SKY THE SCRAPER: A Game Inspired By Delaying Adulthood!? [Award Winner Documentary #2] Part 1
■Ryo Kobuchi
Ryo Kobuchi’s main occupation is as a game designer.
He has worked for several major gaming companies and currently works at Toydium Inc. Kobuchi started developing indie games around two years ago, and spends his days immersed in game development both as a company employee and as an independent developer.
SKY THE SCRAPER is a roguelike action game that centers around cleaning skyscrapers and delaying adulthood. The main character of this game is Sky, who has moved out of home against his parents’ wishes. He searches for his calling while earning money cleaning skyscrapers. The cleaning part of the game consists of roguelike (roguelite) action where the environment differs each time the game is played. The days in between Sky’s shifts are presented as a management simulation game where his money and time can be used freely. The exhilaration of cleaning skyscrapers is punctuated by events like receiving messages from Sky’s parents criticizing his current lifestyle or attempting to relax by going out to a café only to end up feeling depressed. Sky’s daily life is filled with freedom and uncertainty and there’s no way of knowing what will come next.
We talked to Ryo Kobuchi about the story behind SKY THE SCRAPER. He has experienced a variety of creative endeavors, such as producing games as a company employee, writing novels, and developing indie games. Which parts of himself did Kobuchi draw upon to conceive SKY THE SCRAPER, and how was it created?
■Differentiation and delaying adulthood. How dormant ideas were unearthed and became SKY THE SCRAPER.
―― Thank you very much for your time. I would like to begin by asking about the team that developed SKY THE SCRAPER.
🔸Kobuchi: I make almost everything on my own. My younger brother and other external parties create some of the graphics.
―― How are you balancing your main job with developing SKY THE SCRAPER?
🔸Kobuchi: I work at Toydium as a game designer three days a week and use the other two weekdays to develop SKY THE SCRAPER. I spend most weekends with my kids.
―― Working three days a week is quite unusual.
🔸Kobuchi: I was initially thinking about going independent to develop indie games. But of course, losing my source of income is a huge risk to take. That’s when a friend of mine, who happens to be the CTO of Toydium, lent me an ear. He told me that Toydium lets its staff develop games independently and that many of its employees have flexible work styles. Luckily, I was hired to work there for three days a week. I am extremely grateful to them and doubt there are many companies that would be so open-minded.
―― You said your brother made graphics for your game, does he also work in the video game industry?
🔸Kobuchi: My brother has no experience in the video game industry at all. He helps me with assistant work like drawing, making pixel art, editing videos, playtesting, and finding bugs.
―― Is there a difference between making the game on your own and having your brother there with you?
🔸Kobuchi: Not only does he help reduce my workload of course, but I also find great value in creating things through discussion. I’m able to talk about anything with my brother, so having him simply respond to something I say gives me a sense of security and awareness.
―― The importance of explaining ideas you came up with to someone else and bouncing ideas off of each other has been established throughout entertainment production. By organizing your thoughts before verbalizing them, you can discover things you were unaware of.
🔸Kobuchi: Exactly. As a game designer I can easily make decisions about game design, but heavily rely on my brother regarding other aspects like the visuals and sounds.
―― What were your formative experiences in relation to video games?
🔸Kobuchi: I was your typical gamer as a kid and grew up playing famous titles like Dragon Quest and Super Mario on the NES ever since elementary school. As my brother got older we started playing co-op games together like ones from the Kunio-kun series, Super Chinese, and Secret of Mana.
―― Why did you choose to play co-op games?
🔸Kobuchi: Because we would end up fighting if we played anything competitive. As a teenager, the games I chose to play became more mature. I believe titles like Final Fantasy and LIVE A LIVE by Square (currently Square Enix) that I played at that time provided a clear direction for my storytelling. During university I went through a period where I didn’t play any games, but my passion was reignited after playing titles like Dynasty Warriors with my friends. I now play a variety of genres, from open-world RPGs to shooter games and more. I guess my preferences go through phases as time passes.
―― What led you to work in game development after those experiences?
🔸Kobuchi: I loved games so much that I had never considered pursing anything else. I even tried to apply to a technical college after middle school to become a programmer, but reluctantly went to a regular high school after my father insisted that I study more broadly during high school.
―― You had clear ambitions from a young age.
🔸Kobuchi: I majored in Computer Science at university, and came across some very talented people. I became overwhelmed with the feeling that I wasn’t good enough. Even so, I was still determined to make games. I looked for companies that were recruiting for a planning position, and thankfully managed to get a job at a game company.
―― What kind of games were you making at this time?
🔸Kobuchi: Most of them were action and RPG games in terms of genre, and I was able to experience developing for a variety of platforms including the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo DS. I also had many opportunities to develop games that capitalized on new features, especially when new hardware was being launched, which was a lot of fun. I also worked on some IP games. It was motivating for me to create games that modified the original material in a way that kept fans engaged.
―― Was there anything specific that you focused on when planning for these games?
🔸Kobuchi: I placed a lot of importance on differentiation. If I’m going to do something, I want to do it right. I don’t see the point in creating something that already exists.
―― I see. Valuing one single idea as the overarching theme. Game design that pursues originality. And differentiation from other games. I believe many of these ideas also resonate with indie game development. Speaking of which, what do you think differentiates SKY THE SCRAPER from other games?
🔸Kobuchi: I guess there was a part of me that thought the concept of cleaning skyscrapers wouldn’t overlap with other games. That sort of thing is always on my radar, so I probably would have ignored more common subject matter.
―― The details in the cleaning part of the game were quite realistic. Was this based on a real-life experience?
🔸Kobuchi: I have a friend who is experienced in cleaning skyscrapers, and had the chance to observe him. The bucket he used to wash the window wiper looked to me like the sheath of a sword. Watching him brandish the wiper while wearing the harness and sheath reminded me of a main character in a video game. There’s also a strategy behind efficiently cleaning the windows which I thought could work as a game.
―― Facing danger while wearing special equipment is certainly reminiscent of a video game.
🔸Kobuchi: The topic of cleaning skyscrapers came up when I was talking to a friend on Discord while playing games. At the time, we simply discussed how interesting it would be if that were a game. After a while, I recalled this conversation and created a prototype of a window-cleaning action game in Unity. I showed this prototype to my friends for fun, but I felt a great sense of accomplishment in having created this prototype and wanted to further expand on it.
―― So it started off as an action game, and the management part was added afterwards.
🔸Kobuchi: Yes, but the story portrayed in the management part and the action part are like two sides of the same coin, and both ideas came to me at the same time. I never thought of making a game with only one aspect or the other, and neither is more important than the other either. I could have just made an action game, but I doubt I would have tried to finish it if that were the case. Perhaps this came about naturally, since I have a personal preference for hybrid games like Persona, which is an RPG title with simulation aspects.
―― SKY THE SCRAPER comes together once you combine the multiple elements that make it up, be it cleaning skyscrapers and delaying adulthood or the action part and the management simulation. The action part is simple and straightforward, and the management part is emotionally immersive. If you make a mistake and fall in the action part, Sky will be unable to work and have his income cut off. In the management part, Sky is criticized by his father through text messages as the due date for the rent is approaching. I felt that moments like these expressed the anxiety one feels when they’re living in isolation.
🔸Kobuchi: The main idea I’m trying to convey is that sense of having determination while simultaneously being uncertain and anxious. I’m embarrassed to admit that I experienced these feelings during my late teens to early twenties. As an adult I feel like I’m finally able to start confronting them, and even hope to preserve them through my work before they fade away from my memory. I do have aspirations but I am unsure as to what they are exactly. However, I also believe most people feel similarly, and that’s why I felt that many people would be able to relate to this game.
―― There was definitely a strong sense of unease throughout the game. The management part feels especially realistic in that sense, like when Sky becomes obsessed with gambling, or when he has a bad experience at a café he went to with the hopes of raising his spirits.
🔸Kobuchi: Games must be simple to be playable, but at the same time I also believe that life itself isn’t that simple. I wanted to portray the experience of time swiftly passing by while you feel lost, and then that time eventually runs out, and wherever you are becomes our destination. Where you end up and how you end up there is the result of everything you have done.
―― The significance of time was also depicted in TIME PRISONER* which was a game you previously released. Was there a conscious effort to draw on the same subject matter since this idea is also illustrated in SKY THE SCRAPER?
*TIME PRISONER
A “life-hack style” idle game for iOS. Find out what time really means to you.
The main character is trapped in a clock prison until the end of their term.
Their prison terms increase as the game progress, with some terms taking up to 30 minutes. Prison time is represented in real time, and the only action players can take is to pick up the Abcents (money) that appear every once in a while. The prisoner must be released from the clock once time is up or it’s game over, so make sure to stay focused. This game is a strange experience where you can experience the satisfaction of increasing your Abcents, while also feeling that time is wasting away.
🔸Kobuchi: It’s not something I was particularly conscious of, but perhaps this is what tends to happen when themes are inspired from a place of personal struggle. I have a desire to create something that delves into the impatience and nihilism of youth, that sense of feeling stuck during your twenties. It was when those ideas were lying dormant within me that I heard about cleaning skyscrapers. I think that’s when the concept for SKY THE SCRAPER as a game was born.
―― How does Sky change as the game progresses?
🔸Kobuchi: Sky has four stats, “love”, “art”, “Intelligence”, and “Vice”. The strategy for the action part and the outcome of the game is determined by which stats are prioritized. These stats will also fluctuate depending on Sky’s activities and daily actions. I hope players will enjoy the fact that the game will unfold differently each time it’s played.
―― The names for the stats are a little strange, why did you choose them in this way?
🔸Kobuchi: We decided on four stats to balance out the contrast and make the game more manageable. Their names were chosen so that players could easily imagine how Sky would evolve if certain stats were raised, and to make it easier for myself to come up with skills for each one.
(Continued in Part 2…)
▼In Part 2, we hear Kobuchi’s thoughts on what he kept in mind when writing his game proposal, how his fellow GYAAR Contest winners are like comrades to him, and more!
▼SKY THE SCRAPER
You are the young cleaner of a skyscraper who dreams of a better future, in this roguelike action game. Savor the thrill of working at new heights, while basking in the satisfaction of removing grime. Make full use of the diverse range of actions and equipment to efficiently clean the skyscraper. Spend your days making money and muster up the motivation to determine the course of your future within two months.Will you be able to break free from these mundane days?
Steam Store: SKY THE SCRAPER (steampowered.com)
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