How Aerial_Knight Overhauled His Game In Just 4 Months
MOBILE PORT
Successfully ported the existing PC and console title to iOS and Android, securing reviews of 4.5/5 on the App Store and 3.9/5 on the Play Store.
NEW FEATURES
Developed a brand-new endless runner mode, linked in additional bonus levels, and implemented a fresh leaderboard system within 4 months.
CONTROLLER SUPPORT
Implemented new UI assets and designs, dynamic control switching for mobile players and added accessibility support for the Xbox Adaptive Controller.
“[BetaJester and I] were a wonderful team up and the reason why I was able to pull this massive update off.”
The Challenge
Neil “Aerial_Knight” Jones is an award-winning indie game developer and 3D artist whose recent release, Aerial_Knight’s Never Yield, launched in May 2021 to a great response. On the back of this success and after listening to player feedback, Neil wanted to update the game with new features that would take it to the next level.
“The key items that I aimed for in this update [were] new bonus levels, new music, endless mode, leaderboards, UI overhaul, graphical updates, new achievements, level, story and cut-scene updates, a mobile version, and Xbox Accessibility controls. Looking at this list, it was a lot more than a normal update — it was a new version of the game and would take a lot longer than I wanted if I was to do it all myself.” - Neil “Aerial_Knight” Jones
Alongside this list of updates and goals, Aerial_Knight’s Never Yield’s publisher, Headup, sought for the Xbox and PC updates to be completed by February/March 2022, when they had agreed to feature the game as a headline title in Xbox’s Games with Gold promotion.
The Solution
To ensure that their deadline could be met, Neil and Headup needed a studio that was flexible, multi-disciplinary, and could rapidly familiarise themselves with an existing codebase. This goal led Neil to reach out to us, seeking our support in making his vision a reality.
“The search for a small team that could keep up with me and be able to get up and running quickly took a bit longer than I was hoping. After a few recommendations, I came across this really cool small team based out of the UK called BetaJester.” - Neil “Aerial_Knight” Jones
When Neil and Headup began working with us in October 2021, their Xbox and PC deadline was just four months away, making the project’s success dependent on effective task prioritisation, working efficiency, and collaboration between all parties. Working together with Neil and Headup’s other external partners, we assisted with validation for Steam and Epic Games alongside delivering a host of new features, updates, and bug fixes, including:
Porting to iOS and Android - including code, scene, and graphics optimisations; hooking into backend services; feature testing; achievement integration and publication to the relevant stores
Applying new UI designs - new menu navigation systems, level selection UI, and more, developed in collaboration with Neil and a third-party team
Ensuring controls function across all platforms - including dynamic switching between control types on phones that can use Xbox controllers and accessibility support for the Xbox Adaptive Controller
Building new features - developing an endless runner mode, linking new bonus levels and implementing a leaderboard system
The Results
By establishing a great working relationship with Neil and Headup, we worked together and successfully launched the update in time for their Xbox Games with Gold feature.
We took on the technical development of new systems, updated UI functionality, optimisation, and porting, freeing up Neil’s time to focus on developing new content and cutscenes, expanding the game and its world whilst our work helped bring the title to a wider array of platforms and audiences.
“[BetaJester] assisted in setting up the newer features while I went back to clean up and redesign some older features before starting all the newer assets needed. It was a wonderful team up and the reason why I was able to pull this massive update off.” - Neil “Aerial_Knight” Jones
Since then, the mobile version has been received well, securing a 4.5/5 rating on the App Store and 3.9/5 on the Play Store, whilst the PC version boasts a Very Positive review rating. The title was also available as part of a super rare limited physical release of 4,000 copies on Switch, which we’re proud to own a copy of!
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