If you've been following me (Nick) on Twitter (@PixlBitNick), the contents of this blog aren't likely to surprise you in any way shape or form. As you may or may not know, earlier this year (at the start of summer, to be precise), Chessa and I decided that we wanted to get into game development. This was the unofficial start of PixlBit Studios. It's an idea we've been kicking around for a very long time and just never managed to gather up the courage to really try.
That all changed when I found out about the Wii U Developer program that Nintendo had put together. At no cost to us, we were able to apply for membership and were subsequently accepted into the program at the end of the summer. Making things ever easier, Nintendo's program supports HTML 5 games, which is something that I'm quite familiar and comfortable with. Given the ease of enrollment and a target technology that I felt comfortable with, there was no better opportunity to jump in and try to realize our dream of creating and publishing a game.
With a Wii U dev kit now in house, that dream is on track to become a reality sooner than either of us expected. We've got quite a bit of the game built and designed and are now entering a phase where we will be working specifically on tailoring the game for the Wii U and integrating with the appropriate Nintendo APIs. It's a really exciting time for us and we couldn't be happier to share the news with everyone in our PixlBit community.
Our first game is called PixlCross, and it's just a simple Nonogram-style (think Picross) game. We have a lot of bigger and better ideas, but we wanted to start with something simple for a lot of reasons. If you want to read more about the game and all of its features, check out the PixlCross product page.
We'll be using this blog to track our development from here on out, which will also cross-post to our brand new PixlBit Studios web site (http://www.pixlbit.com/studios). If you want to follow us on Twitter or check in on us on Facebook, you can find us @PixlBitStudios or at https://www.facebook.com/PixlBitStudios. And of course, be sure to follow this account on PixlBit to get alerted about new blogs when we post them!
Well I for one am very excited to see what you all come up with so please keep me updated on your progress and any info you can supply I did check out pixlcross and looks very interesting of course I may need a Wii U to actually see it but maybe in the near future.
Thanks Rodney! I'll definitely be posting dev blogs here as we progress in the project. Tonight I'll be setting up the Wii U dev kit, so depending on the progress I might have an update for everyone in the morning!
Wow cool! I've often thought of game design too so it's really inspiring to see someone go for it. I'll be watching your progress and probably pick up a Wii-U by Christmas. I'm excited to see PixlCross and whatever else you do next.
Thank you, sir! It's exciting to finally give it a shot, I hope it inspires others to do so as well. There's no better time to try, the risks are lower than they've ever been before for jumping in.
yay!
Congrats. I feel like a mini #Gamergate brewing. Ya'll can trade favors for good reviews from me. I have no ethics. I give the game a 11 out of 10 already. Game of the Year 2015!
Was also wondering which sites you think are best for starting game devs like me. I have an idea for a game about an astronaut that turns into a little ball and drops bombs. I think I'll call it Metroid. What do you think? Have fun living the game dev dream!
I'll be honest, it's a little nerve-wracking to know I'll be on the other side of a review one day. Been writing about games for so long that it's going to be very different to have someone critique my work.
When your game is published, I wanna review it!
Oh and by the way, the link to the blog page takes me to my blogs, not everyone's. Just thought I'd let you all know.
Don't worry Cary, I'll be sure to set aside a review code for GamerDad! Also, thanks for the heads up about the blog section, I managed to break it while trying to get the blog section on PixlBit Studios working. Whoops! Should be all functioning now though.
Awesome Nick! As it so happes, the wife will be getting me a Wii U for our anniversary. I look forward to playing PixlCross when it's ready.
Woohoo for more Wii U owners! Thanks for the encouragement, I hope everyone enjoys it when it arrives.
If I get a Wii U I'll be sure to give the game a shot.
Sounds great, thanks Peter!
Congrats! You guys must be thrilled!
We're totally stoked. It was unreal opening up the box from Nintendo with a dev kit inside. Going to be even crazier when it's done and released. Can't wait!
Cool beans! If I had a Wii U, I'd definitely get your game, I love that type of puzzle game.
We're huge fans of Nonogram games which was part of the reason we decided to make one ourselves. If you do manage to grab a Wii U and play it, we'll be excited to hear your thoughts!
i was wondering when this might come to pass seeing that their are some on here that enjoy making their own games or help to contribule to them. I think there are arleady a few on here that are into the artwork and music for games. Who knows where this will lead in site collarorations.
It'll be an interesting future for sure. Unfortunatel,y focusing on the game has hurt the site more recently because I haven't had much time for PixlBit proper. I'll be looking for a way to amend that soon though so that both can prosper going forward, or even better, be enriched by the co-existence.
But only if the reviews are good TROLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL.
Haha, don't worry Joaquim, the reviews will be great. I'll use my mad-industry connections and ask them to do me a favor and score PixlCross 6/5 stars!
But seriously, I'll hook you up with a download code for being the best Media Manager around.
Very cool! I look forward to seeing more of the finished product How do you and Chessa divvy up dev duties? Obviously you're the programmer...
Chessa is definitely more the creative type, so she's focused on making all of the puzzles, doing the visual design for the user interface, playtesting all the puzzles she makes, ranking and grouping all of the puzzles and ensuring that the game "feels" good in general (aka, Quality Assurance).
As you mentioned, I'm doing all of the programming. I set up the web site, configured the dev kit, handled all of the "paperwork" with Nintendo, and have done all of the research on how to move forward with releasing the game.
Thus far it's been a great split of the responsibilities. She gets stuff done that I'm not interested in doing and vice versa. I assume that when we move on to our next game, I'll play more of an active role in the design aspect of it since all of the legwork around publishing will be a known quantity and the dev kit is already all set up and ready to roll.
You know, I really don't think I'd be that angry if people pirated the game we made. Maybe if we weren't making any money at all I would, but I'm guessing most people who steal this stuff weren't going to buy it to begin with.
And of course this is the real Wii U system seller. You watch, after PixlCross hits the eShop, those Wii Us are going to start flying off the shelves :)
This is incredible news, Nick! Just... don't use Chris's idea of the "PixlFamily" as mascots... Probably would alienate players.
Congrats man! Glad to see you taking on this endevor. We may have to collaborate one day, lol. Good luck w/ the game man!
That's exciting, and certainly a surprise for me to hear about. Planning on getting a Wii U before the year is out. Looking forward to PixlCross and a lot of other great games.
Congrats! I'm surprised how easy it was to get a development for the Wii U. Out of curiosity, how will you use the pad? Does the Nintendo development kit include stuff to make using the pad easier?
Congrats Nick! I'll keep track of this and get the game as soon as I adquire a Wii U.
Good stuff and congrats! If I had a WiiU I'd would play this game. I've been in a Picross kick the past week, and new puzzles is always good!