Originally posted at Diehard GameFAN

The path from independent to retail is a long and selective journey, but given the resources available to aspiring developers today, we are seeing a resurgence in original ideas akin to when computer games could be written by a couple of programmers on a computer in a garage. While the advance in technology has made the “garage studio” model extremely difficult, it certainly isn’t impossible, and today’s up-and-coming developers are finding ways to battle the hardships involved in the process. Tomorrow, gamers will be able to get their hands on the results of the newest rise of the independent game, The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom.

P.B. Winterbottom comes from the minds of graduates of the University of Southern California’s Interactive Media MFA program. In 2008, the Odd Gentlemen started off as an independent studio founded by Matt Korba and Paul Bellezza. Now in 2010, they are setting out to expand their mission of making experimental games. The first of these titles is a re-imagining of P.B. Winterbottom, set to be expanded and improved upon thanks to the Xbox 360 hardware and published courtesy of 2K Play. The publisher has taken a recent effort to expand on its portfolio with key downloadable titles on the Xbox LIVE Arcade format and so far, P.B. Winterbottom is looking like a perfect, and surely an original, addition to the service.

Hot off the heels of the development of The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom, The Odd Gentlemen co-founder Paul Bellezza took some time out of his schedule to answer some questions in regard to the game and its development, The Odd Gentlemen, what it was like to develop games independently, what the future holds for the company and more. We figured someone whose initials were P.B. would give us the best insight on The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom (although we had to lock up all of our pies), so please continue reading as we examine the past, present and future with Paul Bellezza:

DHGF: To set the stage for those not in the know, can you introduce The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom to our readers and describe what makes the title a unique experience?

Paul Bellezza: The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom is a 2-D side scrolling puzzle platformer starting the nefarious P.B. Winterbottom – pie thief extraordinaire. The game takes place in a macabre silent film inspired universe and involves Winterbottom’s quest to chase the elusive Chronoberry Pie, which has caused P.B. to become unstuck in time. Because of this, Winterbottom receives the ability to record any of his actions and spawn time clones that repeat his previous actions. With the help of these time clones, Winterbottom can stand on his own head to get to higher places, smack himself or his clones with his umbrella, which is a launching mechanism, and can be in multiple places at once. All of these tricks are good for one thing: Nabbing delicious pie.

DHGF: P.B. Winterbottom’s noir motif definitely gives the title a unique identity. What are your concerns in regard to current gamers being “spoiled” on today’s visuals? What kind of challenges did producing the title in this art form produce?

P.B.: In this current generation of consoles, the march over the uncanny valley is expensive, draining and consists of mostly green and brown color palettes. We don’t care about creating visuals that are photo real. We feel we get enough of that in the real world. We’d much rather create stylized worlds that are bent, twisted and fantastical as these are the types of places we dreamed of as children. These are the worlds that suit the games we want to make.

In terms of Winterbottom’s development, we were able to create our aesthetic by modeling all of our assets in 3-D with global illumination, exporting them to 2-D and then painting them over. While we were able to create a one-of-a-kind look, it’s the most inefficient art pipeline ever. In essence, each puzzle scenario has as much detail as a movie set. It was a balancing act trying to keep the bar of high quality up during production. Stylized art is hard work but it tends to age better in the long run. Games from the PlayStation One 3-D era were cutting edge at one point but, by today’s standards, they are unsightly.

Now that’s not to say we don’t appreciate the glitz and glamour of today’s modern games. Uncharted 2 is one of our favorites. We just don’t have an interest in making worlds that utilize that style.

DHGF: Can you expand on the game’s silent movie inspiration? Were there any silent films or actors from the time period that directly inspired P.B. Winterbottom?

P.B.: We’re fans of Charlie Chaplin, Harold Lloyd and Buster Keaton. There are several segments in the game that are heavily inspired by Harold Lloyd’s Safety Last and Buster Keaton’s Sherlock Jr. A Trip to the Moon, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Metropolis inspired us as well.

DHGF: The original development page for the title shows a number of concepts for the P.B. Winterbottom character. Can you reflect on the evolution and creation of the character? How did you know when you finally had exactly what you wanted in the character?

Paul: Our creative director, Matt Korba, modeled and animated the first version of Winterbottom, which we used in the student version of the game. Even in the student project, Winterbottom went through a few transitions. We knew we wanted him to creep around in a gremlin-like manner while keeping an air of dignity around him. When we started the commercial version of Winterbottom, we set out to revamp the character for HD. With the help of our concept artist, Vincent Perea, we began rethinking him. We added more details to his face and attire and got him re-modeled and running in the game world. Several months later, Matt Clausen, along with Korba, decided we wanted to revamp him a third time. In this final pass, we gave him a new color treatment and added extra details like black shadows around his eyes, while reshaping his head to make for a better platform. We almost didn’t have enough time to get the final version in the game but once we got a set of test frames into the game itself, we knew he was where we wanted him to be.

DHGF: So far, the title seems like a pretty big victory for The Odd Gentlemen. What was your initial reaction to a publisher such as 2K Play being interested in your title? What kind of a process was involved in going from an independent effort to a spotlighted retail release?

P.B.: The whole journey has been an amazing but surreal journey for us. We never had any inclination that this would turn into a full-fledged downloadable console title. As students, we were only interested in making the best game that we could make. The real turning point for us was when the game earned entrance into the Independent Games Festival at GDC 2008. Demoing the game on the show floor at GDC opened up a ton of doors for us. We met every major publisher in the industry and garnered attention from the gaming press. 2K Play was one of the first publishers we spoke with and from the get-go they made it clear that they would support our creative vision for the game. After signing with 2K, they provided us with tools and resources to get our studio up and running. It has been very collaborative, as they’ve worked with us to develop a schedule that would best suit the development of the project. All in all, it’s been a smooth working relationship.

DHGF: Do you think P.B. Winterbottom would have had the same appeal if it would have been built in the suggested Ogre 3D, as a postmortem for the USC thesis build indicated? What is it about the differences between 2-D and 3-D that you feel defines a game and how it is approached and developed?

P.B.:To be frank, we couldn’t have pulled off the look we have achieved with The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom for XBLA if we used Ogre 3D. The type of shading and lighting used to make our models just wouldn’t have been possible to do “live.” Furthermore, we were interested in making a puzzle platformer and a 2-D plane was the way we envisioned the game happening. As a puzzle game, we wanted the player to be able to see the problem they were facing in one shot. Were it in 3-D, the puzzles would have required a different type of design that wouldn’t necessarily work the same way. So the decision to design the game for a 2-D perspective was a deliberate design choice.

DHGF: What aspects of the game were made possible through Xbox development as opposed to the Adobe Flash format utilized originally?

P.B.: Developing the game on the Xbox gave us more raw power than what was available to us in Flash. Therefore, we got more clones on the screen, higher-resolution assets and less slowdown.

DHGF: With the original product, were there any instances or comments that still stick out in your mind when the game was showcased at the Independent Games Festival 2008?

P.B.: The critical response was overwhelming. I don’t think anything else will compare … well, maybe upgrading my 1999 Chevy Prism to a non-broken, smelly car will … but nothing else.

DHGF: What does it mean to you as an independent developer to have the awards and press you’ve been receiving thus far?

Paul: I felt honored by the warm reception we received from the gaming press and industry. When we were at E3 2008 with Indiecade, we received several E3 award nominations. We were flabbergasted that our little student Flash game were uttered in the same sentence as titles such as Mirror’s Edge, Prince of Persia, and Spore. The awards and press help with morale, but we never lose sight of the fact that attention is only as good as the game you are making. We pour our energy into making the best games we can and everything else is just gravy.

DHGF: What is next for The Odd Gentlemen? Would the team rather move on to bigger, disc-based games? What is the ideal genre the team would like to work on and why? How is the company mission statement of being the buffest development team in the world working for you?

P.B.: We have another game baking in the oven right now and it’s just as crazy as Winterbottom is … and it’s in COLOR. As for disc-based games, it’s not out of the question for us in the future but we’re not in a rush to go big. The size of the game we make will be determined by the game design and direction we’re chasing, so if an idea warrants a large scope, then perhaps we’ll end up making a disc-title.

It’s no fun working in genres… we want to shatter them.

Well, we definitely have a lot of muscle under our post-crunch love handles. So in that regard, I’d say it’s going quite well. Making a game about delicious pie was not good for our goal.

DHGF: What are your thoughts on the overall landscape of the independent video game development scene? Is there any advice you would give to someone with aspirations for getting into independent video game development?

P.B.: The indie game scene has a lot of interesting games. Developers take big and very exciting risks. As long as people are passionate about making games their way, then the indie scene will continue to yield more great games. Every year the number of submissions to the IGF and Indiecade increases and this is testament to a new generation of self-guided game developers rising up. It’s awesome!

Advice for anyone passionate enough to going into independent game development, the best tenet we recommend is to make sure the game you’re making is personal to you. When a game is personal to the creator, it shows in the design and is more effective.

Originally published on Bemanistyle

Back when news of this year’s brand new DanceDanceRevolution titles surfaced during July’s E3 event, Konami of America went out of its way to state it was going to feature “major licensed master Latin tracks.” While we were initially ignorant about the impact these Latin tunes would have on the final product, DanceDanceRevolution X2 released in North America on Oct. 27 and it became clear exactly how far Konami was looking to go in featuring Latin-style music in the title. Of the title’s 60 songs, nearly 17 percent of the list features Latin songs and/or artists and it seemed as if the company purposely went out of its way to reproduce Konami originals in this styling in bringing revival songs from previous entries into the mix. It’s hard to deny DanceDanceRevolution is as global as it has ever been, originating from its humble, nine Konami original songs on the original DDR arcade cabinet, evolving to later include European influence with the company’s Toshiba EMI partnership and, finally, breaking out into recognizable tunes made popular in America. While Latin-style songs are hardly nothing new to series, what attributed this focus to load almost one-fifth of DDR X2 with this music genre?

“We believed that the PS2 market in Central America is relatively large, so we decided to implement Latin/Spanish-influenced licensed and Konami original songs that might be better accepted in that region and for the residents in North America who enjoy this type of music,” stated series producer Naoki Maeda in a recent e-mail interview with Bemanistyle.com. Looking at recent events that have unfolded in 2009 between Central America and Sony, perhaps saying the previously untapped video game market in the territory is large could be an understatement.

A February announcement made by Sony Computer Entertainment America officially put the company’s consoles and services available to the territory for the first time(1). Prior to this point, residents of the area had to either swallow heavy-hitting price tags for systems and games thanks to customs taxes and import tariffs or take part in playing pirated copies of games titles. In fact, a 2008 editorial by Pascal Clarysse, who was formerly a marketing manager for Lik Sang, commented on Edge Online that a popular title such as Super Smash Bros. Brawl could cost as much as $110 U.S. at retail in Columbia – a real slap to the wallet when you take into account that Clarysse states the minimum and average wage in the country is $260-280. Because of these limitations, he states the Game Boy Advance and Playstation 2 continue to be the best-selling systems in Central America(5) and when you factor in the huge install base the PS2 has in Brazil – the largest in the territory - it becomes easier to understand SCEA’s decision to officially enter the market(2).

“The significance of the Latin America market is huge. Obviously from a population standpoint I don’t think it’s a big secret that this is a huge opportunity. We will put a number of resources in place to cater to that market,” stated Sony Computer Entertainment America’s Vice President of Sales Ian Jackson one year ago at a BMO Capital Markets Interactive Entertainment Conference. “… We’ve identified the Brazilian market as probably the biggest market opportunity for us, and that will be the third part of our launch which will take place over Spring 2009."(3)

Thanks to the official distribution of Sony product in Central America, the distribution has made the prices of official games a bit easier to swallow for the 13 countries within reach of Sony Latin America, even though the territory has some fierce competition in the form of the regional Zeebo console and pirated discs that provide games at a lower price. Regardless of where players are receiving their games, it can’t be denied that gaming is a huge hobby in Central America and the Playstation 2 is a common system, much as it is worldwide, where it has been cut to a $99.99 U.S. price tag. Konami’s efforts to market DanceDanceRevolution to this territory rolled off of Sony’s momentum in the region as X2 and Hottest Party 3 made appearances the weekend prior to the titles’ release at Latin America’s largest video game event, the eighth-annual Electronic Games Show in Mexico City, which saw more than 30,000 attendees(4). As such, Konami certainly isn’t ready to give up on the system, which still has a full year to follow Sony’s intention to give the Playstation 2 format a 10-year life cycle.

“We still look at the PS2 as a competitive platform in today's global market but the so-called next generation consoles like the PS3 and Xbox 360 have great possibility of permeating throughout the world even more,” noted Konami's Naoki Maeda. “Our goal is to foresee the needs of the market and provide titles with the hardware that best suits these needs.”

Before the attempted penetration of DDR into the Central American territory, however, local players had long been accustomed to Andamiro’s Pump It Up series, a cheaper arcade alternative that served as the go-to dancing title for this territory along with Korea. In 2005, Mastiff CEO Bill Swartz, who was at the time preparing Pump It Up Exceed for a home console release in North America, told Edge Online, “It's insanely popular in Latin America and Korea. Every year in Mexico City there are tournaments. This year's drew more than 15,000 people and they had to open the doors an hour early to avoid a riot. " Interestingly enough, the same interview has Swartz stating the release features “lots of Latin music,” showing the dancing game market has in some form catered to the territory for a number of years(6). According to Maeda, the global appeal of DanceDanceRevolution stems from the art of dance being a global language that is enjoyed by everyone across the world, however, cultural differences are what tend to bring such “market targeting” into play.

“The global appeal of DanceDanceRevolution lies in the fact that the main idea of the game is ‘dancing,’ which is a method used to express oneself that can be seen throughout the world,” he explained. “However, there are several different types of dancing which can come from elements such as the characteristics of a country or what they deem beautiful. We believe that holds great importance in that the recorded music fitting the dance type of a specific region is essential.”

Of course, targeting the Latin music market isn’t an unfamiliar endeavor, with Konami of Japan releasing Mambo a Go Go (which, unfortunately, missed the U.S. market with an intended, but cancelled, release under the name Mambo King) and SEGA developing Samba de Amigo during the Latin pop craze that hit at the turn of the century. Even though neither title had a huge impact, if any, on North America, Maeda noted Konami hasn’t given up on the theme as long as its games are openly available to the region.

“Yes, depending on the location of where we release our titles and the characteristics of the people in the country, we would like to provide content that is geared more toward that region,” he stated. “Music in Southern America has its own characteristics with a very unique history and developing games with these themes are in one of our best interests.”

Will the adjusted focus help Konami and its DanceDanceRevolution series in the long run? Only time will tell in the long run, but, currently, the company is keeping a positive focus on the market for now.

“Our view of Central America is that there are several unknown elements in the market, but features such as their national trait where they look at things objectively and with the way ‘dancing’ is positioned in their lifestyle, we believe that it is a very hopeful market,” concluded Maeda.

[1] Official SCEA Press Release, “Sony Computer Entertainment America Expands into Latin America” - GameSpy
[2] Theo Azevedo, “Produção do PlayStation 2 e jogos no Brasil é aprovada” – UOL Jogos
[3] Staff, “SCEA: Latin America is a Huge Opportunity for PS2” – Playstation Universe
[4] Official Michael Meyers Public Relations press release – “Eighth-Annual Electronic Game Show Draws 30,000” – (received internally by Bemanistyle.com)
[5] Pascal Clarysse, “Gaming in Latin America” – Edge Online
[6] Staff, “Pump it Up” – Edge Online 

Spike has been producing a little-known series entitled Way of the Samurai in Japan and, luckily, these under-the-radar console gems have all been able to land on our shores thanks to a handful of different publishers. Bam Interactive pitched U.S. gamers the original Playstation 2 title back in 2002 and just two years later, Capcom of America brought us the franchise’s sequel in a limited quantity that keeps the game’s value relatively steady. The series is fairly successful in Japan, with both initial installments of the game receiving best hit releases, with the original title receiving a second best hit printing in 2005. In my experiences, however, most players have never given the series a chance and to even find a player who has even heard of the title is quite an adventure in my neck of the woods.

The simplest way I can describe Way of the Samurai is it is closest you’ll get to playing Fable on the Playstation 2 (in a feudal samurai era, of course): It isn’t the longest game players will play, but it is massively replayable with the player’s choices reflecting the outcome of the game. With a score of different endings, collectable weapon sets, a free fighting mode with unlockable characters and more, players could not potentially have a different experience with each playthrough, but they were given more to work with the more they played the game. Everything played out uniquely with an honor system that dictated what people thought of you and a combat system that allowed players to learn new techniques with different weapons and focused on momentum to allow players to parry or deflect attacks. The second installment took player decisions even further with more choices and endings while introducing more character groups, weapons, secrets and unlockables.

After five years of silence, though, Way of the Samurai is looking to come back in a big way through the power of this generation’s consoles. The Xbox 360 version will brought to the United States courtesy of UFO Interactive and Chong Ahn of UFO was kind enough to take some time and share some of the features that will make Way of the Samurai 3 a unique experience:

DHGF: First of all, can you introduce yourself to our readers and explain how you are involved with the U.S. production of Way of the Samurai 3?

Chong Ahn: My name is Chong Ahn, Senior Product Manager and Producer at UFO Interactive Games. I was involved in the partnership with Agetec, acquisition of Way of the Samurai 3 from our Japanese counterparts, and handling the business, marketing and production aspects of the title.

DHGF: Way of the Samurai is an incredibly niche title with undeniable cult status. Seeing as both WotS and WotS2 came to the U.S. under completely different developers, what was the motivation in picking up on the third installment when the two previous publishers were not able to bring us the title?

Chong Ahn: After the release of Way of the Samurai 2, the series dropped off the radar in North America for a few years. However, when news that the innovative title was getting a release in Japan on next-gen consoles and the opportunity presented itself, we were right there to put in the work.

DHGF: For players that are not familiar with the series can you explain the premise behind Way of the Samurai 3 and how the title is distinguished from other sword combat titles?

Chong Ahn: Since its initial release in 2002 for the PS2 console, the Way of the Samurai Series paved the way for Action Adventure, RPG titles by blending multiple game mechanics such as numerous fighting styles, combo systems, weapon creation and customization with an innovative choose-your-own-adventure style of game play. This element allows players to determine their own fate with the choices they make during the game, which can lead one down numerous paths and uncover multiple endings that other sword combat titles don’t offer.

DHGF: The series’ newest mechanic found in WotS3 seems to be in the ability to have a companion. Can you expand on this feature with details? What kind of companions are available and how exactly will they be integrated in the gameplay? Will these companions determine the player’s ending as well?

Chong Ahn: Players have the option of “wooing” one or multiple companion(s) throughout the game. Users are not limited to a specific partner type and can choose from a number of different females, males, and even a cat girl companion by carrying out specific deeds for them, saving them from distress, etc.
Every action has a consequence and the decision to obtain a partner (and any other decisions for that matter) impacts the life of your character in the game.

DHGF: It seems like WotS3 is trying to meet a happy medium with mechanics introduced in the first two titles. Is this balancing based on player feedback from what they did or did not like in the original titles? Being the third game in the series, how hard is it for the team to develop the game to move forward with revised and fresh ideas while maintaining everything that players enjoyed in the first two?

Chong Ahn: Yes, the players’ comments and users’ feedback had a big part in the development process of Way of the Samurai 3. Much time and effort was put into developing the title, and with a talented and creative staff at Spike, we were able to create a game that took all the best elements from the first two installments of the series combined with new and innovative features that would cater to and please all fans and new players of the series.

DHGF: WotS always involved deep sword gameplay. What new techniques can players expect to see in their protagonist’s arsenal this time around? The series has also always been known for its rich amount of unlockables and weapon customization and it appears from the Japanese version that players can now even fight unarmed, with spears and custom weapons. What weapon types and blacksmith options do players have at their disposal in WotS3?

Chong Ahn: Besides the combination attacks that you will be able to deal (as in most titles), this version has several systems in play that will offer new levels of ‘combat’ that can alter the outcome of the title. Some of these include the “Unsheathing” and “Dogeza/Apologize System”. The former is just as it sounds, with the player being able to unsheathe their weapon, showing intent to fight. This can also be used during Free and Event cutscenes, adding a new level of drama to the title. The latter is a respect/mercy type system, where one can, for example, beg for one’s life, if you are about to be killed (or vice versa). These variations will create unique scenarios, decisions, etc for the player to make, creating a varied experience for all users. Another new feature is the blunt attack, which can change the outcome of certain encounters. Instead of killing an opponent, NPC, etc. (a killed opponent will not be able to return), you can use the blunt attack to temporarily disable and ‘knock out’ your opponent without delivering the killing blow.

Players will also be able to create their own personal unique weapons from over 200 different parts and materials, while also discovering new abilities and skills with increased use with a specific weapon.

DHGF: The major gameplay mechanic in Way of the Samurai is easily in the player having the freedom to act how they wish and affect the world around them by their choices. How does this play out in Way of the Samurai 3? Does it still remain mostly on conversational choices or will there be more to this mechanic in WotS3?

Chong Ahn: The original feature of conversational choices and branching storylines will remain intact in this title, but with the addition of the “Unsheathing” and “Apologizing” systems previously mentioned, Way of the Samurai 3 will give players much more control and freedom this time around.

DHGF: Another change for the series seems to be there is now no limit to the number of days the player can live out a single storyline. Does this mean a player could potentially never reach an ending if they choose? Is there any motivation for the player to finish the game quicker or play it out as long as they can?

Chong Ahn: With Way of the Samurai 3’s unique game play features and freedom that it gives to its players, the possibilities are endless.

Also, with over 20+ different endings, both a quick play through and long sitting can lead to different choices, new paths, and ultimately a new outcome.

DHGF: Of course, with the jump to the Xbox 360, downloadable content has the ability to come into play. Does the company have plans to release DLC for the title such as customization options, more gameplay scenarios or extra modes? Will the title utilize the Xbox LIVE service in any other way?

Chong Ahn: Yes, there will be DLC available for Way of the Samurai 3. Players will be able to choose from and download multiple character avatars, weapons, backgrounds of each clan, and much more.

DHGF: We really appreciate your time. Is there anything you would like to say to the longtime fans of the Way of the Samurai series as well to those who are still unfamiliar with the series?

Chong Ahn: The consequences of your actions will determine your fate. Your choices define you.

UFO Interactive will be releasing Way of the Samurai 3 for the Xbox 360 on Oct. 13. The title will be releasing on the Playstation 3 on the same date and will be published by Agetec Inc.