On our Patreon Page, we publish Indie Dev Interviews for our Patrons. The last one published is our interview with Nerd Monkeys. The interview was such a fun read, that I just had to share a part of it with all of you!
In October Paula reviewed Nerd Monkeys game Detective Case and Clown Bot in: Murder in The Hotel Lisbon, an adventure, puzzle game set in the ’80s. She questioned the humour in the game as you can read here in the review.
After the review was published a link to the review was emailed to Nerd Monkeys. Shortly after Paula received an email back from Diogo at Nerd Monkeys. This began a friendly back and forth of emails while Diogo gave Nerd Monkeys ideas and thoughts on basing the game in the 1980’s and on the humour in the game which reflects that time.
Time to give Diogo and Nerd Monkeys some more attention on LadiesGamers!
Tell us about yourselves and Nerd Monkey studio!
We are a very approachable band of apes. I (Diogo) am the head of this clan, but my right and left arms are Mafalda and Alexandre. Or maybe it’s more like a three-headed beast, like Cerebrus, but think of a mighty gorilla instead of a rabid dog. We also have a few teams in charge of different projects, but they have to get through us if they want their hard earned bananas at the end of the day.
Nerd Monkeys was summoned through alchemy in 2013 with the launch of Detective Case and Clown Bot in: Murder in The Hotel Lisbon. Since then, me and my partner nurtured it with breast milk into what we believed was the right path, the honorable path… At the age of 7, it already goes to school and we cannot help but shed a prideful tear as we see it maturing into a true classic.
We did many and different projects but, as the years passed, our goals mutated and evolved. Nerd Monkeys is a studio, but it’s also a home, but it can also be a vehicle, and sometimes it’s just a concept, but it’s the real thing.
Can you tell us what your next game is about?
We are working on some projects, where to begin? Hmm…
Let’s start with “Monkey Split”, we’re trying something different from what we have done until now. Monkey Split is a game about monkeys erm… splitting? But literally, they have to run away from the possessed monkey! Anyone can take part in the development process because the game is being done out in the open, so the prototypes are playable and the creative process is often shared and discussed on our Discord, so feel free to join us!
More recently we just published a game on the Nintendo Switch eShop called Traffix, a game developed by Infinity Games, and it’s a game about traffic! But literally! Yes, you manage car traffic, exciting stuff! Hopefully it will get GOTY. (Paula already reviewed the game, you can find her thoughts here)
There’s also this game codenamed Subway and it’s not about Subways! *gasps*
And don’t get me started on Flooded Village… the name says it all!
Oh! Almost forgot about it, we are also working on a game called Out of Line, it’s really neat and we just launched a really cool trailer about it, please wishlist it on our Steam Page.
Want to read more?
What was the inspiration for the Detective Case and Clown Bot games? How writer Filipe Duarte Pina was heavily inspired by 80’s sitcoms and books from that era. So would Diogo say the game is a cultural postcard? What are their thoughts on the biggest challenge in making a game and how to overcome it? And how do they try to maintain a good work-life balance?
You can indeed read more of this humorous interview, by becoming a Patron in Tier 2 or 3!