NUK: Did any of the original developers at Westone become involved in the remake? So Ben created locations that are sometimes a bit crazy and surreal because this is how the game was. And of course we’ve got floating platforms everywhere! Nintendo games for example are great at embracing this magic, which I think is a strength for games. In The Dragon’s Trap, you open a door in the sky and end up in the desert. OC: It’s interesting to remember that old games weren’t so concerned with being realistic. It can be a little tricky sometimes and I took some liberties but overall, I wanted to stay true to the original feeling. But some parts already had a personality and working on those parts helped me aim towards a coherent style. I could reinvent big parts of the backgrounds because there was literally nothing but a plain colour. How did you go about creating art and music from nothing without breaking the coherent style of the game?īF: Well, the good thing with remaking this game is that the original was quite limited graphically. NUK: Similarly, many parts of the original game feature blank backgrounds or no original music. So all our changes were made cautiously from the angle of not altering the spirit of the original.

At heart this is a retro game, it drops you in the world and it is part of the enjoyment to figure things out by yourself. We also added extra hints to guide the player but we didn’t want them to appear too soon or be too obvious.

We removed the charm stone system as pretty much all players of the old and new versions agreed it was more annoying than anything! Adding the items description and discussions with the shopkeeper and nurse characters also helped flesh out the world and add an element of comedy. You had to grind for charm stones and it didn’t give any indication of what items do. For example, buying equipment in the original wasn’t a very satisfying experience. OC: We tested the remake on many players and tweaked it based on their reactions. Can you talk about what these changes were and why you felt it was best to change them? NUK: Though players can switch to the original game graphics and sound at any point, you did make some small changes to the game design. I think we have a rather unexpected soundtrack with a lot of variety we’ve got bits of Egyptian folk, gypsy guitar or even tango, along with more traditional chamber orchestra style. It was possible because the game has those very different locations. For the music, composer Michael Geyre is personally interested in so many styles that he went in many directions.

We are a French team and instead of mimicking an art style of Japanese creators, we wanted to embrace our own. OC: We wanted to take advantage of what we are good at. I always loved traditional animation, like Dave Perry’s games from the Mega Drive era but also the drawing style of comics. I tried to have a look that I think fit the game. It’s not a traditional look for a videogame, but I come from a background of working on comics and animation. What inspired you to try something so bold?īF: For me, as I started doing the art of the game, it wasn’t really much of a conscious decision, I just went for what I felt was right. NUK: Your approach to this remake is very ambitious, with sumptuous animations and all-new music. The ability to transform the main character, visit colourful parts of the world and for its time, a sense of an open world… Players are almost instantly drawn to it. It combined the sense of exploration of games like the earlier Metroid and The Legend of Zelda games, with a fully fleshed out world and many recognisable characters.īF: I think the world of Monster Land is so rich and vibrant. OC: It was rather innovative for its time. NUK: Out of all the Wonder Boy/Monster World games that were made, what do you think makes The Dragon’s Trap so special?

Wonderboy in monster world charmstone