Introducing Coconut Dodge

Hi Folks!

My name is James Marsden and I’m the Managing Director of FuturLab, an independent development studio based in Brighton, UK.

Over the next few weeks I am going to be sharing our story about how a bunch of ambitious Flash developers became licensed to make games for PlayStation, and how we’ve made the move from Flash to PSP!

First of all, let me give you an overview of our upcoming PSP and PS3 minis game, Coconut Dodge, due for exclusive release on PlayStation Store in May.

GAME PLAY

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Coconut Dodge is a hypnotically addictive arcade game in which a player must dodge falling coconuts, weave through airborne mazes and play beach ball keepy-uppy to collect giant shiny treasures. As you can see from the video, the game starts quite easy and gradually ramps up to insane levels of coco-bullet action!

RACE MECHANICS

What makes the game so addictive is the combination of the predictable mazes and the random coconuts and beach balls. It makes the experience similar to a racing game, where the first few attempts at a new track are difficult, but once you’ve learnt the track, you can hone your movements to perfection whilst confidently dealing with the other cars.

Coconut Dodge works in a similar way as you learn to memorise and master the mazes. Before long you’re proudly keeping several beach balls in the air whilst elegantly weaving through a hailstorm of coconuts :)

HARDCORE

Most of the mazes in the game have two different routes; one that is nice and easy, and one that is more difficult. The difficult route always has more valuable treasure in it ;)

So, when you come across a maze you can get through it quite easily, which makes the game suitable for some quick casual fun on the bus. However, to get the most treasure and a high score, you have to learn some pretty complex movements that require good rhythm and very high precision.

Coconut Dodge can therefore be played casually, but don’t let the simplicity and cute artwork style stop you there — this little crab is hardcore!

MAZE MASTER
We have provided another game mode called Maze Master. Maze Master lets you play each of the trickier mazes over and over until you’ve mastered them. You can then return to the main game to test out your skills for the high score!

MUSIC
An overview of Coconut Dodge wouldn’t be complete without giving mention to the music. We believe game music should be just as addictive as the games themselves. As such, we guarantee you’ll be whistling the Coconut Dodge theme tune for months to come :)

That’s it for my first post, stay tuned for my next article, where I will reveal how we captured Sony’s imagination without any game industry experience, and became licensed to make games for PSP and PS3!

Hint: you can do it by just having good ideas!

Thanks,

James