Paw Print Games came to the attention of virtual reality (VR) fans with its title Bloody Zombies, a 2D beat-em-up featuring a stylish comic book look and gameplay from the classic side-scrolling era of titles such as Streets of Rage. The studio is now branching out with its next title, Border Patrol.
Nina speaks to Steven Knapman, the lead designer at Paw Print Games and the development of Border Patrol, along with the influences that made the title what it is. Described by the studio as a cross between the impressive and empathy-inducing bureaucracy simulator Papers Please with the humorous tone of VR shooter Robo Recall.
In Border Patrol the player operates a checkpoint in a futuristic city, trying to deal with various robots and AI computers. An unspecified incident has occurred which has caused sufficient alarm among authorities that they have severely restricted the right and authority of the AIs, putting the user in the position of having to deal with the situation that develops.
Knapman describes the tone of the title as tongue-in-cheek, adopting a more playful approach to what could be a very dark and serious topic, taking some cues from titles such as Job Simulator. The developers say they didn’t set out to make a political commentary, but admit the timing is very coincidental.
Currently the team has an early version of Border Patrol that is being prepared as a vertical slice. The core interaction is in place, and the team is trying to concentrate on giving users physical actions to do rather than relying too much on reading.
Knapman describes taking inspiration from commonplace scenarios such as airport security checks, and in Border Patrol the player can use a similar device to the metal detector wand on the robots to detect contraband.
The full interview is available to view below. Further news on Border Patrol as well as other new and upcoming VR projects will be covered here on VRFocus.
via Mint VR