How we rebranded Portions, and brainstormed different names to try and make it more appealing to the audience that we had in mind. It’s imaginary. and it sounds that way too.

When we first started making Schk!, things were different. Way different. This is a story of the journey of the name of ‘Portions’

Firstly, the game wasn’t even called “Portions”, it was called ‘Blob’, and the previous blog posts talked about Blob, in case you were wondering, all things called Blob, are now called Schk!.

var game_name = Blob;
var new_game_name = Schk!;
#=> Blob is now Schk!

It’s a simple concept, changing Blob to Portions. Why did we do it? Because we felt that there was a lack of identity to the game by calling it Blob. The name, and logo of a game are it’s first go-to’s, and the front gate of the game. When you search for a game on Steam, App Store, or wherever, you see rows of images and titles, and brief descriptions. We decided that if someone searched for ‘Blob’, they would get five pages of results, before finally landing on our game. But more than that, what’s a Blob? It’s something you can’t define, and because you can’t define it, you call it a Blob. Blob storage, “It’s shaped like a Blob”. It’s feels like a weak word that doesn’t say much. So, Donna said she would come up with a new UI, and a new look and feel for the game, this wouldn’t change the functionality of the game, but just the entrance, it’s like changing the window decorations of your shop so that people will be more intrigued by the appearance and step into the front door.

So here’s the story of our logo. It’s interesting to note that I was happy with it at each step of the way. But as soon as I saw the new one I never looked back at the old one, I had been ‘enlightened’

The logo I made…

Did you know there was another name in between?

Actually, before we even settled on the name Portions, we had decided on Schk!.

So, why Schk! What does it mean? Like…it’s not even on a dictionary?

Yes, but we thought it was onomatopaeia for the slicing sound that the blobs make everytime you guys slice them in half. We felt that this slicing mechanic was a core value proposition of our project, something that made it unique and really stand out, and something that the game could not live without.

In saying that, what happens when the player turns off the sound? Then there’s no slicing sound, and then the title of the game is…kinda confusing?

Yes, I agree, but we surmised that even without sound, the game would feel more natural with a name that feels slicker and faster, and more unique, and would get more people in the front door.

Okay, so why Portions?

From the initial stages of designing this game, we knew it was abstract, that character art probably wouldn’t fit it very well, so we knew a somewhat abstract title would suit it well, there was no point calling the game ‘Fluffy Yellow Duck’.

So, I thought about ‘Slices’, or ‘Splits’, but portions sounded like exactly the idea Blob was about. So, when Donna suggested it, I leaped onto it.

So you sell yourself to fit a crowd?

Ummm…yes. But also, like one of those ancient Philosophical questions that have plagued the human race for centuries, if there is no one to play a game, is a game still a game?

So how do you like the new brand

I think we’re both pretty happy with the way things are, and hopefully we won’t need to change the brand too much anymore.

The way I see it, your brand is like the clothes you wear when you walk around outside. But your personality are the products you create.

I think…