Can't wait for it!

Hyped!

thank YOU michael <3

terrific news

The bit about finally unlocking trigonometry to understand Scorched Earth (or vice-versa) reminds me of the book "Mindstorms" by Seymour Papert; learning through analogy & applied enthusiasm.

Still top 10 game trailer of all time

enjoyable episode! the feeling you described of being in math class and realizing you are about to learn something that is in fact a solution to a problem you've experienced is electric, made me smile to remember moments like that in my own education

I would love to play a match-3 game with microtransactions designed by you, if you were ever interested in exploring some more "pop" regions of design space

We've been going through it the past few months and now we're basically actually indie again, without a pub. starting new projects from dot albeit with a bit of tech under the belt and a small runway of funding/grant. We're gonna be focusing on making smaller games with strong stories for a bit. so that one doesn't need to be the biggest hit, but in aggregate they build up. just finishing one game is hard though, and I know you've had a lot of trouble with apple and changing tech. Gonna look at doing kickstarters for finished games too (rather than early on). more like board games do it. Like hey if you want translations, ports or other bells and whistles fund it! And help us fund the next game. I think it's worth considering? People love your games so much, they would definitely chip in extra for behind the scenes stuff etc (dw about doing anything physical) anyway last year,we had a big team and it was so difficult. It turned out it wasn't the best way to get things done and support people (if it's not sustainable). but it's a catch 22. to get money you need to have a big team and have certain design constraints, neither of which help development much lol. at the very least the games industry is backwards in that we start "filming" before we have a "script". so back to a much smaller team and I realised what I want to do instead of getting a bigger team if we make money enough is to support individual indies who are already really good at what they do. Help them with business and stuff like porting (and hey traditional games advice if they need it). there are so many incredible solo creators like yourself who shouldn't have to do the business stuff, let alone (I've seen from others) get screwed over by small game companies. If I can give advice on the business stuff in the meantime, hit me up. also have you ever tried creatine (esp) or protein powders? my health and energy has improved immensely since I started taking them, I think I had run myself ragged over the last 5 years. lots of love. hope yer all keeping well <3.

The app store obsolesce treadmill is such a shame

I can relate to this so much. Just had a kid 10 months ago, planning on more. He's the best. Independent game development is super hard now though. I managed to finish a game for Steam while he was around, but its exhausting. I did the same cycle of overwork -> burnout through the entire 2 years making that game. I really need to learn how to work on things like 1 or 2 hours max a day and then force myself to stop, or something like that haha. I learned a lot from that project, painfully Marketing was super hard, I'm from the US and I do feel really confident in my own abilities and games, but the hardest part of marketing for me is just that I hate doing it lol. I love making games, the actual work of it, and anything else is a chore. I'm dragging my feet making a website, social media, all that stuff. But no way around it. I'm excited to watch through the rest of these videos and really excited for whatever you can work on, your projects have always been an inspiration to me.

I just wanted to say you seem like a very humble man, and I imagine some of that comes from your ability to critique your own works. At the risk of sounding weird, and as much as I love your games (especially Corrypt), I wanted to speak more to what you said about your energy level and reduced interest in games over the last few years. About 4 years ago, when the you-know-what was promoted globally, I remember standing in the shower and asking God for some answers. Something in the world just felt "dark". I felt sort of lost, and I stopped posting games to itchio for a while. Instead, I was led to things like The Principle documentary by Robert Sungenis, and I posted warnings about the rapture and the mark of the beast. I have several children of my own, and I can easily relate to what you're saying here. I don't know if this will help or hurt, but I truly don't believe the world as we know it has many years left. Anyway, I don't know your beliefs or anything, but it wouldn't sit well with me if I didn't share some thoughts about all this, as I haven't found many people like yourself who can set aside their pride or think for themselves. Please stay humble, and ask God directly when you need guidance (: I hope to meet you in heaven with your family

It was great to see you get excited toward the end of the video. I suffer from a lot of decision paralysis. So many ideas, so little time. I relate to your struggle. What works for me is to find something that makes me really excited to work on it and just dig in hard.

I‘m repeating myself, but why not working on a portrait rework of your arguably most successful game, 868-Hack. There‘s so many new audiences now, and portrait indie gaming as well es deckbuilders and roguelikes are more than ever finding their passionate audiences. While not stimulating or challening you that much, this project would still be some kind of small scale practice to just get back into a rhythm of creating something. And you could even try a different payment model, like the one Slice & Dice is currently doing (free demo with premium unlock). Also, with this game possibly gathering new Brough fans, future projects would have an easier start. All the best to you!

My friend just said about imbroglio”this is the only mobile game in the whole world that has good sound”

Sometimes turn order can matter a lot in JRPG-style combat. And "Into the Breach" does exactly what you said where it shows exactly what every enemy is going to do on their next turn, and in what order. Come to think of it Into the Breach reminds me of your games a lot: Relatively small grid, combat feeling like a puzzle, really deep mechanics that emerge as you learn the game... I love your work (though I certainly haven't mastered your games 😅), had no idea you were on KZbin and I look forward to more of your thoughts!

Thanks for the update Michael. Glad to hear things are going a bit better. Also, teaming up with someone has positive sides that go way beyond the actual work the other person does and I'm sure you are feeling that. I can't wait to know more about your next project anyway. Take care! :)

nice update! appreciated the story about trusting your gut with a collaborator

I love following gut feelings.. great video, as always. Wishing you all the best for further development.

I agree that you contributing to the interpretation and discussion of your own work is good! Also, this is only related, but you talking about your work through these videos is something I get things out of, so thanks for doing that.

"Effective, evocative, distinctive, functional." Sure it was rude of that gentleman to make his ripple-inducing remark about Corrypt, but I remain encouraged by the unsaid, implicit half of his remark: if his imagination hadn't been provoked, if the art of Corrypt hadn't culminated in that distinctive, evocative function, then he wouldn't have felt strongly enough about it to say anything, let alone explore Corrypt past first impressions. Maybe he resolved to a deeper understanding of this kind, but only much later. It's inspiring that your views on "good work" mature and gain nuance but your conception of "games" and "art" were always, and remain, visionary.

Thanks for the update

i love your small projects

sounds like a nice situation! 🙌

Yay!! I'm so glad things have improved. :)

Oh heck, nice to hear that you've gotten with a publisher and have been able to be more focused on work in a better environment! c:

I'm happy for you :) Wish you the best in this exciting new stage, and I'm looking forward to your games!

So much good news! Happy to hear you’re regaining your strength. Happy to hear about the publisher news. Happy that you’re keeping the Patreon up because I enjoy being able to support you (selfishly, because I want as much stuff from you as possible).

This is very prescient in some ways given when it was posted; I think you were reacting to "the loss of Twitter's soul" at the time, and now just look at what it is becoming... Reaching "end of life" as the "town square" of the internet, which is ironic given that spirit is the reason Musk even wanted it to begin with.

No, the intersection is me! (Actually I thought I didn't like real-time games until I gave Vertex Dispenser a proper go.) It's really good to hear you talking about this, Michael. For those - almost everyone I guess - who don't know, I'm Michael's wife. He has been pretty reluctant to talk about Vertex Dispenser even to me for so many years. He actually barely even got to enjoy its brief little 'heydey' when it was released, because we didn't have a decent internet connection at home at the time. I used to play it in the office after work and had so much fun. Also, he's not being fair to himself about 'skiving off' on his PhD. He did really try, but he had moved to a different country from his university (for my job), and that made it a lot harder to keep up motivation. If anyone does want to try multiplayer, it used to work pretty well within Europe. I (in Germany, back in the day) only had really serious issues playing against people in Brazil and Australia. I miss it and would be totally keen to play again if it still works!

Good to see you again! I’m glad you’re doing well

I relate so much to what you are saying, and it is part of the reason I haven't tried to venture into becoming an indie/solo developer. The tools and platforms keep breaking by design, it is infuriating. To try and counter this I tried designing and publishing my own boardgames, but it hasn't been reliable either. All of them are out of print nowadays. Fortunately the existing copies are still around and people can swap or sell them if they'd like, but I wouldn't say it was worth it.

I've been a huge fan of your games since I discovered 868-HACK and I'm so happy that one of them is finally available on Android, I instantly bought it. I'm so sorry to hear about your health issues, I know what it's like, I've been struggling myself as well this past year. I wish you all the best and I'm really looking forward to your future projects and hope the rest of your games will get an Android release as well.

i feel sad too about it , well put. somehow have lots of hope for the future of the internet but not sure what it will hold

Your authenticity is golden. Always keep that. Often not rewarded in the typical sense. But really the center of a truthful life. These forest talks are always giving me lots of food for thought. Thank you.

You are a great designer Michael and it's just unfair that people like you are finding hard to make ends meet. I really wish the future can be brighter for you and that you can get some form of financial support to let you develop the big game. Hugs from Italy!

Bought my copy of Zaga-33. I didn't realize it had released but I'm definitely somebody who wants to support anything you release on PC/Android. It's really great to be able to share your work with strangers on my phone. Since I don't own an iPhone, it's been a bummer having to tell people why Cinco Paus is so amazing and not being able to show them.

Instantly bought Zaga-33 - I know nothing about it, except that it’s from the guy that made 868-HACK! Hope things go well for you Michael. Looking forward to your next project.

It's astounding how much of a lot of jobs is computing work. It seems to me that opening the world via electric signals has distracted us from like, rolling around on the floor. That stuff's important!

I've enjoyed hearing your unique perspective on all the non-game and game topics. I'll try to think of a question or two.

it's v late here so no questions rn, but lots <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 altho, i would definitely be up for hearing about body/flexy stuff. it's something i want to spend time on this year (rn, i have terrible buttocks pain lol). ms has made it tricky sometimes, but health is getting better, so i should put that back into body health tooo

I can’t believe the “tap 7 times” thing is real. What a wild way to hide a critical feature. And probably inaccessible to some people too!

I do the same exact thing with picking what tasks to work on! Having the icky ones in the back of my mind, and then one day I'll be in the mood to do them. Or at least that they'll be the least unpleasant to do that day. Thanks for these videos, enjoying your thoughtful thoughts.

Takes like 2 weeks for back sprain/pull to heal fully. If you're in pain it might not be healed yet, or healed correctly. Try a lot of rest, not carrying things, and keep standing as much as possible, without much pain

Love listening to your thoughtful forest videos. Interesting idea about breaking down tasks to smaller ones for motivation. Thanks. And I‘m pumped about getting to play Zaga 33 on iOS again. Having your games stop working or behaving weirdly is my biggest loss in mobile gaming. Thank you!

Keep it up brother 💪🤍

I actually never felt bad about not having figured out the secret level in 868-HACK, as I was pretty pleased with the scores I was getting without it. I never knew until now that how other people knew about it was from twitter, though!

That Cinco Paus reboot is seriously my most anticipated game in 2023. Also love to listen to your woods videos. Kind of my only "podcast" :) Keep on rocking, thinking and talking. Cheers!

I love the calm pace of these, it feels like a flow of thoughts.

This definitely works for things that one likes cooked and is fine with cold, cus surely if you needed something reheated you are basically back at square one. What this doesn’t work for is for things that are best “fresh” like bread or dishes that will go soggy when cold. So perhaps buying food prepared, like from a baker, is the most efficient overall because they can have their ovens on all day and baking all day (assuming full capacity) But there is waste of the bread is not bought, so perhaps everyone needs to put their orders in ahead of time for a week, everyday, and be sure to take and eat their order!