Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Bit Boy
: Bit Boy is a lot like Retro Game Challenge in that it takes the players through
several levels, each inspired by a different era of video game graphics and gameplay.
While it does not contain multiple games, it does take the player on a journey through
retro games (and beyond), transcending the genre to make something totally new.
Post-retro viral Flash games
: Besides these commercial games, many viral Flash
games also fall into this category of post-retro. A great example is the recent hit
Retroshoot. We, ourselves, also have a game that sort of fits into this category named
Retro Blaster, created more than two years ago. A secondary offshoot of this genre
would be the turn-the-tables retro games like Asteroids Revenge and Anti-Pac-Man.
These games are good examples of a minor form of deconstruction in post-retro viral
Flash games, where the multiple meanings for the game world exist simply by having
the player take the nontraditional role of the bad guy from those classic games.
What the post-retro genre means to developers
To us, there is no doubt the genre of post-retro games exists and is only growing. What, then, can
game developers learn from it?
Well, first of all, the fact that many (but not all) of these games have been very successful cannot
be overlooked. It seems that people who buy downloadable games and play viral Flash games
like this genre very much. It could also mean that the audience for retro games is getting much
more sophisticated. You might not be able to settle on a pure retro-inspired game and hope for it
to build any kind of audience. Most likely, you need to add something more to mix to get your
game noticed.
If you are interested in making a game in this genre, here is our advice: Take a look at a couple of
old games, and try to visualize what they would look like as post-retro games. What would you
add to the classic concept that could not have been achieved when the game was first released?
Would it transcend or deconstruct the original game, layer modern game design elements on top,
both, or neither? We're truly fascinated by this emerging trend, and we look forward to playing
any new games in this genre.
In this chapter, we will be making game in the vein of these post-retro, or retro-evolved, games
called Blaster Mines.
Designing Blaster Mines
Let's get started by taking a look at a screen shot for our Blaster Mines game in Figure 11-1.
