Jengo Developer Robot Wizard Announces Plans for Nintendo Switch™
Robot Wizard to Introduce a New Generation of Gamers to Absurd Point & Click Adventures, Nintendo Switch Version First New Goal for Fig Campaign
Paris — Apr 26, 2018 — Independent South-African developer Robot Wizard and global games publisher Playdius invites players to join them on their mission to revive the glorious point & click adventure genre with its official Fig crowdfunding campaign for Jengo, an absurd, mad-cap celebration of funny words, challenging puzzles, gorgeous art, and a story that pulls no punches in its critique of all things gaming then-and-now.
After only a few days, Jengo’s official Fig campaign has already secured over 25% of its funding goal. To celebrate this milestone both Robot Wizard and Playdius are proud to unveil a major plot twist: Jengo will be heading to Nintendo Switch! This will not be an additional stretch goal for the campaign. Once Jengo reaches its funding goal, the greatest point & click adventure conceived since games launched on floppy disks will also release on Nintendo Switch along with the PC version!
Jengo is the first game from studio Robot Wizard, founded by two unlikely figures from the South African indie gaming scene: Louis De Pisani & Graeme Selvan. If you don’t know them yet, be assured you’ll want to meet these two:
Louis and Graeme’s dreams are to revive the point & click adventure game in its purest old-school tradition and make Jengo the worthy spiritual child of timeless classics such as Maniac Mansion, Day of the Tentacles or Full Throttle.
Jengo is all about a rad-looking cartoon universe, full of wacky characters and improbable turns of events — not to mention the many puzzles and mysteries carefully cooked by Graeme and Louis’s sick minds. The most inappropriate way to solve them might just be the path to become the Jengo.
You will play as Jeff, a disgruntled gaming veteran seeking new challenges unintendedly taken into the gaming universe of Pixelverse with incredible duty to find a way to save it from Apocalypse (any resemblance with pre-existing fictional stories is not purely fortuitous but still cannot lead to the creators being held responsible. They’re not the responsible kind anyways.)
If you’d like to find out more about Jengo and fill your head with its many fascinating facts and product info on the official Fig campaign page. While you’re there, let your eyes feast upon the gorgeous hand-drawn art and plunge your earholes in this YouTube music video that tells the tale of the Jengo.
ABOUT ROBOT WIZARD
Robot Wizard is a South-African indie game studio founded by Louis De Pisani, Artist and Designer and Graeme Selvan, developer and former PR manager for Microsoft Xbox South Africa. Robot Wizard is currently working on its first game, called Jengo.
ABOUT PLAYDIUS
Playdius is the publishing branch of Plug In Digital, video game distribution leader based in France. Since 2015, we have been patiently building a strong line up on PC, Consoles and Mobile with games from all over the world such as Hover, Bury Me My Love, Splasher or upcoming Away and Edge of Eternity. Our ambition is to bring to the players the very best of incredible indie production, with creative and different games that match with our motto: “Play Outside the Box”.
DREADNOUGHT HEATS UP WITH NEW CONQUEST GAME MODE ON WINDOWS PC
HOUSTON and BERLIN – April 26, 2018 – Six Foot and independent developer YAGER have released a new content update for the free Windows PC open beta of Dreadnought, the class-based spaceship action game, introducing a new, objective-based game mode: Conquest. Still in development but available now as a playable preview, Conquest pits two teams against one another, battling to capture and defend control points through careful positioning and dominance around the map.
Dreadnought’s unique spin on this classic game type is territory linking, which encourages higher level strategy for offensive and defensive fleet formations and tactics. Territory in Conquest isn’t fixed – it shifts in real time with the movements of players’ ships, as well as the control points they hold. Ships generate their own areas of influence, but when allies move close to one another or a control point, their territories will link and expand. But links can be severed if an enemy player intersects between linked points, flips a control point, or kills a linked player’s vessel, pushing the tide of battle back and forth with every moment.
Dreadnought puts players in the captain’s chair of massive capital ships on the front lines of competitive team-based battles across a variety of multiplayer game modes. There are more than 50 playable vessels to master, each customizable with an array of weapons, modules, coatings and decals. Five distinct ship classes, specializing in tactical roles like frontline assault, long-range bombardment, strategic support and more, offer captains unique powers to exploit the enemy team’s weaknesses and claim victory.
Dreadnought is in free open beta on Windows PC and will arrive on Steam later this fall. It is also free to download on the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system. For the latest updates, visit www.dreadnought.com, and follow the game on Facebook, Twitter and Twitch.
About Six Foot
Six Foot was founded in 2000 as an interactive agency, building digital experiences designed to make connections between people, brands and technology more human and meaningful. Now, as a full-service games company with offices in Houston, Los Angeles and Berlin, we apply that same passion to building extraordinary video games and providing creative direction, marketing and brand management, front- and back-end development, customer service and community support for game publishers. www.6ft.com
About YAGER
Founded in 1999 in the heart of Berlin, YAGER is one of the gaming veterans of AAA development. The award-winning studio is dedicated to the creation of vivid and meaningful multi-platform gaming experiences. The YAGER team comprises gaming enthusiasts, technical experts and creative minds from across the world who all share a passion for great action games. YAGER was most recently recognized for its gripping military shooter Spec Ops: The Line. www.yager.de
Discover new locations including the Swamp, where perverted Lemurians perform orgiastic rituals in worship of Derketo, goddess of lust and death
A narrated video shows the epic journey players will take through the new and seamless world of Conan when the game launches on 8th May
Sydney, Australia – 26th April, 2018 – After 14 months in Early Access, Conan Exiles will finally see its full launch on the 8th May 2018 complete with new content, features, and its first ever release on the PlayStation 4 platform. Funcom’s brand new trailer and announcement today kicks off the countdown to launch.
“From scorching deserts to frozen peaks, humid swamp and dry heat, the world of Conan Exiles is a large and hostile world where only the strongest will survive,” begins the narrator in this brand-new video showing the journey players will take as they strive to survive the savage lands of Conan the Barbarian.
Watch the Conan Exiles “Your Journey” trailer here. If you are interested in reviewing or streaming Conan Exiles, please let me know!
“Conan Exilesis a survival game combining brutal combat, powerful building systems, and intense player vs. player warfare, all set in a vast and open sandbox,” says Creative Director Joel Bylos (who’s an Aussie by the way!).
“But it’s certainly not an empty sandbox and we’ve gone to great lengths to give the world a sense of place and history. Players will come upon points of interest as they explore the world, characters they can interact with, and they can delve into dungeons and uncover the secrets of ancient civilizations. Conan Exiles is definitely about surviving and building your own world, but it’s also about discovering the world that we have crafted.”
You start with nothing but your bare hands and forge the legacy of your clan, building anything from a small home to gigantic fortresses and entire cities. Wage war using swords, bows, siege weapons, and even take control of giant avatars of the gods and lay waste to enemy cities.
More than doubling in size since the start of Early Access, the world that players get to explore and survive in come 8th May spans from burning deserts to the frozen highlands and include never-before-seen locations such as the swamp. There players will find the perverted Lemurians who perform orgiastic rituals to worship Derketo, the twin-natured goddess who walks the line between lust and death.
Conan Exiles can be experienced in both local single-player and in persistent online multiplayer.
For more information about Conan Exiles, please visit www.conanexiles.com .
Sydney, Australia —April 26, 2018 — Today, Ubisoft® and South Park Digital Studios announced that South Park™: The Fractured But Whole™ is available now on Nintendo Switch. Created, written and directed by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Ubisoft San Francisco, South Park: The Fractured But Whole is an outrageously offensive superhero adventure that players can now experience anywhere, anytime on the Nintendo Switch.
In addition to the base game, the first two pieces of add-on content, “Danger Deck” and “From Dusk Till Casa Bonita”, will be available for purchase either separately or as part of the season pass. The third piece of add-on content, “Bring the Crunch”, will also come to the Nintendo Switch when it releases this summer.
In The Fractured But Whole, crime is on the rise in South Park, and the streets have never been more dangerous. As the sun sets on the quiet Colorado town, terror, havoc, and chaos are unleashed as the seedy underbelly of the city comes alive. The town needs new heroes to come to the rescue. Eric Cartman seizes the opportunity to save the town and create the best superhero franchise ever, his own Coon and Friends, with himself, The Coon, as the leader.
In Danger Deck, players will be teleported to never-before-seen locations throughout South Park to fight enemy encounters custom-crafted by the Freedom Pals. These increasingly difficult encounters will test and push the limits of any superhero. In From Dusk Till Casa Bonita, Mysterion’s sister is in trouble. She’s fallen in with the Vamp Kids of South Park, who have descended upon Cartman’s favorite restaurant, Casa Bonita. Players will need to fight darkness with darkness and embrace the new Netherborn class, which offers four new occult powers. Enter the battle alongside a new buddy, Henrietta the Goth.
For more information about South Park: The Fractured But Whole, please visit southparkgame.com, and for the latest on all Ubisoft games, please visit ubiblog.com.
ABOUT SOUTH PARK DIGITAL STUDIOS
South Park Digital Studios is a joint venture between Viacom and Matt Stone and Trey Parker, the creators of the Emmy and Peabody Award–winning series South Park. South Park Digital Studios is a digital animation and development studio dedicated to creating mobile and digital applications, digital goods and video gaming products, as well as overseeing social networking and digital syndication for South Park. South Park Digital Studios owns and operates the website southpark.cc.com and three international versions of the site. South Park is a registered trademark of Comedy Partners, a wholly owned unit of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA and VIAB).
ABOUT UBISOFT
Ubisoft is a leading creator, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and services, with a rich portfolio of world-renowned brands, including Assassin’s Creed, Just Dance, Tom Clancy’s video game series, Rayman, Far Cry and Watch Dogs. The teams throughout Ubisoft’s worldwide network of studios and business offices are committed to delivering original and memorable gaming experiences across all popular platforms, including consoles, mobile phones, tablets and PCs. For the 2016–17 fiscal year Ubisoft generated sales of €1,460 million. To learn more, please visit www.ubisoft.com.
Funcom announced Conan Exileswill finally leave early access on PC and Xbox One on May 8th. The game will finally launch on PlayStation 4 at the same time, allowing Sony fans to finally experience the Hyborian Age in the Exiled Lands.
The full launch is bringing a ton of new content. While the map has already doubled in size since the game’s initial launch on Steam Early Access, another bump in map size is coming with the addition of the volcano and swamp areas. Both zones have new monsters and dungeons to discover. The goddess Derketo is also being added to the game. She is a dual nature deity who embodies life and death through orgiastic rituals.
Combat is receiving a complete overhaul. Every weapon type now has their own attack types, attack patterns and animations. Funcom hopes the new combat system will be more fluid and reward skillful players. Healing over time has been removed, forcing players to grow crops and gather supplies to brew potions and make food for health.
Character equipment and attributes are also being revamped. Characters will now gain a perk ability for every ten points spent in an attribute. Additionally, new warpaints can be equipped to further enhance attributes. Combined with the large number of new items in the game, players can create builds that will have more meaningful impact in the game.
A new PVE mechanic called purge is being added to the game. Outside of the beginner areas, a purge meter will slowly fill up as players build and fight in the area. When the meter fills, waves of NPCs will attack any player built bases. While private servers and single-player games can disable purges, certain NPCs that spawn during purges carry legendary weapons that can be looted.
MAJOR SPLATOON 2 UPDATE FEATURES NEW X RANK, TONS OF NEW GEAR AND THE RETURN OF CALLIE
The free software update is available now
26th April, 2018 – Some fresh and free new content is available now for Splatoon 2 on Nintendo Switch. After downloading a major new update (Version 3.0.0) for Splatoon 2, players will have access to a huge amount of new features. This new content includes the introduction of a challenging new X Rank for the top-performing players in Ranked Battle, the addition of more than 100 pieces of new and returning gear, weapon balance adjustments, and the return of Callie of the famous Squid Sisters.
X Rank is an extremely challenging Ranked Battle experience targeting the best-of-the-best players. Players who are S+10 in the current Splatoon 2 ranking system will automatically be registered as X Rank after downloading the update. Players who are X Rank will battle for an X Power level. Players with similar X Power levels will be matched together even within the same X Rank. Once a month, 500 players with the highest X Power level for each of the four different Ranked Battle modes will be announced in the SplatNet2 section of the Nintendo Switch Online app for mobile devices.
Along with this ranking announcement, X Power levels will be reset every month. During this reset, players whose X Power level ends up lower than a set threshold will rank down to S+9. This new system encourages players of all ranks to enjoy improving their play and maintaining their skills, as opposed to simply focusing on ranking up.
The first X Power reset is currently scheduled for 31st May and any future resets will take place on the first day of the month. As a part of these periodic resets, the rotation of 8 selected stages in each mode – with 2 stages rotating every 2 hours – the addition of new weapons and the introduction of new stages will also occur. The update tomorrow will also see the return of the popular stage Camp Triggerfish, along with four additional weapons.
In addition to X Rank, this new update adds more than 100 pieces of gear – some new, some returning from the original Splatoon – as well as new songs from Chirpy Chips, a popular in-game chiptune-style band featured in the first game. The update will also include some weapon balance adjustments, bug fixes and other changes.
The software update also marks the long-awaited return of Callie of the famous Squid Sisters. Once players meet a certain condition after downloading the update, Callie will appear in Tentakeel Outpost in Octo Canyon. Callie will also offer recent multiplayer stats about the player’s character.
In other Splatoon 2-related news, the 2018 AUNZ Splatoon 2 Cup recently came to a close on 21st April, and it was team Yeah Nah who came out on top with a 5-0 victory against ScarthAce in the final. Yeah Nah will now represent Australia and New Zealand on the biggest stage of all, at the Splatoon 2 World Championship from 11th – 12th June in Los Angeles. They’ll be up against the top teams from the U.S. and Canada, Europe and Japan – can they emerge victorious on the world stage?
A major new update (Version 3.0.0) for Splatoon 2 is available now, including the introduction of a challenging new X Rank for the top-performing players in Ranked Battle, the addition of more than 100 pieces of new and returning gear, weapon balance adjustments and the return of Callie of the famous Squid Sisters. On 21st April, team Yeah Nah were crowned as Australian and New Zealand champions and will now compete at the Splatoon 2 World Championship which takes place from 11th – 12th June in Los Angeles
THE INFINITY WAR BEGINS TODAY IN MARVEL FUTURE FIGHT
Latest Game Update Features Costumes, Stages, and More Inspired by the upcoming film, Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Infinity War
Seoul, Korea (April 26, 2018) – With the theatrical release of Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Infinity War, Netmarble Corporation, the fastest-growing mobile game company worldwide, today released a new Infinity War-themed update for its hit mobile game MARVEL Future Fight.
The update added new movie-inspired costumes for Super Heroes and Super Villains including Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Black Widow, Groot, Thor, Winter Soldier, Corvus Glaive, Proxima Midnight, and Thanos himself. It also implemented a new movie-themed Legendary Battle, introducing three new stages featuring characters and recreated locations from the film, including the Sanctum Sanctorum, Wakanda, and Titan.
The latest game update also adds new ways for players to grow and level up their characters. Certain characters have a Potential function added where players can search and open the Potential by clearing the World Boss content. Enhancing this Potential allows players to increase the character’s maximum level along with the gear enhancement level. Once the character reaches the maximum level and maximum gear level, it can be advanced to Tier-3 where additional stats and new skills can be earned.
Furthermore, a “Raid Level” system has been newly added to the World Boss content where players can increase the Raid Level by clearing World Boss stages to earn extra boost effects in the World Boss content. The World Boss Ultimate content has also been renewed with a new stage with Proxima Midnight (Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Infinity War) added as a boss.
Other improvements like menu consolidation, design improvements, and a quick menu addition have been made to increase convenience.
“We are incredibly excited for the arrival of Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Infinity War in theaters and bringing special movie-inspired in-game content to the game,” said Seungwon Lee, Chief Global Officer at Netmarble. “We hope MARVEL Future Fight players continue to enjoy the content that we have prepared in this update.”
MARVEL Future Fight is available worldwide on the App Store® and Google Play™.
Netmarble Corporation strives to entertain audiences of all ages around the world by providing great mobile gaming experiences. Established in Korea in 2000, Netmarble is the fastest-growing mobile game company and consistently ranks as a top mobile developer and publisher worldwide. With more than 4,000 employees, Netmarble has been producing and servicing some of the most successful mobile games including Lineage 2: Revolution, MARVEL Future Fight, Everybody’s Marble, and Seven Knights. As a parent company to Kabam, a top mobile game developer in massively multiplayer free-to-play games, and the largest shareholder to Jam City, a leading casual social game developer, Netmarble has a strategic partnership with CJ E&M Corporation, Asia’s largest entertainment company, Tencent Holdings, Asia’s largest internet company, and NCsoft, a prominent MMORPG company. More information can be found at http://company.netmarble.com
About Marvel Studios’ “Avengers: Infinity War”
An unprecedented cinematic journey ten years in the making and spanning the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel Studios’ “Avengers: Infinity War” brings to the screen the ultimate, deadliest showdown of all time. The Avengers and their Super Hero allies must be willing to sacrifice all in an attempt to defeat the powerful Thanos before his blitz of devastation and ruin puts an end to the universe.
Anthony and Joe Russo direct the film, which is produced by Kevin Feige. Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Michael Grillo, Trinh Tran, Jon Favreau, James Gunn, and Stan Lee are the executive producers. Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely wrote the screenplay. “Avengers: Infinity War” releases in U.S. theaters on April 27, 2018.
App Store is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the US and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc. Google Play is a trademark of Google Inc.
’39 Days to Mars’ Now Available on Steam, Humble and itch.io
Solve co-op puzzles on a Victorian-era adventure to the Red Planet for PC, Mac and Linux
April 25th, 2018 — Indie developer It’s Anecdotal is proud to announce its co-op steampunk puzzle-adventure game 39 Days to Mars is now available for $14.99 (on sale for $13.49 during launch week) on Steam, Humble Store and itch.io!
39 Days to Mars is a 1-2 player co-operative adventure game set in an alternate reality some 150 years in the past. You play as Sir Albert Wickes and The Right Honourable Clarence Baxter, two 19th century explorers who are piloting the HMS Fearful — a masterpiece of unreliable engineering — on its maiden voyage to Mars. Single-player adventuring and puzzle-solving can be had as well, with the ship’s computer-controlled cat there to keep you company.
When the steam engine runs out of coal, the ship’s aforementioned cat shreds the navigation chart, and the tea gets cold, it becomes clear that interstellar transportation isn’t a walk in the park. It will take the talents of two working together on a mix of puzzles and action sequences to get to Mars in one piece (let alone in 39 days).
39 Days to Mars is available on Windows, Mac and Linux platforms. A console release is also in the works for later this year.
It’s Anecdotal is the one-person indie development studio of Philip Buchanan. Having previously worked on titles such as Lara Croft GO and Hitman GO, Philip is now focused on bringing small indie titles to life. Working out of Montreal, Canada; and Christchurch, New Zealand, his aim is to produce concise games that give memorable experiences and have strong atmosphere.
Remaster of Bullet Witch Casts and Blasts onto PCs Today
Dispatch Dangerous Demons by Gun or by Spell in PC Release of the Xbox 360 Cult Favorite, Complete with All DLC
Torrance, Calif. — April 25, 2018 — XSEED Games, the independent-minded publishing brand of Marvelous USA, Inc., today announced that the remaster of the Xbox 360 cult favorite, Bullet Witch, is now live on PC and available digitally on Steam and the Humble Store by Humble Bundle with a 10% launch week discount from its regular selling price of $14.99, €14.99, and £12.99. The PC release of Bullet Witch comes complete with updated visuals and graphical options including uncapped framerate to support modern PCs and includes all DLC costumes and bonus missions for free.
KEY FEATURES
This Is My Broomstick – Alicia’s gunrod can transform on the fly into four different weapons, each of which can be enchanted for extra punch and special perks. Mow down enemies to charge her magic meter then can call down thunderbolts, tornadoes and even meteors to blast the rest of them to kingdom come. Few gaming heroines have ever wielded as much raw power as Alicia at her peak.
The Path Of Destruction – Nothing is safe from Alicia’s wrath, least of all the environment around her. Her magic can tear the roofs off of buildings, ignite an entire gas station, or level towers. If any enemies survive, use her telekinesis on the rubble to throw it at them and crush them flat.
Alicia Is Not Alone – Alicia’s strength and bravery will inspire the battle-hardened resistance fighters around her, and soon enough they’ll fight by her side. Use her magic to keep them alive and they just might return the favor.
About Bullet Witch
First came the calamities of nature: earthquakes and plagues. Then came the calamites of mankind: rioting and war. But neither could have prepared humanity for what followed – a literal army of demons marching out of the gates of Hell to exterminate what remained of society. Armed with supernaturally enhanced military hardware and driven by pure evil, humanity’s extinction seemed all but inevitable. However, tales of a woman in black with a long gun like a witch’s broom and magical powers to match circulated amongst survivors. They told stories of battles so intense that whole city blocks were leveled, leaving regiments of demons riddled with smoldering bullet holes. They whispered rumors of this woman sharing her own blood to save wounded victims’ lives. It’s said she can even control the elements and summon clouds of ravens to do her bidding. Her name is Alicia and while her past is a mystery and nobody knows where she came from, she may be humanity’s last shot at surviving this apocalypse.
Originally released for the Xbox 360 in 2006, Bullet Witch offered a unique combination of Japanese dark-fantasy aesthetics and Western-style military action. This hidden gem is back and ready for action on Windows PC for a new generation of gamers with a host of visual and quality of life improvements fit for the modern gamer. Take control of Alicia and her powerful, multi-purpose gunrod to lay waste to demonic foes by bullet or spell, even using the surrounding environment as part of your arsenal. All cosmetic and content DLC is included in this re-release, providing access to all in-game costumes immediately and bonus missions following the conclusion of the campaign.
Published for Windows PC worldwide by XSEED Games, Bullet Witch released digitally on Steam and the Humble Store by Humble Bundle on April 25, 2018 with a 10% launch week discount from its regular selling price of $14.99, €14.99, and £12.99. This PC release of the title has not been rated by the ESRB.
Additional information about Bullet Witch can be found on its official product website at http://bulletwitch.com. For more information on XSEED Games products, please visit www.xseedgames.com. Fans can also follow XSEED Games on Facebook, on Twitter, and via their localization blogs on Tumblr.
About XSEED Games:
XSEED Games is the independent-minded publishing brand of Marvelous USA, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Marvelous Inc., which is a publicly-traded company listed in the First Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange. Formed in 2004 and located in Torrance, California, XSEED Games publishes interactive entertainment content for PC and consoles from the Marvelous portfolio as well as from a wide variety of third-party partners. Whether it’s Marvelous properties such as STORY OF SEASONS (Bokujo Monogatari), SENRAN KAGURA, and Rune Factory, or third-party titles such as the Corpse Party, AKIBA’S TRIP, or The Legend of Heroes: Trails series, XSEED Games has grown its reputation among gamers with its critically acclaimed localizations and commitment to fans, remaining ever dedicated to its “indie spirit, player-first” approach.
Klotzen! Panzer Battles is an upcoming turn based strategy game that re-imagines World War II with its branching campaign. Players take control of the Axis forces as they attempt to hold out against the invading Allied armies. The game is set to launch on Steam in Summer 2018 (Winter 2018 in the Southern Hemisphere). We had a chance to chat with Maxim Games Founder and Game Designer Zoran Stanic about game development, history, and Klotzen! Panzer Battles.
World War II is an incredibly popular setting for video games. What are some of the design decisions that makes Klotzen! Panzer Battles unique?
There are quite a few –the most important one is strategic bombing. Since historically supply was coming either through railroad or ports, bombing any town on the supply chain decreases a chance the supply will reach units at the end. This effect is not visible for light bombing as units can absorb some disruption, but a dedicated bombing campaign has a potential to paralyze ALL the units on the map, or a sizable portion of them. Therefore, the defender will need to carefully balance between protecting the frontline and protecting the major supply chain hubs. The second game mechanic is an air interdiction, by which we consider attacking exposed moving columns, Normandy-style. By placing an air unit over enemy units, you force the opponent to either sit in the trenches and the forests or risk the air attacks interrupting any movement in the open. There is a chance a unit will not get attacked, but if it does, the attacking planes receive a nasty bonus to damage. I believe this brings air power much closer to how it was actually employed.
Another major addition is the bombing of the airfields. Planes are always considered based on some airfield, and even if they are away on the mission they do receive damage if their airfield is attacked.
This gives a lot of flexibility to the player on how to use his air power, allowing lots of surprise moves and it helps to keep the game unpredictable.
Another major change is airplane range – planes have a range around the airfield and they can move and attack in any hex in that range during one turn. This gives both more flexibility and unpredictability to the air power, which was its main asset in WW2 – the possibility to strike at any target over thousands of square kilometers. Since fighters have a significantly shorter range, the attacking player must choose to either limit the bombing range to the range of fighter escorts, or to risk unescorted bombers, but over a four to eight times larger area to pick the targets from. In this way capturing of the enemy airfields to provide fighter cover becomes a necessity and spreads the attackers focus.
Commanders and generals with custom skills and flaws will add a lot of customization to the experience – both for the whole army and each unit.
A lot of effort was put into making ship combat feel realistic. I think players will have a much better feeling of ship to ship combat than in Panzer General for example.
Also, a lot of thought was put into increasing replayability, and I think players will appreciate it. Scenarios start with different starting conditions so replay value should be high. There are lots of minor differences that will make for a different wargaming experience – for example unit commanders and generals, each with unique skill sets, and other unique mechanics to explore and use.
Part of the popularity of the World War II setting is the richness of material. How did Maxim Games choose which battles, what if scenarios, and units to portray in the game?
Most of it was there well ahead of making this game. I actually started working on a game only after reading all that I could get my hands on, and because I was not satisfied with how Panzer General handled some things. So there was this creative streak that forced me into doing Klotzen 😊. The first scenario list I made had over 100 maps, so I had to cut it down to 65 which is still almost too much for a small studio. There was a lot of inspiration waiting to come out, and lots of scenarios I wanted to cover. Some are simply given of course – Poland, Case Blue etc. Also, my initial Poland map design differs from what is currently in the game, simply because you can’t throw a 100-unit map that early into the campaign. Same is with the units – the T-34, the Sherman or a Tiger are a must. For the rest we were considering mostly impact on the war or impact a unit could have made if the ‘what-if’ scenario occurred. So we have a lot of units that were just prototypes. But we covered probably all historical units that had any impact on the war.
Are there any World War II games, books, or movies that inspired the team or the game directly?
Without a doubt, Panzer General. I love that game and am still impressed with how it manages to make gameplay feel close to how WW2 battles played out. Another is Unity of Command, with how it captured the essence of encirclement battles of WW2 and the importance of the railroads for supply. Panzer Corps showed that you can make a successful 2D game in this era. I have studied WW2 from the early age, and I got a book for my tenth birthday. It was about 3000 years of sea battles. I guess that was the most influential. Also, there would not be this game without Memoirs of a Solider/Panzer Leader by Heinz Guderian. I decided to make a game using supply system after reading his motivations to develop Blitzkrieg (to cut of enemy supply, stop him from fighting without killing him).
War strategy games likeKlotzen! Panzer Battles can be difficult for new players to learn. What are you doing to ease the learning curve for new players?
We are mostly aiming at experienced players – our battles will be large and complex. But the inherent simplicity of the Panzer General rules that we are basing our game on should make the game approachable and easy to learn. I always admired the games that are simple to learn and difficult to master. I think we managed to do that with Klotzen. There are a lot of options for a player, and it will probably take a few playthroughs to learn how to utilize them all. We also have a few easy first missions with tutorials to introduce players to basic and new concepts.
The problem with what if scenarios are the initial outcomes are easy to predict, but the long-term repercussions are anyone’s guess. What was the creative process for imagining the results of Klotzen! Panzer Battles’ alternate history scenarios?
Completely true. I’ve read a book “If the Allies Had Fallen” about major alternative scenarios of WW2, and I was surprised how the most established authors shy away from concluding that anything would change. I have a feeling that in at least a few scenarios they were simply too afraid to explore the consequences of what could have happened, since they would then have to defend it against their colleagues. Once history turns in another direction, the entire war with all the battles gets overwritten. I spent hundreds of hours reading discussions about alternative history scenarios on different forums and subreddits. We had to cut some corners there or the battle count in Klotzen could have easily been in the hundreds. We also took some artistic freedom about what the chances for some scenarios were. But with some constraints, and lots of research it’s doable and I think players will enjoy our large branching campaign with lots of what-if scenarios.
Striking the balance between historical accuracy and enjoyable gameplay is a never-ending challenge for developers creating games based on historical events. What are some realistic mechanics Maxim Games wanted to incorporate in the game during the design phase? Were there any realistic features that sounded great on paper but had to be axed because they were no fun?
Oh my god yes. Luckily, we managed to put in most of it, but there were some defeats.
Basically, the whole game is only half of the game I envisioned and started working on. Luckily, I realized it was way too ambitious. Supply, commanders and planes were my main concerns, and I think they now work great. Also, AI is still in the works, but I think it is already very good and will be able to handle battles of maneuver. I wanted to make morale much more pronounced, but in the end I went with the very limited version since it would be to unbalancing. I wanted to make the first battle much more important for the personnel experience than the rest (trial by fire) but again, it would favor the Germans too much.
Another one I am very sad about is naval combat – land battles lasted for days, and naval battles mere hours, and I wanted to model this. But any way I tried ended being worse than the Panzer Generals turn based one. So I axed doing fleet combat as a mini-turn-based game interrupted between the turns and had to be content with just an upgraded ship damage system.
Klotzen! Panzer Battles offers a high level of customization, from the individual unit all the way up to the entire army. What are some of the challenges that come with balancing such a large game?
It simply boils down to testing time available. I had to choose between increased replayability and balance and I went with a less balanced but unpredictable game. I think it will be loads more fun to play. It will lead to some frustration as in some combinations opponents will have the advantage, but the added fun factor and the unpredictability of battles will make it worth it I believe.
Besides the never-ending quest of bug stomping and game balancing, what are Maxim Games’ post-launch plans for Klotzen! Panzer Battles?
There are a few roads we can take, but it will very likely be support for other platforms, then DLCs (I have idea for 3 great ones!), and then possibly Klotzen 2, based on the initial idea for Klotzen 1 we had to axe because it was WAY too ambitious.
Community made content is a great way to ensure a game’s replayability long after a game is released. How powerful is the scenario editor compared to the developer tools? Do you have plans for mod support?
We are creating all of our maps in scenario editor, and it will be included with the game. We are planning the game around mod support but it’s still too early to tell if we’ll be able to pull it off on the release.
With digital distribution and crowdfunding, the romantic idea of developing your own indie game is in reach of more people than ever before. What are some of the less glamorous and challenging aspects of developing your own indie game that most people don’t consider? What about some unexpected benefits?
Actually, having indie development within the reach of lot of people is also its greatest problem – profits are falling rapidly, and a huge percentage of people are struggling to make end’s meet. This is especially true for strategy games, and lots of studios close. Financing is difficult to obtain, and usually personal money is involved, so this is a great and scary risk. We always hear only stories of the people that made it, but 9 out of 10 people fail and lose a lot of money and time. I have a family and failure would be much more painful in my case compared to a student for example. I see a lot of people doing indie dev “only to make a game” and I think it’s the completely wrong approach – if you are not making money, you are not contributing to the world enough. I think it is a hint a person should start doing something more profitable/useful.
As for the benefits, the most important one is the great people you meet. I’ve just returned from a Reboot Develop conference and it was a fantastic experience.
Also, it is usually pretty easy to find a job with a decent game in your CV. And finishing a project this big “raises you a few levels” in a professional way, to use a RPG terminology.
