Is there any point in attempting another Christmas game making competition?

[Cammy]

Hello. Some of you may remember that last year, after a long discussion about game making competitions for 8bit platforms, we decided to see if it was a viable idea to run one in today's Amiga community. I was fortunate enough to have a bunch of spare Amiga-related bits and pieces I could use as prizes, and also AmigaManiac donated some hardware, and we had seven great games made in only two weeks. It was a happy time for classic Amiga users briefly, but also around that time my life started getting a bit worse. I have barely been able to afford rent each month this year and food hardly ever lasts until the next pay comes around. I have felt terrible about it, but I have failed to send out the prizes to the winners of last years competition, even though they are sitting here packed up and ready to go. I also finally managed to afford to get the certificates printed which was $25, more than I expected but they turned out nice. If I can make it through this month hopefully I will be able to start sending out the prizes next month, but I have said that for the past 12 months. I promise to send them as soon as I can afford it though!

I guess what I'm asking here is, does anyone think it's worth hosting another competition this year, even though there won't be any prizes since I have nothing left to spare? We tried again earlier this year with our Retro Remix competition but didn't get a single entry.

I'm also not sure if I should even bother with the Amiga Christmas Tree site this year. I have lost last year's site and would have to come up with something new, and don't really have anywhere to host it either. It's just that it's been a tradition I've tried to keep going for a few years now and I don't know how I'd feel about giving it up.

[pmc]

Sorry to hear you've been having a tough time Cammy.

Hopefully things will improve for you very soon.

Personally, I don't think prizes really matter. The main thing is that people who would like to make a game can do so and enjoy both the experience of creating something and other people's enjoyment of what they made.

So don't give up! People loved last year's competition and I'm sure they'd love to participate this time too.

[Dreedo]

Personally having created basic games for the PC, i think that just creating games for a competition regardless of prizes would be fun.

People who make games, especially for platforms such as the Amiga can hardly expect to be paid for it, i should hope they do it because they love doing it, and because they want others to love playing it.

Me making a game for the Amiga is a long way away unfortunately, as i've only got basic experience with Windows PC's, and virtually none with Blitz Basic and AMOS Basic.

Sure prizes offer a nice incentive and may draw a few people in, but given your financial situation, i suggest you either pick cheaper prizes, or no prizes at all and hope for the best.

Edit:

Originally Posted by pmc

Sorry to hear you've been having a tough time Cammy. Hopefully things will improve for you very soon. Personally, I don't think prizes really matter. The main thing is that people who would like to make a game can do so and enjoy both the experience of creating something and other people's enjoyment of what they made.So don't give up! People loved last year's competition and I'm sure they'd love to participate this time too.

My thoughts exactly.

[fitzsteve]

Hey Cammy,

I'm really sorry to hear of the trouble you are having. I really hope it works out or you soon.

But as for your work in the community it is genuinely appreciated. I'm really looking forward to the workbench packs you are working on for example.

Sorry I can't contribute with the Games Comp though as I have no experience at all making games for any platform, I just like to play them.

However I might be able to help out with a prize, must have something Amiga related spare

There's lots of free web hosts out there too that you could try.

Steve.

[FOL]

Originally Posted by Cammy

I'm also not sure if I should even bother with the Amiga Christmas Tree site this year. I have lost last year's site and would have to come up with something new, and don't really have anywhere to host it either. It's just that it's been a tradition I've tried to keep going for a few years now and I don't know how I'd feel about giving it up.

Huh?

I replied on your old thread, I have all your ACT sites, safe and sound and all setup ready for you to sort a new one.
I even asked you to give me a shout for a new ftp account on my new server.

http://amigachristmastree.ultimateamiga.co.uk/

Link to previous Amiga Christmas Tree's.

[cosmicfrog]

come on cammy don`t feel sad, we much rather you had somewhere to live and something to eat than for you to leave the comunity. I know its hard asking for help but we are all here for you, just ask

definitely think you should keep up the Amiga Christmas Tree tradition I see FOL has everything in hand and I`m sure he be only to happy to help. Its stuff like that that makes this place special.

I`m sure if the ppl from OMG 12 months ago really wanted their prizes we would have heard about it already. Heres an idea ask them to help with postage costs

as ever hope you get things sorted and don`t let things build up, we are only a post away

[Dreedo]

If i could learn BASIC in 3 weeks i would (believe me i would be ecstatic :P), when i get my CF-PCMCIA adapter thingie it'll make it all a lot easier for me, so i'll start looking into programming ASAP. Will give me something to do if this damn cold keeps me in bed...

[Siggy999]

I'm of a similar mind as PMC.

I'd enjoy entering a contest doing something I enjoy irrespective of prizes.

I wouldn't be able to enter something on short notice (under a month) - but if this were to become a regular thing, I'd certainly put a reminder to myself in July to start seeing if I could think up something and giving it a go.

Anything that encourages people to try their hand at creating new software for the platform is a good thing.

[Cammy]

Thank you for the support you guys. And thank you, FOL, for keeping the site for me and hosting it again, I wasn't sure if the offer was still open.

You guys have convinced me that we should go ahead with the competition, but I want to start it today so we have 4 weeks this year instead of 2 weeks.

Do you think the rules from last year's competition should be the same again this year, or should we change it slightly? Remember it's unfair to force restrictions on art, sound or coding. The rules allow for people to code a game using ripped or downloaded graphics and music as long as they state where they got them from and don't claim they made them for themselves, and also artists are allowed to use a game-maker program like SEUCK or Backbone.

The restriction last year was simply that the game must run on classic Amigas, since those can be emulated by anyone even if they don't have the original hardware, where-as a game only for MorphOS or OS4 or Aros would be difficult for most people to play and give a rating to when they vote for the best games. The rule was that the game has to be Christmas-related in some way, which was a good way at the time to ensure people start a new game from scratch rather than enter something they had already made.

Does anyone have any ideas for a new theme? It would be nice to restrict it to a Christmas or Holiday related theme, but what else could we make a rule? For example some film-making competitions have a rule that a certain object must be in the film, like a paint can or something. Or a writing competition might require that the story is written from a certain person's perspective recalling the events of the story. What kind of theme or idea could we use as a rule in this game making competition?

I hope I haven't asked too much, I will still run the competition with the same rules as last year if we can't figure something out soon.

[Dreedo]

Sorry to be a nuisance. But if i were to enter, would a Winter-themed game be accepted? My religion doesn't celebrate Christmas so it would be awkward for me if it was a rule.

Though some may not agree, i feel the more rules the better, it shows how people can work in different situations, possibly creating games they would have never have thought of, there are a lot of samey games out there.

In relation to Siggy's earlier post, i also agree that the more people getting into Amiga programming the better, Amiga games aren't something you see popping up nowadays, but if more people got into it, i'm sure we could see new game releases on a regular basis, if the community stays strong, they would have a reason to create games. No point making games if noones there to enjoy them, thats why its essential that we keep game development in mind.

Really its mutually beneficial, the more Amiga users there are, the more games that will be made, the more games that are made, the more Amiga users there will be.

[FOL]

Cammy,

PM with what user and pass you want for new FTP account.

Also, we might not always see eye to eye (tell me who does all the time, ).
If I offered you space, I would never just take it back.

[Cammy]

Hey Dreedo, I think that would be fine! In fact, if your religion has its own holiday during this festive season you could make your game about that if you like. Feel free to be as creative as you like, the rules are pretty lenient. Try to make the kind of game you or some kid you know would like to play at this time of year. It could be a snowball fight game even! Or a Snowman Maker :P

While I write up the post for this year's competition, have a look at last year's rules and see if you think they sound reasonable enough. I'll write a little more detail about how the games don't have to be directly related to the Christian holiday.

http://eab.abime.net/showpost.php?p=623246&postcount=1

And for some ideas of the kinds of games that were made for last year's competition, have a look at http://amigachristmastree.ultimateamiga.co.uk/

I only just realised there's only three weeks left so this competition is going to be shorter than I had hoped.

[Siggy999]

Alas, even if the 6mo old twins left me some time, I'm gonna be moving house over the next 2 weeks (finalized today - YAY!).. all good news, just leaves me absolutely no free time to start a project.

Maybe next year.

[Cammy]

I hope your move goes well for you and your family, Siggy, and that you have a happy Christmas. Perhaps if this competition goes well, we'll try again with another one next year around June/July.

[Dreedo]

The rules last year sounded perfectly acceptable, only 1 really changed what type of game i could make and that was rule 4, the other 3 were basically just common knowledge or forced. (I couldn't make anything other than a OCS/ECS game as i just have a bog standard 1MB Amiga 600)

Amiga programming is so brutal compared to Windows, i'll start looking stuff up and have a play around sometime soon.

I think for the moment i'll just rack my brains and work out a game plot/design, then i'll actually try and create something like it, doubt i'll have much ready in 22 days though. he he.

[pmc]

Originally Posted by Dreedo

Amiga programming is so brutal compared to Windows

Errr, I'd say that depends on your perspective!

Good luck with your game!

[Dreedo]

Well it is compared to programs like Game Maker, which allow Drag N Drop programming, so thats easy enough for a 5 year old to make pac-man in a day, i could make a pac-man game in about an hour probably on Windows, wouldn't have a clue how to do it on the Amiga, possibly as i've been using Windows my entire life.

Amiga is harder in the terms that everything is on lame 880kb Floppy disks instead of a 660GB HDD, so i have to boot up a paint program, do sprites, close the paint program, boot up a coding program, realize i needed something else, then i have to boot up the other, just not as easy as a PC where you can have a paint program, plus your coding, plus audio making.

Guess you can see my point. A HDD on your Amiga prob makes things a lot easier mind you.

[pmc]

Yeah I do see your point.

It's all about what you're used to.