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Thursday, December 31, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (December DevLog): Sayonara, 2020!



This year sure has been one big heck... But looking back, I'm proud of what we've managed to build since January. This game is miles further along than I ever could've reached on my own trying to solo dev. 

It's exciting to think about how much can be accomplished in the next 365 days with the full power of a development team and, if we succeed in May, thousands of dollars in crowdfunding support to hire a ton more helping hands and guarantee we finish the rest of development by year's end.

Here at Yotes Games, spirits are high as we march right into 2021 like we own the place. (And with your continued support, we actually might!)

Get some of the last gamedev you'll ever see in 2020 below.

Thursday, December 24, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies Christmas Demo! (Available Now!!)

Download the Battle Gem Ponies Christmas Demo on Itch.io using your Patreon login to get a download key for Windows, Mac, and Android!  The download page will only appear if you use the link above to get your key.

Now before you dive in, let's reel back expectations once more. This is a super buggy work in progress that we're still polishing up for February.
Many features are still unfinished so you're likely to run into rough looking animation, strange audio issues, moves that don't work as expected, buttons that were supposed to be hidden, and crazy-looking placeholder text.
We aim to release an update to this Patreon build on a bi-weekly basis next year, and begin releasing a public demo updated with new content every month starting February 2021.
The Patreon exclusive demos will include prototype mechanics (sometimes with debug controls) and half-implemented ideas being worked on for upcoming public releases way down the line. So consider this an early-access pass to the same game build the devs are using for testing.

Main additions this time around are the Pony Customization & Battle Setup Menus!
The complete version of this game is coming (eventually) to the App Store, Google Play, Amazon Apps, Itch.io, and other PC platforms. In May we'll be launching a crowdfunding campaign to raise enough money to ensure we finish development in a timely manner (by hiring a lot more help). We truly have our hearts set on finally being finished by the end of the coming year.
We thank you for understanding that this is a sneak peek at the tangled web we're currently attempting to turn into a quilted masterpiece. Now, as a Christmas gift straight from our hearts to yours, enjoy the newest playable build of Battle Gem Ponies!
- Tony Yotes, on behalf of the Yotes Games Team

Monday, November 30, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (November DevLog): The New Order


You're looking at an all-new Yotes Games as of this month. A full-time indie team speeding ahead towards one milestone after the other! 

Get a peek at what we've been cooking up for our crazy crowdfunding plans for 2021 below!

Saturday, October 31, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (October DevLog): A New Frontier!

The Yotes Games "office" (October 2020)

We're entering November with an all-new team setup, changed plans (for the better), a miles long checklist of finished tasks, a new potential source of funding, and cute little pony sprites you have to come see!

Time to show off what a couple weeks of hardcore indie development will getcha in this spooky good October devlog! 

Thursday, October 1, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (September DevLog): Major Buildup


Wild leaps in progress and productivity as we're settling into the flow of being a team. All just in time for the biggest game dev session yet. Next month is going to feel like half a year's worth of work done in just a couple weeks compared to rate we've been going so far. 

There's been all kinds of improvements in terms of art, menus, and code architecture. It's really shaping up beautifully and we're excited about what we'll be able to deliver in just a couple months.

Get the details on this month's gamedev adventures below!

Sunday, August 30, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (August DevLog): Gettin' Stuff DONE!!


Been quite the busy month over here at Yotes Games. A whole feast of features to show to you about this fine August of progress. Talkin' about overworld animations, palette swaps, engine setup fixes, team collaboration improvements, new menus, and new mechanics. 

So let's get right to it!

Friday, July 31, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (July DevLog): Yotes Games Team


Nice to have a crunchy month to work on this day after day. Things are really starting to shape up around here. Visions of running a full-fledged indie studio get clearer all the time now that I'm enjoying a taste.

This month's major milestones include training a new programmer, adding a menu to the playable build, putting over a hundred working moves into the game, and creating a huge cast of human characters to meet in the overworld.

If you're curious about this past month's comradery and happenings in #GameDev, take a peek below!

Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (June DevLog): Spare No Spritework Setup!




It's been a colorful month of new discoveries and a bunch of mouse-hand cramps. Gearing up the BGP cast for more efficient animating and coloring as well as crossing off some long-procrastinated tasks like "DESIGN THE LEGENDARY PONIES ON THE TITLE SCREEN". Which was fun!

     Along with a million other tiny things (gamedev or otherwise) that made this month... Interesting? Yeah, interesting.

Get the full deets below if you're curious.

Monday, June 1, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (May DevLog): The Starting Point


With the first release of a playable build (still Patreon Exclusive until a June update) comes the bold new start of BGP. Playable updates as we make them, growing this game up from sprout to giant tree. Documenting everything along the way.

Take a gander below the break to see the development shenanigans we've gotten up to over the past month here at Yotes Games.

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

First New Build of BGP in Over 2 Years!


Available to the patrons out there keeping development going for so long. We're opening the curtains a bit and letting some of you inside to get a better look at what we're working on. this here is the very beginning of a very fun project.

Download the Battle Gem Ponies Combat Demo on Itch.io using your Patreon login to get a download key for Windows and/or Android. The old demo will still be available on the same page as before until the public Combat Demo release.

More details on this Patreon Exclusive preview release and future public releases below.

Thursday, April 30, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (April DevLog): The World is on FIRE!!


We're mid-apocalypse as showtime approaches! I'm sure April 2020 has been rough for pretty much everyone. And the team here at Yotes Games is no exception. 


Spritework, cut budgets, major losses, and hard lessons finally learned. It's been pretty busy.

Get a full update on the new decade's most destructive month yet as it relates to Battle Gem Ponies and see how we plan to rise from the ashes, developers reborn!


Tuesday, March 31, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (March DevLog): Corona Con Cancellation Craze


Some crazy new decade we're having, huh? Should come as no surprise now that delays and scrapped plans are happening left and right, even here at little ol' Yotes Games, thanks to ya homeboy COVID-19.

Get some details on how we're handling the situation below.

Wednesday, March 18, 2020

Babscon 2020 is Cancelled, but the Show MUST Go On!


Unfortunately, the Babscon Arcade Showcase won't be happening this year. But we're going to make the most of this and take some extra time to get an even more polished Battle Gem Ponies combat demo out to everyone over the convention season!

Hope you can look forward to it with us!

- Yotes Games Dev Team

Saturday, February 29, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (February DevLog): Fully Functional Battles!


... Aaaand one month full of crunch later, we've got battles! Actual working in-game battles! You can swap forms, use moves, alter stats, drain meters, and everything! Some visual effects are still a bit rough but all that's coming in the polish stage. The most important bit right now is getting the logic behind everything working as intended.


Now, some of the special side-effect calculations have yet to be implemented, but we've thought through all the dirty details and are confident about knocking them out over the next month. That way we'll be stepping into April with everything the demo will need plus an extra week of polish to spare!

Come see where all the love and long post-workday hours are going to. This past month was a straight up plentiful one in terms of results!


Friday, January 31, 2020

Battle Gem Ponies (January DevLog): Battle System Framework


Rapid progress continues. We've got menus up and running better than ever, some really polished placeholders, fleshed out design notes, charts and graphs for pony stats, hundreds of character animation files, and most of the math behind the revamped battle system!

You'll need to get more info below the break, cuz this one's gonna be a doozy.