The
seeds of this creative outlet we call Sawblade Software were
sewn a long while ago. During our formative years we drew a lot
of pictures, played a lot of Super Nintendo, learned how to blow
stuff up, discovered some really cool music, and filmed some sick movies.
There was an attempt to make a huge game based on the Marathon engine, but the project was
too ambitious and the level design tools were too buggy.
Then things really started going downhill: growing up meant
sitting in traffic jams on commuter highways, paying taxes,
and struggling to survive a day at the office after the requisite
catharsis of a Cradle of Filth concert. So I bailed. This
Sawblade Software thing is no opiate, but it's a temporary
and, God willing, profitable escape to a place where the
work is meaningful, the hours are flexible, and the people
all around are much more alive.

Fabricating Fun, Flushing Frustration
We all seem to have more fun when we're making things. Drawing,
building, composing, programming, writing, sculpting... there
are a lot of outlets for creativity. And here, at least in
theory, is another one: Power Game Factory. We're guessing
that video games could be even more fun to make than they are
to play, at least if it weren't for the challenges accompanying computer
programming. That's why Power Game Factory was designed to let you avoid
those technical roadblocks and focus on the creative aspects of game
design. We think that anyone who puts some effort into using Power Game
Factory could end up with a cool project and a potentially large, appreciative
audience.

Welcome,
Mac Addicts
Sawblade Software designs software for the Macintosh because it's a
great computer... and because we have no clue how to make this stuff
work on Windows. We admire the Bungie Software of the 90s: a creative
force that understood what the Mac was all about and gave people what
they wanted, with a few surprises thrown in. While we can't match Bungie's
volume of output, we can certainly work in their spirit while striving
to make the most of our limited potential.

Read on to become an expert on Sawblade
Software's murky past and peculiar present. Watch out for all the half-truths;
take everything with a grain of salt (except for the bit about our contributions
to the World Food Programme.)

October 2000Sawblade Software's founder figures out how to program in Java
class. The fruits of his labor survive to this day, but they'recrap.

September 27, 2001The first lines of code are written for Greenland Invasion, a
side-scroller for the Mac, designed as a college thesis project.

April 26, 2002Greenland Invasion makes its debut
in a packed auditorium at Hampshire College. Four volunteers
are picked from the audience to compete for the highest
score. The contest ensues flawlessly, followed by much
hugging and hand-shaking.

July 8, 2002The first copy of The Green Machine is sold for $15. It is an
enhanced version of Greenland Invasion with completely modifiable
game content.

August 4, 2002Work begins on a user friendly side scrolling game design application
called Power Game Factory. It would eventually emerge as
a huge improvement over The Green Machine.

March 30, 2004Sawblade Software's founder quits his
day job due to his intent to experience a life of bliss.
Even with all the free time in the world, he somehow still
can't manage to finish Power Game Factory.

October 1, 2004After two years of relatively hard work on Power Game Factory,
it is feature complete and largely free of bugs.

January 2005The Power Game Factory box and promotional
materials are designed and sent to press.

Later in 2005Power Game Factory is released. The Macintosh community braces
for a slew of bad 2D games.

2007-2008Numerous Power Game Factory 1.1 beta releases
are showered upon unsuspecting forum readers.

Programming Language used: Power Game Factory was originally programmed in REALbasic
4.5.2. It has 126991 lines of code, not including comments. The
game engine used REALbasic 5.5.5. The newest version of the engine
uses REALbasic 2008 Release 5, and
utilizes tools provided by Monkeybread Software and the
TinRocket SuperSpriteSurface framework.

Official Programming Music: Disco
Volante, by Mr. Bungle [we found the secret song!]

Official Driving to the Post Office Music: Mit
Gas, by Tomahawk, released 2003 [it's very ominous.]

Favorite Mac Game That Was Never Released: Project Skatepark [an
ingenious hybrid of Castlevania, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, and the
archetypical Japanese Dating Simulation, set in a modern-day New
Jersey apartment complex that looks like it belongs in the Weimar
Republic of the late 1920s. One of the project leaders is now employed
by Oracle.]

Exit Strategy: The
dissolution of the company, and the even division of assets
and fat wads of cash among everyone involved.

We Work In A Boat!
Sawblade Software makes its home in a toxic cargo vessel that we salvaged
from the
Alang shipbreaking yard. When we first discovered the ship,
it was full of asbestos, lead paint, PCBs and explosive gases. We didn't
want the workers at Alang (see photo)
to be exposed to the ship's dangers, so we smuggled it to a secret location near
the coast of the Fairly
Fruited Plain
and set to work restoring
it and converting its lower decks into office space.

As you can
see, our facilities still aren't
sterile, but Julie promises to disinfect everything when she returns
from her latest mooseriding expedition. We like it here. See the
smokestack? Julie's cat Uji jumped off it and fell right through the
roof of the cabin. He's ok though.

Amidst the Stench, a Social Conscience
Our experience at the Alang shipbreaking yard reminded us that all
is not well with the world. Poverty, sub-par working conditions, and
inequality threaten to halt the progress of the developing world, and
we want to do our part to promote change. That's why five percent of
Sawblade Software's earnings are donated to the United Nations World
Food Programme, one of the most important organizations in the fight
against global hunger.

Corporate Info
Sawblade Software is a sole proprietorship based in Litchfield, Connecticut.
As explained in our privacy
statement, we will not share your personal
information with anyone. Our software comes with a license
agreement that you'll find to be more relaxed than usual. We think that
by letting you make a copy of your Power Game Factory CD for a friend,
we'll earn karma points and the people at Slashdot won't hate us so much. Read
the license here.