Interview with PAX RISING Pond Scums’ developer Oliver

By Drawza

Drawza: Firstly, please introduce yourself and your game?

Oliver: I am Oliver, I’m the director of UWU, creators of Pond Scum!

What is your background?

My early career was in advertising, but I “got out”, but I have always made games. My first expedition in code was making a video game (a rudimentary space invaders) so I guess you can say it is something very close to my heart. I had also made a few games previously in my spacetime and in jams, and I am honored to have even won an award at the illustrious fab48hour gamejam in Brisbane.

What made you decide to journey down the path of game development?

I had always made video games in an ad agency setting but like most of the things you make in adland it’s the medium more than it is the message. It took a lot of half-hearted games and misplaced energy to figure out that was only going to get me so far in terms of realizing my vision for games. So I went back to the drawing board! Literally. I went back to art school and decided to reclaim my own time and energy and UWU is a product of the decision to pursue that new direction and to pursue games more seriously.

What previous games have you created/worked on?

Previously nothing published aside from a few game jams, UWU is my first serious effort to creating and producing games. That said we have now made 2 games! Salaryman RESCUE! and Pond Scum. Both are VR as we are a VR exclusive studio.

What are the core concepts?

Core concepts for the studio, I can pluck a few from our manifesto.

1. Push your own boulders (don’t wait for other people on the team fix your problems)

2. If it’s not fun, scrap it

3. Lights, camera, action, lights, lights, lights, lights (lighting is super important in VR)

4. Maintain intentional sound design the whole way through

We have a bunch of other guiding tenets but these are the ones I really like at the moment.

What were your inspirations?

I draw a lot of inspiration from sources outside of gaming, but the game devs I LOVE would include Hideo Kojima, American McGee, Jonathan Blow, John Carmack, Jeppe Carlsen, Ville Kallio, Jakub Dvorský, Davey Wreden, Terry Cavanagh, Toby Fox to name a few.

How long have you been working on this game?

Pond Scum was specifically and explicitly developed in 3 months. It started life during an internal company game jam and was chosen by the team as the next game we all wanted to work on.

What is it like to have the game showcased at events such as PAX Aus?

We absolutely love Pond Scum, it’s definitely the best game I have ever worked on. During production so many amazing talents came together to make it happen and it felt really magical, you could tell the whole way through that this was going to be something special. Everything from the story, the characters, the unique polyrhythmic music to the sound design, the creation of the first person interactions and the telephone, the design of the spiders and how the climb the walls. Of course there was challenges, there always is in game production, but every step of the way the magic never stopped and I think that shows in the final game.

So I say all that to try to help explain how it feels to be showcased at PAX (and of course more recently a finalist in the AGDAs!) it feels amazing of course! It’s a tremendous honor, but more than that I am just happy that the game is being discovered and people are responding to the game and enjoying playing it as much as we enjoyed creating it!

Having played this game earlier this year at The Game Expo, how far has the game progressed?

The game has 5 full worlds and a fully formed story with a full soundtrack (out on streaming as well!). We also have an entirely new world in the works as a free expansion, but we are currently busy porting to Apple Vision Pro, PlayStation VR2, and Meta Quest.

What advice have you got for upcoming game developers?

Don’t fall at the first hurdle. Remember that most indie game devs and studios give up after only 1 game! So press on. Nothing will save you except perseverance. Talent, skill, brains, none of that matters if you give up and walk away. You have to turn up for yourself and turn up for your games.

Also with that in mind, get your first game done QUICKLY, it will probably be a dud, so don’t spend too long on it! Take the lessons and move on to the next one.

What advice have you received that you have held on to throughout your journey?

"The reward for good work, is more work" – Tom Sachs

Have you had any mentors in the gaming industry?

I currently don’t have any mentors in the game industry, but in the art world absolutely and I would be nowhere without them. But maybe that’s for a different interview.

How many PAX Aus events have you attended (as both a developer and as a regular attendee)?

This is our second PAX! We have pins this time.

Check Out the website for Pond Scum

Be sure to check out Pond Scum and other PAX RISING games

And make sure you check out PAX Aus 2024 in October.