Can’t believe it’s already end of 2020!
As everyone has suffered from Covid 19 pandemic, we all had difficult times. But thankfully, the game development didn’t get too much impact and we were all happy with the progress we have made this year.
We couldn’t be as active as we hoped with the dev blog due to many different reasons, but with the year in review post, hope to discuss some of the things we couldn’t publicly discuss!
1. Setting Up the Studio
We have started the studio. We formed the company end of last year but officially started to develop a game early this year. We have secured the funds for the game, we have leased office space, we have successfully recruited great talents, and finally created the logo for the studio.
As discussed before, most of the talents were sharing the vision (read this if you missed the very first blog post) and it was a quite smooth process building a team and creating a shared goal of creating an everlasting game dev studio!
Oh… and we have purchased a motion capture equipment(fancy!) an automatic espresso machine(yes, gamedev = coffee) ! And.. automated ramen cooker!
2. Starting the BLOG!
YES! Instead of creating a website, we decided to create a blog site first because we sincerely hope to build the game together. (We have discussed this topic on the blog, please read the blog here! – If you read the blog you would understand what we meant by building the game together!)
We have a lot more to share next year with more information on the game projects. Creative Directors are already excited to share the idea, what we have been working so far and get some early thoughts!
And… this is why we are hiring a lead social & community manager as one of the first positions in the US office! (Ah, we are hiring for the US office, please check the blog post here!)
3. Kicking off the First Project
While we haven’t discussed the first game on the blog, we worked hard on the project and have entered the full production phase starting November! We have tested vertical slice build during October and the leadership group had greenlit the project. Being able to see the full Gantt chart with the actual dev end date looks fantastic!
The goal is to finish the game within the next year!
The game will be a pay to own game with single-player campaign mode. It will have narrative-driven strategic game play. I know this wouldn’t let you envision what kind of game we are working on… but when the time comes, we will be sharing the detailed information with all of you! Hopefully in the next few weeks!
4. The Second Project
We have worked on few different prototypes before we confirmed the second project, the game will be worked by a small team with the indie spirit! Initially, we were looking at a mobile project but at the end of the day the creative director wanted something much more hardcore and decide to go with PC first!
The goal is to share the game design with the community, and share the progress we make…and go early access! and… build the game together from there. The game will be for PC and… pay to own, co-op heavy!
5. And.. the Third Project
We also kicked off the third project! The game is also being developed by a small team. The game shares the lore from the first project. It will be providing a sandbox experience with a survival element!
And YES! We will take open development approach with the project as well… so please stay tuned!
6. Getting Ready for the Launch Next Year
And.. the team is working super hard to launch all three games NEXT YEAR (2021!). It won’t be an easy schedule to hit, but staying in Korea with the team for 6 months, I have a huge belief that we can make this happen next year.
What platform? Probably Steam? and Epic Game Store? GOG? We are not sure yet, but our goal is to have the game available in as many marketplaces as possible so that more players can have access to the game!
What about the console? For now, we hope to make aGREAT GAMES on PC first and… potentially work on console platforms as well.
I love concepts for all three games… and patiently waiting for us to finalize the overall launch plan so that I can share them with you…!
7. Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
2020 wasn’t kind to us, thus we all need to enjoy the holiday with more festivities, and let’s wish for a happier 2021.
We are 100% certain 2021 will be fantastic for everyone at Ocean Drive Studio with all three games getting into launch mode, and looking very forward to hearing feedback from the community.
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
Sincerely,
Ocean Drive Studio
