My name is Mark Barazzuol, I'm a game designer who has worked at BioWare on Dragon Age 1 and 2. I've released a number of mobile games, and was nominated with my partner for independent game award for Foamzilla, alongside other games like World of Goo, Fez and the Misadventures of PB Winterbottom.
I've had a fair share of both success and failure, and I know first hand how difficult it can be to put a game, let alone a successful one. Did you know that most game projects that start and get into production don't even make it to a release? Some say it's as high as 80! or 90%!
I'd like to do my part to shift those percentages and use what I've learned and done to help others putting games together. It's a passion for me, and if it is for you I'll be putting a lot of free material out for you!
MOST of this content will be completely free. And when I say
"completely free" I mean you can not only download and use this stuff
for free, but you can also use it for commercial purposes without my
consent. I would like to be added into your credits if you do, but even
that isn't strictly necessary. It's yours to use and share.
In the future I do plan to release some content that is NOT free. But
once you buy that content, it's yours to use just as above, except for
the sharing part. There will be far more free stuff than there will be
pay for stuff. And I'm working to ensure both are of high value. I'm
not going to be hiding all the best stuff for paying people either.
I'll also be using affiliate links for relevant products. If you don't
know what these are, these are hyperlinks to buying something online.
If you buy something, I get a very small commission from it. For you,
there is absolutely no difference from going to the store yourself to
buy it. There's no markup for you. In fact, sometimes there may even
be discounts.
So even though I'll be giving away lots of free stuff, why charge for
anything? Because I'm practising what I'm preaching in terms of
monetization. This isn't going to earn me tons of money, and I'll be
happy if it even pays for itself. So it's going towards subsistence.
For you guys as game designs I'll always encourage the same thing. If
you love making games I'll always push you to ensure make enough money
to pay for your meagre rent, electricity, internet, and some bowls of
instant noodles to keep you fed and keep you subsisting and doing what you love to do.