Recently, Mike Rose’s interview with Supercell’s lead producer Lasse Louhento appeared on Gamasutra, in which the British journalist tries to find out what the secret of the Clash of Clans that blew up the box office tops is. We offer a short version of the material.
1. Combine casual and hardcore audiences
It turns out that initially the game was much more cartoon and brighter. This is exactly how it was conceived by developers who were tired of their own failures in the field of mobile development and cyberpunk setting. But then it was decided to abandon the gaudiness, and Supercell muted the tones.
The reason was simple. Such an approach to graphics could scare off hardcore players. At the same time, in order not to disappoint casual users, the developers abandoned everything dark, black, realistic.
In order to achieve balance, as well as create a recognizable style, they had to sort through a large number of concepts. The final version was a synthesis of Pixar cartoons and the style inherent in the characters of Capcom games.
As a result, the creators pleased both casual and hardcore players.
However, it all came down not only to the graphics. The conceived mechanics allowed, according to Lauhento, both social groups to coexist in one game. Avid players fight with other users, there is a highscore board for them, there is a competitive element. As for the second group, they are more interested in the social aspect: chatting, joining clans, financing troops, etc.
2. The goal should be clear already at the early stages
To make a successful game, it is very important to imagine in advance what exactly you want to do and how it should look.
A working prototype of Clash of Clans was made in two months: it was on the server, you could play it and, most importantly, enjoy it.
The product obtained at an early stage allowed developers to understand where to move on. Yes, most of the content was missing, there was no balance, the entire graphics were not ready, but there was a skeleton, a structure that worked.
From that moment on, it was possible to take up the interface, how scrolling happens, how gestures work in the game, where buttons should be located, etc. But not only to take on, but also to push off at the same time in the design.
Lohento believes that in many ways it is the UI that plays a decisive role in the success of a particular mobile game today. Therefore, from the very beginning, it is necessary to think about the interface, and with the receipt of a prototype, already “in combat conditions” to test it.
3. Don’t overdo it with player training
The tutorial was included in Clash of Clans “in the last minutes”, just a couple of weeks before the release on the App Store. According to the developers, they just didn’t want to deal with this “nastiness”.
According to Louhento, “if people like what they see and feel comfortable, then everything is fine.” This, of course, does not mean that players do not need to be taught the game, but the mobile industry has gone too far in chewing up the rules.
“We are not fans of long training modes,” Louhento says. – “I know that Zynga spends a lot of time and effort on this. They have a special team that specializes in studying metrics and experiments, like, “let them click here” or “let’s make a bigger button here” and the like.” But there is no such thing in Supercell.
Although the producer noted that if the retention level at a certain stage may be higher, the team will slightly tweak the design and, possibly, the tutorial, but only slightly.
4. Healthy competition in the company is great
Clash of Clans and Hay Day were made by two different teams inside Supercell. And throughout the development period, they teased each other amicably about how far they had progressed in development.
Every Friday, the teams shared what they planned to do next week, and also boasted about their results, who wrote more code, who has a better interface. This made the development process itself an exciting business.
5. Don’t underestimate your users
Both Clash of Clans and Hay Day projects receive regular updates once a week: new items, new in–game purchases, new characters. But updates are not always good.
New users, faced with diversity, may become confused and, in the end, be scared. As for veterans, from their point of view, the new content is a threat to the balance.
Supercell made the following decision: the company made additional content available only to loyal players. A beginner will not be able to try out certain functionality without playing the game for two weeks. Then, little by little, more and more will be available to him.
Moreover, the new content should maintain a game balance between the casual and hardcore component. The bottom line is that the game should look very simple, but have a hidden depth.
Also, Supercell has developed a special automatic game system for testing, which generates thousands of fights between different units, correlates, and then outputs data based on which you can understand where the balance is broken.