The Crimson Diamond Gazette #54
Welcome to the latest issue! News and fun facts inside!
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Find game bugs? feedback@thecrimsondiamond.com
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Donate on PayPal!
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MEDIA
2D Game Art Tips for Solo or Small Teams -- Pre-recorded panel
Scene World Podcast #160 - The Crimson Diamond with Julia Minamata
vicek83's "Plans for Adventure Game Developers for 2023" (guest spot)
Exposing Decades-old Secrets of The Colonel's Bequest (guest spot)
Adventure Game Hotspot Streaming Event Guest Spot #1
Adventure Game Hotspot Streaming Event Guest Spot #2
Current "The Crimson Diamond Demo" Speedrun World Records
The Crimson Diamond on Speedruns.com
Disaster SquadCast episode
"Talking To Women About Videogames" podcast episode part 2 of 2
"Talking To Women About Videogames" podcast episode part 1 of 2
Joystick interview (in English)
Joystick interview (in Greek)
Plans of Adventure Game Devs in 2022 (timestamped link)
IGDA Twin Cities Talk: "The Practical Magic of Pixel Art"
Steam Next Fest (Oct 2021) Developer's Let's Play of The Crimson Diamond Demo
Interviews from the Multiverse: Julia Minamata
Lockdown Con II "The Indie Games Revolution" Panel (first panel of the day)
WIRED.com's Geek's Guide to the Galaxy
Pixelles BIPOC Creator Program grant recipient
usesthis interview (interview about my hardware and software set-up)
8-bit Ninja interview about The Crimson Diamond (in German)
CAAD52 magazine article about The Crimson Diamond (in Spanish)
Cabel Sasser's Photoshop Revelation clip
HomeTeam GameDev Podcast -- Guest Julia Minamata
CityNews - Canada Showcased Through Video Games
CBC Thunder Bay - Superior Morning Radio Interview
PAX East 2020 "What's Next for Adventure Games" Panel
Adventure Games Podcast episode
Classic Adventurer, Issue 07 -- Featured
Adventure Gamers AdventureX Round-up, part II
Adventure Gamers Announcement Article
Adventure Corner Article (German)
The CGG Podcast: # 44 Third appearance, updates since April 2019!
The CGG Podcast: #20 The Crimson Diamond updates & The Colonel's Bequest
The CGG Podcast: #1 Episode featuring me discussing The Crimson Diamond
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CLASSIC GAMER? JOIN CLASSIC GAMERS!
I part of a thriving classic gaming community called the Classic Gamers Guild on Facebook. We host plenty of events during the week, as well as contests and a bunch of other great stuff. We even have a podcast and I was the first guest!
To view this issue in browser, click here
Click here for the entire DevBlog
Editor: Julia Minamata - julia@thecrimsondiamond.com
March 2023
Hello, dear readers! Happy March! It's been unusually snowy here so far, but the crocuses have bloomed once again! Spring is just around the corner.
Developer update: The latest beta, which contains The Crimson Diamond chapters 1-5, has been sent out to testers! More excitingly, work on chapter 6 has well and truly begun! I finished the design document and am building the first room and placeholder assets. It feels like it's been ages since I got to make anything new -- It's a lot of fun!
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The art panel that me and Chris DeLeon (of HomeTeam GameDev) collaborated on is now available as a VOD on Youtube! It's called "2D Game Art Tips for Solo or Small Teams" and it's meant for game devs (or people who want to get started in game development) who feel that lack of art training or experience is holding them back. The panelists cover a wide range of approaches and game genres, and provide lots of advice and tips on how to approach making art from a beginner's perspective!
Panelists:
Julia Minamata @JuliaMinamata / thecrimsondiamond.com
Freya C @spdrcstl / communistsister.itch.io
Francisco González @GrundislavGames / Grundislav Games on Steam
Damien Crawford @TheWorstRPGDev /cannibalinteractive.itch.io
Aureus @MoralAnxiety / moralanxietystudio.com
with panel host/moderator Chris DeLeon @ChrisDeLeon
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Recommendation Dog!! launched on Playdate Catalog this month! It's been almost two years since the Sweet Baby Inc. / Strange Scaffold team completed work on the game. I've been looking forward its debut for a long time! Recommendation Dog!! is the first game I art directed, as well as the first Playdate game I made art for. I hope it's not my last! Catalog is Playdate's new e-store that lives on the Playdate, making it even easier for players to buy and load games onto their units. You can check out Catalog on your web browser here! You can watch me play and talk about Recommendation Dog!! and Playdate here!I also show the self-portrait I snuck in :D.
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I was a guest on the Scene World podcast! Scene World bills itself as the most eclectic and the world's only Commodore 64 NTSC & PAL diskmag! It's been run by a passionate group of volunteers for more than twenty years. They not only cover a variety of Commondore related subjects, they interview people in the games industry including developers, streamers, historians, and more! Check out the episode here.
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A reminder that my Patreon tiers have changed! Now, all current patrons will have their names in the credits of The Crimson Diamond when it launches. The default is to have names included, and the name used will be the Patreon profile name. If you'd like to opt-out or use a different name, please message me on Patreon! Here's a link to my Patreon page.
I've also retired my $1 tier, but patrons on that tier will still get their name in the credits, and nothing changes for them! Retiring a tier just means no new patrons can join it.
A heartfelt thank you to all my Patreon supporters. <3
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Twitch streamer pieceofhannah streamed the new and improved The Crimson Diamond demo! I watched her play some of it -- It's always a real pleasure to see a streamer enjoying the game! She finished the demo with no hints! Congrats, Poh! Check out her channel if you enjoy rpgs and adventure games, particularly retro ones! Here's a link to her The Crimson Diamond demo VOD.
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My streaming continues! I started another pixel art scene to upgrade: The Royal Canadiann Museum storage basement! Here is a list of all the streams since the last issue of the gazette: February 21 art stream, March 1 Stream Mystery Fest Stream, February 28 art stream, March 7 art stream.
Here's a work-in-progress animation for the museum basement:
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I got to level 7 in Bio Menace! I faced down a Big Boss Dude too, it was very exciting. But I'm running of lives, I might not be able to get much further! Bio Menace is free on GOG! I highly recommend it!
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Mortville Manor Let's Plays continue! This game fascinates me. I made a video presenting my spreadsheet of characters' questions and responses, which I then went back to and updated with newly discovered questions and responses! While I was doing that I figured out how to use inventory items, and managed to find a new location! I can't wait to show all of this on my next Mortville Manor stream!
Here's the current playlist for Mortville Manor. Brocanty Games is currently remaking Mortville Manor with UI improvements and real voice-acting! Follow their project here.
My completed Let's Plays:
Personal Nightmare (Horrorsoft 1989) playlist
Last Half of Darkness (Softlab Software Laboratories 1989) playlist
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (LucasArts 1989) playlist
Rise of the Dragon Let's Play (Dynamix, 1990) playlist
The Sorceror's Appraisal (Yahtzee Croshaw, 2002)
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I STILL haven't ordered any sample merch from my Fourthwall store. I either keep thinking of fun products to add, or other people suggest thing! I might try to put the EGA fish in the intro on an embroidered hat. Hmmm...
I also have a merch store on Society6, with a broader range of stuff!
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CRAFT CORNER
I'm more than halfway finished the parlour cross-stitch! I'll be leaving the painting in the very centre for last. It's a lot of cross stitches, but it's very relaxing and rewarding to watch the design appear before my eyes.
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MINERAL TRIVIA SECTION
DID YOU KNOW: There are indeed garnets in Ontario! I found this gorgeous specimen on the shores of Lake Ontario. I'm not 100% sure these are garnets, but judging from what I've seen on the internet, these appear to be garnets in a rhyolite matrix. I took all of these photos using my 30 x 21mm loupe, placed in front of my iPhone's camera!
Here are some other rocks I've collected from Lake Ontario, with bits that might be garnets (photos taken in sunlight, except for the group photo):
This first one is an alternate view of the above stone:
Here they all are, without magnification! Also with a Canadian quarter and a measuring tape to show scale.
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INTERESTED IN SUPPORTING THE CRIMSON DIAMOND?
Check the sidebar for links to my Patreon and PayPal! Or visit The Crimson Diamond's Steam page follow the game, and add it to your wishlist! There's a FREE playable demo too, for Windows PC and Mac! <3
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Thanks for reading! Happy March!
-- JM