Calis Projects Speaks Out on Zenforms, Controversy

Amidst the controversy created by our earlier post on Calis Projects’ Zenforms, the developers have graciously provided us with an interview that will hopefully answer all of your questions and put an end to any controversy. The interview is after the jump.

1. First of all, who is Calis Projects?

Calis Projects was started as a name for an online community in 2005.
The goal was to create a label I could use for games I made as a hobby.
Calis Projects evolved over time as our goals and our members changed.
We are still that online community and it’s still a label I put my games under, but now Calis Projects is getting ready to release it’s first commercial app – ZENFORMS: Protectors on the Apple iOS App Store.

2. What inspired the idea for Zenforms?

I was developing Pokemon fan games several years ago and had a huge passion for creating games- RPGs in particular. A game I was working on was Pokemon Protectors (video here: http://youtu.be/VACIK_ixZGc). It was “my take” on the pokemon games. I decided to go with pokemon only having 3 main stats (other then HP) and wanted to allow the player to make choices to change up the game.
I went to college to study game development (I brought Pokemon Protectors to my interview to show it off). After my second year in college I dropped out.
I wanted to start making a game I could sell. Pokemon Protectors was really popular and I liked the ideas I had in it, so I began concepting my own idea for an RPG in the same genre. It was then just titled “Protectors” since I dropped the pokemon. Development started in March 2010 and after 2 years of indie development, ZENFORMS: Protectors is created and nearly ready for release.

3. Why put it out on iOS; why not Steam or a similar service?

Originally I started making the game in Flash. I had some experience coding for the iPhone since I helped out a start-up company make some small apps.
I checked out some stuff online and found Cocos2D – a really cool API for drawing and animating sprites based on Objective-C and OpenGL.
I made a quick concept of an RPG game running on the iPhone and loved it. I knew it was something I’d want to play and as a developer be proud of. I decided I would get a developer licence so I could start testing on real devices ASAP. I never considered Steam for the game. It just felt right on the iPhone and I just followed development through. I do love Steam though, I think it’s a great platform, but so is iOS. It’s $99 a year to be an iOS developer, that’s very cheap for an indie “bedroom” coder like myself lol!

4. There maybe those out there who may have also contemplated the idea of a Lawsuit from Nintendo; what do you say to those who may be concerned?

I just tell people not to be concerned. When people first heard about the project, they also wondered this. “What will Apple or Nintendo say?” was the question I got a lot. Now, as people are seeing more of the game the concern is lifted. The game doesn’t use any art assets from Nintendo/Gamefreak at all. All artwork was created from scratch by commission artists. This also adds to the fact that the game took 2 years. It took a long time to build all those assets. It’s like modern shooters like Call of Duty and Battlefield, the only thing we have in common is it is a pet style game.

5. In extension, what do you say to those who may see Zenforms as a Pokemon Ripoff?

Depends. I like to find out why they said it. I like to find out what have they seen of the game. Have they checked out our youtube channel and watched the videos. Have they read about the features that make us different. Most of the time, that is the comment from someone who has not checked out all of the media. Some of this may also be our fault. Since 90% of the screenshots on our Facebook page and nearly all of the screenshots on the www.calisprojects.com/zenforms page is out of date. We will have a new website launching soon that will have video guides to show what makes us different.

I guess the best thing I could say to someone that says that is “wait until the game is released and play it”.
If they still feel it is, that is fine by me. ZENFORMS is getting some hardcore fans right now and I’m so grateful for them. These are the guys and girls who know the difference and these are the people I aim to please. The people who are supporting us.

6. What differentiates Zenforms from the Pokemon Franchise?

The whole concept of ZENFORMS is different.
I’m sure you would not be surprised how often I get asked is there Gym Leaders or Elite 4 in ZENFORMS.
Well there is not lol.
We have a video explaining how ZENFORMS grow and evolve.
http://youtu.be/2r7SNP9eI6g

They don’t gain EXP. You spend Skill Points (points earned after battles and completing quests)to increase their stats, evolve them, learn attacks and more.

ALL ZENFORMS come from 1 of 3 “Newborns” – the first stage of ZENFORMS. (This is them)
From this point, ZENFORMS “branch evolve” based on several reasons into different stages.
Check out that video for more information there. There is 129 additional ZENFORMS that all branch from one of them Newborns.
The Newborns are designed based on the idea of evolution. There is the 2 legged Newborn (the red one called Freno). The 4 legged Newborn (the blue one called Rinba). And finally the “0 legged” Newborn (the little green one called Slino).

In terms of the gameplay and features. Right from the start the player can customise their player with outfits, hairstyles and skin tone…. You can pick the gender too. Of course we have default looks for each. You can even select a mood which will affect what people say to you.

Speaking of that. You can choose what to say to people at certain points of the story.
(http://www.calisprojects.com/zenforms/media/screenshots/StorylineScreenshot03.png)
This can completely branch the entire experience for you.

You can even take on side quests and help people out. Becoming famous, or infamous – good or evil along the way.

We have elements like pokemon such as a huge land to explore, the ability to battle ZENFORMS and a bad guy to stop lol.

7. What is Zenforms’ overall premise?

ZENFORMS: Protectors is an excited 2D adventure style RPG for iOS (designed for iPhone, but will run on iPod Touch/iPad).
You are a kid about to start the first day of Protector school with your friend. (http://www.calisprojects.com/zenforms/media/screenshots/StorylineScreenshot01.png)
A Protector is someone who trains and protects the ZENFORMS – creatures born of pure energy from Crystals that grow from underground called Gaia Crystals.
These Crystals are very rare and companies claim ownership of them so they can sell the ZENFORMS produced by them.

Not long after you have going to school, the building is attacked by a masked man.
What his intentions are at this point are unknown, but as you can guess, you and your friend are dragged into the situation.

Explore the Caladan State, taking on quests as a Protector and find out what happened to the school and what was the reason for the attack.

As mentioned above, you can become famous or infamous among the people of the game world. Your choices will change up the story. Your experience can be very different to how a friend might play the game.

8. In terms of target demographic, who are you targeting, and why should Pokemon fans check out Zenforms?

Currently our main demographic are males aged between 18 – 24 but we do not target them. We are targeting people of all ages and genders. If we had to target anyone, it would be anyone who is a fan of these RPGs and wants to play a quality title on their iOS device. If your a Pokemon fan you should certainly check it out. Some people say we are a clone of that, so if your a fan of that, I’m sure you’ll love ZENFORMS. It offers a familiar but unique experience that fans of Pokemon or those type of games/franchises will love.

9. Beyond Zenforms, what else does Calis Projects have in the pipeline?

Our focus is entirely on ZENFORMS: Protectors. The game will not be “full/finished” when released. Like how some games are releasing now (Minecraft is a great example), the game will be updated frequently to offer more of the story, more maps and quests. Just more content in general. This will be very fun and interesting for us. Version 1.0 of the game will not be all the game will have to offer, so it could keep people hooked or turn them off. Time will tell. But this style of development is for the fans. They will have much more of an impact on updates and patches based on their feedback. It will really make it a better game overall.

10. What will Zenforms be priced at on iTunes?

We haven’t announced the final price yet, but it will be for less then $3.

11. Lastly, on behalf of everyone here at Pokemon Dungeon, we wish to publicly apologize for any problems we might have caused with our post.

I’m getting used to those posts, so no problem
Thanks for the interview.

Category: Pokémon News
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