Joystiq

Day-one Incredipede Steam sales eclipse previous four months

Jessica Conditt — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 12:30:00 EST

When Incredipede launched on Colin Northway's site in October 2012, "there were tears. There were all the stages of loss," Sarah Northway told Joystiq at GDC. Colin previously told us that Incredipede sales direct from his site were disappointing, in part because it wasn't yet on Steam.

Incredipede launched on Steam on March 18, and in its first 24 hours, it sold more units than the previous four months of independent sales combined.

"It's really good," Colin said. "I mean, it wasn't good for the four months, but it was good for the one day. And now it's doing well. It didn't just drop off to nothing. It's not going to make us rich, but we're actually going to get paid for the work we did. We have enough money to make another game."

Incredipede secured its Steam deal through an IGF nomination, another piece of advertisement that helped boost the game's sales. The Steam version is technically "1.5," featuring a bunch of updates that streamline the game's difficulty, adding 60 new levels and two more muscle groups that players can manipulate. Incredipede is on sale on Steam right now through March 29, for $10 on PC and Mac.

Day-one Incredipede Steam sales eclipse previous four months originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 26 Mar 2013 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How indie creature feature Incredipede stumbled onto Steam

Jessica Conditt — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 15:30:00 EST

In October, Incredipede developer Colin Northway introduced us to the Offspring Fling process of submitting an indie game to Steam:

"Apply to Steam, be rejected, release without it, get popular, be noticed by Valve, release on Steam."

Steam has since overhauled its submission process with Greenlight, a crowd-sourced method of voting games onto the service. Now from a developer's perspective, the indie submission system needs a related makeover and a new name. We suggest the Incredipede process:

"Post on Greenlight, be rejected, release without it, get popular, be noticed by the IGF and through an award nomination get a deal to release on Steam without Greenlight at all, haters."

It's a little more complicated and relies on a smidgen more luck, but the Incredipede process is one of many new ways to get an indie game on Steam. No matter the system, the goal remains the same - a Steam launch can propel an indie game from "hobby" to "day job," or change a sales outlook from "disappointing" to "happy."

"More and more Steam is the place to be for indie games," Northway tells me. "If I had $15 for every time I heard the comment, 'I would buy this if it was on Steam,' then I'd be much happier with the sales. Which is why I'm really looking forward to the Steam release."

Through its own convoluted yet successful process, Incredipede is coming to Steam for PC and Mac on March 18.

Continue reading How indie creature feature Incredipede stumbled onto Steam

How indie creature feature Incredipede stumbled onto Steam originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 06 Mar 2013 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Documenting the faux-wood-cut art style of Incredipede

Jessica Conditt — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 21:00:00 EST

Thomas Shahan takes close-up photos of bugs, makes intricate wood-cut prints and is the art director on Colin Northway's Incredipede. After watching the above video chronicling Shahan's process, it's obvious he mashed his passions together to create the creature and environments of Incredipede.

Documenting the faux-wood-cut art style of Incredipede originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 10 Dec 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Joystiq Indie Pitch: Incredipede

Jessica Conditt — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 20:00:00 EST

Indie developers are the starving artists of the video-game world, often brilliant and innovative, but also misunderstood, underfunded and more prone to writing free-form poetry on their LiveJournals. We believe they deserve a wider audience with the Joystiq Indie Pitch: This week, Colin Northway describes how indie life in Honduras created Quozzle, the creature in his PC game Incredipede.

What's your game called and what's it about?

Incredipede is a game about playing with nature and life. Quozzle is a creature that can change her shape by growing new bones and muscles wherever she wants so you can build any kind of animal you like. After you build your creature, you control it to overcome obstacles and rescue Quozzle's kidnapped sisters.

It's also a very beautiful game. Thomas Shahan and I worked hard to make the visuals unique and he did a truly amazing job.

What inspired you to make Incredipede?

Incredipede was inspired by the jungles of Honduras. My wife, Sarah, and I made the game over two years while also traveling the world. When we were in Honduras we lived in a little house slung out over the water at the end of a terrible dirt road. We climbed in the mangrove trees and snorkeled on the reef. Crabs scuttled and fish swam under the house, ants invaded the kitchen, birds ate our fruit and lizards and boa constrictors hid in the trees. Life was everywhere. I have always loved the creativity and variety of life and had to make a game about it.

Continue reading The Joystiq Indie Pitch: Incredipede

The Joystiq Indie Pitch: Incredipede originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 26 Oct 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PSA: Incredipede stretches its limbs today, play the free web demo

Jessica Conditt — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 16:00:00 EST

Incredipede, the customizable crawling creature game from Colin Northway, is available now for purchase, running $15. If the above launch trailer doesn't totally convince you, Incredipede also has a free in-browser demo.

People who pre-ordered the game had access to a beta build, and they constructed some pretty outstanding (and out-creeping, out-stretching, out-rolling) creatures, such as the Tractor, Jumper, Upsitube, Snake, and Northway's own creation, the Spider. If you need more help crafting your own Incredipede monster, Northway has a series of tips videos on the main website.

"Incredipede definitely rewards continued play," Northway says. "The first hour is going to be a different experience from the fourth hour." The fourteenth hour's experience, we assume, is a blur of joints, protrusions and green skin. See for yourself on Incredipede's main site.

PSA: Incredipede stretches its limbs today, play the free web demo originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 25 Oct 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Incredipede launching October 25 (just not on Steam)

Alexander Sliwinski — Wed, 17 Oct 2012 19:30:00 EST

Colin Northway's Incredipede will launch on October 25, the developer announced today via the twitters. The game won't be available on Steam at launch, so obtaining a copy will require a direct purchase at the Incredipede site.

If you'd like to purchase the game through Steam, Incredipede is currently making its way through the Greenlight system, dealing with all that comes with it. Go vote for it if you'd like to see it on Valve's digital distribution platform.

Incredipede launching October 25 (just not on Steam) originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 17 Oct 2012 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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(Not) Getting noticed on Steam Greenlight: Incredipede's story

Jessica Conditt — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 15:30:00 EST

In the indie world of secret handshakes and underground brunch meetings, there's a specific phrase for the following complex process, as described by developer Colin Northway: "Apply to Steam, be rejected, release without it, get popular, be noticed by Valve, release on Steam."

This is widely accepted as the "Offspring Fling" submission process. It takes the name of Kyle Pulver's retro platformer, which launched on Steam in May, months after not launching on Steam, despite Pulver's attempts. Northway shares this rejection jargon with us in terms of his own puzzle game, Incredipede, and Steam Greenlight:

"This is the path Offspring Fling took before Greenlight and it's the path Incredipede will take after Greenlight. It's kind of sad because I thought the point of Greenlight is to specifically avoid the 'Offspring Fling' situation."

Continue reading (Not) Getting noticed on Steam Greenlight: Incredipede's story

(Not) Getting noticed on Steam Greenlight: Incredipede's story originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 09 Oct 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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