Salutations denizens of the abyss!
I've been getting a lot of questions lately and I thought it’d be a good idea to put together a little Q&A today.
Q: When did the idea for this game first come to you?
A: Around 8 years ago, Relogic announced a new game called “Terraria Otherworld”. Being fifteen years old at the time, I was absolutely dying for it to come out- however, it was canceled. Ever since that day, I have dreamed of making a game that can incorporate a dynamic tower defense system. Many years later though, I would play RainWorld and Noita. I really wanted to see a version of Rainworld that was procedurally generated, and I wished Noita had focused more on just going deeper and deeper into the depths of the world. With these desires swirling in my head, I decided to make a game that would manifest the potential I saw in some of these ideas.
Q:It seems that ship-building is the most important mechanic in CleanFall now?
A:Originally, CleanFall was supposed to be labeled as a tower defense game, but the game grew in many ways, and that idea began to fade into the background. However, I think ship building really is just the logical conclusion to the tower defense mechanic I have always been obsessed with. The game has always been balanced around difficult tower defense sections and now ship building has really added another layer of depth for player freedom. That being said, I fully plan on expanding upon the other playstyles of the game during early access- I would say that ship building is always an option for those who want it, but not the most important mechanic.
Q:After the demo launched last year, one of the most common pieces of feedback was that the backpack felt too limited. How do you see that issue?
A: CleanFall’s inventory size has been very carefully balanced to encourage players to use their items. Often times, players can feel like they should save consumable items for when they really, really need them, resulting in players never using them at all. If your inventory is too full, it either means you are really good at the game, or you are saving your items too much. The backpack’s limited size is designed to make players feel good about using consumable items whenever they feel like it, that way they will have room for more items later. It’s also worth noting that the full game includes upgrade machines that enable skilled players to become very powerful without needing more inventory slots.
Q:The current tutorial focuses on basic controls but leaves out much of the survival mechanics and item or creature explanations, which seems to trip up new players. What’s the reasoning behind that design approach?
A:CleanFall brings back some of the more classical roguelike design principles seen in older titles like Spelunky, FTL, and Don’t Starve. The idea with this older design philosophy is that the player is always learning through their mistakes. Instead of relying on meta-progression upgrades (like in Hades, Wall World, or vampire survivors), CleanFall’s progression relies on the player learning and growing more skilled at the game. If the game were to explain how all the enemies, items, and niche mechanics work, it would water down the experience. CleanFall tells the story of how a feeble robotic maid outsmarts a murderous ecosystem and dominates the world through clever tricks. The fun part of CleanFall is discovering how to exploit the game and make it easy to win.
Q:With the upcoming Early Access launch, how would you describe the game’s difficulty level overall?
A:CleanFall’s difficulty is a very controversial topic. This is because the game is extremely knowledge-based. While the game appears to be insanely difficult at first, many of the users who have played more of the game report that the game is quite easy to beat. Overall, CleanFall is a game that requires the player to look at a problem and to come up with a solution to that problem. If a player keeps trying to beat the game by blasting everything like an arcade shooter, it will be an extremely difficult game indeed!
Q:Looking at the Early Access build, what are you most proud of so far?
A: Overall, I am most proud of the game’s world and atmosphere. While designing everything, I really wanted players to feel like they were encroaching upon a strange, hostile world. As I watch people play my game, I feel like I have been able to convey this feeling well.
Q:CleanFall features a Nightmare Mode, will there be any special achievements or ways for players to show off that accomplishment?
A:Down the line, I want to add Steam achievements to the game so that players can show off their accomplishments. Nightmare mode will be a true test of player’s skill, and I think earning the achievement for beating nightmare mode will be quite rare. Nightmare mode doesn’t just boost the enemies’ stats. It makes vending machine recipes cost strange items, it adds invasions to certain areas, and it adds brutal mechanics to well-known areas. The game assumes the player understands everything about the game, and it will require both careful planning and clean execution to beat. I can't wait to see what percentage of players beat Nightmare mode when it's ready.
Q:What can you share about your roadmap or future development plans?
A:The scope of CleanFall’s future heavily depends upon how well the game sells. However, I can definitively say CleanFall’s ending is... not underwhelming to say the least. Two years ago, my dad and I sat down and spent many hours properly laying out the game’s history, lore, and ending. We know what’s at the bottom of the world, and I am very excited to see everyone’s reactions to it. Beyond that, I am planning on expanding the Alchemy system, adding “sub-perk” machines to chapter 1, and developing the final chapter of CleanFall. I have all kinds of ideas for the future of the game, but I want to wait and see what the community thinks once they have sunk their teeth into the Early Access version of the game.
Thanks again for all the interest, feedback, and support so far. While I'm insanely nervous about launch, I'm super excited about what's coming next for CleanFall. The Early Access will drop in 48 hours, so feel free to help me spread the word!
Humanyoyo