Introduced a couple of days ago when the game launched in North America and Southeast Asia, Undead Slayer hit the news in China this week after making a strong debut in the iTunes chart.
At its highest, the action RPG game was ranked at 5th, while it continues to hover around the 10th spot for gross revenue. This is really impressive as the game is free to download and play, with micro-transactions. The English version can be found for iOS and Android in the links below.
A China media outlet interviewed the 1-man team of Korean developer Hidea, which is translated below. Hidea only consists of Dong-kyu Kim (below, left), and the studio was only founded last year (2012).
Q: Is it true that Undead Slayer was completed by just 1 man, without outsourcing any part to a 3rd party?
A: Everything is handled by me, without any outsourcing. The background music for Undead Slayer is made up of music and sound effects bought online, mixed with free ones. When there isn’t a music I can find for certain parts, I recorded the sound effects myself. After signing the deal with publisher NHN Hangame, the music and sound effects were then further improved and edited to improve the quality. I didn’t thought of completing this game alone, but somehow it just happened.
Q: Does it mean you are experienced in all aspects of game development?
A: I started out as an art designer, and like most developers wanted to make my own game. I picked up programming and server knowledge on the go while developing Undead Slayer. I had some experience working in small and medium-sized game studios, and this helped me immensely. Undead Slayer is built using C#, and completed with Unity Engine.
Q: Why choose action RPG as the genre?
A: First off, I wanted to make a game which I can be satisfied with. And I also felt that Undead Slayer is a game which can easily be developed. It was also a period where there wasn’t many new action RPGs. For gamers who want to try some fast=paced combat, Undead Slayer should be quite a good game. Although the game might not be perfect in all aspects, I did my best to complete production.
Q: The main character, Xiahou Dun, has some wrestling and grappling moves. Why is that so?
A: It is a personal thing, I used to play games featuring Hulk Hogan. Such moves stand out more considering the standard ones found in other action RPGs. I wanted to implement a system to target and damage enemies’ joints, but it didn’t happen.
Q: Which stats are the most important?
A: Critical rate. Even the best weapons are nothing without significant investment in this stat. Evasion is working better than intended as well. Increasing maximum SP will help in the long run for players to cast more skills simultaneously.
Q: Any plans to add further content into the game?
A: The game content for Undead Slayer has not yet finished (there are 90 stages now), and I am thinking in several directions, including multi-player.
Q: What about your next title? Will it be a 1-man job as well?
A: There are many types of games I want to make, just because I love the whole process of it. If Undead Slayer gets a good response and there are requests for a sequel to be made, I will do so. If not, I will then try to make games of other genre, including the currently stale dating-simulation or racing genres. These will all be first experiences for me, and I will find joy from the process despite the potential hardships. I am not restricting to just a 1-man team, but if a suitable partner is found, we can make the games together.
