ThatStupidLion
Member
Cave Story
"It was developed over five years by Japanese developer Daisuke "Pixel" Amaya in his free time." He began the project when he was in college and continued working on it after getting a job as a software developer.[22] He started by writing the title screen music and programming rudimentary character movements.[23] The idea for the cave setting evolved spontaneously when he created a number of enclosed spaces.[24] Amaya admitted this lack of planning caused "problems down the line" because he did not have dedicated map editing and data management tools.
Stardew Valley
" Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone developed the game by himself over four years." In 2011, Barone had graduated from the University of Washington Tacoma with a computer science degree, but had not been able to get a job in the industry, instead working as an usher at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle.[6][7] Looking to improve his computer skills for better job prospects, he came to the idea of crafting a game which would also pull in his artistic side.[6] Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, Barone incorporated many elements of the region into the gameplay and art.
Papers, Please
Lucas Pope opted to leave Naughty Dog around 2010, after Uncharted 2: Among Thieves was released, to move to Saitama, Japan, along with his wife Keiko, a game designer herself. Part of this move was to be closer to her family, but Pope also had been developing smaller games along with Keiko during his time at Naughty Dog, and wanted to move away from "the definite formula" of the Uncharted series toward developing more exploratory ideas for his own games.[7][8] The two worked on a few independent game titles while there, and they briefly relocated to Singapore to help another friend with their game.[7] From his travels in Asia and some return trips to the United States, he became interested in the work of immigration and passport inspectors: "They have a specific thing they’re doing and they’re just doing it over and over again."[7] He recognized the passport checking experience, which he considered "tense", could be made into a fun game.
Pope estimated that the game would now take six months to complete, though it ultimately took nine months.
Return of the Obra Dinn
Lucas Pope had developed an appreciation of 1-bit graphics used in many early Macintosh games. Following Papers, Please, Pope had wanted to use the 1-bit aesthetic in an experimental game, leading him to develop a game engine that allowed the player to move in a 3D space, rendered in a vintage style.
He considered Obra Dinn a passion project and did not pressure himself with deadlines or marketing.
let's sing praises and raise awareness of the hard work done by individuals who made entire games (or did the majority of the dev/art work)
