itch.io announces refinery, an early accessalternative for indies ToddMitchell, May 13, 2016July 10, 2024 itch.io will allow indie studios to conduct early game releases on their own terms. If Refinery sounds like a shot at Steam Early Access, that probably isn’t a coincidence. “Early access ‘programs’ have long been an issue for developers looking to get feedback and build communities around their in-development games,” itch said in press correspondence. “They have overly competitive environments, sometimes hostile and unwelcoming communities and non-existent sales model flexibility. For games releasing in these ‘programs’ just to get playtesting and grow, it’s a disaster.” The solution, itch leadership believes, is to give studios the freedom to customize the distribution model of a game’s limited release. “Whether that comes in the form of an open paid alpha with limited keys or a closed beta playtest with select testers, the toolset allows a developer to customize their program,” said a representative via email. “The toolset allows for limited key quantities, tiered purchases, digital rewards, private playtesting, and community forums embedded right on their customized game pages.” In addition, itch announced five upcoming indie games that will utilize the Refinery toolset for limited release purposes, including Overland, Manifold Garden, Jenny LeClue, hackmud, and GoNNER. There appears to be no word yet on the nature of those releases, but each should give players and developers a unique look at the capabilities of the Refinery system. itch.io week began Monday the 9th and wraps up today. The event revealed other features such as support for studios to hold sales, create product bundles, and utilize The Widget, which will allow developers to easily embed itch promotionand purchase information about their games on other sites. itch also made recent headlines when the official itch.io desktop app appeared on Steam Greenlight on April Fools Day. The listing was not a joke, but a fully functional client, which Steam subsequently blocked. Share this:FacebookXLike this:Like Loading... Game Development Early Accessindie game developmentitch
Game Development Improving Animations with the Curve Editor February 7, 2020July 11, 2024 I do love it when a plan comes together. To test out my newly optimized enemy model with Inverse Kinematics, I wanted to do a little animation test with a video or gif of some sort. You may remember this as the way Epic Games got in so much trouble… Share this:FacebookXLike this:Like Loading... Read More
Culture News, State of the Pod, and Philip Molodkovets of Wargaming January 31, 2022July 11, 2024 Welcome back! Here are some updates–including the scoop on Inside Video Game Creation in the latest deal at StoryBundle–a word on the state of the podcast, and an exclusive interview with Philip Molodkovets, Wargaming’s executive producer on World of Warships. Share this:FacebookXLike this:Like Loading... Read More
Game Development Join Us On Discord! May 22, 2020 Hey all! If you haven’t heard, we’re winding down our activities on Patreon. To maintain a place to hang out, we’ve set up on Discord! All are welcome, we have channels configured for specialties like streaming, writing, game development, and we’ll no doubt set up many more. Come chit-chat about… Share this:FacebookXLike this:Like Loading... Read More