Many people seems to get into game development for love: Love of video games, love of programming and code or maybe even to express love. Jeff Vogel's switch to a career making games may have included an element of passion but it was a little more conflicted than that.

"I started writing my first (professional) game in 1994 as a way of dealing with my hatred of being in grad school," remembers Vogel. "I'd just passed my qualifier exams and did something I'd always wanted to do: Write a full fantasy role-playing game. I took the summer off to start it and I finished it in my free time during the Winter. Then, in January, 1995, I released Exile: Escape From the Pit for the Macintosh. Then, much to my unending surprise, people started to buy it. I quit grad school almost immediately."

Vogel had not spontaneously absorbed the ability to program from the power of hate, of course (although that would be quite an ability).

"I wrote my first game when I learned BASIC in the sixth grade and I never stopped writing games," said Vogel. "I did it constantly, for years and years, before I finally got serious in grad school. It really was my obsession when I was young."

When Vogel filed for a business license for his company in 1994, he needed a name for the company. "At this point, I honestly didn't think it'd ever amount to much. I just needed to file the paperwork to get a business license. I always thought spiders were cool, so I just picked Spiderweb."

Eventually Spiderweb Software, Inc., began to expand to the point that it now includes three full-time employees, a part-time art designer and "a lot of freelancers."

Vogel also has a unique approach to development in that he creates games for Apple platforms first whereas most computer game developers primarily make games for Windows.

"Like practically everything we do, it just goes by my own personal work habits," says Vogel. "I don't want to start a religious flame war or anything. I just am more comfortable doing most of my work on Macs. Once the Mac version of a game is ready, I port it to Windows and iPad."

His most recent release, Avadon: The Black Fortress, is also his first game for iPad.

Into the Dungeon

"Avadon: The Black Fortress is the first game in the Avadon trilogy," explains Vogel. "It tells the story of the Pact, a loose alliance of nations trying desperately to keep the barbarians, monsters and enemy powers at bay. The Pact is watched over by Avadon, The Black Fortress, a force of spies, assassins and warriors who seek out threats to the Pact and destroy them before they become serious... In the game, you play a Hand of Avadon, an agent who explores and does its bidding."

The game mirrors Vogel's long-term love of role-playing games, a genre that attracted him back in the fourth grade. "The tactics. The gaining strength and finding cool artifacts. The ability to do actual story-telling. It just all really appeals to me."

As for the game's success, Vogel said it's selling better than he had anticipated and feedback has been positive.


"There are very few Western style, old school role-playing games available on portable devices and we were able to tap into a demand that really wasn't being fed," Vogel said. "I'm sure it's not a market that's big enough for the attention of big development houses, so this is just one of those areas where it's great to be a small indie developer."

Keepin' it Indie

Vogel never really felt like he was part of the "Capital-G Capital-I, Game Industry," explaining that he's "just a guy in my basement making toys and hoping people have fun with them, though the increasing opportunities for small developers to make works of love, release them and make a living makes me very happy."

That allows Vogel and the rest of the Spiderweb studio to focus on their strengths ("dungeons and towns and stories") and releasing an indie game of their liking each year. "It's the only way I can make a living making the sort of work I want to make. It's my beloved niche and I'm very comfortable here."

Even so, their development process might seem a bit more structured than your typical indie studio.

"There is two months of planning, two months rewriting whatever part of the engine is most in need of it, six months of world design and testing, and two months to wrap up, release the game, take a deep breath, and get ready for the next one," explains Vogel. "It's an eccentric process but it's kept us in business for sixteen years, so I don't fight it."

Bigger is Better

Even though Avadon is Spiderweb's first iPad game, Vogel made it pretty clear that they plan to make all their games for iPad.


"Several reasons," explains Vogel. "I think iPads are really cool. I think there is prestige these days in developing for portables. But, mostly, because I like money."

Instead of covering all the iOS bases, Vogel said he's not as likely to release his games for iPhone and iPod Touch.

"(It's) the screen size," said Vogel. "Our games have a lot of detail, spread out over a lot of terrain. After a lot of thought, I still can't think of a way to make it fit well on such a small screen. I'm afraid that a better designer than I is going to have to figure out how to solve that puzzle."

Smaller might also not help Vogel's games exude that certain je n'sais quoi he wants people to experience with his games.

"It's really hard to put into words. When I am designing something, I sometimes get a feeling in my gut. It just intrigues me, or interests me, or makes me think, 'Wow. That's cool,'" explains Vogel. "The best games just have elements that really engage the brain or the emotions. Like the satisfying feeling you get filling lines and making them disappear in Tetris, or the visceral feeling of reward you get killing a boss in World of Warcraft. I can't define what makes it, but I'm always seeking it."

Jeff Vogel's Advice for Indie Developers

"Get a good chair. You'll miss your back when it's gone. And get enough sleep. Tired people make mistakes and you need sleep to live."

SITE: Spiderweb