Hello, Survivors!
Well, what did you think of our Dev Commentary Video?
It was a short video, but it gave us a great opportunity to share our development progress and the direction Remore is heading more directly with you. We’re all happy with how it turned out!
Today, we’d like to share some Behind-the-Scenes stories from the making of that video.
"The 'real' developer reaction: 'Wait…me? You want me to be on camera?!'"
First, we’d like to offer a heartfelt apology to our Devs who “suffered” through the filming of the Commentary video!
For our team, who were neck deep in game development, the video shoot was quite a unique experience. Filming equipment appeared in the office, more crew members arrived than we expected, we got makeup done for the shoot, and everything was prepared in a way that felt very professional.
Black Anchor is made up of people who are absolutely “obsessed” with game development, so speaking about their vision for the game through a new medium like video was a significant challenge. It’s one thing to confidently share opinions and make decisions during meetings, but presenting these ideas directly to you, the Survivors, through video was a completely different story.
On top of that, with the goal of reaching a worldwide audience, we conducted the interviews in English. Unlike our previous Dev Notes or community updates, the purpose of this commentary video was to directly convey our game’s vision, so this part was a must!
This meant we had a lot of preparation to do before filming. We had to figure out how to showcase Remore’s fun aspects without spoiling anything, while presenting the concepts we’re currently working on. Visually, we also had to decide what content to reveal first and how best to represent it.
Discussing REMORE’s future—filtered with just a touch of refinement
There were mixed opinions about including scenes of our development discussions in the video. Our team frequently holds meetings to create a better game, so everyone is very accustomed to the process, and there was no issue with filming the meetings themselves. The question was whether our discussions would come across naturally if they were filmed.
Every member of Black Anchor has a clear belief and strong conviction about games. We believe that by letting these perspectives clash and refining our ideas without settling for half-measures, we can create truly enjoyable and unique games. As a result, our meetings are always dynamic and filled with intense debates and discussion. We take pride in this approach, which is helping us make Remore a better game.
However, we were worried that showing these scenes in the video might give the wrong impression, and make it seem like we were arguing. While all our meetings are conducted with mutual respect and a shared goal of creating a better game, the process and results take time and are difficult to capture in a short video.
To address this, the video focuses on the end stages of our meetings. The scenes you see in the commentary video show us organizing and summarizing our discussions as they near their conclusion. While we as a team enjoy our passionate debates as a method to improve Remore, and we did feel a bit of regret about not fully showcasing this process, we decided it would be better to let the results speak for themselves in the final product.
Board Game: A "Rest" That's Not Quite a Rest for a Better REMORE
When the video production team suggested including scenes of us playing board games, we thought it was a great idea.
Our team often plays board games after work, and we even use these sessions to spark new ideas. That’s why our office is stocked with loads of them, and sometimes we even get together on weekends to play them.
While the primary purpose of playing board games is, of course, fun and relaxation, it’s also a way for us as developers to intuitively understand game mechanics and apply them to our projects. In fact, we’ve drawn inspiration from board games and implemented those ideas into game systems multiple times. This is why we see board gaming as a positive part of Black Anchor’s workplace culture.
However, for the video, we had to choose a visually striking board game rather than one we’ve been enjoying recently. Even if a game was a team favorite, we prioritized games with detailed and elaborate components for their visual impact.
Still, we’re very happy that we were able to share this unique aspect of Black Anchor’s culture. Who knows? If we get the chance, we might introduce you to more of our favorite board games!
In the end, the video turned out better than we had imagined. When the filming equipment first arrived at the office, we felt a bit nervous, but ultimately, we felt we gave the right impression of our team and ourselves to you guys, which left us feeling good about it!
Of course, there’s still a ton of content we’re preparing that couldn’t be covered in the video. We’ll gradually introduce these through Dev Notes, community updates, and future releases.
We look forward to seeing you again soon.
Thank you, Survivors!
REMORE