In the three years since the launch of the console, Nintendo Switch has firmly established itself as the king of the hill when it comes to multiplayer local games. There is certainly no shortage of great collaborative games on the switch, and the ability to slide Joy-Con anywhere at any time makes it ideal for entertaining friends and family. The latest co-op game to get to the system Vitamins interaction from WayForward, the studio is probably the most famous for the best Shantae series of platforms, even though their back catalog contains a stove of retro inspired jewelry Power Transformers in order Deleted mummy.
We caught up with Vitamin Connection director James Montagna to discuss the unique switchch, his role in the project and how he maintains the power and enthusiasm of the sport and game development.
Nintendo's Life: For anyone who may have missed the announcement last year, or the first mobile in January, tell us a little about Vitamin Connection and what kind of game it is.
James Montagna: Absolutely! Vitamin Connection is a special Nintendo switchch game where players take on the role of characters Vita-Boy and Mina-Girl, whether playing solo or with a friend, copying a vitamin ship and embarking on a journey to fight the monsters on Earth! The story follows the Sable family, and each member of the family has a time when they can swallow a vitamin, or interact with it in some way that sets the tone for the story. The game itself makes a lot of use of Nintendo Swap Joy-Con, and when playing with two players, each player has their own role in ship management and shooting. This asymmetrical experience means that players will have to really collaborate to be successful! In fact, the asymmetry is shown down by the fact that each player has a Joy-Con controller different from each other.
we all love Nintendo Switch at WayForward and I wanted to make it a love letter game
Were there any specific influences you had in mind while developing the game? How long did it take to grow?
The direction I gave the team was to look more closely at similar games Jet Set Radio, as well as Qatar series. At first glance, it may seem that these games are not very similar to Vitamin Connection, and are not compatible. But both share a distinct sense of their gameplay, a strong identity in their visuals, and most importantly, an emphasis on the sound record that stands alone as an amazing piece of listening music. So in essence, our goal has been to create a game like one of those, but be a new generation.
As for the timeframe… We started developing in 2017, but it took longer than other projects to go down from the time when Vitamin Connection was not funded, so I've been working on other projects. That is why there is space for almost a year from the first prototype to the full production.
Is the performance of this game different from the performance of Shantae or other WayForward projects?
Very little! With Vitamin Connection, we're building a new WayForward property from scratch, so there was no existing directory to look at … not only what this game should be, but the world and game characters as well. There was an opportunity when our team presented as much art as possible as we tried to establish what we hoped would be something bigger than just this one game. Another point is, we had a small and tightly wrapped team in the game, which, with good and bad points. In our case, one great benefit is that it offers a lot of flexibility. Many of the best features were just me and the same lovely lead programer chatting back said "it would be great if it worked like that …"
Can you give us an idea of what a & # 39; s average day & # 39; Game Director? What are the pros and cons of having this role over a projected project role?
In a project like Vitamin Connection, I will be hands-on and customizing some things myself, including creating art work, sound effects, and tweaking design.
At WayForward, it's usually the lead composer and the director of the game. In fact, the title on my business card reads the Designer / Director, and I always do both of these roles. So, finding the good and the bad is really hard because it all comes together for me.
My day usually starts once I get out my email, where I prioritize what needs to be done that day and deal with things properly. One of my main tasks is to write the content of Game Design Documentation (GDD), which serves as a visual document for many types while progressing.
Next, I will check in with the developers who are creating the game based on GDD, and provide some feedback to guide things in line with the vision, or revise the composition when necessary if things don't work out as planned. From there, when those activities are covered, I'll get my hands on the game-time.
Finally, I will make notes and provide feedback on things like system gameplay, grade composing notes, etc. I also categorize works based on what needs to be done, write emails to exhibitors, artists, and more, explaining work details. In a project like Vitamin Connection, I will be hands-on and customizing some things myself, including creating art work, sound effects, and tweaking design. During this time, I even set aside some time to compose a short piece of music, which sounded amazing to our participants, the Mint Potion group.
The first trailer has given us some of the mini-games – can you tell us a little about it? Are they tied to the main game or are they completely separate?
This is what we call the games below. You can think of these as battles for smaller genres. Their main purpose is to isolate the main gameplay moments with an exciting overlap of completely unique gaming style, sometimes complete with a new cruise control. In a complete narrative, each time you reach a "critical point" within the host's body, a sub-game is played to cure them. Less games will be unlocked gradually with free play as you progress to main story mode. As you open them up, each one is treated as its own little game that contains, filling in its own theme title. We get extra mileage from some of them by adjusting the content to make spin-off Sub-Games again.
I think my favorite little play would be "Dance Dance." It's a rhythm game with a variety of songs, each with a different dance style. The Capsule Ship is positioned among the other ships. The dance steps are provided by ship, which you and your partner should follow closely when starting the music. When played properly, the effect is similar to the performance of synchronized swimming with other ships, twisting and floating jointly, perfectly drawn. If you make a mistake and jump on the other ships you will damage and dump everything… So be careful!
we use a very HD Rumble feature, motion controls, and an unusual IR Motion camera
Most of your recent games have been multiplatform titles – aside from the obvious obvious flaws, what was it like to think after making Vitamin Connection a special switch? Does it include any unique gameplay that won't be repeated on other platforms?
This may be the most asked question about the game, and I've never had a good answer to think behind it except that we all love Nintendo Switch at WayForward and I wanted to make it a love letter game. As well as different uses of Joy-Con held in various aspects of Unity mode, we use the feature's very own HD Rumble, motion controls, and an unnamed IR Motion Camera. It may be that the experience can be a kind of repetition somewhere with some change to be honest, but once you get your hands on it, it's very easy to say why it's worth the change.
You've been at WayForward for a good while now (14 years, do we believe?) And you have an equal collection of your own independent games added to your studio work. With work / life balance being a hot topic in game design for years now, how do you make time and keep your enthusiasm for independent projects while fully engaging in gaming in your day job?
I think it's an endless fascination for me; maybe silly so it depends on who you ask. But I am passionate about creating and entertaining people. So, I go to work and do WayForward games like Shantae and Vitamin Connection, then come home and work hard my projects are independent. It's been since I started, and I still love to do it. I lie when I say that working this way doesn't slow you down sometimes, but when I think I'm past it, I try to do things so that I have a healthy balance too, like finding time for family and friends. However, I am currently doing well, and I am so grateful that my work allows me to please so many people!
What do you think was the biggest challenge you faced during the launch of Vitamin Connection?
For me personally, that challenge has been one of fantasy. I think there were a lot of ideas that we wanted to work on in this game that for some reason were not available during development. However, this is different from Vitamin Connection. I realize there will always be something like this, whatever the project. When you do something, not everything goes according to plan. The only thing you can do is accept your expectations, and change your focus to the next best thing.
Although it is difficult to set aside game time in the name of entertainment, I feel it is very important. Other career feelings like Smash Bros. it is based on the designs we build, sometimes even modestly.
The switchch is well suited for co-op games and there are many excellent examples already available – can you say that you set up Vitamin Connection without a packet?
That's right – there are lots of great collaborative games on Switch now! I feel the experience that Vitamin Connection offers is a unique way that invites players to interact with each other. I used to call it a "three-legged race," which is standard in sports. To progress successfully, in many situations of the game, you and your partner will need to really communicate and coordinate to guide the Capsule Ship. There are some events where you both have to focus on just fulfilling your special role as much as possible, with the best results of perfecting your combined skills. The final product of our approach is to create this game that makes for a really good ice breaker, and often creates a bond between players in a completely different way from other aspects of the cooperative game.
Finally, are there any Switch games especially for you and the team that you enjoyed if you didn't work hard at Vitamin Connection?
There is so much! We all have a burning passion for sports, so we do our best to play what we can afford to spend time on. If I were to pick one topic that is true for most of our team… We are big fans Super Smash Bros. Finally! There was not much in the way of a break from working during the Vitamin Connection, but at one point we were able to fit in some of the fiery games, and sometimes the WayForward indoor tournament of the game. Although it is difficult to set aside game time in the name of entertainment, I feel it is very important. Other career feelings like Smash Bros. it is based on the designs we build, sometimes even modestly. Hopefully we can put the spark of inspiration in the world through our creativity.
Many thanks to James for his time – you can follow him on Twitter. The Vitamin connection is complete now and we'll have our review ready soon, so check back our decision. In the meantime, feel free to share your thoughts on the infamous op-op nightmare ending below.
