How did it happen?
The thing is, the ban lasted for 6 months. In that time, we didn’t pay ourselves just so we had enough money for our employee. That’s why we moved to Free to Play: to avoid another bad situation like that. That was in June 2012.
Here’s how we implemented it at first. In Transformice, you do not only collect cheese for the sake of it: you use it to buy hats for your mouse. We just gave the players the option to buy them with real money instead. And it’s been a huge success. On the first month only, we made €250,000.
Transformice relies on its massive multiplayer nature. We couldn’t add a barrier for people to get into the game. Because new players can get started within seconds, and for free, the community is really lively. Adding a subscription fee or making the game premium would have been a terrible idea. Transformice had been free for 2 years anyway. Changing that would have killed it. As hats and clothing is 100% optional, we were okay to let people pay for that.
Only 3 weeks? Did you plan to do Free to Play from the very beginning?
No, not at all. We made the game in 3 weeks. It was just a basic version, a test project for us. We released it on a forum, for free. We had no intention to monetize it. But suddenly, we had 10,000 players and an overloaded server. People had to queue up to play. We needed to pay for dedicated servers, which are very expensive. That’s when we decided to put an Adsense banner below the game, on the webpage. It generated enough revenue for us to keep the game running.
One year later, we left Ankama and created our own game studio: Atelier 801. Back then, will still relied on ads exclusively. However, it was enough for the both of us to make a living. it is only 2 years after we released the game, in 2012, that we decided to transition towards Free to Play.
The game is made in Flash. Why did you go with that technology?
First of all, Transformice was released back in 2010. Then, both Jean-Baptiste and I were working at Ankama on the MMORPG Dofus. He was a developer there and I worked as an artist. We both had a lot of experience with Flash. Especially Jean-Baptiste, who had already created many games with that technology: he was one of the few persons back then still specialized in this language. Thanks to his experience, we could reuse a lot of code to make Transformice. It took us less than 3 weeks.
Flash has other advantages. As we use vector graphics, the game was and still is lightweight today, after 7 years. It’s but a 1 MB download.
Do use analytics for the game?
Yes, but not a lot. Laughs. Not as much as I would like to.
As we have a multiplayer game, we always track the servers’ status. If we have issues, like many players dropping, or a long queue waiting to get into the server, we can act in response. Our metrics are technical, for the most part: we monitor the servers’ response time, or for example if we have too many payments that arrive at once. That’s one way to spot credit card fraud.
We use few metrics to improve our monetization. We look at the sales for the latest added products, to see if the players like them or not. But aside from that, it’s mainly global sales and the average basket. We didn’t design the system from the very start to track all the common KPIs. Now it’d be hard to do today. We would have to refactor the system heavily. We have 2 separate databases for payments and for the players, which are hard to link with one another. I do track retention however: how many accounts are created, and for how much time people stay around in the game. The percentage of players that stay for more than one hour, one day, one week… also what I call the “deserters”: players who come back after months of inactivity on the game.
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Killing[]
- To activate a trap, you have to click on the art of the trap, not the spaces around it; this can make it tricky to activate some (such as the Bear Trap), so make sure you don’t waste time firing a trap to late, wasting it and letting the sheep get through.
- Keep a cool head. if a sheep gets through, don’t mindlessly fire all traps just to kill 1 sheep; if possible, skip ahead 1 «column» of traps and try to kill them that way; odds are most of the sheep are a little behind, allowing you to go back and fire the traps in the previous «column» you skipped.
- When possible, keep your cursor away from the trap you plan on using. This allows you to add some surprise, especially if the sheep haven’t been keeping track of what traps were fired. You can even potentially «trick» unwary sheep by moving your cursor in a way that makes them think there’s a trap still there, and may potentially trick them in wasting a helmet (risky trick to depend on).
- Use your traps intelligently. If there are 10 sheep and 5 traps left, don’t waste them all on 1 brave sheep. instead, let the sheep make it a little way / as far as possible, kill them, then kill the other sheep (all bunched together) trying to get through while you are distracted.
- Don’t waste time on Bear Traps and Blades if you have better traps available. These two are hard to click on, and don’t do nearly as much damage as other traps (especially Blades.
Сотрудники[]
Внимание! На этом изображении изображены не все разработчики!
Вверху слева направо: Йенс Бергенстен, Даниэль Каплан, Маркус Тойвонен, Арон Ниеминен, Даниэль Фриск, Маттис Грэм.В середине слева направо: Лидия Винтерс, Хенрик Петтерссон, Леонард Грам, Йон Когстрём, Кристоффер Йелбринг, Марк Уотсон.Внизу слева направо: Карин Северинсон, Эрик Брус, Натан Адамс, Монс Ольсон, Патрик Геудер.
Текущие сотрудники
| Имя | Положение | Любимые игры | Особый талант | Примечания | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Даниэль «Kappische» Каплан | Специалист по развитию бизнеса | Street Fighter IV, Tetris DS, Zelda: A Link to the Past | Очень быстро печатает | На его картинке в Skype он похож на пирата. | |
| Йенс «jeb_» Бергенстен | Back-end разработчик | Starcraft, Doom 2, Don’t Look Back | Ест сырные палочки палочками | Размещает ссылки на сайте reddit! | |
| Натан «Dinnerbone» Адамс | Член команды Bukkit. | ||||
| Маркус «Junkboy» Тойвонен | Художник | Wild Guns, Metal Slug, Full Throttle | Создаёт цифровые мозаики | Очень таинственный | |
| Даниэль «danfrisk» Фриск | Главный архитектор | ||||
| Арон Ниеминен | Веб-разработчик. Делает Minecraft для Android и iOS. | Он очень яркий | |||
| Хенрик «Carnalizer» Петтерссон | Художник | Настольные игры, стратегии, Team Fortress 2, Half-Life, Minecraft | Чрезвычайная промедлительность | Является самым старым человеком, работающим в Mojang | |
| Леонард «xlson» Аксельссон | Веб разработчик | Может полностью читать алфавит по памяти | |||
| Йон «jonkagstrom» Когстрём | Программист Minecraft. Разработчик игр | Работал в компании «Dice» программистом искуственного интеллекта для игры Battlefield. | |||
| Кристоффер Йелбринг | Веб разработчик | Был неофициальным ДиДжеем Mojang | |||
| Марк «MidnightEnforcer» Уотсон | Менеджер службы поддержки пользователей. Поддержка пользователей. | Minecraft, Mass Effect, Halo, Elder Scrolls. | Основал Minecraft Marathon | ||
| Томмазо «_tomcc» Кекки | Веб-разработчик. Разрабатывает Minecraft для Android и iOS. | Трата времени | |||
| Шоги Сервантес | Веб-разработчик. Разрабатывает Minecraft для Android и iOS. | Любит всё, что использует электричество | |||
| Даниэл Вустенхоф | Веб-разработчик. Разрабатывает Minecraft для Android и iOS. | Любит пиццу и код | |||
| Томас Алеус | Веб-разработчик. Разрабатывает Minecraft для Android и iOS. | ||||
| Джейсон «argo_major» Мейджор | Веб-разработчик. Разрабатывает Карманное издание Minecraft. |
Сотрудники по контракту
| C418 | Создаёт музыку и звуки для Minecraft | Имеет высокую самооценку! |
| Кристоффер Зеттерстранд | Создаёт картины для Minecraft | У него есть статья о себе в Википедии! |
Бывшие сотрудники
| Имя | Положение | Любимые игры | Особый талант | Примечания |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Маркус Перссон (Notch) | Создатель игры, ушёл из компании после того как компания Microsoft купила компанию Mojang (дата ухода: 15 сентября 2014) | Dungeon Master 2, Doom, X-Com | Может смотреть прямо на солнце лишь с небольшими повреждениями | Имеет большую шляпу |
| Якоб Порсер (JahKob) | Лучший друг Notch’а, ушёл из компании после того как компания Microsoft купила компанию Mojang (дата ухода: 15 сентября 2014) | X-Com 2, Master of Magic, Diablo 2 | Рекурсия для циклов | Делал ещё одну игру (Scrolls) вместе с Minecraft. |
| Карл Маннех (Carl) | Ушёл из компании после того как компания Microsoft купила компанию Mojang (дата ухода: 15 сентября 2014) | FIFA 10, Resident Evil, Tetris | Клонирует сам себя | Раньше был боссом Нотча. |
| Тобиас Мёльстам | Веб разработчик | Создание тесных сетей для захвата клиентов | ||
| Юхан Бернхардссон (jbernhardsson) | Веб-разработчик. Разрабатывал Minecraft для Android и iOS. | Half-Life 2, Lucy, Rex, Earthlings | ||
| Пой Пой Чэнь | Артистка (Scrolls) | Dota 2 |
Then, in a more general way, what are the biggest challenges you faced getting into Free to Play, and how did you overcome them?
I’m a bit ashamed to answer, because we didn’t really do our homework. To us, there were 2 ways to do Free to Play:
- The bad way, like some of the big studios, with energy-based systems that prevent you from playing if you don’t pay
- And the right way, focused on cosmetics, as in League of Legends, with ethical prices
That was about all there was to know, for us, back at the time. We didn’t know what all these Key Performance Indicators were: ARPU, MAU, and all those barbaric acronyms. When we started doing Free to Play, we set our prices very low. Even today, our prices are much lower than other games on the market. The thing is, although you can lower your prices, you can’t increase them once they’re public. Players would not understand that.
It is hard to anticipate all those economic pitfalls, to understand all those metrics. They are not that accessible, not easy to grasp when you get started. We learned everything on the job, unfortunately. We should have learned all that in advance instead.
The in-game hat and skins shop
Over time, we added new paid options to cover different price points. Like, the ability to change the shaman’s crate, to buy complete outfits, or to rename your avatar. We started selling jewels that you can put on the tip of your mouse’s tail. They are shiny and they look unique, which justified a higher price than for hats and scarves.
The community accepts the fact that some services are more expensive than others. The idea that you will pay a higher fee to change your character’s name for example. We set this one around €10, which is standard in online games. It turns out it’s not a problem for people. We felt that was expensive, but it actually works.
Tig’s / Meli’s Games[]
These are games made by Tigrounette (often with Melibellule making the art) that are neither part of Extinction nor made by Atelier 801. Some of these use the Module 801 platform mentioned previously.
| Name | MultiPlayer | Released | Notes | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pew pew | ✘ No | 26-29 April 2013 | A spaceship shooter game. Part of Ludum Dare 26 (26-29 April 2013) Theme: Minimalism. (Lodum Dare) | |
| Volley | Yes | March 2015 | ||
| Mouton | Yes | 17-20 April 2015 | A game about sheep and blood. Part of Ludum Dare 32 (17th-20th April 2015). Theme: An Unconventional Weapon. (Lodum Dare)
There’s 8 traps total, 4 on the ceiling, 4 on ground, but only the «shaman» can see were they are and activate them. |
|
| Bloup | Yes | 23 August 2015 | A game heavily inspired by Aaaah!. | |
| God’s Paw | Yes | 24 April 2017 | Made as part of Ludum Dare 38. Unlike most other games made by Tig, this game is made in HTML5 canvas instead of flash. | |
| Tetris | Yes | 23 April 2018 | Made as part of Ludum Dare 41. Made in HTML5 canvas instead of flash. |
Остальные игры[]
Scrolls
Основная статья: Scrolls
Логотип Scrolls
Scrolls — ещё одна игра Mojang Studios, которая была задумана и разработана JahKob’ом. Она была анонсирована 2 марта 2011, игра стремится объединить элементы из традиционных карточных игр и традиционных настольных игр в жанр стратегии. Неизвестно, кто ещё из Mojang Studios работает над Scrolls, однако Нотч заявил, что он по-прежнему всё своё время посвящает Minecraft. В августе 2011, юристы ZeniMax Media пригрозили Mojang судебным иском, обвиняя их в том, что название «Scrolls» нарушает товарный знак The Elder Scrolls — серии RPG-игр опубликованных Bethesda Softworks (дочерняя компания ZeniMax Media). В середине октября 2011 года, судебное дело выиграла Mojang. Один сотрудник сказал, что «Суд посмотрел на это дело с нашей стороны — имя «Scrolls» остаётся». 3 июня 2013 года стартует ОБТ. Летом 2015 года Mojang объявила о закрытии Scrolls.
Cobalt
Основная статья: Cobalt
Логотип Cobalt
Cobalt — это экшн про «бег, прыжки, вращения, стрельбу, метание, танцы, взлом, полёты, скольжение, скалолазание, собирание предметов, уклонения, гонки, зарабатывание очков… и ещё там много-много вращений и поворотов!»
Cobalt написан на языке , есть версии для Windows, Mac и Linux.
Current[]
Listed from oldest to newest
| Image | Game | Platform |
|---|---|---|
|
Transformice
Come join all other mice to gather as much cheese as possible on Transformice. Play with players from all around the world, chat live with your friends and customize your mouse. |
PC | |
|
Bouboum
Compete against your friends on Bouboum. Be the fastest and smartest to avoid bombs and get rid of your enemies. Bombs and powerups will be your weapons, choose wisely. Be the last one standing! |
PC | |
|
Fortoresse
Charge! The fortress is under attack. Take up arms to defend it with your allies. Adapt your surroundings to your needs; build pixel defensive walls and destroy those of your enemies. |
PC | |
|
Nekodancer
Rock your body on Nekodancer. Put on your fur-vorite tunes and let’s dance! Get some purr-fects to be the star of the catfloor! |
PC | |
|
Run for Cheese
Stay alive in the platformer, where you must collect cheese and other odds and ends, while dodging a multitude of various obstacles and enemies. |
Mobile(Android/iOS) | |
|
Dead Maze
A 2D survival game where the aim is to explore the world and scavenge as many items as possible, to survive the hostile environment and bloodthirsty hordes of monsters. |
PC | |
|
Transformice Adventures
A multiplayer action-RPG set in the world of Transformice, featuring combat, exploration, pet care and a rich story about Berta and Mirolle Gouda, the priestesses sisters. |
PC + Mobile | |
|
Antarès
A massively multiplayer top-down shooter with spaceships that players have to build brick by brick, 20 vs 20 players fighting in an attack/defense mode. |
PC | |
|
Tomb Rumble
A multiplayer platform game where adventurers compete to retrieve ancient treasures in lost temples, cursed ruins and more. |
Steam |
4 Ателье Софи 2: Алхимик Таинственного Сна – 83
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Дата выпуска (NA)
25 февраля 2022 г.
Платформа/ы
- PlayStation 4
- ПК
- Nintendo Switch
Страница со списком Amazon (если доступно)
Ателье Софи 2 Алхимик таинственного сна
Довольно необычно, чтобы франшиза достигла своего пика примерно через два десятилетия после своего дебюта, но Gust добился этого с франшизой Atelier. С начала эры PS4 серия набирала силу, и каждая игра, выпущенная за последние несколько лет, входит в число самых сильных проектов по лицензии. Atelier Sophie 2 не является исключением.
Хотя в нем нет серьезных изменений по сравнению с его сюжетным предшественником или Ryzagames выпуск 2022 года — это уверенный выпуск с симпатичными персонажами, надежной механикой алхимии и одной из лучших боевых систем во франшизе. Мир Atelier Sophie 2, сказочный Erde Wiege, представляет собой фантастическую обстановку, которая подчеркивает общее улучшение лицензии в отделе разведки.
How did creating your own company and Free to Play change your vision of game creation?
Back when I worked at Ankama, I had a narrow vision: I thought that everything would be better if I did it all myself and was in charge. Then I made my company and discovered it’s a lot more complicated than that. In particular, human resources. Clearly, the hardest part of game development is to manage people, to lead the entire team towards a common goal and not hurt anyone along the way. Keeping a great relationship with all our employees was the hardest thing I’ve had to learn to do.
That’s the real challenge. At least if you want to get it right. We’ve had clashes, and they were quite painful. If I could start again from the beginning, I would take management classes, and make sure to work on my leadership. Because at first, we didn’t have a common vision. We just let people do their work. But it takes many persons to ship a game. A lot of discussion, collaboration, and it is harder than you might think at first.
Dead Maze, Atelier 801’s next title, looks gorgeous
Message by Atelier 801 canceling project[]
- Original Post
Celousco is dead, long live Celousco!
We have been working hard on it with love and passion for many months, but unfortunately, the results we got didn’t match our expectations. That’s why we decided to put an end to this adventure, which nevertheless brought us a lot of experience.The Celousco project did teach us a lot: we discovered what we really wanted, and we launched another project that perfectly matches our expectations and which bears the «Atelier 801» signature. Yes, you read that right: we might have been discreet about it lately, but we’re working hard on a new game! We’ll tell you more about it soon…We are committed to offer you the best gaming experience possible, that’s why we are taking our time to develop our next project and that’s also why we took our time to unveil it.Thanks to all mice, cats, hamsters, snipers, etc. In short, thanks to all of you, for your presence and your continued support!
Any advice for people looking to get into Free to Play games?
Do you homework! Laughs.
There are plenty of resources on the topic, and you want to read up so you don’t do the same mistakes others made before you. For example, for the KPIs, you don’t have to take everything. But you want to know what these are beforehand. You need to know how to use them, so you can pick the ones you need. You don’t want to use tons of metrics and never look at them. That’s worse than not having any at all. Whenever you add a metric to your analytics board, think about what you’re going to do with it. Will it help you to take actions? You should think carefully, always have a plan before you start to track analytics.
Surviving[]
So long as there is a competent shaman in charge, surviving can be very hard. However, some common tactics are:
- At the beginning of the round, move to the left to avoid a possible Guillotine or Wrecking Ball on the top-left.
- Use other sheep as «bait» for the shepherd; no reason to risk yourself pointlessly.
- Keep track of used traps. While the traps used each round is random, their placement / count are not. If traps T1 and B1 are both used, you know you can safely move forward (still beware of a Guillotine or Wrecking Ball from the «next» ceiling trap if it hasn’t been used yet).
- Tease the shepherd. While this is risky (especially against ceiling traps), sometimes you will have no other choice. If you’ve been keeping track of traps and know where the next one is, you can purposefully move a little ways into the danger zone, but then jump and move backwards out of range, with the goal being to trick the shepherd to activate the trap harmlessly.
- Don’t use your helmet preemptively! Ideally you should try to keep your helmet unused until the last trap, and then activate it on a final dash to the pasture. But a helmet is no use to a dead sheep, so don’t be to sparing with it.
- Use sheep as bait, but also work as a group. While you should let impatient sheep run ahead to the slaughter, you will eventually find some sheep who play with the rules above. When you’ve identified these sheep, work together with them when possible; if they’ve used a helmet to survive a trap, use yours to make the shaman trigger a different trap (if it’s the last or second last trap).
- Keep track of the timer! Sometimes it’s better to do something stupid/brave and potentially win / let others win than just lose by default.
- Don’t use your helmet to early into a trap! Some traps are wide enough that if you use your helmet just before you go through, you won’t make it out the other side.