I have joined a Jam and I failed
I have joined the Breathless Jam 2, but I did not submit my Breathless adventure because it was not ready!
Last month, I joined the Breathless Jam 2 (https://itch.io/jam/breathless-jam-2) . Unsuccessfully. I did not submit my breathless adventure because it was not ready. Despite having lowered my own expectations, despite moving from doing a Breathless game to a Breathless adventure, despite accepting I won’t be able to playtest thoroughly, and the layout won’t be professional and similar. Despite all of that and the delayed end date of the Jam, I have failed to submit the adventure.
Nonetheless, it has been a great experience. The jam, by its nature, put me in the position of trying to achieve something in a limited amount of time. It forced me to be very practical, to minimize the work as much as possible, and to look at the core of what I wanted to design.
I want to thank the Fari community and René-Pier Deshaies for being very helpful and for encouraging everyone (me included) to keep going with their projects and ideas. It has been a very formative and good-feeling experience.
Go and check all the great submissions that have been done here.
Hold your breath
No, I am not going to make a breath-holding announcement. That’s the title of my adventure.
The whole adventure is inspired by this video RP made about the lore of Breathless. It is built around the concept of the zombie consuming CO2. I have imagined a world where they consumed too much CO2, reversing climate change and moving to a world with too much oxygen.
I intend to complete the adventure and publish it on itch.io, even if the jam is over. The adventure deserves it, Breathless and Fari community, too.
I like the idea that my first publication on itch.io will be that one.
I have still reached my goal
I could have completed the adventure if I had focused solely on that task.
I have paused my project based on Monad Echo, Shadows of London, to focus on the jam. But I have spent a few occasions relaxing and playing video games or watching TV shows, instead of focusing on the game. That may sound normal, but between the time dedicated to the main job and the time devoted to family, I have a very restricted amount of time to dedicate to relaxing and hobbies.
Some time ago, as mentioned here, I was reading Guida Punk alla Progettazione di Giochi di Ruolo by Helios Pu, and he clearly states that if you want to achieve in designing a game, you have to focus on that solely. When I read that sentence, I thought it was too severe, even a bit extreme. But after the experience of the Breathless Jam 2, I have understood what he meant. I will try to stick to this rule when I set myself a goal or when it is set externally, as happens in most of the jams.
But my goal, as I also describe it in this substack, is not about delivering games. It is about designing games and learning. It is about the process, not the final result. And that’s why I think I have still reached the goal! I have spent several hours working on the submission, and I have learned a lot about myself, game design, the itch.io platform, communities, and much more.
I also have some more ideas about Breathless games and mixing the Breathless system with other systems I like. I will tell more soon.
That was a great step in my journey to game design!
No more AI
Speaking of process over final result. I will not use any AI-generated content for my journey anymore
I have been using AI to generate images, and also to help me with phrasing and English grammar. But I have decided that it is over for me.
Don’t get me wrong, I think AI will be all over the place, actually, it is already. I am using it at work, and I think it can be a great tool.
So why stop using it?
First, the process means, not (only) the result. AI is insanely quick and helpful with brainstorming, text editing, and image generation. But I don’t want, and I don’t need to rush into producing games. I want to enjoy the time I spend thinking about a game with all my human limits. I want to spend several hours on a specific project. One of my key takeaways from Deep Work by Cal Newport is that you can derive more meaning from focusing intensely on activities (In that book, a blacksmith is also mentioned, which is why I chose that image for this post!).
I had become kinda addicted to AI. Whenever I have to think creatively, I immediately feel like I could be more productive with the help of AI. Also, I don’t feel I have entirely produced or designed a text if it has been rewritten or fixed by the AI, reducing the meaning of the achieved results for me.
Second, I have seen multiple videos about AI, particularly those discussing who owns them. Videos about the impact AI is having and will probably have on society. I simply don’t want to be part of this as much as I can. (If you are interested in this and similar topics, I suggest you follow The Citizens)
And last, I want to join the resistance of artists against AI and how it is built and used nowadays. I do not fully agree with them about copyright, and I am much more worried about having AI producing the imagery that will shape the way we look at the world for the next decades.
By the way, I know there will be downsides. For example, the English in this blog will be much more “wrong” and hard to read. Please be kind :-)
What am I experiencing those days!?
I have played some masterless games in the last months: The Quiet Year, Archives of the Sky, The Marvelous Children of Inang Uri, Mythomorphosis, and Archipelago.
I am starting to have some preference for more structured masterless games like The Marvelous Children of Inang Uri or Mythomorphosis (or Microscope, Dialect, and other games I have played earlier) over those that are more unstructured.
I plan to play a “masterless campaign”, connecting multiple plays at different masterless games. We will probably play in a setting that will evolve as we play. I will let you know how it will work!
Stay tuned and keep playing!