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The latest update is uploading now. It has the new GUI. Some bugs I already know about, and will fix as soon as possible:

--there are missing icons in the battle GUI
--some of the tutorials don't display properly

One cool new thing I added: greater customizability to the battle GUI! It now has three sizes: full, small, and minimized. (I'm still working on the design of "shrunk.")

Not a bug--I just haven't gotten around to adding the part where Rahel returns. (You won't be running into her in the cave.)

Your link is broken, Zhampir.

Also, Crypt 2 will have two orbs in it. :)

Wish granted. Instead, it rained fire.

I wish that I could stop and start time at will.

Well, what's better: a Newbie or a Hero? :P

That's not just you. ;)

Same reason that people care about leveling up in games, I'd imagine. ;)

After the next mission or two, I plan to open up the game world a bit to player exploration, so you can take on various missions in a non-linear way. We'll see how things go. :)

You are publicly humiliated in front of someone you're interested in romantically.

I wish for a genie that would independently grant my wishes in uncorrupted form.

Speaking of which will you be making a quest which features the Academy?

Probably more than one. ;)

Wish granted--you can only find work doing the graveyard shift at local stores.

I wish the American job market would recover more quickly.

only

Okay, fair enough. Don't stop discussing things on my account! ;)

I would expect TSoG to be like Telepath Psy Arena 2, with a free demo and a full game that is pay-to-download.

As for putting up an interview- methinks you've already just done that :P

All right, all right. You win. :P I'll pick and choose a few of these:

What are your plans for future projects? I remember you talked about Fool's Gold at some point, and the Shadowling Assassin? Do you have desire to expand into another genre?

My latest idea is to make a game that combines turn-based tactics with a collectible card game. Instead of recruiting characters, you collect cards. Some cards let your hero cast spells directly on the battlefield, some change the rules of combat, and some summon minions for you to command. You can build multiple decks, level up your minion cards in battle, and go dungeon-delving for especially rare cards.

That's just one idea, though. Whatever I end up deciding to make next, you guys will be the first to know. ;)

Are you thinking of mixing up games in future, making some free-for-all, and some buyable premium ones to keep your profile high in the Flash gaming community?

I've considered it. The free Flash game market is pretty competitive, though. As I learned with TPA1, it doesn't really work to release a not-so-great free game to build buzz these days. And the games I tend to like making take a lot of time and effort to make. I'd consider it if I had a large enough sponsorship offer waiting in the wings, but I can't really predict whether that's likely to happen or not.

What's your thought of venturing into making short games in Flash for iPhone?

Well, the iPhone doesn't support Flash, so that's pretty much DOA. Unless you're talking about Flash CS5's reported ability to export to iPhone format? I've heard some mixed opinions on how well that'll work. Given the technical limitations of the iPhone platform and the likelihood that Flash-exported games will run slowly on it, I think iPhone development should probably be left for people better at optimizing code than I. (And that's without even getting into how the iPhone App store basically requires your game to be sold at $0.99 per copy in order to get any attention.)

Just general thoughts on shifting attitudes and expectations towards Flash games that you noticed in the last 5-7 years? (Or better yet, over the last decade?)

Well, just in terms of being a program you can plausibly use to make games, Flash basically didn't exist prior to the beginning of this decade. Check out Tom Fulp's description of how he made Pico's School with Flash 3 back in 1999:

This year also saw the introduction of Pico's School, hailed by many as the pinnacle of Flash 3 "programming". I say that in quotes because Flash 3 didn't offer much in terms of programming - it didn't even support variables. I came up with a very complex work-around for tracking events and data, making Pico the most advanced Flash 3 game I am aware of. It wasn't until Flash 4 that variables were introduced, and Pico would have been much easier to make. :)

It didn't support variables--that's just crazy!

Flash games have gotten a lot more sophisticated over the past 5 years, particularly in terms of graphics. Only over the past year or two has Flash started to gain acceptance in the larger games-making community as a legitimate game development platform, and not just an engine for crummy, free games, which I think very important for indie developers.

1- Epic fail
2- Backfires slightly
3- Nothing happens
4- Success, but barely
5- Perfect success
6- Overshot

I love how this system provides no middle ground between "epic fail" and "backfires slightly." ;D