We’re in that happy place now between finishing a game and releasing it. All is calm. We’d hoped to have a solid release date for you by now, but I think we squeaked in a little late for that. More likely, we’ll just jump out from behind a bush when you least expect it, screaming “THE GAME IS OUT TODAY”. This month is still as specific as we can really be. You can sign up for an email reminder to stay on top of things.

May we present Gauntlet’s Revenge, in all its release candidate glory. We’re running the game through its final tests this week, preparing to submit it to the App Store review team. That makes this six-month project the fastest game we’ve completed since the original Tilt to Live. We have a lot of awesome new tools to thank for that, plus some time-saving infrastructure from Tilt to Live 2.

Release day isn’t set in stone yet, but you can always sign up for an email reminder when the game comes out.

We normally post on Wednesday mornings, but our trailer for Gauntlet’s Revenge isn’t ready just yet. Should be up later this week!

This week I’m prepping some artwork for the Gauntlet’s Revenge soundtrack. I usually try to do something snazzy for the cover, since our bandcamp page is where I go to get nostalgic or if I’m feeling discouraged. I’ve told Alex I consider it our trophy room, though I’m not sure he gets quite so dorky about it. The music is still being composed, but I thought I’d show off the cover art in the mean time. We liked it so much we also used it for our new game page.

Yikes! Is it Wednesday already? We released some new screenshots yesterday that have found their way onto various news outlets. We’ll have those collected on an official game page as soon as I get to that part of my to-do list.

As more sound effects trickle in, we’re getting ready to start capturing gameplay clips for a trailer. That should be ready in a week or two, and we’re also making some headway on artwork and music for a Gauntlet’s Revenge soundtrack release. October isn’t far away…

Been putting together promotional artwork while Mike Reagan (Outwitters, Tilt to Live 2) works up some music for us. At this point we’ve got our marketing and app submission schedule mostly in place, so we’re bug hunting and digging around for sound effects until the clock’s run out.

My icon sketches this time around were pretty sloppy, so here are the rough mockups for our top three. The far right design doesn’t really work for an app icon, but as a loading screen it’s looking pretty slick.

We won’t spoil the final level for you, but this is the entrance to the Dot Bot Fortress (along with some Dot King propaganda).

At the end of last week we put the finishing touches on all four of Gauntlet’s courses. Our litmus test for it being ready was to beat the entire game on hard mode, where you die in one hit and have to be perfect. I managed to finish everything but our final boss, who I got down to two hits but couldn’t quite finish off. That is the last, great challenge in the game, so we figure he’s about right.

So now, in the final stretch, we squish bugs, create marketing materials, dot i’s, and cross t’s. Trailer, screenshots, press releases, store description… There’s a lot left to do, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. We’re looking at you, October.

Here’s a glimpse at one of Arropolis’s unique features: zap traps. With good timing, you can destroy any enemy in the level using one of these zappers. In the case of that little pest chasing you, it’s the only way to get him off your back.

My sketches are becoming increasingly rushed and unpresentable as our deadline creeps up, so here’s some vector mockups for the Arropolis bad guys. Diversifying enemy types and obstacles poses an interesting challenge in a game where all you do is tilt, but I think we’ve done a good job making each new enemy feel like a unique challenge. Hopefully we’ll have time to fit all of these guys into the level!