Here we are, back with another developer interview! This time with Al Cox
the creator of Snake Color Bump. Before we start we’d like to thank the Al Cox
Team for participating in our interview and for answering all of our geeky questions! Thanks!
…and without further ado, our interview begins…
The Interview
/// Thanks for taking the time to talk to us about Snake Color Bump! Could you kick-start this interview by telling us a little about your studio, yourself, and what drew you into the gaming industry?
I am a solo dev/digital nomad who enjoys playing and making mobile games. What draws me into the industry is learning the creative process from start to finish. Making games is always a whirlwind process that I feel I’m getting better at each day.
/// Ok, let’s start talking about Snake Color Bump. What are the highlights of your latest release?
A Colorful Snake must navigate a world full of dangerous objects where it can only Bump into objects of the same color. I made each level fun and filled with challenging obstacles that make you think quickly with each level slowly getting more difficult and complex over time.
/// What was the core idea or inspiration behind Snake Color Bump? And perhaps more importantly, where do you find inspiration for your games in general?
I find inspirations from playing other top mobile games. As was the case with this games, I look at popular game mechanics from multiple games and then take a step back to see if there’s any way I can combine older ideas to make a new idea that can stand alone.
Inspirations come directly from Rise Up, Color Bump, and Snake vs Color.
/// How long was Snake Color Bump in development for? And are there any interesting and/or exciting moments or experiences you would like to share with us from that time?
The game was in development for roughly 6 months and I worked on it in at least 4-5 different countries. During very productive weeks in Vietnam, I even started recording daily goals in order to help document my progress.
/// What software, developer-tools, or black-magic(?) did you use when making Snake Color Bump? Is there anything you would like to share with the developers who read Edamame Reviews?
I used a No-Code software called Buildbox (2D). While the software is limited in some areas the more you understand how to use it, the faster the development process can be from start to finish. My goal is to learn and make games quickly, Buildbox allows this for the simple types of games I would like to create.
/// Is there any secret “developer-advice” you can give our lucky players who read this interview?
In the process of developing Snake Color Bump, I would occasionally run into big bugs that I felt stuck on. What I would do is put that piece of the game on hold and continue working on other areas such as UI or animations. I found that by taking a break from the problematic area, it gave my mind time to rest and come up with an alternate solution.
/// What can we expect to see in Snake Color Bump or from Al Cox
in the not so distant future? What do we have to look forward to next?
More Levels and more games… Creating fun puzzle-like levels day after day was a lot of fun and while time-consuming is something I would definitely like to spend more time on.
/// Lastly, is there anything you would like to say to our awesome team of Writers, Developers, and Supporters who keep Edamame Reviews up and running?
It’s great to see Edamame committed to helping grow the indie game dev community by working with Writers, Dev, and Supporters. Making a game can be a lot of work and you feel like you’re the only one making a game sometimes. Edamame helps bring together and inspire a community of like-minded game enthusiasts and creators.
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