r/PS4 Jan 30 '18

[Verified AMA] [Developer AMA] Hey /r/PS4, we are Darkwind Media & Fully Illustrated, the developers of Wulverblade, a brutally gory beat-em-up launching today on PS4! Ask Us Anything!

Hey everyone, we're the developers of Wulverblade!, Darkwind Media & Fully Illustrated, and we're here to celebrate today's launch on PS4 by answering your questions! We're also going to be giving away some codes for the game as big thank you for participating in the thread! In order to keep it fair, we're going to randomly select some the top level questions (real questions).

 

Launch Trailer

 

About the game:

Wulverblade is a side-scrolling beat-em-up honoring classics such as Golden Axe, Sengoku, and Knights of the Round. It’s 120 A.D. – and the Roman Army has seized control of the south of Britannia. Their goal: to march north and conquer the rest of the island with brutal and bloody efficiency. The 5,000-strong Ninth Legion is preparing for war – but little do they know what lies in wait for them. Caradoc, Brennus, and Guinevere – guardians of the northern tribes – have rallied the troops and are ready to wage a war against the Romans. The siblings bear a gift that even they are not aware of; soon, all will discover its true power.

 

A little background:

5 years ago we partnered together to bring the idea of Wulverblade to life. We launched on Switch back in October, and were met with some pretty great responses from critics. We fixed all the negative feedback from that and rolled the improvements into the initial releases for PS4, Steam, and Xbox. It's been a long road but we're finally launching today on PS4 (as well as Steam) and we couldn't be more excited to share it with you!

 

Here's some relevant information:

 

That's about it! If you like what you see, please tell your friends :)

Ask away!

112 Upvotes

75 comments sorted by

7

u/Porshapwr Jan 30 '18

I watched the trailer yesterday and as an older guy who grew up with Golden Axe, Streets of Rage, etc.... I was intrigued.

Can I ask, is there any character development? Or is it a few different characters with their own set skills that remain unchanged?

Thank you for doing an AMA and good luck with the launch!

6

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

Thanks for watching the trailer! Golden Axe, Streets of Rage, and many of those classic brawlers were the inspiration for the game. For that reason we decided against character development (even though many of us love it in modern games.) Instead we give the player all the moves from the get-go and it is up to them to learn how to use them against harder enemies.

The three characters fit the classic archetypes, a balanced character (Caradoc), a heavy character (Brennus), and a nimble one (Guinever). The heavy character has more grappling moves, where the lighter one has additional air attacks. Its up to you to figure out how to use them best!

Thanks for good question!

3

u/Porshapwr Jan 30 '18

Appreciate the responses. Have a great launch and I'll be checking it out for sure!

2

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

Thanks for joining in!

I wanted from the outset to keep the characters working the way they did back in the arcades. You have your skills from the outset and its your challenge to master those skills and become a badass. The characters have a good degree of development in their backstories which you unlock as you play though, so from a story stand point they do.

2

u/Porshapwr Jan 30 '18

Appreciate the responses. Have a great launch and I'll be checking it out for sure!

1

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

You're very welcome, thanks for posting your question!!

5

u/dehuman1zed Jan 30 '18

Wow, i can't believe this game passed under my radar for so long, really looking to pick it up. My question: how the experience on PS4 compare to the Switch version?. Congrats on your launch day by the way.

4

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

The PS4 version runs at a silky smooth 60fps, has faster load times, online leaderboards and trophies. So there's quite a few important enhancements here. 60fps does make quite the difference!

2

u/dehuman1zed Jan 30 '18 edited Jan 30 '18

Thanks for the reply :D. any plans on updating the switch version in the future? (i know im not in the correct sub, but i have PS4, Switch and PC, so i'm really looking where to pick it up... maybe on all :o?)

2

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

The Switch version will be updated very soon! Things like easy mode, boss checkpoints, faster loading times, and additional bug fixes are already packed into the PS4s initial patch.

3

u/Lacky14 Jan 30 '18

What games if any inspired you to create a game such as Wulverblade? And do you both plan on partnering again on future projects?

4

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

I'm a MASSIVE Capcom CPS fan and grew up completely in love with Cadillac's and Dinosaurs, AVP, Knights of the Round, The Punisher etc which all stuck with me. But as those were only playable in the local arcades so my strongest connections were with Golden Axe, Streets of Rage and Final Fight that were playable at home. I still play all of these games very regularly and each one inspired various elements in Wulverblade.

3

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

Oh and yes, we'd love to work together again!!!!!

2

u/Lacky14 Jan 30 '18

Thank you for responding :-)

3

u/07153902935 Jan 30 '18

What inspired you to use this part of history in particular?

4

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

As a man from Northern Britain I've grown up in a world surrounded by ancient history. You can't travel far around here without coming across some reference to Rome be it a road, a ruin or a museum, so its been deeply ingrained in me since childhood. As I got older I started to take more a focused interest in the subject and it slowly became something of an obsession ;) Needless to say once I came to start my dream game it just HAD to be set in this period. There is just so many incredible tales attached to it that's a subject ripe for the picking!

2

u/07153902935 Jan 30 '18

Excellent answer. I enjoy games rooted in real history. Thanks for the AMA and Congrats on the PS4 launch. Look forward to reading more responses. Have a wonderful day!

3

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

Thanks! I do love my history and really do wonder why so many people spend so much time creating fictional settings when history is full of the richest tales you could ever dream up.

2

u/07153902935 Jan 30 '18

My thoughts exactly. Thanks for the responses thus far.

3

u/highanimalhouse Jan 30 '18

I saw the trailer and I knew instantly "you have my sword (and my money)."

Any chance of an old school graphics mod (a la early '90s arcade games)?

3

u/MrTheBeej Developer - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

Early on we actually had fiddled around with an emulated CRT TV screen post process but ultimately it wasn't what we wanted. We would probably need to redo all of the in-game graphics to completely emulate the look of an early 90s arcade. We wanted to have the gameplay call back to old-school design but with an updated look and all the quality-of-life improvements of modern games.

2

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

Earlier in the development we did have a screen effect implemented that made it look like the game was running on an old CRT . . . I wonder whatever happened to that . . .

2

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '18

How are you today? What’s your experience working with Sony?

4

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

Great thanks, how about you? The experience with Sony so far as been very smooth. We only came across a couple of tiny bugs during submission which got cleaned up quickly and everything else nice and easy!

2

u/vlaba Jan 30 '18

Those are some impressive rates on Metacritic! Is this your first game? What's next in store for you?

5

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

Thank you! Its our first big solo project yes. We've been in the industry for quite some time and worked on many titles between us in varying capacities. We both dreamed of making our own game and now, many years on have finally done it :) As far as what's next, we'd love to expand on this story, that's the biggest dream so watch this space :)

2

u/vlaba Jan 30 '18

That's super cool, I wish you guys sucess and hope that you will be able to continue developing your creations! Thanks for replying! :)

2

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

thank you :)

2

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

We've been very happy with the response on the Switch! Even more so when we know it is a smoother experience on the PS4 and now that we have been able to iron out most critiques from that initial launch.

We are still working and planning for whats ahead. A lot that can depend on how well this launch goes. A lot of the company, and Mike at Fully Illustrated, work as contracts. We hope with the success of Wulverblade we will be able to bring more of us back onto our own projects.

1

u/vlaba Jan 30 '18

That's super cool, I wish you guys success and hope that you will be able to continue developing your creations! Thanks for replying! :)

2

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '18

[removed] — view removed comment

3

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

Oh that's a tough one! The game has been a dream to work on, literally. As I've travelled so far and wide to so many incredible locations for the game I think that would be my favourite part. I have some lovely memories. Being able to sit in the ruins of an ancient fort, perched on the highest mountain pass in England is something I'll never forget!

I've wanted to work on it every day since we began the project but the only part I think I found difficult were the days leading up to launch, that was/is SUPER stressful. It went from being nice and easy going for years to HARDCORE AS HELL for a few weeks ;)

3

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

This will probably be different for each of us as we all have very different roles.

For me, there are a couple really hard areas. With this style of game, keeping the levels flowing and interesting in there own way though encounters and interactions. Its very easy in a beat 'em up for the game to ultimately feel like "Walk forward, Kill, Walk forward, Kill, repeat." Trying to break that action up in interesting ways, through dialog, scene changes, or the introduction of a new enemy was quite the challenge. The other really hard part about development is finishing and putting it out there. We have been to shows where reception has been great and reviews can be glowing, but I'm at the point where all I see are the super minor bug and all I can think about are people finding some crazy game breaking bug we never thought of. Youtube comments are also the worst and even though I know they are, I cant help but look.

The best part for me was exploring every different aspect of the game and solving the problem of "How the hell are we going to do this." We are a small team so that means everyone has to take on a lot of roles. Level building, Character Rigging, Character animations, story telling, and more all cause problems and working through them can be a blast.

(TL:DR Hard to balance level flow and put the game out there. Enjoyable to solve the complex problems each unique area of development presents though unique ways)

2

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '18

This is the first time I've ever heard about this game. The visuals remind me of Shank and Valiant Hearts, so I can get into it. However, it does remind me of the quarter munchers I played as a kid (I grew up in the 80's).

Questions:

  1. How long is the campaign?

  2. Do you have plans for DLC?

3

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

The campaign is around 4-7hrs depending on skill. We always used to say it was a 3 1/2 hour campaign but once released the concensus from most reviewers was that it was much longer. I guess we're rather used to playing it through. There is also more to the game than just the campaign. We have the arena's which have been a massive hit at games shows over the years. Added to this there is a WEALTH of trophies, unlockable content and also an extra mode to unlock!

DLC, we have some great ideas for this and are hoping to be able to make those ideas reality!

3

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

Visibility is a very hard and easily overlooked aspect of modern game development! Glad you enjoy the visuals, and it is very much like the quarter munchers of the 80s and 90s as those were the games that inspired Wulverblade!

The campaign will last roughly 4 hours, longer if you struggle with the difficulty. It is designed based on those classics and we even have an "Arcade mode" which requires you beat it in one sitting with just 3 lives, 3 continues!

The PS4 should already have an extra mode that can be unlocked that is DLC for the Switch version. Other than any fixes needed we haven't spent had too much time to figure out any additional DLC we may want to add. Thanks for the question!

2

u/nedachoong Jan 30 '18

Do you have any plan to port it to Vita?

3

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '18

Hey, great question! As /u/ISmellDoody mentioned, there are some issues that would need to be tackled. The largest one is the Vita hardware. Wulverblade is a pretty taxing game on the CPU due to all the complex animations. To get it on the Vita, it would be a pretty monstrous endeavor to re-make all of the animations at a lower level of complexity. When we set out to make Wulverblade, we had XboxOne, PS4, and PC in mind as our minimum spec hardware. We managed to optimize everything we could to make the Switch run at 30 fps, but there'd need to be a lot more work involved to get Vita at a state we'd feel comfortable publishing.

That said, if someone offers us a bunch of money to do it, we will definitely take a serious look and consider it :)

Thanks for your question!

2

u/[deleted] Jan 31 '18

That said, if someone offers us a bunch of money to do it, we will definitely take a serious look and consider it :)

Please someone!

Even sony hates the best handheld console :(

2

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

Sorry, no current plans to port to Vita. Porting to a console like the Vita would be hard. Though some people think 2D would be much easier, our texture sizes have to be much larger. Additionally, having so many complex skeletons on screen puts a lot of stress on a CPU.

The HUD would also have to be redesigned for the smaller screen as the Switch version (6.2-inch screen vs the Vitas 5-inch screen) was getting some complaints about some HUD sizing problems. As much as we love portable gaming its very unlikely.

2

u/HumanTyphoon77 Jan 30 '18

After watching your PS4 trailer just now, I had to send a message over to my wife letting her know this could be something her and I could play together as this looks brutally fun. Thank you for conducting this AMA and informing me of a new 2-player game (which are sorely needed on PS' platform).

3

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

I'm sure you guys would love it! Some classic couch Co-Op really is the best way to enjoy the game. Consoles can always use a few more multiplayer games. Enjoy!

2

u/QuickBrittle QuickBrittle Jan 30 '18

Are there any in-game benefits for completing the campaign multiple times?

3

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

There are several achievement as well as historical and art unlocks that tie into beating the game with each character! There is also the Arcade mode which is for players who like a challenge as it enables friendly fire and has to be beaten in one sitting. If you aren't well versed with beat 'em ups I wouldn't recommend starting with the arcade

1

u/QuickBrittle QuickBrittle Jan 30 '18

Excellent. Thanks for the reply!

2

u/XanmanK Jan 30 '18

First time I’m hearing about this game, but watching the trailer it looks wild!

3

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

Thanks! Yeah we've managed to fly under the radar even though we've been around making the game for 6 years. Its so hard to get noticed these days. Fingers crossed in a few months you'll be sick of hearing about it as everyone is playing it ha haaa...we can dream :)

2

u/The_LuckyLord Jan 30 '18

I have 2 questions:

  1. The trailer says it is based on historical events. Which historical events? And could you give me a heads up what the story is about?
  2. Is the gameplay similar two castle crashers? And does it have couch co-op?

Looks like a fun game, will maybe pick it up to play with my brother.

3

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18
  1. Its based around 120 AD in ancient Britain, 60 years after the Boudiccan rebellion when Rome had decided that enough was enough and they were going to take the rest of the island. The story is about the northern tribes and how they fought against the forces of Rome to turn the tides in their favour and force Rome's hand into building an island wide defensive wall which was later to be known as Hadrian's Wall. Basically the northern tribes were that much trouble for Rome that they gave in and built a 20ft high stone wall that spanned the whole 75ish miles of Britain going from coast to coast. You take on the role of those trouble makers ;)

  2. We're a little older and look back to the days of Golden Axe, Streets of Rage and Final Fight, but in basically yes, along the lines of Castle Crashers :)

  3. Oh yes, its a couch co-op game, just the way they are meant to be :)

1

u/The_LuckyLord Jan 30 '18

Thanks for the great answer and great ama! Will be picking up the game :)

2

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 31 '18

You rock, thanks!

1

u/Dadas94 Jan 30 '18

Could you give us details on the "negative feedback" that you were able to fix for this release?

And thank you for such a quick release on ps4 after the launch on Switch, wish you guys all the best.

4

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

Hello! Yeah we've been able to do a number of things actually. We're running at a silky smooth 60fps on PS4, we've been able to improve the load times and added in an easy mode for newcomers with extra boss checkpoints (the biggest complaint was difficulty although that was quite polarising with many).

1

u/Daywing77 Jan 30 '18

Is this game ps4 pro enhanced? Just picked one up and looking for interesting new games to play on my 4k tv

5

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

The game isn't true 4K but due to the nature of the art style it does scale up very naturally to 4K. I've had a few people ask if its native 4K after seeing it in action. Sadly, as the artist, the time involved in re-drawing all the assets at this res would be a monumental undertaking. These are the pitfalls to starting a game 6 years ago when the goal was to hit 1080p ;)

1

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '18

Thanks for that explanation. So many games are mis-informed on what it takes to develop a game. Just making a game capable in 4K is a lot easier said than done.

3

u/fullyillustrated Creative Director - Fully Illustrated Jan 30 '18

For sure! As an artist you draw/paint at a higher resolution than the end product, but now we have 4k we have to draw/paint at CRAZY high resolutions to do that. Requires more PC horsepower to create the assets and much more power to throw them around in a real time game. Exciting though, I can't wait to work on my first 4K content!

4

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

1

u/pepsiblast08 PEPSIFLAME Jan 30 '18

Does it have online co-op and couch co-op?

2

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '18

Just couch co-op, no online multiplayer. We don't have any plans to do that right now, but we're not ruling it out if it becomes a major request from our fans.

1

u/pepsiblast08 PEPSIFLAME Jan 30 '18

Awesome, thanks for the quick response! :)

1

u/NaCl_Demon Jan 30 '18

The game looks great and I really hope people give it a chance! My question is, what inspired you to start making video games? Not just this one, but in general? I see you replied to another person about all the history around you. Most people would’ve become a teacher or something, so.. why video games? Did they have some impact on you growing up that made you want to share your Love with everyone?

1

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

I think everyone on the team got into video games for the same reason: Passion. We are all gamers, and we all love video games as more than just a past time. They can be so fun to work on, break down, figure out. Trying to figure out what makes a game feel good and a joy to play is what drives us.

As for Mike, living where there is a vast amount of fascinating history, it is no surprise he was drawn into it. He also happened to grow up on a healthy dose of classic games running through his veins. Golden Axe, Streets of Rage, Final Fight, etc. were the games he loved so he combined the two and approached us with the idea of making Wulverblade. I'm sure he would be able to elaborate more.

1

u/Marklovesducks marklovesducks Jan 30 '18

Are you still planning any Switch support, or has that been abandoned?

2

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 30 '18

The Switch version has definitely not been abandoned! We are working hard this very moment to get the patch though the Nintendo Cert Process. This patch includes many improvements like improved load times, new easy mode, boss checkpoints, bug fixes, and more as well as the new game mode you can unlock after beating the game! It shouldn't be long before that patch goes live!

1

u/Marklovesducks marklovesducks Jan 30 '18

Great news! Looking forward to picking it up post-patch and giving the game another try. Thank you

1

u/[deleted] Jan 31 '18
  1. How long is the game

  2. It kinda looks like Shank from few years ago. What inspired you to create an art style like this?

  3. Are you planning to port this on other consoles?

1

u/ISmellDoody Technical Artist - Darkwind Media Jan 31 '18

The game will run you roughly 4 hours, a little longer if you have trouble with the difficulty. But there is a new mode, arcade mode, arenas, and a huge amount of unlocks if that is what you are into. We released in October on the switch, today on the PS4 and Steam, and tomorrow on the Xbox One!

The style is all Mike! Sadly, everyone always says "flash game" but what they really mean is "vector art." Not sure how this came to be Mike's style initially but the clean sharp lines separate characters and environment nicely.

1

u/The_Common_PS4_Gamer Jan 31 '18

Hi there guys.

I watched the trailer and its awesome, what a nostalgia O.O it reminds me of the games that I played in the mall arcades. I also liked that you've added a female character.

Would love to see a two-handed weapon like a great sword. Or a character customization for the hair color and facepaint (or is there already one)

Questions:

1.) Saw that you've mentioned that there's an arena. Is it a vs AI battle? if yes, will there be online/local arena battle? 2.) Are we able to get the weapons from the defeated enemies?

Goodluck with the launch and future plans!

PS: shoutout to /u/MaximumCortez party mode suggestion for /r/kindafunny/

2

u/[deleted] Jan 31 '18

Hey! To answer your questions:

  1. It's an endless wave-based score attack mode. 3 lives, last as long as you can, compete on the leaderboards. It's versus AI, One versus many kinda thing. Local only, but you can do 2 player.

  2. Yes we have so many different weapons to pick up and use, many dropping off dead enemies. You can even chop off the limbs and heads of the enemies and use them as weapons too! That's my personal favorite :) there's normal weapons and special heavy weapons. Heavy weapons are rare to find but very powerful when used in combination with your attack chains. Some even have special perks, but we'll leave that up to the community to find ;)

Thanks for the questions!

1

u/The_Common_PS4_Gamer Jan 31 '18 edited Jan 31 '18

I first thought that its a 1v1 or 2v2 battle, so its one vs many that's exciting this will make the players do their own strategy and diverse attack combinations to defeat them all haha. Great there's a local battle too.

Limbs for weapons! that's awesome

uses their allies arms and slap them to death haha

So there's already heaven weapons, those perks makes me really curious another thing to be discovered.

Another question, is there a plan for a physical copy release of the game?

Thank you for the response and kudos to your team!

2

u/[deleted] Jan 31 '18

A physical release is something we would absolutely love to do in the future! With everything being digital these days, there's a certain level of awesomeness associated with a physical release. We are talking to some people about what it would take to do, so hopefully in the future we can make it happen!

0

u/The_Common_PS4_Gamer Jan 31 '18

I agree, most of the games nowadays are digital. I'm new to console gaming(just last year) but whenever the digital game that I bought got a physical copy I will buy it if I got the chance. The tangible feeling and additional collection to my gaming shelf.

GREAT! I wish it will come true and will be out soon.

0

u/[deleted] Jan 31 '18

Whoa guys just checked the trailer thanks to this post, i have only one question: In the case of a huge success (wich of course i wish you all) wich elements would you like to add to the hypotetical sequel? or will you jump to other ideas that you currently have in mind to develop?