was their keyword for the whole game! Except for the brutality of violence , everything else is done in the most subtle way possible. The acting is subtle, never over done, not in the case of a death scene. Take for example, Sarah's death or Tess' death. No emotion was overdone, yet we grasped the weight of the situation. The dialogues are short and subtle. Subtlety also seeps into the hints provided during gameplay. They are never loud, just subtle enough to be noticed. Characters talk bare minimum during interactions, yet convey a lot. The music , the fantastic music, is so subtle and minimal that it sets the whole game apart from anything else we have played before it. ND lets players' minds fill the gaps while providing just enough information to spark the imagination ! The best example for this point is the end of the game : Single-handedly the most mature and subtle end to a game ever. Very suggestive, sets your mind on fire and simply and gracefully fades away while leaving you thinking while a smile of satisfaction, as well as , "how long will this lie hold?" spreads on your face slowly :) ! Naughty Dog sure had the guts and the talent to bring this end to life in such a convincing way.
This is a game where I found myself watching the whole of the credits to honour the people who gave me such an amazing experience ! This is a game I found myself replaying the moment I finished it ! This is the game of which I will be telling my kids about , one day ! This is a game I will keep playing till I imbibe all that Naughty Dog has put into making it ! This game is my masterclass of Game Design ! :)
and while I leave you, to my mind springs a prose about The Last Of Us :
A tale was woven and a world sprung around it ,
A life was stolen and
another lived without it,
An Innocence was lost, another hadn’t found it,
As a story unfolds, there’s a fire, gather around it,
An update for Christmas Magic + is live now, updating the game to version 1.1. Its a major update for all iPad 3 owners who were having some problems with graphics.
iPad 3 is fully supported now and graphics will display properly on the retina displays now. If for some reason, the game wasn't working properly on your iPad till now, I recommend updating the game as some other bugs related to rating the game and memory management are also solved in this update.
Download here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/christmas-magic-+/id587804888?ls=1&mt=8
Also, just a reminder , the New Year Sale is still on ! So, get the update and then get all that you wanted to buy in the game at the lowest prices ever :D !.
Christmas Magic + , our little baby on the Appstore, is climbing strongly on the ladders of the AppStore ! We are getting steady downloads of around 500 per day (ain't that su-weet !) and steadily climbing. Also, its interesting to see the game performing equally well in non-english speaknig countries too, eg. China seems to like our game as much as the US, which is a surprise to us considering that a major chunk of the game is a storybook in English !
Add to that we have been recieving encouraging reviews and fan mails too.With the festive season in the air and Christmas cheer all around, we are getting messages from fans proclaiming the game as
"The Best Christmas Gift !"
Needless to say, we are feeling very proud of our game these days :) ! Hoping and praying it conquers more milestones as each day passes.More news and surprises will be out soon before the new year arrives !
Just ahead of Christmas day, Christmas Magic +, our beloved little game for the iPad, has got the honour of being featured on the front page of the "Puzzles" section of the Appstore !
Here's the screenshot straight from my iPad :
Yes, Ladies and Gentlemen, thats the second category where CM + has got featured on the front page, after the "Kids" section. It feels like a dream run to us, out efforts finally bearing fruits :) ! The game is being received extremely positively all over the world and it getting front page treatment from Apple, shows its attention to quality !
Hey guys ! Just a quick update before the weekend strikes us all ! Like I said in my previous post, our most awesomest game , Christmas Magic, has been featured on the front page of "What's Hot " on the Indian AppStore and we beat "where's My Water?" and "Cut the Rope" to the front page ! So, after our celebrations faded off a bit, we decided that we need to give something back to our awesome fans who made it all possible. After its because of your massive downloads that we are famous today !
So, Here we Gooooo.........
Yes, we are giving away free stuff inside the game all this week, starting this weekend right now ! :D Ain't that cool ! But cooler are our fans who made our game a hit !
So, just follow these simple steps to claim them :
If you already have the game, make sure its the latest version. Check once for updates.
Launch the game and you will be greeted by a message informing you about your free gift !
Log-in with either your Facebook or Twitter account to claim it there and then !
Enjoy the game ! Sprinkle some magic around with your latest free items you just got :D !
Spread the news to your friends and family while you have a great Weekend !
So, there you go, free stuff was never so easy ! :) In case you have been to buried in your life and have no idea about what I am talking about, check out the most awesome trailer ever made :
See that ! Now get that Magic into your homes ! Grab it while the magic is still fresh ! Though, Magic never really gets old, now does it ! :)
A MASSIVE good News : Christmas Magic has been featured on the front page of "What's Hot" under the "Puzzles" and "Family" categories, on the Indian AppStore ! Just found out while browsing the store ! We beat "Where's my Water?" and "Cut the Rope" to the front page ! :D !!! WOW !!! The game is being shown right next to Angry Birds, Snoopy's Street Fair and TinTin ! Our little game has made it big ! I hope it conquers other stores soon ! We are one step closer to world domination ! Ha Ha!
Here's the awesome trailer that is doing wonders for the game ! :
Its free to play, so that makes it even more important to download it right now !
This is the coolest thing ever ! All our efforts to get the game noticed are showing results now. Of course, this shows that the game is being loved by the audiences as there's no other way it could beat "Where's my Water?" and "Cut The Rope" to the front page !
This warrants a party , ladies n gentlemen ! I think I smell some home made cakes tonight :D ! Aha ! Off I go, with a spring in my step and smile mile wide :) ! I think I'll draw something cool, cooler than ever before to celebrate this moment of glory and triumph ! It isn't easy for indie devs like us to make it to the "Whats Hot" page, and when we do its only because of a good game and not any paid marketing ! Makes the moment of triumph even sweeter to savor ! :)
Hey ! I am back with some behind-the-scenes concept art of Christmas Magic and some b-r-r-r-r-reaking news !
So, lets roll ! This image you see up there was pivotal in the development of the concept of the magical tree. Before this we had tried many concepts, some were very unique indeed, but it was this image where, for the first time, we felt we were nearing the vision for the tree. A simple tree, not too high fantasy, not too alien or spooky.....a sense of mystery around it, yet charming and inviting ! Of course, this is not what you finally see in the game, cos we went through numerous revisions and little corrections before finalizing the tree's concept art. The final image will be featured some other day, some other time ! A little mystery is fun :) !
Otherwise, we have been busy working on the first update for the game. Finally, the update got done last night and has been uploaded to Apple for review. Hopefully it will be live soon !The main changes that have been made are:
We have made graphical improvements so that it runs better on iPad 1, as we were getting reports it was crashing on first gen iPads. We are still not sure if the crash is fixed or not. I hope it is.
Also, added support to earn in game goodies like Magic Pots for free by sharing the game on Facebook and Twitter
Fixed some text errors ! Yes ! Even after taking so much care that the game is perfect on launch, a small textual error crept in and has been fixed ! Now, you can enjoy the game ni all its dictionary-perfect glory :D !
and numerous other little fixes which only programmers would care about, so lets not talk about them !
Thats that, as far as updates are concerned but what you need to wake up and notice for now is this :
"Christmas Magic has taken the top spot and "Breaking" into the "News" section of GamingXpress.com ! "
Need I say more, just have a look at the shiny, glossy, squeaky clean screenshots on that page :D !:
Yes ! L'il Pono's mission to take over the interwebz is working out neatly. Soon, he will be more famous that all those famous celebrities no one cares about and only likes to read about (wink wink !) ! Pono's innocent face and the warm smile shall conquer every heart, mart, bits, bytes and websites out there !
"
L'il Pono is all set,
To conquer the mighty internet !
Tra La La...La La !
.....
"
:D
and dispelling the mystery right now, here's what the final art looks like :
Ain't that suweeeet !!!!!
Will be back soon with some awesome stuff i have been cooking up on my drawing table ! Hoping you guys will like it and it will set the internet a-blaze !
This is Renegade Singing out !
:)
Christmas Magic has completed a splendid 2 week run in the wild wild web and me and my mates are going head over heels over the achievement ! We have learnt a lot regarding the patterns of downloads on the App Store and the power of "Word of Mouth" publicity. We have not put into action any marketing campaign as of yet and still the game is being downloaded each day, surprising us and positively delighting us each day ! Soon we'll have reviews and articles on various websites. At least we are trying to get them on websites, when they'll finally appear is God's own free will. We are doing as much as we can, but being Indie has its own limitations. Not having an evil corporation funding you means you gotta believe in the motto "Slow n Steady wins the race !" :)
Another amusing fact that has emerged from the download stats is that China is a huge market for iPad games. We had no idea about that and since our game has a story book in it in english, we were surprised to see the number of downloads in China rivaling those of the US of A. Guess the gameplay rules above all and the relaxing Zen gameplay and the charming ambiance of the game is breaking cultural barriers and sweeping everyone off the floor !
Good for us, makes us float with glee :D !
So, while I was floating around in thin air, smelling sweet perfumes of the fresh spring season, I came up with a song ! Yes ! A song :) ! A song about us gamers, about us game -makers ! Our thrills, excitements, bravado's and laziness !!! Yes, the master of Zen gaming says we must encompass all aspects of our existence in one perfect song of celebration and present it to the mighty world !
Lo and behold ! Get glued to your monitors, touch your touchscreens and clickety-click your rodents, cos here I present :
The P.L.A.Y. Song !
(Or the song of the gamers n devs !
BTW, the song is to be read in viking voice, complete with all its hoarse sound and proud pronunciations! it has a wonderful effect on the perception of the song ! wink wink !)
Pirates and Princesses
Legends and Lore !
Aliens and Archstones
Yikes and Roars !
We sail for the distant lands,
Treasures and Shores,
We slay mighty Monstaars,
We sail some more !
We sail through the hardships,
" All Hands to the Oars !!!"
We date sweet Mermaids,
Their beauty so pure
!
We are Messy, Ho !
Grimy, Ho !
Grumpy and sore ,
Loot Magic from Everland,
We are hungry for more !
HO ! Ho ! Ho ! Ho !
Rawr ! Rawr ! Roar ! Roar !
Swing ! Swing ! Bang ! Bang !
Swish ! Swish ! Snore ! Snore !
We are denizens of Everland,
We never do our chores,
We are gamers , game makers,
Level up n Xplore !
Level up n Xplore !!
C'mon dear Pirates,
My grumpy Ol' mates,
Let’s conquer this Everland,
Let’s claim our Fates !
OMG ! Meh ! meh !
Woot Woot ! For the Win !
let’s unleash those pranky little
devils from within !
We are pirates, we are zombies,
we are soldiers, we
are kings,
we are anything thats fun,
we are ideas with wings !
We are denizens of Everland,
We never do our chores,
We are gamers , game makers,
Level up n Xplore !
Level up n Xplore !!
C'mon dear Pirates,
My grumpy ol' mates,
Let’s conquer this Everland,
Let’s claim our Fates !
Level up n Xplore !!
Level up n Xplore !!
:)
There, there, I can hear the applause all around me already ! By the way, this song can also be enjoyed inside Christmas Magic in the "Extras" menu. Along-with the song you will also find the best part of the game, our mighty names : in the credits !
Aha ! Its been a long busy time working on Christmas Magic, our mighty game for the iPad, and what do you know : ITS DONE NOW :D ! Yes ! Finally the game is done and out on the App Store now, ready to be devoured and swallowed whole by each and every one of you out there ! :
( There, see, after having seen this amazing painting from the game, you have to click on the link ;) ! if you haven't, don't worry, I'll provide the link at the bottom of the post too.)
and just like every game developer/artist/parent, I was jittery about how it would be received by the world wide web of people from all walks of life : Appreciated/Ignored/Detested/Raised an eyebrow at/ Screamed at like mad men or Worshiped like an Inca Goddess !
Thankfully, the reaction is somewhere between "Appreciated" and "Worshiped like an Inca Goddess" ! Phew! The 1037 people who have played it and others who have seen their friends play it on their shiny iPads(thoughts of stealing the shiny thingie might also come to mind :P) or watched the "oh-so-amazing !" trailer have all appreciated its good looks, great production values, sweet story telling and deeply relaxing and unique gameplay. (A lot of credit goes to Trevor Holms for composing such a mesmersing OST for the game!) A true testament to this appreciation from people, apart from the 5-star ratings, reviews and comments, is the fact that most, almost 50%, of the downloads have happened because of recommendation from friends. Yes ! When we launched the game on the 3rd of April, 2012, we did not have any marketing media ready with us. For the first 3 days, the game was visible in the "New Releases" section of the App Store and we got 600 downloads during that time, but soon it got buried in the flurry of 'newer' new releases. Ever since then, all the downloads have been a result of people telling their friends, their friends telling their friends and so on ! Well, there might have been some who hated the game so much that they recommended it to their arch enemy/nemesis hoping he would die of shock n boredom , LOL , but you get the flow :D ! He ! He !
This is very very encouraging for us, the whole team, as it means that people who have played it are loving the game and find it worthy enough to be associated with their reputation and hence, are recommending it to others. There is no bigger satisfaction than that for a game designer: the fact that the little idea, the thought that once came in my head, which I trusted, banked upon and nourished, shared with my friends and asked them to believe in it, is finally being loved by the world! Believed by the world ! My little walk in the imagination, a stroke of emotions from my heart on an idle afternoon, a moment when an illusion tried to force itself into the real world inside my head has evolved into an amalgamation of shapes, sounds and colours, of names, places, longings and fullfillment, that is as real to players now as any other place and person in this physical world ! People talk of L'il pono and the Magical Tree to each other ! People smile when the Tree surprises Pono, get excited when magic starts to flow from Pono's fingertips! They help him out in fulfilling his innocent wishes for a Christmas night and feel the warmth when love flows on the magical night !
Putting a game out in the App Store is almost like sending your child to school. You have nurtured that little one from when he did not exist to now and now you send him off to the world. Will people like him? what will his teachers say? will his classmates like him? will his teachers like him? will he perform well? Have I brought him up well? Will I be a proud parent ?!
Ah ! The jitters ! but now its all over !All the anxiety, the fear of judgements is all gone... All that has settled around me now is tranquility and a contended smile :) ! The child has turned out to be a prodigy, his teachers love him, his classmates love him and he is performing really well on his own !
What is needed now is more efforts from us parents ! what is that, you say? Well, marketing, promotions and visibility ! Not for the children in schools heh heh ,but for our game. The first step towards that has been taken and I present to you, Ladies and Gentlemen, Guys n Gals and all the hep n happenin' synonyms for males and females ..........
The Launch Trailer !!!!
The launch trailer in all its ridiculously sharp 720pHD awesomeness :) !
Check it out :
Watch it, love it , like it , comment on it and spread it all around the net !!!
My burst of happiness has brought about this magical effluent and opulent post of mine after a long time in slumber. I am generally happy these days and ,well, exhausted, but happily exhausted ! So, you will hear from me again........ and when I am back I will bring around some goodies that can otherwise be accessed only from the game , just for you right here :D ! Till then enjoy the game, if not the game, enjoy the trailer, its just as awesome as the full game .....!!!!!
Hey guys,
We, me and Anmol, have been officially Laughing Mango Games now for quite some time now .
We have been neck deep into making our first game for the iPad since the past many months now and today my first puzzle became playable :) !!!!!! Albeit, its still on the PC and inside our puzzle editor made by our resident genius Anmol, but its a moment of triumph for us and can't express enough about how happy I am right now. Finally, my sketches, drawings and words have taken their first breath of life ! Incubation is almost over, its a living and breathing entity now ! Wow !!!! :D Yoooohoooooo !!!!!
Can't wait to share more stuff with everyone! Here are two screenshots of the puzzle editor. The first one shows the unsolved puzzle, while the next shows it alomst solved and done !!!
The game is called "Christmas magic" and will be on your devices, mesmerising you all on Christmas ! Oh ! Don't worry about how it looks right now, we'll have worked our magic on it by then :wink: :wink: ! Till then just wait wide eyed and with a smile as big as Santa's sleigh itself ! :-D
