Different Business Models

Over the last few weeks I’ve received a couple of angry emails. Here’s a sample: “I have to PAY to play the next episode? No Thanks. No Thanks. I’m not going to tell you guys you suck now or anything, I understand, you need money to do what you gotta do… But I think you went about it the wrong way, and you aren’t getting my money. It’s not even entirely because I’m not convinced episode 2 isn’t worth money. It’s because I feel like I’ve been hijacked. ...

October 21, 2008 · 4 min · eviltrout

Objection!

When Waxy sent me this link the other day, I knew he was right. One important lesson I learned about game design in the last year is that sometimes what seems fun to you internally is not always as fun to other people. Also, it’s really hard to predict what will frustrate users and what won’t! I know for a fact that some people love the extended introduction sequence to Forumwarz Episode 2, butI have heard from others that it was tedious. They found the middle segment too difficult (even though we made it considerably easier after the Beta!) and just wanted to get on with the pwning of forums. ...

October 20, 2008 · 2 min · eviltrout

ForumBuildr extended by a week

Okay, I was bound to screw up something major with the release of Episode 2. Unfortunately, while merging the previous weeks’ madlibs into Episode 2, I accidentally deleted all the madlibs that were submitted for the current forum build. I’m really sorry about this, but I can’t bring them back from the dead. Because this will certainly leave us without enough material for a build, I’ve extended the deadline by a week. Additionally, I’ve reset everyones submission count, so you can submit more entries to make up for the ones that got lost. ...

October 17, 2008 · 1 min · eviltrout

Forumwarz on Twitter

When our site went down for half a day to move to the new server (a time I’ll call “Black Wednesday”), Evil Trout started up an already abandoned Twitter account so that we’d have a reliable source of information during this dark, dark time. Although I initially mocked him for it, I now realize just how effective this microblogging service can be, especially when things are moving as rapidly as they are now. ...

October 17, 2008 · 1 min · eviltrout

Episode 2 is Live!

We launched Episode 2 last night to thousands of users hitting the F5 buttons on their browsers. It first it was a little rocky but it’s a lot smoother now. You may notice some lag in spurts. Generally it shouldn’t delay you more than a few seconds, but we are monitoring things and will add more servers if necessary to keep up with the load past the intial spike. We accidentally sent out new visits twice today! Consider it a present from us related to Episode 2, also to make up for any issues that are interfering with your gameplay. ...

October 17, 2008 · 1 min · eviltrout

Almost... there!

So here we are, just 3 days away from the launch of Forumwarz Episode 2. I was saying to Jalapeno Bootyhole today on instant messenger that it feels really weird. I remember months ago that it used to stress me out just thinking about when we’d finish all this work. I told myself that if I put in the hours, that I was bound to get closer to the finish line, even though day to day it didn’t feel like we were getting any closer. ...

October 12, 2008 · 2 min · eviltrout

Review copies of Episode 2

Do you write about gaming in a magazine, newspaper, website or blog? If so, there’s a chance we’ll give you a free review copy of Forumwarz Episode 2! Just Contact Us with your contact information and the details of publication you write for. Thanks!

October 11, 2008 · 1 min · eviltrout

Important Episode 2 Launch Details

We’re only one week away from the Launch of Forumwarz Episode 2! Here are some very important things you should know (even if you haven’t purchased Episode 2): Most game statistics have been changed and tuned This is in the best interests of keeping the game smooth and challenging, as well as balancing between the various player classes. Many things are weaker, many are stronger. Changes have been made to pretty much every attack, item and upgrade in the game. In fact, you’ll find that the new system includes many more upgrades for the same amount of upgrade points, (although they are weaker.) ...

October 8, 2008 · 2 min · eviltrout

.moar files

Episode 2 is now only two weeks away, and we’ve still got some surprises! Previously, I’ve alluded to an unannounced gameplay feature that will be released at the same time as Episode 2, and I’m finally ready to announce it! One thing lacking from Forumwarz is item drops when you beat enemies. Sure, we send you junk the next day, but if you are just 50 flezz short on an item you want, it sucks to have to wait, especially if you have forum visits remaining. Also, there is relatively little to collect in our game, since there are a limited amount of stores and items you can buy from them. ...

October 2, 2008 · 2 min · eviltrout

Our Official Merchandise

Today I’m happy to announce that we’ve launched our official merchandise store! We have partnered with Zazzle.com to bring you a variety of Forumwarz themed products, including t-shirts, buttons and posters. One of the best things about Zazzle is that each product can be customized in many different ways, so you can play with all sorts of settings to make the items into exactly what you want. This is our first stab at merchandise, so we’d love to hear your feedback. Do you like the products we have? What kind of products would you like to see in the future? Let us know! ...

September 30, 2008 · 1 min · eviltrout