AppTalk: Interview With Ian Marsh of Nimblebit Creators of Scoops and Dizzypad
by Staff Writer
June 21, 2010
Dave and I operate like some kind of strange hive mind creature when it comes to game development (nearly identical to the Binars of Star Trek) constantly bouncing ideas off of one another. Whenever one of us has an idea that peaks our interest we throw it into our long and ever-growing list of potential game ideas. When a project is wrapping up and the time comes to figure out what we're going to make next we take a look at the list if need be, but by that time Dave is usually already obsessively designing and making art for something on the list.
Why have you chosen to develop for the iPhone over any other possible platform?
The iPhone is by far the most indie and small developer friendly platform out there. I was able to start making games and a living on the App Store all by myself, answering to no publisher. No other platform can take your independently created game and put it in front of millions upon millions of potential customers.
Why have you chosen to make relatively simple games with Scoops, SkyBurger, Texttropolis, DizzyPad, etc?
We like to make simple games for a variety of reasons! The first is that they are very often my favorite type of games to play. The second reason, related to the first, is that I don't have the attention span to play a game for longer than a month, so having to work on the same project for much longer than that drives me crazy. The biggest reason however, is that being a mostly 2-person team we have limited resources. Developer simple games lets us develop new and unique ideas without a whole lot of risk.
What is your view of the App Store market in terms of what types of games succeed, and is success possible for smaller developers?
I think the majority of iPhone "gamers" are looking for casual and simple games. Many people tend to look at iPhone blockbusters and assume that those are the only kind of games that will succeed, but there tends to always be something much different right around the corner that will end up being the next big thing.
Success is most definitely possible for small developers on the App Store. There is much more to success on the App Store than simply creating a game however. Getting the word out can be just as much work as making the game itself.
What are you plans going forward in developing for the iPhone and iPad? Will you focus on the iPhone or do you have ideas only possible on the iPad and vice versa?
Our goal going forward is to make every new NimbleBit game universal (unless the gameplay is only possible on a certain device). We certainly want users to be able to experience NimbleBit creations no matter what device they are on.
Can you discuss your next game, or any update plans for your existing titles?
Hmmm, well I can tell you we're not quite done with those cute little froggies yet. At last count our next game currently in development had close to 7,000 unique frogs in it!
What’s your favorite iPhone game that’s not your own?
Probably Space Miner, I got really into that and ended up playing it for more than a week which is a really long time for me!
