The Star: April 13, 2023

The Star Thursday April 13 2023
14
NEWS
• By Felix Walton
A CHRISTCHURCH-developed
video game about fishing is
making waves overseas.
But Dredge isn’t a relaxing day
out on the water. This fishing trip
has a “sinister undercurrent,” its
developer says.
“The elevator pitch for Dredge
is a ‘cosmic horror fishing adventure,’
it appears to be a cosy
fishing simulator on the surface,
but very quickly you realise there
are other things going on,” said
programmer and writer Joel
Mason.
“The spookiness just feels
right, because the ocean is kind
of terrifying and unknowable.”
A week after its release, Black
Salt Games’ first project was
already a massive success. With
95 per cent positive reviews on
digital storefront Steam, and a
comfortable spot within several
other platforms’ top sellers
lists, Dredge far surpassed the
expectations of its four-person
development team.
Mason, studio manager Nadia
Thorne, lead artist Alex Ritchie
and 3D animator Michael
Bastiaens, took a risk when they
left the safety of a large studio to
begin their passion project two
years ago.
“The whole idea was just to see
if we can actually make a game
that gets out there and is played
by a few people,” Bastiaens said.
“To see it go as crazy as it has,
it’s been pretty awesome.”
The team thought a fishing
game with a horror atmosphere
would be
too
niche
to succeed.
Instead,
Dredge’s unique premise hooked
gamers around the world.
“The reception and the
response has blown all of our expectations
and even our dreams
out of the water,” Mason said.
He said game development
was a risky business, and the
decision to build a game from
scratch was not made lightly.
Video games are often
developed by large teams with
dozens of staff, but Black Salt
Games said their small size had
unique benefits.
“We get to move pretty
quickly, like if we want to change
direction or try something new,”
Ritchie said.
“Another benefit is that there’s
Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz
Global players hooked on fishing game
less heads talking in a room at
any given time, so we can make
design decisions a lot quicker,”
Bastiaens said.
Mason
said it was
not easy
splitting
an entire
project
between just four people.
“The challenge is how much
we can achieve with the hours
we have in the day.
“We try to be really careful
about keeping the scope of the
game manageable, not making it
into a 10-year project.”
Thorne said keeping the team’s
expectations in check was vital
for the project to succeed.
“I think being in the industry
for a while meant we were
really realistic about what was
likely achievable with the first
title from our own studio,” she
said.
“So we went in armed with
that knowledge and everything
we did was to just try and
GAMERS: Dredge’s 3D animator Michael Bastiaens (left),
lead artist Alex Ritchie and programmer and writer Joel
Mason. The game has been making a splash internationally.
PHOTOS: BLACK SALT GAMES / RNZ
increase the chances of Dredge
being a success.”
A week after its release Dredge
had surpassed the expectations
of its Black Salt Games’ development
team.
After a whirlwind week, the
team was thinking about the
future. Should they work on
further updates to Dredge? A
sequel? Or should they start
something entirely new?
Thorne said their first order of
business would be to address any
bugs, glitches and flaws discovered
by Dredge’s unexpectedly
large playerbase.
“Immediately it’s about
making sure Dredge is fully
supported and our players feel
how appreciative we are for their
response,” she said.
Bastiaens said next week’s plan
was to do a breakdown.
“We’ve got a couple of ideas
of where we could take things,
whether it’s more Dredge or
something else entirely.”
Following two years of intensive
work on Dredge’s oceans,
the team felt inclined to change
course.
“I think Alex is kind of done
with fish for a while,” Bastiaens
said.
“Yeah, (he drew) 128 fish
illustrations,” Mason said.
“We got there in the end,”
Ritchie said.
– RNZ
We’re
strengthening
our electricity
network
Orion is installing a new 66kV underground power
cable on Ferry Road, as part of a major project we are
undertaking in Christchurch city to replace old cables.
From 17 to 21 April, a section of Ferry Road will be closed at night,
between Hopkins Street and Hargood Street. The road will be
closed between midnight and 6.00am. During the day, two lanes
will be open past the work area on Ferry Road.
These are essential upgrades, to enhance the resilience and
security of the network. Please allow extra time for your journey
and follow all signage and instructions from our team on site.
Thank you for your patience.
Find out more about this essential project:
haveyoursay.oriongroup.co.nz