Ah, Google Apps

Getting un-sick is a nice feeling. Like coming out of the shivering cold to sit in front of a fire or leaving scorching heat to enter a nice, air-conditioned room. The contrast is welcome.

So a lot of what is going on behind the scenes right now is writing up concepts and picking targets for a prototype. One of the more interesting aspects of my work in the last few days was setting up the space for this, so I could share ideas close friends that wanted to peek at goings on. I purchased littlebotstudios.com (obviously), but it's been awhile since I've bothered with ISPs for ftp space and such. I set this up a long time ago for beeba.net, but have no love for the host I used. Also, I don't feel like spending money on this sort of thing right now (I'm pinching pennies without new income coming in) so I wasn't sure how to setup multiple email addresses and create a real workspace. But I looked into Google Apps, and I have to admit that I'm drinking the kool-aid. After getting setup on Apps, I have multiple emails, shared calendars, and a private web space that functions kind of like OneNote (for the Avalanche-folk reading) (but better in some ways (e.g., nice site map, embedding, Google gadgets) and worse in others (slight page editor clunkiness); overall, honestly preferred over OneNote), and all for the marvelous price of free. Thank you, Google! <3

Also, I've been toying around with logos for LittleBot and might share some ideas in the next week or so.

Sick Already?

Blerg... I just got going and I'm already sick. I'm staring longingly at my ramen as I type this. Oh precious ramen, you make me so happy. If I made a game about ramen, what would it be about...?

Perhaps a Ramen Food Critic game. In it, you research your publication audience, learn about their lives, and choose words that best describe the food and best match your audience's style. Your critiques help influence chefs towards ultimately crafting (and you eating) THE ULTIMATE BOWL OF RAMEN. There would be intrigue, too, with folks that have a big investment in having their ramen rated well, that threaten you and stuff. Maybe you have to make the right ramen friends. Oh, and you can help sick people get better with good ramen. Mmhmm.

There have been a lot of good games about perfectly pedestrian things. Making a pedestrian subject seem exciting is something Japanese manga excels at. Which reminds me, I just finished the first Phoenix Wright... I should write about it.

The First Day

The most common question the day before leaving my job was "So what are you gonna do tomorrow?" The events of my first day were:

• Organize computer
• Organize email
• Setup work space
• Writeup game concept notes
• Jot down notes on goals and culture
• Buy a domain name

Boring stuff, though doing all of it in my underwear was nice.

Kim Rules

As a parting gift, Jason made a nice gesture by way of digital goodness. Awesome.

And thanks, man. I'll need it.

LittleBot FAQ

Hey folks! I recently left my job (and so many friends) at Disney Interactive in SLC to take a crack try the indie thing. Because there are a lot of questions, I thought I would start with a few answers.

What is LittleBot?
LittleBot is an attempt to make something that inspires me. After making games for 15 years, I believe that great games come from people that are passionate about what they work on. I want to prioritize passion and the games that inspire it. In myself and hopefully, in others.

LittleBot Studios? This is a studio?
I'd love to have a studio that could support other people and let us work on games we love together, but I moreso want a game that inspires enough passion to lead us there. I'm focused on the game for now.

What are you working on?
My first project is picked out, but it needs time to incubate and learn to fly. Bits of shiny new information may appear now and then, so be on the lookout!

Can I help?
Yep! If you want to help, send me (erlanter) a gmail. Even simple feedback is invaluable right now.

Why the blog?
It's my way of keeping in touch with everyone. I plan to update it every weekday, so folks can follow along.

What's with the name?
I wanted a studio name with character, and the image of a small bot with a big heart spoke to me.

Are you crazy?
Nope. Over the last 15 years, I've made good friends, had good experiences, and built up enough good security to give this a whirl. My worst case scenario is loving what I do and learning from it, and that seems a reasonable risk for a chance to do something special.

Thank you!

To everyone at Avalanche/Disney, thanks. The last five years have been amazing, along with the people and experiences. I'm looking forward to giving this new thing a shot, but I'll miss everyone a great deal. Thanks for all the well-wishes, and best of luck back. You guys rock.

Hello, World.

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