Tamara the 13th producer interview

Tamara the 13th is our latest puzzle adventure game where you play as Tamara, the 13th in a line of witches. We interviewed the producer of the game, Aaron, for more on the magic behind the game:

What features make Tamara the 13th interesting for gamers?

We like to refer to Tamara the 13th as fractured object game versus just a hidden object. The core gameplay is centered around finding and combining pieces of hidden objects, thus it is really a new variation on the standard hunt and seek (which just have lists of hidden objects). It requires a deeper level of searching, especially when trying to uncover more obscure pieces.

Another great new feature that is a big part of Tamara the 13th is the magic-charging mini game.

What’s your favorite part of the game?

Continuing from the previous thought, I really enjoy the magic mini game. At first I didn't understand how to succeed. It felt like it had a very complex system of rules. Once I figured it out and realized it has a very simple rule base, I enjoyed the game more and more each time I played. We eventually addressed the issue I was experiencing by adding a tutorial to help explain the key rules, and then the development team systematically built deeper levels of the game that evolve as you progress through the larger game. This is a very cool feature, having a mini-game that progressively becomes more complex. It gives players the opportunity to learn and evolve their skills over the course of the entire game.

What's your playing style?

Perhaps not unlike other hidden object and puzzle adventure players, I'm very tuned into the story. Typically in my initial play session I focus on learning the story elements that drive the game forward and I openly explore in a non-linear fashion. As I learn the story and gain an understanding of the larger goal of the game, I then become more task driven and focus on completing individual objectives in a very linear pattern. Tamara the 13th caters very well to this style of game play. You have multiple tasks that can be completed while exploring the world, learning about Tamara and unraveling the complexities of her family's history.

What are your top tips for playing?

This will sound very obvious, but maximizing the use of Hint for helping find objects is very important. Using Hint is a recharge mechanism so what I typically do is look for objects that seem easier to find while my Hint is recharging, and as soon as it is charged I'll use to find a more difficult object. The main tip here is that often players try to hold off using Hints, but my suggestion is to not be sparse in your use of the Hint feature.

The other big tip is to pay close attention to the tutorial for the magic mini-game. When the puzzle requires charging multiple colors, think of each color as a thread and think of the charging nodes as end points. Each end point to a thread of color needs to be the same color.

Lastly, can you share any information about creative decisions that are part of the development process?

VO (Voice Over) has become more of a standard in casual games over the past year. Whenever I talk to our players, one of the first things I ask is whether or not they like VO in games. VO is very subjective, more so than art. Games rich in characters and story development clearly can benefit from having a great voice over track. I have no question that voice over adds to the immersive experience, but because it is very difficult to create VO assets that a broad audience will like, sometimes VO can negatively impact the experience.

It starts with having strong characters and a good script. Then it requires careful casting to get the right talent to match a voice with the character. Beyond having good talent, so much of the quality is in the delivery of the lines. A great script and a superb actor won't make up for mis-aligned voice direction during the recording session. Finally, once the voice over assets are complete, it then takes careful integration with timing the audio to fit well with the visual animations.

We originally had VO in Tamara the 13th but struggled to find the best combination of script, talent and voice direction that then integrated well with the game. We eventually removed the VO and decided the overall feeling of the game was better without it. If you have opinions on this topic, or others, please let us know, we'd love to hear your voice!

Interviewee: Aaron
Games in this post: Tamara the 13th