Hokuto no Neko told the story of two Cat-Fu brothers trying to survive as long as possible against a horde of enemies. The red Cat-Fu was only able to hit red enemies, while the blue one was only able to hit blue enemies. Don't try to do the other way around, or you'll be at your disadvantage!
© 2016 WitchLake Studio
© 2016 Alexandre Renevey, Dan Bourquin, Florian Brönnimann, Maurizio Rigamonti & Oana Lacroix
© 1996 Soundtrack from "Ganbare Goemon: Uchū Kaizoku Akogingu", licended by Konami
© 2003 Sound effects from "SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos", licended by SNK
In February 2016, I participated in the LvlUpGameJam for the second time. The first time, our team worked on Flap Flap Flap!, which was a fun challenge. This time, we had just 48 hours to develop a game using the Unity 3D engine, with the theme One Punch. We decided to create an action/fighting game called Hokuto no Neko, a playful nod to Hokuto no Ken, the iconic and brutal anime we grew up watching in the '80s... at least here in Switzerland.
The concept of Hokuto no Neko was straightforward: Player 1 controlled a red cat, while Player 2 controlled a blue cat. Both needed to fight against enemies on a single platform. The blue cat could only hit blue enemies, and of course the red cat could only hit red enemies. If you did it wrong, then your cat was pushed backwards, and might fall off the platform. If that happened, you needed to wait a few seconds before coming back. During that time, the other player was vulnerable, and if he felt off the platform too, the game was over.
Another interesting gameplay mechanic was that sometimes, the enemies would start hitting the floor and eventually destroy parts of it, creating holes, and making the game harder each time.
One of the requirements for the LvlUpGameJam was to create a short trailer (no longer than 40 seconds) highlighting the project. I quickly put one together, featuring the company logos of WitchLake Studio and Swiss Game Center, along with a glimpse of the gameplay. Short, snappy, and straight to the point!
Fun fact: The voice yelling "Hokutoooo no Nekooooooo" at the title screen is mine. I had to hide in the restrooms during the Game Jam to stay away from the ambient noise and record my voice :)
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