The past week was a gauntlet of many things. One of those I'm happy to share, it's that Guitar Fretter 2, the huge update to the game I published and have kept working on for 10 years is out. It's available right now on Google Play for Android, Itch.io for Windows and MacOS, and Apple Apps for iOS.

Publishing an app there's always a waiting time of hoping that you didn't miss something. And I totally did, but then did another update before all the versions were published. Well one of the four. Then fixed them all and re-published.

I'm so thankful for the platform I used to build Guitar Fretter. It started as one name, now it's called Solar 2D. I find working with the Solar 2D tools, programming in Lua, and how it works to test and publish on all the different platforms to be such a rewarding and fun set of tools to work with. Gets me thinking I should update my book Game Construction Kit to include Solar 2D Lua examples. A project for another day.

So many pieces and parts and work went into this update to Guitar Fretter. I'm proud of the news stuff and the old foundation I'm building on, the memory matching feedback system to help you memorize your way around a guitar fretboard.

Ages ago I created a comic where the characters Pick and Crunchy came from called Art Geek Zoo: The Way of Sound. I put them in the game way back and am glad to have given them the update they deserve for Guitar Fretter 2. They have a new style and have brief conversations at points in the game, mostly at times where you're waiting. And I used these moments to give bits of story about them and their situation, but also and most important to encourage you. It's truly difficult to stick with practicing an instrument. I hope Pick and Crunchy help even a little with how it's normal to feel daunted, frustrated, or concerned about the task of practicing.

Background Music

A big change from the 1.0 days of Guitar Fretter is there's now music. Some of it is short background while showing some of the story moments. Two of the tracks are ever-present ambience.

Here's one of the two tracks. Someday I might create a Bandcamp account, for now here's one of the tracks for your listening enjoyment.

In performing this track I used my trusty Ernie Ball Luke with the add on to work with the Roland GR-20 MIDI pedal.

Please Tell Your Friends

Guitar Fretter 2 is out, has lots of improvements I talked about on this blog since January this year. If you have interest in guitar, play guitar, or teach guitar I'm confident it's a useful and fun app worth your time or your friends time.

If you're waiting for the free version, Guitar Fretter: Demo Tape, it's in the final work in progress phases and coming soon.