VICTORY! Fist Of Awesome has been successfully Greenlit |
I first met Nicoll Hunt
at Margate's geekiest event, GEEK 2012, where he launched his first
game Fist Of Awesome to a very positive public. It has since reached
great success including being voted successfully onto the Steam
Marketplace by fans on Steam Greenlight in only seven days!
I recently spoke with
Nicoll about what it is like to be him, and to be such a huge
success!
Q: Who are you?
Introduce yourself, in your own words, to the readers.
A: Hi, I'm Nicoll Hunt,
I'm Scottish and I have a beard. I've been making games for around 15
years now, and depending who you ask I'm either the saviour of indie
games or everything that's wrong with them.
So, now we know where the slogan "Games For People With Beards" comes from...
So, now we know where the slogan "Games For People With Beards" comes from...
Q: Why did you want to
become part of the gaming industry, and how did you get to where you
are now?
A: I've always been
obsessed with computer games. When I was a kid I spent all my free
time playing on my ZX Spectrum working my way through every single
game I could get my hands on, usually via collections of
shadily-obtained 90 minute tapes.
I made a variety of
games in my teens on the Amiga, all terrible beyond words, and
eventually went to university to improve my programming skills. After
graduation I was lucky enough to get a job at Codemasters working on
the Colin McRae Rally games, and after working for a few more
companies over the next decade, eventually left professional games
development.
I missed making games
though so in my spare time I made a little iOS game called Hard
Lines. After its success I decided to start my own company, I Fight
Bears, to release my own indie games, the first title being FIST OF
AWESOME.
So, quite a successful creator of games, even before his Fist Of Awesome success. Speaking of which...
So, quite a successful creator of games, even before his Fist Of Awesome success. Speaking of which...
Q: What is Fist Of
Awesome, and why should we buy/play it?
A: It's a
time-travelling-lumberjack-em-up, heavily influenced by games like
Double Dragon, Streets of Rage and Final Fight. You should play it
because I desperately need to justify quitting my day job to make it.
Also, because it's utterly ace and you get to punch full grown
grizzly bears in the mouth.
Q: Why the retro theme
for the game?
A: Because I'm not very
good at drawing.
As you can see from his answers, Nicoll is just as much fun as his game is.
Q: What inspired Fist
Of Awesome?
A: The golden era of
beat-em-ups from the early 90s, Final Fight, etc. Also comedy sci-fi
shows like Red Dwarf.
And, utterly randomly, I am now going to inform the readers that Nicoll has made them some very special paper (or cardboard, if you so desire) toy cut-outs for you to make at home! Click the banner to download and print them for your general amusement and enjoyment.
And, utterly randomly, I am now going to inform the readers that Nicoll has made them some very special paper (or cardboard, if you so desire) toy cut-outs for you to make at home! Click the banner to download and print them for your general amusement and enjoyment.
Click this image to get 100% FREE paper toys of your favourite Fist Of Awesome characters! |
Q: Your Kickstarter
Campaign gained more than twice its goal for funding. How does this
make you feel, and how did the extra money effect the game?
A: Running the campaign
was a crazy experience. I honestly never thought anyone would pay
much attention to it, but the support I got was phenomenal. I'm
so incredibly grateful to everyone who backed the project. The
biggest outcome from the campaign was it gave me the courage to
dedicate more time to the project and eventually quit my day job. It
also enabled me to purchase a new development setup which has been an
incredible boost to my productivity.
Q: You are one of the
first developers in the world to work with the Ouya console, also the
result of a successful Kickstarter Campaign. How did this happen?
A: I was just in the
right place at the right time. Ouya announced they were
running a competition to give development kits to 10 developers who
could get their attention via Twitter. As I was in the middle of my
Kickstarter campaign I had 100s of people ready to help my cause, so
I called on them to retweet a little message to get Ouya's attention.
It worked and I was the first winner of the competition.
I am envious!
I am envious!
Q: What has it been
like working with the Ouya?
A: It's been a great
experience. It's a nice bit of kit and I have great hopes that it'll
become a natural home for indie developers looking to get their games
running on a big screen.
I've been lucky enough
to have the support of the Ouya team, with them even going as far as
using FIST OF AWESOME as part of their launch parties! That's
something I could have never have foreseen when I first asked people
to retweet a little message!
After only seven days on the Steam Greenlight system, the Steam Community voted that Fist Of Awesome become a fully-fledged Steam release. At this news, Nicoll modestly tweeted to his fans.
After only seven days on the Steam Greenlight system, the Steam Community voted that Fist Of Awesome become a fully-fledged Steam release. At this news, Nicoll modestly tweeted to his fans.
FIST OF AWESOME has been Greenlit after 7 days! No biggie. *Head explodes* pic.twitter.com/LHnuebOG88
— Nicoll Hunt (@nicollhunt) May 28, 2014
When I replied and asked about his Steam success he was very excited, and teased when I asked about the possibility of a follow-up game.Q: What does it feel like to be Greenlit? And in such a short space of time as well!
A: It feels good! I
thought it would take months, so 7 days was a huge (but very welcome)
surprise
Q: They say that "the
only way is up", so what now for you? Oo, perhaps a new game?..
A: Perhaps! I couldn't
possibly say though ;)
We at Indie Retro News are really pleased for Nicoll for his success and wish him many more years of success to come. If you have not got a copy of Fist Of Awesome yet, I have two things to say to you. Firstly: Why not? Secondly: Go get it! Visit the official website for more details.
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