Back in 2008, I wrote a game called Wizkill for this very site. I gave myself seven days to design, code and test it and, somehow, I managed to do it.
Seven days is really nothing, especially when game jams see teams cranking out excellent treats in 48 hours. But for me, it was a squeeze — I was working by myself and I was still doing my day job as Kotaku AU’s inaugural editor (yep, we’ve been around since 2007).
Since Wizkill, I’ve:
- Worked as a games designer at Tantalus for two-and-a-half years.
- Done PR for Firemint and experienced what it’s like to be in a company acquired by EA.
- Started an indie studio that’s gearing up for its first release (more on this in the coming weeks).
While I’ve been making games for 15 years in some capacity — be they unfinished hobby projects, experiments or prototypes — it’s odd to think that Wizkill was the catalyst… in a way. It made me realise that actual games development wasn’t out of my reach and the most important skill to learn is how to finish something.
It’s like the critical piece of the development puzzle; if you can’t transition from doing to done, you’re going to struggle.
Today, I wanted to share the post — and the game — that served as a stepping stone for me into games development. In terms of building a game from scratch and letting people other than close friends see it, Wizkill was my first.
If you’re interested in playing WizKill, it can be downloaded here.
Kotaku AU’s First Homemade Game A Week: Wizkill, A Roguelike [Kotaku AU]
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