Realize this is more insider ball than prob most of you will be into, but I've been blogging my way through the launch with updates on how things are going, my goals, and other related things. Feel free to pull up a chair, grab some popcorn, and watch the horror show unfold. Heh. Just posted an update on bringing back my original (and initially failed) Quest to Break Even with Missile Cards, which also talks about setting goals and the importance of hard work and perseverance. Cheers -Nathan
Guess I'm weird, because I didn't find the first base difficult at all. Got the three consecutive wins mission in my first three games (though I had a string of launches in the third one and thought I was screwed, which goes to the discussion above...jerks in the buildings, lol). If people are having trouble with the first base, I suspect it is because they are trying to shoot down every missile to the point they are using high-powered weapons on low-value targets and keeping nothing in reserve for an emergency. Be as efficient as you can, be willing to let a target go, and keep a weapon or two in your back pocket if you can. P.S. Nathan, I love your infographic.
Am I missing something? Is there any way to see all the cards in your deck so you can plan ahead? Without that, I feel like I'm playing blind.
Nope! That was an intentional design choice. No peeky peeky. You have to deal with things as they pop-up (or blow up, in some cases, heh). Though recapping what I mentioned earlier, each base deck is unique, so I've sprinkled in different types and quantities of defenses, and different hazards. I chose not to show players the secret sauce of each, as it's meant to be a surprise (you don't know what's coming until it hits the conveyor, but the conveyor is also designed to give you a heads-up so you can plan ahead, too). The deck building aspect of Missile Cards was intentionally minimized - while it's nice to fully customize everything, that would have required a TON of additional design, code, and fiddling, and I opted to focus elsewhere on the design. But I did want to give players some fun goodies to unlock and some ways to affect the base decks a little. It may not be a perfect solution, but considering the smaller scope of the game, it's what I was able to accomplish during the limited development time (and zero funding) I had available. As a dev project, Missile Cards was designed from the get-go to be highly replayable while keeping it fairly constrained (because it actually was supposed to be a quick in-between project to cleanse my palate and get something DONE between several larger games I've been working on for a few years now). That influenced / impacted the design in some key areas, for sure. I planned for 3 months of development from concept to launch, and it actually took six. I couldn't afford to let it take any longer than that. I also honestly didn't know IF it'd sell at all, to be honest, and I wanted to make something fun and cool without pouring years of my life into a game that could flop (again). I'm happy with how it came out though, for what it is. Deck building and more customization is def something I'm eager to potentially explore more with some of my other future card games, though!
I'd just like to say Nice one to Nathan for such a brilliant game. I've been playing for I reckon over 30 years, (my first ever game was Horace Goes skiing on a 16k spectrum if anyone wants a point of reference) and while there are still some wonderful experiences out there I'm finding there's less and less things that grab me and keep my attention for a long time. I suspect that's as much down to a change in lifestyle and the way I play than the quality of games out there - but anyway, my point is that, at least for me, great casual pick up and play games that I want to spend a long time with are few and far between but this hits the spot perfectly. It'll join the hallowed list of games that will never leave my device.
You were right. Aftrer actovation of additional cards and perks things goes better. Also I changed the strategy, instead of earlier shooting I tried to down the comets on 5 or 6 multiplier. It pays off.
Nice! Way to stick with it. I know MC isn't everyone's cup of tea, but I'm glad to hear that things are clicking for you. Cheers!
I was just kidding in a bad way, man... Like I wanted to say it's a rip-off because of your signature not being updated by that time (which I can see it's fixed now). Bad joke, I know.
I'm so loving this game. Loved Missile Commander back in the day, to see it transformed into a card game is just amazing. The main reason I have an Ipad is because of games: roguelikes, card and board games. With the emphasis on cardgames. This game belongs on my Ipad. Awesome job Nathan. With this and Age of Rivals I've gotten two wonderfull games past week. And both have amazing devs.
Hey thanks a bunch! I'm also really digging on Age of Rivals...neat game! It's cool to see such variety coming to the mobile card gaming/board gaming space.
Launch week sales and info More insider ball, if you're into the behind-the-scenes stuff RE: indie dev and iOS, etc. Week one launch sales have been good (but not quite a success yet). Even with solid week one sales, a US store feature, lots of positive reviews, and a nice boost, it's been a challenging week. I'm pretty broke ATM between house debt, bills, and my day job workload fizzling this past month as I've had to shift and focus on the launch. I wish I was in a position to be working on these game projects full time, as I've got some really cool stuff in the works. But...well, need to put food on the table and chip away at soul-crushing debt first, before I can afford to pour a lot of FT resources into future games. Hoping the end-of-month totals will be closer to hitting my base-line initial target goal. I'm up to 3,560 sales so far, with my "break even" target goal being 8,000. It's doable, possibly, by the end of the month, but who knows. That'd basically cover the 6 months dev cycle and help me knock out a big chunk of bills, but isn't enough to do put me in a position to do gamedev FT yet. This is something a lot of solo and part-time indie devs struggle with. Its tough, for sure. I'm working on some other card games I'd like to really ramp up, and I know some folks want some MC content updates already. Pretty much stuck grinding away to hustle and get some freelance work gigs lined up to get back on track, but hopefully it'll all come together and I can pour more time into MC and other projects soon. Here's a more in-depth blog about all of this, if you're into peeking behind the curtain. First Week Launch Sales and Observations (Missile Cards) Thanks again! Cheers! -Nathan
