Casey's Contraptions, a game from Snappy Touch and Mystery Coconut, is finally being released on May 19th. Check out the trailer: Subscribe to the TouchArcade YouTube channel It includes more than 70 levels in which you help Casey create crazy contraptions with toys and everyday items, and solve puzzles and playtime scenarios. You can share your solutions with your Game Center friends, and even replay theirs. As you unlock items through the game (slingshots, RC trucks, darts, ropes, magnets, balloons, trapdoors, punching gloves, and more), you can use them to create your own contraptions in the built-in editor, and challenge your friends by email to solve them. Join our mailing list or the game's Facebook page and be notified on the 19th: http://www.caseyscontraptions.com/
So we haven't announced a price yet, you will have to wait a bit for that And yes, initially it's iPad only. We are already working on an iPhone/iPod Touch version, although no date has been set for that just yet. Don't worry though, it's coming ASAP for sure.
I played this at GDC this year; it's quite well done for sure. The artwork is really responsive and I'm sure he's refined the gameplay even more since. I'm sure it'll be a big hit for the TA audience; can't wait to download
Pricing Whatever price you set will be great, but you should definitely follow the strategy that 2D Boy did with World of Goo. Make the iPad version Universal and release a separate, only for iPhone/iPod touch version for a little cheaper.
We're debating right now the iPhone strategy. We're definitely going to have an iPhone/iPod Touch version as a separate app for many reasons (the experience is going to be quite different, we'll have to change the UI quite a bit, and the price will be lower). But the question still remains whether to leave the iPad version as iPad only or make it universal. Both options are very tempting. I'm sure as a player who's already bought the iPad version, you'd rather get it on the iPhone for free. On the other hand, an iPhone + a universal app would be confusing to a lot of people (not very iPhone savvy) when they do a search. They may accidentally buy one when they meant to get the other one. We're also considering making the iPhone one very cheap, so it wouldn't break the bank to buy it again if you wanted it on the iPhone. Any arguments for or against from you guys? In the ideal world, I'd love to have two separate versions, but send a free iPhone version to anybody who bought the iPad one in the first month
Will the iPhone version have a level editor? That's the single biggest draw for me, but the other topic seems to suggest it won't be included... if this is the case I might have to stick with TinkerBox.
Right now the plan is not having the level editor on the iPhone version. The screen is so small that it would be very annoying to select and place all those items. But who knows, maybe we'll find a way to make it feel better and we can include it in the end. On the plus side, you'll definitely be able to play levels created on the iPad.
Casey's Contraptions is launching this coming Thursday on the iPad! So while we wait, here's some juicy details. The game will have 3 different locations: The Classroom, The Backyard, and the Bedroom. You access them by tapping on the comic books on the main menu. Some locations are initially locked, but you unlock them by getting stars by playing levels. The Classroom is the tutorial location, and has 8 levels. The other two locations have 32 levels each, for a total of 72 levels. Don't expect to breeze through them either! In each level you need to accomplish a different goal: popping a balloon, putting a item in a basket, moving some objects to a particular location, etc. But each level also has 3 stars, that you can collect by having any item touch them. Just achieving the goal is not too hard, but if you want to get 3 stars, get ready to do some work One more cool feature. See how the levels are arranged in rows like that? Most levels are initially locked, but you unlock them one row at a time (4 levels). To unlock the next row, you need to complete 3 out of the 4 levels in the previous row. That way, if you're stuck and out of ideas in a level, you can always move on. As you can see in the screenshot above, the bluish thumnails are unlocked, but not completed levels. Whenever you complete it, you get the full color thumbnail, and with star stickers depending on the amount of stars you've collected. [Edit: Updated the images. Apparently TweetPic didn't work for direct links]
We haven't announced pricing yet. Let me check with the marketing department.... Just kidding We're two indie guys so we can do whatever we want. We don't have a marketing department. Heck, we barely have pants! So in that spirit, I'm going to break the news right now: The release price will be $2.99 in the US. There you go
I have met Noel and Miguel in person and I can confirm, much to my own personal horror, that they do indeed barely have pants.
The pant situation also explains why the San Diego iOS meetup is not happening at Karl Strauss' anymore and is alternating between two locations these days. Thx for $2.99, instant buy!!
We in Washington are proud to wear our Utilikilts anywayÂ… http://www.utilikilts.com/customer/photo-gallery/
You guys can discuss pants all you want, but I am NOT posting a picture of me Instead, I'll post some pictures about what I think is one of the coolest parts of the game: Solution sharing. Here's an early level from Casey's Contraptions: Every level has different goals, so it's important to pay attention to what Casey explains at the beginning of each level. So I go ahead and I solve it, and this is the level completed screen: (Yeah, yeah, I only got 2 stars. So sue me, I'm doing this for your benefit so give me a break ) Notice those images along the bottom? Those are the most recent solutions shared from your friends. They come up automatically, every time you finish a level (you need to be logged in to Game Center). The one with the little badge of Casey on it, is a solution by Casey (he appears as a friend to everybody). You can tap on the thumbnail to see it, and you can even play it back to see how it really was solved. And if you want to see more than the last 3 solutions, just tap on the See More button and you can browse all of your friends solutions. Here's a different solution from one of my friends. As you can see, it's totally different from Casey's solution. And along the bottom, you can also see your own solutions that you shared in the past. There's no single, right solution, and that's what makes it so fun. Anything is valid. Just use your brain and come up with a solution. Of course, the crazier and cooler it is, the more fun it is to show it off to your friends