BitSummit, the global indie game festival, has kicked off in Kyoto, Japan, to great success. Among the countless games on display, one Korean indie game stood out at the booth of 'Toei Games,' the new game publishing division of the animation powerhouse Toei: 'KILLA,' a mystery story adventure game currently being developed by the four-member indie team 'Geomgyuldan.'
Geomgyuldan is a team formed by members who met in university clubs and similar circles. Surprisingly, this is the first game development project for all four members. It has been a challenging journey, balancing studies and part-time jobs—sometimes even to the point of sacrificing their grades—but their unwavering passion for game development and their synergy have allowed them to create a unique game called 'KILLA.'
Their efforts have been validated by an impressive list of awards, including the Grand Prize at GIGDC and the Winner Award at the Bandai Namco-hosted 'GYAAR Studio Awards,' which eventually led to their collaboration with Toei Games. We met with the team at BitSummit to hear about their development process and future goals, as they aim to present a fresh take on the mystery adventure genre by focusing on 'character narratives' rather than intricate tricks.
Q. Could you please provide a general introduction to the game for those who are encountering 'KILLA' for the first time?
Choi Da-yeon= 'KILLA' is a mystery story adventure game that follows the journey of the protagonist, 'Valhalla,' as she seeks to find and take revenge on the person who killed her mentor, following the mentor's dying wish to "Kill 'La'." We decided on the title 'KILLA' based on that phrase, and it also carries the double meaning of 'killer.'
Q. Seeing 'KILLA' in person, the quality seems quite high. Do you have any prior experience in game development?
Choi Da-yeon= This is the first project for all four of us. Jae-won and I met in 'Bridge,' a Korean university game development club, and we met Se-eun through the 'Ewha Womans University Game Jam.' As we developed the game, we felt we were lacking in planning and business aspects. Da-eun is my older sister, and since she is skilled in business, I suggested she join us, and that’s how we came to work together.
Q. I’m curious about who led the story composition and what the intent behind the planning was.
Choi Da-yeon= At first, we only thought about the 'plot twists' typical of mystery games. However, since all our team members are 'otaku' at heart, we began to place immense importance on character narratives and charm. We pondered a 'mystery structure that can effectively showcase each character's traits,' and that led to the current structure that reveals both the twist and the unique personalities of the characters. While I drafted the big picture, the specific charm of each character was developed through discussions with the entire team.
Q. The narrative structure, which involves finding clues in dreams and offering multiple endings, is unique. What kind of experience did you want to provide to the players?
Choi Da-yeon= We value 'what happened to the characters' just as much as uncovering the truth. While traditional mystery games reveal the truth through evidence found at the scene or scientific investigation, we focused on the stories between characters before the incident or their pasts. We focused on the "why this result came to be" aspect and actively utilized elements like the mental space within dreams.
Q. The characters, story, and world design are very appealing. I’m curious if there are any mystery works you usually enjoy or were inspired by.
Choi Da-yeon= Since it's a steampunk genre, I would say we were most influenced by the 'Professor Layton' series. The tone and manner were so well-established that it had a huge impact on our art. We were also greatly influenced by the Japanese game 'Your Turn to Die'.
Yoon Se-eun= For the overall atmosphere of the game, we wanted to evoke a feeling similar to 'Professor Layton'.
Choi Da-eun= In terms of the mystery elements, we were heavily influenced by the 'Danganronpa', 'Ace Attorney', and 'Professor Layton' series.
Q. You all must have started game development before graduating from university. It couldn't have been easy to balance that with your studies.
Jang Jae-won= Currently, I am the only one still in university, while the other team members have graduated. In my case, trying to balance part-time work, development, and school classes meant I had to choose and focus. I loved game development so much that I prioritized it, which meant I paid less attention to my studies, and it took me a long seven years to graduate (laughs).
Q. Among your various awards, which stage was the most meaningful for Geomgyuldan?
Choi Da-eun= Winning the Winner Award at the 'GYAAR Studio Awards' hosted by Bandai Namco was the biggest turning point. Not only the funding, but the development support programs like mentoring were incredibly helpful. Thanks to that, we also got the opportunity to exhibit at major stages like Gamescom.
Q. You have been actively participating in various game shows like Gamescom, Tokyo Game Show, and G-STAR. What was the main reason for your active participation?
Choi Da-eun= Our main goal was to communicate with users and refine the game based on their feedback. Furthermore, we prioritized letting users know about the game to build up our wishlist on Steam. We are striving to polish the game into a better version based on the valuable feedback we receive.
Q. Is there any feedback from users that stands out in your memory?
Choi Da-yeon= We uploaded a demo to Steam and received feedback from users. In a section where the protagonist must open a box to progress, someone left a comment saying, "I will absolutely not open the box and I will not find the clues." That was so funny and memorable. So, we changed our direction and added an option to proceed without opening it.
Q. It is impressive that you were selected as one of the first publishing titles for Toei Games. How did the collaboration come about?
Choi Da-eun= We were introduced through someone we met at an exhibition, and Toei Games contacted us first. At first, we couldn't believe it. Our main target audience is heavily influenced by the Japanese market, and since Toei is a company with significant influence in Japan and famous for its animation, we thought it would create great synergy.
Yoon Se-eun= We currently have video meetings every two weeks. When Da-eun proposes business ideas, we exchange feedback with Toei to decide on things like booth settings or whether to attend events.
Q. What are the planned final play time and language support?
Jang Jae-won= It depends on how you enjoy the story and solve the puzzles, but I think it will be around 10 hours or more. Those who read the text carefully might take even longer.
Choi Da-eun= The game will support Korean, English, Japanese, and Chinese (Simplified/Traditional). As for voice acting, we are still internally debating it because it can be a polarizing feature in the visual novel genre. As for platforms, we are prioritizing a Steam release first.
Q. When is the scheduled release date?
Choi Da-eun= We are aiming for a release within this year. However, there is a possibility that the schedule might be slightly delayed because we want to present the game with the highest possible quality.
Q. Lastly, please share a word with the users regarding the release schedule.
Geomgyuldan= We have put a lot of effort into the direction and story over the past 3-4 years. If you enjoy attractive art and deep stories, we highly recommend you give it a try. We ask for your continued interest and support.
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