Review Fix chats with “Heroes of Loot 2” developer Pascal Bestebroer, who discusses the frenetic Legend of Zelda/Gauntlet-styled dungeon crawler on PC, AndroidTV and iOS.
Review Fix: What was the inspiration for this game?
Pascal Bestebroer: The original inspiration, for Heroes of Loot 1, was Gauntlet. And arcade game from the early 1980s. It pitched these four heroes against a hundred of dungeons full of monsters and with a lot of loot. Killing the monsters, finding keys to open the gates, and trying to reach level 100.
For “Heroes of Loot 2,” I combined that feeling with inspiration from Zelda, mostly the quests in those dungeons, and various gameplay elements and idea’s from AAA titles like “God of War” and “Darksiders.”
A strange mix, but I think it works.
Review Fix: What inspired the game’s look?
Bestebroer: All my games have this specific pixel-art look to it, but I enjoy adding special effects of modern day games. So even tho everything is done in vibrant pixel-art, there is a nice layer of multi colored lighting, reflections on the floors, and other such visual effects.
For the main heroes and all the creatures I went for a sort of cute and cartoony look, which is a nice contrast with the dark dungeon setting.
Review Fix: What has development been like?
Bestebroer: A lot of fun. It was a pretty smooth ride, probably because I had very clear goals on what the game should be, and a lot of experience from the first “Heroes of Loot.”
Review Fix: What games did you play as a kid? How did they influence this one?
Bestebroer: I played all the games as a kid, which was back in the ’80s. These days I mostly play what I like to call “story” games, that have a clear beginning and ending. Not so much a fan of the sandbox games or multiplayer games as my gaming-time is pretty much limited (and I work with games all day, which doesn’t help either).
So my influence is really a mix of ’80s arcade games and the biggest AAA Blockbuster games of today – as mentioned “God of War” and “Darksiders” were influencing decisions on this game and I still haven’t completed “Darksiders.”
Review Fix: What do you think is the coolest feature in the game?
Bestebroer: I really like the fact you can play coop at least on PC or AndroidTV devices. Which is a lot of fun since you can obviously help each other but also grab some loot and usable items before your “friend” grabs them.
Review Fix: Bottom line, why should someone play this?
Bestebroer: Who doesn’t like going on adventure? roaming dungeons, and grabbing a lot of loot? If you like any of the games I mentioned above, then you really need to try this game on either PC, Android or iOS.
Review Fix: This game is incredibly deep. How much time and effort went into polishing the game’s gameplay and options?
Bestebroer: A lot, especially balancing the game has taken a few weeks of many small changes and testing. In the end I’m very happy with the end result, and it seems the players agree.
Review Fix: What are your goals for the game?
Bestebroer: I still plan to add four new characters that you can unlock, and some special area’s that are hidden and unlockable during gameplay. So there’s a few more things coming.
Review Fix: What’s next?
Bestebroer: I have a few idea’s brewing, but nothing decided on yet. But that’s part of the fun, trying out some new ideas and see which one is the most fun! I’ll most likely post teasers and do some development streaming on social media, so just follow me on twitter @orangepascal for more information.
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