Wattam! Wow, we want Wattam. Why? Watch, watch:
One of the most anticipated games this year (and debuting at E3), it's from Keita Takahashi, the genius who brought us the zany classic Katamari Damacy, Robin Hunicke (who helped develop Journey and many other acclaimed titles), and their team at Funomena. I've known and admired Robin for roughly forever (she even did some consulting for Second Life when I was at Linden Lab), so I asked her to explain what fans of Second Life, Minecraft, and other virtual worlds will most like about Wattam:
"In Wattam," Robin tells me, "you can control all sorts of unique, interesting people - helping them work together to connect with each other, build great stacks, and explode with joy! A lot of the gameplay is about experimenting to see what happens when different people interact, and figuring out how they can achieve new heights together. So you're connecting and exploring, in a world that's ripe with possibilities. That core experience of connection and exploration is something that both games really nailed!
"But the real draw for me, " she adds, grinning, "is the characters. Keita's character designs are just super, hella cute." Which is definitely true.
For Playstation 4, at least to start, but hopefully Wattam wattles over to other platforms. And if you're still wondering what the what Wattam is, read more from Robin on the Funomena blog:
Wattam is an exploratory game, based primarily on the physical interactions between tiny simulated people and their gradually unfolding world. In that universe, Sushi and Poop can dance with Mushrooms and Flowers, as well as stack, grow, bounce, flip, and hold hands. Charming possibility is what the game is all about - which means that we're constantly discovering what Wattam can be as we build it. That discovery is a truly joyful experience. It's why we love making games.
The process of development is not without its frustrations. Building a strange, arty, creative game that encourages you to explore off the beaten path (while still providing you a clear path through its story and challenges) is no task for the timid! And I would be lying if I said that we weren't incredibly nervous to show Wattam to the press a few weeks ago. What if it's too different? What if people don't get it? What if ... there is no concrete way to say why it's fun?
So that clears that up! But like Katamari, we'll only really understand Wattam once we're wandering Wattam.
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