Zombies, vikings, murder: Ska Studios on WP7 and the future of XBLIG gore
In 2007, James Silva had just graduated college and settled into a 9-5 job. He was resigned to spend the rest of his life in cubicle complacency, letting his lifelong goal to develop games as a career fade regretfully away. Then his indie title, The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai, won $10,000 in Microsoft's Dream Build Play competition, and everything changed. He quit his job, lived the life of a starving artist and perfected Dead Samurai until it passed certification from Microsoft.
"The work was exhilarating," Silva said in an interview with Joystiq. "I remember that when I got the email saying I'd passed cert, I ran around the apartment screaming."
The game sold "well enough," but more importantly, it led him to meet Michelle, his fiancée, who was a tester for Dead Samurai at PAX in 2009.
"I've said it before: XBLA literally made all of my dreams come true, right down to meeting the woman of my dreams," Silva said.
Since Dead Samurai, Silva has launched six games on XBLA and XBLIG through Ska Studios, including The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile and I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1NIT!!!1, with one more coming in 2012. His latest endeavor in the fantasy he calls a career is developing titles for Windows Phone -- on Jan. 4 Silva launched Z0MB1ES!!1 (on teh ph0ne) for WP7, a trio of games that includes I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1NIT!!!1, a new game mode called Endless Zombies and a shiny new title, Time Viking.
"The work was exhilarating," Silva said in an interview with Joystiq. "I remember that when I got the email saying I'd passed cert, I ran around the apartment screaming."
The game sold "well enough," but more importantly, it led him to meet Michelle, his fiancée, who was a tester for Dead Samurai at PAX in 2009.
"I've said it before: XBLA literally made all of my dreams come true, right down to meeting the woman of my dreams," Silva said.
Since Dead Samurai, Silva has launched six games on XBLA and XBLIG through Ska Studios, including The Dishwasher: Vampire Smile and I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1NIT!!!1, with one more coming in 2012. His latest endeavor in the fantasy he calls a career is developing titles for Windows Phone -- on Jan. 4 Silva launched Z0MB1ES!!1 (on teh ph0ne) for WP7, a trio of games that includes I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1NIT!!!1, a new game mode called Endless Zombies and a shiny new title, Time Viking.
