Now that Majesco and WayForward Technologies have finally managed to revive the mostly forgotten Nintendo Entertainment System adventure A Boy and His Blob for Nintendo's Wii in a way befitting the potential of the characters, there's a press push in progress to get the word out about the new game. To that end, WayForward's Sean Velasco recently sat down with Nintendo's UK division to discuss the development process behind the game with a special emphasis on bringing legacy material into the new adventure, bringing the Blob to life, and animating the experience that brings the characters to life.
We had to nail down the blob’s role as the boy’s faithful companion. He’s a bit like a dog, but it’s important to understand that he’s also an intelligent alien being. Art-wise, getting the blob’s actions across was a challenge considering we had only eyes and a gooey form to work with. We had a detailed style guide, which is a sort of cheat sheet of do’s and don’ts when drawing and animating the blob. With these materials, the blob’s whimsical nature came through in all of his actions and animations
I can’t stress enough that the programming of the blob was also a large factor in his personality. Lead gameplay programmer Larry Holdaway has a real knack for details in the blob’s AI. Larry would put in touches that no one might ever notice; but when I would see the blob running from danger or chasing down butterflies when he got bored, I knew he had crafted quite a character.
A Boy and His Blob really is a charming little game that deserves some success. You can't go wrong with a characters that are this adorable who interact with a Hug button, and the Blob really does seem alive in the way that he moves, reacts, and explores. Majesco and WayForward have created something really special, so don't let it pass you by. I've been playing it for the last few weeks in little bursts and have enjoyed every bit of it.
