So I haven't posted a Happy Pico Day post - much less submitted anything related - since 2015. I haven't posted a frontpage post since 2014 either - way back when I was still sort of active and involved in some sort of collabs... it's about time for a new one huh? Post. Collab*. Something related. All of the above.
And now that it's time I thought I'd make the most of it, so here's a quick verse, and here's a quick animation (I snatched a pretty nice ID with that one) for the day in question.
There's no question! It really is that day - even if I was browsing all over the site wondering if there'd be live stream this year until I finally visited the main page. Low and behold: there it was... and maybe had been all along. The site-wide notification really was pretty handy! Back in the day.
This year also marks the tenth anniversary of the first real Pico Day Flash I started... and didn't finish, for the second year in a row. You can check out both 2007 and 2008 variants. Differences are marginal, but of course the latter one's better, with a little more progress made on the very day it was made. Maybe some day I will actually finish it (and in retrospect this would've been the perfect year), but in celebration of this grand occasion... well there you have them. They're still there.
If I ever do finish that one it's going to be in Flash too - as is that other unfinished game the sprites in the animation above were taken from. Hopefully an internal plugin capable of running them comes around before 2020, or workarounds will have to be made. :) I'm not converting. I'm oldskool - like a rock or urchin. And if you're looking for a great place then stop your searching: you found it. Stick around and shop some merch or drop a merchant!
Also btw, if you've ever wondered what my writing process is usually like, this is what I wrote late last night/early morning (official Pico Day time) for the verse above. My lyrical WIP: https://www.newgrounds.com/dump/item/8e5384f60d932ee89a272f8813450a94
...come today I typed it in digitally, read through and changed or added bits if something sounded wrong or unfinished, and then started recording, making minor changes between takes if some lines were too long, or short, or the flow just not optimal. I'm still not proud of all parts, but levels of perfectionism and time spent on a track vary with each one, and for ones like these, when lack of time exists - it's pretty quick.
Unless it's a super-quick thing (this was moderately quick) I then usually do a few takes and compare to see which one's best, and add some reverb, run a high-pass filter, and compare the volume to my older tracks as to get it a similar level. Optionally I play around with other effects and ad-lib... and that's about it! I'm still very much a beginner when it comes to the master. Still feeling like getting the right balance is nigh impossible sometimes, and keeps changing. Still looking for feedback to improve.
Hope you like blocks of text and random behind-the-scenes glimpses I felt an impulse to write! Otherwise: you might want to skip the text above. Soon as I post this I'm about to finally tune into that livestream, 'fore the day grows too late to stay posed and wait...
Happy Pico Day! May all dope be great.
* At least a part of one.
Kieran
Yea happy Pico day
Cyberdevil
Fo rizzle!