Hey folks!

One of the most important (if least mentioned) aspects of game design is how smoothly the game operates.  Your game can have snazzy features and a great concept, but for it to be really fun to play, it can't handle like a constipated tank.  Unfortunately, avoiding this issue isn't exactly easy.  Smoothness of a user interface is something that's difficult to quantify, but I'm going to give it my best shot.

Greets!

This coming month, we're going to try something different in terms of raising commission money.  Instead of going for a fixed amount, I'd like to aim for five new subscribers.  So if you're reading this and you can afford a couple dollars a month, hit the "Donate or Subscribe" button on the right side of the page and help us reach our goal!

I know there are a lot of FOSS game projects out there that keep an eye on OGA, which makes us very happy.  If you're reading this and you're a maintainer of a FOSS game project, there's a very easy way you can get more out of OGA.  Namely, make a list of the art assets you need.  It doesn't need to be a complete list, even -- just a few things you can think of off the top of your head.  When you have your list, put it up on your forum or wiki and put a link to it on our forum, or just type up a forum post here on OGA with the list and keep an eye on it.  Be sure to specify which license(s)

If you haven't checked it out already, I highly recommend taking a look at Frogatto, a free 2D platformer for Windows, Linux, and Macintosh.  I've been playing it myself, and while I'm not far enough in to write a real review, what I can say is that the controls are smooth and natural and the graphics are all-around gorgeous.  Plus, the game itself is j

From time to time, I like to watch OGA's referer list just to get a good idea of where people are finding our site from, and once in a while, I'll discover something super cool.  This is one of those times. :)

Hey folks!

Some of you may have noticed that in some cases it takes a while for a particular piece of art to be approved.  Generally, we're trying to resolve some licensing questions so we know we can legally post the work.  Here's how you can help:

I just read a post on Slashdot that linked to a blog entry by composer Jason Robert Brown.  It's an interesting read, and anyone with any interest in copyright ought to read it.  The response on Slashdot was surprisingly hostile, which is why I'm posting my own response here, since people can't downmod me on my own blog. :)

The TL;DR version of the blog post is as follows:

Hey folks!

Greets!

In case you've missed the little box int he upper right corner of the page, OpenGameArt has an IRC channel on FreeNode.  We're a pretty active channel, with generally 10 to 20 people online at any given moment, including a number of great coders, artists, and musicians.  We're always up for critiquing artwork and just chatting about games and art in general, so feel free to drop by!

Chat with us from your web browser here:

http://webchat.freenode.net/?channels=opengameart