Next Level, Nintendo talk Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon content they struggled with, would change, sequel interest
A portion of a Pixelvolt interview with Bryce Holliday (Game Director, Next Level Games), Yoshihito Ikebata (Supervisor, Nintendo), and Ryuichi Nakada (Supervisor, Nintendo)...
Pixelvolt: Were there any development decisions over which there was great deliberation?
Bryce: Of course! Collaboration is a key to developing such a large product, and with collaboration, there will have to be compromises. Some of these compromises (especially the subjective ones) can continue to irk you months after the game is released. For example, I still wish our basic ghost enemies spent more time invisible while stalking Luigi (similar to how the sneaker ghost behaves). I love how the ghost behavior ended up, but often wonder what it would feel like to explore around the mansion being trailed by invisible entities.
I am sure each member of the team has their own list of things they would improve, but we are extremely proud of how the whole package was received by the fans.
Ikebata: We took a lot of time and experimented with various patterns for the method of controlling Luigi. We also tried one that uses the touch screen, but ultimately, we settled on the method that was implemented into the production version of the game. That increased the number of buttons to use, but I think it became a method that you can get used to quickly while playing.
Pixelvolt: Looking back on the game, is there anything you would change?
Bryce: Personally, I thought the humanoid ghosts of the original Luigi’s Mansion were really lacking in fun and in cool factor. During early discussions, I shied away from championing designs I thought would lead us in that direction. When Dark Moon was reviewed, fans of the original were left wanting the gameplay loop (invulnerable ghosts whose puzzle must be overcome to make it vulnerable) these humanoid ghosts offered. In retrospect, I felt we should have had more puzzle enemies and less environmental puzzles.
Ikebata: We’ve received many reactions from people that are playing. Among them are some for which I honestly thought “we should have done this”, but we can’t do anything about it after the fact. We can only hold onto those ideas firmly and connect them to the next one.
Pixelvolt: Speaking of “the next one”, would you like to work on a sequel to Dark Moon?
Bryce: Luigi has a special place in fans’ hearts as a goofy reluctant hero they can relate to as a brother or buddy. I believe Luigi’s Mansion 2 gave people a chance to interact with him like they had not done before. NLG would love to stumble into a new adventure with Luigi when the time is right.
Ikebata: The fact that there are many Luigi fans became very clear this time, so if there are any ideas that will allow us to respond to the fans’ expectations, we want to study them.
Full interview here
Link
Pixelvolt: Were there any development decisions over which there was great deliberation?
Bryce: Of course! Collaboration is a key to developing such a large product, and with collaboration, there will have to be compromises. Some of these compromises (especially the subjective ones) can continue to irk you months after the game is released. For example, I still wish our basic ghost enemies spent more time invisible while stalking Luigi (similar to how the sneaker ghost behaves). I love how the ghost behavior ended up, but often wonder what it would feel like to explore around the mansion being trailed by invisible entities.
I am sure each member of the team has their own list of things they would improve, but we are extremely proud of how the whole package was received by the fans.
Ikebata: We took a lot of time and experimented with various patterns for the method of controlling Luigi. We also tried one that uses the touch screen, but ultimately, we settled on the method that was implemented into the production version of the game. That increased the number of buttons to use, but I think it became a method that you can get used to quickly while playing.
Pixelvolt: Looking back on the game, is there anything you would change?
Bryce: Personally, I thought the humanoid ghosts of the original Luigi’s Mansion were really lacking in fun and in cool factor. During early discussions, I shied away from championing designs I thought would lead us in that direction. When Dark Moon was reviewed, fans of the original were left wanting the gameplay loop (invulnerable ghosts whose puzzle must be overcome to make it vulnerable) these humanoid ghosts offered. In retrospect, I felt we should have had more puzzle enemies and less environmental puzzles.
Ikebata: We’ve received many reactions from people that are playing. Among them are some for which I honestly thought “we should have done this”, but we can’t do anything about it after the fact. We can only hold onto those ideas firmly and connect them to the next one.
Pixelvolt: Speaking of “the next one”, would you like to work on a sequel to Dark Moon?
Bryce: Luigi has a special place in fans’ hearts as a goofy reluctant hero they can relate to as a brother or buddy. I believe Luigi’s Mansion 2 gave people a chance to interact with him like they had not done before. NLG would love to stumble into a new adventure with Luigi when the time is right.
Ikebata: The fact that there are many Luigi fans became very clear this time, so if there are any ideas that will allow us to respond to the fans’ expectations, we want to study them.
Full interview here
Link
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