Platformers are an iconic video game genre. Franchises likeMarioandSonicgot their start as 2D platformers, but the genre is continuously evolving with titles such asSuper Meat Boythat find ways to continuously challenge its players. Now,indie gamePanic Porcupineis aiming to be the next hit platformer, taking plenty of notes from those that came before.
Panic Porcupinetakes the precision, timing, difficulty, andbrutal nature ofSuper Meat Boyand joins it with the momentum-based physics of 2DSonicgames.Panicaims to test players with brutal environments that make sure one wrong move can lead to death, but it wants to make sure fans have fun dying over and over again. Game Rant spoke with the lead developers, who prefer to be known by their studio names Spicy Gyro and Shiny Dolphin, about what players can expect from the indie game’s level design.
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Panic Porcupine Melds Sonic’s Speed and Super Meat Boy’s Saws
The idea forPanic Porcupinecame about as its developers bonded over their love for the physics inclassicSonicgames on the Sega Genesis. These programmers felt there needed to be a game built for those who grew up on the original titles, using the “set of skills” they learned from them; especially with the impression that games fromSonic CDonward relied less on momentum, becoming overall more forgiving.
These thoughts helped them decide that the gameplay inPanic Porcupinewould take notes from theoriginalSonic the Hedgehog, where dash panels weren’t as common and the famous Spin Dash move didn’t exist. Players will need to rely on built-up momentum to avoid dying to all sorts of hazardous obstacles. However, Shiny Dolphin thinks dying won’t be too inconvenient to players, as the game should be just fun to run through.
“There’s something about Sonic where it’s like, it’s so fun to play around with how the game works after a while that it gets less punishing to die because you just get to play with the physics some more.”
Panic Porcupine’s Approach to Difficulty
However, not all players will be happy about dying several times to the same stage hazard. Spicy Gyro and Shiny Dolphin are aware of this, as both developers are casual gamers and understand frustrations with harder titles. They’ve given some leeway to struggling players, with one example being the use of “Coyote Time,” a mechanic that other indie platformers likeCelesteuse to allow players a second chance to save themselves from wrong jumps. Spicy Gyro also said this is why some levels inPanic Porcupinecan be played in different orders.
“We also decided rather early on that the game is mostly linear, but subsequent worlds will unlock before you’ve completed the previous world. And then, within levels, there’s some optional paths. We’ve had some levels that I’ve designed that were really brutal, and we decided to take those levels and put them on their own path so you may go around them and circumvent them, and then tackle another level instead.”
Another aspect of the game made to help players isPanic Porcupinefeatures infinite lives so that fans can keep playing no matter how many times they kill Panic, and the game takesSuper Meat Boy’s"quick restarts" to immediately try again after watching the porcupine die in a humorous manner. The developers hope thefrustrationPanic Porcupinemakes players feelis off-set by laughter, at least a little.
As Shiny Dolphin and Spicy Gyro laid out, the list of things that can kill you in this game is rather long. One of the trailers for the game features statistics on how many spikes, chainsaws, and even gallons of lava are inPanic. While the developers have said these stats are completely made up for the trailer, players will be able to experience the stage hazards for themselves when thegame launches later in October.
Panic Porcupineis set to launch on October 27 for PC.
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