Issue 29.2: This Modern Community
Game on!
Hi friends!
We’re back for week two of my smaller, and hopefully more manageable newsletter that’s coming to you in… chunks? Gotta admit, I’m not a fan of that word, but I’ll allow it this once.
In other news, it’s my daughter’s fifth birthday today! Happy birthday to her!
What happened last issue?
I gave you unsolicited writing advice and weird AI art! Do I ever stop giving? Heck no!
This Modern Community
In a recent newsletter I shared the fact that the video game studio where I work (Magic Tavern) was about to release a new mobile game that had been in the works for nearly two years.
That day arrived! (A couple weeks ago, actually.)
Modern Community debuted on Tuesday, March 4. Since then the title has hung around the top 10 free game chart (give or take) thanks to several big promotional pushes from the App Store. It’s always great (scary) to hear what people think of a new game. We only have about 10 minutes to grab and keep someone’s attention, so we put a lot of time and effort into getting the game’s introduction—which we call a First Time User Experience, or “FTUE”—just right.
So, what did I do on Modern Community? I helped create the overall story. I breathed life into the characters dreamed up by our talented artists. I wrote darn close to every line of dialogue that you can possibly encounter in the game at this particular point in time.
What’s it like making a video game?
It’s hard. It takes a long time. It involved a lot of decisions and iterations—or seeing what works, and then trying something else when it doesn’t.
But the highlight of working on this particular game, was the team I worked with to put it together. My coworkers at Magic Tavern have been some of the most creative and collaborative people I’ve ever had the good fortune to spend 40 hours a week with (even if it is only digitally). Whether they’re artists, designers, writers, or on the back-end team, everyone played a vital role in bringing this project to fruition.
One of the things I love most about making games is that job titles go out the window. Artists can freely contribute story ideas. Writers can provide feedback on concept art (or finished art!). It’s not about who has the best idea, it’s about finding what gets everyone most excited.
On that same side of the coin, credit often goes out the window, too. When we’re testing the game, or it is released to the public, that silly joke… that likable character… that location… that animal… that idea… we don’t sit around and say, “Oh, I came up with that.” We all came up with that. (In most cases, we couldn’t remember who came up with something if we wanted to!)
But here’s what really blows my mind about making games—and this game in particular—is that everyone at Magic Tavern has a wonderful sense of humor. We spent a lot of time joking, and playing. More often than not, those moments of playfulness find their way into the actual game.
There have been many days where I’m left amazed that this group of people gets to work on a game that, on the surface is silly, but at the same time is very serious. After all, if the game does well, things remain good for the company. And after working on this game for more than two years, it’s absolutely bonkers to me that this thing that was born out of many silly conversations, and us saying “can we really do this?” is finally here.
Because at the end of the day, there’s nothing cooler than making something creative with your friends.
A huge thanks goes out to our US team: Antone, Gary, Ruby, Bernice, Miguel, Kimba, and Allie. A second thanks to our team in Beijing. No matter how Modern Community does in the marketplace, we’ve had a lot of fun together.
I hope you’ll download Modern Community on your Apple or Android device.
If you’d rather catch the highlights, a bunch of players have uploaded their gameplay videos to YouTube. Here’s one:
Thanks for stopping by!
I’m Wes Locher. I’ve been writing professionally for more than twelve years. I write comic books, video games, fiction, and nonfiction. I write whatever seems fun, cool, and inspiring. I also love helping other writers to demystify the process of making a living through words. This is my newsletter.