Review Fix Exclusive: Brett Taylor Talks ‘Linelight’

Review Fix chats with Brett Taylor (founder and lead designer, My Dog Zorro) who discusses his new mobile/PS4 game, Linelight, set for release on Jan. 24. Detailing the creative process, origin and goals for the game, Taylor lets us in on why he believes it has the possibility of being more than an indie darling.

About The Game:

Set in a world made entirely of lines, Linelight’s 300 levels and six worlds are filled with Zen-like music, rich gameplay mechanics, and elegant design that distil the puzzle genre down to its very foundation. Take control over one very special line — named “Dash” — and explore the puzzles and mysteries of Linelight. The controls are irreducibly simple: MOVE.

Activate color-coded switches to create a “bridge.” Watch out for red moving lines — friendly in appearance, deadly on contact. Combine familiar gameplay mechanics to come up with one-of-a-kind solutions for exultant “Aha!” moments.

Linelight’s simple presentation belies a world of rich complexities and secrets. Keep an eye out for stars, and concentrate on discovering secret pathways that expand the scope of your journey. Can you keep cool, keep Dash safe, and follow the path to its ultimate end?

For more on the game, Click Here. 

Review Fix: What inspired the creation of this game?

Brett Taylor: Honestly, it just started as a programming challenge. I came up with the idea “What if you’re a line and everything took place on lines?” and was enamored by its surprising difficulty to code — mixed with how simple it was to explain. It was so different from anything I’d programmed before. It only really became a game once I added moving streets and enemies.

Review Fix: What makes Linelight special?

Taylor: Its simplicity! What makes Linelight stand out is its reduction of everything to its simplest form. I’d made many games that revolved around one unique, strong core mechanic — and the whole game would explore that one idea. With Linelight, though, it’s not that I added a unique core mechanic so much as I removed things that normally exist in other games. That’s the way I think of it.

If you want a more digestible answer, I’d say what’s different is that the game’s universe takes place entirely on lines. It’s so simple and irreducible, I’m surprised no one’s done it before.

Oh, all right — one more thing: The puzzle design. This is my absolute favorite part of Linelight. Some of the puzzles are just … they’re just so good.

Review Fix: What was development like?

Taylor: I don’t think I can capture a year of full-time development into one short and sweet answer, but I’ll try! As a solo developer, it can get super lonely — and with loneliness comes getting trapped in your own head. But there is a solution: Go talk to people about what you’re working on! They don’t even have to know anything about video games. It’s tempting to silo in, but regular social interaction (for me that’s about once or twice a week) is a must.

One memorable part of the process was having to stop working on the game to deal with all non-dev-related stuff, primarily marketing and showing at conferences. It’s necessary, annoying, and actually harmful in too-big quantities! In January 2016, I recall waking up every day having zero motivation to get out of bed and do anything. I eventually discovered that was because I literally hadn’t touched the game in over a month; that was eye-opening. I was doing entirely marketing and research and stuff, and I was miserable. I learned that I had to have my hands in development; that’s what I love, and that’s why I’m an indie developer! This is just one of the lessons I’ve learned.… I’ve learned a LOT while making and publishing this game.

Review Fix: Who will enjoy this game the most?

Taylor: I’ve seen around a thousand people play Linelight, and the people who just DIG it the most are hard to categorize. Some of them are hardcore puzzle gamers, and some of them don’t play video games at all.
So I can’t say who’ll enjoy it the most, but I can tell you this: If you like “Aha!” moments and/or elegant puzzle design, then yes — you will enjoy Linelight.

Review Fix: What do you think the score adds to Linelight?

Taylor: About 90% of the file size! Seriously, though, there are barely any other assets aside from sound.

Linelight worked great without sound — but once I added the music, it brought the experience up so much more notches than I expected. Linelight’s soundtrack is honestly what I feel brings the whole game together. I aimed to make it both relaxing and energetic, which incidentally works really well in a puzzle game.

Review Fix: What are your goals for the game in 2017?

Taylor: Though the date has changed, I’ve had two pretty clear goals for a very long time: Release for Steam and PS4 on January 24, 2017, and sell 50,000 copies within the first 6 months of release. Every decision I’ve made, I ask myself, ‘Will this get Linelight on Steam and PS4 on January 24th, and/or sell 50,000 copies within the first 6 months?’ I literally remind myself of these all the time. The latter goal is the only reason I decided to publish on Xbox One, too.

“What if I don’t hit my goals?” I can mostly control the publishing — but for a first-time publisher, the sales goal is less within my control. I can only do the best job I possibly can. If I don’t hit my sales goal, I won’t have regrets; I’ll have data to help me moving forward. I don’t consider not reaching a goal a real “failure” — as long as I’ve learned from it. Call me cheesy, but success really isn’t a destination; it’s a mindset — and in that way, I already consider myself extremely successful.

Review Fix: How do you want Linelight to be remembered?

Taylor: I’m looking for Linelight to set the precedence for my studio’s future. We all want to be remembered; we all want to make a difference and mean something to future generations. This isn’t my goal with Linelight; if it were, I’d be running the risk of being really disappointed. I’m looking at the bigger picture — of making an impact with my studio and the collection of games I continue to produce. Linelight’s just the first of many, and I hope it sets a precedence of superb quality for an even brighter future.