Games by JimD Newsletter – Development Timeline Updates

Welcome to my 48th newsletter! I have a bit of good news for you this month with no bad news, so I’m excited to write this. Well, I have some mediocre news related to my health. I will need to have another small procedure done in the coming month. Based on my surgeon’s prediction, this will be a much simpler procedure with a short recovery time. Any surgery can have complications, but I’m hopeful. I’ve had so many surgeries this year, I feel like I should get one of those punch cards you receive at a coffee shop where your tenth coffee is free. In this case, my tenth surgery would be free. However, I live in America so I have to go by my employee’s health insurance. I just paid off the last amount I owed for those hospital stays in June and July, but I’m lucky to be in the position to afford this.

In this newsletter, I will talk about ZE:SH and Out for Blood. There is a small, favorable change in the timeline for Part 3 and news on OfB. I’m doing my best to continue development of both games at a rapid pace.

Let’s get started.

Zombie Exodus: Safe Haven, Part 3

Part 3 is currently at 573,342 words! That’s over 19,000 words written since my last newsletter. I still have several thousand words to go which will put this next beta release over 22,000 words.

I had a Zoom meeting with Choice of Games this week where we discussed both of my games in development. Since ZE:SH is nearly finished, they have accepted it into the publication queue. The great thing is that they need the files at the end of October, so I have one more month to add content and edit. What’s even better is that they moved my game up one month. It’s officially set to release on March 3, 2022.

Since I have seen my readers show interest in a number of paths for dealing with the Silverthornes, I used these extra weeks to make progress on a number of paths you can take. I have even added a possibility to enter into an alliance with the Silverthornes. It’s an interesting scene, and I encourage you all to take a look at it once it’s released. I will continue to post beta tests to my patrons first and then roll them out to the public for more intense testing.

Why does a game need so much time until release? I touched on this in last month’s newsletter, but Jason from CoG was able to provide more insight into the publication process. My game will take almost 3 months to copyedit due to the word count. That puts us all the way into February. I then need to respond to all of the edits and provide the final copy to my editor who codes the DLC and IAP. It takes considerable effort because of the various stores where the game is sold. ZE:SH has a standalone app as well as being included in the Hosted Games Omnibus. So the staff at Hosted Games is accounting for all those different apps and the Steam game. It’s a considerable amount of work. It’s only slightly easier because my game is self-contained. When you look at other series like the Infinity series or Community College Heroes, each app must be coded separately. That takes more time.

Finally, Hosted Games spreads out releases to be fair to each author.  What’s even more exciting is that two of my favorite authors and friends (Eric Moser and Lucid) are also releasing in the beginning of next year. Look at this lineup:

• Community College Hero 2.5: Releasing Feb 3rd.
• Zombie Exodus: Safe Haven Pt 3: Releasing Mar 3rd.
• Life of a Star Captain: Releasing May 2nd.

2022 will be starting off with a bang with three great games all in a row!

Vampire: The Masquerade - Out for Blood

Vampire: The Masquerade - Out for Blood released on July 29. If you are interested in this game, you can play the demo right now over on the Choice of Games website. If you purchased the game and enjoyed it, please consider leaving a review.

https://www.choiceofgames.com/vampire-the-masquerade/out-for-blood/

At my Zoom meeting with Jason from CoG, we also discussed updates for Out for Blood. We are planning at least three updates. The first update will consist of more bug fixes and balancing of stats to make the game run more smoothly. The next big update will be extra content that will flesh out some of the side stories and also provide back story for other characters. The final patch will entail new content, new missions, and the introduction of True Faith, which is one of the most powerful abilities in a mortal’s arsenal.

We also discussed the possibility of a DLC/IAP to extend the story even farther and even provide some opportunities to build your character in even more unique ways. These concepts are still being discussed, but once I have more information, I will share it with all of you.

That’s all for this month. Until next time, stay safe and thank you for all of your support!