I said I was going to start adding pictures to these, but realized that this particular idea doesn't have a lot to it. There are definitely some later ideas that need them, though. So, here it is:
NeverRun An "endless runner" game such as Canabalt (or even the Chrome browser dinosaur game), where the character doesn't actually run (but can maybe jump). The character would need to be designed with the theme in mind (to explain why they aren't running), either a lazy person or something more creative. One idea I had was a robot or mech that hasn't had its legs attached yet (jetpack for jumping?). Also, the obstacles would need to be carefully considered, as they would need to move. You could have projectiles, vehicles, or even parody versions of the characters from other endless runner games. A final idea could be environmental effects; snow or leaves could be obstacles, or the wind at the beach could blow umbrellas and beachballs around. Maybe the ground could move, even. Or you could make it a rhythm game. That's it! Let me know what you think, or if you've seen a game like this before. Also let me know if some kind of illustration would be helpful. Next week is "Top 10 songs from 2013".
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My favorite movies from 2012: #10 - Life of Pi Rated PG; 87% on Rotten Tomatoes; Nominated for Best Picture at the 85th Academy Awards; Directed by Ang Lee Based on the novel by Yann Martel. As a survival story, it can be intense, but it has some amazing visuals. #9 - Brave PG; 78% RT; dir. Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman Not much to say about this one. It did what it set out to do. It had some funny parts, and also had fantastic landscapes (in more ways than one). #8 - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey PG-13; 64% RT; #4 highest-grossing film 2012; Peter Jackson I'm a huge Lord of the Rings fan (book and movies), and grew up with the Hobbit cartoon made by Rankin/Bass, so I was looking forward to this movie. It still has the spectacle of the original trilogy, but it was missing a little something. I do feel the story would've been better told as 1 or maybe 2 movies instead of 3. #7 - Rise of the Guardians PG; 75% RT; Peter Ramsey Not to be confused with "Legend of the Guardians" (the owl movie), this film features holiday characters such as Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny fighting against evil to protect dreams. It's cool to see a unique take on these familiar characters: Santa is a dual sword-wielding Russian, the Easter Bunny is a 6-foot tall Australian rabbit that travels through magic burrows, and the Tooth Fairy is half-hummingbird. Also featured are the Sandman and Jack Frost. #6 - Mirror Mirror PG; 50% RT; Tarsem Singh I have to say I was surprised by how much I liked this movie. It was one of funniest fairy tale movies I've seen, and definitely better than "Snow White and the Huntsman", which came out the same year (I also liked that one more than I thought). They were two sides of the same coin. Worth a watch (and worth more than the 50% critics rating). #5 - Upside-Down PG-13; 28% RT; Juan Diego Solanas This is another sci-fi movie with a really interesting premise, "double gravity". For something so incredibly specific, however, it's surprisingly not the only movie to use it (more on that in the 2013 list). The film is about two characters that have opposite gravity (one is always upside-down to the other, as the title suggests), in this case because they are from different planets held in orbit with each other so that on their highest peaks, they are only dozens of feet apart. The two leads (played by Jim Sturgess and Kirsten Dunst) try to get and stay together while society tries to keep them apart. The film is easy to get in to, and explains everything you need to know in simple terms at the beginning, something that most critics apparently slept through. Underrated. #4 - Lincoln PG-13; 89% RT; Best Picture winner at the 85th Academy Awards; Steven Spielberg Steven Spielberg is one of my favorite directors, and if anyone could tackle the story of Abraham Lincoln, it was him. Well directed and acted the whole way through (especially Daniel Day-Lewis as Lincoln). I really like how he tastefully decided to end the movie, putting a twist on the way every other Lincoln story ends. See for yourself. #3 - Wreck-It Ralph PG; 87% RT; Rich Moore As a gamer and Disney fan, this film was perfect. I love all of the cameos from real game characters (including big ones like Sonic the Hedgehog, not just obscure ones). It's too bad they couldn't afford Mario. My favorite part is the Pixar-esque worldbuilding, where they took the concept of digital characters living in an arcade and ran with it (especially Game Central Station, inside a power strip). I like the characters, the story, and the heart. #2 - The Amazing Spider-Man PG-13; 73% RT; #7 gross; Marc Webb This is my second favorite Spider-Man movie (behind Spider-Man 2). It did retread some territory from the first Spider-Man film (the whole origin story), but tried to add some scale. I personally think Andrew Garfield was a better Spider-Man than Tobey Macguire; he was more believably agile, and quipped more. I also like Emma Stone, and the two played off each other really well. It was nice to see the Lizard as the main villain, after the original trilogy set up his character to no payoff once the fourth movie was cancelled. This movie also has one of the best Stan Lee cameos. #1 - Marvel's The Avengers PG-13; 92% RT; #1 gross; Joss Whedon While I'm more of an X-Men fan in general, I also grew up with most the Avengers (from the Captain America and the Avengers arcade game, the 90's Iron Man cartoon, and the 70's Hulk tv show). I saw Iron Man in the theater in 2008 and sat through the credits (which I did before it was cool), and got very excited when they revealed the Avengers Initiative, as I hadn't heard the studio was planning anything. Then I saw the rest of the films as they came out. The Avengers movie didn't disappoint. It's massive geeky fun for 2+ hours as the Avengers fight badguys and each other, until they learn to work together (leading to the coolest shot in the movie, which is at 1:59 in the trailer below). It has a perfect mix of action, humor, and drama. Share your thoughts and your own favorite movies in the comments. Next week is "free game idea #2".
A slight change of plans this week, after missing the last few blogs, but we'll get back on track. Here are my favorite songs from 2012. #10 - I Won't Give Up – Jason Mraz #8 US Billboard Hot 100 chart, #11 UK Singles chart #9 - Cry Thunder - Dragonforce #8 - Ho Hey - The Lumineers #3 US, #8 UK I've discovered several good songs from TV commercials; this is one of them. #7 - Radioactive - Imagine Dragons #3 US, #12 UK If you need motivation for a workout, or just to get things done, listen to this song. #6 - Hideaway - Passion Pit This was a surprise find when I was just browsing iTunes, from a band I'd never heard of, and it wasn't even released as a single. #5 - Carry On - fun. #20 US, #126 UK This song has a message of hope in hard times (and also has an incredibly catchy chorus). Maybe more people should listen to it, especially this year. #4 - Sovereign Light Café - Keane #74 UK Keane is one of my favorite bands, and I only discovered them a few years after the movie "A Monster Calls" came out, which had the song "Tear Up This Town" during the credits. Sovereign Light Café makes you feel an excited form of nostalgia for places you've never even been to. #3 - Skyfall – Adele #8 US, #2 UK Following the tradition of great songs from James Bond films. The song won the award for Best Original Song at the 85th Academy Awards. #2 - Just Give Me a Reason - P!nk featuring Nate Ruess #1 US, #2 UK By far my favorite P!nk song. The melody/chord progression really grabs me for reasons I'm not sure of. The song also received two Grammy nominations in 2014. Such a tough call between this and my #1 pick, which is... #1 - Silenced by the Night - Keane #46 UK Another tough call, as I can't decide what my favorite Keane song is, this or "Everybody's Changing". Either way this song is underrated, only reaching #46 in the UK, and not charting at all in the US. Let me know what you think of the list, and feel free to post your own favorite songs from 2012 in the comments. Next week is "Top 10 movies of 2012", followed by the previously planned "Free Game Idea #2".
These are my favorite movies from 2011. On with the list: #10 - Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows Rated PG-13; 60% on Rotten Tomatoes; directed by Guy RItchie This is a darker film than the first one, which isn't inherently bad, but I still prefer the first. There was one scene, however, that I really liked in particular: the verbal chess match between Holmes and his arch nemesis Moriarty. #9 - Children Who Chase Lost Voices Rated TV-14; Makoto Shinkai Makoto Shinkai has been called "the next Hayao Miyazaki", and this was his homage to the world-famous founder of Studio Ghibli. He's one of my favorite directors (and so is Miyazaki), but I liked his first two films better. While I still enjoyed it, I felt it was missing something. #8 - X-Men: First Class PG-13; 86% RT; Matthew Vaughn This X-Men prequel has x-cellent performances by James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender, which is reason enough to watch, especially if you're a fan. #7 - Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides PG-13; 33% RT; #3 highest-grossing film 2011; Rob Marshall I liked this Pirates movie better than the third one, and maybe as much as the second one, so I can't quite understand why it didn't get good reviews. I know that by the time you get to movie #4 in a franchise it's harder to be original, but it still works. 6 - Soul Surfer PG; 45% RT; Sean McNamara The inspirational film based on the true story of a girl who lost her arm to a shark while surfing, but never gave up her surfing dreams. 5 - Rise of the Planet of the Apes PG-13; 82% RT; Rupert Wyatt The planet of the Apes series has had its ups and downs. The trilogy started by "Rise" is one of the ups. I was surprised by this one. I thought it would be a straightforward "ape learns to hate humans and wants revenge" plot, but it is far more 3-dimensional and nuanced. 4 - The Adventures of Tintin PG; 82% RT; Steven Spielberg I heard someone describe this movie as "a better Indiana Jones movie than Indiana Jones 4", which says a lot given that it's not an Indiana Jones movie. They definitely share a lot of things. They're both influenced by old adventure serials, both take place in similar time periods, and are both directed by Steven Spielberg. 3 - Source Code PG-13; 92% RT; Duncan Jones Like Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Source Code really surprised me (in a good way). I'm not usually a fan of thrillers, but the main idea was fascinating. Well written and acted. If you like psychological sci-fi, or unusual uses of time travel, you should check it out. 2 - Hugo PG; 93% RT; Best Picture nominee; Martin Scorsese It has a 93% score on Rotten Tomatoes and was nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars, but barely made its money back at the box-office. A great semi-underrated family film about an orphan who stumbles into a toy shop owned by pioneering French filmmaker Georges Méliès, who was thought to have disappeared. 1 - Captain America: The First Avenger PG-13; 80% RT; Joe Johnston Just a fun WWII-era superhero blockbuster. Not much else to say. Let me know what you think in the comments. What are some of your favorite movies from 2011? Next week is "free game design idea #2".
These are my 10 favorite songs from 2011. Hopefully you'll find something that you like that you haven't heard before. All songs on the list can be purchased on iTunes. #10 - Right Back to You - Electric Youth One of the most authentic 80's songs I've ever heard that wasn't written in the 80's. It's definitely worth checking out the rest of their songs, too, if you like that sound. #9 - Grown Ocean - Fleet Foxes #8 - Memories - Panic! at the Disco #7 - The Edge of Glory – Lady Gaga #3 US Billboard Hot 100 chart, #6 UK Singles chart Musically my favorite Lady Gaga song overall. Her choruses are catchy, but I'm not generally a fan of her verses. #6 - The Star Song - FreddeGredde Written and performed by Youtuber FreddeGredde. On the surface it's an uplifting light rock song for kids about a fantastical space adventure (which would be perfect as an animated series), but it's a little deeper. #5 - We Are Young - fun. (ft. Janelle Monáe) #1 US, #1 UK #4 - Set Fire to the Rain – Adele #1 US, #11 UK #3 - Someone Like You - Adele #1 US, #1 UK #2 - Hello Hello (from Gnomeo and Juliet) - Elton John This sounded so much like classic Elton John, I thought it was older, but it was written specifically for the movie. The film version is a duet with Lady Gaga, but on the album, it's just him. #1 - Heigen - Yuki Kajiura Yuki Kajiura is known mostly for composing music for anime and video games, but this song was an original piece for her second solo album. Sit back and relax for this one. :) That's it! Feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts or your own favorite songs from 2011. Next week is "top 10 movies of 2011". I enjoy designing video games, but have far more ideas than I have time to make. Many ideas are really only half ideas, things that on their own aren't enough, or things I wasn't able to figure out. They just need a little "more". In the spirit of squidi.net's Three Hundred Mechanics, I've decided to take these ideas and release them to the public for free in the hope that one might spark someone's imagination. If you want to learn how to think like a game designer, the above link is a great resource. This post is all text, but future free game ideas will have illustrated examples.
Free game idea #1 - The Plot Demands It This idea would be an adventure platformer, sort of a light metroidvania, but could be other genres. You would acquire skills only when they are required to progress. If the only way to go requires you to jump, you'll learn "jump", which might then be used elsewhere. At some points, you might have to choose between two skills, losing the ability to learn the other one. If you encounter a pit, for example, you could gain the jump skill and jump over it, or fall down it, reaching a cavern without learning the jump skill. Or you could jump down the pit, reaching the cavern with the jump skill, giving the player an alternate route. Another example would be if you were blocked by a wall or cliff, you could learn "climb" or "dig", continuing the game with only one of them. There might even be hidden skills like a "high jump". The controls would be pretty basic (mostly arrow keys or a d-pad) and the game wouldn't tell you what you can do or where. There would only be some basic instruction at the beginning telling you which buttons can be used, so players would need to try things out in different places. In the previous example, if you pushed "down" while standing next to the wall, you would learn "dig", if you pushed "up" while standing next to the wall, you would learn "climb", or if you pressed "up" a step or two away from the wall, you would learn "high jump". That's it! Let me know what you think of the idea, if you've seen a game with a similar feature before, or if you decide to use it, in the comments. Next week is "Top 10 songs from 2011". This is the first top 10 movie list I'll be posting. As with my music lists, I'll be doing one for every year between 1960 and 2019, beginning in the 2010s and traveling back through the other decades. Be prepared for lots of Disney/Pixar/Marvel/Star Wars, but also other blockbusters, animated films, and the occasional Oscar winner or indie. Obviously, this only includes movies I've actually seen, and is based solely on personal enjoyment.
#10 - The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader Rated PG; 50% on Rotten Tomatoes; directed by Michael Apted Not as good as the first one, but I'm a fan of the original book and the older version made by the BBC in 1989 (which was also combined with the 2nd book), and the story is still interesting. #9 - Despicable Me PG; 81% RT; #9 highest grossing film 2010; dir. Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud One of two comedic animated supervillain movies from 2010 (along with Megamind), but I feel it's the better of the two. #8 - Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole PG; 51% RT; Zack Snyder It has owls wearing armor, how cool is that? #7 - Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time PG-13; 37% RT; Mike Newell One of the better-reviewed video game adaptations. It differs quite a bit from the original game, and even incorporates elements from the two sequels. The games were strong enough to be adapted more closely, but this is still a solid action movie. #6 - Tangled PG; 89% RT; #8 gross; Nathan Greno and Byron Howard Another solid Disney effort. Don't know what else to say, but most people have already seen it (do see it if you haven't). I ranked the song "I See the Light" #3 on my "Top 10 songs of 2010" list. #5 - The King's Speech R; 94% RT; Best Picture winner at 83rd Academy Awards; Tom Hooper Very well made biopic, but also entertaining, funny, and inspiring. #4 - Toy Story 3 G; 98% RT; Best Picture nominee; #1 highest grossing film 2010; Lee Unkrich This is probably the best Toy Story, though I like the first more (yay nostalgia!). It ends the trilogy very well, leaving absolutely no room for any sequel ever (but honestly 4 was pretty good, too). #3 - Tron Legacy PG; 51% RT; Joseph Kosinski This film deserves better than 51%. Interesting world, interesting story, mostly amazing visuals, and a logical modern update to the original in every way. It also got snubbed at the Oscars like the original, go figure. #2 - How to Train Your Dragon PG; 99% RT; #10 gross; Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois I like this for lots of reasons. A fun cast of characters, great score, lead characters that develop by the end, and a non-tradition antagonist that's an actual force of nature. And it gives you the feels. The best "boy and his dragon" movie ever made. #1 - Inception (link goes to trailer) PG-13; 87% RT; Best Picture nominee; #4 gross; Christopher Nolan I love movies with interesting concepts that make you think, especially ones dealing with time travel or dreams. If you're new to this type of movie, there's lots to take in on the first viewing, but a second viewing makes things easier (and because it's that good, you'd want to anyway). Even if you don't follow along, it still has some great action scenes and visuals, allowing for multiple levels of enjoyment, just like the multiple dream levels in the film. Great cast and directing, and an ending that's open to interpretation, this is the film that made me a Christopher Nolan fan, and I've enjoyed most of his films since (looking forward to Tenet). Most of these can be found on various streaming sites such as Netflix, Hulu, or Disney+, or can be rented on Amazon, but don't forget your local library if it's currently open. Feel free to post your thoughts or favorite movies from 2010 in the comments. Next week is something a little different, a free to use game design idea! Welcome to my first "Top 10 songs of..." list. Join me on this musical journey through the years. I'll start with 2010-2019, and then roll back to the 2000s, 90s, 80s, 70s, and 60s. There will be a fairly eclectic mix of genres, hits, indies, movie and video game songs, and more! Maybe you'll find something you've never heard of that you enjoy. All songs are available on iTunes.
#10 - Alice (from Alice in Wonderland) - Avril Lavigne #71 US Billboard Hot 100, #59 UK Singles Chart #9 - I Was Made for Sunny Days - The Weepies When I was first working on this list, this song wasn't even top 20, which surprises me now because it really grew on me. #8 - Lights - Ellie Goulding #2 US, #49 UK Really cool music video. #7 - Hello - Martin Solveig & Dragonette #46 US, #13 UK #6 - Unstoppable - Foxy Shazam #5 - Jar of Hearts - Christina Perri #17 US, #4 UK #4 - End Love - OK Go My favorite OK Go song, and a pretty cool video. #3 - I See the Light (from Tangled) - Mandy Moore & Zachary Levi Nominated for best original song Oscar. I've always been a big Disney fan, so expect to see a lot more Disney songs on future lists (especially ones by Alan Menken). #2 - Fields of Gold - Celtic Woman (sung by Lisa Kelly) Written and originally recorded by Sting in 1993. I got to see Celtic Woman in concert once. One of my favorite experiences. And now for #1... #1 - The Moon's a Harsh Mistress - Celtic Woman (sung by Lisa Kelly) Written by Jimmy Webb in 1974. My favorite Celtic Woman song. I plan on making an art piece inspired by it in the future. That was the list. Feel free to leave a comment and tell me some of your favorite songs from 2010. Next week it's top 10 movies of 2010. I'm finally going to be using this blog for something. Here's the plan: every week (and starting today) I'll be posting either a top 10 music list, a top 10 movie list, or a free-to-use game design idea. Keep an eye out and enjoy!
I just made 4 calendars and put them up for sale on Zazzle, one for abstracts, one for funny images, one for photo manipulations, and one for photography. That's 48 of my images from the last year or so. (no longer available, sorry) Thanks for looking!
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AuthorI'm an artist, game designer, composer, and writer. Always learning and improving. Archives
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