Jon Shafer's Blog
Expert Blogs
Let's discuss why this is such an important topic, and what a developer's responsibilities are.
We examine the role of fairness and discovery with the help of the amazing platformer Spelunky.
One of At the Gates' features that I was most excited about turned out to be a dud. Okay, what now?
The Romans aren't playable in AtG, but instead fill a more important role: providing pacing and structure.
Ever wonder how a game company gets made? I tell the story of the ups and downs of Conifer's birth.
I share a brainstorming doc I used to help establish pacing in my new strategy game, 'At the Gates'.
Jon Shafer's Comments
Comment In:
[News - 11/05/2013 - 10:53]
Comment In:
[Blog - 07/17/2013 - 01:19]
Thanks for your thoughts Axel ...
Thanks for your thoughts Axel r n r nYou 're correct that considering ALL possible consequences, at least in detail, is probably not helpful. However, it 's better to err to that end of the spectrum than the opposite. It 's improbable that your game leads to a return of ...
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[News - 05/16/2013 - 04:05]
Nearly every time I swung ...
Nearly every time I swung by the office during the weekend Sid would be there plugging away. He works as much as anyone in the business. He really is one of a kind. r n r n- Jon
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[Blog - 03/04/2013 - 02:59]
Conifer has no outside investment, ...
Conifer has no outside investment, and I paid the initial startup costs out-of-pocket. At least in the US, you can expect these expenses to be in the low thousands of dollars. r n r n- Jon
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[Blog - 11/28/2012 - 01:37]
Any time I say flaw ...
Any time I say flaw or bad I 'm simply referring to my tastes and preferences. There 's obviously no universal definition for adjectives as subjective as good or fun r n r nI do feel the early pacing could be improved while still delivering on the same story though. ...
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[Blog - 09/24/2012 - 06:13]
Some good points everyone, and ...
Some good points everyone, and I can 't say I disagree. Looking back on it now, the point I made is not really what I 'd intended. r n r nWhile I prefer the OOTP12 version because of its readability, I wouldn 't actually call it GOOD. The OOTP13 version ...