PlayFirst Grapevine
A Glimpse of Wandering Willows
2009
by bobonut
JAN
28
My name is Dan, and I'm the lead designer on Wandering Willows, which some of you have played in First Peek.
First off, I'd like to thank everyone for their participation in the Wandering Willows First Peek. We're going to try and take all your feedback and make the game even better!
The game might be a little different from what everyone is used to but we hope you enjoy it. For those who didn't get to try it, I'd like to describe it. Here's the opening story:
You decide to take a break from stressful city life and sail a balloon around the world. A storm blows you off course and causes you to crash in the land of Wandering Willows. The inhabitants of Wandering Willows are a bunch of happy, go-lucky folk that are from all different time periods. You and your pet will be helping these folks out and getting into many adventures while exploring this strange and whimsical land!
The game is what we're calling an Adventure Role Playing Game or Adventure RPG. You get to create your own avatar (you can see mine in my profile pic) and choose your gender, hair, eyes, etc. You'll help people out with their daily tasks as they help you fix your balloon. With the help of your pet, you will garden, pick fruit off trees, dig up items, create new clothes, cook food, and collect new pets.
I'd like to answer your questions about the game length. This game is at least twice as long as most casual games. Also, the world is about five times the size of what you explored in First Peek.
In addition, I'll try to make these posts as regular as I can and answer any questions in the comments that anyone has. I hope everyone has as much fun playing it as we had making it!
Player of the Month: Kel3369
2009
by applesun
JAN
19
One of our Players of the Month is the wonderful Kel3369, who you may know from TIPS and the forums. Kel3369 and her husband of 21 years, Joseph, have recently re-set the clock on their child rearing years with the birth of their twins, Charlie and Emma. Having already raised two children and begun to make plans on what to do with their empty nest, it was quite a shock for the happy family when they learned that twins were on the way! Kel, a fixture in the PlayFirst Community, has taken everything in stride with the support of her friends here at PlayFirst.com, where she’s been a member for a little over a year. A Registered Nurse Midwife and Educator, Kel is currently on Maternity leave for one year, spending her days playing with her twins and on her absolute favorite online hang out, PlayFirst!
How long have you been "a gamer?" How were you introduced to video games, and what was the first game you remember playing?
I remember my first intro to video games was at an arcade in a little town down South, and I fell in love with Centipede. I have been home video gaming since the early 80's when my Father brought home an Atari and a Vic 20 computer. Ever since then, I have always been hooked on some kind of video game. I used to love to play games such as Pong, Pac Man, Space Invaders and Donkey Kong.
How often do you play games?
I play computer games every single day that I possibly can. :)
Do you have any funny gamer quirks?
Hmmm, I am not really sure if this counts as a "quirk" but I have recently started to not let myself proceed to the next level in a game until I get an expert score. Fitness Dash cured me of that since it was so challenging. LOL I finally had to move on and come back and beat the levels with an expert score later on. Luckily, after many attempts, I did finally get my Fitness Dash expert medal. :)
Aside from playing games, what are some other ways you like to spend your free time?
Well, as most people know, I am recovering from a bad accident where I fell while holding my infant daughter last September, so I am in a leg cast and on bed rest for several months. Right now, I am gaming, chatting with friends, playing forum games and taking care of the twins while I heal. Before the accident, I still played computer games, and visited the forums, but I also worked on professional counted cross stitch projects, and loved going out to movies and plays with my husband and friends whenever we could come up with some free time.
What games are you currently playing?
I just finished Fitness Dash and Parking Dash and I am currently working on earning my expert medal in Pet Shop Hop.
What is your favorite game of all time?
I would have to say it is a tie between Wedding Dash 1 and 2. I think the concept is adorable, the gameplay is fun, and the games really do make me laugh every time I play them. I really hope there will be a Wedding Dash 3 one day. Fitness Dash is a close second for me. I adore that game as well.
What attracts you to the PlayFirst Community, and how do you most like to participate in it?
Without hesitation, it is the people in the forums that attract me to PlayFirst. I have met some amazing friends at PlayFirst and they have really helped me through some rough days while healing from my accident. I am amazed at the kindness these people have in them. I love to answer questions in the "Tips" section when I can, but my first love is absolutely the forums. I think the PlayFirst lounge is where I hang out the most, and the thread topics and forum games that the members come up with are a lot of fun. I log in pretty much every day to play the forum games and to see what the other members are up to.
What's your favorite thing about PlayFirst?
I love the forums with its great sense of community among the members, and of course the fantastic games!
You answered tons of TIPS in September, handling some very technical, customer-support-type questions. Do you find yourself explaining things to people a lot in real life?
LOL Yes, I spent a lot of time in the "Tips" section right after the accident and I really enjoyed it. Since I am a Nurse and an Educator, I guess it is in my nature to enjoy explaining things to others if I know the answer.
You're also very well known and trusted in the forums, where threads are started with your user name as a subject line. What advice would you give to people about posting in a forum, especially when it comes to sharing personal information in a safe and courteous manner?
I have been very blessed with some amazing friends in the forums and my name is probably in subject lines mainly because they have been wishing me well since my accident. Several members have done amazingly kind things, such as start threads with movie recommendations so I have things to watch while I am on bedrest, and some have started threads to check in on how I am doing. A few members have become honorary Aunts and Uncles to the twins and ask me often how they are doing, which is great.
The best advice I could give about posting in a forum is to be careful not to give out your full name and location as well as any phone numbers and things of that nature. If you do make contact with others via email, open a separate account just for forum use, that doesn't give out your full name and personal information to others. It's important to be careful and use good judgment. I tend to share more with PlayFirst members than any other forum because they have become a cyber family to me and have been so supportive from long before the twins were born up until now.
Anything else you'd like to share?
I would just like to thank PlayFirst for choosing me as "Player of the Month" as it is really a great honor and I know there are many others that deserve this more than I do. I also want to take the time to thank the wonderful people in the forums that have helped me through a really rough few months while I have been healing from my accident. I have been in a lot of pain and have had several complications while healing, from infections to kidney stones. It is amazing to me how kind people can be to someone they have never met in person. Thank you to PlayFirst for providing a fun, safe site to interact with these amazing people, and for developing the amazing games you do that bring us all together in the first place. I hope everyone has a safe and happy Holiday season. :)
Best Mac Snack
2009
by Nemone
JAN
6
Congratulations to Chocolatier® 2: Secret Ingredients for winning the '08 PlayFirst Firsties for Best Mac Game!
Available on PC and Mac, Chocolatier® 2: Secret Ingredients is a delicious economic simulation set in the industrious age of the 1920s. Players aid the Baumiester family, owners of a world-class Chocolate empire, by traveling the globe to source exotic ingredients and optimize factory operations in ports from Bombay to Moscow. Quest-driven and bursting with chocolate trivia, Chocolatier 2: Secret Ingredients is perfect for Monopoly fans, historical romance buffs, and epicureans of any age.
Brush up now, on PC or Mac, before Chocolatier®: Decadence by Design™ releases on--
--your favorite gaming website!
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