First off - thank you so much for your support for Icy Tower! We're blown away by all the feedback, love, questions, and passion for the game. It is super-motivating and we're eager to make this a totally amazing game.
We're still in the beginning of the development in terms of scope and features but here is our current thinking about where the game is and where it is going. During the development we will continuously be evaluating new ideas and try to fit them in if the schedule permits. And then there's post-launch as well, so as long as the game is popular we'll try to update it with new features and content.
Ok, let's address the questions we've received.
WHO IS MAKING THIS GAME
The new Icy Tower is made by the creators of the very first Icy Tower back in 2001 - Johan Peitz and Anders "Neo" Svensson. We're also getting help from great freelancing artists like Rudy Flores, Franek, and Lu Nascimento.
What about Free Lunch Design, and Apskeppet? Free Lunch Design was a label Johan and Anders used back in the day. For various reasons it is no longer a business entity so Icy Tower is published under Johan's new studio Apskeppet. Apskeppet is swedish for "monkey ship". More or less.
BASIC GAMEPLAY
We're aiming for the same base gameplay and feel as the original games from early 2000. Try to reach as high up in the tower, but if you fall below the screen it is game over. The floors get smaller and smaller the higher you get, and the automatic scrolling increases at regular intervals forcing you to move faster and faster.
COMBO JUMPING
Combo jumps are back! As long as you jump at least 2 floors in one go, you will remain in combo mode. Combos are worth a ton of points and the longer you keep going, the more you'll get.
KICKBACKS
We've added a new mechanic to the game that we are really excited about - the kickback. The kickback sends you back into the tower even if you fall down, saving you from game over. Super convienient for new players, and a strategic tool for the pros. You'll have to earn it though. By finishing combos the kickback meter increases. First charge only requires one finished combo, but the next requires two, then three, four, and so on. Deciding whether to build a long combo or recharge the kickback will be vital, adding more tension to the game.
SINGLE/MULTI-ISH PLAYER
At its core Icy Tower is a single player game but we would love to expand on this in a sensible way. We've already got replays implemented to share and review your best (or worst) games. Being able to play against a replay seems like a good addition. We also intend to investigate the Steam API to see how we can integrate friend functionality and similar features.
TOWERS
The main gameplay will remain true to the original game with a single tower with different themes as players climb higher and higher. We are however looking into some alternative game experiences to increase the variety. Stay tuned.
CUSTOM CHARACTERS & MODDING
Adding more characters and changing the game was a huge part of Icy Tower's appeal for many players. We'd love to make this possible again but aren't far enough into the development to say exacly how it will work. More as it unfolds.
ACHIEVEMENTS & CHALLENGES
Achievements? Yes, we'll have them! Just haven't ticked the box yet. Would also be great to have daily challenges that are the same for all players to spur some friendly competition.
THE DEVELOPMENT
We're remaking the whole game from scratch! Music, graphics, sound effects, and code. Everything is being thoughtfully and lovingly remade to build a new game to the best of our abilities. We want it to surpass its predecessors in every way, while still keeping the feel of the original.
TECH
Techwise we've changed to a 16:9 screen ratio to make the most of modern monitors and TVs. For the same reason we're also going up to 60 fps for a super smooth gameplay experience. The game runs in native 480x270 resolution that is easly scalable to all common formats.
PLATFORMS
First we want to make sure that the game is as good as we can possibly make. This means Windows PC and Mac OSX. Steamdeck should be trivial. Mobile? Probably (if we can nail the controls). If the game sells well, we definitely want to try and get it onto other platforms but we're a small dev team so no promises. That said, getting this on the Switch would be a dream come true!
WANT TO HELP OUT?
We're getting a lot of offers for helping out with everything from translation to testing - thank you so much! At this point we are not ready to take it on though. But you can still help! The most important thing right now is increasing awareness. Spread the news to everyone you know and ask them to wishlist the game. Thanks!
NEXT STEPS
As mentioned we're a small dev team and we haven't locked down the entire scope of the game yet. Things can definitely change. Over the coming months we will make regular updates to come back with more details as the development process goes on.
Thanks for reading! ❤️
