Play the game
This variation of the classic "Sokoban" game (you know, the classic transport puzzle in which the tiny player pushes boxes around a maze and puts them in their locations) is the first place winner of the GameCast #1 contest. High quality and professional are just two great adjectives that come to mind when we play "Animal Farm Mayhem" by grandmasterfox, and these two adjectives were probably the ones which made this game a big success and generated thousands of dollars for its creators.
When did you first become interested in doing games?
I know it sounds kind of corny, but ever since I was a little kid. My two greatest passions have always been writing and programming so going into the gaming industry was a no brainer for me.
I've been hooked ever since.
What made you start?
Like everyone who wants to make games, I wanted to make the next big AAA title. But one still needs to be practical so I opted to go for a project that I can do with little time and zero budget. When I saw the demonstration of the Mo'Minis Studio, I knew that it was what I was looking for.
grandmasterfox
Interview with grandmasterfox
Creator of "Animal Farm Mayhem"
High quality and professional are just two great adjectives that made the game a big success and generated thousands of dollars for its creators.
How did you get started?
After I heard about the contest, I knew I had no chance without good visuals. I can't draw a straight line with a ruler. So I talked to Yaniv and got him on board. After that, it was just about finding the right idea. We spent hours going over hundreds of existing mobile games. We were looking for something that people are already familiar with enough so they can jump right in but that would still allow us to add our own creation to the game.
What do you think made your game sell more then others?
I think it's the simplicity of the game itself. It's a full package game with over 40 levels that fits the classical pattern of "Same but Different". Almost anyone who plays the game will instantly know that we were inspired by the classic Sokoban, but we also added our own spin on it from both the visual and the gameplay aspects. Nobody that we saw made a "living" version of the game.
And of course, there is no denying the high quality of graphics. My partner did a superb job. A short time ago I let my 6 year old cousin play with the game. She spent hours just looking and pointing at the sheep without playing the game at all. When making a game with fluffy animals, they have to be darn cute :)
Can you give other creators who wish to create a profitable game any advice?
If there's one thing I can tell other people is always love what you're doing. If you're working on something you don't really like yourself, the final product will reflect it. The same thing goes for everything in life.
What inspired your game?
The greatest inspiration for our game was the classic old riddle:
"How do you transfer a sheep, a wolf and a cabbage from one side of the river to another?"
That was our starting point and from there we just added the Sokoban-like interface.
How long did it take?
The longest part was to come up with the idea :)
But once we were on our way, I think most of the game engine was up in about a month or so.
Were there any big challenges?
The biggest challenge for us was the level design itself. We knew what we wanted in terms of gameplay from day one. The code worked fine and we had our graphics set. But coming up with the design for 41 stages was something we had to do all on our own since we couldn't just rip them off due to both the small size of the screen and the fact that we added extra features that weren't in any other Sokoban like game. It was tough but fun type of tough.
What's you favorite part of the game?
The wolf. No doubt about it. Not only was he the greatest inspiriation for the game, it's an incredible feature that hasn't appeared in any other Sokoban like game that we saw. And we checked a lot of games. Interaction between the movable objects was lacking in the genre. He allowed us to add another layer of depth to the game which is why we like it so much.
Anything else you would like to say?
Sure, if you're reading this and haven't bought the game yet - Do it now please! We still need to pay the rent and all :D
But on another note, if you liked the game then stay tuned. We loved making the first one and there are talks about a sequel.