QFI Companion Updates
about 7 years ago – Thu, Mar 09, 2017 at 10:43:38 PM

SHIPPING

Okay, I'm just going to dive into the big one - the one I get the most questions about - shipping. I'm back in the groove with shipping again - I had a couple months there where I put things off and had little time to do it, and it kind of snowballed to a point where it was both a giant monkey on my back and I was the ostrich with my head in the sand. I'm sorry - mea culpa here. I've got a lot of responsibilities, and time is really not on my side at the moment. It's only me that is handling the shipping, so it can be slow going. Luckily, several friends of mine and my brother-in-law, who saw I was drowning, came to my aid and started helping me package more items up to get them ready to go out. We've made a couple trips to the post office to send things out, and more will be made. I have a goal to try and get at least 10 packages out a week. So hopefully, we can get these all out. The first wave should be arriving to people in the next week or so. If you need to correct your address or anything, let me know now - sending an email to [email protected] is probably the best way to ensure I get the info! Here's some pics of the latest stuff we've been working on. I thank you, again, for your patience on this - I'm sorry that shipping has been the biggest hardship I've had as a game developer.

QUEST FOR INFAMY COMPANIONS

More books are going out to those who got books - codes for digital downloads of the books went out a long time ago, but if you do not have yours, please let me know so I can get you that ASAP.

QUEST FOR INFAMY: SPECIAL EDITION

Shawn and I have been working on what we're calling the "Special Edition" of Quest for Infamy. It started off as a simple v2.0, but we decided to go in and add some features and ideas we've had - we'll have a more comprehensive list of additions and changes in the future, but some of them include moving the games aspect ratio from 320x240 to 320x200, to get a more rectangle aspect ratio, instead of a square one. This includes us having to resize and re-do some of the GUIs, and write code to decide what portions of art are visible in the viewing window of the game - it adds a nice dimension to the game, and it looks nicer on today's 16:9 monitors. We're also adding an alternate control scheme that should allow us to port the game more easily to mobile platforms, but it'll also be able to be used in the desktop/PC versions. As well as these changes, we hope to be able to create a stable Mac build that can run on its most recent OS. As far as gameplay, we're adding a few minor things, a couple surprises, and a few general tweaks we hope make the experience better. In the past few months, I've been playing QFI as a gamer for the first time in a long time, and I really have to marvel at the size of the world we created and the variety of quests, tasks and story threads we created for the game. Playing the game as a different class each time, I discover more little things we put in each class - and I also had to laugh at many little surprises and features/easter eggs we've put in that people still haven't found yet.

This leads into...

QUEST FOR INFAMY: ROEHM TO RUIN

Shawn and I had almost all of this game complete towards the end of last year - but we knew it was missing something, and we were missing something. It's a short game - not a full length game like QFI was, but a fun companion piece - but we couldn't put our finger on what lacked. So we stepped back from it for a bit, and recently, we've come back to it. It's like revisiting an old friend, and we're back to finishing this up. It's got silly self-referential adventure game humor, puzzles, thievery, witty sayings, not so witty comebacks, drinks, funny and great animations, and just a whole bunch of wacky stuff. Stepping back, reevaluating, cutting, editing and adding is just what we needed. We're hoping to have Roehm to Ruin done around the same time as the Special Edition, so together you can get a larger Quest for Infamy experience.

WHAT'S NEXT?

Well, Infamous Quests is a skeleton crew these days - Shawn (Klytos) and I are the only ones currently working on the games. Much of the crew that has worked on our previous games have moved on to either other careers, other projects or have disappeared! We still have contact, however, with several of our artists, and though our time is limited these days and our budget is non-existent, we'll be finishing up these last projects we have, including the ones mentioned above and "Order of the Thorne: Fortress of Fire".

We've had an amazing time making adventure games since early 2012 when the original "Team Infamy" came together to make the demo of QFI that now comprises up the "First Day" of the game. I just want to salute the hard work of those guys - they made an incredible game, along with the other team members who joined post kickstarter and contributed their talents to creating our ultimate dream-game. They're the real heroes here - they worked long and hard to help bring our vision to life, and it was basically lightning in a bottle. Though not all promises of the great Adventure Game Kickstarter craze of 2012 were fulfilled or worked out as some hoped, there's still life in the genre and I feel like there's still a chance for adventure games to be both awesome to play and a viable source of income for developers.

Thanks to all of you who contributed, not only to us, but to other adventure games - because you loved them, because you believed in them and because you played them, you made Adventure Games matter. I'm proud to have been involved in at least some small way, as both a developer and a fan. I know even as life goes on and our future as Infamous Quests is uncertain, I'll always be making some kind of silly game - the kind of games I like to play, the kinds of games I grew up playing, and the kinds of games I'll continue to admire.

If you've made it this far, thanks for reading. This has meant the world to me, and you have meant the world to me. I am sorry to the people who are upset and have felt left down. Wishing you all the best in the future, and I hope you'll all be pointing and clicking your way to glory. Or using a parser if you're super old-school. Thanks for letting me guide some of the finest damn people on Earth into creating Quest for Infamy.

~Steve

aka

Bt

REMEMBER IF YOU NEED TO CONTACT ME - [email protected]

September Update
over 7 years ago – Mon, Sep 19, 2016 at 10:33:51 PM

Hey Guys,

Quick updates here;

I've been sending out the single packs for folks who only ordered DVDs and QFI Companion Books, and more keep going out every week. The delay in shipping big boxes is because I sent out a few, and got news that a couple packages were a little crushed; I didn't want to be sending out packages like that, so I looked for a vendor who made decent, crush-resistant (up to 200lbs) boxes that I could ship easily. I found one, and worked out a reasonable price for them - they've arrived, but I haven't opened them yet or set up the boxing operation for that - a lot has been going on in my life.

As you may know, my wife and I had our first son last December - I work from home, and it means I take care of the little guy during the day as well. So my time was more limited the younger he was - he's becoming more independent, and I've been getting help from my family with him as well, so I have more time to allocate to boxing and mailing.

I had a bunch of packages to finish and send out last week, but my Grandfather (my mother's father) passed away on Thursday. He'd been battling Alzheimer's disease for years and had been languishing in a nursing home facility for the last year. It's been a rough time on our family - my grandfather was truly the patriarch of our family. He was the father of nine children, grandfather to 20 and great-grandfather to 26 kids! (One of my cousins has an insane amount of kids. I think they're on 8 now??) Anyway, my grandpa Charlie was really important to me. When I was about 11, I was super into Sierra games - and kind of the only kid in my family really super into computers. I always felt kind of like an outsider, but my grandpa got this really cool Tandy 1000 computer around then. It had that great Tandy soundcard, which was WAY better than the PC Speaker in mine... and one day, I went over to his house - and I saw him playing a Sierra Game I'd never seen before! It looked so cool and colorful on his 16 color monitor, and it had a really bouncy song over the credits!It was a classic AGI game, and we laughed as a dog came out on the first screen and peed on the hero, a guy in a white leisure suit.

The first time I ever saw Leisure Suit Larry was with my grandpa. We played and laughed together, as we both knew it was a little naughty, but harmless. We explored Lost Wages for a while - and I bonded with him. It was our little thing, and our little secret. As you can imagine, being one of 20 grandchildren doesn't always leave you with a lot of private time with your gramps, but that was one - and it meant so much to me. I lent him my copy of Space Quest III, and he loved it and the music. It was our thing.

I'm sure everyone has some kind of personal experience with adventure games. That's just one of many I have, but this week, it's even more precious to my heart. My grandpa lived a good life, and was always encouraging to me. Our family will miss him very much, but I'm glad he's no longer suffering. Alzheimer's is a hard disease to watch someone live with.

Anyway, I wanted to update you on the situation, to assure you your games are on the way and will hopefully arrive in good shape. I know many of you out there are collectors who want the items in the best condition possible. Pretty soon, they'll all be out and this part of Quest for Infamy will be done. I definitely know for the future that we'll be using a production house who handles this kind of stuff, and shipping is really a full-time job for people with the time and specialized skills. I've definitely learned that, for us, making the game was easier than shipping out rewards.

Again, I want to say thanks to everyone who was a backer and supporter. I feel like a very important chapter in my life is closing, and Quest for Infamy was a dream I got to achieve, and I'm so lucky for that - and I owe it all to you. Thank you all for being so cool, so passionate, so giving and so understanding. It's a rare thing in this world, and rare amongst gamers today, and I really consider all of you in a special elite and excellent class of people.

See you soon!

Bt

UPDATE
almost 8 years ago – Mon, Jul 18, 2016 at 07:37:01 PM

Hey Folks,

I know it's been a long time between updates; I want to apologize for that, but I didn't want to post something when I had nothing to report.

SHIPPING UPDATES

Due to some professional and person setbacks/issues, there's been delays on my end with some of the shipping. I'd sent out some packages earlier in the year, and a few more in sporadic doses in between, but I still have a vast majority of packages to send out. I'm very sorry about the delay. I don't want to give long explanations, but I do want to apologize and let you know I have been working on packing them up, and now - this week - I intend to send out even more. Everyone should be getting their packages between now and the end of Summer (Mid-September). This is just a small taste of packages waiting to go out. This is just a small taste of packages waiting to go out.

For several of you with larger packages and multiple items, I will contact you personally when they go out, so you can know to look for them.

Again, I have to apologize - this has been a source of great anxiety and stress to me, and I feel awful about the delays. You all have been amazing and supportive, and I can not thank you enough for that.

Which leads me into... The Future of Infamous Quests

We've had a great run as adventure game designers; from our ambitious start as Infamous Adventures and our remakes of King's Quest III in 2006 and Space Quest 2 in 2011, to our latest games - it has been one of the greatest adventures of my life. I've met and made friends all around the globe; I've traveled, told my stories, worked with amazingly talented people and done things I only dreamed about as a kid. I never thought in my life I'd be able to accomplish so much, and yet - we did.

In 2012, we banded together - the creators and the backers - to fund our project on Kickstarter, and it was a magical time, not only for us, but for other creators and fans. It was, simply put, a magical time. Something I don't think will ever be repeated in the history of game creation and gaming culture. I have to thank you all for being a part of that and including us in it.

After the completion and releases of our upcoming games, Order of the Thorne: Fortress of Fire and Quest for Infamy: Roehm to Ruin, we will most likely not be producing any more games. Adventure games, and certainly the kinds of games we produce, are a niche market. Niche is probably a fancy and nice way to put it... we're a tiny segment of a huge and amazingly competitive market. We've been lucky enough to create the kind of games we always wanted to make and play, but - unfortunately - it hasn't been financially viable for us to do so. We just haven't been able to sell enough copies to cover our production costs, and I can't pay the talented people who make these games come to life in good wishes and moral victories. They deserve more. Like many commercial ventures, I've incurred a decent amount of personal debt on this - I rolled the dice, and sadly, it didn't quite pan out. It's not viable for us to continue on, from a financial standpoint. So, we will complete our last two games here, and continue on - many of the people who have worked on these games are already involved in other careers, jobs and projects, and are committed to finishing our games solely because of our love for the games, the genre and you, the fans. You backers have been the best - I wish there was a whole lot more like you out there. Thank you so much for everything over the past four years - you were, and are, the heart and soul of everything we've ever done.

Being a designer has been amazing, and you all have afforded me and my friends to collaborate to tell you our stories. Thank you for letting Mr. Roehm come to life, and for letting him pursue a Quest for Infamy. There was a time when QFI was just a pipe dream of some post-college kids - and you made it a reality. I wish you all the best in the future, and (again) thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

We hope you'll enjoy our upcoming games - even though they are most likely the last, I'm very excited about what they'll offer you, as adventure game fans.

All my best,

Bt

(ALSO, if you need to update any shipping addresses and have not contacted me in the last several months, this is your last chance!)

UPDATE ON SHIPPING!
over 8 years ago – Mon, Jan 11, 2016 at 01:45:49 PM

UPDATES ON SHIPPING

Hey friends & backers!

Shipping for QFI items continues - but it has been at a much slower pace than I would have liked! However, I've been backed up because my wife and I had our baby boy on December 13th!! Here he is, wearing his Infamous Quest onesie made by Team Member, Chucklas.

They aren't kidding, though, about that lack of sleep thing with an infant!  I haven't slept right in a month! But he's amazing, and we're over the moon about him.

Items are continuing to ship out now, and we should be able to get more and more out the door as the weeks go - I've got some family and friends helping me package up and send out our stuff! Sorry for the delays; it has been a very crazy time with the baby and the production of our upcoming games. I really feel that the boxes (and especially the QFI Companion, if you purchased it) came out great, and I hope they earn an honored place in your collection. This is something you can not only display, but you can say "Yeah, I helped make that!" because you absolutely did.

DIGITAL COMPANION REDEMPTION

Broomie should have the system in place in the coming weeks; codes will be sent out to folks who pledged for the digital companion, and you'll be able to redeem and download it on our site.

A FINAL THANKS

We couldn't have done it without you, and I am always and forever grateful to you all for joining us on this. It's been one of the coolest experiences of my life, and now - someday - I'll get to tell my son how I got to make a computer game with thousands of people from all around the world.

Hope the new year has been treating you all well! I hope you all have your items in your hands soon, and they arrive in good condition, and that you're happy! Talk to you all soon!

Bt

Delays in Shipping
over 8 years ago – Thu, Nov 19, 2015 at 06:59:07 PM

Hey All,

A quick update from Steve - The rewards are all in, at my house - I had hired someone to help me assemble them for shipping and send them out - long story short, they basically went AWOL, and I've been swamped - not only working on the new game, but I'm expecting my first child in early December, so things have been crazy at my home. They're coming, but it's taking longer than I'd like - I really, really sincerely apologize - getting these things out is so important to me, and I'm spread so thin these days. I promise everyone will get their items, and I want to reassure people that it's happening. It's hard because it's just me, at the moment, who can work on packaging and posting them.

I'm very, very sorry - seriously, this is giving me an ulcer, because this part means a lot to me - the items look great, but they don't look good taking up space in my house! I want them in your hands - so, please, I ask just a little patience and I try to hustle up on this. Going to try and get some more help here in the next couple weeks, and we'll be sending out packages - I'll be taking photos and posting them so you can see them going out.

I really appreciate your support, and your continued patience and support. This project has been a labor of love for all of us, and I definitely have a great appreciation for the major operations that packaging and distributing companies are!

Bt