Dude Shinobi Homebrews

[Brianator]

Hey guys, there's this guy called Pacnsacdave who might be able to do that sort of thing.  He has a website called http://pacnsacdave.weebly.com/.  I learned about him from watching the LJN Defender on Youtube.  As a matter of fact Pacnsacdave made an LJN Defender NES Game.  The Youtube video of the LJN Defender game can be found here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebCWcCMA8T0 .

Whoa, that was a lot to sink my teeth into. This Pacnsacdave dude needs some kind of "About" page for his site or at least a bit of descriptive text to better explain what all these games on his site are. Apparently the guy makes NES ROM hacks where he mashes up assets from various games to create "new" games. What I find baffling is that he's actually charging money for some of these, like "Batman Vs. Predator." No way does he have permission to sell a game using those licenses. I'm guessing he's gotten away with it so far because he's not very well known.

It'd certainly be a neat novelty to have an SN8X game created by stitching together assets from various NES games, but if we were to ever make an actual Satan Ninja video game, I'd want to go the legitimate route and make a game from scratch. We'd take inspiration from retro games for sure, but I'd want the SN8X game to stand alone as its own thing. A good example would be the Scott Pilgrim game that came out a few years ago. It wears its River City Ransom influence on its sleeve, but it still manages to be it's own unique game.

Well, this Pacnsacdave guy does have a Youtube channel which contains videos of his work.  Anyways, if you want to go the legal route, maybe you could get a hold of the guys responsible for the AVGN video game.  That game was developed by Freakzone games and published by ScrewAttack Entertainment (I found this out by watching the AVGN on Youtube).  There's also tinyBuild-which I found out about from watching some Games Done Quick videos on Youtube-who publishes and develops video games.  Here's the link for Freakzone games: http://freakzonegames.com/.   Also, here's the link to tinyBuild: http://tinybuild.com/.  Lastly here's the link to ScrewAttack: http://screwattack.roosterteeth.com/.  I know that's a lot to digest, but I'd really like to help you guys out with this, since I think the idea of a Satan Ninja or Dude Shinobi video game is totally rad.  Okay, that's all I'm going to say about that because I don't want to come across as being too pushy.

[Adam Dravian]

Definitely stay on this side of the law, there's potential for never ending pain if you steal something while trying to become successful.

No worries there. I familiarized myself with parody laws and all that jazz so that I could make certain we stay safe with SN8X.

That said, a quick google search informed me that creating a side-scroll beat-em-up game is incredibly difficult and not something to do by yourself on the side.

No, a game would be a massive undertaking for sure. However, my brother's a programmer, and I think he, Jessica, and I could pull off making an indy game. It's something we've talked about for a long time. But it's not a priority. If it happens, it'll probably be after this comic has run its course. Perhaps if the comic becomes popular enough, we could do a Kickstarter to gauge interest in a video game spinoff. If it's something the fans want, and we can get the money we'd need to buckle down and work on a game for a year or two, then it could happen. But that's a big if. The comic comes first.

Well, this Pacnsacdave guy does have a Youtube channel which contains videos of his work.

Yeah, I watched a bunch of his YouTube videos. Too many, actually. I got caught up trying to guess what games he pulled various assets from. The main reason I had trouble figuring out what the dude was all about, was that the first couple video games I clicked on had no descriptive text at all. Not on his site or on the YouTube video.

Anyways, if you want to go the legal route, maybe you could get a hold of the guys responsible for the AVGN video game.  That game was developed by Freakzone games and published by ScrewAttack Entertainment (I found this out by watching the AVGN on Youtube).  There's also tinyBuild-which I found out about from watching some Games Done Quick videos on Youtube-who publishes and develops video games.  Here's the link for Freakzone games: http://freakzonegames.com/.   Also, here's the link to tinyBuild: http://tinybuild.com/.  Lastly here's the link to ScrewAttack: http://screwattack.roosterteeth.com/.  I know that's a lot to digest, but I'd really like to help you guys out with this, since I think the idea of a Satan Ninja or Dude Shinobi video game is totally rad.  Okay, that's all I'm going to say about that because I don't want to come across as being too pushy.

No worries about seeming too pushy. I think it's rad that you're so interested in an SN8X-themed game. The examples you present were, I believe, a case where these retro-game developers were big fans of the property they based these games on, and so they were happy to pour countless man-hours into a video game spinoff. Chances are, none of these guys have ever even heard of Satan Ninja 198X (yet), so they're not going to have a burning desire to make an SN8X-themed video game. And we certainly don't have the money to pay them.

Plus Jessica and I are incredibly particular people, especially when it comes to our baby, so we'd want to be heavily involved in any sort of spin-off product. Ideally, doing it ourselves. You can read my response to Rijst up above to see how that might be possible some day.

That said, if we happen to get a mega-fan of our comic who also happens to be a retro-game maker, I think it would be super rad if he (or she!) were to make a SN8X-themed fan game. But that's certainly not something I can expect to happen.

[Rijst]

Another possibility would be finding a few guys who'd be interested in making a sort of beat em up platform enthusiasts can use to make their own games with. Basically a program you can plug simple animations into, some environments, etc.

In order to showcase what the platform can do you'd build a game with it, which would be excellent advertisement for SN8X if that were to be the game..

[Brianator]

Okay Adam, since you've been such a cool guy to me, I'll give you another example.  I don't know what your thoughts of I-Mockery are, but I do know that they make their own flash games.  Some of their games are original (i.e. Godball), some are based on video games and video game characters (i.e. Abobo's Big Adventure) and some are based off movie characters (i.e. Goon: The Game!).  Roger Barr, the creator of I-Mockery, is a friend of Maddox and judging by the content on http://www.i-mockery.com/, he doesn't shy away from R-Rated stuff or retro stuff.  I wouldn't be at all surprised if Roger became a fan of Satan Ninja (or maybe he already is, I don't know).

As for Rijst's idea, it sounds a lot like Mario Maker or Minecraft which sounds pretty cool.  I've always liked the idea of being able to create my own environment in a video game (it's a big reason why I liked playing Excitebike).

[Adam Dravian]

Another possibility would be finding a few guys who'd be interested in making a sort of beat em up platform enthusiasts can use to make their own games with. Basically a program you can plug simple animations into, some environments, etc.

In order to showcase what the platform can do you'd build a game with it, which would be excellent advertisement for SN8X if that were to be the game..

Ah, sort of a Trojan Horse approach. Not a bad idea, but what you're suggesting is that we'd make the street brawler equivalent to RPG Maker. Making a highly customizable editor that's accessible and easy to use would take a lot of effort, and then we'd still have to use that engine to create an SN8X game on top of that. If we're going to spend the time to create an SN8X video game, we'd want to focus on simply making the best SN8X video game we can. That means creating a game engine that's geared specifically to the gameplay elements we'd have in our game, without worrying about sticking to features that would lend itself well to a "universal" street brawler game.

Also, I'd want there to be more to the game that simply being a Double Dragon clone with SN8X-themed graphics. But it's waaaaay too early for me to really get into that.

Okay Adam, since you've been such a cool guy to me, I'll give you another example.  I don't know what your thoughts of I-Mockery are, but I do know that they make their own flash games.  Some of their games are original (i.e. Godball), some are based on video games and video game characters (i.e. Abobo's Big Adventure) and some are based off movie characters (i.e. Goon: The Game!).  Roger Barr, the creator of I-Mockery, is a friend of Maddox and judging by the content on http://www.i-mockery.com/, he doesn't shy away from R-Rated stuff or retro stuff.  I wouldn't be at all surprised if Roger became a fan of Satan Ninja (or maybe he already is, I don't know).

As for Rijst's idea, it sounds a lot like Mario Maker or Minecraft which sounds pretty cool.  I've always liked the idea of being able to create my own environment in a video game (it's a big reason why I liked playing Excitebike).

First off, I definitely think Excitebike is one of the best of the first wave of NES games. I don't think I ever got too creative with the level editor though—all I would do is place that ramp that let's you get the most air. Over and over again.

I'm familiar with Roger Barr, mostly through his appearances on Maddox's podcasts. And Abobo's Big Adventure is awesome, but hard as fuck. I'll have to give it another shot sometime and see if I can beat it. Anyway, I doubt Roger has heard of Satan Ninja 198X unless Maddox has told him about it, but I suspect it'd be up his alley.

Anyway, if Roger was ever interested in helping us get an SN8X game made, that would be totally rad. But things like that need to happen organically. What I mean by that is, once you get any amount of success or fame, you start to get flooded with requests from total strangers who want you to use your success to somehow further their own projects. It's super annoying and it makes you really jaded, really quickly.

So yes, Roger would probably think SN8X is rad. But if I were to email him out of the blue and ask him to check out my comic, he'd probably ignore or delete the email. And even if he did check it out, he'd probably at least be annoyed and highly critical and looking for reasons to not like this unsolicited thing that a stranger has shoved in his face. Now, if, on the other hand, a friend of his were to say, "Hey, Roger, you should totally check out this comic." He'd likely be a lot more receptive to it. The same could be said if he were to stumble upon it on his own while browsing Reddit or something. That's what I mean about things like that needing to happen organically.

And that's just talking about how hard it can be to get someone to simply check out a webcomic, which requires minimal effort on their part. Asking a stranger to do actual work for you (and yes, making a video game—even a retro one—is a ton of hard work) is way too presumptuous. Especially if you can't afford to pay them (and I can't).

[Rijst]

Another possibility would be finding a few guys who'd be interested in making a sort of beat em up platform enthusiasts can use to make their own games with. Basically a program you can plug simple animations into, some environments, etc.

In order to showcase what the platform can do you'd build a game with it, which would be excellent advertisement for SN8X if that were to be the game..

Ah, sort of a Trojan Horse approach. Not a bad idea, but what you're suggesting is that we'd make the street brawler equivalent to RPG Maker. Making a highly customizable editor that's accessible and easy to use would take a lot of effort, and then we'd still have to use that engine to create an SN8X game on top of that. If we're going to spend the time to create an SN8X video game, we'd want to focus on simply making the best SN8X video game we can. That means creating a game engine that's geared specifically to the gameplay elements we'd have in our game, without worrying about sticking to features that would lend itself well to a "universal" street brawler game.

This would only work of course if you could find a group of programmers who were already planning on doing such a thing.

Also, I'd want there to be more to the game that simply being a Double Dragon clone with SN8X-themed graphics. But it's waaaaay too early for me to really get into that.

This kind of kills the idea though..

[Brianator]

Another possibility would be finding a few guys who'd be interested in making a sort of beat em up platform enthusiasts can use to make their own games with. Basically a program you can plug simple animations into, some environments, etc.

In order to showcase what the platform can do you'd build a game with it, which would be excellent advertisement for SN8X if that were to be the game..

Ah, sort of a Trojan Horse approach. Not a bad idea, but what you're suggesting is that we'd make the street brawler equivalent to RPG Maker. Making a highly customizable editor that's accessible and easy to use would take a lot of effort, and then we'd still have to use that engine to create an SN8X game on top of that. If we're going to spend the time to create an SN8X video game, we'd want to focus on simply making the best SN8X video game we can. That means creating a game engine that's geared specifically to the gameplay elements we'd have in our game, without worrying about sticking to features that would lend itself well to a "universal" street brawler game.

Also, I'd want there to be more to the game that simply being a Double Dragon clone with SN8X-themed graphics. But it's waaaaay too early for me to really get into that.

Okay Adam, since you've been such a cool guy to me, I'll give you another example.  I don't know what your thoughts of I-Mockery are, but I do know that they make their own flash games.  Some of their games are original (i.e. Godball), some are based on video games and video game characters (i.e. Abobo's Big Adventure) and some are based off movie characters (i.e. Goon: The Game!).  Roger Barr, the creator of I-Mockery, is a friend of Maddox and judging by the content on http://www.i-mockery.com/, he doesn't shy away from R-Rated stuff or retro stuff.  I wouldn't be at all surprised if Roger became a fan of Satan Ninja (or maybe he already is, I don't know).

As for Rijst's idea, it sounds a lot like Mario Maker or Minecraft which sounds pretty cool.  I've always liked the idea of being able to create my own environment in a video game (it's a big reason why I liked playing Excitebike).

First off, I definitely think Excitebike is one of the best of the first wave of NES games. I don't think I ever got too creative with the level editor though—all I would do is place that ramp that let's you get the most air. Over and over again.

I'm familiar with Roger Barr, mostly through his appearances on Maddox's podcasts. And Abobo's Big Adventure is awesome, but hard as fuck. I'll have to give it another shot sometime and see if I can beat it. Anyway, I doubt Roger has heard of Satan Ninja 198X unless Maddox has told him about it, but I suspect it'd be up his alley.

Anyway, if Roger was ever interested in helping us get an SN8X game made, that would be totally rad. But things like that need to happen organically. What I mean by that is, once you get any amount of success or fame, you start to get flooded with requests from total strangers who want you to use your success to somehow further their own projects. It's super annoying and it makes you really jaded, really quickly.

So yes, Roger would probably think SN8X is rad. But if I were to email him out of the blue and ask him to check out my comic, he'd probably ignore or delete the email. And even if he did check it out, he'd probably at least be annoyed and highly critical and looking for reasons to not like this unsolicited thing that a stranger has shoved in his face. Now, if, on the other hand, a friend of his were to say, "Hey, Roger, you should totally check out this comic." He'd likely be a lot more receptive to it. The same could be said if he were to stumble upon it on his own while browsing Reddit or something. That's what I mean about things like that needing to happen organically.

And that's just talking about how hard it can be to get someone to simply check out a webcomic, which requires minimal effort on their part. Asking a stranger to do actual work for you (and yes, making a video game—even a retro one—is a ton of hard work) is way too presumptuous. Especially if you can't afford to pay them (and I can't).

Well, even if the collab doesn't work out, maybe I-Mockery will add Satan Ninja to their Chums list at the very least, or something.  Anyways, no matter what you guys have in mind for the future, I'm sure it'll be awesome.  But in the meantime, keep up the awesome work with the webcomic. 

[Adam Dravian]

Well, even if the collab doesn't work out, maybe I-Mockery will add Satan Ninja to their Chums list at the very least, or something.

Yeah, you never know what can happen. For the past two years, Roger has been on Maddox's podcast around Halloween time, and Jessica and I will be out that way during the spooky season this year, so we'll see.