Imali smo priliku razgovarati sa Federicom Casaresom, osnivačem Rhombico Gamesa koji je u 2016. godini samostalno pokrenuo svoj prvi projekt sa svrhom učenja kako razvijati igre pomoću Unity Enginea. Prva igra koju je ovaj studio izdao je Winds of Trade, koja je izašla u veljači 2017. godine. Od tada je studio imao mnogo uspona i padova, od promjene imena do privlačenja pažnje poznatih izdavača. Sa svojim drugim naslovom Automachef rade veliki iskorak gdje ih pod svoju palicu preuzima izdavač Team17 Digital Ltd kako bi uspješno izdali spomenutu igru. Automachef je resource management puzzler, a izdan je 2019. godine. Tri godine kasnije izdaju Power to the People, city-builder management naslov koji je nominiran za nagradu Spilprisen u kategoriji „Najbolji dizajn igre“. Trenutno rade na jednoj zanimljivoj igri Break, Enter, Repeat! koja je u ranoj fazi razvoja i koja će povezivati više žanrova odjednom.

S vremena na vrijeme otkriju nešto novo o njihovoj igri na Twitteru, gdje objavljuju kratke video isječke kako bi pokazali što nam to točno spremaju. Osim što razvijaju igre, razvijaju i VR i AR aplikacije, te pomažu oko dizajna i razvoja igara. Više o tome možete saznati na njihovoj službenoj web stranici. Rhombico Games je poznat kao studio sa strašću za strateške igre i igre upravljanjem resursima, Break, Enter, Repeat! bit će novi izazov za ovako jedan uspješan indie studio.

Možete li, molim Vas, predstaviti Rhombico Games?

Naravno. Rhombico Games je stvarno mali studio za indie igre sa sjedištem u šarmantnom gradu Vejleu u Danskoj. Prije smo se zvali „Hermes Interactive“, ali smo promijenili ime prije skoro godinu dana. Do sada smo izdali tri igre: Winds Of Trade 2017., Automachef 2019. i Power to the People 2022. godine.

Zašto ste odlučili promijeniti svoje ime iz Hermes Interactive u Rhombico Games?

Recimo samo da smo bili pod pritiskom velike multinacionalne kompanije koja ima mnogo više odvjetnika od nas da promijenimo ime. Ali i dalje mislim da je to bila savršena prilika za pronalaženje boljeg imena (i onog koje je bolje usklađeno s vrstom igara za koje smo strastveni), te koherentnijeg i bolje planiranog vizualnog identiteta. Tako da se na kraju isplatilo i ja sam oduševljen rezultatom.

Break, Enter, Repeat! je igra koju trenutno razvijate i to je ukupno Vaša četvrta igra. Osjećate li se sada iskusno nakon što ste u industriji igara od 2017. godine i jeste li zadovoljni kako je prošla prodaja ostalih igara?

Mislim da je to bilo prekrasno iskustvo učenja tijekom ovih šest godina otkako je Winds Of Trade izašao. Učenje nikada ne prestaje i nakon svakog izdanja osjećam se kao da imam cijeli niz novih znanja i alata koje mogu koristiti za izradu još boljih i većih igara. Prethodne igre prodavale su se dovoljno dobro i omogućile su mi da nastavim raditi ono što najviše volim.

Koji su neki jedinstveni aspekti vaših igara?

Volimo staviti fokus na igre koje imaju jedinstvenu mehaniku i koje imaju određenu razinu tehničke složenosti u sebi. Jedan dobar primjer za to su programibilna računala u Automachef, gdje igrači mogu pisati kod na jeziku koji je sličan Assemblyjuu kako bi kontrolirali svoje kuhinjske strojeve. Power to the People također je dosta tehnički zahtjevan jer se bavi nekim složenim aspektima s kojima se električne mreže suočavaju u stvarnom životu, kao što su gubici u prijenosu u električnim vodovima.

Kakva je igra Break, Enter, Repeat!? Možete li ju nam ukratko predstaviti?

Da budem potpuno iskren, još uvijek pokušavamo shvatiti kakva je to igra. Ali bit je sljedeća: to je igra o pljačkama, ali s jakim fokusom na upravljanje resursima i strategiju, umjesto na brzu akciju. Odabir vašeg tima, kupnja odgovarajuće opreme, učinkovita procjena predmeta i nadzor vaše mete bit će ključni elementi igre, umjesto savršenog tempiranja skokova kako biste izbjegli lasere ili pritiskanja sekvenci gumbova za penjanje po zidovima.

Koja je ideja iza grafike igre? Izgleda minimalistički, ali je stvarno privlačna.

Dokazalo se da je ova minimalistička, šarena i low-poly estetika jedan od potpisnih poteza našeg studija, kao što možete vidjeti u Automachefu i Power to the Peopleu. Dakle, držimo se onoga što znamo i volimo!

U igri postoji uređivač razina (level editor), jeste li to nešto što ste vi napravili i kako će ga igrači moći koristiti?

Uređivač razina trenutno je u razvoju i zapravo smo odlučili početi tamo umjesto kodiranja stvarne igre. To je sjajan način da postavite sve osnove, tako da će razvoj prototipa same igre biti lakši. I da, u potpunosti planiramo dopustiti igračima da kreiraju vlastite razine i zatim ih dijele sa zajednicom, na primjer putem Steam Workshopa.

Koji engine radi iza Break, Enter, Repeat!?

To je Unity, isti engine koji smo koristili za sve naše prethodne naslove.

Je li igra inspirirana drugim naslovima? Recite nam kojima i zašto? Po našem mišljenju, možemo vidjeti neke sličnosti sa Simsom.

Definitivno crpimo neku inspiraciju iz Simsa, barem kada je riječ o perspektivi koju će igrači koristiti za interakciju sa svijetom. Drugi izvori inspiracije uključuju njemačku igru iz 90-ih pod nazivom Der Clou! (igra o provalama), Sid Meier’s Pirates! (glavna petlja igre) i Sea Rogue (neke od mehanika igre).

Hoće li se uskoro otvoriti Steam store stranica za Break, Enter, Repeat!?

Moglo bi potrajati nekoliko mjeseci, ali stići će tamo kada budemo imali još nekoliko stvari za pokazati i identitet igre se još malo sredi. U ovom trenutku nismo sigurni ni kakvo će okruženje držati igri i koji će biti njezin konačni izgled.

 Koliko dugo razvijate igru i gdje se trenutno nalazi?

Trenutno je igra u vrlo ranoj fazi. Započeli smo s izradom prototipa nekoliko stvari u Unityju tek prije otprilike mjesec dana, čak iako je proces dizajna u tijeku već vjerojatno cijelu godinu.

Koje su neke od ključnih mehanika igranja s kojima se igrači mogu susresti u vašoj igri i kako one rade zajedno kako bi stvorile uvjerljivo iskustvo?

Trenutno ne možemo previše odati… No, spomenut ću nekoliko kako biste vama i vašim čitateljima dali točniju sliku o tome što očekivati:

• Jedinstvena mehanika igre za procjenu koja dodaje dublji sloj samoj igri: igrači će morati usavršiti vještine svog lika kako bi točno odredili cijenu predmeta prije nego što ih prodaju (je li ovo samo stari šešir ili je to šešir Abrahama Lincolna?!)
• Bez uvjeta poraza: igrači mogu nastaviti pljačkati dok se ne povuku ili umirove. Međutim, odlazak u zatvor ili skrivanje od policije koštat će dragocjeno vrijeme
• Značajke igre uključuju odabir mete, prikupljanje obavještajnih podataka, planiranje pljačke, njezino izvršenje i konačno procjenu i ograđivanje robe.

Uglavnom koristite Twitter da nam pokažete neke kratke informacije o vašoj igri, koliko je važno za male indie studije da koriste društvene medije?

Mislim da su danas društveni mediji definitivno najmoćniji alat koji indie programeri imaju kako bi utjecali i bili primijećeni. S dovoljno visokokvalitetnog sadržaja i čestim objavljivanjem moguće je privući pozornost i bazu obožavatelja bez trošenja i jednog dolara na oglase. Međutim, to može biti vrlo dugotrajno, stoga je ipak važno pronaći ravnotežu kako se razvoj ne bi odgađao unedogled. Čini se da trenutni trend pokazuje da je video u kratkom formatu najvažniji kanal (kao što su Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts i tako dalje).

Ovim putem želim se zahvaliti Federicu na izdvojenom vremenu, a mi ćemo, naravno, s velikim iščekivanjem pratiti ovaj naslov.

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[GG Interview]: Rhombico Games – a successful indie studio developing interesting title Break, Enter, Repeat! (English Version)

We had the opportunity to speak with Federico Casares, the founder of Rhombico Games, who in 2016 independently launched his first project with the aim of learning how to develop games using the Unity Engine. The first game they released was Winds of Trade in February 2017, and since then the studio had many ups and downs, from changing names to attracting the attention of big-name publishers. With their second title, Automachef, they made a big step forward, where the publisher Team17 Digital Ltd took them under their belt in order to successfully release the mentioned game. Automachef is a resource management puzzler, released in 2019. Three years later, they released Power to the People, a city-builder management title that was nominated for the Spilprisen awards in the “Best Game Design” category. They are currently working on an interesting game called Break, Enter, Repeat! which is in the early stages of development and will combine many other genres.

Every now and then they reveal something new about their game on Twitter, where they post short video clips to show us exactly what they have in store. In addition to developing games, they also develop VR and AR applications, and help with game design and development. You can find out more about it on their official website. Rhombico Games is known as a studio with a passion for strategy and resource management games, and Break, Enter, Repeat! will be a new challenge for such a successful indie studio.

Could you please introduce Rhombico Games?

Of course. Rhombico Games is a really small indie games studio based in the charming city of Vejle, Denmark. We used to be called “Hermes Interactive”, but changed our name almost a year ago now. We have released three games so far: “Winds Of Trade” in 2017, “Automachef” in 2019 and “Power to the People” in 2022.

Why did you decide to change your name from Hermes Interactive to Rhombico Games?

Let’s just say we were pressured to change our name by a big multinational company that has way more lawyers than we do. But I still think it was a perfect opportunity to find a better name (and one that is better aligned with the kind of games we are passionate about), and a more coherent and well-planned visual identity. So, in the end, it paid off, and I’m thrilled with the result.

Break, Enter, Repeat! is the game you’re currently developing and it’s your fourth game in total. Do you feel experienced now after being in the game industry since 2017 and are you satisfied with how the sales of other games went? 

I think it has been a wonderful learning experience during these 6 years since Winds Of Trade came out. The learning never stops, and after every release I feel I have a whole array of new knowledge and tools to use to make even better and bigger games. The previous games sold well enough, and allowed me to keep doing what I love doing the most.

What are some unique aspects of your games? 

We like to put the focus on games that have unique game mechanics and that have some level of technical complexity in them. One good example of this are the programmable computers in “Automachef”, where players can write code (in an Assembly-like language) in the game to control their kitchen machines. “Power to the People” is also quite technical, as it deals with some of the complex aspects that power grids face in real life, such as transmission losses in power lines.

What kind of game is Break, Enter, Repeat!? Could you briefly introduce it to us?

To be perfectly honest, that is still an ongoing process, so, in a way, we are still figuring out what kind of game it is. But the essence of it is the following: it’s a game about heists, but with a strong focus on resource management and strategy, instead of fast-paced action. Choosing your team, buying the correct gear, appraising items effectively, and doing surveillance of your target will be the core elements of the game, instead of timing your jumps to avoid lasers or pressing button sequences to climb walls.

What’s the idea behind the graphics of the game? It looks minimalistic but it’s really appealing. 

By now it seems that this minimalistic, colourful and low-poly aesthetic is one of the signature moves of our studio, as you can see in “Automachef” and “Power to the People”. So, we are sticking to what we know and we love!

There is a level editor in the game, is this something you’ve created and how will the players be able to use it?

The level editor is currently being developed, and we actually decided to start there instead of coding the actual game. It’s a great way to get all the basics in place, so then developing a prototype of the game itself will be easier. And yes, we fully plan to allow players to create their own levels and then share them with the community, for example through the Steam Workshop.

Which game engine is running behind the Break, Enter, Repeat!?

It’s Unity, which is the same engine we’ve used for all of our previous titles.

Did you get inspired by other titles? Tell us which one and why? In our view, we can see some resemblance with Sims.

We are definitely drawing some inspiration from “The Sims”, at least when it comes to the perspective that players will use to interact with the world. Other sources of inspiration include a German game from the 90s called “Der Clou!” (gameplay about burglaries), “Sid Meier’s Pirates!” (main game loop) and “Sea Rogue” (some of the game mechanics).

Will there be a Steam store page soon for Break, Enter, Repeat!?

It might take a couple of months, but it will get there once we have a few more things to show and the game’s identity settles a bit more. At this point we’re not even sure of what the game’s setting is going to be!

How long have you been developing the game and where does it currently stand? 

Right now the game is in a very early stage. We’ve only started prototyping a thing or two in Unity around a month ago, even if the design process has been ongoing for probably an entire year now.

What are some of the key gameplay mechanics that players can expect to encounter in your game, and how do they work together to create a compelling experience?

We cannot give too much away at the moment… But I will mention a few to give you and your readers a more accurate idea of what to expect!

• A unique appraisal game mechanic that adds an extra layer of depth: players will need to hone their character’s skills to accurately price items before they sell them (is this just an old hat or is it Abraham Lincoln’s hat?!).
• No defeat condition: players can keep going until they retire. However, going to prison or laying low will cost valuable time.
• The game loop comprises selecting a target, gathering intelligence, planning the heist, executing it, and finally appraising and fencing the goods.

You’re mainly using Twitter to show us some sneak peeks about your game, how important is it for small indie studios to use social media?

I think that nowadays, social media is definitely the most powerful tool that indie developers have in order to make an impact and get themselves noticed. With enough high quality content and posting frequently, it’s perfectly possible to get attention and a fan base without spending a single dollar on ads. However, it can be very time-consuming to do so, so it’s still important to find a balance, so as not to delay development indefinitely. The current trend seems to point in the direction of short format video being the most important channel (such as Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and so on)

I would like to thank Federico for his time, and we will, of course, follow this title with great anticipation.