Ninjas! Yarrr!

A few of you will already know that some friends and I are bringing some games to market.  It's been a lot of fun for us, seeing them start out as Biro scribbles on napkins, becoming lines and basic shapes on a screen that fall apart and disappear on collision, and progressing up to physics driven engines with a setting and a personality, bonuses and power-ups.  I'm going to talk mainly about the more advanced game we've been working on, we're hoping people will have as much fun playing it of course, and I'll keep you posted on when it's out in the various mobile app stores and wotnots.  As you might guess from the title, you play a Ninja, and you spend most of your time swinging about the place getting from target to target, while obstacles and dangers chip away at you.

We're basically working on the menu layouts and settings at this point.  There's some awesome graphics coming for those parts too and some pro cut scenes being built by people with more graphics skillz than I have, but what's there already has us pretty excited - it's just good to see ideas take actual form.  Well.. virtual form... you know what I mean.

Anyway, here's a little sample board.  These graphics aren't final copy but it gives you a sense of the elements... maybe.  Next time I update on this I might be brave enough to add some screenshots.

That's right - it's got Ninjas, it's got bombs, it's got cannons.  What more do you want in a game?!  What?  Sharks?!  Ohh... go on then, just a little one...


Be good!

Phil
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News from London Town

Long time no blog huh?

A few people have asked me about my blog over the past, well, year or so that I've not really done much, and in case you aren't one of them, my general view on MOMS was that it's shut down.
I did attempt to restart once or twice but I wasn't feeling the magic, which is to say I wasn't really blown away with my own posts, and so still, I guess it's kinda moth-balled.
There is a question of where to go next - since very occasionally I'd like to make a post, maybe spurts of regular blogging again, but I doubt I'll be committed to the pace I kept in the past.  An occasional blog doesn't get checked by the readers (those no RSS'ed up anyway) so doesn't serve the same function, yet, I suppose that's just how it is.
I'm also not too sure about keeping it 'Windows Live'.  It's always had some pro's and con's but I think I might check out Blogger and WordPress and have a think about a rebrand, and change of platform.
I've recently started a Twitter account, and I think it's fair to say I'm not really getting into that.  None the less, maybe there's a place for that in the new face of this blog... perhaps my twitter feed could post to a microblog section of the main blog site... keep up some small content between real posts.  But then... oh I dunno - I'll sort something out - watch this space.
But on the subject of occasional posts - if ever there was a time, this would be one of them.  Let's do a quick update on personal life...
Big Cheese to Big Smoke (well... medium cheese perhaps... anyway...)
I have moved from Manchester to London.  This has involved quitting my job for the corporate group whos' name shall not be spoken, leaving the team of bright sparks and tough nuts to fend off the business without me, and heading to Event Connections to take on the roll of Technical Manager.

I have to say... the adjustment has been hard.  Not that I didn't expect that to some degree, but really - it's been and continues to be hard.  I miss some of the people - there's more than a fair share of vipers around in any financial company but you know, that's just part of the game, and there's also really great people who make you laugh and keep you going, and as often as not some people can be all those things.
On a more... introspective note, I guess I felt like... well, important I suppose.  I had a lot of business knowledge and a broad roll for my skills.  A lot of freedom and answered to no-one really, barring the very occasional scrutiny of direct boss or the odd interest of the MD.  I always a strong bargaining position in daily work life and I had a good amount of influence and usefulness.  Changing jobs... you suddenly go from being a chief to being the new guy.  You know nothing, you're exposed to new things, and that highlights holes in your skill set you didn't know were there.  It's hard - humility was a post-it note on the back of my project folder before, now it's a daily companion and I hadn't realised how bad at knowing when to ask questions and knowing when to apologise I'd become.
Having said all that...
The stress levels in my previous job were insane.  Mattius and I were discussing it last week, as he's an old company vet/graduate/escapee too - from the same post in fact.  He'd recently had the first week in about 18 months that had come close to the stress levels he used to endure daily and it reminded him of the time.  Don't get me wrong - he loved it, but, we both also remember that you can't live like that for long.
And the new job is hard to handle now, but that will pass as I get more familiar, and once it does I think I'll be very happy here.  The exposure of weaknesses was one of the reasons to change environment, and it's all good opportunity to learn and improve.  In the mean time, I have a lot to offer in return - a lot of specialist knowledge I can turn to this place as time goes on - there's a lot to do and I'm in a good position to do it.  I hope :)

Manchester for London is an even swap for me.  Manchester has some obvious pro's - great people, familiarity, a manageable size - but London has its' share of charms too.  I have good friends here, the city is full of life and its' scale is inspirational, and there's something attractive about a city you've never quite explored.
I now live in Streatham, in a big house with a few other people.  Not living on my own isn't something I'm really finding hard to adjust to, mainly because when I 'lived on my own' I always had someone staying or visiting anyway, and I've got a lot of space in my new pad, so it's all good.
So there we go - I'm a small fish in a big ocean here, but that just means there's plenty of room to grow.
Be good!
__
Phil
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