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Sponsored feature: Fishlabs shows off the slopes of Snowboard Hero on iPhone

Hitting the iOS

Sponsored feature: Fishlabs shows off the slopes of Snowboard Hero on iPhone
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| Snowboard Hero

The name Snowboard Hero may sound familiar. Originally a mobile title released in 2008, the game was met with a rapturous critical reception.

Fishlabs's latest iPhone version isn't just a retread. It’s an all-new game, with new and improved graphics, levels, and controls.

Fishlabs CEO Michael Schade talked to Pocket Gamer about how Snowboard Hero utilises accelerometer controls, how it approaches the trick element of the game, and whether there are any plans to bring it to any other mobile platforms. Pocket Gamer: What made you want to revisit Snowboard Hero, originally a mobile game released in 2008?

Michael Schade: Snowboard Hero on iPhone is a completely new title. If you loved the game on J2ME you will go crazy for this one. Everything is so much more console-like – the graphics, the sound and the gameplay. Even if you are totally unfamiliar with the original game we’re very positive that many players will fall in love with Snowboard Hero. It starts off casual and gets more and more challenging as you progress, but it gets visually more impressive on the later tracks as well.

What does Snowboard Hero offer for fans of the sport that no other title on the App Store can provide?

First off, Snowboard Hero is simply the best looking snowboarding game currently out there. The mountain scenery is so beautiful, with different time of day settings, while trees, rocks, and other objects are casting shadows on the ground. We even have dynamic lighting on the characters when riding in the sun or in the shade. We also put a lot of focus on details such as flying snowflakes in the menu as well as other nice little things that add to a very polished look.

Then again, we invested quite a lot into the sound experience as well. Every character has its own signature soundtrack, as well as some really nice voice acting. But most importantly, Snowboard Hero is unique in the way it gives freedom to players, allowing them to choose the route they wish to take to complete the challenge. Riding down the mountain in Snowboard Hero features very different types of pistes, funparks and open, alpine areas with ice tunnels, while getting insane air time when jumping over kickers at the same time – that is the core experience and nothing comes close to it on the iOS platform.

Do you believe that the game strikes a good balance between both the trick and racing sides of snowboarding?

I really think there is no other snowboarding title on the App Store that has such a good balance of going down the runs as fast as possible as well as pulling off crazy tricks. It really is up to you whether you grab power-ups or do tricks to fill up the boost bar to beat the clock, which is the main objective.

Also, the variety of disciplines with combinations has something for any level of player, the speed junkies as well as the playful ones.

How did you make the accelerometer controls precise enough for the player to pull off the more complicated tricks?

We spent quite some time coming up with the right control scheme. By tilting the device you steer the character on the slope, and balance during grinds. To do decent jumps the right timing is crucial. You tap and hold to crouch first and on release when you are at the very top of a kicker or a natural edge. While in the air you do gestures to perform tricks. Even though it sounds quite complex it works really well, and there are tonnes of tricks you can pull off. We thought about gyroscope controls as well, but that would have ruined the balance of the game.

Are there any significant differences between the iPhone and iPad versions of Snowboard Hero?

The features are identical but the interface is, of course, optimised for the iPad. However, we are still working on the iPad version. Eventually we will run a free update and make the game universal. We learned from Galaxy on Fire 2 that the community not only appreciates universal builds, but actually accepts a reasonably higher price point. It is a good way to differentiate from 99c and freemium titles and create a loyal fan base at the same time.

Do you have anything planned in terms of future updates for the game?

Oh yes, indeed! We are already working on quite a big update, featuring two more characters, Monica and Kurt as well as two more challenging tracks, Death Ridge and Ice God’s Realm. This update will be free, and is coming in the next few weeks. You can already see Monica and Kurt in action on the official game trailer on YouTube and as opponents in the game.

Have you any plans to bring the game to other mobile platforms, such as Android or WP7?

Our roots are in mobile, and we still have an extremely strong relationship with Sony Ericsson and Nokia. You can tell by the highly optimized version of Galaxy on Fire 2 for Xperia Play as well as for the upcoming enhanced version for Tegra 2 powered Android smartphones and tablets, that the Android platform is an important area for us now.

We are also a big believer that the joint forces of Microsoft and Nokia are going to be a positive development for the mobile gaming community. Microsoft brings the Xbox gaming proposition and its general expertise in video gaming area to the table, whilst Nokia knows how to build and sell smartphones around the globe. There are even more platforms on our list, but it is really too early to talk about this now. Technically our ABYSS game engine supports any mobile platform, but some are not mature enough yet. However, we have seen with iOS and now Android how quickly that can change.

Snowboard Hero is available on iPhone now, priced at £2.99 / $4.99 / €3.99 [itunes link]. Snowboard Hero Trailer:

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