#MeetTheGame: Droppin’ Santa
Ho Ho Ho! Christmas is coming and we felt obliged to introduce you an addictive holiday themed mobile game: Droppin’ Santa.
Droppin’ Santa in a nutshell
Creators: Alberto Betella (Concept and Development), Grigoreen (Graphic Artist), Dmitry Jbanov (Music Artist)
Type of game: Infinite scroller
Style: 8-bit
Language: C#
Software: Unity 3D
Platform: iOS, Android, Apple TV
We found the game really interesting not only of its addictiveness but mostly because the game has been conceived, developed and released in only 30 days and on a very limited budget (less the 100$!!).
Inspired by 1980’s arcade games, Droppin’ Santa is a 8-bit Xmas-themed infinite scroller where the player helps Santa Claus deliver all the presents.
We talked with the creator of the game, Alberto Betella and he gave us more details about this project.
How and why did you come up with this game?
I got asked to give a talk about “Interactivity and Games” during an event in Barcelona and I thought it would be fun challenge myself in releasing a video game with a very low budget and a tight deadline.
Fortunately today more than ever, creative developers, designers and artists dispose of a wide range of online virtual spaces to meet, exchange ideas and collaborate on new projects. This opens the doors to new and exciting possibilities that sometimes converge into fruitful ventures.
Tell us a bit about your creative and developing process
The first mandatory step was finding the team members willing to go extra mile and deliver their assets within a couple of weeks.
Igor and Dmitry joined the challenge and I started the conceptual design and the art guidelines of the game.
Now it was time to start coding:
Once I wrapped everything up, I crowdsourced the beta testing.
And finally, on the 25th of November, I submitted the game to the stores.
Any tip for those who want to start building a retro game?
Well, you need a good pixel artist, and if you use Unity make sure you work well with pixelated sprites (e.g. disable antialiasing). Plus make sure the interaction paradigm is modern and adapted to mobile devices… i.e. do not reproduce on a mobile screen the old controllers (they won’t work since players won’t feel the buttons on their fingers), try to use touches and keep it as simple as possible. In case of Droppin’ Santa, for instance, two buttons, each of which covers half of the screen.
Any last thoughts?
It is indeed possible to put together a talented team and create a final product with a minimal monetary investment (in our case, $100). Needless to say, this project did not start with the goal of short-term financial gain (talented individuals should never sell their time and skills for an undervalued remuneration) but rather as a longer-term endeavour that has entrepreneurial spirit and a vested interest for all of those involved: if the product gains popularity and visibility, so do the components of the team.
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