As some of you know, Samurai Ball was my very first game project. Me an several classmates at the time wanted to work together to bring what we learned to the table and make a game. For the most part we manage to finish it by the end of 2012. Was it a success? Not even close. But I learned a lot from the project and it helped made me a better developer.

Samurai Ball version 1.1, Aika was just a red box.

From a game play perspective Samurai Ball has weird controls to it. We chose to use 3rd party asset for a on screen joystick that you use to make Aika move left and right. Aika's movement speed is very twitchy and takes some getting use to. The main purpose of the game is to hit back all the falling balls and get the highest score possible before the time runs out. This idea is a bit flawed however as there is little to no way to extend the time and the player will reach a certain point where they can't beat their own score. Despite the flawed game play and the little success, "Samurai Ball" is a series I want to continue.

Current Version 2.1, Aika is no longer a box and the balls are now 2D.

Before it continues, I want to fix the flaws of the original game. However, a simple update wont be enough. It would be better to rebuild the game from the ground up using new art assets, music, and improved game play mechanics. I have some ideas down the pipeline already on how to tackle this.

So does this mean that I'm announcing a remake of Samurai Ball? Not really. I've got other projects that take priority. But Aika Mizuwari's story is far from finished.

Want to see what I mean? Check out my first launched game "Samurai Ball" on Google Play.