The Duo Dev Challenge~

[Yuugami 252]

Tentatively-named the Duo Dev Challenge because neither hosts seem to be creative enough when it comes to names to think of something better.

 

 

[Credits to Blindga for this lovely image. Wait, this is an icon? It resembles an excellent poster!]

 

Also shameless stealing the thread format of a more traditionally loved contest because that format is just plain perfect.

 

Hello, my dear Central! It is I, your exceptionally stellar and gorgeous Host One! Yes, yes, bow down to the incredibly great and heavy charismatic aura I emit so naturally, with my fluffy white hair and anime blue eyes and –

 

…

 

Oh, I’m not supposed to be like that? Um, okay! I guess I’ll cut my little introduction speech a little shorter than the hundred lines of epicness I had prepared in my brain.

 

As the most acute and aware of you guys will know, Host Two posted a thread earlier, asking which prizes you guys wanted in a pair-based contest game development contest! Well, I am here to make the announcement even more official by…you know, making this thread. That makes it even more public, right? At least I make it clear that this contest is happening, and that it’s starting something week, yeah?

 

So this contest is more or less experimental – a couple of us, and I do mean literally a couple of us, wondered about what could happen if we created a contest that just happened to fit in the middle of summer, when most people were more free than the rest of the year, that happened to involve making a game as a team? Well, let me tell you that the possibilities were just endless!

 

The sky’s the limit! if you can dream, you can do it! Some people dream of success, while you’re gonna wake up and work hard at it! Nothing is impossible!

 

But just to get straight to the point, this is more or less just a pair-based version of Indie in a Week. Of course, it’s going to last longer than a week, given the nature of communicating with another person, and all that. So, because this involves two people, which is double that of one person, we’ll double the contest time to a grand total of two weeks! Extensions may vary, but the furthest I, the magnanimous Host One who can do no wrong, will allow is eighteen days.

 

Of course, whether or not this will ultimately be allowed is anyone’s guess, but I’m leaving this out there for now.

 

Without further ado, here is the information you guys more or less were looking for!

 

RULES:

This is a pair-based contest, so you can only work with one other person. While there isn’t necessarily a good way to enforce this, I’m confident I don’t have to worry about that, because this is one of the most sincere community of people I’ve been in (…yes, I was being truthful! I-idiot!)

 

Because certain things such as assets do take time to make, we are allowing music and art to be worked on pre-emptively, before the beginning of the contest. However, we are also beginning the contest in a few days, so pairing up quickly is crucial, amongst other things. We also ask that you make your game file AFTER the contest has begun, for the sake of “competitive integrity†(I used that for lack of a better phrase). Also remember that public resources are allowed! And that you have to credit those people in your projects!

 

All final entries must be submitted BEFORE the announced time and date. You can submit as many entries before that final, absolute deadline, but note that the last one you submitted is that is going to be judged, and you can’t submit even a second after the clock runs out, so prepare wisely.

 

The project will be disqualified for any bugs that prevent the game from running at the start. Because this is a pair-based contest, we are going to have to be harsher with bugs, because you’re guaranteed at least one more bug-tester in your partner. Also, as a PSA, if there is a cockroach-sized bug in your game, you can bet that game is going down.

 

Again, respect copyright. If you received permission from the creator to use their assets in whatever, I would need a screenshot of said permission PMed to me for proof. Failing to do this would mean your project is also disqualified.

 

DATES:

 

Contest information announced: July 11, 2016, around midnight

 

Contest begins/sign-ups end: July 17, 2016, 1:00 PM EST.

Contest ends: August 5, 2016, 2:00 PM EST.

 

Judging period: The week after the contest - approximately between August 1, 2016 to August 7, 2016.

Results announced: Day after judging is finished - approximately August 8, 2016.

 

PRIZES:

 

So the following is the pool of prizes we have prepared for this, because even if most of you guys want to make games just for the hell of it, it wouldn’t be a contest if it didn’t have prizes. Plus, there’s more incentive for other people to join!

A copy of the first two Witcher games for both individuals in the pair

Two separate DLCs for RPG Maker MV

Ace Sprite Commissions done by Kotori

Forum badges for the winning pairs

 

The way the prizes are determined for the winners will be as follows:

 

First place gets first pick of the prize pool, with the gold forum award

Second place gets second pick of the prize pool, with the silver forum award

Third place gets the final prize in the pool, with the bronze forum award

 

Unfortunately, we could not expand the prize pool past this for now. This may change based on the generosities of others, which allows third place to have more variety in terms of prizes, but as it is for now, this is the pool we have...except a friendly pirate decided to share his treasures and give us another prize to work with! Arrrrrrrr!

 

Note that the Witcher games and the DLCs would be given through Steam. Also, if you’re a generous person and would like to expand this prize pool, PM me. I don’t bite…too hard so that you’d bleed, at least. I just nibble! : 3

 

PARTICIPANTS:

 

If you wish to join, mention it in a post, with your desired partner! The partner also has to confirm this in a post in the thread, but after all that is done, you guys are gold, and hopefully the ultimate game developing pair is born! You will also be mentioned under the name you registered in.

 

Judges will probably be selected after the contest begins, and will personally be approached about it. We don’t need too many judges because the number of entries will definitely be lower due to the nature of this contest, and I’d prefer to have more participants, personally!

 

CONTESTANTS:

 

Team Procrastination: (Jackus and Eien Nanashi) Consisting of the pair that hosts the contest in which this one was based off of, we have partners who manage to be both the opposite end of the spectrum and yet such similar people. What could possibly be born from such a paradox? Well, something unique, that's for sure!

 

Team Never Second Again: (Shiggy and Nirwanda) These two once stood against each other in a tie-breaker for second place in a recent contest, but all of us knew that they were equal in talent, yet it wasn't enough for either of them to take the first place spot. Teaming up, they have made it clear to not be second, but can two halves of two become one? Or would it become two once more?

 

Team Cookie Conductor Confluence: (Blindga and Cookie Ninja) The next group with the name of triple C has been born, out there to challenge the world with their ability to cast Blind upon all nearby foes and stealing cookies from the cookie jar. But wait, confluence? Collaboration is promised in that name alone, and you can bet that this pair will blind the world with their game - these cool dudes are here to make games and eat cookies, and they're almost completely out of cookies! Oh snap, everyone, hide the freshly baked cookies!

 

Team Saltwater Poutine: â€‹(Saltwater Croc and CVincent) They were called the admin team simply because their names signified a higher position in the Discord server. They were casted into this harsh challenge to prove that they deserved to have their names engraved in red - we called them administrators, but were they truly deserving to have ownership of such a title? Even though this contest will prove absolutely nothing about whether or not the "admin team" is a phrase to use as praise or mockery, these are the guys who are looking to bring in their A-game. Oh, and the image of poutine made all soggy because of salt water tilts me already.

 

Team DinoMitches: (Amysaurus and RavenBlueIndigo) This is a pair that is just as paradoxical as the first team to enter this challenge, while being infinitely more dangerous. Oh, it has absolutely nothing to do with their personalities - it's easy to see these two working together. Rather, it's what we see them as: one of them has evil in  her agenda, while the other wishes to create a digital god with the power of Javascript that will rule the world through efficiency. Their first step in delivering chaos? Make the game that beats all others, for there will be nine games for the scripter-kings under the roof, seven for the art-lords in their rooms of thought, nine for game developers doomed to fail, one for the Samaritan on its throne. One game to rule them all, one game to find them, one game to bring them all and in the chaos bind them.

 

Team Tarqeo: (Tarq and Takeo212) This is the team whose combination of the members' names come out so cleanly, although there is a particularly gorgeous and totally genius host out there who is disappointed that they didn't take the name to the next level and called themselves Tarqeo212. Nonetheless, the name came out cleanly, and indeed, we are expecting just the same from their entry here: a game that comes out incredibly cleanly, a tight and excellent experience that could take it all. Their induction into this contest goes to show that none of us here so far appears to have a dark horse team - we're in for some excellent competition! [DROPPED OUT]

 

Team Evil Alliance: (Chibae and Brank) The name is indicative of a pair of super villains coming together to deliver an evil product - a game so enchanting and addicting that no one would be able to put it down after starting it up. Their goals are more unknown than the last previous group who declared their evil intentions for joining this competition, but one of them is a greater master of horror than Stephen King (not like that's too difficult), and with horror comes an imaginative mind while the other has the computer skills to make those ideas a reality. These two paired up to complement one another, as do all great villain partnerships, and while horror may not necessarily be their goal, the immersion and addicting qualities of a good horror game is definitely part of the package.

 

SCORING:

 

Each category is worth twenty points, for a total of a hundred points total. The first three categories are more cookie-cutter ratings, but the last two are the places to earn the easy points…if you asked me, at least. SSSSSSSH…don’t let anyone know I said that!

 

ART: For lack of a better word for this category, this is more or less the artistic side of your game. Because this is pair-based, and more time is available for your project, we expect the graphics and music to be more creative, and I use creative in more than one definition!

 

Even with pairs who do not necessarily have art as a skill in their team, you can win a good amount of points just by how appropriate your resources were used, or how creatively you used them. However, because this contest is about combining skillsets, and working together as a team, we have to reward those who make the extra effort to make their game at least fit their vision more appropriately.

 

POLISHING: Again, for lack of a better word – I bet you guys can see how truly uncreative I am – this category is here for a couple of big reasons and an infinite amount of smaller ones. The big ways to win points here is with one word: how finished is your project?

 

We don’t ask you to finish your game, nor do we expect it, but because you are working in pairs, we expect the games to be less bug-riddled in its gameplay, and overall more polished visually as well, in what we do see. Finishing the story with a consistent quality is also one way to be considered “polished†– this category is very flexible, and it’s up to you and your partner to think about how to make your game as finished as possible.

 

STORY: This feels like a weird one to judge on, but I, Host One, and Host Two concluded that it was fair to make this a category for two reasons. The first is that since we’re not involving a theme, the story isn’t constrained by some sort of rules it has to follow, meaning you and your partner are allowed to be more creative.

 

The second reason is just that: it’s two people who can develop this story, not one, and for that, we expect the story to be better. Not just in its concepts, but in its delivery as well. Of course, not everyone is Franz Kafka or William Falkner, but the point stands the story has to be better in some aspect simply because we got more than one person working on it.

 

UNIQUENESS: What makes your game stand out? This is probably the easiest category to succeed in, because there are a lot of ways to give your game an identity. Again, and this is going to hold true for next and final category, this category is here because this is a pair-based contest. Combining the minds of two people can result in a more unique game, and in most cases, it should.

 

Essentially, if we play your game, and say “yeah, this one is pretty unique, it stands out from other games because of these sets of qualitiesâ€, expect good ratings here.

 

TEAMWORK: This word was chosen only because the other four categories were one word titles, and it sounds cooler to be more uniform in this way. In the context of the contest, teamwork isn’t so much how well you work together with your partner – we can’t measure that. However, what we can measure is whether or not your project feels like something that could only be made because more than one person worked on it.

 

Great games in the past couple of years have developed by one-man teams, but those took years of development to really create. If we asked them to make a game in a week, they probably wouldn’t be able to create something nearly or anywhere close to being as great as fan-favorites Undertale and Dust: An Elysian Tale. We don’t expect those games from you, but we need to see the marks of it being a pair-based game – if we have two writers working on a game made entirely out of free resources, we need to see a greater quality in the story and its execution, whether it be through world-building or elsewhere.

 

The point is that your game has to be the result of truly combining the skillsets of two people, rather than working off the skills of just one who could’ve made the game by him or herself at some point.

 

OTHER INFORMATION:

 

I have no real tips or faqs here that you guys don’t already know. I have full confidence that you guys are respectable people, who are smart enough to know the rights and wrongs of game development.

 

That being said, if you guys have any questions, because I might have missed something or not consider something (my brain is almost on the level of a supercomputer, but not quite there), then let me know! Ask away!

 

I’d also like to thank Jackus and Eien for being really supportive of this contest, considering how much it is like their own, and how it fits in between the previous Indie in a Week and the next one. 

Edited August 18, 2016 by Yuugami

[_____ 214]

I'm host two if anyone is wondering.

Me and Yuugami will be doing the judging and stuff.

Can't wait to see what you guys come up with!

[Nekotori 739]

I must win so I could commission myself Nyahahahaha~

 

 

Just kidding~

 

[+ LadyMinerva 998]

Oohhhh, I must get Kotori-chan to commission sprites for me- Oh wait xD

 

This really does sound like a fun idea But I'm swamped with our big project :3 I'm going to keep an eye on this though~

[+ Takeo212 1,079]

Does the partner have to be someone from the forums?

I don't think I can enter at such a short notice start date (for me anyway) but just wondering.

You say to have your partner post here, but what if I wanna do a paired game with a friend IRL? Or a friend on another site?

 

This sounds fun, but a 2 day notice before the contest starts is sudden - especially for people struggling to find a partner xD

 

I would be interested in seeing how this goes though :3

I hope people take part!

[Shiggy 630]

Yay for the new contest , I'm super excited to participate.

 

Even if a few things are bothering me:

 

- you didn't indicate timezones in your announcement ,remember that they are people from all over the world on this site
-3 days to find a partner might be short 
- I don't think team should replace theme, having no restrictions is usually more a curse than a blessing and it could be really hard to start especially in a team contest where both members want to do their own thing (it's easier to agree which idea best fits the theme than which idea is the best). That doesn't mean theme has to be a bigpart of the scoring ,it could be neglectable or even nonexistant but I do think it is important to give a starting point to the contestants.
 

 

Anyway good luck to everyone

[Nirwanda 323]

Well, i'm definitely participating in this. Anyone want to team up with me? I made a pretty good 2nd place game in the last IIAW, so you know I'm reliable.

[Seriel 830]

Yay i've been waiting for this.

As for my entry, if Eien comes online and confirms it, i'll be doing it with him.
 

[Rikifive 3,411]

My experiment projects are too risky (they kinda always end up too ambitious) to work on them in pairs. =P

 

Anyway good luck!!! 

[Nirwanda 323]

Come on people, don't be shy, join in! It will be a pretty sad contest with just two teams on board! You don't want to make Retnuh and Yuugami sad, do you?

[Loriesquare 203]

Yay i've been waiting for this.

As for my entry, if Eien comes online and confirms it, i'll be doing it with him.

Team Procrastination has been confirmed.

[Shiggy 630]

Small message to confirm I will be making a game with Nirwanda as team Never Second Again

[Cookie Ninja 374]

Anyone needs a scripter? 

[Yuugami 252]

Before I make edits, I need to talk with Retnuh about a couple of things, but I can answer a few questions:

 

@Shiggy

1) This will be edited in later today, but all timezones will be done in EST (which is UTC - 5).

2) Three days might be too short, but Wednesday is more or less the earliest time we're starting the contest - we most likely will extend the deadline for that.

3) You bring up a good point about themes, so let me talk to Retnuh about them.

 

@Takeo212

1) I mainly listed the partner being here because it'd be easier to keep track of them. However, if you wanted to work with someone else, I actually don't mind, personally. I just like to track progress more easily/reliably.

 

EDITS:  Updated participant roster, updated deadline times (roster lock is this Sunday, contest ends at the end of this month, with results in the beginning of August).

 

In regards to the theme, Retnuh and I decided that we're not going to judge based on a theme, but we'll leave a theme later in the week for those thinking it will help them make a better game. As hosts, we have to be responsible in helping you guys make the best game possible, so if there's anything you guys think will help, let us know!

Edited July 11, 2016 by Yuugami

[Rikifive 3,411]

On the other hoof ~ 2 weeks would be nice for me ~ that way I'd be able to make higher quality, but still silly NONRPG's.

I actually have an idea for a game I actually have tons of ideas, that makes it a difficult choice, but of course, either way it wouldn't be an RPG at all. Ya all know me and my science so I highly doubt, that anyone would be able to work with me. Besides, I'd feel extremely bad if I'd fail and take partner down with me. A friend IRL would be the best choice, but not having one ...So, for science (If you want to see a tragedy in game making) I can team up with myself if possible. If not, then worry not! ~ I have tons of work anyway, so either way I'll be having stuff to do. =3

[Yuugami 252]

RIKIFIVE discovered a LOOPHOLE in the RULES devised by the GREAT mind of YUUGAMI.

 

+5 to INT

+5 to CHA

+5 to PONY MANLINESS

 

RIKIFIVE devises a METHOD to team up as HIMSELF.

 

RIKIFIVE rolls with a saving throw, in order to SEE how SUCCESSFUL he is.

 

+1 method appears in RIKIFIVE's inventory!

 

RIKIFIVE checks his inventory, and opens PONY METHOD.

 

"What is Riki the forum user teamed up with Riki the global mod!?"

 

And then, there was silence throughout the world, followed by an applause that caused the entire world to become deaf by the magnitude of the thunderous claps for perhaps the most genius thing to come around since Einstein's theory of relativity.

[Rikifive 3,411]

Um... More or less? *squeee. *

 

Well, I'm kin- ...

Wait what? YES! Now I have enough of PONY MANLINESS to wear Rainbow Scarf of Silliness!!!!

 

Where I was.. Ah~ 

Well I'm kinda... confused...? But yeah! 

[Saltwater Croc 115]

I might be interested... flexin' the old game dev muscles.    The only issue here is partners.  Who to pick...

Edit: I'm joining! With CVincent as my proposed partner

Edited July 11, 2016 by Saltwater Croc

[Blindga 144]

I'd like to join, but I don't think there is anyone who would work with me; my schedule could be a little unreliable in the next few days. But I'd like to if anyone would be willing to risk joining me. It would be a good trial by fire for my sprite skills.

I have good story design, world design, gameplay mechanics design skills, and intermediate art, spriting, and character design skills. If anyone is willing to cooperate, I'm available.

Edited July 11, 2016 by Blindga

[+ CVincent 234]

Croc and I are teaming up.

[Thejaxinator 106]

If anyone wants a huge burden as a teammate i am here

[Blindga 144]

Cookie Ninja has agreed to ally with me under the team name "Cookie Conductor Confluence"

[Cookie Ninja 374]

Lets tear this place up Blind 

[Amysaurus 734]

RavenBlueIndigo and I are teaming up! I, uh, don't think we've finalized our team name yet though xD

[Saltwater Croc 115]

^ Team PeanutButterLobsterTurkey.

Edited July 11, 2016 by Saltwater Croc