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Studio Brainwash Gang released the pretty unique and rather different Friends vs Friends and Laika: Aged Through Blood together with Raw Fury and Headup Games respectively in the same year 2023, and here we talk with Edu Verz and Mohammed Bakir about the feedback from the community, the crazy ideas behind them, and what may come next.
"Alright, it wouldn't be a BIG Conference in Bilbao without talking with the guys over at Brainwash Gang.
So I'm really pleased to be joined by both Mohammed and Edu to talk a little bit about Laika and about Friends vs Friends.
We knew about Friends, we sort of know about Laika, we have reviewed the game."
"So first of all, about Laika, what's the main feedback you got from the players and from the press that already played the game?
In terms of players, there was some sort of awareness about the mechanics, like the basic movement, right?
Because it's not like the usual game for a 2D side-scroller, so we were super scared about that.
But, you know, at the end it's just like these old flash games or mobile games, so people really get the feeling of spinning and stuff like that."
"So yeah, it's not bad. For the press, it went super nice. Only Game Reactor said it's bad. No, just kidding. It's just a good review at the end.
So yeah, I don't know. We just try our best and people just find it interesting somehow.
How did the concept of Motorvania come up when you guys started conceptualizing this game?
So it's a really, really cheap movement in terms of marketing, right?
If you mix two words and it sounds funny, and we were trying to pitch it to a publisher, and they were just thinking, like, this is super stupid, right?
And they were like, holy shit, this is the key word, right? So at the end it worked out. People find it descriptive or something like that, and that's all."
"Just trying to explain the game easily.
Okay, and final one about Laika. The only criticism I can remember about the Game Reactor review was about the balance and the way you had to use this currency to buy more...
It had a slight Souls touch to it. So what can you say about that and about potential new content or something coming for the game in the near future?
Yeah, about balance. It was a freestyle. We didn't have any sort of clue about how to make that thingy."
"So if people find it cool, it's a fucking miracle.
It's about new content. It's everything in the air. It's spinning. Funny joke about motorbike. So we will see. It will depend on the sales and money that the publisher wants to spend on it.
Big greetings to the publisher, HEDAP. Hope you are doing great. And that's all.
That's HEDAP and that's 2D. But previously you guys released Friends vs. Friends, which is 3D, and was, if I'm correct, with Raw Fury."
"Yes.
So the game has been out for several months already. So I'm gonna ask you about the same, about the feedback. And I think you will give me a better answer for what's coming next.
Well, we already have a next thing apart from the game, which are the DLCs. The DLCs are including new content.
And we expect the game to keep growing, to keep attracting the community, to keep the current community in the game, and hopefully also improve the game with the feedback we also received from the community itself."
"One of the things that Friends vs. Friends has been successful at is keeping a strong feedback from the community. We started working on what they were asking us for.
Not just new content, but also how to improve the game, how to improve the game flux, and the way people play with other people, like in groups, not only with your own friend, or the matchmaking.
And about what you say, about those ways, about what people do with the game. It's a first-person shooter with crazy stuff, sort of cel-shading graphics, and cards, and crazy transformations. What would you say, so far, is the thing people like doing the most in Friends vs. Friends?
Well, the game, at first, the main idea, the pitch, is that each game, each round, is like a story, a funny story. Like, when you play and have to describe a game with another friend, you say, he used the titan card, and then I used the big head, and I shoot him with a sniper. Like, every match is special in Friends vs. Friends, and that's the beautiful thing about the game. Like, if you are looking for a competitive game, you may not be looking at the right place, but if you are looking for a fun game, that crazy stuff happens all the time, it's what happens in Friends vs. Friends, and what I think keeps the players."
"And finally, same as I asked Edu, you guys released some content already, what's the roadmap ahead? Is there more coming, or you call it a day?
There is a roadmap, there is more coming, what we are working now is, like, the closest thing is new content for Christmas, as well as, well, future content for the game. Like, I can't say more about the current plans, but there is future for the game, and the game will keep alive.
Alright, Friends vs. Friends vs. Santa, probably. So, thank you so much for your time, guys. I'm really looking forward to playing Laika, I'm very sorry I haven't tossed it yet, but good luck with both projects and whatever comes next. See you here in a year, because this is a tradition already, guys."
