Interview: Lol Scragg - Cohort Studios

High in their office block, Cohort Studios looks out across the heart of Dundee. Their development team has worked on some of Sony's top titles since the east-coast company was formed in 2006, including the PS3 launch title, Motorstorm and the Burnout franchise. Moreover, they have designed and developed two games for Sony's popular Buzz! Junior series on the PS2. CEO Lol Scragg explains why Cohort is becoming a force to be reckoned with in the Scottish gaming industry.

An ambitious company must have an ambitious man at the top. If you could create the ultimate game, personal to you with no restrictions, what would it be?

Lol Scragg (LS) - My dream would be to produce a next-gen version of Colony Wars, one of the products I produced many years ago. I have worked on many different games since, but Colony Wars is still close to my heart due to the great story, game and team (who interestingly, have all gone on to bigger and better things). So, a large expansive space game, with added trading and all online. Special appearance by Shatner to ham up the voice-overs and just because I want to meet the great man at some point!

Nice! so what can we expect from Cohort in 2009?

LS - Quite a lot, starting with a product in January and other products throughout the year. Unfortunately, we can't go into details but I am sure that they will raise a few eyebrows when people see what we've been up to.

We are also looking to potentially self-publish some of our titles in 2009. We feel there's a new market opening up which we are calling 'Casual+', for gamers who have played end enjoyed the traditional casual output from the likes of Popcap and BigFish, and may want to take the next step into gaming. This is an area we are keenly interested in.

Is this all part of Cohort reacting to the changing market? How will this effect what you take into account when developing a game?

LS - A lot of the recent data I have seen has showed that it is the older, 30+ gamers that are making the majority of the changes! However, no matter what changes are happening in the market, each game has its essential core market, whether this is 7-12 years olds, traditional 14+ boys, or the 30+ female market, and we have to tailor our titles accordingly.

We have found ourselves creating titles that are very much within the 'family orientated' area with our work on the Buzz! Jr titles, as well as our currently in-development projects. This means we not only have to consider what content we put into our titles, but also whether the core gameplay mechanics are suitable for that particular market segment.

How do you see the Scottish development community changing in the next decade, and how does Cohort want to change with it?

LS - I firmly believe we are up at the top with such [Scottish] companies as Rockstar, RealTime, Denki, 4J, Tag, Dynamo.... The list goes on and on. Unfortunately, I don't think we are very good at actually telling people how good we are, and if we are going to expand gaming within our region, we have to attract new companies to the area.

I'm sure that somewhere down the line a large publisher or developer will set up a large studio here which, alongside the numbers at Rockstar and RealTime, will bring critical mass to the region for games development. It can only be a good thing—we have the majority of the pieces already in place such as a constant local stream into the talent pool via the regional academic institutions—and the desire to succeed.

The Buzz! Jr games have shown that the Buzz! buzzers are far more dexterous than first thought. What other ingenious plans have you got up your sleeves to make use of them?

LS - I wish I could tell you... but I can't. However, as you mention, the Buzzers are a really interesting peripheral and the restriction on the numbers of buttons available has led to some really interesting and innovative game ideas.

Boo! Okay, but the future looks bright?

LS - We will be doing some interesting R&D on future gaming technologies which look years into the future. Hopefully we will have something to talk about in 2009! All in all, 2009 is looking like being an even better year for us than 2008—which is great, given that this year we expanded our company, moved premises and released two great games!

Nintendo 2009: Rated 'R' for repentant

Each year, the festive period seems to come and go all too soon. Once the seemingly bottomless supply of cold turkey sandwiches runs out, it’s time to consider New Year resolutions. How many of us can honestly say we've seen them through as planned? This year, one game developer has made some pretty bold resolutions for 2009 and the industry will be watching very carefully to make sure they follow through.

Nintendo has been the target of widespread criticism since last summer’s lacklustre showing at the E3 convention in Los Angeles. The wide demographic appeal of Nintendo’s casual game portfolio left their core audience coming away feeling a bit betrayed. In-house projects like Wii Music and Animal Crossing have failed to douse the fiery discontent from the Nintendo faithful.

Since then, the developer has come forward to assure the punters that 2009 will be a memorable year with several high-profile titles. Both Wii and DS will enjoy their fair share of 'hardcore' games in the future, but will they be any good?

Sure to make the Daily Express hitlist for its over-the-top violence, Madworld, from Platinum Games, takes the bold, abstract styles of Okami and marries it with the brutality of bloodsport movies like cult Japanese hit Battle Royale. The game is entirely monotone, taking inspiration from film noir for its colour palette. Only the deep red of blood provides any sort of contrast.

As lumbering, hard-ass Jack, you must play through a gameshow called Deathwatch, set in a city where posters reading 'We kill because we care' are the order of the day. Not the safest, friendliest neighbourhood, but bursting with undeniable character. This looks set to be the ultimate Wii fighting game.

Sega will be publishing Madworld in 2009, along with Wii shoot-em-up The Conduit. Developer High Voltage Software has made the most of the system's underutilised processing power to deliver some rather tasty visuals. Set in present-day Washington D.C., The Conduit follows a violent war between humanity and the Drudge, a volatile alien race. Unsurprisingly, it’s your mission to obliterate them with guns, guns and more guns.

It won’t be easy though, as the enemy AI has been touted very responsive; aliens cleverly duck and cover, while others wait for you to reload before charging your position. There’s also a massive amount of control customisation, so you can personalize your perfect play style. Add in obligatory online multiplayer, and Sega could be onto a winner with the Metroid fans out there.

If getting your hands dirty appeals to you, then join Rockstar on the DS as they take you down to Chinatown. Liberty City has once again been rebuilt from the ground up for Chinatown Wars, but in essence, the game world mimics a scaled down GTA IV. That’s not to say there won’t be loads going on. As soon as Huang Lee sets foot on US soil, you’re shot, robbed and left for dead before having to regain your honour and avenge your father’s death.

The top-down action comes with a smattering of all things explicit. Much of the gameplay is made up from minigames such as tattooing your gang recruits, drug dealing and hotwiring cars; all of which make effective use of the stylus. This is definitely one to watch for in 2009, especially for the amusing ad campaign provided by BBC News.

But where are the gaming icons Nintendo built their reputation on? All-new Mario and Zelda games are reportedly 'under development', which could be industry-speak for 'ages away'. However, all is not lost!

Under the working title of ‘Play it on the Wii’, Nintendo plans to reinvent some of the Gamecube’s classic titles to make modern use of the Wiimote. Suggested titles include Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, Pikmin, Chibi-Robo, Pikmin 2, Mario Tennis, Metroid Prime and the sequel, Echoes. Also, the SNES classic Pilotwings and Treasure's epic Sin and Punishment are being remade entirely for the home console and winging their way to the Wii next year.

The games mentioned here are only the tip of the iceberg for Nintendo's hardcore strategy. In addition, the Western release of the DSi in Spring poses some interesting possibilities for connectivity between Nintendo hardware. We’re only two years into the lifecycle of the Wii, and this generation looks like it could be the longest yet. With that in mind, maybe we shouldn’t be too quick to jump the gun and assume all is lost before it's even begun.

Will 2009 be the memorable year Nintendo needs? Let’s hope so.

Review: Professor Layton and the Curious Village

I’ve never been too good at multi-tasking. I’m a guy — those skills just don't come naturally to me. Listening to the radio while reading the paper is as hectic as it gets for me, but Professor Layton’s inaugural DS outing has shown that such skills can actually prove to be quite useful.

Here's the deal: The Professor has been invited to solve a local inheritance dispute. With his trusty sidekick Luke in tow, Professor Layton must solve assorted puzzles to unravel the mystery of the Golden Apple—a treasure that will decide the fate of the late Augustus Reinhold’s estate. The Curious Village in question is none other than St. Mystere, a rural community with all the quirks of French arthouse film Belleville Rendezvous, supported by a cast of misfits drawn with all the life of a Studio Ghibli animation.

The story sections play a lot like the point-and-click adventures of Broken Sword. Using the stylus to poke around every nook and cranny can turn up new leads and let you converse with your fellow townsfolk. Annoyingly, the challenges have little correlation to the story, but the game cleverly gets round that fact by constantly mocking the village’s relentless puzzle obsession. In saying that, the majority of their brainteasers are merely interludes to the story, which is rather gripping by DS standards. The final twist in the plot is one of those rare "no way!!" moments in video gaming—well worth the preceding hours of frustration.

Each puzzle earns you a number of 'picarats', a varying currency related to each question’s difficulty. One minute you may be rearranging a matchstick picture, the next shepherding wolves and chicks across a stream. After completing each of the 130 puzzles associated with the main game, you can revisit them in the handy puzzle index.

There’s a heap of side-quests too, like furnishing your rooms at the Inn and collecting gizmos to build a robot dog for sniffing out handy 'hint coins' to help you if you get stuck. You can even download a weekly puzzle from Nintendo if you don’t think your brain has been punished enough. Sadly, by the time you’ve seen all that The Curious Village has to offer, your brain will be so sharp you’ll easily recall most of the solutions on an immediate second play. The game even lets you complete puzzles you’ve missed along the way, so 100% completion is entirely likely the first time round.

The good news is that The Curious Village is only the first of a trilogy we’ll be getting over the coming year. If you’re fed up of Dr. Kawashima’s smug mug and need a thought-provoking game that demands a little more of you, even if only for a short time, this has to be it. Just be prepared to chew your stylus to bits.

12345678910

Scare Tactics

Space trivia 101: Mars wasn't always red you know - it's just been bloodied over the years. If you can believe Ridley Scott, "In space, no one can hear you scream."

Okay, so Mars has always been red. But rest assured, the release of Dead Space heralds a new age for the survival horror in the genre’s first successful mission under the stars. The futuristic take on Isaac Clark's struggle aboard the ISS ISHIMURA delivers a real sense of atmospheric brutality.

As a result, space now seems like a horrifying place. In an effort to understand why, Square-Go have taken a look at what brought us to this point. So sit back in the safety of your armchair and reminisce with us over the games that brought out your survival instinct.

The term "survival horror" didn't surface until the 1996 release of Resident Evil. Each instalment follows various members of the Special Tactics and Rescue Squad (S.T.A.R.S.) as they pick off hoards of the undead, while trying to unravel the mystery of the sinister Umbrella Corp. The shadowy pharmaceutical company managed to mutate half of Racoon City into mindless zombies while playing god with nature - nice move there lads...

What sets the Resident Evil series apart from its predecessors is the superb attention given to locations – designed with your fear in mind. The original game is set in a grand, chilling mansion and the freakish dystopia engulfs you deeper still with the engrossing character back stories and the unsettling character design of your cannon fodder.


Resident Evil 4 is undoubtedly the best example of the genre, and the mist-shrouded setting of small-town Eastern Europe provides perfect conditions for breeding discomfort. Capcom did a sterling job. The Resident Evil series spawned two sub-series, Survivor and Outbreak and together they captivated a worldwide audience.


Mind you, they'd had a stab at the concept before. A little-known Japan-only 1989 RPG, Sweet Home, served as a precursor to the Resident Evil series. The mansion setting, infuriating puzzles and open-door loading screen are all present and correct in the NES title. Capcom invested well in the hype surrounding 80's horror films like Aliens and Predator and unleashed the basic human instinct of survival on an interactive level.

Resident Evil may have established the survival horror genre, but Alone in the Dark was actually there first. The original 1992 PC title introduced Edward Carnby, a 1925 private detective who arrives at a shadowy mansion to retrieve a piano for an antique dealer.
Things soon turn nasty when a whole host of zombies and infallible ghouls move in to make your life a misery. Players instantly warmed to the atmospheric location and puzzle-solving scenarios, which were unique at the time. The series spawned several successful sequels and this year saw Carnby (who somehow hasn't aged a day since 1925) return once more for some gun-slingin'-zombie-bashin' action.

The series has undergone several graphical updates to deliver a game worthy of current gen systems and the score is as vexing as ever. A limited edition sold the game complete with a 15cm Edward Carnby figure, a game art book, a 'Making-of' DVD and a CD soundtrack - a generous package indeed.

Resident Evil's 1998 saw the birth of a new franchise from Konami the following year. Silent Hill offered a deeper psychological alternative to Capcom's series. Each instalment introduces the protagonist to the small American town shrouded in mist and filled with an ensemble of horrific beings, from mutated babies to faceless nurses. The 2001 sequel made better use of the the Playstation 2's advanced graphics to really nail down a sense of constant dread.

The psychological fear induced from even a quick play of Silent Hill is lent from the demented tale, Jacob's Ladder and has more than a touch of Stephen King about it. The series' sixth installment, Homecoming has just been released Stateside. If a psychological beatdown is your idea of a good time, look no further than Silent Hill 3 on the Playstation 2. The condemned fairground echoes with the constant screeching of machinery and pain - enough to keep anyone up all night.

There's a lot more to relate each of the above games than atmospheric locations. The constant reminder of your character's mortality and lacklustre arsenal is integral in developing a good survival horror. There's little incentive in combating demonic hoards of the undead when it's well within your capacity to do so.

Controlling a naïve or under-prepared character makes for a rewarding protagonist and bolsters the feeling of an endless struggle against impossible odds. The pace isn't fast enough for everyone, but if you dare to switch off the lights and submit yourself into a world of fear, gore and racing pulses, it's a truly satisfying ordeal – a fine choice, stranger.

Touch Me

I didn’t really know what to expect from Apple’s iPhone when it entered the handheld gaming arena. The touchscreen device sold out completely at launch and has become one of the most sought after pocket companions for tech heads across the world. The assurance of strong support from the AppStore and an inescapable ad campaign ensured that the iPhone was a strong newcomer to the previously exclusive two-horse race. With Nintendo and Sony both on the verge of releasing new models of the DS and the PSP, it seems like a good time to review the iPhone’s capabilities. Does mobile gaming stand a chance fighting it out with the big guns?

The iPhone 3G hit the shelves this summer, less than 6 months after the original model was released. Boasting faster 3G internet and assisted GPS, the gadget was heavily marketed as THE ultimate pocket companion. The sleek design is twinned with the iPod touch and combines the world’s most recognised mp3 player with mobile phone functions to remove needless pocket clutter. In fact, if you believe the hype, there’s nothing it can’t do.

The 3.5inch touchscreen allows for quick navigation through your videos, mp3s and contacts. But the device was also intended to be a contender in the handheld gaming market. The motion-sensing accelerometer and touchscreen controls combine to make a simple yet innovative mobile interface. Support from the AppStore means downloads like Bejewelled, Spore Origins and Crash Nitro Kart are finished in seconds, whether you’re on a bus or queuing for a sandwich.

Another game worth a look is the side-scrolling action game Kroll. Digital Legends have made fine use of the motion and touch controls as well as proving the iPhone is more than capable at running games in glorious 3D. In fact, to say these Apps are classed as ‘mobile gaming’ feels like belittling the iPhone’s capabilities. Things have moved on since Snake won our hearts in the pixel-munching nineties.

The games don’t stop there, either. Wannabe developers can download cheap dev kits to add to the growing number of innovative titles being produced by bedroom coders. This means there’ll always be a fresh wave of new titles appearing in the AppStore, even if most of them are weak efforts at recreating old favourites. At £180, the iPhone is nearly twice the price of a DS, but games are comparatively cheap ranging from completely free software to new titles priced at £5.99.

All in, the iPhone is a neat bit of technology. It’s a fine competitor to the PSP but it will always be looked on as a phone before it’s seen as a gaming system. It’s not without its faults either. One clumsy movement could see the device shatter your phone and your soul in one swift movement. Likewise, accidentally pocketing the iPhone in with your keys can cause nasty damage to the touchscreen. Favouring the touchscreen over digital button input can lead to some frustrating to-ing-and-fro-ing within the menus but that’s not a fault as such - nothing practice can’t resolve.

So is there anything it can’t do? Well, apart from match up to the phenomenal popularity of the DS, not really. The iPhone was never intended as a pure gaming system, but if you’re looking for an all-in-one gadget to store your life in while getting your game on, this is it. It’s newer, sleeker, smaller and (dare I say it…) it shows more innovative promise than any other pocket system out there. It won’t have the support of the DS or the PSP but the iPhone strikes me as the system that’s happy to cruise along in third.

Mobile gaming has finally begun to earn the respect it’s been yearning since Snake. Pocket gaming eventually has something to offer everyone. If you’re a busy tech-head then the iPhone seems like the obvious gizmo to discreetly waste time on long journeys. That’s not to say it’s out of reach for anyone. The entire generation of handhelds manages to accommodate everyone. It’s refreshing to have a three-horse race for a change, but don’t expect the iPhone to go and redefine portable gaming anytime soon. It is only a phone, after all.

Review: Viva Piñata Pocket Paradise

Early screens of Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise were worrying, as the last thing the DS port needed was a barrage of minigames similar to the disastrous Xbox 360 spin-off, Party Animals. Thankfully, all fears have been put to bed by this fantastic iteration of the 360 original, appearing on the handheld in its full horticultural glory and lacking only HD graphics and infuriating minigames.

Released in November 2006, Rare’s Viva Piñata on 360 was met with critical acclaim for reaching out to the four corners of young and old, casual and hardcore gamers alike. Pocket Paradise looks to follow through, aided this time by innovative touch screen control and over sixty piñata to befriend (including 7 DS exclusives). The touch screen displays a top-down view of your garden: around 4x4 DS screens in size. Once you’ve cleared away the rubble and sown some grass you’re ready to begin attracting your first piñata. Whirlms are basic worm-like piñatas that will wander through your patch before Sparrowmints and Bunnycombs let curiosity get the better of them.

Over time you can buy and sell vegetables from the local shop Costalots, create garden features and build homes for your papier-maché menagerie, attracting more piñata as you go. If certain criteria are met, two piñatas will get it on and produce a young-un. For example, Mousemallows will only couple-up once they’ve eaten turnips, while others want to eat your other piñata, just to be difficult. If successful though, you’ll be treated to a short mating dance-video and your piñatas will wander off to their bouncing burrow.

However, it’s not all plain sailing. From time to time masked ruffians and sour piñatas will turn up to mess it all up for you, but it’s nothing a quick whack from your shovel won’t see to.

And that’s essentially it. Rare have refrained from threading through any needless plot which would only dampen the experience. Instead, Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise oozes “just-a-bit-more” charm that keeps the player glued to the screen and the colourfully creative character and garden designs add to the polished feel of the game. The attention to detail in the translation to DS is impressive. The touch screen makes selecting from menus and tending to your garden a joy, which is helpful when the screen can make your garden look overcrowded at times. The top screen displays the game clock, your gardener level (shown as a percentage) and various other titbits of information to help you manage your residents efficiently.

The open-ended experience is designed for accommodating all styles of play: whether you only want to spend a few minutes pottering about the flower beds or want to commit to a hardcore piñata collecting session. Elements of Pocket Paradise share in the previous successes of Animal Crossing, Pokémon and Harvest Moon and while it lacks the depth and play time of these titles, it makes up for it in originality: creating an endearing game for players looking for a novel way to pass the time.

Younger players can amuse themselves with the placid sandbox mode, with fewer game pressures. Linking with a friend meanwhile allows you to trade piñatas and items at the post office, but a complete lack of online features is a bit of a let-down. Despite this, if you are on the look out for a new sandbox game to wile the hours away, Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise is well worth a look.

12345678910

Casual or Hardcore?

If you’ve been reading up on your gaming recently you may have found yourself asking this very question. It was once enough for gamers to have a friendly rivalry between Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft console owners. Recently though, a new divide has sprung up between so-called “casual” and “hardcore” gamers. I don't like to make any distinction between gamers, so why should others?

In times gone by, the mere mention of video games would have conjured an image of a spotty four-eyed geek lurking in the shadows of their bedroom with the curtains pulled. Of course, that wasn’t entirely true but it wasn’t until the Wii came along that people started to recognise that playing games could be fun for everyone. Your folks can train their brains in minutes a day and your annoying little sister can be silenced on long car journeys with Nintendogs. So isn’t it a good thing that more people are discovering how much fun you can have with an extra box under your telly?

Some people clearly don’t think so. I noticed a bigger problem after this year’s E3 conference when a lot of magazines slated Nintendo for not providing for their hardcore gamers. To me, that’s just fuelled this new-found elitism among some gamers. Some games require 300+ hours of your life for 100% completion and other games are a collection of minigames, designed for short bursts of play. How either style of game is ‘elite’ is beyond me.

When I’m lucky enough to get a ticket to the footie, I don’t have season ticket holders looking down their nose at me – we’re all cheering on the same team. So when anyone asks me whether I’m casual or hardcore, I always have the same answer: I’m a gamer.