Whereas in 2012-2013 you could count on a well-received title selling a lot in its first month, you can't rely on that anymore. Does this success translate into a good response from the market? Notably, which geographical areas are more responsive to your products?ĭave: The market is MUCH different then it was a few years ago. Personally, I don't mind it as long as there's no piracy involved.ĪP: You recently published Technobabylon, which is receiving positive feedback from the critics. Whether or not they allow fan localizations is up to them. As I said before, there are reasons why a company can't or won't do a localization of their game. Do you think this phenomenon could negatively affect the distribution market?ĭave: I don't see why it would. So we need to make decisions like this.ĪP: In the last few years we’ve witnessed an increase in fan-made localisations, often carried out without retribution. We can't bounce back from a financial loss like bigger companies can. I know this disappoints a lot of people, but as a tiny company we have to be very careful where we spend our time, money and resources. So for these reasons, we decided that translating our games just simply wasn't worth it. Plus, Adventure Game Studio (the engine we use) is notoriously translation-unfriendly. Ironically enough, the more text you have in your game the longer and more complicated the task is. Our best seller, translated into the language of the biggest market for adventure games, spearheaded by the biggest company in that market? It sounded like a sure bet. We translated Gemini Rue into German, partnering with one of the biggest adventure game publishers in that country. Given your growing success, haven’t you considered expanding localisation to other languages?ĭave: We have, and sadly our experiences with localizations have not been terribly good. I’m thinking about titles such as Primordia, with particularly difficult texts for those who don’t get along with english. So I stick with what I know.ĪP: Wadjet’s catalogue boasts many titles appreciated by the public, but it lacks of an italian localisation which undermines its success in our Beautiful Country. Pumping up our resolution would increase our budget by a LOT, and I am not entirely sure that our profits would rise to match. I know how much it'll cost, how much time it will take to make, and roughly what we can expect to earn back from it. But as we've done more games, I've grown to appreciate the style and what we can do with it. Pixel art was cheaper to produce and could be made much quicker. How come you took this stylistic decision? And what does such a choice imply as far as advantages/disadvantages go?ĭave: At first, this was a budget choice more than anything else. But now? I think I'm ready.ĪP: Speaking about Wadjet Eyes’ works, it is undeniable that your most distinguishing mark is the pixel-art based graphics. There's no WAY I could have made it back in 2006 when I had zero experience under my belt. My next project ( Unavowed) is probably the most ambitious, most complex game I've ever done. As I got more experience, I grew in confidence and ability and was able to tackle bigger projects. Back when I first started, I was only capable of making small games over a very short timeframe, so that's what I did. The rise of indie developers brought back all sorts of old genres, point-and-click adventures included.ĪP: Italy is full of talented youngsters eager to follow your steps. It's not just point-and-click adventure games that have "come back from the dead." You've got platformers, shmups, roguelikes, real time strategy - all of which were considered "dead" genres by many. What do you think about the indie phenomenon which invaded – and still invades – the market?ĭave: I wouldn't say that the indie phenomenon invaded the market, so much as created it. AP: Wadjet Eye Games began as a little independent studio, but it was able to conquer an important spot nevertheless, even publishing other developers’ titles.
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