Review Fix chats with “Sonny†developer Krin Juangbhanich who lets us know why the iOS version of the 2007 cult favorite deserved a remake and why it’s a special one.
Review Fix: What made the 2007 version special and why remake it?
Krin Juangbhanich: I’m not one to guess or know what makes it special for anyone else. But for me, it was about making a game that I wanted to play. From the tactical gameplay, to the music, art, and weird story and characters – I was simply trying to express something I had in my imagination at that time. But with such a large time gap between the previous release and this game, I felt it was better to start fresh with a new idea than to try find a way to merge/fit my ideas in the past with my ideas now.
Review Fix: What has development for the iOS been like? Any hurdles?
Juangbhanich: Developing for iOS was challenging. The process and technology was completely different. Accounting for a small screen and a touch interface was especially difficult because I wanted to keep the depth, complexity and strategy of the previous releases. The most difficult hurdle, however, was switching from a vector rendering pipeline (in Flash) to a raster, sprite based system (in Unity). It made it difficult for me to include detailed HD characters with animations and custom armor parts.
Review Fix: With all the competition on the mobile market and in the indies now, how difficult was it for you guys to try and make something that stood out?
Juangbhanich: I think despite the overwhelming number of games on the app store, it’s actually not super hard for someone to stand out. They simply have to WANT to stand out. I think a lot of teams design games to be especially similar to other titles that they know are already successful, hoping to capture some of that success for themselves. For Sonny I was focused mainly on gameplay. I wanted to do something that was tactically challenging, but simple to understand.
Review Fix: Bottom line, why must someone play this game?
Juangbhanich: I think it has to be about the challenging gameplay. The game can be beaten without using a single training/grinding fight, and it is designed to be that way. Typically the way to progress in RPGs is to spend time leveling up a stat, but I wanted to go against that concept here. Players need to make thoughtful decisions to beat the game without grinding, and I think it is rewarding to do so.
Review Fix: How do you want this game to be remembered?
Juangbhanich: We put a lot of effort into the boss fights (together from an art, story, and mechanics perspective). Some of the bosses are extremely challenging, and I hope that it gives players great satisfaction when they finally discover a suitable strategy to defeat them. So I would be happy if this game was remembered for its gameplay and its bosses.
Review Fix: What’s next?
Juangbhanich: I want to take all the things I learnt – from developing the game, from the feedback and reactions – and use it to improve myself and my work. At this point, I’m focused on introspection for a while and I don’t yet have anything concrete in mind.
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