I am back with for another staff interview for Talking About Tuesday. This time with, well, Me, the force of nature that is a tide of words and sex positivity. It might seem strange to ask myself questions, but I replied to the staff interview form like everyone else XD. Anyway, here’s me talking with me...
So, Misty, what team are you on?
I am doing a little bit of everything aside from art. Mostly, I type a lot of content for our Patreon and other platforms and check in with everyone to see where things are. I am working on figuring out the larger world of Ultimate Pump usually by pestering Moxy with questions about things like “Is Crestpeak the only place where there are huge women or is this a change to the status quo globally?”
Who of the potential romance options are you most excited about getting to see in the game?
Aiko!
Oh? Any reason why?
I am actually the lead writer for Aiko (and Wren, too) so I am really itching to get started on writing dialogue for her--especially after seeing her updated portrait art. She just seems so full of energy and I hope I can live up to that in my lines.
Since Ultimate Pump is a dating-sim/RPG hybrid about muscular women, the physical aesthetics play a large role in getting people interested in a character. Which of these is the most attractive feature to you? The choices are: Big Boobs, Big Biceps, Thick Thighs, Tight Calves, Toned Glutes, or Washboard Abs.
There was a time where boobs would have been a snap answer, but I am a big fan of thighs at present.
There any reason?
Sort of, mostly how they look and feel. They make much better pillows than someone else’s chest and I just the love feel of them when I give my partner massages.
Knowing what I know, do you want to get into previous game development experience?
Sure, at least a little bit! I did balance testing for a ASCII dungeon crawler. I also used to write mods and tools for Eve Online in College and also ran an RO Server in High School. I spend a fair bit of time now working on my custom set for Cryptozoic’s DC Deckbuilding Game (which also now includes Cartoon Network Crisis). It was built by combining all the existing cards and tuning the list until there was solid support for a half-dozen archetypes without a whole lot of dreck or cards that only do things situationally. It leads to a lot of explosive games n.n
What would you say is one of your biggest goals working on Ultimate Pump?
Having the game be accessible to more than just guys into big, strong women and having the cast feel like more than just sexy dialogue vending machines. I think the second part will make the first work out.
Looking forward to see what you do in that regard. So, what was your first game?
Super Mario World. I got the SNES bundle for my birthday that year (and then got Link to the Past shortly after).
What game had the biggest impact on your life, then?
Secret of Mana, hands down. I spent weeks playing through it with friends the first time and I still feel like it might be one of the best real time combat systems--an engine that only gets better in Secret of Evermore. Really interested to see what the remaster looks like!
What is one game design decision made in another game you want to avoid here?
Disconnected Plots. One of the hardest parts of having an opened ended narrative is that sometimes you are better friends with a character than you appear to be in main game cut-scenes. Since you can date everyone at once, I really want the interactions between the cast to feel as organic as possible. I do not want this to end up feeling flat, as if the interactions one has actually mean nothing outside of their specific plot lines.
Is there a design decision you would love to see emulated in Ultimate Pump?
I really like Monster Rancher's method of handling training. It still feels like you are invested in the outcome even if you are simply watching a randomly selected cut scene. I am hoping we can eventually do something similar with Aria and not have it just be a numbers game.
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That is all the time we have this week. If you want to talk more about Ultimate Pump or have your own questions for Misty, check out the game's discord channel. You can also support the game by following the twitter to engage with me on daily topics or pledging to the Patreon which can provide you with early looks at character designs, let you access more frequent builds, name your own NPC, and more!
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