Fairway Solitaire Released!

[John Cutter]

I suspect that a lot of you visit the Big Fish site on a fairly frequent basis, so this probably isn't news to many of you, but I'll post it anyway.

My online title, Fairway Solitaire, was released as a full featured download yesterday and is currently #6 in the BFG Top Ten. You can download it here:

http://www.bigfishgames.com/download-games/2427/fairway-solitaire/index.html?afcode=afd8a65118db

NOTE: I included my wife's affiliate code in there because I promised her I would. ;-)

The download version of Fairway Solitaire adds new courses, lots of course types, minigames, stats, trophies, an avatar and golf shop, commentators, and more.

We decided to develop Fairway out-of-house, so Emmanuel Marty put me in touch with Indie Gamer's own Jake Birkett (Grey Alien) and he did a FANTASTIC job programming the game. The art was created by a contractor in New Jersey named Matt Laverty, and Somatone created most of the music and sound effects.

Jake and Matt added lots of little touches and contributed greatly to the design. The long distance thing wasn't an issue because Jake is kind of anal when it comes to details. Every time he'd post a new build I'd get a 12+ page e-mail listing everything he had added or changed, and dozens and dozens of questions or things he wanted me to review. It was kind of overwhelming at times, but it made for a great project.

Enjoy!

[Desktop Gaming]

Jake's been on about this (well, talking about it in riddles) for months. I felt kinda disappointed that it was just a solitaire game after all the hype.

Looks OK I guess, just, totally not what I was expecting.

[Aisle5]

Congrats on the Big Fish ranking! The game looks good. Nice job on pulling the game together with long distance help.

[Cartman]

Grey Alien worked on this for 8.5 months(as per the BlitzMax forums). Shows what his 2d librarires can do for BlitzMax developers.

About the game. Didn't think I would care for it, but I played it for the full hour, so it definately holds your attention. I'm hearing similar responses from other developers on the BlitzMax forums. I think it will sell very well for them.

[Emmanuel]

Same thing, I don't typically like solitaire but I've been playing Fairway semi-obsessively ever since the first alpha build. I feel like I have a lot more control (as opposed to pure luck) than the typical solitaire game collecting and using the clubs, and the great variation in gameplay due to sand traps, water traps, etc. and different goals for each course really nailed it for me. I rarely play a casual game for more than a few levels without getting bored and thinking I've seen all of the game has to offer (I think the last non-BFG title I really enjoyed and that happily surprised me all the way through was Mortimer Beckett), so again, awesome job John and Jake.

Best regards,
Emmanuel

[Grey Alien]

Thanks John! I wondered if you'd post about this. Been a while since I saw the post about the online version haha.

Thanks everyone for your kind comments. We all worked really hard on this and hopefully it shows. It seems to be doing well and receiving positive feedback.

It is very addictive, I like playing it myself of course. The golf elements that John added (sand traps, water hazards, iron clubs, wild shots etc.) make this solitaire unique because no other game has them. Matt added a great style to the game too.

[barrygamer]

I thought it was a really great game, with very good ideas and presentation. I got in some kind of 'zone' and played the demo for the full hour :D Hope it does well for you.

[Grey Alien]

Up to No. 3 at BFG! I can hardly believe it! Uber-excited...

[lakibuk]

A strong title!
I wonder: Do you receive a percentage of the game's revenues?
Otherwise it wouldn't matter to you financially if it's #3 or #33.

[papillon]

It still matters financially - being able to say you worked on a bigger hit helps you negotiate for future business! :)

[mooktown]

The fact that this game can engross non-solitaire fans (like me!) proves to me that its a great game. Well done! :)

[Cartman]

Watch out there Grey. Amanda is on your heals at number 11 with Aveyond 2. :)


Are we going to see a grudge match? :)

I'm so happy to see some of our own members producing such popular games.

[Grey Alien]

I wonder: Do you receive a percentage of the game's revenues?I really can't say due to contractual obligations. NDA and all that. Sorry. Let's just say that with or without a percentage you can still see why I'm excited right?

It's also really cool that Aveyond is doing well, I hope it does better. It's on my to do list to download that an play it. I might even play it on the Macbook Pro if it's playable with a trackpad...

[moose6912]

I really can't say due to contractual obligations. NDA and all that. Sorry. Let's just say that with or without a percentage you can still see why I'm excited right?

It's also really cool that Aveyond is doing well, I hope it does better. It's on my to do list to download that an play it. I might even play it on the Macbook Pro if it's playable with a trackpad...

Aveyond 2 from Big Fish Games does not work on my Macbook running Windows XP. I guess it must be something to do with the disk partition or something. I am going to try Aveyond 2 from some other portal later.

[Grey Alien]

Oh, for some reason I thought there was a proper Mac version, but it seems I was mistaken. Oh well I'll try it on the PC then.

[amaranth]

This is pretty awesome! You are going head-to-head with some of the biggest hits out there. MCF & Agatha Christie better watch out!!! :eek: :D

[Sean Beeson]

Love the music in the game btw. Somatone did a great job :)!