Early on in my game creator career, I decided not to reveal much of my private life.
But because of the long silence in the development of Seashine’s big update I have to explain a little bit who I am and what happened / what is still happening to me.
2020 has been a very bad year for so many of us.
COVID-19 wasn’t the main cause of all the mental and physical suffering I struggled with this year, it was a secondary issue.
My year started with a coronavirus unrelated tragedy which, a few weeks later, was followed with me, pale and trembling, in the emergency services of my local hospital, hoping someone would come to tell me that my wife, despite her severe blood loss, was not going to die.
Things ended well but let’s say that the start of the year was quite traumatizing.
Then came the lockdown and other personal issues, ranging from home fixing issues to death threats from a wrongdoer (or should I say drug dealer) causing big trouble in our neighbourhood, forcing us to find a new home soon, far. But that’s just turbulence.
What’s important for the future of Seashine is what’s in my DNA.
It is time for me to talk about something I’ve been hiding, something that has a deep impact on my everyday life and on my work.
Since my birth, I’ve been living with a muscular distrophy (MD). Because a specific region of my DNA is readable (when it shouldn’t), my muscles progressively stop working, slowly paralyzing me.
Until last year, it was still doable for me to work on a computer without too much difficulty. About half the muscles of my hands stopped working years ago but I could still manage to work by adapting my workspace to my disabilities.
Since my childhood, I’ve been used to seeing my muscles die one after the other. I got used to it and losing muscles became a routine that didn’t affect me much as long as I could still do things I like (mostly on paper, on computer, or on a musical instrument).
On this subject, 2020 was hard. The MD took a big step forward this year, eating more of the muscles in my arms, hands, and legs. It is now really difficult for me to even use a computer.
Like always, I’m finding ways to counter the progression of the distrophy, like splints that were built for me and that I put on my forearms to help me open my fingers. It’s quite discomfortable but it helps.
So what’s next for me, for Seashine, and for my future game?
Well, since there is no cure yet, the MD will progress. I can only make sure to not do too much so I don’t accelerate the process.
That’s also why I’m telling everyone that I want to take my time for Seashine’s big update. Pressure will litteraly kill me.
I so much want to finish this big update for Seashine, not only because I’ve put so much effort in it and because I know players will love it, but also because I told myself I can’t resume the work on my next game until Seashine’s big update is available for download.
However, at this stage, I’d like every Seashine player to know that I have almost no control over this muscular distrophy.
At some point, if things get too hard for me, I might not be able to develop games anymore.
So… fingers crossed!
Thank you to all the players who keep supporting me by sending adorable messages. Your kind words are so helpful!
Patrick
I’m still quite new to the game and enjoy it a lot. To hear about the things that happen to you is tough, I’m very sorry you have to endure so much 🙁 I don’t comment on a lot of things usually, but I want to wish you all the best in the world!
Thank you for your kind words. Let’s hope 2021 washes away the troubles of 2020.
Happy holidays!
I’ve been a big fan of your game for the last few years. It inspired me to start learning game development and 3D. Sorry to hear that this year hasn’t been great for you 🙁 Have a great Christmas, hopefully 2021 will be better!
Thank you for your message! I’m happy to read that Seashine motivated you to experiment and learn new things. This kind of message really helps facing the daily struggles of game development. 🙂
I hope you’ll enjoy your journey into the game dev/3D world.
All the best,
Patrick
I’ve been playing seashine since it was first avilable to the public, and it has inspired me to become persue marine biologist, its heartbraking to hear what you’ve been through, But I commend you for pushing forward despite the difficulties, lets hope that 2021 will wash away those hard times, Best of luck 💙
Thank you for your message and for your long lasting support! I wish you the best for 2021.
Patrick
Wow… I got really woried of not seening any updates from you in a few months. I’ve been playing seashine since 2016 and never got bored, you did a great job and everyone knows that you still are. Hope your wife & familly doing ok, hope you’ll find a way to be ok yourself. Thank you for great job you’ve done and stay safe
Hi! Thank you for your lovely message. At the moment I’m adapting my workspace to my new disabilities. I should resume posting lots of gifs and screenshots on Facebook and Twitter this week.
All the best!
Patrick.
Hello, Patrick, I’m from Russia. I first saw your masterpiece in 2017 and recently I was sad that the update is still not coming out. I decided to find out why this was happening, and when I found out, I was very moved. I am very sorry to tell you that you have such a disease. I want to truly thank you for giving me a lot of emotions with your great game. I hope that in your life there will be no more problems worse than those that you went through in 2020. Thank you for staying in touch and sharing at least some news. I love your creativity! You’re a genius!
I translated this using YandexTranslate, sorry.
Hello Maxim. Thank you so much for taking the time to write your message. I’m very moved by it. Your support is what makes me keep up the hard work even when times are hard. I’m so happy Seashine touched you and I’m sure the big update will bring you much more thrill and wonder.
I hope I’ll stay healthy enough in the coming years to release my second game, taking place in the depths of an other world. 🙂
All the best!
Patrick
Hello Patrick
wow this terrible to hear…i few months ago i was thinking to myself”why isnt this guy Updating his game???” but damn do i feel bad now. medical science has progressed so much in the past 20 years so who knows maybe a cure will be uncovered in some years…
the little game you created is so beautiful and somewhat haunting and i love it so much!
i need to go to doctor often(mainly because of a Clinical headache) and i always play seashine when im waiting to be let in.
I hope Things are getting better for you or at least not worse!
Have a great day Patrick!
Hi Raffael. Thank you for your support and for your kind message. It means a lot.
Yes, science is moving fast. There is a molecule being tested actually and it’s promising. If it’s not a cure it could at least stop the progression of the muscular distrophy. Nothing sure but at least it gives me and my family some hope and it’s way easier to build things on hope.
I hope Seashine is not too stressful during your headaches. The upcoming zen mode should help. 🙂
All the best!
Patrick
wow i took my time with this reply! once again, i hop life is treating you as good as it can and that you have a good day!
Hello, I have been a huge fan of your game for a long time now, it’s beautiful, peaceful, and full of surprises. The graphics are amazing and the game play is awesome. I was blown away to know that this game was made by one person, because it’s probably one of the best mobile games out there. You are extremely talented and should be very happy with the masterpiece you created. It’s so sad to hear about your condition, I couldn’t even imagine what’s going on in your head. I hope the best for you and your wife. And I can’t wait for the update. May 2021 be a better year 🦑
Thank you so much for your adorable message and for your long lasting support. <3
2022 already! How you doing?
Struggling but fighting. Thanks for asking. 🙂
Hello Patrick, I am so sorry to hear what happened to you, and I hope there is a cure. Thank you for all you do. In many peoples lives you most likely made a difference just by a game. Many enjoy it, including myself and my sister! We play your game almost everyday! I love it so much! I was wondering why you weren’t updating for such a long time but now I completely understand, I am so happy that you are still updating and I hope things get better for you. For a one man job I couldn’t think of anyone better for the job! 🙂
Hi Sharon. Thank you so much for your support here and on Twitter. <3
Hola Patrick, desarrollas juegos increíbles! Son fantasticos tan unicos y en cierto modo tranquilizantes. Espero que encuentres una forma de mejorar si el problema sigue no hay problema ya nos has dado bastante con seashine sin importar que ya no hayan actualizaciones lo jugare y se que muchos tambien lo haran, gracias por todo espero que tu futuro sea mucho mejor felices vacaciones
Hi Alex, thanks a lot for your kind message!
Hi Patrick! So sorry for the hard times you had to go through. I know life will be better this year! Seashine is such a great game with huge potential and it’s great more is being added to the game. Sorry I’m not good with talking, I just want to say your a developer and I am looking forward to the update! 🙂
Hi Jeffrey. Thank you for your support and for taking the time to write this message. I really hope life will be better this year but sadly it didn’t start well. Fingers crossed!
Salut Patrick,
Ça fait un peu bizarre.
Je pensais à toi et en cherchant sur internet je suis tombé là. J’ai pu avoir des nouvelles de cette manière un peu détournée.
Prends soin de toi.
Merci pour ton message, Moti. Prends soin de toi aussi.
I really feel sorry for your problem, I’ve been playing seashine for a few years and I know that this update will be bigger than I really imagine with this game and I’ve been more visited than with Minecraft and geometry dash seriously I will wait for that game along with the update and luck to improve the disease 🙂
Thank you! 💙
Long time player here, I just wanted to tell you I love this game so much and it has brought many hours of fun to myself, my son and my boyfriend. Thank you so much for your hard work on this awesome game, especially while dealing with your personal struggles. Please take care of yourself and know that us fans are sending you lots of love and support 💚
Thank you so much for your message. I’m not giving up working on this update thanks to people like you! Take care. 💙
Bonjour,
J’espère que la maladie ne progresse pas trop vite pour vous.
J’avais pris contact avec vous car je suis scénographe de l’exposition climat-ocean.fr à La Rochelle. En 2019 vous étiez en pleine mise à jour. Aujourd’hui j’aimerai diffuser votre jeu dans l’espace que vous pour voir sur la visite virtuelle sur le site. Je ne sais pas si on peut le diffuser sur de grands écrans tactiles. Est-ce possible ?
Merci et bon courage.
Thomas GIRAULT
Bonjour et merci pour votre message. Je vous ai répondu par e-mail.
I am very sorry to hear that, please try to make it to 2023! Hopefully you keep on living! Prayers from Texas, USA! I hope the update comes out with flying colors, metaphorically. By the way, have you ever tried supplements or injectables? I just hope you tried everything that is available to you.
Hi!
Thanks a lot for your message and for your support.
My condition isn’t that bad! My type of muscular dystrophy isn’t as fast as the Duchenne muscular dystrophy. It is paralizing everything very slowly. I might even live old, in very bad condition though. :/
I’ve tried everything possible but the only thing that could pause the process is probably a molecule being worked on in the US, with trials both in the US and in Europe at the moment. Sounds promising so fingers crossed!
All the best!
Patrick
It is incredible how much you have done with physical and psychological problems. I don’t know if I would have endured all that.
You are a hard-working man and I respect that, I hope soon things will improve in every sense of the word for you, your family and for the game you develop.
You are an exemplary man, Patrick ᰔᩚ.
With love from Nicaragua.
Thank you. <3
Hey I just saw your post about stopping the game. It’s really too bad. I’ve been playing with my brother on and off almost since the game came out. I hope you keep well and maybe come back one day 🙂
Sending <3 from Canada
https://pated.net/2023/06/06/a-need-for-creative-seclusion/ 🙂