What do you get if you blend Adult Swim, Street Fighter, and Escape from Tarkov? An out-there new fighting game called Longjuice Squeeze

Combating video games are, to a sure diploma, a recognized high quality in the intervening time. Whereas a number of the large hitters have added their fair proportion of fascinating quirks and twists, the core gameplay loop has largely remained the identical over the previous few many years. As such, gamers on the lookout for one thing a bit out-there have needed to flip to indie builders for boundary-pushers. For actually modern spins on the style.

One such recreation, which goals to bridge the hole between combating video games and different genres, is Longjuice Squeeze. Developed by a “Micro-studio” composed of 1 core developer and varied collaborators, you possibly can signal as much as playtests for it proper now. However if you wish to be taught extra, developer Jeremy Boniface was keen to reply a number of questions concerning the recreation, what impressed him to make it, its inspirations, and the distinct artwork model it champions.

VG247: The place did the thought of mixing combating recreation and rogue-like deck constructing mechanics stem from?

Boniface: Principally, to unravel my very own points with a style I really like, I wished to make a combating recreation with,

1. Significant character development
2. Permadeath
3. PvP loot
4. Low execution

I am not personally motivated by the stakes of the struggle being “can I pull off this combo” or “can I get to platinum” — I like unlocking stuff and customizing my dude. In the end, I wished a combating recreation multiplayer loop that sort of looks like enjoying an extraction shooter (like Tarkov). Roguelite deckbuilding is form of the scaffolding for these different ideas, the place your construct goes to be as related as your moment-by-moment play.

VG247: How do you strike that stability in order that followers of each genres can discover one thing to take pleasure in right here?

Boniface: In the end, I am making a recreation for myself to some extent, as somebody who loves each genres, and I’m hoping that resonates with different folks.

I’ve by no means been nice at studying lengthy combos, however I really like the best way a combating recreation feels when you get to larger degree play. I really like the strategic, tactical, and interpersonal layers (like mindgames) that come about if you’re capable of cease mashing and perceive the methods. so one of many main motivations in our design is decreasing the execution barrier of entry that blocks numerous newer gamers from the high-level play expertise.

The primary theme of the sport is “1v1 fights with excessive stakes” – you’re both gaining or dropping an merchandise if you queue for a match. Your objects acquire in worth as you utilize them, and that worth will get transferred if you win an merchandise out of your opponent. So you possibly can lose your prized objects and even your total character in the event you lose a match. I wished to have that Pog or old fashioned marbles dynamic, the place you possibly can lose your favourite merchandise after which struggle to win it again. Or your opponent might decline to rematch and juice the merchandise to extract all that worth you imbued into it throughout earlier fights.

VG247: I am a fan of the artwork model! What is the inventive inspiration for that? What kind of vibe are you attempting to get throughout?

Boniface: Thanks! It is developed a bit over time however our unique inspirations had been Samurai Champloo (and that mid-00’s period of grownup swim usually), Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Holy Mountain (which is a wild and simply tremendous trippy film from the 70’s), and japanese tokusatsu exhibits (you possibly can see the sentai affect in a number of the gear). I additionally similar to including a sheen of static and wobble to issues.

VG247: By way of combating video games and rogue-likes this performs like, what’s Longjuice Squeeze’s the closest to?

Boniface: It is form of like…. Rounds by landfall meets Escape from Tarkov? I’d say that the moment-by-moment is someplace between Road Fighter and Nidhogg.

VG247: I checked out your web site. Inform me what it is like working as what you describe as a “Micro Studio”. What are the professionals and cons of working as a solo dev with rotating collaborators?

Boniface: The primary professional might be simply working lean. I haven’t got a full-time crew engaged on this, so my month-to-month burn is admittedly low.

The primary con is that there isn’t any protect between the result of this undertaking and my very own ego, I assume, ha. There are numerous selections that I’ve to make unilaterally as a result of I haven’t got one other designer to bounce my concepts off of. That is why the upcoming playtests are going to be invaluable to the undertaking.