And of course I was there for the best bits – the discussion in the pub afterwards and the tipsy train ride home with some new pals!”Īn excellent summary of the opportunities events like Scottish Games Week can deliver to developers of all sizes, and a reminder that both Scotland, and ION LANDS, are primed for further success in the future.After moving to Nivalis due to owing Debtcorp too much, Rania takes a job with Cloudpunk, an underground delivery service where just making it through your first night is an accomplishment worth noting. The talent here is phenomenal and we need to get better at shouting about it. Seeing fellow developers in person was a real thrill, and it was very exciting to fumble my way through a few words on stage!”īeyond the awards, ION LANDS found a lot to love across Scottish Games Week in general. “We’ve been nominated for others in the past, but all those ceremonies were online due to the pandemic. “The awards really mean a lot.” said Welsh, on behalf of the ION LANDS team. What was surprising, however, as much to the developers themselves as anyone, was the fact that it won a total of three different awards an astonishing, and undoubtedly well-deserved, feat. With such a unique, resonant experience on offer, it’s no surprise that Cloudpunk was among the winners in the first Scottish Games Awards. “They like the mix of small, personal stories interspersed with big cyberpunk themes of transhumanism, AI and fighting the corporations, even when you have to fight them with your wits instead of with a gun.”
#CLOUDPUNK MAP ANDROID#
They like being a normal person in a cyberpunk world – not an android cop or a cyborg ninja or something.” Said Welsh. “Our fans seem to like the everyday version of cyberpunk city life. Unorthodox as it was, this decision has been a big hit with the game’s players. This focus on narrative was a key first step, but the real secret to Cloudpunk ’s success came with the developer’s choice of player character instead of opting for a traditional gun-toting hero or a hyper-skilled android hacker, ION LANDS chose to put the player into the well-worn shoes of a cyberpunk delivery driver, ironically keeping a game in which the player drives a flying car fairly grounded. “Gameplay wise, we loved the mix of storytelling and exploration in games like Firewatch, and of course the old Blade Runner point and click adventure by Westwood was an inspiration.” With the visuals sorted, ION LANDS worked to develop a unique gameplay identity for the game as well, starting with some of the greats. “We found our own style by combining voxels with particle effects, neon, cool banners and dynamic lighting.” “We knew the voxel style would make us stand out visually, but we had to distance ourselves from the voxel games that people were more familiar with.” said Welsh.
The team opted for a voxel art style for the game, a technique that makes use of 3D pixels to create visuals with the simplicity of retro graphics, and the depth of modern ones. This success is undoubtedly due to the game’s unique approach to the cyberpunk genre, both visually and mechanically.
We’re in Germany, Scotland, England, France, Canada – all over now!” “When Cloudpunk was in development, we were a really small team, but following the success of the game we’ve grown quite a bit.
#CLOUDPUNK MAP PC#
Despite their small size, they managed to pull together and release the game on what is a fairly quick time scale by game development standards the game was announced in 2018, and released on PC in April 2020, with console releases following in October of the same year. “We’re a scattered bunch of cyberpunk fans from around the world.” said Welsh, of the team. ION LANDS began as a very small team, driven mainly by their shared passion for the cyberpunk genre. We sat down with Cloudpunk’s Lead Writer Thomas Welsh, to discuss the game’s inspirations and the way in which fans have found enjoyment in a more everyday vision of a cyberpunk future. Today we’ll be looking at ION LANDS, the developer behind Cloudpunk, winner of not one, but three different awards: Art and Animation, Creativity, and Best Large-Budget Game. Now that Scottish Games Week is over, we want to give some special coverage to the worthy winners in the first-ever Scottish Games Awards.
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