Ask the Studio

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Re: Ask the Studio

by xstargaming » Wed Jul 29, 2015 8:43 pm

Huzzah, a photograph! :yey:

That Darth Vader statue in the corner is quite defining. ;)

Though busy I realize you are in answering all of these questions, I have thought of yet another: how do all of you make decisions on certain aspects? Is it generally unanimous (presuming a vote) or are there mixed ideas in most of the situations?
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Re: Ask the Studio

by kevin32 » Thu Jul 30, 2015 12:07 am

• Awhile back there was a heated discussion about platform equality. There was different content for different platforms, so players had to buy the same game multiple times to get the full experience. Is this something that will continue with future releases?

• While all KR games have different stories, towers, enemies, etc., they're very similar in terms of format and gameplay flow. I see how this is a good thing with keeping certain elements familiar and comfortable for the player, but will the next Kingdom Rush have new features and mechanics not found in the previous games?

• Are there plans to update KR and KRF with new content? Or are those projects "done".
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Re: Ask the Studio

by razieltnt » Thu Jul 30, 2015 6:27 am

Who came up with the name "ironhide" and what was the reasoning behind it ? Besides being a free one to take and register.
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Re: Ask the Studio

by wailwail » Thu Jul 30, 2015 8:37 pm

Since you're moving away from KR, are you planning pn expanding on the Clash of Olympians universe?
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Re: Ask the Studio

by Pencil » Thu Jul 30, 2015 8:50 pm

wailwail wrote:Since you're moving away from KR, are you planning pn expanding on the Clash of Olympians universe?


We're moving quite a bit far from KR, like reaally far.

Like 81 kilometers far.
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Re: Ask the Studio

by SairiRM » Fri Jul 31, 2015 10:05 am

Pencil wrote:
wailwail wrote:Since you're moving away from KR, are you planning pn expanding on the Clash of Olympians universe?


We're moving quite a bit far from KR, like reaally far.

Like 81 kilometers far.

I really think IronHide isn't just a KR and nothing else. Now that you have quite a big fanbase and popularity I hope you can expand in other genres too.
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Re: Ask the Studio

by Dante133 » Fri Jul 31, 2015 1:35 pm

How far are we talking? :) hopefully it still has your awesome, artsy graphic style! And I mean, if it's like a puzzle game, racing, space, sports, RPG or whatever have you, I am without a doubt getting it :) because you guys make awesome games
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Re: Ask the Studio

by bolin » Fri Jul 31, 2015 1:56 pm

Regarding loc in an update it really depends on how many enemies there are in it and how many special abilities, if any, they have. Plus there's usually bug fixes, though it should be that many lines.

A hero is around 800 loc, enemies are a bit less than that (even less if they have no ability at all), bosses are a bit bigger since they usual have special abilities and probably a ranged attack.
So an update with a new hero, five enemies and a boss should be around 5000 - 8000 loc? I don't know... something around that.

What I'm sure is that as games got more complex, Origins enemies are insane compared to the original ones in the first KR, so did the update :)
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Re: Ask the Studio

by The Kingmaker » Fri Jul 31, 2015 2:13 pm

Looking at it, yeah origins enemies are waaay more complex than Kingdom Rush enemies.

When thinking of new enemies, do you assign them roles (tanky, faster, spellcaster etc) and try and get one/two of each?
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Re: Ask the Studio

by Big Bad Bug » Fri Jul 31, 2015 2:34 pm

So, assuming a boss is 1,000 lines of code, combined with the 800 from a hero, that leaves 3,200-6,200 left, which, when divided by the 5 enemies in an update, means that enemies are about 640-1,040 lines?

Which game company do you guys respect/look up to the most? Are you friends with any devs outside of Ironhide?
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Re: Ask the Studio

by wailwail » Fri Jul 31, 2015 3:59 pm

I think bosses have more than 1250 lines of code.
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Re: Ask the Studio

by The_TaTs » Fri Jul 31, 2015 5:11 pm

xstargaming wrote:Huzzah, a photograph! :yey:

That Darth Vader statue in the corner is quite defining. ;)

Though busy I realize you are in answering all of these questions, I have thought of yet another: how do all of you make decisions on certain aspects? Is it generally unanimous (presuming a vote) or are there mixed ideas in most of the situations?


The first stage of developing a game is the moment when everyone can pitch in ideas.
But once we are set on an idea, some of us have the final saying on different areas. Alvaro is the director of game design, so he has the final saying on his area, Pablo is the director of programming so obviously all coding related decisions go through him and Gonzalo is the art director and decides on everything related to the visuals of the KR series.

Now that there's 21 of us, we have 3 teams, and each has it's own lead artist, lead programmer and lead game designer, that are responsible for making sure everything is up to Ironhide standards. Also, each team has meetings very often to discuss issues openly and all opinions and suggestions are heard.
No one barks orders here, it's more of an horizontal leadership... a few of us have to look at the bigger picture while the rest can focus on their own particular area of development.

kevin32 wrote:• Awhile back there was a heated discussion about platform equality. There was different content for different platforms, so players had to buy the same game multiple times to get the full experience. Is this something that will continue with future releases?

• While all KR games have different stories, towers, enemies, etc., they're very similar in terms of format and gameplay flow. I see how this is a good thing with keeping certain elements familiar and comfortable for the player, but will the next Kingdom Rush have new features and mechanics not found in the previous games?

• Are there plans to update KR and KRF with new content? Or are those projects "done".


- For the most part, the game with the biggest differences between platforms was the first Kingdom Rush... the Flash version was a bit of a testing ground for all the things that came later. Also, we put Castle Blackburn as a Steam exclusive for over an year as a way to thank all the people that supported the Greenlight process. We will try to make sure that all games have the same content.

- We will most definitely try to come up with new mechanics for a 4th KR. We are very much aware that after 3 games, it's getting a bit repetitive so we will try to make sure that the next game in the saga maintains some familiarity but also presents entirely new things... it's easier to say it than to do it... we'll probably fry our brains with this.

- KR is done. We are still doing some minor support (Bug fixes and version compatibility) but we will not create any new content for it. It's been 4 years and we really want to do other stuff that it's more fun. Also, we are tired of the constrictions presented by our old and beloved engine.
Frontiers is also done but it's less definitive. We would need a very powerful reason to devote time to another expansion instead of making something for Origins or polishing our new projects.

razieltnt wrote:Who came up with the name "ironhide" and what was the reasoning behind it ? Besides being a free one to take and register.


I wish the story was cool... Pablo, Alvaro and Gonzalo decided to become partners and make video games back in 2010 but needed a name for the company, so they made a list of a gazillion names and couldn't decide on a single one except Ironhide... it was the name that they all disagreed the least.

But you can imagine that they were granted a vision... of a weird orange Turtle/Armadillo with ironskin, an animal guide, that showed them the dream of a cool Tower Defence game... and they used the name of the creature for the studio. Ironhide. The rest is, as they say, history. :geek:

Big Bad Bug wrote:Which game company do you guys respect/look up to the most? Are you friends with any devs outside of Ironhide?


Blizzard is unanimously admired here at Ironhide.

We also have a somewhat cool bromance with the folks that created The Banner Saga (the studio is called Stoic). They happened to be fans of Kingdom Rush and many of us happened to be fans of their game so we started talking in Twitter and eventually exchanged several emails. Stay sharp for a cameo of one of Banner Saga's characters in the next update for KRO.

And also, and this is something that makes me very proud of our local industry, we are in super good terms with most game developers here in Uruguay. It's a small country, so we all kinda know each other. Most of us have very good friends working on other studios. Once a month, a bar is selected and many of us hang out, drink beer, exchange war stories and sobs silently in the corner (that last one is usually me, though).
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Re: Ask the Studio

by AerisDraco » Fri Jul 31, 2015 5:35 pm

So, not counting Pencil, there are still 2 unknown devs. Interesting. Speaking of, when do you guys plan to update the official site?
Also, a slightly more personal question, how did you guys come up with your online names?
More:
-Is there a motto for IH?
-What is the best TD game other than KR?
Last edited by AerisDraco on Fri Jul 31, 2015 7:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.
KRA is now complete.
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Re: Ask the Studio

by RZRider » Fri Jul 31, 2015 5:46 pm

When would you guess to release news on the new game that is not part on the kingdom rush series. Or do you not know
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Re: Ask the Studio

by Finwer » Fri Jul 31, 2015 6:24 pm

The_TaTs wrote:- KR is done. We are still doing some minor support (Bug fixes and version compatibility) but we will not create any new content for it. It's been 4 years and we really want to do other stuff that it's more fun. Also, we are tired of the constrictions presented by our old and beloved engine.
Frontiers is also done but it's less definitive. We would need a very powerful reason to devote time to another expansion instead of making something for Origins or polishing our new projects.

Does that mean will be 100% polished, with hero balances, bug fixes etc. etc.? I would have liked a mini-campaign expanding the dark knights, slayers and shadow archers enemy group, and it would have took place at the Royal Bridge, next to Lozagon.....but hey...it's your game in the end. :star:
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Re: Ask the Studio

by The_TaTs » Fri Jul 31, 2015 7:42 pm

AerisDraco wrote:So, not counting Pencil, there are still 2 unknown devs. Interesting. Speaking of, when do you guys plan to update the official site?
Also, a slightly more personal question, how did you guys come up with your online names?
More:
-Is there a motto for IH?
-What is the best TD game other than KR?


The two new Ironhide members are a new programmer, Leonardo, and Sebastian, a new accountant (but he's 25 years old, so he is a "cool" accountant) since the finances were starting to get too complex for Alvaro, Gonzalo and Pablo to handle without a profesional.

Pretty much all of us already had these nicknames before entering in Ironhide... a few got the names as part of inner jokes.
Vanzen (Alvaro) used that name for a D&D character from his days playing tabletop role games.
Botch (Gerson) is one of the greatest DM's for tabletop role games in the universe, he even owned a pub where people could play D&D, Vampire, and Magic the Gathering before working in Ironhide... Botch was the name of the pub.
Dilodart (Diego) is an anagram from Diego Lopez + Art
Pixel Soldier (Juan) used that name to instill fear in other forums.

And here in the Forums, Delebru is an anagram of sorts for "Bruno De Leone", Colo is a friendly, non offensive way to call redheads... it's from Colorado (something that is red coloured), Bolin had that nickname since school, Pencil uses that nickname because he is an actual pencil that can walk and talk. My online name is an english version of my real nickname, Tata, because I had a Swedish friend with a dumb sense of humor (like mine!) and he translated it to The TaTs.

- There art none TD games outside Kingdom Rush, ye Heretic!

RZRider wrote:When would you guess to release news on the new game that is not part on the kingdom rush series. Or do you not know


We are already discussing the media plan for the next game and have a somewhat clear picture on when we'll make the announcement. 8-)


Finwer wrote:
The_TaTs wrote:- KR is done. We are still doing some minor support (Bug fixes and version compatibility) but we will not create any new content for it. It's been 4 years and we really want to do other stuff that it's more fun. Also, we are tired of the constrictions presented by our old and beloved engine.
Frontiers is also done but it's less definitive. We would need a very powerful reason to devote time to another expansion instead of making something for Origins or polishing our new projects.

Does that mean will be 100% polished, with hero balances, bug fixes etc. etc.? I would have liked a mini-campaign expanding the dark knights, slayers and shadow archers enemy group, and it would have took place at the Royal Bridge, next to Lozagon.....but hey...it's your game in the end. :star:


A game is not done once it's perfect. There is no such thing as 100% polish. There is always something else to fix, something more that we could've done to make it cooler.
In the end, the question is: Is it really worth it to keep tweaking this game now that we can start doing other stuff we really want to do?
For us... the first KR has been our bread and butter for years now... we really, really REALLY want to do something else.
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Re: Ask the Studio

by kevin32 » Sat Aug 01, 2015 3:49 am

The_TaTs wrote:the first KR has been our bread and butter for years now... we really, really REALLY want to do something else.


So is Ironhide planning to stop making KR games to focus more on other projects?
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Re: Ask the Studio

by Juice Box » Sat Aug 01, 2015 5:56 am

So there's something about development teams that I don't get:

I understand the whole thing between programmers and artists. Programmers code, artists draw. But what do designers do? I don't quite get why they're so important. I mean, I'm sort of stuck in the misconception that they're the brainstormers. What else do they do besides that? And in what way are they just as important as programmers and artists? And lastly, which among the three groups--designers, programmers and artists--have the heaviest workload?
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Re: Ask the Studio

by wailwail » Sat Aug 01, 2015 8:02 am

Designers make the enemies, the heroes, the story, bosses and everything about the game. The programmers and artists then implement them.. I think

QUESTION TIME! Can you order all of the studio members by age? Who's the oldest? Youngest?
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Re: Ask the Studio

by blu3 » Sat Aug 01, 2015 8:12 am

the thread is called ask the studio, not ask the wail
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