Q: When did you start making this game and what was the inspiration?

 

 We started working on Stunt Runner in January 2012 when we were still in grad school at Carnegie Mellon. Our inspiration for the gameplay came from two of our favorite old games: The Incredible Machine and Lemmings. The idea for the game came from an idea that we're passionate about: user-generated comedy. We want to provide you, the player, with the tools to make your own comedic moments in our games.

 

Q: Is the main character, Smash Johnson, modeled after anyone in particular?

 

He's a combination of all the stereotypical action heroes from Hollywood. His design actually went through several iterations, and we still have some changes we'd like to make to spice his appearance up a bit.

 

Q: Who is working in your studio? Is it just you?

 

We have 3 full-time guys working on Stunt Runner! I'm the programmer and business guy, and we also have a 2D artist and a 3D artist on staff at Kermdinger Studios. 

 

Q: Are you working on any other projects at the time?

 

We have an incredible iOS game up our sleeve that we'd love to make when we have the time, but Stunt Runner is our full focus right now.

 

Q: Have you worked on any other projects before this one, such as a flash game?

 

As an indie developer, I launched an iPhone game with a different team in 2011 called "Aww, Eggplant!?" that netted 25k+ downloads during a free promotion. Before that, I worked for a small iPhone game developer and worked on clones of popular games. Not the best games, but got me a lot of great experience!

 

Q: Have you ever thought of putting your game on Desura?

 

Sure we have! We're just targeting bigger markets first: Steam, mobile, perhaps PSN, XBLA or the eShop even. Desura is still a possibility. 

 

Q: What is your team looking to implement into the game in the later stages of development?

 

I'd say the game is about 60% done right now. We have our core mechanics and "fun factor" nailed down, so from here on we'll be building more content and polishing what we have. The following is from our "What's Left To Do?" section on our Kickstarter page:

 

Two More Movie Sets: As of right now, we have two movie sets fully developed: the Soundstage, and the Science Fiction set. We will ship Stunt Runner with a minimum of four sets, so we still have to develop the last two: the Jungle, and a black and white Horror set. Now that we've nailed down and streamlined our art pipeline, these last two themes will come fairly quickly.

More Usable Items: We also have several more usable items to implement, including a jetpack, portals and several others. Want to help shape the game, but don't want to go for a high tier? Suggest items for us in the comments!

Obstacles!: To mix up gameplay a bit and keep it fresh, we'll be adding obstacles and death traps into the game for Smash to avoid as well as some funny reactions to running into the objects. Keep Smash alive!

Polished UI and Menus: The user interface and menu systems will get a graphical and functional overhaul before launch.

Community Level System: Since players can build levels, we need to implement a place for levels to be uploaded, shared, voted on and downloaded! 

 

Q: When is your game supposed to be released/is there any specific date?

 

We don't have a specific date yet, but we're aiming for Q1 2014 as our launch date for PC and Mac. 

 

Q: What brought you into the indie gaming industry?

 

I've always been an avid gamer, but it wasn't until my junior year of college when I realized I could make games for a living. I started looking into gaming grad schools, and during my Entertainment Technology Master's program at Carnegie Mellon University, I came up with a great idea and knew we could make a legitimate go of it as an indie studio.

 

Q: Do you have any idol game companies/developers?

 

Tim Schafer and DoubleFine are a major inspiration for us as an indie studio who's really "made it" by making comedic video games. 2D Boy, who made World of Goo, is also the game after which we modeled our go-to-market strategy for Stunt Runner, and their designer Kyle Gabler came from our Master's program as well. As far as favorite indie games go, I'm a huge Limbo, Bastion, Minecraft and Shoot Many Robots fan.

 

Q: Do you plan to release Stunt Runner on other platforms? (Xbox, Playstation)

 

We definitely plan to launch iOS and Android versions after the PC and Mac launch, and we'd consider a console launch if we struck a deal with a particular publisher.  We're working on those deals right now, but they're still under wraps. 

 

Q: Do you have any social networks that you would like to share with us?

 

Sure! You can find our pages and updates here:

 

Steam Greenlight: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=159104875

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kermdinger

Twitter: @Kermdinger

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/kermdingerstudiosllc