H5 games (HTML5) as we fondly call them has steadily grown on us ever since 2016 where we began to building byte sized games for the Jio Phone (feature phone). That platform meant that we had to reimagine and go old school as we were too used to building games in more modern tool sets like Unity or Unreal where we could splurge even for Mobile standards.
Carrom Play was one of those casual silent hits for us especially on the MX Player platform and ever since the recent pandemic we wanted to scale the game and make it feature rich. Its a game where we have been relentlessly working on adding continuous updates. The idea was to keep the game super light which meant we built it from the ground up as a HTML5 game and not look at the typical Unity engine that most other studios would pick.
We always wanted to build a multiplayer shooter. The moment any studio thinks of a shooter, only fancy modern shooter pop into mind, we are so influenced by shooters like Counter Strike, Call of Duty, Battle Field, Team Fortress 2, Overwatch to name a few. With the mobile landscape its always a challenge to build such degrees of games especially for smaller studios like us. The idea of building a top down shooter has always lingered in our minds
Well, like many other companies and studios in India and worldwide, we too had transitioned to a complete remote working setup and have been managing to build a lot more cooler games during the lock-down period. While most of us at the studio aren't a big fan of the work from home format, the challenging times meant we had to cope up and adapt and we are after all good at that. The biggest challenge with this format is coordination and correspondence. What would typically be a few minutes of conversation in person could end up taking multiple hours to make sure the message is sent across.
In recent times, we are growing more confident about HTML5 games (nick named H5 games), a medium that has been growing despite the popularity of large games. The issue with large games is , well, they are super large and that can be a huge factor with users who just want to have some fun time for a few mins. Instant games are a great fit here as they can provide that snackable (not really a word) experience. We have been designing several concepts around H5 games part of our IP strategy.
H5 games (HTML5) as we fondly call them has steadily grown on us ever since 2016 where we began to building byte sized games for the Jio Phone (feature phone). That platform meant that we had to reimagine and go old school as we were too used to building games in more modern tool sets like Unity or Unreal where we could splurge even for Mobile standards.
One of those recent infectious things aside Covid that most of the studio members caught is Badminton. Thanks to our Games Producer Darshan who helped inspire, it latched on with everyone at the studio so much so that most of the team plays at a nearby badminton court 3-4 times a week and lash out each other with the Shuttle.
Carrom Play was one of those casual silent hits for us especially on the MX Player platform and ever since the recent pandemic we wanted to scale the game and make it feature rich. Its a game where we have been relentlessly working on adding continuous updates. The idea was to keep the game super light which meant we built it from the ground up as a HTML5 game and not look at the typical Unity engine that most other studios would pick.
Quite often when we deal with potential business proposals to build games or license our IP, we hear the statement “You guys are expensive”, “The cost is too high”, “It doesn’t fit into our budget”. We cant really complain there since as a customer they have the right to determine what they should or can pay. The idea behind this post is to throw some light on some of the misinterpretation or difference in understanding with the costs of building games.
We always wanted to build a multiplayer shooter. The moment any studio thinks of a shooter, only fancy modern shooter pop into mind, we are so influenced by shooters like Counter Strike, Call of Duty, Battle Field, Team Fortress 2, Overwatch to name a few. With the mobile landscape its always a challenge to build such degrees of games especially for smaller studios like us. The idea of building a top down shooter has always lingered in our minds
Well, like many other companies and studios in India and worldwide, we too had transitioned to a complete remote working setup and have been managing to build a lot more cooler games during the lock-down period. While most of us at the studio aren't a big fan of the work from home format, the challenging times meant we had to cope up and adapt and we are after all good at that. The biggest challenge with this format is coordination and correspondence. What would typically be a few minutes of conversation in person could end up taking multiple hours to make sure the message is sent across.
As a studio ever since we were founded and setup, we dared to be different. We told ourselves that we need not be yet another developer. We wanted to be naturally radical with our approach and way of working. One of those tricky parts of running a creative business like Games is that it is very hard to create a corporate structure especially when you are starting up. This should not be confused with defining roles and responsibilities though, which is extremely crucial for a small team.
In recent times, we are growing more confident about HTML5 games (nick named H5 games), a medium that has been growing despite the popularity of large games. The issue with large games is , well, they are super large and that can be a huge factor with users who just want to have some fun time for a few mins. Instant games are a great fit here as they can provide that snackable (not really a word) experience. We have been designing several concepts around H5 games part of our IP strategy.
I was recently called in to judge a Design championship event at SBOA school. The event hosted different competitions across Industrial design, Game design, App design and Film making and I was judging for Game Design which was essentially games that the school children put together- class 5 to class 10. Like always I was skeptical when I went in (You see,your Producer/ Game Dev ego wont go easy on you) and waited for the first set of team to hit me up with their submissions and boy was I in for a surprise! I
Lets cut to the chase. To me this is hand down one of the best MODs created for a Multiplayer. Of course many would argue Counter Strike would still take that spot. In a way yes, but for a grand scale of Multiplayer action, I always lean on to Desert Combat, the MOD created out of Battlefield 1942. So what makes it special ? Well, for starters the MOD re-imagined the original game completely from the ground up and made it look like an all new game with no traces of BF1942 seen. Imagine taking a World War based shooter and doing a complete overhaul by incorporating modern weapons, modern vehicles/Aircraft and to top it all, a super slick Helicopter whose mechanics never existed in the original version. This was never achieved by simply switching out the original weapons with modern ones, but by painstakingly creating them and balancing them, every single aspect of it.
There is something about these great games - especially the ones that leave a strong memory foot print and keep resonating in your head after you complete them. Their world is so compelling that they easily swallow you in and make you part of that world. Well, in simple terms they are so immersive! I believe it has to do with the compelling atmosphere the developers create, specially the level designers,an area that is extremely critical to success of any game - be it Single player or Multiplayer. I wanted to capture a few of those memorable levels that I can still imagine or think off till date and they are my obvious favorites. While there are a handful, I wanted to write about a few specific ones in this post.
I have been playing shooters for a while now - around 12+ years or so I guess. Not that I would claim myself a pro here but when tasked I can deal a decent load of kills. I have also been giving a shot at the recent ones like Overwatch, Battlefield and such and for some reasons, never grew a fan of them like I did with the ones from good old days. I also started to wonder whether it was me who suddenly became a tad older and couldn't catch up with the new gen stuff.
