Dear Insane Children,
Lots of new concepts to share with you today!
First off, two lovely pieces from Sonny - a baby Jabberwocky and our old friend Mock Turtle. I've asked Sonny to pull the style in closer to our expectations from Madness Returns. While I think it's interesting to see a lot of these characters in their pre-fire state, it's clear we all agree that we shouldn't sacrifice our "look" for the sake of that concept.
During the last live stream I probably menti...
2017-12-11 09:33:40 +0000 UTC
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"The secret is that only that which can destroy itself is truly alive... We must not underestimate the devastating effect of getting lost in the chaos, even if we know that it is the sine qua non of any regeneration of the spirit and personality." - CG Jung
This will not be a happy story with a happy ending. It will start in fire and take us on a journey through denial, anger, and depression. The final stage of acceptance won't see our hero having resolved the guilt, loss, and rage re...
2017-12-04 06:58:40 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
It's been quite hectic around here since our last update. I've been in Thailand working to get my sailboat ready for the upcoming season and Pirate Jam 2018.
Boat work and getting things done in Thailand both serve as constant reminders of the nature of chaos. A boat is chaos and entropy floating together inside a container of fiberglass, steel, lines, bolts, seals, valves, and wiring - all competing against the harsh elements of the sea. W...
2017-11-30 04:16:35 +0000 UTC
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Dear Insane Children,
We're back today with another art and story update. Joey's sent along further studies of the Hatter's domain and workshop interior.
I'm a really big fan of worlds in which there are floating elements - like islands and castles in the sky. I'd like to have this feature prominently in the world design for the new Alice game. I can imagine a base domain of landscape above which there are other domains floating in the sky. Alice could ...
2017-11-20 02:52:16 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
Another round of images from Joey just arrived! She continues her work on Hatter's domain and sketches for Hatter's attire. These images are inspiring all sorts of story and drama in my mind. I can't wait to explore these areas and re-visit these characters in-game!
October 11, 2017
--
American,
I did some quick design of Hatter's place exterior, also did another version of hatter himself, with a coat like the original f...
2017-11-11 01:11:37 +0000 UTC
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You did it! Unlocked our $2500 goal which adds another illustrator to the Alice: Asylum pre-production team. Yay! I've already emailed Sonny with thoughts on where he can get started - Wonderland characters! Expect to see new images of your favorite Wonderland characters like Dormouse and March Hare, Jabberwocky, Mock Turtle, The Carpenter, and more...
Because art is so critical to this process I've created a new goal at $3500 which would add yet another illustrator to our team.
So...
2017-11-09 08:40:49 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
As we head into November we mark the 2nd month of pre-production on Asylum and unlock the first art print for upper tier Patrons. These will be signed and shipped this week and should arrive within 20 days. They're printed on a high quality oil painting canvas and measure 48x100cm. They will make a stunning addition to your Alice collection!
I'd like to know if everyone would be OK with my adding these to the 2017-11-07 09:08:11 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
I'm back from an adventure up the West Coast of the US. Yan and I drove from San Francisco to Seattle stopping at a variety of lovely towns along the way. It's always good to get away from the hustle and bustle of Shanghai in order to stimulate the creative process.
At Powell's in Portland I managed to pick up two books by CG Jung which were influential to the first two Alice games - but I'd somehow managed to lose track of - "The Archetypes and ...
2017-10-30 23:17:04 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
Another wonderful image from Joey has just arrived. Below I provide feedback and discuss what we might see upon exploring the interior of this domain of Anger. There's also a bit of thought on the next domain, Bargaining.
We're closing in on our next Patreon goal and the addition of another artist to the project. With both Joey and Sonny working on illustrations Wonderland will take shape much faster.
Someone asked in a comme...
2017-10-15 03:38:44 +0000 UTC
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Alice: Madness Returns benefitted from the creative output of a wonderful team of artists and illustrators. Among them Sonny made a lasting mark by defining the look of several key elements such as The Infernal Train...
And the domain of Queensland...
Now he's ready to join the Asylum and help define vi...
2017-10-12 02:36:56 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
We've got a final version of the initial Wonderland scene and some renders of Alice's "Ash Dress" from behind with focus on the Flaming Skull (sounds like a yummy drink).
Live Stream where we'll respond to YOUR comments and answer YOUR questions - Sunday, October 8th @ 18:30 PST. Set a reminder and join the fun over on YouTube.
Here's my response to Joey's latest drop of ar...
2017-10-08 09:02:55 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
Just in time for Halloween! I've added a collection of "Inmate" shirts to the Mysterious Shop. These designs were done by our friend and supporter Jennifer D'aww. And I've created a discount code for YOU my Patrons. Just use "PatronShirt" at checkout to get 15% off the regular price.
Let ...
2017-10-05 07:49:18 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
We're through the looking glass once again... Today we're greeted by a vision of Wonderland during "Asylum."
During the live stream earlier today we discussed possible inspiration for Alice's imaginings in this latest adventure. When exploring this topic we must keep in mind the nature of Wonderland and its relationship to Alice. Through the first two games we saw Wonderland as a...
2017-10-03 07:03:05 +0000 UTC
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Martin and I discuss Alice: Asylum, Out of the Woods, and we play some Alice: Madness Returns.
We realized AFTER this stream that we neglected to answer your questions and read your comments. Sad!
So we're planning another live stream for the near future where we focus on Patreon comments and questions. Expect that soon.
And we will likely move to a twice-weekly live stream format in order to cover all the game play, Alice talk, Patreon comments/questions, Out of ...
2017-10-03 05:39:17 +0000 UTC
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In my last message to Joey regarding concept artwork I hinted at variations on the Cheshire Cat's presentation. Perhaps a younger, less emaciated cat? One who is still working towards getting all his ink done?
I still don't know if changing the Cat is even the right decision. Is he timeless? Does he age? Clearly he changes or Alice wouldn't have remarked at the start of the first game on how he'd "gone mangy." It's this line in particular which spurred my thoughts towards how his appearance mi...
2017-10-02 03:35:33 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
I'm really humbled to see so many new Patrons joining our adventure so quickly. Thank you, very much, for your trust and support.
We'll continue today with an art update from Joey and my feedback for this new image and the images to come.
As always, feel free to provide feedback in the comments below. We'll go through your comments and try to answer your quest`ions during the upcoming YouTube live stream. Make sure you ...
2017-09-30 23:28:47 +0000 UTC
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Dear Patrons,
I think it would be interesting to share with you all the intimate details of pre-production work going into Alice: Asylum. In keeping with that idea I'm going to share email exchanges with the pre-production team when I think you'd find them valuable. Here's an exchange with Joey (illustrator) regarding the next batch of images I'd like her to create.
Please let me know if this sort of content is of interest. And feel free to share your qu...
2017-09-28 07:22:19 +0000 UTC
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As many of you know I've started work on art, design, and a project pitch for Alice 3 - tentatively called "Alice: Asylum." Once of the first things I need to do when building the pitch for EA is to establish the setting and tone. For that I'm working with Spicy Horse artist Joey Zhuo (among others) to capture some illustrations of a 13-year-old Alice in the Asylum.
What you see here is Joey's first stab at this key image.
While the tone and setting are pretty easy to capture...
2017-09-26 08:48:49 +0000 UTC
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When I first invited you to become Patrons it was to support a series of game and video creations produced largely while bobbing around SE Asia on my sailboat. That was the plan back in July of 2016. Since then lots has happened. I traveled, sailed, shut down the Shanghai Spicy Horse studio, got engaged, encountered personal disaster, traveled and sailed some more...
Along the way I've continued to examine the "what & where" of my creative output. In June I started work on and eventu...
2017-09-19 09:58:33 +0000 UTC
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Pirate Jam 2017 comes to an end in this final episode where the pirates share their development work and overall thoughts about the jam. 6 developers present 6 unique games based on the idea of "impermanence," prizes are awarded, and everyones sails off into the sunset.
Thank you, to all of our Pirate Jam participants: Renee Blair, Ed Kay, Danny Day, Evan Greenwood, Tuck Abbott, and Matej Navara.
Thank you, to our sponsors: Unity3D (unity3d.com) and Kenney (kenney.nl)
S...
2017-02-21 02:23:45 +0000 UTC
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The pirates sail from Ko Jum to Krabi Boat Lagoon on the last day of Pirate Jam. They crunch to get their games ready before the play-test and awards event.
Want to check out the games or join the next jam? Check out: www.pirate-jam.com
2017-02-21 02:14:37 +0000 UTC
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The pirates continue their journey as the jam enters its next-to-last day. At Koh Jum development continues while the pirates discuss life aboard and lessons learned.
Learn more about pirate jam: www.pirate-jam.com
2017-02-15 13:39:43 +0000 UTC
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In today's episode, the pirates continue work on their games from Klong Dao on Lanta Yai. They share their development progress and challenges they've faced thus far. Matej and Renee come over to Synchronicity while Evan and Tuck make their way to Esper.
Learn more about Pirate Jam: www.pirate-jam.com
2017-02-15 13:37:31 +0000 UTC
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The pirates race from the south to the north of Lanta, heading into their 4th day of jamming. On shore they continue to develop their games and take time out to discuss why Unity3D is the go-to choice for development at game jams.
What is Pirate Jam? Learn more: www.pirate-jam.com
2017-02-15 13:35:26 +0000 UTC
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The jamming continues at the Take It Easy Bar on Koh Lanta. In this episode, our pirates talk about the jam theme of "impermanence" and give us a glimpse of their development progress thus far. Adventure is had, games get coded, and the wind is picking up.
What is Pirate Jam? Learn more: www.pirate-jam.com
2017-02-15 13:29:40 +0000 UTC
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The Pirate Jam continues on Koh Lanta in Thailand. Along with Evan Grennwood, Tucker Abbott, Danny Day, Ed Kay, Renee Blair, and Matej Navara, myself and sailing vessel Esper (Liz Cleere and Jamie Furlong @followtheboat) sail, code, swim, and adventure together.
In this episode, the jam official starts at the Take it Easy Bar on the south-west coast of Lanta. We'll spend another day here before heading further north up the coast of Lanta.
The jam's theme of "impermanence" has...
2017-02-11 14:00:49 +0000 UTC
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Pirate Jam kicks off at Lanta Old Town. We've met up with our 6 guests and introduced them to life aboard the boats. Next we'll sail to the first beach location for the start of the actual jam. Lots of exciting adventure, game development, and fun ahead.
2017-02-10 10:22:10 +0000 UTC
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Posting from Lanta Old Town in Thailand with the pre-episode for Pirate Jam. Tomorrow 6 developers from around the world will arrive on the island and then jump about two sailboats for a week of swimming, sailing, game development, and fun.
Sailing friends Liz and Jamie are along for the adventure. You can check them out here on Patreon as "followtheboat" - they are also on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, etc.
I'll be posting updates as quickly as the Internet in Thailand will ...
2017-02-09 07:21:50 +0000 UTC
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We sail Dan's Couda Boat around Port Phillip Bay in Portsea. Yeni and Amanda make a wonderful Chinese dinner. And we walk along the "outback" beach in the Morningside National Park ;)
2016-12-27 01:00:41 +0000 UTC
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Christmas Eve and Day 2016 - we run errands, get a haircut, work on Dan's Couta Boat, and... Yan and I have a very special announcement... A very happy holiday indeed!
2016-12-27 00:59:02 +0000 UTC
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