Blog: U-Force COMPLETE! (08/20/21 - 08/24/21)

Friday, August 20th - Recording U-Force Power Games

Today was, unfortunately, an incredibly frustrating day of production. Today I had to record myself playing U-Force Power Games. 

This required a unique setup. U-Force Power Games was never released, so I had to play the ROM. So I loaded it onto a memory card and played it through my Analogue NT. Next, I hooked the Analogue NT to my Elgato capture card, which was connected to my laptop. I then recorded myself playing the game and synced it up with the recorded gameplay. 

Sadly, I ran into a ton of issues. The first being that U-Force Power Games is...BAD! It's tough to control. It's also the prototype version, so the game crashed A LOT. 

There is also no manual available, so I had to guess how each game is played. Did I lay the U-Force flat? At a 90 degree angle? 110-degree angle? 

Finally, my Elgato kept disconnecting, claiming it wasn't hooked into a USB 3.0 port. I finally figured out why. To save power, Windows will DISABLE USB ports if they are using too much power. Make sure you uncheck this setting when using an Elgato capture device!

At the end of the day, I got it all recorded, and it looks great. Part 3 is about halfway done! 

Saturday, August 21st - The End is Near

Part 3 is SO CLOSE to finished. I have to edit about 1 more minute of this video. Then, I just add music, adjust pacing, and add end credits! Very possible I will post a rough draft tomorrow, but most likely Tuesday. 

Today was a fantastic day of production. It was a nice change of pace from yesterday! I made excellent progress and had no technical issues. I also found this great ad for the U-Force. This was about 1 year after its release. As you can see, stores marked it down significantly. I wonder why? 

Sunday, August 22nd - Finishing Up

Today I added background music, adjusted for pacing, and finished up Part 3. Rough-cut is coming tomorrow! I just need to re-shoot a few things, and it will be ready. 

Monday, August 23rd - Video is Done!

https://www.youtube.com/embed/mQDekv-mHUI

Here it is, the U-Force video! I spent the morning cleaning up a few shots and making sure the video timeline was in order. 

So you might be wondering: what exactly happens next? For a few days, I'll evaluate feedback on Patreon / Discord. Then, I will make any necessary changes to the video, add the end credits, and make a thumbnail. Finally, I'll send the video off for audio mixing to make everything sound great, no matter what device you are using to watch.

Tuesday, August 24th - Dave Capper Called Me!

The last month has been pretty hectic for me, so today was a boring business day. I did some tax stuff, shipped out Patreon rewards, cleaned my office and studio, etc. But the best part of my day was when I got a phone call from Dave Capper, the inventor of the U-Force.

I sent Dave an early copy of the video to get his thoughts. I usually do this for anyone that I interview. But usually, I just get a quick e-mail back saying thank you, or sometimes nothing. So a phone call made me nervous. Did I get something seriously wrong? Would I have to remake the whole video?

Dave called to let me know he loved the video and appreciated the accuracy and fairness. I was thrilled to hear it! However, he offered one minor correction (sales numbers) that will be fixed in the final version. 

To end my week, here is a photo of Boo admiring my clean desk. See you next time!

- Norm