GameMakersToolkit posts
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Game Maker's Playlist - July 2016
You thought I'd forgotten about you, didn't ya? Never! Here are 4 games worth digging out.
Game Maker's Toolkit Newsletter - July 2016
Hello! Apologies for the delay. Here's what I got up to in JulyPost ScriptAs always, we kick off with some thoughts on the month's videos.Downwell's Dual Purpose DesignAs I said in the video, I was pushed to make a video on the crazy elegance of Downwell after seeing people not even recognise the game in my video on controllers.I've long admired this game, especially after watching Ojiro's GDC talk where he explained how the game came together piece by piece just by asking the right questions and coming up with smart answers...
Reading List - July 2016
Hello! As usual, here are loads of articles and videos that I heartily recommend this month. No big topic emerged this month (do you really want loads of hot takes on Pokemon GO?) but I'm sure No Man's Sky will remedy that in August.Videos (YouTube Playlist*)Top 5 Best Games Done Quick Moments- snomaN gaming talks us through Mario Maker races, one person co-op runs, and glitch exhibitions, to reveal the twisted majesty of this speed run expo.Super Mario Land 2 Finished in 7 Minutes- This cheeky speed runner goes to insane lengths to bre...
A new video, reward heads up, and general update
Three things...1) Have a new episode! It's about health systems, and how they change how a game can feel. It doesn't have a name, description, subtitles or a thumbnail and I will probably release it to the world tomorrow... but you might as well have it now! Lemme know what you think2) Patreon rewards might be a tiny bit delayed. Newsletter, reading list, and Playlist will either come today or in the first few days of August. Apologies for the delay.3) That's because I have been working non-stop on video stuff and I just need a brea...
24 hour exclusive - How games do health
Something like that. Comments, criticisms, feedback, and all that stuff is appreciatedThanks!Mark
Another ridiculous milestone
600 Patrons! Holy moly. What a crazy world. Thank you so much for your support. It has truly changed my life, and allowed me to focus on what I love doing most: sharing my love of game design with cool people on the internet.Some quick updates:- Ocarina of Time video did well. Was cool to get shout outs from Polygon, Barry from Game Grumps, and a small one from Jackscepticeye.- New video in the works. I'll share more soon.- Snakebird is now on iOS and Android and I love it, despite the fact that it's bloody hard. I also finished Box Boy...
Sneak peek - Ocarina of Time Boss Keys
Hey everyone. I'm going to put this out publicly this evening but you can have a gander nowAs always, spin-off shows like Boss Keys are free to (but made possible by) Patrons. Thanks!
Ocarina of Time Boss Keys coming tomorrow
Hey! I feel bad when I talk about GMT stuff on Twitter and not on here. So here ya go - OOT dungeon design analysis coming tomorrow. I'd put it out now but my internet's garbage and it takes like 12 hours to upload a gigabyte video.I played and finished Song of the Deep. That's fun. It's Insomniac's Metroidvania, which is a genre that you know I love. This one is very unambitious - it's basically just Aquaria, with a bit of Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet. But I liked it. Nice way to spend a weekend.
Downwell's Dual Purpose Design | Game Maker's Toolkit
Feels like ages since I made a video, as I've been travelling around. Good to be back!
24 hour exclusive - Downwell's dual purpose design
Hey! Lemme know what you think. Will say more when I post it for the world
I went to Japan!
Hello! This week, Pocket Gamer sent me over to Japan for a few days to see an upcoming mobile game. And as a humongous nerd who has been semi-obsessed with Japanese stuff forever, it was pretty damn rad. I only had a handful of hours to spend in Tokyo before and after visiting the developer, but me and my PG boss Glen packed in as much as possible.I went to Akihabara, which is the big nerd Mecca. Just endless shops devoted to tech, games, anime, manga, and whatnot. Plus, a few shops that you absolutely don't want to stumble into by accident...
Oh god this took forever
Just wanted to show you guys this.I didn't feel like recording a voice over for Downwell today so decided I'd have a play and figure out how the heck I'm going to explain the intricacies of Ocarina of Time's Water Temple in my next Boss Keys video.A few hours later and think I've finally cracked it. I've lopped off two unimportant rooms (where you fight Dark Link and the boss room) and obscured the basement, to keep it focused on what I want to show the viewer.I'll be able to raise and lower the water level on the gr...
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening's dungeon design | Boss Keys
New month, new video. This is the second episode in my Boss Keys series, this time focusing on the way Game Boy game Link's Awakening expanded the dungeon design to be about items, as well as keys.As always, spin-off shows are free to Patrons, but would be impossible without your support. So thanks! You get a sneak peek, and I'll put the episode out to the wider world later today.
I love Inside
I'll definitely be talking aboutInsidein my Game Maker's Playlist video for July, but I couldn't wait a whole month to recommend this game to you all.It's a brilliant puzzle platformer from the guys and gals behind Limbo. It's a lot like Limbo, actually, but even better and more sophisticated. It has terrific animation (some of the best ever), a haunting vibe, and a real dedication to minimalism. This is a game that does a lot with a little. It does a great job of telling you about its world, and exploring its themes, throug...
Holy crap, I played the new Zelda!
Yesterday, I had the chance to visit Nintendo's offices and play The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Which, as a monster Zelda fan, was a BIT exciting. Like, just a tiny bit.You can find my full preview at Pocket Gamer. But here are some brief thoughts.The game is crazy open, and really gives you the freedom to explore. The open world is dotted with mini dungeons, moblin camps, puzzles, and more. And there no little dotted lines: plop a waypoint on the map and it just hangs out at the side of your mini-map, letting you figure out exact...
Patreon Newsletter - June 2016
Hello! Your support is incredibly generous as ever. Thank you so much. I achieved so much this month because of you.Post ScriptThree videos this month!Hitman, and the Art of RepetitionHitman 2016 is the first Hitman game I had played and, as I've said on Patreon in the past, I found it quite odd. But the Sapienza episode had me absolutely hooked and made realise what makes this game so great. Now I just had to explain it.(Side note: I played Hitman: Blood Money during the research for the episode, to make sure I wasn't praising a game t...
Game Maker's Playlist - June 2016
Something a bit different this month. I've picked out 10 games from the Steam Summer Sale that I think will go under the radar, and are well worth picking up.Lemme know what you think!
The Weirdest E3 - Reading List for June 2016
Hey! This is Reading List, where I recommend a bunch of articles and videos I've enjoyed this month. And we start with the big talking point of June. The weirdest E3This year's E3 was weird. Hours before the show started, a man shot and killed 49 people in Orlando, Florida, and injured even more. Then, as we were still reeling from the unimaginable tragedy, we sat through trailer after trailer for games where we'd get to shoot, stab, and punch people to death.It certainly made some people think about how games, on the whole, just se...
What Mirror's Edge Catalyst Should Have Learned From Burnout Paradise | Game Maker's Toolkit
Mirror's Edge finally got a sequel in Mirror's Edge Catalyst, but the addition of an open world has polarised fans of the first game. Let's dive deep into the City of Glass, and look at some games that did a better job at open world racing.
24 hour exclusive - Mirror's Edge Deep Dive
Hello you lovely lotAs promised, my new episode is on Mirror's Edge Catalyst. If you didn't hear, the game made a switch from the linear levels of Mirror's Edge 1 to an open world for Catalyst... sort of.Actually, DICE kinda wimped out and made the main game completely linear, but then littered those awesome main levels about an open world.This sandbox city was the source of a lot of the game's criticism, so I thought it would be fun to do a deep dive into this aspect of the game. Take a balanced view and look at what works and ...
What's coming up
Hey! Just wanted to check in and give you a heads up on what to expect on the channel in the next few weeksThe next episode will be on Mirror's Edge Catalyst. It's a deep dive into the game's open world - what they got right and what they got wrong - and I reckon I'm going to call it "What Mirror's Edge Catalyst should have learned from Burnout Paradise"Finished the script on that one and will start putting it together for early next week. I need to finish up some freelance magazine work and then that video will be m...
Boss Key's episode 1 (Sneak Peak)
Hello!So, as mentioned, Boss Keys is a spin-off mini series where I analyse the dungeon design in a bunch of Zelda game so I can make an episode of GMT about the topic.This is episode 1, about Link to the Past. I'll set it live sometime later today. Lemme know what you think! As promised, I don't charge for these.As for real GMT stuff - I'm working on a freelance article this weekend but then back to videos after that.I'm thinking about doing a video on Mirror's Edge: Catalyst at some point. I liked doing the Star Fox Zero D...
500 Patron special - How Game Maker's Toolkit started
Hey! Oh my giddy aunt, I thought I'd have more time - I was thinking I might hit 500 Patrons next month or in August but, holy crap, here we are.This is so awesome. Knowing that a whole bunch of people appreciate my stuff to this extent keeps me making stuff at the rate I do, and helps me push on when an edit is dragging or I have to play 2 hours of some game to get 5 seconds of footage. For this milestone, I thought it might be nice to look back to the beginning of the show and reminisce about how this silly nonsense got started. So, like ...
What I'm Working On - Boss Keys
Hi everyone! First things first: I'm 1 off of 500 Patrons. Holy Shibuya, you guys. I don't even know what to say. Any cool ideas for stuff I / we could do to celebrate? Please drop them in the comments.Anyway.A video I've wanted to make for a long time is an episode about the dungeon design in The Legend of Zelda series.I love these things. They're these self-contained mazes, filled with puzzles and enemies. They're non-linear, forcing you to think about how you'll navigate their twisting corridors. And the very best one...
Hitman, and the Art of Repetition | Game Maker's Toolkit
You'll probably suck at Hitman when you first play it. But that's okay: the game makes deft use of repetition to turn you into a master player, and close the skill gap between you and protagonist Agent 47.
24 hour exclusive - Hitman, and the art of repetition
Hey! Here's your sneak peak at tomorrow's episode. It's on Hitman, and how the game encourages you to play again and again. And again.I thought with Episode 3 now out, it was time to spoil the crap out of Episode 2.Cheers!Mark
Uncharted 4: Walking Simulator - Reading List for May 2016
Hey! Thanks for supporting me on Patreon this month. As always, I've collected a bunch of articles and videos that I think you'll enjoy. And this month's main topic is...Uncharted 4: walking simulator?In this article, Eurogamer says "Uncharted is a walking simulator in action game's clothing", saying that these games dedicate a whole lot of time to gameplay sequences that don't ask much of the player.Sometimes you simply watch cutscenes and have zero input whatsoever. The rest of the time you're being funnelled t...
Quickie - Game Maker's Toolkit on Steam
Me again! Patron Euan D suggested that I make a Steam curation list and that's a terrific idea. So here we go. It lists PC games that I've talked about on the show (and would recommend you go play), and each entry links to the episode where the game is mentioned.I'll try and keep it up to date but do nudge me if I forget.GMT on SteamI hope I did it right. I use Steam all the time (that's not my main account, if you're wondering why I own so few games!) but I don't know much about the community features.
Patreon Newsletter - May 2016
Hello! Thanks for your support this month. Here's what's been happening in Mark Land.Post ScriptControllers Control EverythingThis was a bit of a crazy project. I knew I wanted to have pictures of all the controllers I talked about, but didn't know how to get nice, consistent footage of everything. So I decided to draw them!I had to learn how to use the pen tool in Photoshop, and it took a million hours, but I'm happy with them.The most interesting part to research was the invention of twin stick aiming. We take the controls in ...
