It's super interesting how my opinion of the games changed based on how the development process is portrayed through the documentary and the state of the prototypes at this point. This is based ONLY on the daily recap videos, so my opinion may be influenced by the editing more than anything and everything I'm saying may be completely wrong and far from the truth.
Autonomous was a project I wasn't interested in at all and didn't vote for, but has now become my most anticipated project of AF. Lee Petty is a great project lead with a clear vision, yet it feels like the game is really coming together as a team project where you can clearly see the influences of everyone involved. Also, so far it looks the most polished, the artstyle is amazing and I would probably pay money for it at this point in from of a kickstarter or something.
SpaceBase so far looks to me like "The Sims" in space, which I'm not interested in at all. I don't really have much of an opinion on it other than that because the documentary really hasn't shown anything aside from tile and character art and vague hints at systems. Looks like the team is working well together, but it feels like it's missing a clear direction for what the game should be in the end.
Hack and Slash was the game I was most hyped about and it still may turn out amazing, but the development and group interaction is relatively boring to watch. It seems like Brandon Dillon would rather make the game entirely on his own so it is exactly how he wanted it to be, and the other guys are just there to produce art. Actually, from the documentary I'm not really sure how many people there are in this team and what each of them is actually doing. This is definitely one way to lead a project like this, especially if you have a very clear vision, but it makes for somewhat unintersting TV. I hope it turns out awesome still, because the concept is really cool.
White Birch looks like a platformer so far. Nothing more, nothing less. It seems like there was a vision on what kind of artstyle and feel the game should have but not on how the game would actually play, aside from being a platformer. ICO is a clear inspiration, but if you want to make a prototype for a game like ICO, I'd love to see atmosphere and tone of the world more than anything, because tha is what makes it interesting. I'm not a fan on how Andy Wood is leading the project. He seems way to reserved and shy to lead a project like this.
Black Lake is interesting, because I think the group is working together well, but so far it seems like the game really isn't going anywhere. I still don't understand what the game will actually play like and why I should be interested in it. The development is interesting to watch though, because by the latest episode (6), it seems like some people of the team arrived at the same conclusion.
What I'm not sure about is if the documentary is highlighting specific things about the groups so it doesn't get boring and that is influencing my opinions, or if it's a representative vertical slice. I'm really excited to see how this will go on and how my opinion will change later on. Absolutely fantastic project.
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