Andrew Goulding
Experienced programmer, Andrew Goulding established his company Brawsome in 2008 with a view toward creating original games for the casual space. His life long passion for the point and click adventure genre led him to develop the very charming Jolly Rover. I recently caught up with Andrew to discuss his latest release and his view toward the future.
Ian: Is there any reason why you decided to release Jolly Rover independently, as opposed to selling the idea to a commercial game development company to publish?
Jolly Rover - Concept
Andrew: Well, I tried that.
I’ve worked at four games companies over four years, and at each of those companies I submitted ideas for lots of different types of games, always a few adventure ideas in there, but none of them went anywhere. Eventually I started Brawsome to have a higher chance of working on my own games, even though I didn’t have a plan at the time for how I would get there. I thought I could contract for a while and work on my own games on the side; the most important thing I needed was time.
Jolly Rover- Final
For Jolly Rover in its present form I shopped this around several major casual games publishers at GDC (Game Developers Conference) in 2009, but while they were happy to distribute the game, they weren’t interested in funding it. After then unsuccessfully getting investment from venture capital sources I was close to scrapping the idea, and working on something smaller, when a friend suggested I apply for funding from Film Victoria.
To cut a long story short Film Victoria and an art company by the name of Viskatoons saved the idea from the brink of extinction, by investing in the project, without their support there would not be a Jolly Rover.
Ian: And why the name Brawsome?
Andrew: Brawsome is a combination of the words Braw and Awesome.
I initially wanted to call the company ‘Awesome Games’, but this was too generic, and taken, so I made up a bunch of words with inspiration from companies like Activision, LucasArts, Sierra and, Atari. Brawsome was actually formed as a website where I was doing various media reviews and as a landing page for my game ‘Just Another Point and Click Adventure’. It was fairly undirected at the time.
When I came up with the name I was living in the UK, working for Codemasters. I had family in Scotland who used the word ‘Braw’ from time to time to mean something good or great, I suppose that made an impression on me because it stuck.
Ian: Jolly Rover is a product of your imagination, years in the making. What made you one day decide to break away on your own and create a game about pirates?
Andrew: It’s definitely not something that happened overnight. It’s no secret that I love adventure games. I wanted to make them from the moment I took my first steps in Space Quest 2. One of my favourites when I was a kid was the Monkey Island series. When the DS (Nintendo DS) came out in 2004, I thought it would be a great idea to make an adventure game for it; a pirate adventure. At the time the Monkey Island games felt like they had happened a very long time ago, and I missed them; I felt the pirate theme was a great one for adventure.
Striking out on my own was not an overnight thing either, it took four years in the games industry for me to realise I’d never get any of my ideas made unless I went out on my own. Even still, going out on my own was no small decision either. I have a family to support with two children, so moving away from a stable job is risky, and a little scary. I had to work two jobs for about four months (70+ hours a week) before I could convince my wife I might be able to make it as a contractor. But if that was the only way I’d be able to realise my dream of making my own game, then it was the price I would have to pay.
Ian: And they are canines, no less. What moved you to decide to use pooches, rather than humans?
Andrew: The short answer is, humans were boring.
You have to understand, that when I first came up with this idea about four years prior, I was excited about it then, but it’s hard to sustain that excitement for so long. When the concept art started being done I just felt I wasn’t excited about the characters as they were, they were missing something. On a whim I suggested the idea of the characters being dogs (the Ninja Turtles were initially made as a joke you know!). As soon as I saw the first pirate as a dog all these ideas started flowing about how I could make this work, I was excited again and there was no going back.
Jolly Rover character concepts
Ian: Jolly Rover has often been likened to LucasArt’s Monkey Island franchise. In what ways would your title differ, and be unique when compared to Monkey Island?
Andrew: For a start, the main character doesn’t want to be a pirate; he wants to be a clown. He’s a reluctant adventurer who’s chasing a dream, but isn’t quite clear on his own motives towards this dream, possibly on some level he’s trying to replace his father who he lost quite young.
Voodoo plays a large part in the game, and not just finding items and putting them together but manually performing the actions of the spell. Due to the particular Voodoo mechanic, spells can be learned by observation, in one case from a monkey, and in another from a hidden carving. The combination of the ‘Voodoo Cheatsheet’ and ‘Voodoo Recipe’ makes for some interesting puzzles and adds a dynamic element to solving them.
Original concept - ‘Voodoo for Pirates’ book
Linking with Voodoo recipes is the theme of cooking which plays a large part in the first part of the game. Cooking being one of the few practical skills of the protagonist, as well as being an accomplished juggler, and snappy dresser.
The integrated hint system, in the form of a deranged parrot is also unique to the game; this links in with one of the collectables of the game – crackers. The parrot will give you a cryptic hint for whatever task you’re on, and if plied with crackers is likely to eventually give you the outright answer.
The collectables in the game are crackers, pieces of eight and pirate flags. Only the pirate flags are true collectables though, which just unlock Pirate Captain Bio’s in the Log but are quite difficult to find. The crackers have practical use for the parrot, and pieces of eight can actually buy your way past certain puzzles. Both the crackers and pieces of eight additionally unlock concept art and music tracks in the log screen. For the most part these items are not found via any hidden object mechanic, but through general exploration of the world, some via dialog and some via interesting uses of inventory items and Voodoo. It was important that these collectables be integrated tightly with the world, and not seem like something I threw in at the last minute as a gimmick.
Achievements are another thing, this game rewards you with a series of achievements just for getting through the game, and several bonus ones for playing the game a certain way. (i.e. playing without giving any crackers to your parrot will get you an ‘Adventure Gamer’ achievement).
In addition to this I’ve brought back the concept of score in adventure games, a throwback to old Sierra titles, which plays a short jingle every time you receive score. Score is given for progress inducing actions in the game, but also linked to crackers and pieces of eight, which is another reason to hold on to them rather than ‘spending’ them.
Also, this adventure includes a damsel who’s grateful for being saved.
Finally, I would have liked to mention that Jolly Rover includes developer commentary, but it appears that the re-released Monkey Island 2 now also includes that. But Jolly Rover does include the original auditions from all the voice actors, which are unlocked when you finish the game.
Oh also, the game mechanics are quite different from that series, requiring one click do to everything, rather than a verb system… and all the characters, they’re dogs, is that worth mentioning?
Ian: Gaius James Rover is certainly an interesting character with his flamboyant fashion, and his acute humour. What influences did you use to create our protagonist? And why the dislike for rum?
Gaius James Rover
Andrew: I wanted Gaius (James) to be very much a fish out of water, so I wanted him to be as far away from the pirate character as possible. I wanted him to be an anti-pirate of sorts, which explains the preference for tea instead of rum (though the pirate captain “Black Bart” did actually prefer tea).
I based the actual character somewhat on Will Turner (Pirates of the Caribbean), Frodo (Lord or the Rings) and Jim Hawkins (Treasure Island). I wanted Gaius to be a foppish actor type, who preferred performing to adventure and just wanted to fulfill his dream of becoming a clown like his father who was tragically taken from him at an early age.
Ian: Supporting James, we meet a cast of unique characters and beautiful locations within Jolly Rover. Are there any particular influences in your life that helped give birth to these designs?
Andrew: You’ve given me pause for thought here; I’ve had a quick think about it and I can’t point to any real-life influences for the characters in Jolly Rover. The majority of my characters come from what I know about pirates through books and movies. Ron Copper is my version of Long John Silver for example. Howell is influenced by the character Silver also, but represents the good-natured side of him. Clara is kind of an Elizabeth Swann (Pirates of the Caribbean) of sorts. Melvin is sort of a Muttley character, and Juan has a flavour of Iago from Disney’s Aladdin.
Ian: Are there any plans to create an ongoing series of the title? From the conclusion of Jolly Rover, there are certainly many directions that a sequel could take.
Andrew: I’ve already penned the opening scene of a sequel to Jolly Rover, and also have some interesting ideas for new characters.
I would like to revisit some of the old locations as well, but not directly reuse them, I’d update them slightly with new art. There are already some neat game play ideas I’d like to play with. It’s easy to brainstorm, but the reality is I’ve got to fund the project somehow. If I can’t fund a title of similar size to Jolly Rover right away I’ll have to focus on something smaller. I’d love to begin work on the Jolly Rover sequel. The whole team is raring to go! So, if you like the game, the best vote you can make for a sequel is to pick up a copy.
Ian: Jolly Rover is of the 2D point-and-click adventure genre. Is Brawsome looking to publish games from other genres in the future?
Andrew: Brawsome’s focus is to explore comedy in games. Currently the mechanics of the point-and-click adventure are good for this, but I’m constantly looking at ways to evolve the mechanics of the genre to better deliver player experience. There were some things identified with Jolly Rover that I’d like to streamline better, and a few new ideas I’d like to try.
The core for me is to be able to convey a story and character relationships in an interactive way. Games are still a relatively new entertainment medium and we’re constantly seeing it evolve and change in interesting ways. It’s an exciting time to be in the games industry.
Ian: Your game has successfully been released onto the PC and Mac platforms and been made available to download via various means. Are there any plans to port the game to consoles or handheld devices to reach a broader audience?
Andrew: I’d like to see an iPad version of Jolly Rover in the future, possibly PSN or XBLA too. I’d like a Wii version, but I don’t think it’s right for WiiWare; it’s too big. It would have to be a disc version. I think I’d need a publisher to go to retail. I’m currently looking for the right partner to consider these options.
Ian: Obviously to have as much passion for creating games as you do, you must have enjoyed gaming as a child. Are there any particular titles that stand out to you, that you would recommend our readers check out?
Andrew: If you liked Jolly Rover and you haven’t played Monkey Island, then you’re in for a treat. Check out Monkey Island 1 & 2… and Curse of Monkey Island but make sure you have a walkthrough, these adventure games are not for the faint hearted. Check out Day of the Tentacle and Sam and Max Hit the Road as well.
I loved the Legend of Kyrandia Book 1 & 2, Full Throttle, The Dig, and Loom are also definitely worth playing. Oh and Fate of Atlantis too. If you’re after an even more old school experience check out Space Quest 1-5, Quest for Glory 1-4, and Kings Quest 1-6. For your modern day adventurer, head over to TellTale Games, that’s where it’s at. But if you love your indie stuff, check out games by Amanita and Wadjet Eye Games as well, the quality of these games may surprise you.
Ian: Is there anyone that has assisted you in the imagining and production of this game that you’d like to acknowledge?
Andrew: As I said before, Jolly Rover would never have seen the light of day if it weren’t for investment by Film Victoria and Viskatoons.
If it weren’t for the support of my wife I’d never have taken the plunge to start Brawsome in the first place. I work a lot, sometimes an average of 60 hours a week and we have two kids, so she works as hard as me while I’m off chasing my dreams. I hope one day to be able to jump back to a respectable 40 hours a week and enjoy life a bit more with her.
I’d also like to thank all my distributors, without which Jolly Rover would never get out to as many people as it does, and to all those who’ve taken the time to interview me and review Jolly Rover. I read all the reviews, and take my interviews very seriously. Without the press, people just wouldn’t know about Jolly Rover at all.
I’d also like to give a quick shout out to Dave Gilbert, who showed you could make a living making indie adventures, and gave me my first major contract job that allowed me to quit my day job and go indie.
