roland13x
08-19-2009, 10:03 PM
Hello fellow CAGS,
As many of you know, I co-founded a game developer about 2 and a half years ago. Spent most of the previous 5 years or so working mostly on the Call of Duty franchise from the production side at Activision.
Well, we just released our first retail game this week nationwide, called Real Heroes: Firefighter for the Nintendo Wii. I know, I know...you think the name is stupid. Well, it kinda is, but naming things is actually pretty damn hard, and twice as hard when you have to pay lawyers and wait around 5-6 months for clearance.
Anyway, so far the game has gotten some pretty good reviews:
http://tech-gaming.com/2009/08/10/real-heroes-firefighter.aspx?results=1#SurveyResultsChart
http://fidgit.com/archives/2009/08/real_heroes_firefighter_has_a.php
and we just got a very nice 7.7 from IGN an hour or so ago
http://wii.ign.com/articles/101/1015848p1.html
This was an absolute labor of love for myself and the entire team. We had 16 people working on it at its peak, which if you know much about development, is a skeleton crew. Saying our resources were limited is an understatement, but we're really proud of what we were able to do.
With Real Heroes: Firefighter, our goal was quite simple. We wanted to create a high-action game but without any of the violence normally associated with the first-person shooter genre. While there are so many minigame collections and waggle-fests, we wanted to create a game where the player has real obstacles to overcome in order to reach their goal. In short, our goal was to not make a fun Wii game…it was to make a fun game that happened to be on the Wii.
We fully acknowledge that we’re not a graphical powerhouse. One of the downsides of being a small, independent studio is that our budgets are generally smaller than anyone would like to admit. We decided to put these limited resources into the overall player experience, on the fire system and the various encounters within this world. We created a very unique, and in many ways, quite experimental enemy in our thinking fire technology. Enemies in action games are often simply implemented: these nazis will stream from the bunker, the swordsmen will wait until the player gets near before attacking, the police won't open fire until the player attacks them, etc. With Firefighter, our enemy is not something that we just spawn in and direct until it's killed. It has a really unique AI...it knows where it is in an environment, it knows what surfaces it can move across faster or slower, it knows that it'll travel across a floor, up a wall and across a ceiling. If a player accidentally knocks a burning chair into a wall, that wall will soon catch fire and the player just created an entirely new opponent to deal with. Throughout development, this was a unique challenge as we just never knew what the fire was going to do. And with a control scheme that was heavily inspired by Metroid Prime 3’s (with plenty of options to tailor to the player’s liking), we gave the players the tools to get the job done against this unique beast.
We've got a really fun geeky cast to do our VO, including James Marsters, John DiMaggio, Jack McGee, Jaime Kennedy, Michael Jace and my personal favorite, Jenette Goldstein. She played Pvt. Vasquez in Aliens, and here she plays a firefighter named Ezzy Vasquez, and she was thrilled to essentially recreate one of my favorite sci-fi characters!
We've also partnered up with a fantastic charity called Firefighter Cancer Support Network (www.firefightercancersupport.org) who do an amazing service. I had no idea until I started researching for this game, but firefighters's cancer rates are ridiculously high just due to the stuff they are constantly surrounded by. These men and women not only risk their lives by running into burning buildings to save our families and our property, but they also risk their long term health while doing it. Anyway, we're really proud to be working with the FCSN and donating a portion of our proceeds to them. We're firm believers that it doesn't take much to do the right thing.
Finally, we're coming in at a CAG-friendly price of $30. We're a new IP, and really, a rather new concept for the Wii, and we wanted to try and take as much risk off the gamer as possible. We've got multiple difficulty levels: on Easy, most 8 year olds should be able to get through it. On Hard, I'd challenge even the most hardcore of gamers. That fire spreads like a bitch!
Now, of course since this is CAG, you'd all wait until it hits that $10 sweet spot. I know how it is (Hello Target clearance!). But if this is something you were interested in, I could really use your help.
Since our publisher is Conspiracy, I'm sure you guys all know the reputation they have. Well, they had nothing to do with this game but help pay for it. In fact, they've been the best publisher I've ever worked with as they entirely let us make the game we wanted to make. Hell, my studio was even able to keep the rights to the IP, which is pretty unheard of for a start-up developer. Anyway, a lot of retailers are wary of most Conspiracy titles so they aren't taking huge orders yet.
Best Buy is on the verge of making a big order if they see solid numbers before Monday. If you were planning on buying it shortly, please go through them, either online or in stores.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9441767&st=real&lp=2&type=product&cp=1&id=1218105182004
Otherwise, the other retailer we're trying to get into is Walmart. They are still deciding on whether or not to carry it in-store, so by ordering it through their online, it sends a message that they should. Walmart generally accounts for over 25% of all game sales, so you can imagine how important this is to us.
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=11077889
So that's about it in a nutshell. I know we have a lot to overcome with this game (its title, its publisher, its graphics), but so far the gaming press likes it, and the nearly 5,000 members of our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/realheroes) absolutely love it. If you're interested, I'd really appreciate the support.
Thanks guys!
Bryan
edit: I did a pretty fun interview on the GameCritics podcast this week. They call it candid, I call it bullshit free. So if you're interested in some industry behind-the-scenes, check it out:
http://www.gamecritics.com/tim-spaeth/gamecritics-com-podcast-episode-19-bryan-jury-of-epicenter-studios
edit 2: someone feel free to CheapyD the links so he gets his kickback!
As many of you know, I co-founded a game developer about 2 and a half years ago. Spent most of the previous 5 years or so working mostly on the Call of Duty franchise from the production side at Activision.
Well, we just released our first retail game this week nationwide, called Real Heroes: Firefighter for the Nintendo Wii. I know, I know...you think the name is stupid. Well, it kinda is, but naming things is actually pretty damn hard, and twice as hard when you have to pay lawyers and wait around 5-6 months for clearance.
Anyway, so far the game has gotten some pretty good reviews:
http://tech-gaming.com/2009/08/10/real-heroes-firefighter.aspx?results=1#SurveyResultsChart
http://fidgit.com/archives/2009/08/real_heroes_firefighter_has_a.php
and we just got a very nice 7.7 from IGN an hour or so ago
http://wii.ign.com/articles/101/1015848p1.html
This was an absolute labor of love for myself and the entire team. We had 16 people working on it at its peak, which if you know much about development, is a skeleton crew. Saying our resources were limited is an understatement, but we're really proud of what we were able to do.
With Real Heroes: Firefighter, our goal was quite simple. We wanted to create a high-action game but without any of the violence normally associated with the first-person shooter genre. While there are so many minigame collections and waggle-fests, we wanted to create a game where the player has real obstacles to overcome in order to reach their goal. In short, our goal was to not make a fun Wii game…it was to make a fun game that happened to be on the Wii.
We fully acknowledge that we’re not a graphical powerhouse. One of the downsides of being a small, independent studio is that our budgets are generally smaller than anyone would like to admit. We decided to put these limited resources into the overall player experience, on the fire system and the various encounters within this world. We created a very unique, and in many ways, quite experimental enemy in our thinking fire technology. Enemies in action games are often simply implemented: these nazis will stream from the bunker, the swordsmen will wait until the player gets near before attacking, the police won't open fire until the player attacks them, etc. With Firefighter, our enemy is not something that we just spawn in and direct until it's killed. It has a really unique AI...it knows where it is in an environment, it knows what surfaces it can move across faster or slower, it knows that it'll travel across a floor, up a wall and across a ceiling. If a player accidentally knocks a burning chair into a wall, that wall will soon catch fire and the player just created an entirely new opponent to deal with. Throughout development, this was a unique challenge as we just never knew what the fire was going to do. And with a control scheme that was heavily inspired by Metroid Prime 3’s (with plenty of options to tailor to the player’s liking), we gave the players the tools to get the job done against this unique beast.
We've got a really fun geeky cast to do our VO, including James Marsters, John DiMaggio, Jack McGee, Jaime Kennedy, Michael Jace and my personal favorite, Jenette Goldstein. She played Pvt. Vasquez in Aliens, and here she plays a firefighter named Ezzy Vasquez, and she was thrilled to essentially recreate one of my favorite sci-fi characters!
We've also partnered up with a fantastic charity called Firefighter Cancer Support Network (www.firefightercancersupport.org) who do an amazing service. I had no idea until I started researching for this game, but firefighters's cancer rates are ridiculously high just due to the stuff they are constantly surrounded by. These men and women not only risk their lives by running into burning buildings to save our families and our property, but they also risk their long term health while doing it. Anyway, we're really proud to be working with the FCSN and donating a portion of our proceeds to them. We're firm believers that it doesn't take much to do the right thing.
Finally, we're coming in at a CAG-friendly price of $30. We're a new IP, and really, a rather new concept for the Wii, and we wanted to try and take as much risk off the gamer as possible. We've got multiple difficulty levels: on Easy, most 8 year olds should be able to get through it. On Hard, I'd challenge even the most hardcore of gamers. That fire spreads like a bitch!
Now, of course since this is CAG, you'd all wait until it hits that $10 sweet spot. I know how it is (Hello Target clearance!). But if this is something you were interested in, I could really use your help.
Since our publisher is Conspiracy, I'm sure you guys all know the reputation they have. Well, they had nothing to do with this game but help pay for it. In fact, they've been the best publisher I've ever worked with as they entirely let us make the game we wanted to make. Hell, my studio was even able to keep the rights to the IP, which is pretty unheard of for a start-up developer. Anyway, a lot of retailers are wary of most Conspiracy titles so they aren't taking huge orders yet.
Best Buy is on the verge of making a big order if they see solid numbers before Monday. If you were planning on buying it shortly, please go through them, either online or in stores.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9441767&st=real&lp=2&type=product&cp=1&id=1218105182004
Otherwise, the other retailer we're trying to get into is Walmart. They are still deciding on whether or not to carry it in-store, so by ordering it through their online, it sends a message that they should. Walmart generally accounts for over 25% of all game sales, so you can imagine how important this is to us.
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=11077889
So that's about it in a nutshell. I know we have a lot to overcome with this game (its title, its publisher, its graphics), but so far the gaming press likes it, and the nearly 5,000 members of our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/realheroes) absolutely love it. If you're interested, I'd really appreciate the support.
Thanks guys!
Bryan
edit: I did a pretty fun interview on the GameCritics podcast this week. They call it candid, I call it bullshit free. So if you're interested in some industry behind-the-scenes, check it out:
http://www.gamecritics.com/tim-spaeth/gamecritics-com-podcast-episode-19-bryan-jury-of-epicenter-studios
edit 2: someone feel free to CheapyD the links so he gets his kickback!