Here’s the seventh episode of Indeviews! In this episode we are joined by indie game developer E McNeill.
Let’s get to it!
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For those who don’t know you, who are you and what do you do?
E: I’m E McNeill, a designer/programmer who went indie in late 2012. My biggest project so far was Auralux, an ultra-minimalistic RTS, but I’ve made a bunch of other games and prototypes which you can check out at my site.
Which game engines/game making tools do you use for your games? Did you build your own? If you have used different engines/game making tools, which one is your favorite and why?
E: For a long time I worked exclusively in XNA, but when I went indie I switched over to Unity, and I’m sooooo glad I did. The community is larger, it’s easier to go to multiple platforms, and the plugins are a godsend.
What programming language do you prefer developing your games on? Why do you choose it over others?
E: I’ve always been partial to C#. It seems to offer the sweet spot in terms of performance vs. ease of programming.
Do you use third party tools (map editors, sprite managers, animation suites etc) or you build your own?
E: I use the 2D Toolkit plugin for Unity, since it’s otherwise very 3D-focused.
Which tools and applications you usually use when developing a game (favorite IDE, text editor, do you use static analysis tools, revision control system, project management etc)?
E: I’m all over the place. I usually have Unity, Visual Studio, Notepad++, GIMP, Audacity, and pen and paper open on any given day.
Which games inspired you the most? Do you have a favorite developer from the games industry (indie or not)?
E: I was a PC gamer growing up, and my early influences were classics like Heroes of Might and Magic, Lords of the Realm, Command and Conquer, Morrowind, and Battlefield 1942. I’m finding inspiration even more often now, thanks to the explosion of the indie scene. I’d call out Proteus, Dear Esther, Flower, Limbo, and Bastion on the narrative side, and Eufloria, Minecraft, Braid, flOw, XCOM, and Dota on the mechanical side. Is that too many?
It would be tough to name a favorite developer, since I tend to idolize so many. Other indies have been hugely inspirational for me on a personal level, but that kind of admiration has been a little problematic for me. I wrote a blog post about that, if you’re curious.
What’s the single piece of advice that you would always give to someone, and what is something that you will absolutely avoid/never do again?
E: Be honest with yourself and go with your gut. I think that’s how you have to evaluate your work, choose your partners, and run your life. My biggest mistake in my game dev career came when I was choosing between two paths and went with the more “logical” one, against my instinct. Those gut feelings are there for a reason, even if you don’t always know what it is. Pay attention to them.
What are your future plans? What games are you working on right now?
E: I’m currently working on finishing Bombball, an OUYA eSport game that I first made for a 10-day game jam. Aside from that, I’m also prototyping a choice-based conversation game, a strategy card game, and a few other abstract touchscreen game mechanics. And once my Oculus Rift dev kit arrives, who knows what I’ll be up to?
Thanks so much for this interview!
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Stay tuned for the next episode next week! :)
Note: If you are an indie game developer and wanna be part of the series, just send us an email at info@evilwindowdog.com