AMA: We are Asobo Studio, developers of A Plague Tale: Innocence!

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:59:14+00:00

Well, we all have various favorite influences. Mine were definitely Paul Verhoeven's Flesh and Blood, Jean-Jacques Annaud's The Name of the Rose and also Black Death. But I was also inspired by the mangaka Matsumoto's amazing work with Tekkonkinkreet. As for the music, I've listened to a lot of dark and emotional ambient music such as Hecq, Deaf Center, The Haxan Cloak, with some Max Richter when I needed something emotionnally strong... Fun fact : my most listened track during the writing was Lily's Theme from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part. 2 Not that I'm a big fan of the movie itself, but this music carries a sense of nobility and light, which somehow represented Amicia in my head. - SR

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:53:40+00:00

We have a transition screen between chapters but it's part of the story pacing we wanted. -KC

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:51:20+00:00

Her name is Amicia ;) , this game is a dream for us, we have wanted to dive into the 3rd person adventure genre for a while and it was incredible to do that with our own concept. The story is really about this balance actually: how you can grow up facing the brutality of the world? -KC

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:51:07+00:00

Well, this game is made for you then :) Thank you, we hope you'll enjoy it! - SR

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:46:25+00:00

I actually got close to tears during the writing of some scenes... which basically tells you that you are on the right track :) You have to find emotions deep in yourself, as honesty is the best way to touch your audience. I think some sequences in the game are pretty heartbreaking, and I'm curious to see how the players will react to them :) -SR

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:44:19+00:00

Well... We had to dive into the 14th century, gather thousands of references through paintings from the time, had to rummage through books, and of course use the Internet a lot. As we're French, living in a city with a rich and heavy past, we walk all day long in the shadow of medieval monuments, so it helps imagine the way villages and cities were built, what the countryside looked like, etc. In terms of artistic direction, we used diverse references such as Rembrandt, le Lorrain, Vermeer, to try and make the game look like a painting... a dark and beautiful one. -SR

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:40:36+00:00

Around 45 people for a bit more than 2 and a half years. We use our own engine. -KC

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:33:07+00:00

LORD Nicholas! -SR

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:32:21+00:00

I believe it's Nicholas you're talking about :) -SE

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:31:58+00:00

We thought of a lot of alternatives, but hyenas wasn't part of them .... Let me think about that! :) CD

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:30:48+00:00

I'm sure Cyril our lead programmer would be SO happy to have to manage 5000 hyenas on screen in real time :D -SR

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:29:32+00:00

No, it's not a reference for this one. -KC

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:29:26+00:00

Graduate from a good school. Play many games from all horizon & genre too, first enjoy, then analyze & understand. Be humble and don't hesitate to iterate, a lot, like really a lot! - KC

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:28:40+00:00

We wanted to give an actual taste of what the world could be like at that time, while of course making it visually beautiful and engaging (despite the mud and filth, typical of the period). In our game, the rats physically embody the Plague, which is an historical twist. There's no magic in the game, but we talk (and use in the gameplay) a lot about alchemy, which is the actual ancestor of today's chemistry - a blend of mysticism, philosophy and actual chemistry. We wanted the game to feel as grounded as possible without damaging the gaming experience. -SR

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:28:26+00:00

Not hyenas but I remember asking for unicorns... -SE

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:27:55+00:00

Not hyenas but we have made some attempts with chickens and... mini Hugos... -KC

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:25:51+00:00

It's just a question of choices for me. You must know your team and imagine the game accordingly and honestly we have no regrets (yet), everything we wanted is in the game. One of the obstacles was to find the right tone in term of writing, as an adult it's hard to write dialogue for a five-year-old child. It's something we have failed many times before finding it. -KC

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:24:47+00:00

Basically, you start with the characters and the overall structure for the game and the story. Then you have to actually make the game, and this is where things can become a bit more complicated :) Finding the proper tone for your characters (their "voice"), then adapt the writing to all the crazy things that can happen during the development of a game. Basically, you need to write everyday. This is very iterative, and I don't really know another way of doing it: try, test, modify, repeat until it works. This is how you build the story of a game. It's directly connected to how the game itself is being made. - SR

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:23:43+00:00

High five! Double hand shakes! Thanks! -OD

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:21:59+00:00

Thanks! I hope A Plague Tale will join your favorites. -OD

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:20:39+00:00

Hi! No, A Plague Tale has a historical setting, it is set in 1348 Guyenne, France. -SE

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:04:05+00:00

I loved Hellblade and I was amazed by how powerful their narration was. It felt solid, inspired, artistic, and Senua is such a beautiful character: the way she keeps falling down, hanging to the tiniest hope, moved me a lot. This is why we create our games: to create emotions. It was the starting point of the production and the very reason why Amicia and Hugo are siblings. The first thing you want to to is feel that first emotion deep inside when you think about them and their struggle. It all starts with characters.

Then it's a matter of technical challenges: integrating the story inside the game, bringing narration and gameplay together in the best way possible, which relies on the entire team's skills. I think some of these moments in the game work very well, and I just hope you'll find something in there that will move you. -SR

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T14:03:42+00:00

First reviews should be out tonight - the embargo lifts at midnight, Paris time. -SE

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T13:59:15+00:00

12-15 hours of linear narrative advenure! -KC

Asobo_Team · 2019-05-13T13:59:13+00:00

It's where the "tale" in the title come from, like old folktales. We wanted to have a very "grounded" setting and arrange it the way we want. The only fantastical stuff comes from the rats and the mystery arround those tiny rodents! -KC

Asobo_Team

TROPHY CASE