Dark Nebula - Episode Two

[Hejden]

9797

It's official! We've teamed up with Outbreak Studios to make Dark Nebula - Episode Two.

http://www.outbreakstudios.se/news.php?id=11

GOTHENBURG, Sweden October 29, 2009 - Peter Björklund, the CEO of Outbreak Studios announced today that they have signed up with 1337 Game Design to develop the second episode of the game Dark Nebula for the iPhone and iPod Touch. The first episode of Dark Nebula was released on Apple’s App Store just two weeks ago and has already become a bestseller in many countries. Some reviewers have even named it the best game released for the platform to date.

"At Outbreak Studios, passion and creativity is central in everything we do, and when we decide which projects to get involved in we only work with clients that share those values. We love what 1337 Game Design has done with the first episode, so we’re very excited to take things further with the sequel. We also prefer to work with projects where we are as close to the end consumer as possible, and Dark Nebula is perfect for that." Peter says.

Dark Nebula was designed by Anders Hejdenberg, a game industry veteran who has worked with Peter Björklund on numerous games before.

"We’ve promised our fans to make the second episode much longer than the first one, and we’ve promised ourselves to make it just as fresh and exciting gameplay-wise. By signing up with Outbreak Studios we feel confident that both those promises will be kept. I think it goes without saying that we are extremely pleased with this collaboration." Anders says.

The work on the second episode has already begun, and the title is planned to be released early next year. Before that, an update will be released for the first episode with Facebook-integrated highscores and a calibration option for the controls.

About Dark Nebula - Dark Nebula is a skill-based action game where the objective is to get your player character through an array of levels filled with various obstacles. The controls are similar to marble labyrinth games but the levels are filled with elements and puzzles inspired by platform games where you need to jump over swinging blades, dodge spikes and avoid deadly falls.

[Prab]

WooHoo! Totally loved the first episode! How much longer will the second episode be? :p

And how about a social network for the leaderboards instead of FaceBook?

[sic]

great news! but what is outbreak studios? what are the advantages of collaborating with them?

Thanks!

[RiverOnFire]

Dark Nebula is fun and extremely unique. Very happy to hear the game will be extended and the devs getting the financial backing and horse power they need so they can focus on making another great episode.

[Hejden]

Prab: I'm not sure I understand what you mean by "how about a social network for the leaderboards instead of Facebook". Could you elaborate on that?

Sic: Outbreak Studios is a newly-started company founded by some really experienced game developers. Working with them allows us to get more features into the game within the same timeframe, and fresh perspectives in the creative process.

Riveronfire: We are definitely getting more horsepower! Just to clarify though, Dark Nebula is still financed by 1337 Game Design - which in turn is financed by game sales of Dark Nebula - Episode One.

[xFinch713x]

Prab: I'm not sure I understand what you mean by "how about a social network for the leaderboards instead of Facebook". Could you elaborate on that?

OpenFeint, Plus+, AGON. Online Leaderboards, friends, chat, etc.

[5duc29]

OpenFeint, Plus+, AGON. Online Leaderboards, friends, chat, etc.

Yes, any of those would be nice. Is episode two going to be a DLC?

[Prab]

Oops, okay, on hindsight that sentence sounds weird since Facebook is a social network. lol

I meant: how about integration with Plus+, OpenFeint, AGON, etc, to handle your leaderboards (and optionally achievements)?

[Hejden]

The second episode will be available as DLC.

Regarding leaderboard integration, our plan is to host the leaderboards ourselves so that everyone has global ranking. If you have facebook you will also be able to compare your score with your facebook friends.

We've been in contact with Openfeint, but quite frankly they take a ridiculous chunk out of your profits if you want to use their service.

[Palfince]

We've been in contact with Openfeint, but quite frankly they take a ridiculous chunk out of your profits if you want to use their service.

Really? I was under the impression that the service was completely free to use...

[derek420]

Really? I was under the impression that the service was completely free to use...
no i dont think its free, but i thought that they only took a fairly low percentage of the profits..

[Palfince]

no i dont think its free, but i thought that they only took a fairly low percentage of the profits..

They're lying when they say this then:

All that, much more, and still free.
What are you waiting for?

Source: http://openfeint.com/developers

[derek420]

They're lying when they say this then:



Source: http://openfeint.com/developers
ohhhh..man i dont even know then.. :/

[Prab]

Oh drat. Hosting your own global leaderboards seems more reasonable then.

[Devilishly Good]

yeah, I thought OF was free to the developers

[drelbs]

Didn't a devoper post that Apple takes a percentage which can go to people like OF/+/AGON, but it's taken whether or not you use it?

So OF isn't really free, but it kinda is from the developer's perspective. I bet Apple just pockets the money if you don't use it...

[derek420]

Didn't a devoper post that Apple takes a percentage which can go to people like OF/+/AGON, but it's taken whether or not you use it?

So OF isn't really free, but it kinda is from the developer's perspective. I bet Apple just pockets the money if you don't use it...
ok good ur talking about what came to my mind.
i think ur right tho, that makes sense

[Kikekun]

I really thought Dark Nebula was awesome. Really impressive and enjoyable game, so an episode two is good news!

[themendoz]

I'm really happy for you guys, you listen to your fans anf I'm sure it'll keep paying off.
if open feint charges a ridiculous amt of money, I understand why you would avoid it, but could you check with Plus+ too? I know many of us don't use facebook integration with our games (although it is better than nothing).

[jasonsmith]

I'd like to be happy about this but honestly I'm still not pleased with the meager amount of game play in the current episode. Great game but many other great games out there with 5x as much game play.

[Hejden]

We've contacted Plus+ to see what kind of deal they have, but we have yet to hear back from them.

Openfeint charges a percentage of your profits that we thought was unreasonable. However, I'm having a call with them today to make sure I have understood everything correctly.

Jasonsmith: I'm really sorry that you were disappointed with the length of the first episode. As we mentioned in the press release, the second episode will be much longer - but I guess that doesn't make the first one less of a disappointment for you.

What is it that you guys find best with Openfeint, or Plus+?

[derek420]

My vote is definitely OpenFeint. Plus+ is nice and all, but i stand by OF. and, OF has a larger following

[Prab]

Wah.. thats a pretty hard question to answer. Im okay with either but if I really have to choose one, Id pick Plus+. I think it is more exclusive (it accepts fewer games than OpenFeint) so it may be better for your game if it has Plus+.

[5duc29]

I don't know.. I just think there's a lot more replay value if there are achievements. More appealing too. I would prefer Open Feint, but either is fine.

Looking forward to episode 2 :D

[Hejden]

Well, I just talked to the people at Openfeint and it seems like I've got my information wrong so I'll definitely be considering them along with Plus+.

[themendoz]

Well, I just talked to the people at Openfeint and it seems like I've got my information wrong so I'll definitely be considering them along with Plus+.
I'm really glad to hear this. To answer your earlier question about why we like OF and +, I was originally an xbox 360 gamer and one of the reasons that kept me coming back to its games was how neatly organized their live system was. I'm not talking only about the smooth online gameplay, I'm also referring to the fact that you could find a player's info all in one gamertag: what games he/she likes, how thouroughly the person plays them and pretty much how good he is. Open feint and Plus+ mimic this quite accurately. Not only do you get info about the current game, but also their other games. It's a great way to compare and find things in common. It just feel like you are part of something bigger.

Visually I think Plus is better, it's very polished. Nevertheless, I feel it really slows down games. The new Doctor Awesome takes soo long to load because of Plus it's really annoying. I hope this only happens to me and if there is a way to avoid those loading times, it's as good or better than open feint. However, it seems many more games are taking advantage of Open feint and that is a big plus (few games besides ngmoco's seem to use plus). You can't go wrong with either and I guess it depends on which one your fans want more. Hope this helps.

[Shawn[QS]]

We have OpenFeint integrated into a few of our games which are due to release anytime now and according to all material I have been able to gather there is no cost to use OpenFeint for the user or the developer.

In their developer section after you register they have a price information page which states in bold letters that it is free for both the developer and the user. They further explain how this is possible in the following paragraph:

How does One Touch iPurchase work?
It's simple! Every time a player discovers and purchases a game from within OpenFeint, as a registered affiliate partner for Apple, we get 5 percent of the purchase price, with 25 percent going to Apple and 70 percent to the developer.

[Hejden]

Thanks for the input Themendoz!

Shawn[QS]: You are absolutely correct, and the quote you posted from Openfeint describes how the process works. We had got our information all wrong, but the people at Openfeint have now cleared that up for us.

[Hudson RL]

This game needs plus+, it's the most complete of all the online networks. and with the upcoming global release of Eliminate, it will soon have a huge following

[Palfince]

This game needs plus+, it's the most complete of all the online networks. and with the upcoming global release of Eliminate, it will soon have a huge following

Actually OpenFeint has more features than Plus+ and with their recent multi-million dollar investment from DeNA (http://www.pocketgamer.biz/r/PG.Biz/OpenFeint/news.asp?c=16457) it should improve a lot.

[Blader]

Plus+ all the way!
I fins it way more satisfying than OpenFeint, and as someone else said, the release of Eliminate will generate an enormous Plus+ following.

[Hejden]

There's also another aspect to this situation and that is that both Openfeint and Plus+ have so many features that they can become overwhelming for casual users. When I tried the Openfeint system the first time, my gut reaction was that I wanted to turn it off because there were just too many options available to me.

I like the fact that you can just start playing Dark Nebula without hassle, and without being confronted with a million options before you can start playing. For the update we just want a few added features like highscores, challenges, achievements, facebook posting etc. But if we go with a system like Openfeint we are adding unnecessary complexity to a game that doesn't benefit from it.

Openfeint allows us to pick out the parts of their system we want to use, so we can easily just add what we want and forget about the rest. This would mean that casual players can see their highscores on a global leaderboard, compare with their friends etc. But if we just implement part of the system, I feat that the hardcore users will feel that we've cut away all the features they use.

How do you guys feel about this?

[Palfince]

I only ever use the leaderboards and achievements in OpenFeint, so if you implement them I'll be happy. :)

[sic]

im ok without openfeint or plus+, about the online highscores and achievements, its good if you can do it in-game yourselves.

[Shinto]

I only ever use the leaderboards and achievements in OpenFeint, so if you implement them I'll be happy. :)

Same here. I love when games have achievements in Plus+ or Openfeint. When you start the game the first time you can use Openfeint or Plus+ or not. I don´t think this will bother anyone.

I see is a good strategy for sales to use this plattforms, there are gamers that buy games mostly for the achievements

[sic]

yes but i guess the dev can have achievements even without openfeint or plus+

[Shinto]

yes but i guess the dev can have achievements even without openfeint or plus+

And is nice too, but is better with achievements multigame similar to Xbox 360 experience

[hapz]

grrrrr.. exciting stuff...

hope episode 2 is free since we have episode 1.. else id be pissed

[hapz]

How do you guys feel about this?

i use open feint for the global high score and achievements..

the other crap just makes the game bulky and it is not necessary..

even better if you made your own stuff and not use their UI..

i HATE playing and BLAM.. "hihi wanna publish to facebook twitter?"

and when you are trying to click on menu items on the bottom of the screen.. BLAMMMMM

open feint pops up and stays there for like 5 seconds before it pisses off... very annoying..

maybe have it only accessible via the main menu screen and NOT popup telling us.. "OH HI I AM ONLINE AND HERE I AM OBSCURING THE BOTTOM OF YOUR SCREEN"

/the end

[Hejden]

Thanks for your input Hapz!

For the second episode we want to add a lot of new content - levels, enemies, obstacles, features, and new art. It's not just an expansion pack, it will be a whole new game - much longer than the current one as well.

At this point, there is simply no way for us to finance the project if we would give it away for free at release. I'm afraid that's just the reality of our situation as an independent developer.

[SimonWitton]

Thanks for your input Hapz!

For the second episode we want to add a lot of new content - levels, enemies, obstacles, features, and new art. It's not just an expansion pack, it will be a whole new game - much longer than the current one as well.

At this point, there is simply no way for us to finance the project if we would give it away for free at release. I'm afraid that's just the reality of our situation as an independent developer.

I was happy to pay 59p for this gem of a game, and would be happy to pay for more. I dont think anyone expects you to give all your hard work away for free and i for one and just happy to have given you the funding needed to make more levels and features. Cant wait for episode two!!

[sic]

Thanks for your input Hapz!

For the second episode we want to add a lot of new content - levels, enemies, obstacles, features, and new art. It's not just an expansion pack, it will be a whole new game - much longer than the current one as well.

At this point, there is simply no way for us to finance the project if we would give it away for free at release. I'm afraid that's just the reality of our situation as an independent developer.


Episode 2 will be DLC right? I hope so 'cause for example, I dont wanna have like 10 separate icons on my ipod for episodes 1 - 10

[Prab]

Episode 2 will be DLC right? I hope so 'cause for example, I dont wanna have like 10 separate icons on my ipod for episodes 1 - 10
It will be DLC:
The second episode will be available as DLC.

[sic]

Thanks!

[Twitchfactor]

I was happy to pay 59p for this gem of a game, and would be happy to pay for more. I dont think anyone expects you to give all your hard work away for free and i for one and just happy to have given you the funding needed to make more levels and features. Cant wait for episode two!!

I think they're money grubbing bastards who are just trying to rip us off with some schlock they tossed out for a quick buck! ;)

Just kidding. Honestly, I think Dark Nebula Ep1 is just about right for 59p / 99c. It's fun, engaging, pretty to look at and just the right challenge. Of course, I'm used to paying $65 for 4hr games like Call of Duty vs. $1 for 1hr.

Can't wait for the next game!

[Hejden]

We've been looking at Openfeint now, and I have to say that we are not very impressed. Just when trying it out for the first time, it crashed twice. Quite simply, that's just not acceptable for us. The menus are not very good either, and the whole interface just feels slow and sluggish.

So we will most probably implement the features we want ourselves. This would keep the interface clean and simple, and we can ensure that the service is fast and free from crashes.

[sic]

yes, better to implement it yourself then. :)

[themendoz]

We've been looking at Openfeint now, and I have to say that we are not very impressed. Just when trying it out for the first time, it crashed twice. Quite simply, that's just not acceptable for us. The menus are not very good either, and the whole interface just feels slow and sluggish.

So we will most probably implement the features we want ourselves. This would keep the interface clean and simple, and we can ensure that the service is fast and free from crashes.
Before you are set on forgetting about the networks, could you check out Plus quickly to see if it suits your needs? Think about it, now that it has improved with Eliminate, many more players will be using it, plus, there is a news feed that is constantly updated (which would mention that your game now has plus/is on sale/etc. Suddenly all of the new Eliminate Players become potential buyers. That's at least 3000 new potential customers.
It might be worse than OF for what you need but it's worth looking at.

[Hejden]

I just heard back from Plus+ today, and as soon as I sign their NDA they were willing to tell me more about their service and how things work. So I'll definitely give them a chance and hear them out.

[Prab]

Awesome :D

[themendoz]

I just heard back from Plus+ today, and as soon as I sign their NDA they were willing to tell me more about their service and how things work. So I'll definitely give them a chance and hear them out.
That's great, thanks for telling us.
Also, I checked out Boost 3D today and it does a great job of using a minimum amount of Open Feint. You might want to check it out, totally simple and doesn't disturb.

[weedeatinflyincougar]

Is there going to be a calibrate button? I don't think there was one in the 1st episode and i hate having to play with my ipod flat all the time.

[STP_Tim]

That's great, thanks for telling us.
Also, I checked out Boost 3D today and it does a great job of using a minimum amount of Open Feint. You might want to check it out, totally simple and doesn't disturb.

I think Plus+ is better suited for Dark Nebula, even if only for looks.

[Hejden]

themendoz: I'll check out Boost 3d to see how they've done it.

weedeatinflyincougar: As we progress with episode two, we will also release an update for the first episode that has the calibration option included.

[sic]

yeah just use plus+

[HappiPhone]

weedeatinflyincougar: As we progress with episode two, we will also release an update for the first episode that has the calibration option included.

That's a great thing. I hate playing with my iPhone flat.

Hope the Episode 2 will be as good as the first one, which was one of my favorite iPhone game last month.

PS : sorry for my english, i'm french ^^

[SimonWitton]

What achievement system did you go with in the end? Btw plus+ promote their games aswell which will get you a lot of sales, some people just buy any plus+ games.

[Hejden]

We haven't decided on an achievement system yet. I agree that Plus+ and Openfeint can give the title an extra push sales-wise due to cross promotion, but first and foremost I want to make sure that the game experience remains perfect for the player.

Openfeint failed that test due to their cluttered and sluggish system that crashed on me twice as I was testing it out.

Plus+ has a better system as far as I can tell, but I think they are taking their business strategy a bit far recently when they are saying that you can get crystals in one game by downloading another game. It just doesn't sit right with me. I want the game experience to come first. If I just wanted money I would not be making iPhone games.

[SimonWitton]

Hejden,

i respect you for saying that the game experience comes first because thats what its all about. Im sure that whatever you end up going with will fit perfectly with the game. Cant wait for episode 2!!

[Hejden]

http://www.1337gamedesign.com/EP2_test.png

The adventure continues...

[themendoz]

Wow, this looks wonderful! Keep up the great job and I cant wait to see what you come up with next.

[Prab]

Wow... thats a wild change (from futuristic to a mayan-like environment). Looks awesome though :D

[Hejden]

http://www.1337gamedesign.com/EP2_crash.png

[eugekava]

This looks amazing! The paint job looks a bit x-wingish. ;)

I can't wait for it to be out

[Prab]

Okay, not so mayan then. That's a lot of metal buried underground lol :D

[lurchi13]

I really like the new graphics!
The only thing that looks oddly out of place now is the ball: it seems to be a foreign object floating on another layer.
It would be great if you could make the ball more look like its really part of the background scene. For example you could use colored lighting or subtle reflections on the ball that matches the backgrounds colors.

I cannot wait to see more of this...

[Hejden]

That's a good point actually! Since different levels will have different lighting we will need different art for the player character on each level anyway, so we could certainly make it blend in better.

[SimonWitton]

WOW! That new level looks amazing!! Hope to have it soon. What new obsticles are you adding in the next levels? And also is there just one new "scene" or will there be many? Sorry for all the questions, and thanks.

[Hejden]

We will have a few different sceneries throughout the game, the one you see above is the first one. We are currently experimenting with various obstacles, but the biggest evolution is that we are adding actual enemies that you fight in various different ways depending on their type.

You will still just use the normal controls, but you have to navigate around them to strike their weak spots, use them against each other, jump on top of them or use the obstacles in the levels against them. Sometimes you will meet different types of enemies together, where you will need to prioritize certain enemies before others to be as effective as possible.

We will also have "arenas" that are small portions of maps that have been made wider to that you can move in all directions. This is to provide enough space to have larger battles and more obstacles in the same area.

To summarize - it's gonna be SO cool :)

[SimonWitton]

Does sound cool.

[Frog]

It looks and sounds great!

[Prab]

Wow... Interesting. I wasn't expecting to defeat enemies. That'll be awesome :D

[SimonWitton]

Any new info about the DLC? How early in january will it be? Thanks.

[Remmykins]

Any new info about the DLC? How early in january will it be? Thanks.

Yeah I also want to know if there is any news on this.

[Hejden]

The second episode will be out in the beginning of next year. We have also just submitted a version 1.1 update for Episode one to Apple that has the following features:

- Calibration option for controls
- New "Expert" difficulty setting
- Global leaderboards
- Friends leaderboard
- Facebook integration

[SimonWitton]

The second episode will be out in the beginning of next year. We have also just submitted a version 1.1 update for Episode one to Apple that has the following features:

- Calibration option for controls
- New "Expert" difficulty setting
- Global leaderboards
- Friends leaderboard
- Facebook integration

Cool :)

the update is out, lovin the new icon a lot better than the original. Looking forward to plaxing expert mode and episode 2, anymore teasers?

Damn expert mode is hard! But in a good way though.

[Hejden]

We're currently working hard on episode two, and have got some really nice features into the game.

Apart from new features, the second episode will have a much more varied art style with different themes, along with some new cool weather effects.

We are also working on a fully rendered intro movie :)

[SimonWitton]

When are you planning on submitting episode 2 ? Its seemed like a lifetime from episode 1 to january, this is the game im looking forward to most!

Btw i love how you can calibrate quickly with two fingers, ive often wondered why noone has done that before.

Oh and i have high expectations for the intro movie, i can imagine it being awesome, just like left for dead ones are!

Also, i think the leaderboards could be improved a lot. The actual leaderbord is tiny, and some of tje options could actually be tabs at the top (local/global). Anyone else feel the same? And will there be achievements in episode 2?

[Sim1]

The 1st episode was awesome. Shame I finished it in 25 minutes. Looking forward to episode 2!

[Silverdraken]

Just tried out the lite. It was very good, will definitely buy the full version. I must say I liked the first icon much more, though. Varför ändrade ni den? :p

[SimonWitton]

I hope the reason that we arent hearing anything is because youre busy finalising the second episode. I hope.

[Hejden]

We are certainly working hard to get all the features into episode two. We're currently playing around with various enemy types, and I have to say that it's looking quite promising! Battling enemies in open arena-like spaces adds a very fluid motion to the game as you circle around them, move between them and jump over them. Fighting enemies without changing the control method, or making the game more complicated has been difficult - but now that it's in it feels like we have certainly expanded the game in a very exciting way.

[jak56]

why make episode 2 a DLC?

i'm sure many people might just wanna get episode 2 without getting episode one. but i wouldn't know. your choice ultimately

[Enigmious]

This is really looking top-notch! Very excited for this new stuff. Great job from what we can see...

[sic]

why make episode 2 a DLC?

i'm sure many people might just wanna get episode 2 without getting episode one. but i wouldn't know. your choice ultimately

because it's not a sequel of some sort. its still DARK NEBULA - one game overall.

[Hejden]

The original plan was for the second episode to be released as a separate application. However, a lot of people complained about this as they don't want two separate applications for what they regard to be the same game - so we decided to release it as downloadable content instead.

But having thought about it some more, there are some very substantial issues with the DLC model for us:

1. Games are sold mainly based on their location in the appstore charts, and DLC sales only affects the top grossing chart. The top grossing chart is extremely difficult to get into with a $0.99 game - and if your on a position in that chart that is high enough to generate further sales through exposure, you have already made enough money to recoup what you spent on the project three times over.

2. People who just want the second episode will have to pay for the first one.

3. DLC requires an OS version 3.0 or higher. Since this upgrade costs money on the iPod Touch for some reason, there may be some people who won't be able to play the second episode.


The positive aspects of DLC are:

1. People who already own Dark Nebula will get an instant notification that the next episode is out.

2. People will not have two separate applications on their device.


What are your thoughts on this?

[DevL]

Why not do both if it's based on the same code base as the original?
Release an episode two as a standalone app, but update the original to offer DLC for the second episode - make it very clear that those buying via DLC that its the same as the new app to avoid complaints from those that buy both.
With the second app you can always include the slow buildup/training scenario for new players and omit that from the DLC version.

[squarezero]

Why not do both if it's based on the same code base as the original?
Release an episode two as a standalone app, but update the original to offer DLC for the second episode - make it very clear that those buying via DLC that its the same as the new app to avoid complaints from those that buy both.
With the second app you can always include the slow buildup/training scenario for new players and omit that from the DLC version.
I had exactly the same thought. The only concern is that sales of the sequel would then be accounted across two different SKUs (so to speak), and you would have a tougher time getting into the Top Paid lists.

[jak56]

I had exactly the same thought. The only concern is that sales of the sequel would then be accounted across two different SKUs (so to speak), and you would have a tougher time getting into the Top Paid lists.

yeah, i'd say just release it as a seperate app, clears all the hassle

[SimonWitton]

yeah, i'd say just release it as a seperate app, clears all the hassle

Yeah it isnt a big deal to have a seperate app. And thanks for the info on the second episode. When will you be looking to submit it?

[Nonstickron]

Well, I just talked to the people at Openfeint and it seems like I've got my information wrong so I'll definitely be considering them along with Plus+.

I persaonlly don't really care about which a game has, other than how easy it is to log in to Openfeint when you start a game that has it for the first time...and then after that you don't have to even know its there if you don't want. Plus+ does seem to slow startup down.

[Hejden]

Thanks for the input guys!

We are currently looking at a submission sometime in February. But it's hard to say before we've got all the features in, as some features may need more love than others to reach the quality level we're aiming for.

[jak56]

Of course, quality not quantity! Oh wait... That's exactly what the first one was...

[SimonWitton]

Yeah the quality of dark nebula is like no other (in a good way) so id rather you spend the extra time on it.

[Hejden]

Hopefully we'll be able to get both this time :)

[Hejden]

Just so you know, episode one of Dark Nebula will be free this weekend starting immediately - so make sure you tell all your friends!

[jak56]

Just so you know, episode one of Dark Nebula will be free this weekend starting immediately - so make sure you tell all your friends!

thanks man!

[Hejden]

Well, it was certainly popular to download Dark Nebula this weekend. It was the number one downloaded game in 25 countries including the US. A total of one million downloads!

[Hejden]

And to celebrate this, here are two new screenshots from episode two!

http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs154.snc3/18145_302260348064_141250863064_4617716_7176069_n. jpg

http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs134.snc3/18145_302261348064_141250863064_4617719_3659436_n. jpg

[SimonWitton]

And to celebrate this, here are two new screenshots from episode two!
[/IMG]

Looking good Hejden, cant wait for this game, and glad that episode 1 did so well in the giveaway, i told all of my friends. Im hoping that this means that episode 2 will do better in sales due to people wanting more. I would love to see that intro movie as an extra special treat, if your feeling generous :D

[SimonWitton]

Any new news about the game, or the date of submission?

[ElectricGrandpa]

As a huge fan of Episode One, and as a fellow developer, I've gotta throw my two cents in:

Do not make it DLC! Seriously!

Firstly, you will be isolating yourself from a huge audience of iPod Touch owners who haven't upgraded to 3.0.

Secondly, you will be isolating yourself to only the audience from the first game. Let Episode Two stand on it's own.

Thirdly, if you do the idea with a DLC version AND a stand-alone version, you'll be splitting up your sales, and you'll only go half as high in the paid charts. That's bad!

Fourthly, you can put out an update to Episode One that notifies those people that a new game is out, and links to it in the app store. You don't need DLC to do that.

Fifthly, having two icons is NOT a big deal, in fact, it's a good thing. If I want to play Episode One, I'll click on Episode One, if I want to play Episode Two, I'll click on Episode Two. I don't wanna have to click on Dark Nebula, and then have to choose Episode Two.

-Matt

[eXistenT]

this game was free....and now its 0.99$ and now its on top paid games

[jak56]

nice analysis, though the dev has already said it ould be a separate app.

[Hejden]

ElectricGrandpa: Thanks for the input! Very valid points indeed.

eXistenT: Our free weekend certainly attracted some much needed attention to the game, which has resulted in a significant increase in sales. In fact, it is not until now that we have recouped the money spent on developing episode one.

[jak56]

im glad you guys have finally managed to breakeven! hopefully the profits will help you develop dark nebula 2!

[Shocked]

So any news on progress?

[Crow]

How much longer must we wait?! :D

[Hak]

when ? :D

[RaptorF35]

Any news? Really been looking forward to this :(

[MasterChief3624]

Any news? Really been looking forward to this :(
Quoted for the truth.

I hope it's not too far off :(

[iTouch.lover22]

yea I'm still waiting for some more exciting news :)

[ihavenolife]

yea I'm still waiting for some more exciting news :)

Count me in :D

I've played this game top to bottom 100 times and still it's as good as first time

[Salacion]

I can't see how ElectricGrandpa feels DLC is not the right way to go with this game. So say you develop 10 episodes; are we going to keep 10 separate apps all entitled Dark Nebula? I don't think so.

In all honesty, if 1 million copies have been downloaded, who's not to say that at least half of these people will purchase the DLC from within the game? I understand that you want to boost sales through getting your App in the Top Apps, but still, you have to think about it logistically. Consolidate each episode into one App; I guarantee you'll still make a bundle.

I can't stress how important this is.

[rshkhsee]

hey hey, hows this game comin along? Is this one still in progress or what? I just gave episode one a whirl again and man, i love these types of graphics, plus the gameplay is top-notch. comon!

[Hejden]

Sorry for being out of touch for quite a while, but I've been busy working on the second episode :)

Things have not progressed as fast as we had hoped, but on the other hand the results have been very good. I've just hired two more programmers to speed things up, and that has helped tremendously.

We are currently working on some boss fights and some nice graphical features, and I hope the extra time we've spent on this will really show in the end.

Here are some images from the intro movie that we finished a few weeks ago.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs404.snc3/24515_406203678064_141250863064_5047780_3746535_n. jpghttp://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs424.snc3/24515_406203638064_141250863064_5047777_5514292_n. jpghttp://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs404.snc3/24515_406203663064_141250863064_5047779_708196_n.j pghttp://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs404.snc3/24515_406203648064_141250863064_5047778_5634170_n. jpghttp://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs444.ash1/24515_406203698064_141250863064_5047781_7891137_n. jpg

[iVaro]

Finally things are pocking up!

Those new screenshots look great!

[rshkhsee]

ah yeah, great to still see those science fiction type elements in the screenshots there. The first episode was the best ball rolling game of its kind, but a little short. the jungle stuff submitted earlier looked good, but i hope theres still alot of machinized graphics and gameplay going on with this new one. Looking forward to the release date!

[sammysin]

The first game was extremely sick. It doesn't matter how long this takes to finish, just make it even better than the first!

[mwhite67]

I can't see how ElectricGrandpa feels DLC is not the right way to go with this game. So say you develop 10 episodes; are we going to keep 10 separate apps all entitled Dark Nebula? I don't think so.

In all honesty, if 1 million copies have been downloaded, who's not to say that at least half of these people will purchase the DLC from within the game? I understand that you want to boost sales through getting your App in the Top Apps, but still, you have to think about it logistically. Consolidate each episode into one App; I guarantee you'll still make a bundle.

I can't stress how important this is.

I think DLC is clearly the wrong way to go. People can easily overlook DLC, but when someone hears of a sequel with new gameplay elements to a previous game they already like it becomes a must buy. Honestly if you tried to charge me for dlc I would probably not get it, but offer me a new Dark Nebula and I will purchase it day one.

[Hejden]

We've just released the intro movie for Episode Two on Youtube...

mZnBao6aUcA

[Sqrudy]

We've just released the intro movie for Episode Two on Youtube...

YouTube: video (http://youtube.com/watch?v=mZnBao6aUcA)

THIS LOOK AWESOME!! the first one was amazing but too shirt. I am buying this the day it comes out.

How much will it be?

[eugekava]

Fantastic!
I really look forward to the release. How close is it to submission?

[Indiania]

The video looks really good! I liked the first game a lot, looking forward to this sequel coming out!

[sammysin]

WOW@ The video. Absolutely stunning.

[Hejden]

Glad you liked it!

The game will be $0.99 just like the first one. I'm afraid we have yet to set an official release date though, but it's not too far away.

[sammysin]

Glad you liked it!

The game will be $0.99 just like the first one. I'm afraid we have yet to set an official release date though, but it's not too far away.

Things as good as Dark Nebula are well worth waiting for! Do not worry, my 59p/99c will be ready when this arrives! ;)

[Mondae]

Glad you liked it!

The game will be $0.99 just like the first one. I'm afraid we have yet to set an official release date though, but it's not too far away.

Can we get it by in-app purchase.

[Hejden]

The game will be released as a separate application. The main reasons are that a lot of iPod users don't have the ability to do in-app purchases, and also that in-app purchases do not affect your ranking - meaning that only the people who currently own Dark Nebula - Episode One will ever get to hear about it.

But to be honest, Episode Two is not just an expansion for the first episode - it's a completely new game.

[Grubjelly]

But to be honest, Episode Two is not just an expansion for the first episode - it's a completely new game.

Sounds great. Any in-game screenshots yet?

[sammysin]

The completely new game thing makes me excited.

[Toad In The Hole]

Check here (http://www.apptv.se/dark-nebula-2-review-in-english/) out for gameplay footage from first 7 levels.

Here are a few screenies for you:

http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/Dark-Nebula-Ep-2_10.jpg http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/Dark-Nebula-Ep-2_4.jpg

http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/Dark-Nebula-Ep-2_7.jpg http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/Dark-Nebula-Ep-2_9.jpg

[jak56]

that looks totally awesome!

[sammysin]

Hollllly crap, that looks awesome.

[Innerthia]

Absolutely stunning!!

Can't whait.

[Game_Breaker]

Episode 1 was great. Consider Episode 2 sold.

[r0x0r]

For me it's a instant buy :)

[aleksa-94]

Looking good,i must say!
The first one was perfect!

[Achy]

The game deserves way more than 99 cents in my opinion. The first one was absolutely amazing, and I can only imagine how good this'll be.

[Toad In The Hole]

More news on this game folks from Facebook page(2 hours ago): We are currently putting the final touches on the game, and next week we will go into testing. So if Apple's approval process does not take too long, we are looking at a release this month.:D

Here are some new pics as well:

http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/34019_470578163064_141250863064_621.jpg http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/34019_470578158064_141250863064_621.jpg

http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/34019_470578153064_141250863064_621.jpg http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/34019_470578148064_141250863064_621.jpg

http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/34019_470578143064_141250863064_621.jpg http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae191/toadie007/34019_470578133064_141250863064_621.jpg

[r0x0r]

The new screenshots are impressive!

[sammysin]

Screenshot 1 of the new batch is dreamy!

[Enigmious]

Wow! This game keeps looking better and better. One of the top games, if not the top one i am currently waiting for.

Huge risk by the looks of the artwork.. i really hope it pays off for you guys!

[RttaM]

Orgasmic.

[iphoneprogrammer]

i dunno how i missed this. sexy, like the beastly ninja

[sammysin]

i dunno how i missed this. sexy, like the beastly ninja

Who is this beastly ninja you speak of? ;P

[Salacion]

Just so everyone knows, devs said they'd be releasing Episode Two in a week, so get ready for some DN2 Goodness.

[sammysin]

Just so everyone knows, devs said they'd be releasing Episode Two in a week, so get ready for some DN2 Goodness.

Wow, nice news mate. Cheers for the heads up.

[pomor]

OMG. This is one of my Top 10 Favorite games. I even play it on the iPad in 2x when I have all these iPad-native apps. Definitely, can't wait for episode 2!!!

[Salacion]

Update via Facebook:

"We are wrapping things up now, so we are planning on a submission to Apple tomorrow." - 3 Hours Ago

Chances are we'll be able to get our hands on it before this month ends.

[r0x0r]

Chances are we'll be able to get our hands on it before this month ends.

fingers crossed :cool:

[ImNoSuperMan]

Out Now..

iTunes Link : http://toucharcade.com/link/http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dark-nebula-episode-two/id375116167?mt=8

TA Thread : http://forums.toucharcade.com/showthread.php?t=63206