VM Retrospective - June 2025

June has come and gone, and the summer heat - alongside the many events tied to the season - has defined the development process for the sixth VM Game of the year. Seconds Between Summer released at the end of last month, and I’m incredibly proud of how it turned out. It’s a mystery swimming game that rewrites my own definition of what a VM Game could be and broadens the horizons on the I KNEW YOU WERE OUT THERE theme set. There were a lot of new features for Seconds Between Summer that posed a new set of challenges to solve and struggle with, and I’m happy to share the 3 rights and wrongs from this past month, plus a bonus note on reaching the midpoint of the year.

3 Rights

Creating A Double View Swimming Mystery!

It’s hard to fully capture the complexity I set out to achieve for this game. There were a number of new features I wanted to experiment with, each with their own unknowns but sense of high payout. One of those features was the double camera view. Having views of two different worlds was initially tricky having never done that in any of my games before, but creating viewports of different scenes was much easier than anticipated. Each view runs independently from the other, which allowed for fluid navigation for each world.

Speaking on navigation, this is the first VM Game that includes traversal of any kind, which expanded player control and heavily impacted how one would receive information throughout the game. While this wasn’t a difficult step getting both characters to move, it still felt like a major departure from previous narrative experiences for the studio, even compared to Remember Me Before Andromeda’s loose narrative structure. 

Another aspect that was extremely different from previous VM Games was the fill in the blank gameplay. Heavily inspired by one of my favorite games The Case of the Golden Idol, I wanted to repurpose that game’s word bank mystery system for a different narrative context. This feature was by far the most difficult to implement, but with the help of a github user recreating their own version of the system, I was able to add clickable words, a word bank that worked across both worlds, and fill-in-the-blank sentences that would track when a player has filled in the correct words. These three features were integral to making Seconds Between Summer an engaging narrative experience that brought something new despite it being the sixth monthly game, and I aim to continue experimenting with a new frame of mind having found success for June’s game.

Using a Spreadsheet!

The distinct narrative structure of this game required a different method for tracking. Simply put, I needed a way to ensure that all clue words were accounted for - something I never had to consider for any other game this year. Therefore, I utilized a tried-and-true tool to accomplish this goal: the spreadsheet. While it’s nothing revolutionary to use a spreadsheet to track narrative points - especially for a mystery-style game, I was happy that I incorporated different software that catered to the game I was developing. I think acknowledging this is important because it demonstrates the flexibility needed to make these narrative games. In any given month, I could be using a different set of tools, and I should be embracing that as a core part of Vine Moss. My development journey should be varied and experimental not only in each game’s content, but also in the tools I use to create.

The First Development Collab!

Seconds Between Summer also marks the first major collaborative game for Vine Moss Games! All 16 art panels were designed by our new collaborating artist Estelle, which not only took the art load off of my task list but also enhance the overall look and visual design for this game. Working on Seconds Between Summer with Estelle was so fulfilling, and I couldn’t have gotten to where I wanted with this game without her work and talent. I’m looking forward to seeing more of her work in future VM Games, and I fully believe the collaboration will take future VM Games to another level.

3 Wrongs

Production Planning Derailed (Again)

I mentioned for May’s game that I stopped looking at my task board when it got close to the wire and resorted to listing out the tasks I needed to get done on a notepad. I unfortunately fell back into the same process, ignoring my sprint schedule and trying to get done with as much stuff as possible each day. This not only creates a habit where I overwork each day, but it also can lead to me forgetting about certain tasks or features until way later. I really want to get back into the sprint structure and hold myself accountable each week to make sure I’m making steady, healthy progress. The last month was very chaotic, but I think utilizing this tool could have prevented some of the stress I had near the end of June.

Backward Prioritization

As I mentioned before, this game introduced a lot of new features that I needed to devote time to solving. However, I remember how much time I spent figuring out the viewports and swim shaders very early on, and I know a lot of that time could’ve been spent figuring out some of the more foundation aspects of the game. I want to prioritize writing first as always, but the mechanic-based features took priority and too much of the development time overall. I am committed to saving shader-based features and polish for the end of development, so July’s game will have narrative and structure done first before anything else. This will help me to engage in healthier development habits and prevent overworking throughout the development cycle.

Overscoped in the Face of Life

June ended up being one of the busiest months of the year. Whether it was weddings, conferences, or summer socials - the chaos of normal life led to a few stressful nights getting this game to the quality I wanted it at for release. It makes sense that I chose to delay the release of this game internally to June 30th - the last possible day to adhere to the game-a-month rule set for myself - there were so many events with less time than usual to complete the game. While I did manage to release the most ambitious and interactive VM game so far this year, it came at the cost of my own sleep schedule and self care - consecutive all-day work days is never something I want to do. This development cycle was just difficult, and although I understand the nature of making a game a month will lead to a lot of work, I should have better scoped this project to account for the rest of my life. This was a good reminder that these games should be treated as sustainable monthly narrative games, and when I feel like I’m doing too much for one game, I should find the right ways to scale back as soon as possible to prevent the end of the month game crunch.

BONUS: Vine Moss Games Half-Year Review

I’m halfway through this year’s grand challenge. 12 games in as many months was bound to be a difficult undertaking, and while it has lived up to the challenge in the form of late nights and head-banging programming sessions, I am filled with so much joy. This decision has brought so much for me already: getting to go to GDC in March as a founder and becoming an Amplifying New Voices Scholar was surreal and a source of pride that has been a constant motivation. More recently, going to Games For Change as a Game Dev of Color Scholar, showcasing my work at a local Atlanta indie games event, and speaking on my first game dev panel in the span of a week has felt like a catapult in the greatest of senses. It’s an indescribable feeling seeing so many people play and watch your games in person, and seeing people’s reaction to my studio reminded me how ambitious this game-a-month project really is. It’s easy to forget and feel siloed when making these games while working hard to find and grow an audience, so moments where I can see players enjoy my work has been much needed.

These games have been a huge investment in time and energy, but they’ve served as a creative outlet like no other. I’m free to design and develop in the way I want, and I can experiment with the way I tell these human stories in an effort to discover a distinct yet resonant experience for players. This monthly development experience is not a practice I’d recommend to everyone, especially not at the scale I’ve done these games at so far. That said, releasing a game so regularly with their own set of promotional material and documentation has taught me so much about myself as an artist and a creative. I feel equipped now more than ever to take on any project or challenge, and I’m ready to tackle the second half of this game series with even more vigor and dedication to experimentation than before.

What’s Packed For The Horizon

July’s game is already fast-approaching, and the next few weeks will be a relatively faster rollout for the last game in this set. Be ready for a game that is mechanically engaging and introduces complex personalities, verging on unsettling. Until then, please enjoy the substantial VM catalogue, and thank you so much for your support so far. It’s a blessing to be halfway through this year and still be excited to create and share more with you. Thank you for reading this retrospective on Seconds Between Summer, and get ready for the next couple of months - they won’t disappoint!