AppVader

DEV-LOG Part 2: Rocket Claw by Fugazo (iPhone & iPod)

Posted on 03. Jan, 2012 by Dooley in AV-Log, Featured

Rocket Claw by Fugazo

Astronauts are stranded in space…

Aliens are closing in fast…

Who is going to save them?

Meet C.L.A.W.D., the Clamping Long-Arm Winch Device!

Reel in astronauts with your claw as they float perilously through space! But make sure to destroy the aliens, comets, and other galactic hazards. Harvest space crystals and spend them on upgrades like the Big Claw and Defense Drone.

This is Part Two of a Two Part series where we talk to Charles and Jeff about their mega-hit ‘Rocket Claw’. You can read Part One here as well as see some original sketches and pictures used to inspire the team.

If you just got an iPhone for Christmas, then this app is definitely one you should download.

THE DETAILS

The words

AppVader: What features have you added that are unique?

Jeff: We have a game mode where absolutely nothing can hurt you, but you have a fixed time limit to score as many points as you can. (There are other fixed time-limit games, like Pac-Man Championship Edition and the Deadline mode in Geometry Wars 2, but you can still die or lose time to hazards.)

Charles: One thing that I thought was unique is C.L.A.W.D.’s claw. It has some sort of physics on it and I thought it was pretty neat. Also, yanking crystal teeth from a floating alien head! One of our other Designers, Jim Burner, came up with the idea.

AV: How would you describe the ‘story arc’ of Rocket Claw?

Jeff: C.L.A.W.D. is energetic, dedicated to the mission, eager to prove himself, and proud to play a vital role in our space program.

Charles: I would describe C.L.A.W.D. as a robot on a mission to save all the stranded astronauts (and astro-pup’s) in space. Was he programmed to? Sure. But no robot is happy as him. Just look at his face when you rescue people (or pull teeth)! As any black blooded robot, he’ll throw a claw in evil’s face.

AV: What problems have you faced along the way?

Jeff: The control scheme needed the most work. Initially, the claw continually tracked your fingertip until it ran out of fuel or you took your finger off the screen. This had the same issue as a lot of other iPhone games: your finger blocks your view! On top of that, we needed to show your fuel meter somewhere, and we needed a help screen and tutorial explaining that you could steer the claw in mid-flight. All these issues vanished when we switched to a single, unsteerable tap-and-retract scheme.
The most serious problem was also the least expected. Brand new players thought they needed to drag the claw out of the satellite rather than tap where they wanted it to go. It took several rounds of testing and experimenting with tutorial schemes to reach the current plan of having a single astronaut on the screen with a bright, flashing “Tap Here” ahead of him.

Rocket Claw is just one successful app Fugazo have created. You can see their developer page here or stay uptodate by following the team on Twitter.

Get some instant Rocket Claw satisfaction by hitting the icon below.

Reviewed by: Dooley

Scott started AppVader years ago from his living room table and has nurtured it into the beast it is now. While waiting in anticipation for a Blake's 7 game to be developed, he often is seen on twitter here.