So the game page for "Something in the Water is live - I'm commited now!

"Something in the Water" is my entry for the E1M1 magazine game jam. The jam doesn't have a theme as such, but rather an engine requirement. Said required engine is the Raycasting Game Maker (known as RGM), a free but discontinued FPS game engine and toolset that produces games similar in style to Wolfenstein 3D. 

Now for those interested in trying it, I have to provide the disclaimer that this is extremely limited and rather buggy software. However it does allow you to make almost instant progress, which makes it almost perfect for a game jam.

This game jam comes hot on the heels of a recent back to back viewing of George A. Romero's "The Crazies" and it's 2010 remake (for the record, I like both, though the original is definitely more interesting). These movies provided a source of inspiration and formed the narrative backdrop for what I wanted to create.

Gameplay wise it's a basic first person shooter in the vein of Wolfenstein 3D - although I've done what I can to minimise the maze-like nature of that game. Personally I find Wolfenstein 3D to be a little too basic in it's design these days; I feel it's at it's best when the player is rationining ammunition and checking corners, rather than the fast paced action of it's follow-up, Doom. With that in mind I've tried to keep weapons and ammo scarce leading to a light survival horror feel.

I've struggled with visuals a lot. I find the limitations of cubes limited to a single texture rather restrictive. I've found myself often altering the level layout to make the visuals work a little better. And visually I'm also opting to use a rather rough mix of photobashing, pixel art and Photoshop techniques. I think this has been successful for the most part, but the rougher areas really stand out...

For once I'm not exactly trying to mimic any specific style, more just creating what I feel is acceptable in the time available. It's rough, but I think it sells the atmosphere I'm aiming for. As is so often the case with my recent work, there are flashes of Silent Hill and Resident Evil, though I'm also pulling inspiration from the movies I mentioned previously.

If you want to follow any progress, then I've been posting updates on my twitter, but I am also maintaining a video devlog of sorts posting video updates to this playlist. And as always, if you'd like to discuss this or any of my other projects, then feel free to drop by my Discord: http://discord.noonan.design/

Expect a release in a day or two!

Thanks,
Sean