Where do we begin?

(Drum roll, please…)

Hello, and welcome to the official Lila Dreams developer blog!

Lila Dreams is an ambitious “small” MMO (massively multiplayer online game). Yes, yes, “small” is kind of a silly adjective to use to describe an MMO, but I’ve just done it, so it’s definitely possible. Now, does that mean the game will be simplistic, cramped, and shallow? Heck no!

Small, in this case, means we’re really working hard to limit the scope of the game while putting forth a Herculean effort to make it a deep, fun experience that will keep players engaged. The plan is to generate income (in conjunction with kongregate.com, our beloved collaborators) in order to continue to develop and expand the game. It’s likely that we will launch kind of small (there’s that word again!), but we hope the game can grow into its shoes.

At this point in development, the game isn’t much more than a collection of ideas, hope, and a couple of crude prototypes. Oh, and a growing pile of really pretty concept art. But there is a vision here, so we hope you’ll stick around to see how things unfold.

If you don’t know, the game is a 2d, side-scrolling platform game that takes place in the mind of an 11-year old girl named Lila (pronounced, LEE-lah). As she drifts through life, players (as a race of mental entities called “Memekins”) must deal with the emotional storms and actually guide her through events which could crush her or save her. There will be plenty of actiony combat, some RPG-lite elements (but no level grind), exploration galore, and other non-combat activities like gardening in the soil of Lila’s psyche.

What to expect from this blog:

• Gradual improvement of this blog and expansion of the Lila Dreams website. There isn’t time to make it all look pretty all at once.
• Talk-o-rama about the game design, as we feel comfy disclosing details. We’re going to be tight-lipped for a while, though. (Don’t want to over-promise and under-deliver.)
• Plenty of concept art and screen shots.
• Some tech talk about the technology we’re using (like Flash and Java) and tools we’re making (like our map and animation editors).
• Lots of blather about how hard it is to make an MMO!

I (Jason, lead designer and producer) will try to post here regularly. I don’t yet know how often that will be, but I’d like to post once a week.

There’s not really much to talk about at this point since we’re still in early production, but if you have burning questions that you want answers for, please leave a comment, and maybe I’ll answer a few for the next installment.

Buckle in, and get a snack. Let’s see what is down this rabbit hole….