BACKSTORY
Select a year in the timeline.
TIMELINE
CIRCA 2006
The true beginning of this journey: this was the dreaming stage.
I have always wanted to make video games, but I didn’t have any means of doing so. However, I did use the house PC to explore and try some things.
ROBLOX was newly released, and I remember playing around with the ROBLOX Studio editor. I was terrible and might have gotten a few viruses along the way… oops.
This opened many doors to what I wanted to do in the future.
CIRCA 2007
The biggest year of my entire life!
I still reference ’07 today as the founding year of my inspiration, hope, and first major dive into the digital arts.
This is also the year I discovered Game Maker 7.0, the catalyst for my growing empire. Along with YoYo Games‘ amazing exchange-like site (only Sims 2 players may get that reference), I began making and sharing games of all sorts.
Terrible but playable, I released a handful of beginner games to the world. Mostly just terrible attempts at remaking or creating my own Zelda games, I did manage to squeeze out some originals along the way. I still hold some of those files today, but not for the public. Though I do plan on adding them here soon.
I also started my development studio, Kevin Smith Productions (Yes, I know this existed already… but I was too young to notice then), which was later renamed to Super Craved Gamers.
2007 will always and forever be the greatest year!
CIRCA 2008
This particular year shares some similarity with 2007, as it was the year I developed many more little games.
I finally took the plunge and updated to Game Maker 8.0, which was huge because the new features allowed me to thrive further—like transparency!
I remember this year being unique as I also tried to create more original games, but most of them were simply ideas and were never made.
I learned this year that Kevin Smith Productions was NOT the best name to use and Super Craved Gamers was just… odd. This is when The K-ManZ Productions became the new name for my studio.
The remainder of the year was mostly just tinkering and learning.
Oh, and I got to see Disturbed LIVE in Portland, ME!
CIRCA 2010
This year was less about making games and more about making movies, animations, and music.
For some reason, I got really, really obsessed with celebrities playing as my characters. Hey, I was like… 13 or something?
I learned to write screenplays, wrote countless screenplays, and lost most of the screenplays… all in one year! Woo-hoo!
I even got R.L. Stine to reply to a tweet about one of them.
This was definitely the year of mass learning; I even learned Chinese Mandarin and Gaelic! Oh, yeah, this was the year my interest in Asian culture intensified.
I also took the time to learn how to make and mix music. My first album was made under the name The Synthing Gales, and the album De’Crofta still holds a special place in my heart.
A lot of good memories… I can go on and on.
CIRCA 2011
A heck of a year for game originals, hands down!
This is the year Spirit Haven, Damn! Infection!, Lasernoid, and CoMpLeXiTy were released, along with many other now unpublished games (WICKED!, NITE RUNNER, etc.).
The school I attended had laptops, which was great because at this point I still didn’t have my own. Game Maker had FINALLY released for MAC OS… yeah, they were MACBOOK computers… send help! I did what I could with what I had.
I also released my second album, New Emotions. Which was a very experimental, chill, ambient soundtrack. This was where I started to really change my music style to something more unique, dark, and laid back.
This is the year I departed from making fan games and remakes. From this point on, I only made originals; I was hooked!
CIRCA 2012
This year was a precursor to the year of CHANGE!
This particular year was part one of the big change I was making to my brand. Not only did I change my studio name once again to TKZ Productions, but I was also really focused on the music scene.
I also released my third album, Thy Legend. This was and still is my all-time favorite album I’ve made. I started its development right at the time of the "APOCALYPSE", and all of my emotions and energy went into it. From there, my style was decided!
I was really honing my mixing skills, though still very far from being anything amazing. I don’t recall many games being released this year, besides maybe a few bug fixes here and there.
I still had the laptop, but sadly, Game Maker was just so unstable and outdated that it made production very disheartening.
Other than all that, this year was only the beginning of a huge leap!
CIRCA 2013
Graduation year!
Many huge changes were on the horizon, with new skills, mindsets, and bigger dreams to boot.
Fresh out of high school, I really wanted to rework my future career! However, I was cut down by the loss of the capability to use Game Maker as my primary tool due to having a PC that lacked the necessary requirements.
However, RPG Maker VX Ace would pick up those pieces! Now with a new job and a new brand, it was time to focus on making games again.
Though many projects would never make it out of 2013, I did make a staple game: The Hidden Village. It is unpublished now due to my desire to rebuild it with my own engine. Using RPG Maker assets just wasn’t doing it for me anymore, but it will be back!
I ended the year with my fourth album, Cosmology. A more serious, personal, and emotional album. This was also intended to be my last album.
Overall, 2013 was a precious year for me, and I will never forget it!
CIRCA 2014
The beginning of a very difficult path…
This year, though not as productive as the previous years, did yield a unique and very experimental album, Equality.
This is where I mostly took a back seat and joined forces with other musicians to put together what I think is a bit of a rollercoaster of an album. However, some charm is sprinkled about.
This year marks the start of an insane and rocky path ahead…
CIRCA 2015
We moved from home… to a town far, far away, a barren wasteland. Things took a turn for the worse…
However, I finally learned HTML5! With the release of Game Maker Studio 1, new platforms opened up to me. I developed and released GUN UR BUDDY!, WIKIA! Defend Survive, and Lasernoid Reborn, a huge accomplishment in moving into new markets!
The year ended with the very last album I would produce under the name The Synthing Gales.
Laconic Child marked the end of innocence.
CIRCA 2016
The darkest year…
I did release some things, which is why I must share this year as part of my backstory. However, that is where the good news ends and the horror begins!
I released an album under my own alias, DJ K-ManZ, titled Songs for Firefighters. This isn’t much of an accolade, but it was part of a line of emotional music I released alongside it.
Another album, released beside SFF, was Freestyler, a “made-by-hand” style album where I created each track with a single electronic piano passed down from a late uncle.
The only album that had any joy was Under the Apple Tree, a very short album I made to attempt to help me out of the funk I found myself in…
Not entirely my favorite albums…
Not my favorite year…
CIRCA 2017
The year of HTML5!
I took this year in strides, learning and mastering browser-based games with HTML5.
Though my life was in complete shambles and I was going through very dire situations, I tried to find the light in the darkness.
I became more active on Newgrounds, where I initially started posting my HTML5 games. MAI B0T was released as a Newgrounds exclusive, but it definitely had its issues.
The remainder of the year was purely about survival… All my creative bones were shattered!
CIRCA 2018
A break in the storm…
We have indeed returned home, but this will be short-lived. Only a few projects were started because I spent most of the year recovering!
I did release a small album, 3rd August. This album was made to reflect the horror I went through from 2015 to 2017.
The song Mental Imprisonment even made the front page on Newgrounds, which was a HUGE accomplishment for me.
I also released a little game, Otoid: Save the Souls, on Newgrounds. Not much of a game, but a neat little time-killer.
CIRCA 2020
DEVASTATION!
Let me stop and talk about all that has happened. Before I admit, I withheld many details, but going forward, context is needed.
My family was never the most stable or grounded. We have had many hardships, more than most need! We moved away to the very same area back in 2009/2010 but didn’t face the issues we encountered in 2015-2017.
Many hearts were broken, homes lost, and mental/emotional damage caused. All this accumulated and cost us dearly.
We moved back in 2018 but lost our home soon after. A lot of emotional and mental destruction led us to a final moment that not only broke me but also jump-started my desire to make a change and actually pursue my career further.
My mother suffered a massive heart attack; I nearly lost her. The stress and hardship had taken their toll.
So, this year was definitely difficult and very limited in what was produced.
However, my little brother and I were able to develop our first 3D game project! Siren Head 64 was developed and released on itch.io.
Along with this, I once again rebranded to what I am known as now: WakianTech.
From this year on, I was determined to push forward!
CIRCA 2021
The Power of JAPAN!
Still homeless, I found myself growing stronger once again!
All this is owed greatly to BABYMETAL and Japan! Seriously, I know it’s crazy, but without the powerful music of BABYMETAL and the joy of seeing and learning about Japan, I would have never been pulled out of the house of horrors!
From this year on, things (despite the current situation) are getting better. I even released my first 3D original game, The Slither, on itch.io.
My love for Japan will continue to grow and inspire me from the inside out!
CIRCA 2022
Game Surge!
The horror had ended, and a home was acquired! Finally, blissfulness once again!
With this new happiness, ideas flowed like an electrical current. Several projects were finished and released!
I decided to start participating in Game Jams, which are challenges where developers compete with each other or just create for the fun of it.
I released HYDRASCAPE, Bagging Simulator, and MUTANT HUNT, all of which were very fun to make, especially with a new laptop, a new desk, and a quiet place to work.
This was a good year, and I couldn’t have been happier. I ended the year with one last game, a rebuild of GUN UR BUDDY! which was made with a new engine (Unity).
CIRCA 2023
Rebuilding the Empire!
Now, with a steady stream of Game Jams and projects galore, I feel things are healing and gaining speed.
Just like in 2007 and 2010, I feel a strong surge of creativity once again. Now armed with new skills in 3D modeling, spriting, and programming, I feel nothing can stop me.
I released another Game Jam project, Customer Hell, my first attempt at a Bullet Hell game. I admit, it reflects my work-life a little more than I should have allowed.
I also started making browser games once again, though now I work solely with GX.games instead of HTML5.
My first GX.game, KAPPA NAPPA, is a game that displays my love for Japan.
Here’s to the bright future of WakianTech Studios!
CIRCA 2024
After that rollercoaster, I am more determined than ever!
Earlier in the year, I released a few games. A Game Jam project, FOOLS HOLLOW, was a lot of fun to make. It’s a neat game in the ATARI style, something I figured would be a different direction for the jam in question.
I also just released two GameBoy-style games: SNOWED IN! and TJPW: Princess Pocket Rumble. I have absolutely fallen in love with retro-style games and I am looking to continue with them.
Be sure to check them out.
Yes, I am going through some mental health complications today; however, this will not make me waver from my determination to be successful.
Might I add, my new obsession with ATARASHII GAKKO! might just be my much-needed inspiration!
どうもありがとう!
CIRCA 2025
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