The 3D platformerLunisticehas been brewing in the background for years while Dennis Kroener, who goes by A Grumpy Fox, was working on other game-related jobs. When the project started, it wasn’t yet a platformer - or even built in 3D for that matter. However, one thing was in the cards from the beginning: it was going to be speedrun-friendly.
Kroener has been working atFrankfurt-based publisher Deck13for a couple of years, and prior to that he held a position at an online game magazine. However, long before he found his way into game media, he was performing speedruns on severalCastlevaniatitles over livestreaming platforms. The importance of speedruns was bound to come into play when he finally created his first game. Game Rant spoke to Kroener about speedrunning and how it came to influenceLunistice.
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Lunistice Was Designed to be Breakable One Way or Another
It would take years for Kroener to force himself to get a working game prototype together. Eventually, his idea fora rail shooterturned into a 3D platformer, though the nameLunisticecarried over from the project’s previous stage. After the core ofLunisticewas built, the hard work of making it into an engaging game began. This revolved around making sure levels offer the right amount of challenge, and that the goal of the game was in-line with the players' interests.
While hisTwitch community helped come up with ideas, implementation was in Kroener’s hands. This is where his experience as a speedrunner came into play, having even held aCastlevaniaworld record for some time before it was broken a few years ago. While he said there weren’t enough hours in the day to go back to speedrunning for world records, his mentality as a runner hadn’t changed.
“I got my start in the Castlevania community, where I ran Portrait of Ruin, Harmony of Dissonance, Symphony of the Night, a little bit of Order of Ecclesia.”
Lunisticehad to be “breakable” in some ways, according to Kroener. Inthe speedrunning community, to “break” a game means skipping parts that are typically a primary completion path. While that often includes tricks and skips that weren’t intended, sometimes developers knowingly create hints, movement features, or environments so a speedrunning community can enjoy the experience in a different, often more difficult way.
For example,Quakeaccidently included a movement mechanicthat allowed players to increase and conserve their speed. While this was originally a bug, iD software decided to include a similar mechanic in upcoming titles because it made the experience more fun. Nintendo also created rooms in the NESSuper Mario Bros.where players could skip entire worlds if they perform specific movements.
Speedrunners Quickly Found Glitches in Lunistice
While Kroener was determined to use some speedrun-friendly mechanic inLunistice, it wasn’t immediately clear how this would play out. He started adding a lot of little ideas that would give hints about possible faster way to move around the maps. While it didn’t allowskipping worlds like inSuper Mario, it did add some more challenge.
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However, while he intentionally wanted to makeLunisticebreakable, it wasspeedrunners that would truly break the game. As Kroener allowed his Twitch community to test the game, a bug emerged that allowed people to traverse the terrain in a new way. Just like the bunny hop fromQuake, this emerged accidentally in the hands of enthusiasts.
The exploit allowed a character to jump higher than originally intended by combining two different jumping abilities. Kroener loved that it allowed players to break his game in a manageable way. It didn’t ruin the experience, as for casual players it wouldn’t become a main way to jump, butit augmented potential speedruns.
Lunistice is Still a Game for All
Although Kroener loves thatLunisticecan be broken, he wants to deliver a solid product.Bugs that would completely break the gameor make it less fun had to go. It was certain that the game would be ran after release, but Kroener still had to create an experience for the greater public. He wantedLunisticeto be enjoyable for the largest demographic, and his Twitch community would help with this too. Before launch,Lunisticewas solely ranking competition in terms of time - which makes sense for speedrunners, but isn’t optimal for others.
One of the game’s testers had a very critical opinion about the level ranks, frustrated that it would dissuade him fromgathering all the game’s collectiblesand exploring the whole level. This struck Kroener as a valid criticism, and he took it to heart, ultimately changing the wayLunisticeranked level completion. At the full release, only the collection of the paper cranes - its coin equivalent - and deaths would determine the two ranks given; speed is no longer a completion factor.
“There was an actual speedrunning mode planned for the game. […] Unfortunately, it didn’t work out, but we do have leaderboards on speedrun.com where people can post the best times.”
While Kroener loved the speedrunning aspect of the game, it was more critical that the game was enjoyable for everyone. This also meantdeveloping a competitive leaderboard gave way to more important aspects. While speedrunners would likely enjoy seeing a real-time placement after levels, or in a separate menu, for Kroener it was enough to focus on popular websites that already track speedruns. It seems this was for the best, asLunisticelaunched being a solid 3D platformer for the wider public, and also ended up being an excellent fit for the speedrunning community.
Lunisticeis available now for PC and Switch.
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