Way out of the Box! Presented by Brian Goble

About HipSoft »Founded in late 2002 by Brian Goble, Bryan Bouwman and Garrett Price. »Located in Redmond, Washington. »One additional employee hired in »18 self-funded titles including Build-a-lot, Flip Words and Ocean Express.

About Build-a-lot »Released on September 9, »Developed in 6 months. »Available on PC, Mac, mobile, DS and iPhone. »Localized to 10 languages. »Strategy Game of the Year for »Two sequels already released.

Presentation Overview »How the idea originated and evolved. »Key design questions that challenged us. »Post-launch observations.

Origin of the Idea Part 1: Theme »Founders personally involved in real estate related activities. »Wife wants a real estate license. »Lots of real estate TV shows.

Origin of the Idea Part 2: Gameplay »Warcraft 2 is fun. »Starcraft is fun. »Wife likes RTS construction gameplay, but not the fighting.

The Idea »Create a real-estate themed RTS without the fighting…for the casual audience

Evolution of the Idea »Game design brainstorming while walking to lunch. »More notes added to whiteboard over time. »Idea “stewed” for over a year. »Pros and cons of doing something different.

Key Questions We Asked »Is real estate fun? »Can the casual audience play this game? »Will the casual audience play this game?

Is Real Estate Fun? »Fun List:  Buying, selling, money, profits, construction, upgrades »Not Fun List:  Bank loans, mortgage payments, interest rates, late fees, foreclosures »Not 100% sure it’s fun, but it is familiar and gender neutral.

Can the Casual Audience Play this Game? »Yes, if we simplify things. »Yes, if we have an awesome tutorial. »Yes, if the interface is flawless. »Yes, if the pacing is perfect.

Will the Casual Audience Play this Game? »Yes, if it is fun. »Honestly, we didn’t know. »However, we believed in the game.

Go for it? »This idea was much riskier than our previous games. »We had other ideas »Other potential game ideas not working out. »HipSoft was ready for higher risk.

Stuff I’ve Skipped »Playable prototype »Adding an artist »Interface and tutorial »Level balancing »Beta feedback »Last minute changes »IGDA Post-Mortem:  game_quarterly_3_1.pdf game_quarterly_3_1.pdf

Post-Launch Observations »How to categorize this game? »Player buzz on forums »Increased promotion »Bigger royalty checks »Fans want a sequel

Contact Info »Brian Goble » »IGDA Post-Mortem:  game_quarterly_3_1.pdf game_quarterly_3_1.pdf  [Vol. 3, Issue 1: Spring 2008]