Review Fix Exclusive: Inside ‘Guard Duty’

Review Fix chats with Nathan Hamley, Game Designer and Artist on “Guard Duty,” who lets us know what makes the game special, as well detailing its development process and goals.

Review Fix: How was this game born?

Nathan Hamley: Guard Duty originally started as an over-ambitious ‘first project’ to learn the ropes in the AGS (Adventure Game Studio) engine, this was back in 2004 and honestly, at the tender age of 16 I had no idea what I was doing. I’d drawn up a few crude background scenes and created a walkcycle for the protagonist but that was about it! As is with most first attempts at game development I didn’t get much further than those first scenes. 

Whilst still keeping a keen interest in game development I went on to study Information Technology at college and then Interactive Media Design at University. Leaving University I found myself doing a mixture of freelance work and 9-5 office jobs, feeling a bit creatively unsatisfied I decided to revisit the project in my spare time. I’d work in the day and head home to develop the game in the evenings, with the help of my good friend Andy. Andy, being a very proficient coder, helped me create the base that we needed to really push development past those first initial steps and create something that felt a lot closer to my vision for the finished project.

Review Fix: What was development like?

Hamley: Development has been challenging but really satisfying, the scope of the project just kept growing and it could easily feel a bit overwhelming at times. We went through multiple phases of fine-tuning our design document, tweaking the story and cutting out the fat. I’ve learnt a lot through the process of creating Guard Duty and will certainly be taking this knowledge on board for my next project. I think the main takeaway from development has been to really lock down the design document before moving onto the creation of art assets and code, there were a few times where we found ourselves throwing out old assets in favour of improving the gameplay flow. It’s easy to go overboard when designing a story-driven game!

Review Fix: What makes this game special?

Hamley: Based on the feedback we’ve gotten from our testers, I think the main appeal with Guard Duty comes from the level of detail we’ve tried to pack into the world. We’ve really gone a bit overboard with creating bespoke animations for each important interaction throughout the game. Having worked on the game for four years now there’s been more than enough time to make sure that each section of the game feels alive, be it small animations like groups of butterflies hovering over the castle flora, or more ambitious animations where characters interaction with one another.

Review Fix: What games influenced this one the most?

Hamley: Both myself and Andy grew up playing a lot of classic adventure games, we spent most of our teenage years working our way through the LucasArts back catalogue. I think Monkey Island has a special place in our hearts, being friends in school meant that our first experience with the series was spent taking turns on the mouse and solving the puzzles together. We’re also both big fans of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series, with the three videogame adaptations being high in our list of favourite adventure games. As far as the art style is concerned, I’ve always loved the artwork in the first two Simon the Sorcerer games and I guess I’ve taken a lot of influence from that when developing my pixel art. Some of the science fiction scenes in Guard Duty were influenced by more modern games, like Metal Gear Solid and the anime series Ghost in the Shell.

Review Fix: Any fun stories or wild moments during development?

Hamley: Wild moments? I recall drinking several large cans of energy drink one evening and passing out at my keyboard. Pretty wild! Well, I guess when I left my job to work on the project full time that was pretty crazy, I had a small lump of money saved and some Kickstarter funds so decided to move into my friend’s spare room for a year. I spent most of that year eating noodles and beans, rarely leaving the room. Made a lot of progress though!

Review Fix: Do you think preserving older gameplay mechanics in new games is important?

Hamley: It’s a shame but the audience we’re working with just isn’t the same as it was 25 years ago, with things like the internet, apps, Netflix and so many readily available sources giving us targeted media it’s hard to keep people engaged. A lot of older gameplay mechanics have been lost because of this and it makes me sad. We’ve had to think very carefully about which ones we preserve when designing Guard Duty, it’s so easy for someone to lose interest and start browsing Reddit or play something more flashy and action orientated. I think it’s important to preserve these older mechanics in a sense, but we need to work out a way of giving them a new lick of paint to make them more accessible to the modern market. Hence why we have the game packed with so many animations!

Review Fix: What’s your favorite memory as a gamer?

Hamley: Being stuck in Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis for hours then later solving the puzzle after having visited the garage with my dad and learning what a spark plug was. That and the Psycho Mantis boss fight in Metal Gear Solid, the guy moved my controller with the power of his mind!

Review Fix: Who will enjoy this game the most?

Hamley: I think any fans of the classic graphic adventures will get a kick out of it, we’ve tried to replicate the humour found in a lot of the popular LucasArts games with a dash of Monty Python thrown in for good measure. It’s also pretty heavily influenced by blockbuster Hollywood movies like Blade Runner and Lord of the Rings, so I guess those folk too!

Review Fix: Bottom Line, why must someone play this game?

Hamley: Because a guy’s gotta eat! Also, It’s a fun story, one which I think is genuinely unique for the genre. Fantasy AND Sci-Fi? That’s like two games for the price of one.

Review Fix: How do you want this game to be remembered?

Hamley: As long as people enjoy their time with the game I’ll be happy. It has some pretty fun twists and turns in the plot and I’ve put my all into making sure the game feels like it’s own ‘thing’. I’ll be interested in seeing what people make of the ending!

Review Fix: What’s next?

Hamley: If I’m lucky enough to be able to make another game I have so many ideas it’s honestly a bit overwhelming thinking about which one I’ll go with. Something unique!

Review Fix: Anything else you’d like to add?

Hamley: Thanks for taking the time to read this, if you end up playing the game I’d be great to hear from you.