Frantic mode is in many ways the “original” Totem Topple game with other modes coming later. In fact, Totem Topple was first forged in the fires of a 48 hour competitive game jam, meaning that there wasn’t time to implement many of the typical features of a tower defence game. Instead it became an exercise in stripping back all extraneous elements and focusing on a single question: “What do I build next?” Place more wings now or try to build the totem pole up a bit further? Concentrate on damage dealing beaks or health boosting wings?   Once the decision is made though, it’s a simple case of pressing the right…

One of the most fun things when making a game is adding the little details and touches that make a game feel alive. One of those is the day / night system in Totem topple. It wasn’t in the original plan for the game, but when doing the environment art for the later stages of the game, we ended up with some extra silver and blue scenes. With a bit of additional editing and few modifications to existing background elements, we were able to create a full set of night-time assets. Similarly from a programming perspective, it was relatively quick to do a time-of-day check and depending on that, simply swap…

Totem Topple’s distinctive art style is one of the things that makes the game really stand out from the crowd, but how did the Native American theme come about? It was in fact one of the earliest decisions we made when creating the game. After having settled on the initial design of a tower defence game, but in a single tower, there was a strong desire not to default back to the “usual” video game themes. No spaceships and lasers, no pseudo-medieval Europe fantasy worlds. Not because those things aren’t cool, but because they’re overdone and cliche’d. The idea of a totem pole made a great fit conceptually with the…

Teaching new players a game is a dark art. It’s something that can vary hugely from game to game, and have a massive impact on players’ enjoyment, yet is discussed nowhere near as much as it ought to be. Ideally there should be many different, complimentary systems in a game to allow player learning, catering for how different people learn in different ways. For Totem Topple, it’s an area where we’re constantly looking to improve, but for now, we have a few ways to help new players: Tutorial There’s an argument that well designed games shouldn’t need any sort of formal tutorial. That intuitive controls and smart level design will…

A lot of people playing Totem Topple have commented that they’d like a slower paced game. One where they can sit and think tactics, and where reaction times aren’t so critical to success. Rather than change the game completely, we decided to add in a new mode. We dubbed it “Strategic” mode, owing to the slower, more cerebral type of gameplay we were looking to create. Initially, strategic mode consisted of slower enemies and longer times between waves, to give the player more time to plan what they would do next. We also set the head-selection to not randomise after each placement of a new head/wing/beak to the totem pole.…

Full of optimism, I took Totem Topple down to Brighton last month, and duly presented it at the PocketGamer Big Indie Pitch. The game did not win any prizes and was quite heavily criticised by the judges. Whilst maybe it shouldn’t have come as a surprise, it was still disheartening and led to some considerable introspection. To give a little background, the Big Indie Pitch involves indie game developers doing a sort of “speed dating”, spending 3 minutes face-to-face pitching, presenting and letting play to one or two judges at a time. Then when the timer is up, swapping tables and pitching to another judge. At the end, the judges…

Back when I founded Crystalline Green and continuing to this day, I’ve had a strong sense of the style and aesthetic I wanted to project in my games and through the company. One of a sleek, futuristic world, but also aspirational and positive. It’s reflected in the company logo, website. Even the song Crystalline Green, after which the company is named, I feel reflects those values. I’m also a fan of minimalist design within architecture and interior design. It may leave some people cold, or others thinking of airport lounges, or the fake corporate dystopias of many a sci-fi film. But to me, it evokes a sense of light and freshness, modernity…

Going a bit off topic with this post to talk about Amiibos. For those that don’t know, they are plastic figurines of various characters from Nintendo games. Each has an NFC tag in its base, which can be read by the player tapping it on their Wii U gamepad. On tapping one, whatever game the player has open will do something depending on which amiibo is tapped. This kind of technology really excites me, and there are a world of possibilities for games to use the interaction with a physical object to make the game more exciting. Sadly, it seems amiibos don’t actually do much, at least as far as…

After watching Nintendo’s Digital Event online at this year’s E3, it feels like they are wrapping up their existing Wii U projects and focusing efforts on mobile and their upcoming “NX” console. Since Nintendo have said nothing about the NX aside from the fact they’re making it, I’m mostly going on assumptions and gut feeling. However, as a developer making games for the Wii U, I need to consider the consoles likely lifespan and health of the market for games on it. State of the Wii U As it stands, the arguments for sticking with the Wii U are still strong. In an industry where digital distribution and free tools…