Saqqarah... our secret project

[TeeGee]

Hey, guys! We would like to present your first information and screenshots from Saqqarah - our secret major project.

Codeminion sheds some light on their secret project - Saqqarah!

April 16, 2008 – Codeminion, the makers of hit Magic Match released first information and images from Saqqarah – their upcoming major project, details of which were held in mystery to this day.

Saqqarah is described as a mind teasing game with an adventure movie feel to it, of length and production values not seen in the casual industry before. “From an average casual game you expect simplistic presentation and around 8 hours of game play. We wanted to produce something that could match AAA titles. For us, casual games should be fun and accessible to *everyone* - stereotypical women in their thirties, as well as for their teenage hardcore gamer sons” says Konrad Olesiewicz, Codeminion’s co-owner and game producer.

Saqqarah has been Codeminion’s secret flagship project for a about a year. Said Tom Grochowiak, game designer: “Content-wise the game is pretty much complete. However, for us that doesn’t mean it’s done. We’re now focused on polishing and play testing. We want to make something really great, so perfectionism is the way to go”. The developers promised to release more news in the near future and pointed to www.saqqarahthegame.com as an aggregate of all the available information.

Saqqarah’s news website containing all up-to-date information:
www.saqqarahthegame.com

Saqqarah’s Intro Images:
http://saqqarahthegame.com/images/saqqarah_eclipse.jpg
http://saqqarahthegame.com/images/saqqarah_izyda.jpg
http://saqqarahthegame.com/images/saqqarah_seth.jpg

Codeminion official website:
www.codeminion.com

We'll be releasing more information soon.

[lakibuk]

Now you got me curious - in a bad way.
Will it be a match-3 or a hidden object game?

[TeeGee]

You'll have to wait and see :). However, when we say more varied and complex than your usual game, we really mean it.

[Scurvy Lobster]

Could you explain what you mean when you write that it can match a AAA production and typical casual titles are around eight hours of gameplay?

I believe that many AAA titles today actually are around eight hours of gameplay on the singleplayer side. To me this isn't even a bad thing since i would never have the time to complete longer games. I only rarely play games I know are longer (Mass Effect being a one).

There is still a bit too much mystery to get the hype going. I hope you have us in for a surprise here :-)

[TeeGee]

I believe that many AAA titles today actually are around eight hours of gameplay on the singleplayer side. To me this isn't even a bad thing since i would never have the time to complete longer games. I only rarely play games I know are longer (Mass Effect being a one).

Well, the standard is more like 15-20, I believe. Also some great casual games like Bejewelled had very short and simple but highly replayable gameplay, while others (many HO titles) have a nice amount of hard content that can't really generate more than 3 hours of fun. It's really hard to measure. But that's really not the point.

I wouldn't play Mass Effect too, but mainly due to the amount of time required for one session, not the overall length. Can't really be bothered to sit hours and hours per day to get myself closer to some far away goal. In that respect Saqqarah won't be like Mass Effect. It will still be a casual game - easy to grasp, fun to play and it will easily allow you to get to some goal, even if you played for 5 minutes during a cofee break. The thing is that you will get to play for a really long time and you will still have some untapped and varied content to explore.

This is all I can say for now ;). We'll release more info soon.

[Nikster]

Now you got me curious - in a bad way.
Will it be a match-3 or a hidden object game?


hrm, match three hidden objects... I can some infinite amount of game play in that :)

screens look nice, but uhm, what is it ? :D indiana jones type things ?

[Emmanuel]

The art is gorgeous (especially the seth and the eclipse shots, very impressive). The 'total eclipse' theme is interesting too. That's an intriguing project for sure; I hope it does well for you.

Best regards,
Emmanuel

[Polycount Productions]

The art is gorgeous (especially the seth and the eclipse shots, very impressive). The 'total eclipse' theme is interesting too. That's an intriguing project for sure; I hope it does well for you.

Best regards,
Emmanuel

Yeh, the art indeed is gorgeous. And all secret stuff is good :D

[electronicStar]

I think there is a market for huge games provided that they are compelling enough, I've completed Baldur's Gate 2 and I loved every second of it.
Unfortunately I probably can't play more than one game like this one a year. So yeah it's more a niche than a market maybe, IMO mainstream game devellopers should concentrate on shorter replayable games (with option to play longer or more in-depth if the player wishes)

As for your game TEEGEE I seem to recall you talking about a hidden-object on another forum...;)

[TeeGee]

Glad you like the art, guys. Wait till you see these screens in motion...

I think there is a market for huge games provided that they are compelling enough, I've completed Baldur's Gate 2 and I loved every second of it.
Unfortunately I probably can't play more than one game like this one a year. So yeah it's more a niche than a market maybe, IMO mainstream game devellopers should concentrate on shorter replayable games (with option to play longer or more in-depth if the player wishes)


Well, as I've said in my last post, Saqqarah won't be Mass Effect or Baldur's Gate, nor it will be "niche". It's a casual game, a huge casual game with lots of audiovisual and game play goodies, but a casual game nonetheless.

As for your game TEEGEE I seem to recall you talking about a hidden-object on another forum...

Umm... nope ;)? I'm hardly active on forums other than this one and TIGSource, so you've probably mistaken me with someone else. Also I don't really like HO games to be honest ;).
Also it's not really "my" game. It's a game by Codeminion, a studio I work for as a designer. I wouldn't want to take the credit just because I'm the poster of this.

[electronicStar]

Glad you like the art, guys. Wait till you see these screens in motion...



Well, as I've said in my last post, Saqqarah won't be Mass Effect or Baldur's Gate, nor it will be "niche". It's a casual game, a huge casual game with lots of audiovisual and game play goodies, but a casual game nonetheless.



Umm... nope ;)? I'm hardly active on forums other than this one and TIGSource, so you've probably mistaken me with someone else. Also I don't really like HO games to be honest ;).
Also it's not really "my" game. It's a game by Codeminion, a studio I work for as a designer. I wouldn't want to take the credit just because I'm the poster of this.
Ah sorry I seemed to recall you talking about a more casual game than your last, it was either here or on TIGS.
In any case consider me interested, anything that can refresh the casual market is interesting.

[TeeGee]

Time for another bit of information on Saqqarah.

Codeminion Releases More Information on Saqqarah, their Upcoming Major Project.

April 23, 2008 – Codeminion released more information and media from their upcoming major casual game – Ancient Quest of Saqqarah.

About a week from revealing Saqqarah – their secret project, Codeminion released more information and media from the game on www.saqqarahthegame.com. The developers revealed more details about the promised variety and length of the game as well as released new in-game screenshots. They also provided first samples of the game’s music and voice-overs.

“In Saqqara, the player will discover a mysterious underground oasis where she or he will be tasked with a quest to restore temples of the Egyptian gods. Each temple will provide a different type of puzzle challenge. Some of them will be well familiar to the casual players, while others were never seen before. They all share some core features and goals, but provide completely different pace and game mechanics” describes Tom Grochowiak, designer at Codeminion. The developers haven’t revealed the exact amount of temples or the total amount of hours needed to complete the game.

Studio representatives also provided more information on the game’s audiovisuals. Maciej Biedrzycki, game programmer, musician and Codeminion’s co-owner says: “We really tried our best to get the production value to the highest level. Saqqarah features graphics rarely seen on this market and puts much more emphasis on soundtrack than the competition. It will feature over 25 music tracks, many from the same people who worked on The Witcher soundtrack. The game’s story will be voiced and among many actors the main character will feature the voice of Michael McConnohie, known from core titles such as Diablo2 or WoW”. Samples of music and voice recordings are available for listening and download from the game’s website.

Game’s exact launch date is still unannounced, but the developers promised to reveal more information and media in the upcoming weeks.


Saqqarah’s news website containing all up-to-date information:
www.saqqarahthegame.com

Saqqarah’s new screenshots:
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/images/saqqarah_glyphs.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/images/saqqarah_templecomplete.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/images/saqqarah_key.jpg

Saqqarah’s music and voice over samples:
http://saqqarahthegame.com/sounds/saqqarah_voice1.mp3
http://saqqarahthegame.com/sounds/saqqarah_music1.mp3
http://saqqarahthegame.com/sounds/saqqarah_music2.mp3
http://saqqarahthegame.com/sounds/saqqarah_voice2.mp3

Saqqarah’s special graphical newsletter:
http://codeminion.com/newsletters/en/20080423/

[Nikster]

Is it a spin off from the aztec zone in crystal maze ? tell us damnit or (in a 4bit crappy voice) "Kill him my wobots!"

[Reactor]

Love the artwork, music and the voices. They're very cool... now all I hope is the gameplay matches the presentation ;)

[Deceth]

I am curious to learn more. So far, its looking good ;)

[TeeGee]

Okay, time to actually reveal some stuff!

Codeminion reveals gameplay details on Ancient Quest of Saqqarah.

May 5, 2008 – Today Codeminion revealed the details on Saqqarah’s varied gameplay along with first in-game screenshots showing its unique mechanics. The company also presented the box art, featuring Khufu – the game’s main character.

The developers finally provided more information on the game’s announced varied gameplay and depth. “When it comes to game mechanics, Saqqarah’s biggest innovation lies in the introduction of the ‘distorted grid’ board topology. Each level is a unique set of nodes connected with smooth curves. It allowed us to create seven different types of puzzles with common goals and features but different mechanics. This includes a classical match-3, which really works great with this setup, and a set of completely original gameplays. Usage of distorted grids enabled us to create lots of distinctive and visually appealing levels, adding twists even to the more commonly known mechanics. Players will get to unlock and explore seven different temples, each consisting of 72 levels. This gives us a whooping 512 of puzzles to complete. We also plan to provide our gamers with new content after the game’s release.” explains Maciej Biedrzycki, game’s programmer and Codeminion co-owner.

Company’s website provides an exact list of gameplays in Saqqarah:
● Isis Swap – A classical match-3 on the Saqqarah’s “distorted grid” board topology.
● Sobek’s Rotate – Rotate clusters of tokens to create closed groups of one type.
● Puzzles of Thot – For the logic puzzle fans. Rearrange tokens freely to find a winning solution that matches the underlying distorted grid.
● Chains of Anubis – Drag select mechanics known from Magic Match on the “distorted grid” topology.
● Horus Token Pop – Quick paced mode challenging player’s perception. Find the biggest visible chains of tokens and race against time.
● Hand of Osiris – Use the token in hand to create one-colored closed fields on the distorted grid.
● Paths of Bast – Strategically move the tokens along the paths on the grid to create colored groups.
● Glyph Search – A sort of hidden object gameplay used in bonus rounds.

Konrad Olesiewicz, one of the company’s owners, adds: “What’s really wonderful, is that these gameplays share common winning conditions and obstacles, but the differing mechanics encourage the players to develop varied strategic approaches. For example – removing an obstacle with an exploding token requires different approach in the classical Isis Swap than in the strategic Paths of Bast, where you have a direct control over the pieces and each move should be carefully planned. This makes the game very easy to learn due to the common features, yet it offers a lot of depth at the same time”.

Codeminion also presented the promo/box art for the game, featuring Khufu – a Magical Monkey from the Underground Oasis – the game’s main character and player’s mentor. This rather extraordinary gentleman will speak with the voice of Michael McConnohie, known from such titles as Diablo 2 or World of Warcraft. The box art and a voice sample are available on the game’s teaser website at www.saqqarahthegame.com.


Saqqarah’s news website containing all up-to-date information and media:
www.saqqarahthegame.com

Codeminion official website:
www.codeminion.com

Lots of screenies:
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_bonusgameplay2.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_puzzlegameplay3.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_puzzlegameplay2.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_handgameplay.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_menu.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_oaza.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_bonusgameplay.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_pathsgameplay.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_popgameplay.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_puzzlegameplay.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_rotategameplay.jpg
http://www.saqqarahthegame.com/screenshots/saqqarah_splash.jpg

So people who said it's going to be a match-3 and/or hidden object were almost right. It's going to be that... plus 6 different full-fledged puzzle gameplays. And one monkey, also full-fledged ;).

[hicham]

Great graphics and wonderful music, i really want to play this game very soon :) , can u tell us when it will be released please?

[codeminion]

Great graphics and wonderful music, i really want to play this game very soon , can u tell us when it will be released please?
Thanks for the kind words. The release date really depends on how long the beta will take. The plan is to have the beta version complete in less than a week, so I'm sure we will post it here soon to get some quality feedback :)

[Reactor]

I'm looking forward to it as well... but I did groan a bit when I read that it'd have some match-3 puzzles. I'm all match-3'd out after Puzzle Quest ;)

[amaranth]

Match 3 or not, this game is beautiful. :)

[codeminion]

Just wanted to let you know that the beta of the game is now available. Here is a link to the dedicated feedback topic:

http://forums.indiegamer.com/showthread.php?t=13582

[Nexic]

So it's match-3 AND hidden object.

Brilliant quality, on par with AAA stuff as far as the intros and voice overs go, no questions asked. But really disappointed that this is just series of mini-games.