Folicode released its first game on 14 May, made available on iPhone and iPad, called Hoopla Gems. Speaking to AnimationXpress.com, ‘Hoopla Gems’ creator Siddharth Upendra Kumar Rai says: “It took me around 8 months to develop this app with the help of my colleagues Gautam, Somanath and Gitanjali. It is a product of labour and love.”
Siddharth has worked with companies like EA sports and has been involved in development of over 24 games. He researched on various puzzle games and came up with the idea of ‘Hoopla Gems’.
The programming of ‘Hoopla Gems’ has been done by Gautam and directed by Siddharth, the music in the background was taken from Kevin MacLeod’s Wallpaper and Gitanjali is the artist.
‘Hoopla Gems’ is a unique puzzle game, featuring 20 levels and 60 missions, where the objective is to match the right colour with their shapes. The objective is to remove as many shapes as possible with a single move. The shapes keep moving down on every turn and all one has to do is stop them from filling up the whole screen.
The uniqueness of the game lies in its core mechanic and the treatment, which makes the game a unique blend of familiarity and novelty. Though the game is easy to learn, it involves strategising at each turn regarding the choices the player has to make. Each level completed, awards the player with a higher score multiplier that allows him to score more and compete in the higher levels.
The player is also aided in his pursuit by powerups that are rewarded inside the game or can be bought by the player through the in-game shop. There are powers like masterstroke, antigravity, reshuffle and bonanza available to the player, but must be used judiciously at the right time to tilt the balance of power.
Plans are afoot to launch the app on Android as well. “The launch of the app is taking time as the developers are busy with its comprehensive testing and want the app to be bug free. As soon as the testing is done the app will be launched on Android,” Siddharth expounds.
The response for the app has been encouraging for the team with nearly 700 downloads in the first two days, he further adds. “We have received great reviews from social networking sites as well and I am sure the app will pick up pace in due time.”
Frolicode is also working on the release of two more games, which will be out in the next two months. One of the games on the cards is another puzzler and the other being an actioner.
Editor’s Note:-
Well, the game play looks rather easy… and the design is neat, though it sought of reminds one of the legendary ‘Tetris’ from the golden era of ‘Video Games’. The music goes well with the game play and the colours used are quite appealing. The player also has two characters – Hoopla & Poopla – to guide him/her through the various levels. With Hoopla acting as the good conscience and Poopla the evil one; it’s a rather innovative way to add interest to the game. The design could have been more polished considering the time taken for the development, but all in all it’s a fun game and should do well.
