Sponsored Feature: Warner Skoch on how iOS shoot-'em-up Vertex Blaster is pure geometry in motion
Covering all the angles
The App Store is home to several games that are noticeably similar to home console titles, but some of them do attempt to innovate as well as imitate.
Warner Skoch, developer of shooter Vertex Blaster, believes his title is one such game, and maintains that it is different enough to be worth downloading even if you've played titles such as Geometry Wars and Super Stardust HD to death.
Skoch talks to us about Vertex Blaster's inspirations, the challenge of incorporating workable touchscreen controls into a fast-paced shooter, and his future plans for the game.
Pocket Gamer: Can you give us a summary of what Vertex Blaster is about and what your main aims were when you were developing the game?Warner Skoch: I’ve always been a huge fan of dual-stick shooters, such as Geometry Wars and Super Stardust HD. I thought it would be awesome to combine some of my favourite features of each into one game. That idea served as a starting point for me, but Vertex Blaster grew into quite a bit more than just mashing two games together.
What do you think sets Vertex Blaster apart from other shooters on the App Store?
Gameplay-wise, I think there are several elements that are unique to Vertex Blaster, such as the Decoy Bombs, the power-up system, and the Meteor Shower gameplay mode (or even just the fact that you’re playing on a spherical battlefield).
From a development standpoint, I love listening to fan's suggestions and implementing them whenever they make sense and it’s reasonable. Even little things like the camera shake whenever an asteroid crashes into the sphere - that was a fan suggestion (and turned out quite to be a rather cool feature).
You’ve cited Super Star Dust HD and Geometry Wars as inspirations – but in what ways have you set out to make Vertex Blaster different from those titles?
While I think the things that set Vertex Blaster apart from other shooters on the App Store apply here as well, there are a couple things that I specifically wanted to be different from the gameplay of those two games.
Firstly, in both of those games, your ship doesn’t immediately move in the direction you press. It starts to accelerate in that direction, and kind of turns around until it gets there. This may sound silly, but it can be a pain when you’re trying to move precisely. I think i’ve successfully avoided that issue.
Secondly, if you’re good at either of those games, it can take quite a while for the difficulty to ramp up to where it becomes a real challenge. This isn’t so bad when you’re sitting on the couch, but when you have just a couple minutes to kill on your phone, it can be a hassle. I think I’ve avoided that here as well.
Was it a challenge to implement touchscreen controls in such a fast-paced and reaction-based title?
I’m actually very pleased with how well it works on the touchscreen. The controls are completely customisable, letting the player drag every button / joypad around in the settings. You also have the option of using the Joypad app or the iControlPad as input for the game. Either one of those is just a blast to use - I’ve received a great response from users about those two options.
Do you think making simple yet addictive games such as Vertex Blaster is the way forward for indie developers on the App Store?
I’m not sure that being simple has much to do with it, but having addictive gameplay sure helps. I’ve found that the most difficult thing about being an indie dev is gaining any kind of exposure. There are just so many developers out there, all working at having his game / app catch on and become popular. So, really all you can do is try to be unique and ensure people have fun playing your games.
What are you personally most proud of in the game?
That’s a tough one. If you mean with the development experience as a whole, I’d say just finishing it and getting it out there. If you mean more like, "what is your favourite part about the game?", then I’d say either the decoy bombs or the centipede enemy. Those things still make me grin.
Do you have anything planned in terms of updates for the game, such as a head-to-head multiplayer mode? Can you give us any in-depth details?
I definitely plan to improve the game wherever I can in the future, whether that’s through a cool idea I have or one that fans suggest. It’s really become sort of a labour of love for me, so I don’t know if the game will ever really be 'finished'.
Do you have any plans in place to bring the game to other mobile platforms?
I don’t have any concrete plans at this point, but I’d love to port it to Android if I ever get the time. It could be especially cool on devices like the Xperia Play or the HTC Evo 3D.
Vertex Blaster is available on iPhone and iPad now, priced at 69p / $0.99 / €0.79 [iTunes link].
You can also follow Warner Skoch on Twitter.
Vertex Blaster trailer:
