BYOND Strategy Tech Tree: 169

We're coming up on the first anniversary of the most backhanded compliment my game development has ever received. I've kept the confused soul who replied to my unrelated game update anonymous, but my self-depreciating sense of humor forces me to repeat it.

What the frell am I supposed to make of that?! ;)

...Anyway, Tech Tree ran long this week.  I figured I'd go back to a weekly post whenever I can.  Enjoy.

This edited version of Along The Tech Tree comes to you from BYOND Strategy, a guild run by unpaid volunteers on a game/development portal and software engine called BYOND.  Tech Tree focuses on recent developer activity.  For play suggestions, visit the guild.

Devourer of Souls updated his featured hybrid of Chess and spell-casting, Witches' Chess.  Changes include options to make the window flash, a lower minimum for name lengths and a new spell.  The spell, Magic Elixir, allows players to remove one of their own pieces in exchange for magical resources.

This week, Gamemakingdude provided a BYOND Journalism review of my featured card-battling board game, PathWrath 2.  Unfortunately, it doesn't appear on the game's hub page.  Reviewers should feel free to submit reposts to BYOND Strategy if they can't get them displayed on their own...  These in particular would all be welcome. ;)

Meanwhile, BYOND Journalism's Fugsnarf has begun a digest column called BYOND Weekly.  I was thinking of doing a single, site-wide version of Tech Tree if the banner guilds ever get merged, but now I can shove it all on him.  Muhuhahaha!

IainPeregine's Get Something Done challenge had few successful entries this year (possibly due to it coinciding with college and highschool finals).  However, F0lak used it as an opportunity to work on the extension of his RPG world that he hinted at in December.

Hazordhu Wars is a side-scrolling RTS where players purchase waves of units to send across the screen.  It's not finished, but it can be downloaded and it has a help file so I've added it to the guild.  Check it out.  (You might want to maximize the window as it seems to go off the side of the screen at my resolution.) =)

Meanwhile, D4RK3 54B3R has uploaded a version of his FrostBurn for those who want to see how far he got.  However, you won't find the isometric RTS on its hub page as it was only offered in the comments of the GSD results.

Danny Roe has been working on a new game called Proximity.  On each turn, players labeled by colors will place a numbered tile.  Higher numbers will convert lower ones to their color and earn points.  The game ends when the board is full.  The highest score wins.  The game currently uses placeholder art, but Danny Roe seems happy with the design and programming progress.

Acebloke posted the results of June's AceMedalTable. He appears to have been knocked out of the top spot by Kisioj.  Meanwhile, Nadrew has risen to 5th place.  Gratz to both.

I uploaded a draft of the card game rules for my battle between ailing mining companies, Grim Prospects.  Please check them out and see if you understand how to play.

I also posted a Help Wanted ad over in the forums of The Game Crafter in the hopes of attaining some testers.  Thus far, I've had one "I'm on it!" reply and it was apparently deleted.

My combative space race, StarScurrier, now has a hub page.  I've begun tying my libraries together for the infrastructure.

I've settled on a silhoutte look for my unnamed, side-scrolling shooter.  I'm still determining how to generate levels.