Well it’s that time again, time for the yearly check in from all of us here at Metanet Software, to let you know what we’re up to and how things are going. It’s been a pretty good year, finally — it feels like the past few have been pretty heavy, but this time things seem hopeful and full of joy again.
We don’t have any big news for you yet, but at this point there are quite a few irons in quite a few fires that we’re excited about, and we hope to have more news for you soonish (ok maybe we say that every year, but it’s always true! And maybe more so this time around).
In N++ news, 2023 was the year of the map pack — maybe the most exciting thing that’s ever happened in the world of N++ level-making! We’re really happy to see user-made tabs becoming a thing in the N++ community, because they allow level makers to develop ideas beyond individual levels, into episode sequencing and even secret challenges: these extra layers can be really fun to play around in, so it’s nice that finally everyone can give it a try.
The most ambitious map pack thus far is the Community Tab Project: a collection of more than 800 brand-new maps made by the community, over 3 long years. This is a really impressive and ambitious undertaking — massive kudos to everyone who worked so hard to put this together. Plus, the trailer by abho is so cool:
CTP is only one of several packs which have been released this year — here are trailers for some of the rest:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8YPHChhrps
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xB3tOUQONn0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDVEZcYVBHI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBYbXm9Svos
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBO–gKWX8I
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL7Oy1kGXMU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eNpPHPXt1A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7sp9BTXB0A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moF7yXAun34
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwL75aZaEY8
(Sadly the super-intriguing Hax Pack doesn’t have a trailer! But one of our favourite N++ streamers — a community member who’s helped develop tools such as those which enable map packs to exist — did a few streams you could check out to get a taste: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSvT7B8yjSM)
It’s really impressive to see the range and depth of level ideas being explored in these map packs, and we definitely recommend that any N++ fans on Steam check them out!
You can find out more and join the community over on discord — where there are regular map-making contests that are Featured in N++ and over on tumblr as well.
Not only that, there were 8 new 100%-ers in 2023, which is so impressive. That brings the total to a mind-blowing 40 players, from 15 different countries! You are all legends. Thanks for proving us wrong again and again and again, about anyone 100%-ing N++ 😉
More huge news: you might have heard of Lemmino on youtube (their channel is pretty popular, with well-researched and intriguing documentary videos that have attracted over 5M subs), well did you know that he made an ARG based partially on N++! Check this out, it’s incredible: https://www.lemmi.no/p/my-latest-puzzle
THANK YOU Lemmino, you are so awesome — Mare has been a fan of your channel for a while and was delighted to learn about this!
Fan Art Roundup!
Some of this year’s 100%ers, よしお and かつつ, also made some fan art! It’s super fun:
by よしお
fanart by かつつ (Katsutsu)
Thanks to you both! We love it.
And finally, a new tournament has been announced — a sequel to 2021’s amazing PN++W event (an archive of which is available here if you missed it: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1191504447).
Here’s a message from organizer bigblargh:
Hey ninjas, it’s your 2nd or 3rd favorite N++ streamer, bigblargh! As you may have heard, I’m planning on running PN++W2, the second (ever) N++ Race Mode tournament in Portland, Oregon. Like the previous event, I want to challenge competitors with brand new community crafted maps. So, I’m assembling a team to make 1v1 race maps and playtest! If you’re interested in developing/testing maps, or playing in the tournament IRL, swing by my discord where we’re planning things.
https://discord.gg/PGGX9jvj
I’d like to choose the date after the holidays once we’ve sobered up from all the cookies & milk. I’m shooting for either February or March depending on how much time the mapmakers need. When the date is set I’ll let everyone know how to register.
Happy solstice and all that! Thank you to all the players who keep this awesome game alive. Here’s to another year of N++!
-bigblargh, No Big Deal Gaming
(If you have your own fan art to submit, or have other N-series-related news you’d like us to include in blog posts like this, you can do so on the discord or by emailing metanetATmetanetsoftware DOT com )
What else is new with us? We’ve been missing our beautiful departed friends Dr. Doom and Megatron, but have also been enjoying life with three new corporate fat-cats Peach, Pepper and Parsley, who have been helping us prototype up a storm. It’s a long and arduous process, so we’re taking our time with it, but we can’t wait to share more details about that soon — so far we have some pretty cool 2D platforming experiments, an exploration-focused ARPG, a deck-building RPG card game, and even a 1v1 fighting game, none of which are quite fun yet.. but they *might* be eventually! That’s the hope, and we continue working endlessly towards that goal. 😉
To all of you out there, Happy Holidays! Please take care of yourselves and your loved ones — and thanks for reading these posts, playing our games and keeping in touch. We’re so glad the N++ community is so vibrant and friendly, in a world that isn’t always. Thanks for being you.
Until next time,
Mare and Raigan
Been a fan of the N series ever since I watched my dad play it on his PowerBook G4. It’s lived on my computers/consoles ever since. Love to check back periodically and read the blog posts; many thanks for keeping it active and up to date all these years! Oddly, it’s the only blog/social media presence that’s ever made me think “Hey, it’s almost the new year, I wonder if they’ve given any updates.”
Thank you for all of that!
Found out that you guys have a website and just wanted to say how much I love the games! I’m now a huge fan of your guys work and hope you make more games!
Will these map packs ever be available on a platform other than PC?
Thank you so much Lyndon, that’s so cool to hear! We plan to keep things going as long as we possibly can, so thanks for coming back every year 🙂 You too N fan since 2004 — we love that! And thanks Doom! We definitely will. Scruby Muffin, unfortunately because the map packs are sort of hacked in using the PC build, it’s not possible to play them on other platforms.
I want to say that im a big fan of you guys. First time I play N game was in a lan house when i was 10 years old. (2008). Since then I always loved your games. I beat all the N, N+ and N++ levels. I really appreciate your work. I have so many great memories playing those games. I hope to see a new N game someday in the future, even if its a 3D or i dont know haha. Now i going to put my son to play N games.