I'm the Creative Director for Shelter, the badger-game that is released today on Steam. AMA!

The game looks lovely and it's great indie developers are bringing unique games like this to the PC.

How long was the development of the game?

Are you looking at porting it to other platforms later?

Could you name any games/books/movies that inspired you to make Shelter?

Were there other kinds of animals that you thought about using for the game? Why badgers?

Thanks for taking the time to do this AMA!

Thank you very much!

We started developing the game in January this year. So we've been working on it for about eight months.

We've talked about it, but hasn't decided anything yet. It will probably depend on the reception.

I think my first source of inspiration was an old german childrens show called "Fablernas värld (in swedish)" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfrkKqu7OVs). But of course the mood and setting of Watership Down. "Where the Wild Things Are" has also been an inspiration. We also watched a lot of nature documentaries during development (an honorably mention to David Attenborough). When it comes to games we played a lot of games with a much slower pace that focused on non-combat. Journey, Proteus, Dear Esther, for example.

I talked a bit about why we chose badgers here: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbwzmhr

Thank you for your questions!

Thanks for the reply.

I was really curious why you chose badgers, but the link you gave me doesn't seem to answer that. Could you check again that it's right?

EDIT: I found the right link! http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbx2ryk

Thank you for your question! Sorry for giving you the wrong link. I've PM'd you with a Shelter Steam code.

Hi. 1.Rails or open world? 2.Can you please tell me average time needed to complete a game? 3. No saves?

Hi!

1. The game is level based, so it has a rather linear progression. Although each area is quite large so there's a lot of exploration beside the main track.

2. The play time depends a lot on what kind of player you are. It's takes about 1,5 - 2 hours to run through it. But as I sad there's a lot of exploration, so if you want to experience everything it can take much longer. It also depends on how well you're taking care of your cubs.

3. The game automatically save your progress after each area.

Thank you. Right now I'm playing your game and get a deep pleasure from the process.

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code you can give away to a friend.

Honey badger don't give a shit honey badger make his own game

Honey badger can give away his own steam codes.

Funnily enough, your post has coincided with the start of a badger cull in the UK to try and reduce the spread of TB. Your thoughts?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-23845851

We've discussed it both with The Guardian (http://www.theguardian.com/environment/shortcuts/2013/may/28/could-video-game-save-badgers) and theartfulbadger.com. And of course we're on the badgers side.

Sorry for the late answer. I've sent you a Steam code as a thanks for your question.

Are you using Unity?

Yes! It's 100% made in Unity. Just as our previous game Pid.

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code.

Which artist do you think inspired for the visual aspects of the game?

We're artistically inspired by many different artists. The patterns largest inspiration was old japanese art. Everything from paper craft to old heraldry.

The color palette largest inspiration was water color.

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code.

How did you go about recording the badger sounds/calls?

Our Sound Designer studied how badgers sound and communicate with each other, and then cut, pitched and mixed different kind of animals to make them sound like real badgers. I'm not sure, but I don't think we have any sounds from an actual badger in the game.

I love how you allow the player to become immersed in the world by hearing only the ambient forest sounds and intermittent squeaking of the badger cubs and only use actual music for certain instances.

Thank you very much! I'm glad you liked it.

I've PM'd you a Steam Code.

I bought the game for a friend because it "looked cute" and "badgers are the best" and have some questions! Why a game about badgers? What inspired you all to make the game?

I've answer to why we chose to make it about badgers here: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbwzz2m

I think our main source of inspiration was that we wanted to create something completely different. Both something anyone in the studio hasn't worked on before, but also a game that most players hasn't experienced. We were also very axious to try to create a (somewhat) non-combat oriented and emotional titel. As Pid was very focused on game mechanics, we wanted to create something that touched more "softer" variables like exploration and adventuring.

Thank you for your question! I've PM'd you a Steam Code so you can experience the game yourself.

What made you decide to go small? What are the things that you learned in the big companies that a small indie guy doesn't know?

I personally wanted to try to have a much broader responsibility. As an indie you to have to make everything by your self most of the time (as I sad in my post: everything from marketing to planning your own work). You also have a much larger creative freedom. There's also a much broader scope on your own development. As an example, I was a Level Designer for Just Cause 2 and Fable III, and responsible for 4-5 levels over the course of several years (especially for Just Cause 2). I continued working as a Level Designer when developing Pid, where I created the foundation for all 124 level by my self during the first year.

I think a really useful thing I learned as a AAA-developer was to time box my own work. Overrating how long certain aspects of development take can really break the game (as well as yourself). I've also learned to develop my tasks to a specific standard, and then move on to the next. Instead of taking to much time to develop incredible detail. If you finish everything in before your deadline, you can always go back to the places where you want to add aditional polish. Time is a truly importaint resource that I think some indies (generally) tend to under estimate.

Hope that answers your questions (I'd love to give you more, but I have to continue to the next ones :))

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code.

I thought this was for PS4 only.

congrats!

No it's PC and Mac only at the moment. But we're discussing different platforms in the future.

Thank you!

Is there any chance that the textures could be modified to look cartoonish (don't know the exact term) like Journey/Rayman?

that would be awesome.

Sorry, I don't think there are ATM.

Thank you for your question though. I've PM'd you a Steam code.

Hi

Since you have experience from major games, do you feel the pacing of creating your own has changed how you approach game development?

I mean I'm sure creatively you have even more say and more ability to mold what the end vision is, but do you find that working with an almost abstract idea can confine your play ability and how you see the world around you in the game?

Working with a major developer with a tight schedule got shit done but you probably sacrificed a lot of 'what could have been' within the game to keep the progress moving. What is one of those biggest what could have beens or some type of system you always wanted to see fleshed out?

Hi!

Your questions are very deep, but I'll try to answer them as good as I can. Please respond if you want to follow up or clarify something.

I don't know if the pacing has changed, as you're still very bound to create something within set boundaries as an indie (economical, tight deadlines, etc). Although my understanding and admoration for different roles in game development has changed a lot. Both because you'll work much closer to all the different disciplines, but also because your own responsebility becomes much broader. I answered to something similar here: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbwzmhr

Our creative process almost always start by defining boundaries within we want to work. Initially they are dependent on how the team looks like. For example during Pid we only had one artist, so we knew that if we wanted to fulfill our vision we had to simplify the graphics in some way. Which ended up us removing all textures in the game (hence the quite unique look). We did something similar in Shelter, but decided to go the other way and remove all lighting. Decisions like these created a tight frame that we had to work within. We couldn't create gameplay that involved real-time shadows in Shelter for example (except for the bird, which is a texture). Or gameplay that involved textures in Pid.

There's always things in a game you create that you want to polish or flesh out more if you had the time. I worked as a Level Designer for my mayor releases, so the process looks a bit different compared to system designers for example. As a Level Designer the last thing you do on a level is decorating, which you do when everything else is finished, and you can continue to do it forever.

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code.

How is a Linux port looking? This is pretty much my deciding factor when it comes down to if I'm willing to actually purchase a game.

We've had a lot of requests for a Linux port. Unfortunately I can't give you a straight answer right now other than that we're definitely discussing it. I think we have to see how Shelters reception will be, and then decide whether we port it to other platforms.

Thank you for your question!

I've PM'd you a Steam Code. Hope you have a PC or a Mac so your can try it out any ways.

I just finished playing through the game and loved it! I have just one question: is there only one ending?

Thank you! I'm happy you liked it. The game focuses a lot on only one journey, so there's only one real ending. Although it can change a bit depending on how you managed you cubs.

Did you see the clip after the credits? :)

Yes! I loved it! I managed to make it out with three on my first playthrough.

Thanks for building this!

Thank you! I've PM'd you a steam code you can give away to a friend.

How do you stay creative and come up with fresh ideas?

I think a good way to stay creative is to broaden your inspirational sources. I believe that it can be hurtful for a medium as a whole if everyone's just looking for inspiration within their own medium. When creating games I rather be inspired by other things than just games. Like books, music and film. Everyday scenarios can also be a source of inspiration, as well as political views and philosophical ideas.

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code.

[deleted]

I think the sudden burst of greenlights yesterday is a response to the critique Valve has gotten lately with a very slow greenlight process. I hope that the numbers in each batch will decrese some in the future, but come out at a more steady progression. Not for us developers (as I think competition within a market is very healthy), but to not, as you say, overload the consumer. I think we're very lucky to have a very good relationship and a lot of experience with journalists, which helped us a lot when it comes to reaching out to the consumers. Even though I don't have any personal experience with it I think kickstarter is a very good way to reach out. Another good way to do it is through social media (reddit for example ;)), but also twitter and facebook gives us an opportunity to have direct contact with our players. I think one of the best things about greenlight (and other platforms for smaller developers to reach a broader audience) is really great. Both for developers and players as indie titles usually have a mucher smaller budget, which reduces the risk, which naturally gives a much better platform for making more experimental games. We can also survive without having to address a mass market, which makes for more interesting and "niched" titles. I think a diversed market is a good market. Hope that answers your questons.

also, you should do something cool like the person with the most up-voted comment gets to choose an animal to be in the game

then we'd end up with a cat-narwhal-bacon-unicorn hybrid and you know it

That would be awesome! I'll write it down in case we'll make a sequel ;)

You game looks AWSOME and fun I can't wait to play it

Thank you very much!!

Hey! I've been following you guys since i saw Shelter on Greenlight. I've pre-ordered Shelter and now I am waiting it to "unlock" on Steam. So my question is: Are you planning to make any new content/updates/achievements/trading cards to Shelter after release. I fear that it would be boring to play after it after completing the story. I'm not saying that i want multiplayer (even though it would be pretty awesome).

EDIT: So i played it through and good god was it beautiful!

-Heisenberggi

Hi! Thank you for your interest in Shelter!

One of our earliest decisions was that we wanted to create a single experience and focus on one playthrough rather then replayability. We're not discussing additional content at the office right now, but if people want it we'll certainly consider it. Personally I'd much rather see a sequel, with a whole new story and a completely different animal. I believe that games like these should be experienced just once. Hence the lack of replayability.

Thank you very much!! I'm really glad you liked it!

Thank you for your answer!

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code you can give away to a friend.

As an indie myself, it interests me how others end up in this situation.

What happened between you deciding to go indie and the present?

Did you have a team before the leap?

Fow how long did you think about going indie?

Any thoughts or insight on the Greenlight process?

Jag hoppas altid bäst för ert spel! (^{ok, thats a bit of a shot in the dark} )

My leap from AAA to indie wasn't a truly active one. I actually moved from Lionhead back to Stockholm for personal reasons, and got an proposition from Might & Delight which I couldn't refuse soon after that. Although I'd thought about it for several years before that, but just waited for the right moment. I was really lucky that M&D had a stable economy before I started, cause I'm not sure if I would have skipped a really nice job, with a decent salary to create indie games without having an income. For me it would've been a too long leap, but I truly admire people who does it.

I think Greenlight and user voted distribution is a really good model. Although it's still in it's early years, so I'm sure it's gonna grow and become much better as time goes by.

Haha, tack så mycket! I hope you'll like it!

Your path just goes to show the power of the dark side... Welcome my child. There are no colour-coordinated lunches here, but plenty of AMA's and translation errors in the final product.

EDIT:I guess self-deprecation isn't the way to go...

Haha! Did you see the bashing we got on our Italian translation?

Thank you for your question though. I've sent you a Steam Code!

How hard was it to leave the big companies and start making indie games? Do you miss the AAA development stuff?

I answered to something similar here: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbwzmhr

.. and here: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbx184g

Hope that answers your question.

Hey Johannes, the game looks really cool I can't wait to play it. I have two questions, my first is about the art style, I get a very story book/ popup book feel from Shelter, is that what you guys were going for? Also I love the idea of a survival game where you are trying to keep yourself and others alive, was that the idea from the beginning or did you add the children later in development?

Hi! Thank you very much!

I wrote an answer regarding the art-style here: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbx0kac

The original design for the game was an adventure, but we added the children really early. Probably within the first weeks of designing. I think that was really necessary since we base most of the mechanics in the game around the children. If we added them later we would probably have to redesign a lot of things.

How much time did you actually spend in the forest while making this game? :)

(Judging by http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oW2Xxz2L3rI at least a few hours?)

Being borned and raised in central Stockholm, I'm actually not much of a nature-guy myself. But we had to take a few hours walk while filming that dev diary. But that's about it, I'm afraid. Although we did watch a lot of documentaries about the wild.

Do you find it easier or harder to work on a game with a simpler, low poly aesthetic? And did you find Unity to be an accommodating engine for what you were trying to do?

The simplicity and low poly aesthetic doesn't really change the development from a designers perspective. Although it helps since it takes a much shorter amount of time for our artists to create and modify our assets, which also speeds up the design production and can make iterations really short. Although working on a game that didn't have lighting (baked or real-time), as well as dialogue, HUD, man made structures (as easy recognisable landmarks) or quest system, made it really difficult to create a good player guidance. Which is a really important part of Level Designing. I think Unity is a great tool for game development. Specielly for smaller studios that can't realy on in-house tools. I can totally recommend it!

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code.

What was the first thing that made you decide on badgers over other animals?

They are fantastic animals by the way.

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code.

I've answered why we chosed to make Shelter about badgers here: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbwzz2m

They are truly awesome creatures!

Hey, first of all, this game looks awesome and I'm so glad it's finally out, I'm downloading and playing it as soon as I get home tonight! :D

This game fascinates me because of the strong "xenofiction" tone, that is, it reminds me of awesome books like Watership Down(and sequel) and Duncton Wook that features animals that are anthropomorphized just a little bit and do a great work in depicting how these animals would think if we could understand them.

So the question is: do you enjoy those kinds of books, too? Did you have that sort of narrative in mind when creating this game? Would you recommend any underrated classic of the genre that deserves to be known better? As an aside, I'd ask if Tokyo Jungle was any inspiration on this, but that'd be just way too silly. :P

Hi and thank you for your interest in Shelter! Hope you liked it!

Even though I rarely read books like Watership Down any more, they've been a big part of my childhood. It's hard to recommend anything since I've mostly read Swedish books, which can be quite hard to find in another language. But if you liked Watership down you should try to find a book that's called (in swedish) "Liten är fin". It was written in 1978 by Ingrid Sjöstrand and Håkan Leonardsson. But I have no idea if it's been translated I'm afraid. The initial narrative we wanted to create was being forced on a journey, or trying to find a new home. If you've played the game I can tell you that in early development the fire level was the second one, to emphesise that you were forced away from your old home. But we decided to switch it with the night level since it worked better pacing-wise. We added the cubs shortly after we decided the main narrative, as I think finding a new home for you children gives you a much stronger motivation than finding a new home for your self. There's no quitting when your childrens lives are at stake.

This might come as a suprise, but I asked around the office, and no ones actually played Tokyo Jungle. Although we watched videos of it during development. So I guess you can say it's been a source of inspiration any ways. :)

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code.

Is there any possibility to download/buy the main menu song? I absolutely loved it!

Thank you very much! It's made by a studio band called Retro Family. They created all the music in both Shelter and Pid, and we're really proud to be working with them. We're currently discussing how we want to distribute the music, but unfortunatly we haven't made a decission yet. My best bet is to like Retro Family on facebook and keep an eye open for any news. It shouldn't take too long hopefully. Here's a link:https://www.facebook.com/pages/Retro-Family/217644004933997

Thank you for you questions! I've PM'd you a steam code.

I pre-ordered your game as a gift for a friend of mine who loves badgers, ferretts and all remotely weasely creatures. Seems to be a hit so far with the friend. Thanks for making the game.

Thank you very much! Hope your friend likes it! Please tell him or her that I said hi and that we share a common love for them.

Thank you for your question! I've PM'd you a Steam Code so you can experience the game yourself.

Why badgers? It seems like this game would be equally interesting with foxes or weasels or something. Badgers are an interesting choice.

I've answered why we chosed to make Shelter about badgers here: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbwzz2m

Working with such a diverse gallery of professionals as you do on the videogames industry, what can you say that is your most cherised memory of what you learnt by working with them?

Having worked quite a while now I have more cherised memories then I can remember. One in particular is an argument/discussion I had with one of the game designers at Avalanche while developing Just Cause 2. I wanted Rico (the main character) to be able to move while shooting with the minigun, but the designer thought it would be to over powered. I was designing a level that focused a lot on the minigun. Hence my strong oppinion. We had a long discussion about it and in the end he drew seniority on my, so I had to back off. That discussion, even if it was really minor, will haunt me for the rest of my life. I still believe I was right :) Another moment I cherish was sitting next to Peter Molyneux on a Lionhead christmas dinner, but instead of talking about games (which would be the most natural topic, i guess) we discussed family issues, and the lack of time we had to play games now days. He is a really great and lovable guy.

What were the bigget challenges outside of actual game production as an AAA gone rogue? Marketing, social media, licensing, etc

I think our biggest challenge unfortunately has been an economical one. I believe we have a really good relationship with the press and our fans through social medias. But we're still very dependent on reaching out to a large market and people buying our product. Having a much lower wage than average (AAA) game developers is manageable, but the stress of not knowing if the studio survives the coming year is really hard to deal with. This is of course from a personal perspective.

I watched the trailer on the website, and the game looks absolutely beautiful.

But what happens if not all the cubs make it? I don't know if I'm prepared for that. :(

Thank you very much! I'm not gonna spoil it, but I can recommend you to try to keep them all alive.

you ARE including "The Badger Song" as the easter egg somewhere, right?

Of course. Just as there are sharks in Just Cause. But unfortunately, no ones gonna find it.

Tell name of song please in the latest trailer. I'm frustraited

The song is called "Fall Again" by a band called Retro Family (as all music in both Pid and Shelter). Unfortunately it's not released yet. But I can recommand you to like them on facebook and keep an eye open, since it will probably be released soon.

Here's a link: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Retro-Family/217644004933997

I am a bit confused by your game concept, kinda like the endless forest?

I ask in all honesty, what is the appeal (designed appeal) of your game?

I think Shelter differs quite a bit from The Endless Forest. It's a level based single player adventure with it's own designed narative. Where The Endless Forest is purely multiplayer and draws much of its appeal from the player community. The setting might seem a bit similar, but gameplay wise I think they are two completely different games.

I really like video games that don't follow the basic "kill all these guys" story.

I am also from madison, wisconsin, and idk if you know, but our state college mascot/state animal is a badger.

What do you find is the biggest obstacle for releasing a game like this, where you can't really appeal to the type gamers?

My dad is an artist who has worked on video games, and recently is working on a game made possible by a grant from the gates foundation, and it's about researching how video games can help people learn, and researching the relationship between video games and adult success. But he doesn't think the game will do very well because they can't find trained, skilled, committed workers to do the things they need. Most of the workers all have other jobs, and try and get unpaid interns and college students to do most of the work, which is great experience for them, but the game suffers because of it. Have you experienced anything like that?

Hi! Yes we actually got a review from buckys5thquarter.com (http://www.buckys5thquarter.com/2013/8/26/4658592/shelter-badgers-video-game-review), which was really great! So in return we made all you Wisconsin fans this artwork: https://www.dropbox.com/s/b9ha2hq8o1gkkea/Shelter%20Supports%20Wisconsin%20Badgers.jpg

When creating a niche game like Shelter we've always knew it wouldn't appeal to everyone. I'm not sure I see it as an obstacle, as it's more interesting to create niche titles then trying to satisfy everyone. Although when taking into account that a majority of gamers might not be interested in the game, you have to create it with a very tight budget to match the (possible) low income. Which of course effects the final product. I'm afraid I don't have any real experience with it, but I can understand the problem. I think that game and game culture still is in a very young state. Especially gamers. But the medium age of a gamer is constantly growing, so hopefully we will see a future soon where "everyone" play games, just as "everyone" watches movies or listen to music. This will also create a market for a much wider array of different use for games. I believe that there's a bright future for serious games (Research games, educational games, rehabilitating games, etc). But we're unfortunately not there yet. I think what your father does is admirable, and hopefully something that we will see much more of in the future.

Hej! How has your experience as an indie developer been since leaving a AAA company? Is having more control over your projects worth having a team of only seven people? Do you think you would ever go back to AAA development?

Hej!

I answered to something similar here: http://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/1l98rg/im_the_creative_director_for_shelter_the/cbwzmhr

I think there's a tight balance between good and bad things when comparing indie development to AAA. It's worth it since I've learned A LOT that I don't think I'd learned if I still worked with AAA. But it would probably be the other way around as well. Just as I can't say that it's better to work with indie, or the other way around.

If I know myself I will probably go back to AAA one day, then back to Indie, then back to AAA again, back and forth forever :)

The game looks excellent, I plan on buying it ASAP. I hope it's a huge success on Steam for you guys.

My question: Why did you guys choose badgers? What was your second choice/runner up?

Bonus question: What game are you guys developing next? Anything in the works?

Hi! Thank you very much! I hope you'll like it!

The only thing we were sure of in the early concept development was that we didn't want to create a player avatar that resembled other games, as well as we wanted an animal that was kind of low and fat, as it made the animation work much easier. I think our first prototype was an animal that more resembled a pig then a badger. Although we wanted it to feel more wild then domestic, so I gave the suggestion to make them badgers. Personally badgers have always been close to my heart. I remember when I was 7-9 years old my old elementary teacher gave all the children in my class a post card with an animal after each years graduation. Every year each children got a post card with a different animal, everyone except me who got a badger every year. This wasn't the reason we chosed badgers, but since it fit our profile so well we went with it.

I've also gained a lot of grey hair lately, so it fits me pretty well :)

Any chance of the game ever getting a multiplayer update? Maybe one team is trying to defend the cubs and another team is trying to catch them

The game needs a lot of rework if we want to create a multiplayer mode, so I'm afraid it's not in the pipeline at the moment. We want to focus on creating smaller games, but releasing them more frequent. And creating a single player game with a multiplayer mode is unfortunatly too much work for our small team at the moment. Although we have losely talked that we might want to create some kind of sequel in the future if people like Shelter, which might include (or focus on) multiplayer. So stay tuned and fingers crossed!

Proof?

I added proof to my original post minutes after I wrote it.