Recently, XBLArcade.com had a chance to do some question and answers with Twisted Pixel Games CCO / Director Josh Bear about the Xbox LIVE Arcade title ‘Splosion Man. Tough questions were asked, serious answers were given, and luckily nothing went ‘splode! 

Q:  Before we get to ‘Splosion Man, can you fill us in on the history of Twisted Pixel Games?
A:  Sure!  We started Twisted Pixel a little over three years ago with the intention of creating the coolest downloadable titles for consoles.  We started with 3 people then grew to 8 when we started work on our first title The Maw, then grew even more for Splosion Man.  The company had its start in my hometown of Madison, Indiana.  We have re-located the company to Austin, Texas and the team consists of 15 talented people.

Q:  What sort of challenges is there being an relatively new independent studio?
A:  At first it was really trying to prove to publishers that we could make games.  After they felt comfortable with that, it was proving that people would want to play the games we wanted to make, lol.  The beauty of digital distribution is that you can get away with more "out there" ideas I think, for whatever reason.  I doubt Splosion Man would have been greenlit as a multi-million dollar retail game.  But for download, it wasn't as tough to win that battle. 

Q:  Will you be expanding the company’s reach into other consoles such as the PS3 or Wii?
A:  We have an interest in all of the consoles.  Each one of them has strengths that I think Twisted Pixel could take advantage of.  It really just depends on the idea and where it fits best.

Q:  How did the idea for ‘Splosion Man come up?
A:  It was pretty random, people just tossing out ideas.  Sean Riley thought it would be funny to make a game where a dude splodes in a world only made of glass, since we love the idea of glass shattering all the time.  From there, everyone joked about that concept until it was fleshed out into what is now on Xbox Live Arcade.

Q:  Who were the artists that work on the initial concept art and can we have a look at some of the early work?
A:  Our original concept artist on Splosion Man was Jerome Crackersack, a very talented individual that has retired from drawing concepts for a very lucrative managing position at a local Dairy Queen.  We wish him the best.  Dave Leung (art lead) was able to really run with Jerome's concepts and bring them to life.  We also worked with a great outsource studio, Nikitova LLC to help us model some of the characters in the game.  For a look at some of the early concept work of Splosion Man, beat the game and check out the credits...you'll see something pretty cool.

Q:  Humour seems to be a big part of your games, such as The MAW and ‘Splosion Man, and we were wondering how big of a part of this is considered in the pre-development stage of Twisted Pixel Games? And why?
A:  I don't think we really set out to make every game funny or anything like that.  Certain ideas like Splosion Man naturally lean towards it for sure, but we really just want to make awesome stuff.  We put a lot of who we are into our games, and I think whatever strange or crappy humor we have just kind of gets inserted as development goes on.  So a little up front, but a lot as we make the game and come up with new things to throw in.

Q:  How would you describe the game?
A:  Splosions and meat, with a bit of cake throw in.  Bada da bista, BABY!

Q:  What kind of delays did you run into with ‘Splosion Man, if any?
A:  No real delays.  We were aiming to try to be ready for the Summer of Arcade promotion in case Microsoft was interested, and we made the date.  It was a huge challenge to do this game in that amount of time (6-7) months, but our team is awesome and managed to make it.  It also helped that Splosion Man was a relatively clear vision from beginning to end.

Q:  I know everyone has been asking you this, but with your other well-known award winning title The Maw receiving some DLC, we have to ask, are their any plans to do the same for ‘Splosion Man?
A:  No current plans right now, but if people really demand it, that is something we would look into.  I can tell you that we have some really cool ideas for what we could do with Splosion Man DLC, that go above and beyond what you might expect.

Q:  Do you have any interesting or funny stories you could tell us about from around the studio during the development of ‘Splosion Man?
A:  Honestly, we've been working so much lately, I don't remember much of anything of the development of Splosion Man.  I was going to think of some really clever made up story to put in here, but I'm pretty sure it would end up sucking, so I just won't even try. 

Q:  What is up with the Way of the Coward option and the blue tutu? Who thought that up?
A:  We knew we needed to put in something that let people skip a level if they want.  We want people to play through the entire game, and the Way of the Coward option is a good way of doing that, since it isn't mandatory and it doesn't come up until you die like 8 times in a row.  The tutu was inspired from the Ninja Dog difficulty level in Ninja Gaiden Black.  It was cool that he had to wear a pink armband for sucking so bad, so we took it up a notch and made it a tutu.

Q:  Will 'Splosion Man be at PAX this year? And if so, who is going to represent the studio and at which booth can you be found at there?
A:  Definitely!  We have a Twisted Pixel booth at PAX this year, and you can come hang out and play Splosion Man and The Maw.  We will also have some cool stuff for sale, like Maw plushies and Splosion Man t-shirts and some other cool stuff.  It all turned out really well, I'm excited to see what other players think about it all.  There will be a couple of us there, including our new concept artist Brandon Ford, so it is going to be awesome.  Look for the Twisted Pixel sign and come hang out with us!

Q:  Will players be able to unlock gamer pictures and premium themes in 'Splosion Man like they did in The Maw? And will their be exclusive Avatar clothing or Awards?
A:  Splosion Man has an unlockable premium theme and two gamer pics, just like The Maw.  It also has avatar accessories that can be unlocked once Microsoft releases the update to allow it.  We love giving people free stuff in games and will continue to do so.

Q:  I here there is an upcoming contest called “Speedy Splode” where you can win something cool. Can you let us in on the details of that contest?
A:  Yeah...if you beat the end of the game, after the credits you will see when that is happening.  If you have the top leaderboard score on a particular level during the week we mention, we will send you a cool Splosion Man statue. 

Q:  Is Twisted Pixel Games going to be making more platform titles or will you be looking in a new direction in the future?
A:  All genres are open to us.  Our next game will take a slightly different direction, but I think characters, quality, and great gameplay will be the foundation for everything we do, whether it is a puzzle game or a first person shooter.

Q:  Do you think the gaming industry is leaning towards the digital download as the future of gaming? And if so, how big of a part of that do you think Twisted Pixel Games will be?
A:  I hope it is, and I hope that we are making some kind of impact.  The only thing holding it back is that there are far fewer people with the ability to have broadband and download then there are people that can just walk into a store.  It is hard for somebody to tell their mom or grandma that they want Splosion Man, when that person can't just walk into Wal-Mart and buy it.  So it will take time, but other than that, what makes digital distribution quality less than retail quality?  Nothing. 

Q:  What is next for Twisted Pixel Games?
A:  A vacation would be nice, but that is for wimps.  We are starting work on our next original IP that will be a downloadable title.  We are trying to raise the bar again on this one.  I am really looking forward to revealing what that is in the coming months.

Q:  Is there anything else you would like to tell the fans of your XBLA games out there?
A:  Just that we really appreciate all the fan mail, and your support by downloading our games.  We make games because we love them, and want to make awesome stuff for everyone to play.  So very sincerely, thank you!

Q:  Finally, where can our viewers go to find out more about ‘Splosion Man?
A:  Check out www.splosionman.com  We have a lot of cool stuff on there, including exclusive movies, free downloadable stuff, and the entire soundtrack for free.

That concludes the interview with Josh Bear, CCO / Director of Twisted Pixel Games on Splosion Man. Our thanks go out to the whole team of Twisted Pixel Games for making such an entertaining game, taking time out of their busy schedule to do this interview, and for providing XBLArcade.com with a free redemption code to giveaway. Check back on Monday, August 10th to find out how you can win a free copy of Splosion Man!