Image made by Grumpy..

Hello, KoGaMians!

We've got another builder to spotlight this month! This month, we’re casting the spotlight on a popular creator, known for his attention to detail and realism.

About

You've probably already encountered this player from his many games under the name of Grumpy. He’s an avid enthusiast of realism, most known for his realistic roleplaying and racing games, with some marketplace content here and there.

In this interview, Grumpy will introduce his path to creating on the platform, his shortcomings and his way of dealing with burnout.

The interview

1. Introduce yourself to the community. When and how did you discover KoGaMa?

I used to play a lot of web games around 2015 and 2016. I probably discovered KoGaMa on gry.pl, where I mostly played cubegun and parkour games. I kept playing KoGaMa this way until 2017 when I decided that I also wanted to build games like others. That's when I created my account and started working on my first projects. Afterwards, I started spending most of my time on building instead of playing games made by other players.

2. Your creations have a marginal difference from other notable builders. They're done very realistically, often looking like it's from a different game. What's your overall approach and tips & tricks to achieving this effect?

Yes, I agree that I'm trying to achieve a certain level of realism in my projects. Generally, I don't like when builds are simple or unrealistic. That's why I often use microscale models bought from the marketplace, which I modify to fit my needs. These models let me add details that are impossible to achieve using conventional ways. I also think it's better to use multiple models while building. It allows you to include more details compared to building everything in a single model. I also find it important to remove automatically generated shadows between cubes. The simplest way to achieve this effect is by using separate models in the places where cube walls meet.

3. What's the story of your game "Project Poland"? Did you have any difficulties in planning and structuring the map? Why was it cancelled?

Looking back at my projects, “Project Poland” is my worst project. It was designed with size in mind rather than quality, which can be seen in most parts of the game. The project's history began during the COVID-19 pandemic when I came back to KoGaMa. I created this project because I'm interested in infrastructure and urban planning. The project was growing rapidly but its end was unexpected. Joining the project became impossible due to a bug, therefore I announced its end and started working on other projects. After the bug was fixed, we created a new version - “Project Poland 2”, where we paid more attention to details. In my opinion, it foreshadowed the direction I planned to go in. However, it wasn't as successful as the first project and soon enough we stopped further development of this project. The main reason for that was burnout, which was also the reason why we hadn't re-created all planned structures from the original project.

(“Project Poland”)

4. Your game "Block RP" stands out for being abnormally huge and life-like, resulting in most devices not being able to handle it. What gave you the motivation to create a large portion of the game? Will we ever see it finished in the future?

“Block RP” was meant to be the most professional roleplay game in KoGaMa. The project was developed quickly and included lots of innovative, and unique game mechanics. We even had a dedicated Discord server, where players were able to save their statistics, start and manage businesses, participate in events etc. I won't lie, its size combined with the fact that I was building everything myself (except for the logic systems), led me to burnout. Another reason was just that KoGaMa isn't as popular as it used to be, and I didn't have the motivation to keep working on such a big and complicated game for a small player base. One of my other games - “Right After” met a similar fate. I worked on it with L.R.W. and we made some good progress, but the descending player base and burnout led to it being discontinued. To sum up - “Block RP” might be finished one day if KoGaMa will regain its popularity.

(“Block RP”)

5. Your games have mostly been in the simulation genre. Why did you decide to go down that path? Do you have any wishes/plans to create something different?

Usually, my games don't have any specific goal and they are focused mostly on simulation because I just enjoy building. I don't see any reason to create another parkour or cubegun if I can do something fun for myself. That's right, we've planned an RPG game at some point. It was partially finished, however it never got released. I also have some competitive games, such as The Invicta Stadium or KSF Arena but they're mainly designed for organized events than casual play. I also worked on a parkour game with unconventional levels alongside Boxin and Lukasox, but we discontinued the project due to a lack of ideas for new levels.

6. Aside from creating roleplaying games, you've also made race-themed games such as "Tofu Drivers" and "Agloe Race United". How did you create such a seamless structure for the games, and why did you choose just these locations?

The story behind “Tofu Drivers” is pretty simple - I was exploring Google Maps and I discovered a great place in Japan, which I decided to recreate in KoGaMa. The game isn't finished but the idea (as the name suggests) was to deliver tofu within a time limit while driving through the town's streets. As for now, the project is not being developed since my friend, who was the main contributor, no longer plays KoGaMa. As for “Agloe Race United”, it was created for the Vehicle Energy contest. At first, we planned it to be a basic racing game, but we didn't know where to set it. Eventually, we chose to set it in the United Kingdom because I had never built cities in that style before and wanted to try something new.

7. Apart from games, you've also created some other notable designs. Your avatars take a comedic turn; and your models are more formal, allowing other players to apply them to their works of art. Will we ever see more marketplace creations from you?

I don't plan on making new models anymore, mostly because they often get copied and added to the marketplace by other users. It's frustrating because people buy these copies and I'm not getting anything from it. About avatars - yes, they're pretty random. I have one, simple rule when I'm creating them - I realize any idea that comes to my mind, without any real plan.

8. Did you face any burnout from KoGaMa? What are your tips for gathering motivation from other players who'd like to apply the same details as you?

Of course, I've experienced burnout as well. It happens pretty often and it's annoying. Especially when I think about all the unfinished projects I've left behind. My way of dealing with it is to just try something different. Sometimes, when I don't feel like building a game, I'm going to make an avatar instead. Even small things like this can bring my motivation back.

9. Are there any updates or projects you’d like to let the community know about?

Yes, I'm working on new projects. One of the latest ones I'm working on from time to time is something pretty unusual - it's a combination of a bar, casino, exhibition and club with arcade machines. Just to show you how random this project is - Gawr Gura works behind the bar, just because I wanted to build her somewhere around. Another project I'm working on is a bunch of sceneries for our upcoming movie, which we're recording in KoGaMa. There are many different areas, including city streets, a talk show studio, port docks and an FBI agent's office. I can't reveal much, however, the movie's story is about the life of a retired gangster. What's also worth mentioning is a roleplay called Fangea and Other Continents, which goes through a complete overhaul. It's meant to be a professional and expanded country management simulator. You can follow our work progress on the project's website: https://grumqy.github.io/fangea/ (The site is only available in Polish, however you can use your browser's automatic translation feature to translate it).

If you are interested, you can learn more about Grumpy’s collage of works [here.]

Interview conducted by Lukasox, original Polish interview answers translated to English by Boxin.

Be considered for the next Builder Spotlight

To be considered, join the official Discord Server [here] and leave us a detailed message about why we should spotlight you next month to the HotW Suggestions bot. The Highlights of the Week Committee will review your message and they will take it into consideration if they like it.

To read more about Builder Spotlight, its criteria and benefits, the link to it is [here.]

This News Post is brought to you thanks to the whole members of the HotW Committee.