Hello everyone!

Sorry for the delay, I was knocked out by a nasty cold for the past 2 weeks. Let's finally take a look at the results of the haiku workshop #7! The theme was "TEA", meant as a warm, cozy and poetic parenthesis before the final months of the year! Let's see what we got this time:



You may notice the participation is dwindling a bit, which is highly understandable since the workshops have been going on for more than half a year already. But be it 4, 8 or 16 poems, I'm so happy to find each time that the overall impression of these productions is a mix of poetry, goofiness, and equally grave, cheerful or absurd considerations. For instance, this workshop started with my grim "we have to unmeet" entry, but was completely thrown off balance by the haiku about coercing people into buying rounds of tea for everyone, and the one praising the "hmm hmm hot hot good" tea, which had me burst into laughter. Only to be countered again by the tragic depiction of a trainwreck due to a sleeping driver. I feel the resulting vibe is profoundly what Will The Man Get Frog is about, and it's awesome to see you guys achieving it each time. Once again, thank you all for your participation! Now, forwards! As you may have read before I think it's a good time to put these workshops to a halt. It's been a lot of fun writing poetry with you and reading your stuff, and you can (and definitely should) keep posting some more in the community hub if you feel like it, I'll definitely keep reading them with a smile on my face. But I feel the game has lived its little life, and it might be time to move on. Which is good, because I've been working on some new stuff you might enjoy!

A new game? What? When?

I won't say much just yet, but I've started a new project a few months after Will The Man Get Frog's release. It's another genre, but still full of big pixels and silly stuff, and I should be able to showcase it to you quite soon. People following me on X/Twitter might already kinda know what it's about. Stay tuned, you'll hear from me in the coming weeks! Hope to see you there, MarechalBanane

[ 2024-10-30 15:44:41 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Here's the first autumn workshop! As the end of the year grows nearer, let's congregate and make some poetry together! It's really simple: I post an example haiku with a password, and then you use it in shared game mode to write your own and post it in the hub! And then we have fun reading each other's stuff.

Haiku posting guide

Here's a guide showing you how to post your haikus in the hub. Don't hesitate to use it!

The entry

The theme this month is TEA! Here it is, with the password "SING FOR DEAR SMILE":
As usual, the workshop will last 10 days or so, and then I'll publish the recap in 2 weeks! Have fun, and see you then! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-09-25 16:50:45 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

The 6th haiku workshop is officially over, and it's time to take a look at the results. It's been more than half a year since the game came out, time sure flies by! Thanks for sticking by, and as always, congrats for creating something and putting it out there! Now, the theme this time was "EVE", in an attempt to counterbalance last workshop's grim mood. Did it succeed? Let's find out!





Ok! Let's see:

• Look at how diverse this batch is! I think it's the first time that the poems all feel so different from one another. We have gambling, a post-battle landscape, mysterious wilderness, a family, passing time, and seclusion. It's awesome how you guys explored so many different things with the same words!
• Of course, that doesn't mean there are no similarities. For instance, most poems start with the idea of waking up, which fits very well with the theme of eve. And evidently, you all couldn't pass up on the chance to include a lot or roaring, including on things that normally don't roar, like places, or mute eves (and since eves don't roar, mute eves roar even less). Takes me back to the infamous first, "mad roaring snail" workshop. Anyway, funny how when this verb is available, it's almost always widely used, I wonder why it's so attractive.
• Concerning the theme "eve", it has been interestingly widely tied to the idea of "shield" and shielding. There seems to be a connection there. Maybe "eve" evokes time and/or the sun setting, which can be seen as reminders of the universe's scale and impassiveness, guardians of the natural order of some sort towering over us humans?
• In one instance is the relation reversed and it's a girl who's described as "the shield of eve". In another, the eve "shields a place of change". Both meanings elude me, but I find the images powerful. I guess that's a bit what poetry is about?
• That is of course overly subjective, but I feel like as time passes, the entries feel a bit less random/funny and a bit more, well, mastered? Like, more evocative, with strong images and a sense of cohesiveness. I don't mean to say it's better, but I kinda feel like I can track some sort of progress. Do you feel like you're happier about your productions than at the beginning? I'd be interested to know!
• There's a slight drop in participation, which is to be expected as we're 6 months in, however I'm glad you people are still sticking by! We'll see how the next ones will fare. The workshops might not go on forever, but by then I'll have new things to show you. Hope you'll be there and like what you see!

Alright, let's wrap this up. Thank you once again for being here and participating in these small events, spreading the joy of writing stuff! See you at the end of the month for the next workshop. Till next time! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-09-12 10:53:17 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Hope you got plenty of rest during these summer months, or at least that work has slowed down a bit. September is almost upon us, but before that, let's have a nice haiku workshop together! It's really simple: I post an example haiku with a password, and then you use it in shared game mode to write your own and post it in the hub! And then we have fun reading each other's stuff.

Haiku posting guide

Here's a guide showing you how to post your haikus in the hub. Don't hesitate to use it!

The entry

The theme this month is EVE! Here it is, with the password "WIN BAD WIN BIG":
This should be a nice change from the last one. Hope you'll enjoy it! You have 10 days to submit your haiku, and I'll publish the recap in 2 weeks! Have fun, and see you then! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-08-28 15:00:56 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

The results are finally in, apologies for the slight delay! Thank you all for participating in the haiku workshop #5! The theme was "COIN"! A very pragmatic and materialist theme, which, as you'll see, produced some more serious and heavy haikus. Let's check this out!










So... yeah. Lots to unpack here!

• The entries are all surprisingly... depressing. They depict a world where resource is scarce and competition everywhere. Everyone is obsessed with money, even the cattle only feeds on precious metals. The economy is so bad people sell their teeth, when they don't just turn against each other. Theft is an inescapable necessity to survive. Coolcoolcool.
• But there's hope! I mean, literally, the word "hope" was on the list. Surely it shed some light in this oppressive atmosphere? Well... Meh. "Hope" is mentioned in 5 haikus, but either as a remembrance of something lost, its direct contrary (unhope), or as a suppletive for "fear"; "hope to be fed" or "hope of not being stolen or attacked" is more about harm avoidance than actual hope. And as if it wasn't enough, the last nail in the coffin is put by this harsh, undeniable truth: "our hopes don't feed us". Nice.
• Soooo, has all been lost, with no salvation whatsoever? No, I think we can manage to find some scraps. For instance one haiku ends with a charming invitation: "won't you feed us tunes"? It evokes a desire for something else, a belief in human connection, a simple way that we can heal and nurture one another. That's true hope! (and a very welcome relief)
• Also, someone found a clever way to approximate the sound of police sirens by just juxtaposing "you" and "we" several times. It's so absurd (and hilarious) that it completely breaks the doom and gloom mood installed by the other poems. Thanks for that, fellow writer!
• Ok, let's take a step back now. First, I find it awesome that there's a shared consistency in all these haikus, despite all entries being different. It was also noticeable in previous workshops, so there's definitely a trend. It might be due to the wordset constraint, but I like to believe it might also be some kind of collective unconscious speaking, showing that we're all bound together by the times we live in more than we'd think. What's your opinion?
• I know word choice was heavily constrained, still I'm surprised by the popularity of the "tooth" theme, and by the crude anguish it's conveyed (fear of hunger, fear of loss, etc). Have you ever had a nightmare where you lose your teeth? I think there's a similarity here.

Phew, that one was something. Thank you all again and congrats for participating! As always, no doubt there's a lot more to unpack, but I don't wanna ramble for too long. If you want to extend the discussion, feel free to do so in the comments! No workshop this month, as I'll be on holidays. See you in late August for the next one! Till next time! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-07-15 10:36:50 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Summer is here, just in time for a new workshop! It's really simple: I post an example haiku with a password, and then you use it in shared game mode to write your own and post it in the hub! And then we have fun reading each other's stuff.

Haiku posting guide

Here's a guide showing you how to post your haikus in the hub. Don't hesitate to use it!

The entry

And the kigo for this one is COIN! The password is "NO NO NO NO":
There it is! Hopefully it'll get your creative juices flowing. We'll see that during the recap in two weeks! See you then! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-06-26 10:15:38 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Thank you all for participating in the haiku workshop #4! Sorry for the slight delay, things here in France have been, uhhh... busy. So, "HOME", heh? What a warm, delicate theme. Let's see what you made of it!







Ha, I absolutely love them! All share a distinct, yet joyous, hearty vibe.

• Almost everyone made the link between home and songs (or barking, or barking songs), which I find quite poetic. Then again that was the point of my personal entry, so I might be biased, or have biased you guys. :P
• Having "home" as a theme, of course "noisy neighbours" kind of self-imposed as a popular topic. That is a very very human thing to complain about, which make these haikus all the more sincere. Of course, the given words helped - clowns are particularly prone to noisiness, and barking is generally considered loud.
• What's interesting is that the word "guard" was used both as a noun designating a paramilitary solution to neighbouring issues, and as a verb evoking shelter and warmth (in a word, "home"). It tragically highlights our political duality regarding home: a place to cherish and grow together, yet a territory to own and defend from others.
• To close the subject of neighbouring issues, I think "we might call the guards..." wins the award of passive-agressiveness. Please notice the use of "might" to infer we don't want to 'cause we're a nice guy but we'll definitely do it if our demands are not met, beautifully concluded by suspension points to let the threat sink in. Nice work.
• I love how the verb "bleed" has been used and how it seems to mix with wine (and songs) in a somewhat painful longing for home. "Gloves soaked of wine we bled songs" strikes me as a really good image, highly evocative.
• Last but not least, I can't not mention the beard home. Why? Well, it's the beard home. Look at how "the beard home" is repeated at the end of the two first verses, how it's literally the only information given in the first phrase. Feel the emphasis that it creates, how vividly it ties these words together. Most of the time we read stuff without even acknowledging the words used. Here we have no choice: it's the beard home. Whatever image pops in your mind, it will now be forever recalled when you see these words again. The beard home.

Ok, I'm already kinda drifting here so I'll stop. But as always, that was much fun to read and think about! Sincerely, thank you all. See you at the end of the month for the next one! Till next time! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-06-14 12:32:20 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Hope you've been alright during this month of May. It's now time for a new workshop! It's really simple: I post an example haiku with a password, and then you use it in shared game mode to write your own and post it in the hub! And then we have fun reading each other's stuff.

Haiku posting guide

Here's a guide showing you how to post your haikus in the hub. Don't hesitate to use it!

The entry

And this one will be about HOME! Here it is, with the password "MAKE FROG BUS DREAM":
There it is! Hopefully it'll get your creative juices flowing. We'll see that during the recap, in a big week! See you then! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-05-29 15:00:59 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

So some of you may have noticed I asked them for permission to use their haikus in promotional content. It was to print some posters that I used during a local event where I live. Thank you all for your participation, I'm quite pleased with the result! Here are high def versions of it, if you wanna check it out or print your own: 102x68 poster 170x102 poster And here are some photos of what it looks like IRL:


It feels really great to have a nice chunk of the community content printed neatly on a giant poster. Thanks for letting me do it, I hope you'll enjoy it! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-05-20 13:07:18 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Thank you all for participating in the haiku workshop #3! This one actually holds the record for most entries! I'm super happy to see you're still interested and participating. I hope you enjoyed the update! And once again, congratulations for making a haiku and putting it out there! It's not as easy as it looks. So let's see what we have here this time:









I must say, quite a fruitful one! Let's see what we can make of it:

• The new backgrounds have been quite popular, representing 80% of the submitted entries! I'm glad you liked them, hopefully they provide a bit more variation in expressivity.
• People are divided on the wall topic. Some insist they shouldn't be built ("don't start a new wall"), some say they rise, some insist they don't, at least not "near [their] nice camp". Some promote their insulative properties ("mute her kind with spiced walls"), only to be contradicted by a person named Rose who, apparently, can't be muted by any wall. Divisive stuff.
• Then again, in the other entries walls tend to just lay there because they were already built anyway. And in time they can gather psychoactive condiments or abrasive flowers, which apparently is deemed pleasant.
• On that topic, "spice" was used a lot more than I thought it'd be. You guys've seen Dune recently too?
• Kudos to the person who simultaneously managed to dodge the wall subject AND I guess potential lawsuits by inventing a character named "wallly" with three L's. The performance must be saluted.
• Overall, I really like the atmosphere of quietness, almost desolate peace that emerges from the entries as a whole. "wall", "hush", and "blind/mute/deaf" was a great combo in that regard, which has been used in lots of cool ways. Then again, some entries chose instead to enthusiastically play with swans and cut grapes in a very exclamatory manner, which I find very funny.
• I also enjoyed the depiction of the flower game, which wasn't easy with the provided words. "Cut me kindly while we play" is I feel a great verse, highly evocative, bittersweet and with very ear-pleasing alliterations. Congrats!

There could be a lot more to say, but I feel I've rambled enough. Anyway, thanks again! As always, it's a pleasure to read you and see all the diversity produced in this very constrained exercise! Let me know in the comments if you'd like these workshops to continue! I think once every few weeks can be a nice rythm. See you next time! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-05-09 07:48:16 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

It's been a while! After a glorious workshop about bugs quite a few weeks ago, let's celebrate the release of version 2.3 with a new one! It's really simple: I post an example haiku with a password, and then you use it in shared game mode to write your own and post it in the hub! And then we have fun reading each other's stuff.

Haiku posting guide

Here's a guide showing you how to post your haikus in the hub. Don't hesitate to use it!

The entry

And this one will be about WALLS! Here it is, with the password "GO SING DUMB DUCK":
There. I hope it'll inspire you to create your own. As always, I can't wait seeing what you make of all that. It's gonna be fun! Thanks, and see you in a big week for the recap! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-04-24 15:00:21 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone! VERSION 2.3 IS OUT NOW!

It contains:

• Mouse support! Composing is now comfier than ever!
• A brand-new background and music themed around new year's eve!
• A not-so brand-new background and music with a big frog in it!
• A LOT more season words (more than twice as much)!
• the "..." punctuation mark, more mysterious than ever.
• "-ed" and "-es" suffixes. Add past tenses and plurals to anything.
• A delicate sprinkle of handpicked new words in almost every category.
• A few bug fixes and quality of life improvements

The game is now in the state I wanted to reach when I initially started it. I really hope you'll enjoy these changes. Let me know what you think! Have fun composing! MarechalBanane P.S : Oh, oh, and don't miss the next haiku workshop! It'll happen on Wednesday.

[ 2024-04-19 08:23:52 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Just to make it official: Will The Man Get Frog will receive its free 2.3 update on Friday, April 19th! You can have more info on its content here. See you there! MarechalBanane

[ 2024-04-15 15:16:27 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Will The Man Get Frog has been out for more than a month now, and I've already hinted at a game update a few times. It's now time to give you a bit more details about it! Version 2.3 is planned for sometime this month. A haiku workshop will closely follow.

This upcoming update will include:

• Mouse support! You'll be able to freely switch in-game between controller, keyboard, and mouse.
• A brand new background, along with a new beautiful track from c.diffin!
• More words to choose from!
• Bug fixes and small quality-of-life improvements

And that's about all. Can't wait for you to try it! See you soon, MarechalBanane

[ 2024-04-02 15:38:41 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Thank you all for participating in the haiku workshop #2! I'm glad to see that you enjoyed the first one, and got back at it. And as always, congratulations for making a haiku and putting it out there! It's not as easy as it looks. Here are the pieces I'm aware of:







So, what can we take away from this? A few thoughts:

• Bugs fly. It has been written enough times so that I can be confident this piece of information is correct.
• Mostly summer, and a few fall backgrounds have been used. We're talking about bugs, so honestly, I can't argue with that. Well, maybe spring would've worked too. But since the spring background depicts a mountain at night, I understand it was less popular for this theme.
• Bugs are tied to different symbols here: either a menace ("bugs seek your arm yes"), a familiar and soothing motion ("bugs fly calmly"), a dietary supplement ("your taste of flies") or a robust vehicle ("strongly flying on bugs"). I find the diversity here fascinating, by constrat with snails which, as the last workshop revealed, are grossly monolithic roaring creatures.
• While bugs can be a menace, I find it funny that the haiku with the most explicit threat is actually about flying cats! Note that these cats "bug" the ship, so the menace still stems from the "bug" word, but with an alternate meaning. Very clever!
• "We're stuck with no flutes!" is a hilariously exclamatory yet desperate realization. Note that the only other exclamation is "we must seek the stick!", which also echoes to another haiku, "you'll seek for the first glass flute". So there's a sense of urgency, somewhat sacred purpose pertaining to sticks and flutes. I'll let you draw your own conclusions.
• Apparently there's such a thing as "noing of the cats". It is said in a context of strength and decisiveness, as the person is even "butting through the change", which I interpret as quite a display of self-improvement. I wonder if I shouldn't start noing of some stuff too, it sounds exciting.
• I'm pleasantly surprised by the importance given to the "arm" word. I didn't care for it myself, but it inspired you quite a lot! "Arm your cat" and "the strong arms of sound" are some of my favorite images in this workshop.

I suppose we could go on and expose more fascinating stuff, but I'll try to remain short. Don't hesitate to comment with your own thoughts! I'm sure I missed a lot of interesting things. Thanks again! And stay tuned, 'cause I should be back in a week or two with exciting news! See you soon, MarechalBanane

[ 2024-03-15 17:49:46 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

After a first, very enlightening workshop about snails, let's carry on with a new one! It's really simple: I post an example haiku with a password, and then you use it in shared game mode to write your own and post it in the hub! And then we have fun reading each other's stuff.

Haiku posting guide

Here's a guide showing you how to post your haikus in the hub. Don't hesitate to use it!

The entry

And this one will be about bugs! Here it is entry, with the password "EAT EAT FULL FULL":
Now craft your own! I'll be very eager to read your productions. Thanks and see you soon, MarechalBanane

[ 2024-03-06 14:16:20 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Thank you all for your participation in the first haiku workshop! It was awesome to discover your creations. And congratulations for making a haiku and putting it out there! It's not as easy as it looks. Here's an exhaustive selection of the pieces that were made for the workshop:







A few things to take away from these productions:

• Snails have a strong roaring tendancy, and even madly roaring in the worst cases.
• Some snails are hairy and need shaving. Some don't. But only the mad snail has the ability to shave things, namely here the sky of gold (love this by the way)
• Some words have been more inspiring than others. "mad" and "roar" have been the most used, on the other end, "prize" was never used.
• All in all, the worlds depicted are a bit bleak, as themes of fear and madness are prevalent, and living beings in it cope by roaring a lot. The absence of trust also comes a few times, source of doubt and interrogation. Not sure I'd like to live there.
• Fall and spring backgrounds were mostly used, summer and winter deemed particularly snail-unworthy. Fall being the snail season it kinda makes sense, but I'm pretty sure there's plenty to be told about winter and summer snails too. Maybe we can explore that some other time.
• "Snail" really was a tricky kigo! As it has no other possible meaning, it constraints quite a bit what you can evoke with it. It's really fun but also it's harder to make significant variations. I'll try to pick an easier one next time.

That's it for a quick analysis, but I'm sure there's still a lot to be said! Don't hesitate to comment with your thoughts, and also let me know if you want another workshop or if you have any suggestions concerning this kind of event. Thanks and see you soon, MarechalBanane

[ 2024-03-01 14:39:31 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

As Will The Man Get Frog already celebrates its one-week birthday, I'm happy to announce the first haiku workshop! It's really simple: I post an example haiku with a password, and then you use it in shared game mode to write your own and post it in the hub! And then we have fun reading each other's stuff. Maybe even at some point I host a stream reading your works out loud. I dunno. We'll worry about that part later. Without further ado, here's the first entry, with the password "DREAM BIG WIN FRUIT":
Ain't it a beauty? Now craft your own! It can be inspired from this one or go in totally different direction, it's up to you. Just remember to have fun! I'm looking forward to discovering your works, it's gonna be really cool! Thanks and see you soon, MarechalBanane

[ 2024-02-21 14:08:21 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hey everyone!

Will The Man Get Frog has been out for a few days now, and I can already thank you all for your warm welcome! I hope you find enjoyment in this weird little game. Thank you for the nice reviews, and thank you for all the beautiful or silly haikus you posted here! Please keep on doing that, it's awesome! And also, a big shoutout to c.diffin for making the awesome soundtrack of the game! Cheers mate, you nailed it! Now, I just wanted to let you know that it's not exactly over yet.
Firstly because from time to time, I intend to host haiku workshops here on Steam. It's really simple: I post an example haiku with a password, and then you use it in shared game mode to write a haiku with the same word set as me, and post it in the hub! The first event should be very soon, keep your eyes peeled! Secondly because, although I'm limited by the teeny-tiny engine I'm using (pico-8, the cutest engine ever made), I'm trying to figure out ways to squeeze more stuff into the game. So you can reasonably expect a small update in the coming weeks/months. Nothing too fancy, just a bit more content, and probably a few quality-of-life improvements. More on that story as it develops. That's it. Thanks again for this excellent launch and warm welcome, and please continue sharing haikus and spreading the love! See you soon, MarechalBanane

[ 2024-02-19 15:49:18 CET ] [ Original post ]