Artist Interview - Kees Gajentaan - Pt.1

After many years hunkered down in your bunker, Implausible Industries’ first original game is released! Did you think this day would ever arrive, Kees? 🥳

- It indeed has been a long and difficult journey, but from early in the development of the prototype we knew we had something quite unique. We knew nobody else would make a game quite like this, so we had to do it ourselves! 🧟‍♂️

How does it feel seeing the Super Scientists and Supernaturals in FLICK Solitaire!?
- It’s great! I’ve been playing FLICK Solitaire since the beginning, so of course, it’s fun to see my own artwork in-game. I hope players enjoy collecting and FLICKing with this deck. I kept the card designs fairly traditional, and I think the art style works well on a small screen. 📱

Which side?... Systematic science or the unexplainable forces of the supernatural? 👻
- In fiction, mystery and the inexplicable are more than welcome, but in real life, I prefer to get some answers!

Have you got your hands on the latest generation of consoles? Which is your preferred way to play? Switch, Playstation or Xbox? 🎮
- Each platform has its own fantastic games, many of which I’d like to play but right now can’t, simply because the consoles are always sold out. That said, I’m really enjoying Game Pass on my Xbox One X and PC. I’ve played many top-quality games of all sizes that I likely wouldn’t have purchased. And RESEARCH and DESTROY is now included in Game Pass as well! You can play it on a console, or PC, and we even added touch controls so you can play it on a tablet or phone without a Bluetooth controller, streaming from the cloud.

Your game art has cool, nostalgic cartoon/comic book with hints of Hanna-Barbera (Scooby-Doo etc…) Have cartoons inspired your style, and if so, which?
- Absolutely - I grew up watching Scooby-Doo (and all those other mystery-solving teams by Hanna-Barbera), Looney Tunes, the Pink Panther and many others, and read enormous amounts of both European and American comics. I like the simplicity of the character designs from that era, so that’s something I strive for in my design. 
Applying a cartoon style to a game also lets us go wild with the weapon and gadget designs; we have a weapon that drops grand pianos on enemies, for example.
Due to this dangerous equipment, players are quite likely to accidentally injure their own scientists. Even if you’re failing at the game, it’s fun to watch and you’ll laugh it off.

The supernatural apocalypse that strikes in RESEARCH and DESTROY surprises you next week, which item from your art kit would you grab first?
- I guess that’ll be a sharp, wooden pencil. I’ll still be able to draw and it could come in handy were I to encounter a vampire. 

The super scientists who star in your game love a scoop of ice cream! What is your preferred flavour scoop?
- I prefer something refreshing, such as mint chocolate chip, or any citrus flavoured sherbet.

Which type of gamer are you, stealthy or all guns a-blazing?
- In those games where you can choose between stealthy or guns a-blazing, I always try to go for stealth. That is until I mess it up, or run out of patience, of course.

What makes gameplay good?

- I think it’s all about having a satisfying game loop. Whatever makes up the core gameplay,  players will need to do that repeatedly. There needs to be enough variety and challenge in the game loops to keep it interesting, but also enough familiarity in them to find some comfort. 

Any plans for a RESEARCH and DESTROY sequel?

- It’s too early to tell! We’ll have to see how audiences react to our unique mix of action and strategy.

Part 2 loading soon… until then check out those Scientists in Research & Destroy to hunt down some Supernaturals hordes!