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Feature: Over the Top Games' NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits Postmortem
by Staff [PC, Console/PC]
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January 27, 2010
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Spanish indie developers Over The Top Games developed critically-acclaimed Wii Ware game Nyx Quest: Kindred Spirits with just a four-person team, and today's Gamasutra feature offers a postmortem of this unique title.
The team's Rob de Lara describes what Nyx Quest is all about:
NyxQuest is a 2D platformer which revolves around the story of Nyx, a mysterious winged girl who is looking to rescue her friend Icarus. NyxQuest takes the rules of a classic platformer, and improves the formula by taking advantage of some of the Wii's unique features.
Using the Wii Remote, the player is able to interact with the scenery, draw wind to reach higher ground, and shoot rays at enemies and obstacles.
One of the ways they expressed the game's vision is through its distinctive art style and world, but as it turned out, these elements had more than one benefit. As De Lara explains in "What Went Right":
We spent some time thinking and testing options to find an art style that was able to catch your attention but at the same time that was "work-friendly". We had to be wise and find a way to build the levels with the desired level of quality, without spending too much time on it. Since we were a small team and couldn't have a lot of detailed models and textures, we chose a style that focused on lighting and shadows.
At the same time, we were telling the story of a burned and forgotten earth, full of deserts and ruins... this setting was not only chosen because of the story, it helped us to reduce work. Since the game world was ruined and deserted, we could create fewer assets and spend the time on making them stylish.
But just as efficient as some of the team's decisions were, other aspects of creating a game as a small group caught them off guard, says De Lara:
I know the "many hats" issue is a common "wrong" for indie developers, but it took me totally by surprise. I didn't expect the management, paperwork, and PR requirements of a video game took so much time. We had (and still have) to devote a lot of time to write emails, request reviews, prepare trailers and screenshots, and answer interviews.
Having your own studio and being in charge of a project requires a lot of extra work and responsibility. Marketing, game pitches, managing employees, and company accounting requires a lot of work that needs to be addressed at the same time that you are developing the game. Most of the time I arrived home to continue with management and paperwork. It ends being a 24 hour job. Oh, and don't forget that you need to spend some time to clean the offices once in a while!
After a few months we have the feeling that there are still a lot of people that haven't heard of NyxQuest. Some magazines have nominated our game for "Best Sleeper Hit", and there's a reason for that. Hopefully we will be able to address this issue, and be able to create more buzz for our next game. We wanted to create a nice blog, dev diary, and additional media content, but because of the enormous amount of work, we had to leave it for the future.
Lesson learned: PR is a huge area that requires full time dedication. The more time you spent here, the better the awareness of your title will be.
The full postmortem takes an in-depth inventory of the project's strengths and weaknesses, demonstrating how a small team with limited resources found both success and challenge on the way to launch.
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