Following on with our exclusive interviews with the developers behind Pixel Heart‘s latest releases, we caught up with the ANDRO DUNOS development team Picorinne Soft to talk all about reviving a fantastic, classic shmup.

The sequel to the famous shoot’em up from Visco studio. It’s time to bring out your good old spaceship fighter! Andro Dunos II is available on Steam, Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, Xbox One since 25 March 2022 with Xbox One digital version due later this year. Fans of physical versions will also be able to find the game in boxed form on Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4, Nintendo 3DS and Dreamcast also available!

ANDRO DUNOS: PICORINNE SOFT

Shmup “ʃmʌp” (also known as shoot ’em ups or STGs) are a sub-genre of shooter video games, which are in turn a sub-genre of action video games.
THE J: Have any of the original development team been involved with this project?
PICORINNE SOFT: No, the original team was not involved.

THE J: Will the original weapon selection feature from the first game return this time?
PICORINNE SOFT: Yes, the weapon selection feature has been implemented.
THE J: Would you recommend playing this game with an old-fashioned joystick controller?
PICORINNE SOFT: Since weapon selection is on the LR key, the joypad is basically recommended.

INSPIRATION

THE J: What inspired you to bring back this classic arcade game?
PICORINNE SOFT: I grew up with video games, and even if it’s not very original, it’s thanks to that that I created the Andro Dunos license as an arcade game.
THE J: It’s awesome to see this available across multiple platforms, new and old – was that always the plan?
PICORINNE SOFT: It is the producer/publisher’s job to decide on which platforms the game will be found. I’m lucky since PixelHeart found it wise to develop it on all the consoles of the moment. That’s a great news. But I still agree with their choice since this kind of game can be enjoyed by all players!

PORTING TO OLD CONSOLES

THE J: We’re particularly excited by the Dreamcast version – it certainly appeals to a similar audience as the Neo Geo but was the process of converting it difficult?
PICORINNE SOFT: Porting to old consoles like the Neo Geo requires a lot of work. If Pixel Heart decides to develop it on this support too, it can only be good for the license.
THE J: Shmups by nature evoke so many childhood memories, which games from the genre have inspired your designs with this game?
PICORINNE SOFT: In the past, there have been legendary side-scrolling shooters such as Gradius and R-TYPE. I was greatly influenced by them. However, as for ANDRO DUNOS II, I carefully studied the first ANDRO DUNOS.

GAME DETAILS

THE J: Will the game be multiplayer?
PICORINNE SOFT: It is single player only.
THE J: And will it offer save options?
PICORINNE SOFT: There is no save function, but you can select stages. So it is possible to start the game from the middle stage.

ALLISTER BRIMBLE SOUNDTRACK

THE J: How cool was it to have Allister Brimble involved with the soundtrack?
PICORINNE SOFT: His music is very distinctive and I think it matches the 90’s inspired game.

THE FUTURE

THE J: Could we see a Neo Geo version released in the future?
PICORINNE SOFT: I really don’t know, but if yes, it would be fantastic because my journey as an enthusiast has come full circle.

THE J: What games are you working on next – are there plans for a third in the series?
PICORINNE SOFT: For now I’ll take some time for myself and wait to see how the community will receive the second Opus! It’s great news to have a second Opus.
THE J: We wholeheartedly agree!

Discover more from Pixel Heart:

Tags: