1/12/18 - Production Begins
Hey everyone! Parker here with our first fireBreak development log. We've been in pre-production for the last three months, and after a great deal of conceptualization, documentation, prototyping, we're finally in a good place to begin production. Over the course of the next year, we're looking to push out the whole game.
The result of our labors was a short prototype. It doesn't include any assets, but it establishes a few important concepts for the game.
So all of the basics are there. You can run around and shoot, and there are enemies that shoot back. Still to come are assets, the User Interface, the story, dialogue, weapons, multiplayer... We've got a ways to go, but we're off to a good start!
Bring in the interns!
Through our partnership with UAT Game Studios, we were greenlit to work with the school's production studio program. This means that for the next 15 weeks, we'll be working with 7 interns, which is a welcome change. On top of having additional personnel for design and programming work, we've also gone from having one artist to having five.
For these fifteen weeks, we're focused on making what's known as a "vertical slice"-- A section of gameplay that has all of our intended features, albeit in a single level. This will be a full level with primary objectives, side missions, and a boss. At the same time, we'll be continuing work on the overarching narrative of the game itself, further expounding on the narrative we developed during pre-production.
Developer Focus: Parker Smith
(As part of our weekly development logs, I'm going to be taking a bit of time every other week to talk to one of our team members. We'll see how they're doing, what they're currently working on, and find out a bit more about them.)
This week, since the majority of our team has just joined us, I'll tell you a bit about myself. My name is Parker Smith, and I'm one of the founding members of Lava Bear Studios.
I'm a Game Design student in my final semester at UAT. One of my main focuses has been writing for games. As such, I'm the one who has written most of the fireBreak's story during pre-production. I've also taken on the responsibility of handling our social media and online presence.
Over the last week, I've been creating the Lava Bear Studios website and setting up all associated social media accounts. If you ever message us on Twitter or shoot us an e-mail, odds are good that I'm the one who's responding. It's been exciting to get all of this started, though it's kind of weird to be creating a website that doesn't have any content yet. Oh well. With any luck, that'll be fixed soon.
Lore Corner: Hoelia
(This section will be dedicated to releasing bits of information about fireBreak's story, such as important locations, events, individuals, or factions. Stay tuned as we flesh out the world of fireBreak!)
Hoelia (Designated TM27 by the Stratum Mining Corporation) is a large, rocky planet on the fringes of civilized space. It was first colonized fifty-three years ago, due to spectral scans indicating large deposits of titanium beneath the planet's surface. The Stratum Mining Corporation, fueled by a spike in the price of ship-grade titanium, established a number of large mining settlements all around the planet.
For a long time, the inhabitants did well. Mining settlements grew into small, prosperous cities. Terraforming efforts turned some spots from arid, rocky wastelands into arid, less rocky grasslands and sparse forests. A new generation of miners and workers was born on Hoelia. This small outpost of civilization thrived, and all was well.
However, it didn't last. After a number of prominent titanium deposits dried up, many settlements turned to mining less valuable substances, such as iron and copper. Many smaller communities declined, and dissatisfaction with the provincial government began to take hold.
In response, the Stratum Corporation established The Syndicate, an organization of peacekeepers intended to deter violent actions against the populace. It didn't help matters, as tensions rose between these peacekeepers and the disgruntled residents of the planet. Riots began to break out, and tensions flared. Within a year, the planet had begun its descent into a state of civil war.