TORSO TENNIS has been on tour this month! We’ve visited Too Many Games Expo in PA and Game and Geek Expo in NC. The game is feeling nice and we are CLOSE to launch.
Here are some of my favorite quotes from demo players at Too Many Games:
“Total Dad game… I’m not a dad though.
“That was actually way better than I expected”
“This is the most Game ever”
Play the Demo and Leave a Review on Steam
TORSO TENNIS on Tour
In June, TORSO TENNIS was on Tour at Game & Geek Expo in Raleigh and Too Many Games in Philadelphia.
My first time visiting Too Many Games was fantastic. Our caravan from North Carolina had an amazing time meeting other game developers and indie game enjoyers. From goofing around on the expo floor to the TMG Indie Game Awards, it was a great time. Game & Geek Expo was similar fun. It’s always great to connect with people in person and have fun playing & talking about games.
Real Talk - Why go to conventions?
I feel lucky that I have the energy, time, and budget to go to conventions with my game. Even if you do have the resources available to attend a convention, is it worth it?
From a pure business perspective, the case could be argued that these events are not worth it for small-scale indies. You very well might be better off spending the time and energy to promote your game online. Posting on TikTok can yield more eyeballs than would walk past a booth in a given day at a convention. Plus, the amount of energy required to prep for, travel to, and recover from these events is significant.
Still, there are three somewhat intangible reasons why I keep coming back to conventions that aren’t about promoting or selling my game.
Feedback
Even though I bring TORSO TENNIS to monthly local playtests, I still very much value the dense blast of feedback I get from demoing my games at conventions.
Community
I consider participating in a community to an important pillar of a life well-lived. It is so rewarding for me to talk with peers who also take on the effort to pour their entire souls into a work of obscure, overlooked art (indie games, am I right?)
Motivation
Being around people who love games, and being around other people who put in the work into their Games, Cosplays, Fandoms, etc. just gets you fired up about living your life to the fullest.
So these are some of the factors that go into my decisions to visit conventions with my game. I try to look at my practice of game-making as a smaller part of my life. Trying to optimize every decision for business-maxxing is a recipe for burnout.
How often in life am I going to get a chance to road trip with two of my friends and go to a convention together?
Go do that thing.
What’s next for TORSO TENNIS:
I'll be live on Twitch throughout the month of July (usually Weekday mornings around 9am Eastern Time). Mostly focusing on Bugfixing and moving towards a complete version of the game.
How close are we to launch? Well, I actually started selling some early access “USB Game Tapes” at Too Many Games with a complete version of the game!
The tapes have a Windows exe, Steam Key, Sticker pack, and a way to keep the DRM-free executable of the game updated. Since the game is playable start-to-finish, I thought this was an appropriate time to start the process of selling game tapes.
Loneliness, DoubleFine Psychodyssey, and the value of Community
I’ve been watching Double Fine’s 33-episode documentary about the making of Psychonauts 2, “Psychodyssey”, while on the exercise bike. I’ve never played Psychonauts 2 or any other game made by Double Fine. But something about this series just absolutely speaks to me. Seeing a group of people go through the ups and downs of the creative process is emotionally resonant.
Making games is uniquely difficult. The difficulty of game-making takes on a different flavor when going through it as a team. Embarking on a creative process as a collective group has a lot of benefits that I’ve tried my best to emulate as a solo-ish creator.
Here’s how I’ve approached that: Find a community of like-minded creative peers and give your energy/support to members of the group.
~4 years ago, me and a group of friends started Triangle Interactive Arts, a collective of game developers and creatives in Raleigh, NC. We host in-person playtest nights, social gatherings, and showcases alongside a some virtual events on our discord. Through this group I’ve found so much support and gratification over the years and I can’t help thinking of all of these people as I watch PsychOdyssey.
My favorite little anecdote from PsychOdyssey so far is seeing Tim Schafer hand-paint all of the cheap wooden desks for the first employees of the studio to their color of choice. The thought of a studio head staying late on weekends to “add a little pop of color” to the office is so heartwarming. It made me think a lot of the little things people in our community have done for each other: leaving drawings on the whiteboard, notes at each other’s desks, and stepping in to give their time by volunteering or playtesting. It’s awesome being part of something larger than yourself.
Thanks so much for reading the newsletter. As always, join the Discord to leave feedback and stay up to date on development.
You can also respond directly to this email if you’d like to get in touch with me and tell me how things are going for you.
<3 Michael
https://www.toomuchtomato.com/