“They kept trying to get us to pitch for the monstrous games they wanted.”
“[Google] didn’t like how game development tasted,” Schneider later adds.
Google acquired Typhoon in 2019 and placed it under their Stadia Games and Entertainment division.
When the team should have been celebrating their new release, they were instead drinking together over Zoom.
“It was pretty dark,” Hutchinson says.
The most obvious change being the switch from first-person to third-person.
Another big change is the scope.
Like, say, some carelessly placed fire from a friend in co-op.
“We wanted that sense of organic chaos,” Hutchinson says.
And that moment, if we can replicate that in 50 different ways, is a great experience."
You even share your ‘Crash Pad’ customisable base with a friend when they drop into your world.
This includes ‘co-op toilets’ that face each other.
That’s certainly some organic chaos right there.
Without getting my hands on it, I can’t tell if this makes for a better game yet.
So by the time you arrive on the planet, you’ve been made redundant."
“You’re still the fourth best, but now you’re the acquired fourth best.”
“The pitch became the fourth best bought by the first worst,” Hutchinson adds.
It’s not just Google’s poorly-timed layoffs that led to these kinds of sentiments within the team.
“They kept trying to get us to pitch for the monstrous games that they wanted.”
“They were very strange.”
Another request was that they make a game that 100 percent of people liked.
“No one was talking the same language… it was very difficult,” Hutchinson says.
“We would ask these questions, and we would get the confused puppy look,” Schneider adds.
Was there anything the team took from this experience?
“Money,” Hutchinson jokes.
“We want to make finishable, unique experiences that don’t outstay their welcome, you know.
However, Schneider clarifies that this doesn’t include things like micro-transactions.
Was it a successful exploration into the swamp this time, or did you both get blown up?
Revenge of the Savage Planet is not something that can only be made on the cloud.
However, I do think it stands out - it’s got charm.
This preview is based on a press trip to Montreal.
Racoon Logic provided flights and accommodation.
