Working on the PlayStation 3 has been wonderful. As this was my first project on the PS3, I was apprehensive at first about the new technology and how to use it as best we could. But now, I can honestly say I am a fan of the PS3.
Early in development, Blade Kitten was both a 3D and a 2D game and you could switch between them instantly — you’d run through a section then it would transition to 2D. It didn’t take us long to fall in love with the 2D version, so we focused all our efforts on making the 2D the fun game it is today.
From the start of our project, our goal as programmers was to give the designers all the power they needed to create the game that they wanted. Ideally, a level designer controls the player’s progression and experience in each area of the game (enemy placement, special events, collectables, and so on). So rather than implement a boss character’s attack moves myself, I would give the designers scripting tools to implement the boss themselves.
This proved to be one of the best decisions we made. For example, the level where Kit is running away from a huge monster called Acland, who destroys everything in his path, was completely scripted by the designers — as were all our bosses and many of the encounters you see. This has allowed for a much more flexible design with changes being quick and easy. But most importantly, much happier designers!
Being able to move any object anywhere and have our characters move along with them was fundamental to our game, so we made it so Kit can attach to pretty much everything. If the object moves or rotates, so does she. The level designers have done a great job using this and, even from the first level, you will see some fun movement and puzzles you can play with using these moving objects.
Blade Kitten was a re-think of how we normally do artificial intelligence. As there is a single plane that everyone fights on, we needed to make all the enemies work together without getting in each other’s way. Therefore, you’ll see things like the front guy duck down so the guy behind him can take a shot, or even have one guy jump over another to try to aggressively get to you. They all work together which helps create an interesting experience without overwhelming the player. It’s important that the enemies in the game feel like they are alive and are planning their strategy together to form a real challenge to players.
It was fun to get physics working properly in a 2D environment. We have some items which are fully 3D enabled and allowed to fly off into the yonder. Enemies have “ragdoll” effects that have them falling down in different ways when hit, and “fraggable” objects that break apart realistically. Additionally we have items that are fully physics-driven but stay on the player’s plane so you can use them without worrying about them flying away from you. This goes towards making the game world deeper, more detailed and unpredictable.
I hope you all enjoy this game as much as we have enjoyed making it.
Interesting!
This game looks cool
Hmmm
Looks good. Release date?
Hmmmm liked the art.
Reminds me of Viewtifull Joe
Any game with blade and kitten in the title has to be cool
I agree, this looks interesting and promising.
Is this a psn game?
Hmmm… more PS3 news…
And the PSP get’s some lame knockoff of a flash game I can play for free right in it’s browser…
I dig the art style, hopefully there’s a trailer in the store or a demo.
wow, very, well…..interestiiiiiing
I like the art style and it looks pretty fun, but I hate that main character.
Yeah, I checked the home site. It’s coming to PSN. Looks interesting!
Looks good. Hopefully it’s as fun as Strider was.
wonder how much fun this is?
release date???
No release date mentioned?
Looks great!!! When is it coming out??? I want to play it! lol
Junk.
Next…
This game looks incredible. Can’t wait to see more of it
Release date?
Looks nice!
Visually looks very nice. Sounds like you enjoyed the tech. Oh I do agree with the previous poster the main character is not something I like. Hopefully you got some customization that can at least change the colors a bit.
Does this come out today? If not, I’ll pass. August 10th— Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. RiverCityRansom Baby!
Hey! Remember when this was PSN Exclusive?!
After reading about this game on Gamefan, I’ve been looking forward to it. Can’t wait to play this.
The game is looking really cool. 2D or not 2D?!
@24
Ya, those were happier days.
@24 C-Murph666
I remember when this was supposed to be release back in the Spring but got delayed to Fall because they wanted to release it on the Xbox 360.
I heard this game wasn’t PSN exclusive anymore. It will therefore have to be exceptionally good for me to pick it up now. We’ll see.
12
Wow this game looks like it changed from the last time we’ve seen it. Good to you guys.
WHEN IS THE MADDEN NFL DEMO COMING OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
exclusive = quality or value?
If a game is good who cares about exclusivity, and in turn if its bad who cares?
looks fun but i dont like the main character
i’ve already read the comics and i’ve quickly became a big fan, i am waiting eagerly for this.
Great marketing strategy :)
looks quite amazing ^-^
release date please
when is it coming?
Does exclusivity matter? Let me ask a broader question: do bragging rights matter? Think that one through and if you come up with a clear-cut answer, you didn’t think hard enough.
Don’t get me wrong- I still think this game looks good, and somewhere down the road I fully expect I’ll pick it up. After all, action games of this sort don’t come along very often on PSN.
If this game comes out today, I’m buying it. Fact.
After visiting the site I noticed that this is based off a webcomic, and a very entertaining one I might add. I’m definitely gonna purchase this once it’s out, and plan to start purchasing the collections soon as well.
The name “Blade Kitten” has almost guarantee’d a first day purchase from me.
All you need now is a wolf or a ninja and it will be instantly epic.
Waiting for Blade Kitten II: Revenge of Ninja Wolf
When does it come out?!!
The big question is, will Blade Kitten be in 2D or stereoscopic 2D? :D
You have to use the machine to its full potential
Nice, really looking forward to this game!
Oh please let this be out today, I’ve been waiting for this game for ages!
Seems pretty nice! Can’t wait to get my hands on it =)