Jan Zdarsa The Jablíčkář.cz server is constantly developing, so I am always trying to think of what to interest you here on the server. A lot of you probably didn't know the development studio Rake in Grass, which surprised me a few days ago an excellent puzzle game on the iPhone with name Archibald's Adventures, which, as far as I know, is the very first game on the Appstore that is in Czech. So I decided to do a short interview with the Rake in Grass team.
Could you briefly introduce the development studio Rake in Grass?
Rake In Grass is a small professional indie team that has been in the gaming industry for maybe nine years. As individuals, we started making games on 8-bit, so it's a very, very long time ago. Our range is very wide - from casual games to hardcore action games.
What has been the biggest success for you so far, what made you the most happy?
We are happy with any kind of success, including just a complimentary e-mail from a player of one of our games. But the biggest successes will be the game Jets'n'Guns (by the way, it is also in the MacWorld Hall of Fame), recently, for example, the release of Archibald on iPhones.
How many people worked on the development of Archibald's Adventures? And roughly how long did it take?
One programmer - Petr Tovaryš - and one graphic designer/designer - František Chmelař worked on Archibald (as is usual here) for about half a year in the evenings.
How did you come up with the idea of creating a skateboarder character?
The original concept was completely different. It was supposed to be a quickly created action game where you fly only with a bubble (it remained in the game, even though collecting crates was added) and the goal was to avoid all the traps and fly to the exit. When it was finished, it felt poor and impersonal. That's why we added the characters of the professor and the skater and a lot of other things, including more emphasis on puzzles and reducing the action of the game. Our favorite series Back to the Future and Futurama were a big inspiration for both main characters.
There are also other interesting titles in your game portfolio. Do you plan to develop any other of your current games for the iPhone?
We will definitely try to port some of the older games, but we haven't decided which ones yet. Perhaps the games Westbang, Be a King or Styrateg. But we will probably also design our future games with the possibility of easy porting to iPhones.
Do you like the Apple Appstore concept and are you comfortable with it as a developer?
It depends. The problem with iTunes is that Apple releases apps there regardless of quality. And this nonsense, which is spewed out in bulk, often pushes better quality titles to the background. With Archibald, it seemed similar at first. Fortunately, this was broken after a large amount of reviews brought attention to the game. But who follows, for example, developing forums, knows that not everyone is lucky in this.
Are you planning to make an iPhone-only game in the future? Do you already have any ideas?
We'll see. So far, we have released only one game on the iPhone, so we are still gathering experience and watching how the offer of games on the Appstore will develop in the future. Nothing is ruled out, we are considering various options. And the players themselves decide a lot - whether they will prefer primitive applications for a dollar, or will they be willing to pay more for a more extensive and high-quality thing developed for several months, as is the case with Rake in Grass games.
Anything else you would like to tell the readers of 14205.w5.wedos.net?
I think that Czech "apple fans" are reasonable in terms of the taste of games compared to their colleagues in the USA, for example, and choose better things. So maybe just a wish that they can endure it! :) And of course our team thanks you for your support!
He who seeks will find. Best on the mentioned (also) developer forums. That's how I discovered your game shortly after its release. I realized that it was the work of Czech authors only when the lite version was released, when I came across the name Pavel Tovaryš on the app store...
The game has very positive reviews both among renowned game servers and among players. There aren't many of them... Basically, I have only one comment that concerns the controls. Would it be possible to change his method in the menu and not directly in the game? Very often when manipulating the bubble it switches unintentionally and makes the game a rather frustrating experience. Otherwise I have no reservations, the game deserves full stars!
The game is absolutely great, my daughter and I will fix it the next day, good job, keep it up.
I will also join in the praise! I'm stuck in one round now, but that's good too. At least he doesn't finish it in one morning. I hope you make it to the Top Ten on the App Store!
Also, in my opinion, a very good game:) if you don't know how to proceed, there are instructions on YouTube...
The game really got me. Really great act. I would just be more inclined to toggle the control in the menu as well. I sometimes have the same problem with the bubble and catching crates. I look forward to the next titles. Keep it up!
Great game. There's really nothing wrong with it. It will pay off. And I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you will be successful with other great iPhone games.