Penny's Big Breakaway devs on why they went with a fixed camera
Focus on action
Penny’s Big Breakaway is coming to Switch sometime this year, and we’ll likely hear more on a specific release date in the very near future. While we wait for those details, a new developer feature has been shared that gives a behind-the-scenes look at how this new 3D platformer came to be.
Hunter Bridges, one of the co-founders of Evening Star, as well as both Game Director and Technical Director for Penny’s Big Breakaway, has penned a new feature that dives into the game’s inner-workings. We get to learn more on how the game’s basic idea and yo-yo mechanics came to be, but we also get some very interesting insight into the game’s camera.
There’s no doubt Penny’s Big Breakaway is channeling the spirit of classic 90s 3D platforms from decades ago, but there’s one area where the dev team wanted to up the experience. While early 3D platformers experimented with all sorts of free camera control, Penny’s Big Breakaway is going with a fixed camera option. Wondering why the team made that call? You can see Bridges explain in the snippet below.
In most 3D platformers, the player is often tasked with managing the camera. We’re adding new mechanics designed around yo-yo moves. We wanted the player to focus on controlling that, instead of constantly attending to the camera’s position and direction.
We decided to go with a “fixed” camera that the player doesn’t control. The player never has to think about the camera, but it will always show them what they need to see and where they need to go. This decision profoundly influenced our gameplay and level design.
Comments (0)