This year’s GDC was a first for Helios. We have tried to attend each of the last several years, as the overlap between latest and greatest technologies in the gaming world and experiential technology is significant. But this year was a little bit different – it was the first time that we would be participating and exhibiting. For those of you that don’t know, in 2015 Helios, along with Jacob and Melissa Pennock, created Livid Interactive – an independent game studio whose primary goal is NOT to create great digital experiences for brands to help them connect with consumers . . . but to create great games for consumers to enjoy. We have never before tried a revenue generating, direct to consumer game release, and this was the first time we’ve publicly shared anything about the effort. So we set about hiring a team (we have some awesomely talented folks in general, and the Livid crew is no exception) and pulling together concepts for some games. Thus, GDC.
If you haven’t been to GDC (the Game Developers Conference), it’s a little crazy. It’s not like E3 (where every game company goes to show off it’s newest titles), as it is solely focused on developers and developer resources. It is a great barometer for indie devs to showcase what they’re working on, and to get insight into what others are up to.
Livid is in the midst of creating a game, Shattered Might. This is a side-scrolling platformer, in the style of Mario Bros – but taking inspiration from the likes of Metroid and Castlevania. There are some unique elements to game, including the art, the playability of characters (essentially swapping characters mid-level to help overcome various obstacles), and the 2.5D-style.
Overall, the experience was great. We got a ton of great feedback, and a lot of love on the art style and effects, and gained a LOT of fans. People were really surprised to hear how far along we were – to date, we’ve dedicated about four months of the team’s efforts to get to a playable ‘alpha’ build, which is what we shared. It was exciting to get some validation from the dev community, and to attract as much interest from potential partners and distributors.
If you haven’t had a chance to check out the video, watch it below. And if you’re interested in learning more about the game as it develops, let us know so that we can reach out and keep you posted!
Until then, the Livid team will be working away to create something unique, fun, and exciting for consumers – while the Helios crew will continue to build amazing brand experiences.
Shattered Might GDC 2016 from Helios Interactive on Vimeo.