AS THE ART CAME TOGETHER, DID IT INFLUENCE THE DESIGN OF THE GAME IN ANY WAY? IF SO, HOW?
Above: “This is the first UI design of the nursery. We made the decision to remove this screen and change it into a pop up so as to not take the players away from their busy zoos.”
Right: “These are drawings of the shop employees in the main game. We tried to make some wacky and different from each other so as to fit into the game’s colourful and whimsical aesthetic.”
Left: “For inspiration with respect to drawing graphics, we often look at beautiful scenes of the real world. Our goal was to allow people to be able to recreate reality within Let’s Build a Zoo.”
I think we had a pretty clear vision for the art from the start of development, it was just a continuation of the style we use in our other games. That isn’t intended to be dismissive, it’s just part of the way we optimise development. However, design was very much influenced by art. When an artist draws an amazing thing that doesn’t work in the game as it stands, it inspires one of us programmers to just figure out how to get it working in the game. It’s like the most effective way of pitching an idea: “Hey I drew a giant pig hot air balloon, can you make it wobble about?” How can I say no?
LBAZ HAS A DARKER SIDE THAT MANIFESTS ITSELF THE MORE YOU PROGRESS, ALMOST IN ANTITHESIS TO THE ART STYLE. WAS THAT INTENTIONAL? Very much so, a cute game covering up a dark universe delivers a kind of contrast that, to me, is just instantly hilarious! From the likes of Quentin Tarantino showing horrific violence while playing a pop song from the 70s to baby metal delivering thrash despite trying to look as cute as possible, these kinds of contrasts always make things more interesting.
“The original title of the game was going to be “Horizon Valley Zoo”, where it takes place in Horizon Valley. However, we decided that we wanted a more catchy name, and we went through several options before deciding on “Let’s Build a Zoo.” We wanted the title to pop off the page, thus we eventually ended up on a simple and bold design to help make it stand out.”
64 | MCV/DEVELOP February 2022
ASIDE FROM AN ABUNDANCE OF THE WORD “CHARMING”, WHAT HAS BEEN THE RESPONSE LIKE TO THE GAME AND IT’S VISUAL DESIGN? We have been delighted that people have responded so well, and surprised how many players seem to have been waiting for a game just like this one. As I think back to the time Theme Park went from 2D to 3D, and how much it changed not just how the game played, but how clean and perfect your creation looked, we are happy that players feel the same way. Watching players create amazing tapestries in their zoos that go far beyond our imaginations has been a thrill. Essentially we can’t wait to add more things to the game, and see what players create. In many ways we see Let’s Build a Zoo as the natural evolution of simulation games, if 3D graphics chips had never been invented. It’s reassuring that people seem to connect with that vision.
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