Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN

By Jorge Ba-oh 01.02.2014 1

Cubed3 caught up with the team behind new indie 2D shooter/platformer ReVeN on their efforts in bringing back side-scrolling shooter mechanics to the masses.
 
Since launching during the middle of January, the campaign has raised over $15,000 on Kickstarter so far, hoping to invite players into a journey into the deepest regions of space, with Metroid and Megaman as gameplay influences.
Image for Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN


Cubed3: Hi John, please introduce yourself and Varia Games
 
Austin: Hi I am Austin Morgan, Lead Programmer and Environment artist. 
 
John: I am John Rogeles, Lead character artist and animator and
 
Mark: I am Mark McLemore Composer and Sound Engineer for ReVeN.
 
Cubed3: What previous games and projects had you worked on before starting ReVeN?
 
Austin: I've worked on numerous projects in the modding community, and I was the 3D artist for Palladium Game's Sushi Go Yobi for the iPhone.
 
John: I have had the pleasure of working on Wake, a multiplayer Quake-styled deathmatch game and have also worked on Mutilation Mayhem a game that has yet to be released. I've mostly worked on my own small projects. 
 
Mark: I've worked on numerous studio projects, and my original music has appeared on several a cappella/rock albums, most recently "Southern Autumn Nostalgia" by my a cappella group Street Corner Symphony.

Image for Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN


Cubed3: Please tell us a bit more about the ReVeN concept and how it came to be.

Austin: I had just moved to Texas to try and find work in the game industry when I saw the Indie Game movie on Netflix. I showed it to John and we decided to start our own game company. I had been kicking around several game ideas but wanted to create something of a much larger scope than I had worked on before. I had the idea for a system that could shift player's abilities around on the fly but hadn't fully fleshed the idea out yet. John and I debated for a while and after much iteration we created the EDM, the flagship game mechanic for ReVeN
 
John: I had just recently bought Super Metroid from the eShop on my Wii U shortly before Austin moved in. One night we were playing the game and it hit us both at the same time that ReVeN should be an open world exploration game. Austin and I have been drawing all of our lives but we recently graduated from FullSail University, a school that specialized in Media Arts and 3D Game Design. Since there is only two of us designing and building the game, we had decided to create ReVeN in 2D using the Construct 2 engine. 
 

Image for Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN


Cubed3: SyRek, the main character, looks like one tough chap. Can you tell us a bit more about this new hero?

Austin: SyRek is the last surviving member of autonomous androids that were part of a highly successful espionage program that was shut down due to a lack of need. His kind were created to shut down a 100 year rebellion that took place on Earth's sister colonies on other planets. SyRek is a 400 year old veteran who was given freedom of choice and released by his creators after the rebellion subsided. His body frame was designed to incorporate the Energy Divergence Module. 
 
John: Due to his original design as an espionage android, he needed a more flexible lower body for agility and movement and a heavier upper chassis for strength and manipulating the environment. 
 

Image for Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN


Cubed3: He seems to be all geared up nicely - how does the crafting and gear feature work?

John: Suits in the game are called "gears" and each one comes with a different ability, such as allowing you to restore health, add charge to your weapon, improve speed and so on. As you find different gears in the game, you'll be able to switch between them to tackle different situations.
 
Austin: The crafting in our game involves the player mining minerals to construct SyRek's abilities such as higher jumping, faster sprinting, higher weapon accuracy, stronger shield, etc. There are over 40 unique abilities which give the player plenty of things work towards and will help invoke exploration. The mining sections of the game are huge, procedurally generated and full of plenty of interesting things to find and explore beyond minerals and enemies. 
 
Cubed3: Metroid and Mega Man have come up as inspiration for the project; what aspects of these classic games have been moulded into ReVen?
 
John: For Mega Man it's the fast-paced gameplay and high energy combat situations.

Austin: For Super Metroid it's the atmosphere, exploration and gigantic boss battles.
 
Mark: The Metroid (NES) and Mega Man II (NES) soundtracks are in my top five of greatest game soundtracks ever. No doubt, the music has been influenced by those games (just by virtue of being my favorites) as much as the ReVeN concept has.

Image for Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN


Cubed3: Are there any modern side-scrollers that have played a role in development?

Austin: I became a huge fan of Dust: An Elysian Tail over the winter and you can see the art style definitely inspired my environment art. I also played quite a bit of Terarria (and Minecraft) in college and fell in love with crafting, digging and building as part of a game's core mechanics.
 
Cubed3: The musical direction sounds really fitting for the landscape from what we've heard. How do the compositions come together?
 
Mark: I appreciate that! It all starts with the designers giving me an idea of existing music they think fits (and show me some artwork), and I start forming ideas immediately - harmonically, melodically, atmospherically. The next step is to try my ideas while creating a larger framework for the piece. I have a lot of freedom and opportunity for pure creativity on the music side of things.
 

Image for Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN


Cubed3: When it comes to the Wii U, how would you use the GamePad controller?

Austin: We wanted to utilize the GamePad to allow the player to quickly re-divert sub core energy around on the controller without having to pause the game. All that extra screen real-estate will also allow us to move our map off the main screen and free up some room. Having a touch screen will greatly assist in the level editor too, as players can use their hands to build the environments instead of a mouse or joystick. 
 
Cubed3: Would you consider other platforms like Nintendo 3DS?

John: We're currently looking into a release on the 3DS
 
Cubed3: Metroid made a successful transition to 3D in Metroid Prime - would you consider bringing ReVen into 3D at some-point?

Austin: We've talked about doing a sequel using the Cry-Engine. We're very passionate about 3D modelling and 3D asset creation. You can check out our portfolios here:

Image for Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN

Cubed3: So why are you going down the independent route with ReVen, would you ever consider working alongside a major publisher?
 
John: We would like the opportunity to work with a major publisher but we also like to feel unconstrained and unshackled. I know some major publishers can be decent to work with, so that possibility remains.

Cubed3: What hurdles have you had going at it as part of an independent team?
 
Austin: We've had to move from an apartment into a house full of 7 kids due to our financial situation. One of us had to sell our car and live off beans and rice to make ends meet. We hope our Kickstarter goes beyond our $18,000 goal because we're in dire need of financial backing to keep on developing ReVeN. John's family has been very helpful in keeping us afloat.
 
John: We've had some technical hurdles as well, but we know enough people who have been helping us overcome them, and there has yet to be a problem we couldn't solve ourselves or with the help of other indie developers out there in the industry. Their support has been tremendous!
 

Image for Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN


Cubed3: What are your thoughts on Nintendo's approach to indie developers?

John: We're delighted with the moves they've made to get indie developers on their consoles and handhelds. Getting set up as a Wii U developer was a relatively simple process, and they've been very friendly the whole way.
 
Cubed3: If you could work on any Nintendo franchise, what would it be any why?

John: We would honestly love to continue their Metroid Prime series because we love the attention to detail and atmosphere in everything from the music to the sound effects, visuals and gameplay. All of which did nothing less than blow our minds.
 
Mark: Any sort of James Bond game, and any game for me, really. I love being thrown into completely new territory. So if someone said, "Compose something for this game for five-year-old girls," I'd totally be into it. I feel like I have quite the imagination.

Image for Interview | Varia Games on 2D Side-Scroller ReVeN


Cubed3: What are your plans for the future - would you consider a sequel?
 
Austin: We've Left the story open for a sequel but may take a break from ReVeN and work on a new IP that is primarily a cross-platform multiplayer game, but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it!
 
For more details and to pledge support, visit Kickstarter.


 

 
What are your thoughts on the ReVeN concept - will you pledge support?

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ReVeN............Im sold i want it......im a big fan of METROID and MEGA MAN......i think this is the type of game that can be the insparation that the creators of Metroid might need for the next 2d (21/2D 3ds hint hint ) or 3d verson on wii u.

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