Uppercut Games Q&A

While several big video game publishers are pulling their money out of Australia, many of the talented Aussie devs are turning their backs on traditional console development and are looking toward starting indie studios. Andrew James and Ed Orman were both veterans of 2K Canberra before leaving to form Uppercut Games. A recent addition to the team is another 2K Canberra alumnus, Ryan Lancaster. GameSpot AU managed to catch up with the three developers to talk about why they settled on the iOS for their first game, what it's like using Unreal on a mobile device, and, of course, to talk about their project.

GameSpot AU: Why did you guys decide to leave 2K Canberra, a well-regarded studio, and go solo?

Ed Orman: Chicks dig iOS developers (please don't hit me, Tamara).

Andrew James: I'd been making first-person shooters for the best part of 10 years and wanted to do something else. Plus, we saw the potential for opportunities in the mobile market; the power of mobile devices is rapidly increasing.

EO: The Canberra studio is a very well-regarded studio, filled with great people. I miss them all (especially the filthy designers), but it was just time.

Ryan Lancaster: I didn't want to work there anymore, and I wanted to work on a shorter development cycle, so I was working on my own project and recently joined forces with Ed and AJ. They needed a programmer, and I needed art and design; my other project is on hold until Epoch is done.

GS AU: What challenges did you face during the early days of founding Uppercut Games?

AJ: Our own ignorance!

EO: We are business n00bs. Honestly, we'd been embedded in a large corporation that had taken care of us for a long time.

AJ: We had a clear idea of the game we wanted to make and plenty of experience in executing on that. However, learning how to run a business and get money in, draw up contracts, etc...that was new.

EO: We're very lucky to have some great friends in the industry (and outside of it) who offered us plenty of advice when we started out.

GS AU: Why did you decide to settle on the iOS as the platform for your first title?

AJ: The tools we'd been using--Unreal--had just been released for iOS, and that provided a very low barrier to entry for us. It's also a place where exciting new ideas are allowed to flourish. The market is open to new things. Plus, we already had dev kits in our pockets!

EO: I had an iPod! I was playing games like Infinity Blade and looking at the power of the device. I could see that there was an unexplored niche there.

EO: I have an Android phone, too, and Unreal works on there, but it just made sense to do iOS first.

RL: There are only three of us; our options are limited in terms of what we can accomplish and still maintain a quality level we'd be happy with.

EO: Right. And we didn't want to try to build a traditional console-capable studio.

GS AU: What's it like working with Unreal for the iOS?

EO: It's very straightforward to use. How long did it take us to get a prototype working?

AJ: A couple of weeks.

RL: It is very easy...when you know how to use it.

EO: Like any engine, it has its strengths and weaknesses. If you're smart, you'll know how to use it and what not to do. That's true of any engine; if you're going to choose one, use it for what it's good at doing. Don't fight it.

AJ: It's an engine that lets you just get going on iOS without having to get down into the guts of the platform. It allows me to create the art in the same way I was when making games for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

GS AU: Do you think that by making Epoch a universal app, you're limiting potential revenue? As opposed to releasing a separate HD version?

AJ: The reality is that if you're playing on the 3GS, you're actually getting the HD version. It's just optimized for your device! Everybody gets HD, and from what I've seen, things are trending toward universal, anyway.

GS AU: Aside from jumping between cover, what else will players be doing in Epoch?

EO: Epoch is more than just a shooter, but it's definitely cover and movement based. The core of the game is about not being where your enemies are firing. Combat to combat, you're also unlocking new equipment: armor, weapons, and boosters to enhance yourself. There's also counters to mess with your enemies.

RL: It's hard to put into words; you need to play it.

AJ: Yeah, what do you do in, for example, dual-stick shooters? They're fun games, but when you try to describe it in words, it doesn't sound that interesting.

EO: The boosters and counters really change the way you play the game. So do the different weapon types you get to use, and they cater to the different play styles. The combat itself is really hectic and tense. Then there's the mystery of what happened. As you play through the campaign, you're slowly putting together the pieces of the world you wake up in. What happened to ruin this world? Where are all the people? What am I doing here?

GS AU: There are a lot of iOS shooters out there. How are you going to get Epoch noticed?

AJ: Epoch's not a traditional shooter.

EO: It's more of a strategy shooter game. It doesn't rely on your aim skills; it's much more about strategizing.

AJ: There's a lot of different equipment choice, a little bit like BioShock. We're trying to give the player as much agency as possible.

EO: We are definitely trying to make something that is a shooter but is still really unique. We think the reviews will reflect that.

GS AU: As a small team, is it difficult juggling development and marketing at the same time?

EO: I'd go further than difficult; it's really f***ing hard! But that's the task we took on.

RL: If we could afford to pay someone else to do it, we'd hire them!

EO: We have a lot of experience--at least, AJ and I do--with the press and answering questions like this, but it's a different kind of marketing to what we're used to.

RL: We want to tell everybody everything about the game. We'd love to be cranking out dev diaries, and we hope to find the time to do those soon.

EO: It's hard, but it's certainly part of the development process for us.

RL: It's more time consuming than hard.

EO: But it's worth it.

GS AU Guys, thanks for your time.