NOTE: Welcome to episode 2 of The Indie Initiative. This series aims to bring you a look into various indie games, their studios, and the people behind them. This episode features The Last Spell from Ishtar Games. If you want to be a part of The Indie Initiative, please fill out this form.
What if Final Fantasy Tactics & Dynasty Warriors had an illegitimate daughter? That’s the tag line of The Last Spell, a new rogue-like tactical RPG that aims to bring a type of game to market that isn’t very common.
“We like to mix things, and for us it was a great combo,” Designer and producer Benjamin Coquelle of Ishtar Games said. “[So] let’s give it a try. We don’t know if it will work, but we will make some prototypes and test it a lot and make it work and have this unique combination of genre.”
With the game being in early access for two years before its March 9 release, it’s seen numerous changes. The biggest of which being overall progression, according to Coquelle.
“I think what’s changed a lot is the progression in the game,” Coquelle says. “We [used to have] just one map.
“After discussion with players and internally, we decided to make several maps. All that offer a unique boss and unique mechanics.”
Another area where work was tough was finding a balance in developing various elements within the game. From art style to gameplay to sound design, everything felt just as important as the other. Coquelle admits that a reason why the game was in early access for so long was because of how long it took to find that balance.
“That’s one thing we kind of failed in this development and why it us took so long,” he said. “Sometimes to see if something works, we had to do it 100% complete.”
He added that testing certain elements required being fully immersed in the experience which was hard to do with having the full art and sound implemented when testing.
Throughout the 20-minute talk, Benjamin discusses what he’s most proud of with The Last Spell, the challenges of creating the game, and so much more. Catch the full episode of The Last Spell below and make sure you subscribe to Insider Gaming on YouTube.
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