Written by Jaymes Carter

Goon Studios is definitely an independent game studio you will want to remember. They’ve high ideals and talent that runs deep. I don’t remember just how I stumbled upon Goon Studios website this past year, but I came away impressed. Could it have been the artwork shown in the screenshots from the game Keipr that they are focusing on. It could also have been that whenever I visited the about us section, which i thought it was pretty intriguing the images of the Goons weren’t just regular old photographs.

I thought, this appears to be a pretty talented and interesting group. After playing the games that they have created for Android/iOS thus far, Boogey Boy and Monster vs Sheep, I wanted to learn more. I was lucky enough to be able to set up a conversation with Adi Ekowibowo, who is a task Manager for Goon Studios. He was kind enough to obtain some questions answered for all of us by Chase Osborne, who’s the Creative Director for Goon Studios. Even better, these were kind enough to send artwork along with a conceptual video of Monster vs Sheep, that was released this week for Android/iOS.

After getting the opportunity to find out a little bit more about them through this interview, I can say, Goon Studios is composed of a group of pretty uncommon individuals, having a common goal… providing games which are enjoyable and with a unique art style. So without further ado, this is actually the interview with Chase Osborne, Creative Director of Goon Studios.

Jaymes Carter:? Goon Studios relies in Pasadena, California. How did Goon Studios come to be? How did it all get started?

Goon Studios: Goon Studios was once HourBlast Games. HourBlast Games was started by Larry Li, Janry Burns and Dax Jin. Larry and Janry caused Chase at Papaya Games Studios in Irvine CA. As Hour Blast Games they created Dueling Blades, a super cool turn based Street Fighter inspired fighter game for facebook and cellular devices. They spent about a year developing Dueling Blades before Chase joined the team. We agreed to a pretty bad cope with a publisher and basically lost all rights to Dueling Blades. After the loss of Dueling Blades we going on Mech Conquest, our goal was to study from Dueling Blades making another liberated to play game and self publish. Toward no more development the core members and the founders went separate ways, people had different ideas about the direction of the company. Before the release of Mech Conquest we changed our name to Goon Studios,? this was to reflect that people had changed literally as all the founding members left and changed in spirit since the type of games that people wanted to make had changed. With that change we knew that people didn’t want to make free to play games anymore.

JC: I believe that’s quite interesting, especially considering that the game industry is flooded with liberated to play games. We always here about how exactly that structure affects gamers, but rarely will we here concerning the downsides in the developers stand point. Now I see why in your website you say that “… We formed the company to create games without any in-app purchases.” You make a joke about it within the report on in-app purchases in the Google Play Store for Monsters vs. Sheep. It is good to listen to thoughts on each side from the story because it relates to free-to-play games.??

JC: Do you know the qualities and traits of the Goon? The team is eight strong, including Render, the guard dog, which is awesome name by the way. Is this an optimum size for making quality games? Do you feel like you could use more and more people?

GS: GOON noun: 1) a hired hoodlum or thug.? 2) a stupid, foolish or awkward person.? Eight is good for what we are creating right now.? However, Games we want to make in the future may require a group size around thirteen.??

JC: So how exactly does they arrived at a consensus on things during the game development process? For example, the first successful game was Boogey Boy, which was a side-scrolling runner/platforming game. Your current game is Monster vs Sheep. How can you choose what to create? There needs to be numerous decisions to make just before bringing the game to promote.

GS: Deciding things to create is definitely a gamble, most projects will begin with a pitch meeting. Boogey Boy started with everyone on the team going off on their own or as small teams or both and coming up with game ideas. We come together later inside a meeting and pitch them to each other. Deciding on what project to do after this meeting can be difficult, Boogey Boy was chosen because it were built with a wider appeal, with Mech and Dueling Blades we basically made games for teen boys. Boogey was also one of the simpler ideas throughout, we felt that for mobile simple is better. Monster vs Sheep started as a design challenge in ways.? Our Animator, Ivy, answered the challenge. “I would like to flick sheep – a lot of them – right into a monster’s mouth,” and that we went after that.?

JC: As part of your goals in creating great games, you mention creating games that are enjoyable? and engaging with a unique art style. Boogey Boy had a very unique and colorful style. The design and style was loose however with nuanced detail in various areas. How did the team go about creating that, and was it difficult to stray away from an excessive amount of detail in the art?

GS: For some from the Goons its hard not to go into a ton of detail, Leo and Troy love the details. That’s the poetry in simplified art, when things are turned down the pop is more noticable. The way we start creating it is usually within the subconscious from the team, everyone’s personality shows through within the work they create and fortunately it really works together.??????

JC: I admire the fact that Goon Studios is really a number of gamers first. I additionally applaud you for forming the company to create games with no in app purchases. What can you say are the pros and cons from the free to play model? So why do you believe it is important to not include any in-app purchases?

GS: Whenever we were designing liberated to play games we spent just as much time designing how to make the player pay as we did designing exactly what the player reaches play. We chose to spend all of our time designing gameplay, story, music and visuals for the player to experience a better game. Liberated to play games are disposable, something purchase is not.?

JC: As game designers/developers, how can you manage amounts of difficulty in action? If you make a game title to easy, individuals don’t listen to it much. If you make it too hard, people complain concerning the difficulty. How can you reach that perfect place in which a game is just with enough contentration and fun enough to help keep playing, but doesn’t have people chucking there devices across the room? Games like Super Hexagon and WaveWave immediately come to mind.

GS: There exists a pretty diverse gamer pool to drag from within family and friends that provide us feedback on difficulty. We addressed this well with Boogey Boy because any average player can see 80% of the game and beat it and that is enough for them. The other 20% is difficult, but has meaningful payoff for anyone who care.

JC: It appears as though you’ve been developing a web-based game for PC for some time called Keipr. It looks intriguing. What exactly is it about? Do you plan to continue to build up games for PC and mobile platforms? Do you prefer one within the other, and if so, why?

GS: Keipr has been on our minds for a while, its a Sci Fi frontier saga that will consume a number of stranded humanoids because they start a civilization from scratch on the new planet which has magical properties. We’re actually developing the prologue to Keipr at this moment. Monster vs Sheep will be our last title developed especially for mobile, in the future we are developing for PlayStation 4 and porting to PC and mobile after. PS4 just seems like the best marketplace for us at this time, the games we have lined up for the next few years may benefit in the system power and also the controller.

JC: I must sigh on the response to that question. Primarily because I don’t possess a PS4, I’m XBox man. What could prove to become more challenging for mobile games is waiting for any port, that could require sometime. That seems like a large decision, however the images I’ve come across of Keipr, and hearing a little bit more concerning the narrative is exciting. Guess we’ll have to wait and see until that comes out. Hopefully we won’t have to wait too long.

JC: What is it like optimizing games for Android devices? How many would you retain in your library, and when you’ve got a preferred tablet, what would it be? Same question for a phone?

GS: Using Unity3D, i was in a position to optimize for Android and iOS using a unified set of specifications with simply certain build options varying between platforms. We do not have any preference of tablet or phone.

JC: As gamers, do you primarily play Computer games or console games? If you do play console games? Is there a preference for XBox One or PS4… or Wii?

GS: We play all platforms except the Xbox One.? Some of us are PC gamers, some console gamers, some spent time on the dedicated handheld, and we also have a few mobile gamers.

JC: What game designers/developers would you most admire and why? They can be mobile or console game designers.

GS: Shigeru Miyamoto, he earned em all. Dan Houser, Red Dead Redemption is a masterpiece.??

JC: To put a reputation to a game for many in our readers that won’t know, Mr. Miyamoto come up with hugely popular games Donkey Kong, Mario, Legend of Zelda, Star Fox, Pimkin, F-Zero and many more. Yes, I enjoyed Red Dead Redemption too, great game.

JC: Do you know us a about your CEO, Ching Cheng? What makes her an excellent leader of the Goons?

GS: Ching is married to Chase and stays home with baby Wyatt, as CEO Ching finds money to pay for all the Goon bills. She also makes amazing sculptures from old books and huge watercolor paintings. Ching procured funding during the day to day operations of Goon Studios for the past 3 years. She allows us the freedom to create what we should want.

JC: So what can we expect from Goon Studios in the future of mobile entertainment?

GS: Our wants all of our games is they be a permanent a part of your game library.

JC: What do you think of the rise and growth and development of VR games, current gimmick or great long-term possibilities?

GS: Until The danger room from X-men comes online VR is Whack.??

JC: Ah, the risk Room. That would be quite enjoyable. I believed more along the lines of the holodeck around the Starship Enterprise. Though now that you bring it up, I think I would prefer the action of the Danger Room, as long as I could possess the skills of Wolverine.

JC: If the Goons were stranded on island together for 2 weeks, with just enough water and food to survive, and had the option of playing only three games for 2 weeks, what would the games be?

GS: There are a lot of games available that people want to bring but all of us have their preference, the only real game we are able to all agree on is Pokemon.

JC: Wow… Pokemon. Interesting choice. Furthermore amazing than the game that you simply chose, is you found a consensus on a single game. That shows how good you’re employed together.

We want to thank Adi Ekowibowo and Chase Osborne for talking with Droid Gamers, and sending the conceptual artwork and video. As we can see in the sketches and also the video, game development is definitely a procedure that takes effort and commitment. It is always interesting to go behind the scenes for more information concerning the creators behind the games that we play. Good quality to the games that Goon Studios will create, and need them much success as they still develop games that are enjoyable and have a unique art style.

Check out the conceptual video that Goon Studios was kind enough to send combined with the artwork. Tell us what you think about the interview. What surprised you the most? There are had the opportunity to experience Boogey Boy or Monster vs Sheep, we have included the hyperlinks below. If you like platformers/side-scrolling runners, then check out Boogey Boy. If you like projectile/physics-based games, then Monster vs Sheep may be just what you are searching for in those brief moments of gaming when available. If you wish to see some images of Keipr, then we have included the hyperlink to Goon Studios website for your perusal. More interviews take presctiption the way with good game developers which have a love for creating enjoyable games.

Developer Website: Goon Studios

Boogey Boy (Playboard) | Boogey Boy (Play Store)
Boogey Boy Lite (Playboard) | Boogey Boy Lite (Play Store)
Monster vs Sheep (Playboard) | Monster vs Sheep (Play Store)