Dev note

Welcome to my first Dev Note for a Jam! Although I already know how a Jam works and have indirectly participated in two other Jams as a co-contributor, this was my first time making a solo game for a Jam, so I decided it would be interesting to share what that experience was like, so here it goes! 

Even before I knew the theme, I already had a goal: to think outside the box and try to explore RPGMaker MZ, to try to do something that I haven't tried, but with a difference: Do it without using plug-ins. At first I was undecided between making a Souls-like or a monster tamer game, I planned to make Souls because of the difficulty it would be to make something like Pokemon in MZ, but after seeing the theme "Pushing the Limits", I ended up challenging myself to do the second option.

Since I already had something in mind, it was easy for me to keep track of my time, which is essential for a game jam. I managed to finish the game's main mechanics (capture, storage, transfer and battles) in 3 days, which allowed me to work more calmly on creating and configuring the game's monsters, which were nicknamed "Womboos". Womboos is a pun on the word "Womb", since unlike other monster tamers, in this game the monsters are stored in the characters' bellies.

The design of the Womboos was certainly a challenge, creating something unique that doesn't look like a Pokemon, Pal or Digimon is harder than it seems, so I based myself on the following logic: combine an element with at least one animal or object, Woarmy for example is the mix of "Worm" and "Warm". Some Womboos were easier to make because the idea simply appeared in my mind, while others took a little longer until I had a more concrete image.

The character design was probably the easiest part regarding the Womboos, although the visual novel style was a challenge, since it was my first time trying something multi-layered, but overall it was smooth sailing. As for the characters' appearance, I didn't have anything in mind, I just did what felt right, although originally the MC (main character) was supposed to be brown, but I ended up making them all white so as not to have compatibility issues with MZ.

The maps were the most relaxing part, I particularly enjoy creating maps, especially forests because there is no rule or "correct" way to do it, although the volcano map was a challenge, because I had never made a fire map before, especially one where the player had to walk carefully. But overall everything was satisfactory, neither too big nor too small, a region for each size of Womboos.

About the game's story, it was 90% improvised, the story basically consisted of "finding an excuse for this and that to happen", not only that but also a lot of things were cut due to lack of time, after all, if I prolonged the story too much, it would take longer to finish the ending, which could make me lose precise time or even miss the jam deadline. Overall the story works as it should, even though it is a bit linear and objective, but this made it easier to avoid players getting lost without knowing where to go. Unfortunately I didn't have to put many jokes in the game, since humor is usually the focus in my games, but that is something I can solve in the future.

And finally... I wanted to tell you what my goal was with the jam: To stimulate. Many people give up on creating a game because they think it's "too complicated" or that "it won't work". My goal in creating a mechanically complex game without the help of plug-ins was to show that "it is possible", to try to inspire others to try too. I want to point out that this is a challenging task, after all, you need to focus on creating a game, but it's not an impossible task, especially if you have help. During the creation of the game, my server was very helpful with tips and suggestions, as well as contributing by testing the game, allowing me to make adjustments to incoherent parts and fixing bugs that I hadn't noticed before. I don't know if my goal will actually come to fruition, but that doesn't matter, intention is enough, and that's something that only time will tell.

About the future of the game, that's uncertain... I mean, I have ideas and content for at least two major updates, but I don't know how to continue. I had a lot of fun creating the game, but only now do I see its great potential, a potential that MZ might not be able to handle, so I'm undecided between continuing to use RPGMaker MZ, or starting from scratch in another engine, preferably in 3D. Anyway, regardless of the decision, rest assured that I won't abandon the game, maybe I'll stay away for a while, since I have other games that also need updating, but eventually I'll come back to finish what I started. 

. . . Okay, maybe I wrote a little more than I should have hehe, anyway, that was my experience during the creation of the game, and I really hope you guys liked the result and can continue supporting with suggestions and ideas, so until next time! ^-^)b