From Darksiders to Remnant II with David Adams & Ben Gabbard
Nov 20, 2023
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Ben Gabbard and David Adams of Gunfire Games discuss their careers in game development, including their work on the Darksiders series and their founding of Gunfire Games. They talk about their early ideas for the Remnant series, the challenges of development restraints, and how Remnant II is the culmination of everything they've learned. They also touch on topics such as childhood memories in game development, their experiences during a major game development layoff, and the impact of the pandemic on the development process.
Gunfire Games was formed by former Vigil Games developers and went on to create successful original IPs like Chronos.
Gunfire Games utilized their expertise in action-adventure games by developing DarkSiders III.
A unique bidding process was used to acquire Dark Sides, resulting in a successful game developed on a lower budget.
Remnant II focused on enhancing core gameplay, expanding boss fights, and implementing procedural generation for a unique player experience.
Deep dives
Formation of Gunfire Games
Gunfire Games was formed by a group of developers who had previously worked together at Vigil Games. After the bankruptcy of THQ, they were unable to find a buyer for Vigil and decided to start their own company.
Securing a Life Raft
Crytek offered Gunfire Games an opportunity to work on a mobile VR project. They quickly accepted and began working on HeroBound for Oculus. This partnership eventually led to Gunfire Games creating their own original IP, Chronos.
Creating Chronos
Chronos was Gunfire Games' first original game, developed for the Oculus platform. They managed to create the game in just 11 months, showcasing their ability to create quality content within a short timeframe.
DarkSiders III
Gunfire Games also had the opportunity to develop DarkSiders III, the third installment in the popular DarkSiders franchise. This gave them the chance to work on an established IP and showcase their expertise in action-adventure games.
Unique bidding process for game acquisition
The podcast episode discusses a unique bidding process for acquiring a game. It highlights the story of how a person from Nordic won the bid for Crytek's game, Dark Sides, through persistent contact and negotiation. The acquisition ended up being successful, and the game was developed for a significantly lower budget than its predecessor.
Challenges of developing a game with limited budget
The podcast explores the challenges of developing a game with a limited budget. It mentions how the development team had to be pragmatic and realistic about what they could achieve within the given resources. They used their existing team and focused on creative ways to make the game impactful while keeping costs low.
Making a successful sequel in game development
The podcast delves into the process of making a successful sequel in game development. It highlights the importance of building upon the concepts and mechanics of the first game, while also improving and refining them. It mentions how Remnant 2 focused on enhancing the core gameplay, expanding the boss fights, and providing a variety of memorable experiences for players.
The power of procedural generation in game design
The podcast discusses the power of procedural generation in game design, specifically in the context of Remnant 2. It highlights how the game combines handcrafted elements and randomization to create a unique and memorable gameplay experience. The challenges of implementing procedural generation are also mentioned, including the need for careful testing and refinement.
Trent Kusters chats with Ben Gabbard & David Adams of Remnant series developer Gunfire Games. Together they discuss their careers including their early work at Vigil Games on the Darksiders series; founding Gunfire Games and their early projects with Oculus; their early ideas for the Remnant series including key pillars; learning to be strategic given development restraints; and how Remnant II is a culmination of everything they learned from their previous projects.
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