Lumo 2 - The Dev Diary Index

Back in 2014 I found myself at a surprising loose-end. I'd moved to Finland to try and start-up a second studio for Ruffian Games, but for "reasons" (Microsoft canning our main project), it soon became clear that I had no hope. So I left. There wasn't much I'd be able to do help, 1000 miles away.

I landed a bit of contract work, but my heart wasn't entirely in it. I didn't know what I wanted to do. My girlfriend, starting to get annoyed at me moping about the place, kicked me up the arse and told me to do something. So I knocked up a little isometric protoype, over a lunchtime, in the office. It looked kinda cool. The next evening, drunkenly posting about it on Twitter, Ste Pickford jumped into the thread and said that I should "go for it". So I did. Lumo was born.

I never really expected much of Lumo. I kinda thought it'd keep me busy until I decided what I wanted to do -- which definitely wasn't working as a producer anymore -- and where. But things never happen as planned. Lumo started growing arms and legs, and my 6-month "fun aside" turned into a 2 year thing. It was an adventure, the end of which was incredibly tough, but it got there. Solid 7. About as good as I could have hoped for, given the circumstances.

I never actually planed to go back to it. I honestly didn't think there was much else I could do, until, nearly 10 years later, I started talking to my friend at Numskull Games. And fairly quickly, I started thinking that yeah, I probably have some unfinished business. For a start, I barely took the piss out of the C64, so why not have a go?

This time, I kept a journal.

I've been posting, more or less weekly, on this blog since Lumo was released. My intention was to post my 2umo updates each week, as well. But, for "reasons" (a very long jackanory that I'll tell you down the pub) I was asked to hold off. Hindsight's a wonderful thing...

Below is the journey, from start to finish, making Lumo 2, a game I didn't expect to make, but one I had a hell of a lot of fun doing. Easily some of my best work.

Beware of eggs.