Blade Kitten: Fancy Physics, AI In A 2D Environment

Blade Kitten

If you ask certain developers, they will insist that 2D ain't dead yet. And they're not just talking about portable gaming devices.

You may not be aware, but Blade Kitten is coming soon to the PlayStation Network. And even if you're not intrigued by the colorful, semi-original action slasher, you'll at least be interested in the comments by Krome Studios senior programmer Chris Fowler, which he posted at the PlayStation Blog. Admittedly apprehensive at the idea of working with the PS3, Fowler says he's now a big fan of Sony's machine. Initially, the game was both a 3D and 2D adventure that would allow you to switch between both perspectives instantly but at some point, the team "fell in love" with the 2D version so they decided to focus entirely on that. Added Fowler:

"This proved to be one of the best decisions we made. For example, the level where Kit is running away from a huge monster called Acland, who destroys everything in his path, was completely scripted by the designers — as were all our bosses and many of the encounters you see. This has allowed for a much more flexible design with changes being quick and easy. But most importantly, much happier designers!

Being able to move any object anywhere and have our characters move along with them was fundamental to our game, so we made it so Kit can attach to pretty much everything. If the object moves or rotates, so does she. The level designers have done a great job using this and, even from the first level, you will see some fun movement and puzzles you can play with using these moving objects."

Basically, the game caused them to alter their implementation of artificial intelligence. The amount of effort and intricacy involved with this project is quite encouraging, and we're definitely looking forward to playing the final product. Fowler goes on to talk more about the process so if you're into behind-the-scenes info, you should definitely read it all.

Related Game(s): Blade Kitten

Tags: blade kitten, psn, krome studios

7/27/2010 8:58:22 PM John Shepard

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