(written in 2026)
“I gathered some friends and pitched an idea for a game for a 2-week game jam and asked if they wanted to join.
It was the first time I worked with many of my friends!
We tried something new and became all the more in love with game devs and jams as well as ideating altogether.”
“
THIS IS A BIG DEAL!
SHE'S pretty much alive!
“I’ts a nightmare behind the scenes! Tenzin is teary-eyed at a the thought of “ I can’t dis-sa-point my friends!” They think sincerely “ It’s a game jam after all!” all while sweating…”
Make it stand out
Just so you know how whimsical I was feeling, listen to what i was listening to bro.
Did you expect that?
uhum….
SO!!! I art-directed a small team of artists and made something that felt 75% more thought-out. I trusted my artists to bring their 100% whimsy game, and they did! As you can see!
yo!
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yo! 〰️
Hey! This looks pretty good for a guy who only has a green thumb, but only on every third leap year. I call that Progress!
In the Spirit of experimenting, I pulled up so many back-to-back tutorial videos. I want to be ambitious! How nice to lose yourself in the story. Speaking of which, the story is about the lengths a good boy is willing to go to save his heartbroken Witch. I was inspired by a lot of the European films I was watching then. Looking back, Portrait of a Lady on Fire must have been on the menu for sure! The Fun twist is that the game mechanics we were thinking of implementing are drawing distinct sigils and rings. The Dog must be making enough money from the witches’ shop to pay off growing debt.
Nicole, who is also my DM for one of my longest-running campaigns, listened to my ramblings about yuri this, yuri that, and helped turn the story of Book of Bark into that of melancholy, whimsy, and warm stories within stories.
The cute 3d model dog is a distraction! THE REAL THING WE” RE TALKING ABOUT TODAY IS SCOPE-CREEP! Boo!
Before the experience, I didn't know well what we could do in a 2-week jam as a team; most of us had yet to work together. I have learned what is, and perhaps what is possible, with our current skills and dynamic. I thankfully took a more informed approach the following year! And what a great decision that was!!!
Looking back, I know 3D was very ambitious and yet, we were pretty close to overcoming it.
While I have some maybe-regrets about how much bigger the game became, in the end, I would have always fought for Barnaby.
to Be Continued
