Serbian game development studio Eipix is working to get the futuristic racing & combat title Pyroblazer out for Wii, PSP and PC. The game will be published by Candella Software. KonsoliFIN had a Q & A session with lead designer Mirko Topalski.
My name is Mirko Topalski, and I am the CEO at a young game development company Eipix from Serbia. My educational and professional background is art oriented, music, sound design, script writing etc. At Eipix, we strive for our games to be pieces of art. I hope that you will feel this while playing Pyroblazer and become immersed in the speed, visuals, music and the incredible background story.
Pyroblazer is fast, it has great graphic details - how will it look like on Wii and on PSP?
The overall look and feel will be exactly like the PC version. Obviously, some advanced graphics features like HDR and Normal Mapping will not be available. But this should not make any difference to the gameplay.
What are your main influences for Pyroblazer, and how did the project start?
The influences are just as most people will recognize the leaders in the genre like Wipeout, F-Zero, Ballistics etc. However, one game that is usually overlooked and was a big influence specifically the controls, is an older game, Descent, a full 3D FPS on PC platform. The idea behind Pyroblazer was to make a small independent 3D shoot & race game, but the team and the game evolved over time and we ended up with something much, much bigger.
Are there multiplayer modes for the Wii version?
Absolutely. And the PSP version will also have multiplayer.
Can you tell us something how the Wii controls work on Pyroblazer? Balance Board support, maybe?
Sorry! We are still in the middle of the Wii and PSP development and cannot give details!
How many developers are working on Pyroblazer?
There are about 15 full time people in our team at the moment. However we had a lot of external help over the three years of development. Just the music score alone features at least the same number of musicians and technicians.
Gamers will probably compare Pyroblazer to F-Zero & Wipeout series, before they try it out. What would you like to say to them beforehand?
Pyroblazer is very different from those games. Starting with full 3D controls, and ending with a different set of gameplay rules. Pyroblazer is more weapons oriented. There are 10 primary and 10 secondary weapons, almost surpassing most of the FPS games in number and variety. The weapons are designed to be unusual, not just the usual mini-gun, rockets etc, although these standard weapons are also available. There are also a large number of tracks and vehicles that the player can use. So the game should keep your attention for a long period.
Any plans of bringing the game also for PS3 or Xbox 360 in the future?
We are looking into this possibility. Nothing is scheduled at this time.
Your other title in development, Ferramentum is set on same universe as Pyroblazer.
Our general idea is that all titles that we do in the future are situated in the same universe. This should really deepen the story line, as we can have same characters in different games and situations as well as finding a very important fact about a specific event in an entirely different game. Pyroblazer has a very serious and epic story that will unfold in the sequels and our other games. Story is presented in a special Encyclopedia inside the game, so it doesn't distract the players that are only looking for action.
Does Eipix develop its games all by itself, meaning graphics, coding, music etc?
We have had a fair share of outsourcing that we did for other companies. This is great for team experience and portfolio although not that great for creative pursuits. In our games, all content is made in-house. This means everything from voice recording to engine programming. This is truly ‘our’ game and every team member has made contributions in more than one section of the game.
You have some online forums at EipixUniverse.com, and I noticed that you take ideas & suggestions from the gamers. Have there been useful suggestions so far, and do you think developers should pay attention to audience more often?
Definitely yes. Hopefully, in the future we can organize small contests even for art or story content that will enter the expansion pack if our criteria are met. Players always have the best intentions, although sometimes players just don't understand how a simple idea could be incredibly hard to implement. Unfortunately, usually the ideas that take less time to code will find their way into the actual game.
How does Serbs feel about gaming in general? Do you have active video gamer community there?
There are several smaller dev teams in Serbia. Hopefully after Pyroblazer is out on the market, we can help other smaller developers to bring their ideas to fruition or maybe team up with some of the bigger guys to create a true AAA title. Players on the other hand are very active in all genres and areas and are very well connected. I believe that a few years ago we had a champion in the Need for Speed series official tournament.
How long do we have to wait to see Pyroblazer on Wii & PSP?
These are scheduled for next year. The exact dates are yet to be decided.
Thank you very much for this interview, any other things you would like to mention to the gamers who wait for your titles?
I would like to invite all gamers and other interested people to join our modest community at www.eipixuniverse.com which we hope will soon grow. Here you can help us make great games and build an interesting community. You can also find out about our new projects which we promise will be very innovative and different from anything available at the market. A lot of exclusive and behind the scenes content will also become available. The Eipix team wishes all fans a lot of fun with Pyroblazer and other games.
Thanks to Ajith Ram at Candella Software for hooking us up with Eipix and Mr. Topalski.
