Yak quoted in Escapist article- Microsoft cert is crap

[Yak]

At the moment I think the only way to force it to work is to keep the pipeline full with short-term projects. So I want to get GR+++ out there as soon as possible and then maybe follow up with Super Llamatron or whatever, but they have to be *short* projects. If we can do that (and also forget 400 points, trying to do people a favour that way doesn't seem to work at all) then it *might* get us enough space to be able to undertake another longer thing like SG.

But at the moment the only way I think we can viably get enough out of XBLA to sustain ourselves is to have multiple short projects all in the system. We have to be able to recoup some of the time-investment we put into SG to create a working XBLA framework (itself quite a lot of tricky work) by re-using that as the infrastructure for a couple more small projects and getting those into the system ASAP.

I've talked to another indy who is seeing more or less exactly the same kind of profile as we did with SG but with a game that is much more "mainstream" and less contentious than SG was, so I think we can dispense with the idea that the tutorial mode or the design were in any way to blame. The response that SG had appears to be *typical* for an indy game. The games that sell well unfortunately appear to be the emulations or remakes of famous old games rather than new IP.

[Sir_LANs-a-lot]

Super AotMC FTW then?

[zip accident]

Yak wrote:

and then maybe follow up with Super Llamatron or whatever

I don't own a console, and am not likely to, so I'm not a potential buyer on XBLA.

However, the only reason I don't play Llamatron to this day is that it won't run, there are several old games that won't, it seems to be a "legacy sound card driver" not being "legacy" enough. I don't think you need to do more than change the resolution of the grapics and get it (the not actually sweary version) running.

PC Neon not turning up to buy was a drag, and obviously wasted some of your time, is there any chance of that coming out?

[gilesgoat]

Yak wrote:

and then maybe follow up with Super Llamatron or whatever

I don't own a console, and am not likely to, so I'm not a potential buyer on XBLA.

However, the only reason I don't play Llamatron to this day is that it won't run, there are several old games that won't, it seems to be a "legacy sound card driver" not being "legacy" enough. I don't think you need to do more than change the resolution of the grapics and get it (the not actually sweary version) running.

PC Neon not turning up to buy was a drag, and obviously wasted some of your time, is there any chance of that coming out?

Yes it is, it's on a schedule.

I want to remember that the reason it did not came out was basically
because after all the time lost waiting for answers from <x> and being
promised lot as you know it all ended up into tits.

At that point we would have had to restart again from zero to find
another distributor ( and we already lost too much time ) or sell it by
ourselves but we tought that we did not have "much catalog" to set up
all thing to sell just "one product".

Then, we really had no time for all that and we were working on SG,
we hoped SG to give us a bit of "backup" to be able to then chill a little
and continue ( and take back to work ) some stuff and put it out nicely.

This, again, did NOT happen at all.

So now we are working at all effects simultaneously on 3 things quite
in a rush to finish them properly and on time, one of them is Neon PC as well that
as I said/you know time passes, the universe changed and it needed to
be "restored to the current time".

That been QUITE some work at all.

It's going to come out sure, we really want to sell it, it's not that it does
"good" in staying "in a closet".

But we also want to give it out "properly".

Lot of work all over really and a quite tight schedule as well.

No time to relax at all.

I am quite tired.

[sack]

I think the sales problem at the moment might be down to the fact that XBLAs organisation lends itself to less games than it actually has - it's a bit of a ballsache to search though and with stuff not appearing in my new releases section for some reason I wasn't even aware that speedball 2 was out for a couple of weeks after the event.

at this point a spring clean (or maybe a fall update) might go some way towards helping

[gravy]

Yak wrote:

and then maybe follow up with Super Llamatron or whatever

I don't own a console, and am not likely to, so I'm not a potential buyer on XBLA.

However, the only reason I don't play Llamatron to this day is that it won't run, there are several old games that won't, it seems to be a "legacy sound card driver" not being "legacy" enough. I don't think you need to do more than change the resolution of the grapics and get it (the not actually sweary version) running.

Play it on a ST Emulator

It's the best way

[Sir_LANs-a-lot]

Yak wrote:

and then maybe follow up with Super Llamatron or whatever

I don't own a console, and am not likely to, so I'm not a potential buyer on XBLA.

However, the only reason I don't play Llamatron to this day is that it won't run, there are several old games that won't, it seems to be a "legacy sound card driver" not being "legacy" enough. I don't think you need to do more than change the resolution of the grapics and get it (the not actually sweary version) running.

Play it on a ST Emulator

It's the best way

Unless you have an ST and the original game

[gravy]

Yeah sort of.

It works -really- well on a cube controller I found. You -have- to have double stick for this game I reckon and when it first came out that meant duct taping two quickshots to a plank of wood for me. The emu / cube controller path is a little easier.

Actually on a dual stick mame cab is probably the best way to play Llamatron IMHO.

Even better if it's in the original author's house

[Zoot]

I think the sales problem at the moment might be down to the fact that XBLAs organisation lends itself to less games than it actually has - it's a bit of a ballsache to search though and with stuff not appearing in my new releases section for some reason I wasn't even aware that speedball 2 was out for a couple of weeks after the event.

at this point a spring clean (or maybe a fall update) might go some way towards helping

Couldn't agree more.

[gilesgoat]

Besides have anyone ever seen ONCE SG appear on the banners/etc. of XBLA since it's been out ?

I maybe missed it .. but I haven't seen it once appearing anywhere

[teamonkey]

Besides have anyone ever seen ONCE SG appear on the banners/etc. of XBLA since it's been out ?

I saw it a few times the week it was released. I can't say I even register what's on them most of the time, to be honest.

[zip accident]

I sold my STe and all it's bits, such as disks, including my Llamatron disk.

Just downloaded Llamatron.zip, now I need an emulator.

[Sir_LANs-a-lot]

I sold my STe and all it's bits, such as disks, including my Llamatron disk.

Just downloaded Llamatron.zip, now I need an emulator.

STeem is your friend.

[Yak]

Yeah, best way is STeem, set the emulated CPU speed to 32MHz as well, it runs lovely.

Best way until I do Super Llamatron anyway .

[nebogeo]

Rapid prototyping and efficiency of human effort is where I want to see it go.

Non-indy games are having similar problems, everything is massive, years of development, too much effort/expense to try anything new out, sheer quantity of code.