Where Things Stand

Where Things Stand screenshot
Jordan Magnuson's picture

A quick update to let everyone know what’s going on with this site, and with me

You may have noticed that there haven’t been a lot of articles/reviews lately, and that I’ve been posting more of my own games. The reason for this, unsurprisingly, is that I’ve been more focused on game creation the last few months than I have on playing and reviewing. A while back I said that I was hoping to get into a more consistent writing schedule, but as I’ve reassessed my priorities and my available time, it has become clear that that isn’t going to happen—at least not right now. 

This doesn’t mean that I’m through writing: I plan to keep writing game reviews and articles for the foreseeable future—I just can’t promise you a consistent or frequent schedule. I’m busy with a large web development project, and all of my “free time” is currently being spent on my own game design projects. Speaking of which…

My game projects currently include

A series of three “notgames” inspired by my life in Korea. I love traveling,and being in different parts of the world, and I’m interested in the idea of using games (or notgames) as a kind of expression analogous to travel writing, where I try to express something universal, while also pointing out something about a particular place, and my own reaction to it. 

The first of these games, Freedom Bridge, is complete, and available to play online here. The other two games are still in development, one being Loneliness, a creation somewhat similar in style to Freedom Bridge, which I made for the last Ludum Dare. The game was inspired by this article about loneliness among Korean children; having just spent a year teaching Korean middle schoolers, the article had a big impact on me. The last game (or notgame) is an experimental work of interactive fiction with pictures, focused on existence/being rather than plot.

All of these games will be cross-platform.

I’m also working on releasing 5 Colors: Pandora, an exploration game about “colors and their consequences” that I made for the 16th Ludum Dare competition (way back in December), which came in 9th overall. 5 Colors may be my personal favorite of the things I’ve made, and I’ve been wanting to polish it up and get it released properly for some time now. 

That’s it

So that’s a little bit about me and where things stand at the moment. Because I’m currently busy with a web design project, as I’ve already said, I can’t make any promises as to when these games will be released, but I’ll do my best to make it as soon as possible. 

Thank you all for taking an interest in my work, and best wishes to everyone. 

P.S.

Just another reminder that you can sign up to get RSS udates or email updates when new content is posted to the site.

Oh, and the picture at the top of this post is me and my wife (far right), with my three siblings, who recently visited us in Korea. Behind us there you can see some old traditional Korean houses. 

Know of any relevant "further reading" links not listed here? Please let me know.
Jordan Magnuson' avatar

Jordan Magnuson is the founder and editor in chief of NecessaryGames.com. He recently traveled around the world on a shoestring budget with the goal of making small games about the experience. You can find out more at GameTrekking.com.

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