A while back I made a "soft" announcement about my short little game .defrag, currently available on Gamejolt and RMN. For those who have missed it, I was basically rambling about the possibility of submitting the game on Steam Greenlight in the short term, and if it passes, it would be available for free eventually.
To be honest with you, I'm really thrilled and kinda nervous at the same time. It's the same feeling as when, as just a rookie, I submitted my first track here on Newgrounds, back in the days of my old account. It's exciting for sure and I don't know how folks would react to it.
It's an experimental short game meant to be unconventional and made largely on a whim — the core elements took roughly 10 days of non-stop development, excluding subsequent updates. To anyone familiar with games like Yume Nikki, you'll probably find plenty of influences on .defrag, although the latter has an actual story to experience and the characters do have some background you can dig up by interacting with them and the world around you.
Thing is, it definitely won't be the only game I develop. In fact, I have a truckload of ideas I'd like to expand and I know I've said a million times already, but I won't stop reiterating it. At the end of the day what it really boils down to is the capacity to push myself into doing what I really want as an individual. I don't view myself as an artist, more like someone who fits the pieces together, and to tell the truth, I'm also not afraid to take risks.
I am fully willing to take risks because I believe it's the only way to truly experiment and bring new perspectives and possibilities to the table. I am not pretending anyone to understand my doing and at the same time, I'm not phased by either praise or criticism. Because I am tired. I am tired of big money companies always "playing it safe", not really bringing anything new to what's already there. These days they just seem to provide the technology for others to take advantage of, and that's pretty much it. I love the endless creativity of small developers who tackle hard themes in a very personal and intimate way, disarmingly so at times. I mean, how many games make of social anxiety, or depression, or cancer, or suicide, their central theme to inspire reflection and awareness? You can count them, there will probably be only a handful.
Love it or hate it, but that's my fuel. Not for the sake of a morbid fascination with such tragedy, but I think that taking such risks can be highly rewarding if done properly. Who am I to say no? Who am I to pass such an opportunity? That's what I want to do, and I think .defrag can be the first step in such direction. We'll see what the future brings, but for now, see you in the next round.
//FD