08 Dec Asterix & Obelix: Slap Them All! 2 | Dev Diary | Mr Nutz Studio & Microids
Pierre Adane - Game Director & Lead Programmer
One of our biggest challenges, what we really wanted, was to keep the simplicity of the first, while adding more subtleties, more depth in some of the gameplay mechanics.
The other important area where we wanted to make big changes was the whole narrative dimension. We really wanted to have a very intuitive, arcade-style game, while at the same time, throughout the game, telling a story.
Mickael Pratali - Lead Game Designer & Lead Level Designer
In other words, in each level, we really wanted to create events and have the characters follow the story, for there to be more than just a line of dialogue at the end of a mission. As players progress through the levels, there’s lots going on: Romans arriving; conversations between characters; things happening here and there.
Pierre Adane: The story isn’t a continuation of the first. The storylines in the first and second games stand on their own.
Mickael Pratali: We immediately decided on a beat ’em up because we felt it was the best fit for the franchise: in Asterix & Obelix, there are obviously all the fights with hordes of Romans; it gets really frantic, so the clear choice was an old-school beat ’em up.
Pierre Adane: We worked hard to make it like an outlet, to have really exciting gameplay where players can let off steam. There are also many improvements in terms of the gameplay.
Mickael Pratali: There are now heavy blows that can be “charged up”. Players can switch to Fury mode, launch an Ultimate attack and pick up barrels dotted around the levels to throw them at enemies or hit them.
It was very important for us to remain as faithful as possible to the comics.
Pierre Adane: There’s a two-player local co-op feature in the game with Asterix and Obelix. It was very important for us to remain as faithful as possible to the comics. So, in the early stages, we looked at how we could correctly transpose the comic book art, the paper medium, etc., onto the screen. A lot of work was done by our artistic director, Philippe Dessoly, who focused on the visual styles we would have.
Mickael Pratali: We collaborated closely with the publisher, Éditions Albert René, to get as close as possible to this style.
Pierre Adane: It’s interesting to note that the techniques used are those used in animation. We had many discussions with the rights holders of Asterix and Obelix. Each detail was important to us and this allowed us to be extremely faithful to the comic book; it was an extremely rewarding experience. We have a really beautiful game, which adds value to the franchise. I think that all fans of Asterix and Obelix will feel a connection with the game.
Mickael Pratali: We were able to work directly with the voice actors from the Asterix and Obelix animated movies, who make the game come to life. It really feels like watching a cartoon. Fans will be delighted to hear the voices they are familiar with from the movies. This is a passion project for me because I’m a huge fan of arcade games, especially beat’em ups! When fans think of the franchise, they often think of the beat’em ups by Konami that people used to play in video game arcades back in the day. The prospect of taking this style and making something more modern with it was really exciting.
Pierre Adane: We had loads of fun developing it!
Team Microids
With a keen eye and quick reflexes, the MICROIDS Team is ready to guide you through the craziest virtual worlds !
