Interview with Game Insight about “Natives and Castles”

Hi! First of all, congratulations on the release of the game!

Hi! Thanks!

Tell us about the team!

Divo Games has been operating for about 10 years, we have been cooperating with them for about three years. They were engaged in casual games before. We have released several successful projects. Including the Be Rich time manager. When they joined Game Insight, we started developing The Tribez together.

Was it their idea? Or did Game Insight say: do you guys need to do a time manager?

It was a collective decision. They came to us. And then we thought together what kind of game to develop.

And why the time manager? You graduated in May 2012. Then there were a lot of similar projects.

In May, the game was just released. And it was developed before about a year. To say that in 2011 it was possible to foresee an increase in the number of such games does not seem right to me.

Tribes is far from the most ordinary farm, it was loaded with many new chips. It was a conscious step, did you already understand at that time that everyone was tired of just clicking on the bed?

Of course, this cannot be called an experiment, since Game Insight had a successful experience of such projects by that time. 

But it is important to understand: before that, Divo Games itself released only freemium. “Natives” became the first free-to-play for the studio. Each of their projects had a finale, and we made the development in the Tribez world endless. 

By the way, the game cannot be called a farm, it is, in fact, a city builder in the setting of the Stone Age.

When you move from island to island in the first part, the player starts almost from scratch every time. Was there a serious outflow of users at this stage? How did you fight him?

Not exactly from scratch, of course, but it was a problem that had to be solved. Few even reached the fourth island. Most preferred to continue playing on the first island. For this reason, we started at some point to expand the first island.

There was another moment here: users were annoyed by the constant loading when moving from island to island. So we just added (and continue to do so) territories to the first island for the most casual part of our audience. And for those who are really interested in exploring the world of the Natives, there are 6 more islands, all in different settings, with different buildings and resources, tasks and riddles.

The Facebook version of the game appeared only a year later …

In an hour and a half.

Even so? Why is it taking so long?

We had a lot to do. First we conquered the iPad and iPhone. Then they ported to Android, went to Amazon, went out in different countries, on different platforms, we can say that they just didn’t get around. 

Some say that the revenue from Kindle Fire devices is comparable to Google Play. Based on your experience, is this statement true?

No. They are of a completely different order (revenues from Amazon are lower). 

Many developers of games for social networks are now switching to mobile platforms. In the case of The Tribez, it was the opposite. Was the transition difficult for you on Facebook? And what was changed?

First of all, we had to change the interface, finish drawing the graphics, of course. Porting the game to Flash took a very long time. The specifics of the engine did not allow this to be done easily.

And if we talk about game design, has it changed?

Yes, due to the appearance of the cursor, some functions had to be completed. Something has changed in the friends system, some specific viral mechanisms have been added

But the mechanics, monetization, more global things, have they remained as they are?

Yes, everything is left.

The Tribez is a big service project, it is growing, developing. How much, in general, has the game changed from the moment of release to the present moment?

There were no drastic changes. Of course, some entities were introduced, islands were added, the first island was seriously expanded, many events, competitions, friends and various ways of interacting with them were added, many different monetization promotions appeared in the game, a lot of additional content. In principle, the game has tripled in content since its release.

If it were possible to restart the first part, what would you change?

We made some mistakes. Who does not allow them. Now we are releasing a sequel, we tried to avoid something.

For example?

We have solved the problem of systematization of processes. In other words, we know who and what should be done at any given time, which helps a lot to create a completely finished product, in the preparation of which all the nuances are taken into account.

What is the game’s total number of downloads across all platforms?

14 million

How long ago did the development of “Natives and Castles” begin?

At the beginning of 2013.

Almost a year ago?

The game was ready around October, but at that time we were busy porting the first “Natives” to various social networks, so we were not released. Then they polished the game for a long time, tested it, brought it to mind. 

And how do you usually test projects inside the company? After all, some people like to first launch an early version of the game on Google Play or on Vkontakte, and start polishing the game. The game turns from alpha into beta, from beta into a release that can already be ported to other platforms. How do you do it?

Our game is undergoing an internal testing cycle. It starts tightly with us at the beta stage. Alpha, of course, is also watched, but mainly by the producer (in this case, me), game designers and the studio head. Then the game goes into beta, where it is mass tested by the relevant specialists, then a soft lunch.

And how many people do you have on internal testing?

We have a team of testers at Divo Games and a team at Game Insight. Divo Games starts earlier. There are about ten of them. They are not focused on one project. Then it connects to the testing of Game Insight. In the hottest time – five people work on the same project. Usually there are two or three people. Plus, producers, heads of other Game Insight studios are watching.

“Natives and Castles” will be launched simultaneously on all platforms?

Now we are launching on iOS and Google Play. On iOS, we will have a unibuild, and not as it was with the first part. On March 12, a flash version will appear on Facebook. Then we will port it further: to Amazon and social networks.

Was “Natives and Castles” written from scratch?

Let’s just say that, of course, we also used the developments from the first part. We took a lot of basic mechanics from the “Natives”, solutions for the code, the comfort of interaction with the interface, the display of hovers and so on, so on.

What are the key differences between the first part and the second?

Firstly, the setting has changed, now events are developing in the Middle Ages. Secondly, the parameters of security and influence appeared. They allow you to expand your territories and, in fact, build it up. Then the decor began to play an important role. If you used to build it just for the sake of beauty, now it is important for the development of your kingdom, raises its influence. Houses began to generate scrolls, for which you get contracts. Previously, “commerce”, which gave gold, was ordered for gold. Now scrolls are needed to build them.

Residential houses can now be rebuilt into steeper buildings, since players are now somewhat cramped in areas where construction is possible. Added a combat system. It doesn’t open right away. We have tried to make users learn the game gradually. We have introduced dungeons, analogous to the islands that we abandoned. Our main action takes place on one big map – your kingdom, and there is also a large map of the continent, the so–called “Land of Kings”, where there are small locations – dungeons (conditional name, game – adventure), in which you go and perform small tasks. The cards are small – the size of a screen, each of them is unique.

How much tougher has monetization become? In the first part, it was very soft.

The game is still not very tight for users, that is, it is quite comfortable to play. But we have introduced something new. Let’s just say some tricks that I would not like to reveal now.

Thanks for the interview!