News Article

Talking Point: Bit Boy!! Took 50 Times More Work Than Bit.Trip?

Posted Tue, 07 Jul 2009 by Philip J Reed

Tuesday night's alright for fightin'.

Tuesday night's alright for fightin'.

It did according to Bernd Geiblinger of BPlus!

Over on the official BPlus forums, Bernd Geiblinger, Art Director at Bplus (AKA WiiBoy) posted the following:

Now - we fought for the 'PADING'-GameBoy sound on the game start. For the PukiPuki-Sound like you know it from original tetris and Super Mario Land including the hearts in 'PAUSE'. Complete Retro-Style Menus. GameBoy like Font and sounds. NES ColourPalettes, Playstation graphic issues and also loading times... Motion Controls and hundrets of graphics just for a 600 WiiPoints game. DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH WORK IT IS? It is the work of about 50 Bit.Trip games just in one!

Feel free to click the link above to read the controversial statement in context, because we would like for you to discuss the implications of that final sentence.

First of all, do you feel that Bit Boy!! received 50 times the love, effort, sweat and refining that went into either of the Bit.Trip games?

More importantly, do you think this type of comparison should even be raised in the first place between indie developers? Is it an eye-opening account of Bplus's workload - remember, it's just two guys - or do you feel it's a little below the belt?

We here at Nintendo Life would like to believe that indie developers should stick together, and support each other - it's a tough racket out there, after all! Is it duly respectful to Gaijin Games to accuse them of investing significantly less effort in their games? Would such an accusation be out of line even if it was true?

We've heard some of your comments already, (forum user Doogle points out, correctly, that Bit.Trip: Beat has received admirable reviews across the board, which does call into question the usage of that particular franchise as a punching bag...) but we'd love to hear more.

So tell us...what do you think?

Source: forums.bplus.at.

Tags: WiiWare, Gaijin Games, Bplus, Talking Point.

User Comments

Toddr

1. Toddr Canada 07 Jul 2009, 21:36 BST

Oh well. Bit Trip still comes FIRST in my mind.

malnin

2. malnin Canada 07 Jul 2009, 21:37 BST

Whos you? And how are we suposed to know what he(or she) thinks?

gameking23

3. gameking23 United States 07 Jul 2009, 21:37 BST

Let's face it Bplus has come out with three games so far with little success. While Gajin Games so far has come out with two that have sold relatively well. In other words Bplus might be a little bit jealous.

So far out of these games that are out I have both Bit Trip games and none from Bplus.

Corbie

4. Corbie United States 07 Jul 2009, 21:37 BST

Excuse me while I go hang myself.

WolfRamHeart

5. WolfRamHeart United States 07 Jul 2009, 21:38 BST

Oh no, here we go again!:P

gameking23

6. gameking23 United States 07 Jul 2009, 21:39 BST

Corbie don't do that we need your 7 reviews!

Tails86

7. Tails86 United States 07 Jul 2009, 21:47 BST

I knew this was gonna happen the fight of the Decade BTC vs Bit Boy :P

Gizmo

8. Gizmo Germany 07 Jul 2009, 21:48 BST

Oh c'mon, is it really necessary to post such a statement as a news?

Turkey Brutus

9. Turkey Brutus United States 07 Jul 2009, 21:49 BST

@Gizmo:
Absolutely not! That's why it's posted as a talking point. :P

Wolfang44

10. Wolfang44 Argentina 07 Jul 2009, 21:49 BST

WOW! i really don't know

Gizmo

11. Gizmo Germany 07 Jul 2009, 21:50 BST

@ Chicken Brutus: Talking point, news; I think you know what I mean ;).

longtimegamer

12. longtimegamer United States 07 Jul 2009, 21:53 BST

I can't see it at the site. I'm using my Wii for this.

Edit: Nevermind. I Saw it.

pixelman

13. pixelman United States 07 Jul 2009, 21:57 BST

To be honest, WiiBoy is not impressing me. He doesn't talk professionally, and he overuses smileys. :P

However I love the look of the game, and I wish them well for their future projects.

Twilight Crow

14. Twilight Crow Mexico 07 Jul 2009, 21:58 BST

Of course they're a bit jealous. I believe the fact that Bit Boy!! may have needed more work than the Bit.Trips, so what, it just means that they made a more complicated game, not a better one; the love GG put into its games while working on them counts more than the work itself.

BrickleBrack

15. BrickleBrack United States 07 Jul 2009, 22:10 BST

I think all indie dev's need to get each others backs, without them we get EA. I also think all bit's are created equal.

pie4prez

16. pie4prez United States 07 Jul 2009, 22:13 BST

C'mon, it doesn't matter how much more work it took, BIT.TRIP IS BETTER!!!

ejamer

17. ejamer Canada 07 Jul 2009, 22:15 BST

Jealous? Trying to glom publicity from a more successful WiiWare title? Accusing a competitor of not working hard enough? I don't think any of those possibilities are accurate... Bernd probably really believes his statement, and nobody else can confirm or deny how much work his game took. (Of course, I'd be rather surprised if Bernd knew exactly how much effort Bit.Trip games take either.)

The problem with his statement is that working hard (and even good ideas) means very little about how good the end product is. Don't tell that to Bob though... he might freak out again. Oh sorry, did I get my indies mixed up? ;)

Bit.Trip takes a simple concept and polishes it until the gameplay shines. Bit Boy is a good idea, but (love it or hate it) simply doesn't quite shine as brightly for most people. Better luck next time!

xesbeth

18. xesbeth France 07 Jul 2009, 22:23 BST

Oh oh...that's going to be hilarious! pop corn

Ah and Bplus, stop making crappy game, or just stop making game at all, it's a waste of time for you, the reviewers and the readers. Cheers!

WiiBoy

19. WiiBoy Austria 07 Jul 2009, 22:36 BST

Hello I am the Art Director of Bplus, Bernd Geiblinger.

I will only post this one time to clarify things: The quoted statement was a great exaggeration to underline my statement. What I wanted to say with this was how much work was really put into Bit Boy!! in terms of different sound, graphics and objects.

I did not intend to diminish the great work from Gaijin Games - in the opposite: we know how much effort went into the Bit.trip series and we absolutely think that they are outstanding pieces of software.

We thank you all for all the passion you put into discussing about Bit Boy!! and we will take all of your positive and negative criticism to heart.

CommanderVideo

20. CommanderVideo United States 07 Jul 2009, 22:40 BST

@WiiBoy: Hey Bernd. No love lost. :)

Kirk

21. Kirk United Kingdom 07 Jul 2009, 22:41 BST

It may technically have taken 50 times as much effort/work to make this game as it did Bit.Trip but from what I have read it's simply not as good a game and in the end I really don't care how little or how much went into it. I also don't really care how many people or small animals dies making it, and I work in the games industry too, I JUST WANT GOOD GAMES

Far Cry Wii took many times more effort and much more money etc to make than World of Goo for sure, all things being equal, but one is crap and the other one is great.

The fact that the developer is measuring his game by how much effort went into it or what little special lengths they went to to get some retro effect etc is really kinda the problem because it's not quantity but quality as they say.

It sounds like the developer wanted to make a good game but all the good intention in the world doesn't make it so.

The Conduit anyone? Yes I own it and have played it for many hours and I still think it's completely average.

Just make great games and the rest will...

Tony

22. Tony United States 07 Jul 2009, 22:46 BST

I'm willing to check Bit Boy out. I don't really want to get into the comment and it's hard for me to say because I can't play Bit Boy yet.

Golgo

23. Golgo United Kingdom 07 Jul 2009, 22:48 BST

I think Berndt from Bplus clarified his intentions very well in post 19 so let's all try to Bnice. Indies forever!!!

KDR_11k

24. KDR_11k Germany 07 Jul 2009, 22:54 BST

I doubt they spent 50x BTB's dev time on it since Beat Trip games are made on a three month schedule, even with only one team member (I have no idea how many people work on the BT games) that'd come out at ~13 man-weeks, to have 50x the work Bit Boy would have required 650 man-weeks which means 13 people working for almost a year.

Anyway, the amount of work is not proportional to the quality, implementing it is only a small part of the job, the much harder parts are the design steps where you have to find something people want (hint: not maze games) and then work on implementing it in a way that people like (hint: not with unavoidable death traps). It doesn't matter how hard you work, it matters how well you work. An incompetent git won't produce in a hundred years what a master can make in one day.

Radixxs

25. Radixxs United States 07 Jul 2009, 23:12 BST

I'm not a fan of whining, especially by "professionals."
Picture this scene if you will:
Bplus is like a young boy lying on the ground having been beaten by Gaijin. in a last, desperate attempt, Bplus kicks poor Gaijin in jewels. Bplus runs away and tells his Mommy about the incident, getting no sympathy, losing her respect.

Anyway, that is what I imagine when I read statements like above. I think Bplus needs a hug. ;)

After foolishly skipping over WiiBoy's clarifying post, I must say that I shall place my comments in a safer place.
But, for all of your enjoyment...
I will keep thine original here just.....for......................YOU!!!

Olimar_91

26. Olimar_91 United States 07 Jul 2009, 23:20 BST

If what Wiiboy says is true, then my sympathies for having a statement twisted.

Hopefully this sort of immaturity didn't happen. I'd like to believe that.

In any case, I can't say I'm a huge Bplus fan, but maybe one day they'll knock my socks off. I'll eagerly await it.

KnucklesSonic8

27. KnucklesSonic8 Canada 07 Jul 2009, 23:27 BST

Isn't it great to see both developers not only frequent the site but post a comment here? :D

It's irrelevant as to which one is "better". The point is: Both devs have put in a lot of love into their games and both should be applauded greatly for their efforts.

pixelman

28. pixelman United States 07 Jul 2009, 23:28 BST

@WiiBoy: I'm very much excited to see your future games. I love the retro style you used in Bit Boy!!, and I hope to see more of it.

That said, I think what you said was a poorly chosen example for the amount of effort you put into the game. I know it took a lot of work, but such an exaggerated statement is sure to cause an uproar.

Anyway, good luck man. :)

TwilightV

29. TwilightV United States 07 Jul 2009, 23:39 BST

I knew it was merely an exaggeration, used to describe how much love they have for their title. And really, without that, the title would have absolutely no soul. That's how important it is! Therefore, this will be a day one buy from me (provided I have points that day, of course). :)

RJay

30. RJay United States 07 Jul 2009, 23:43 BST

This could just be a clever way for BPlus to advertise their game by stirring up controversy....

vonseux

31. vonseux Brazil 07 Jul 2009, 23:45 BST

i guess it was creeping hard to progan the dots in Bit.Trip to hit in the music's tempo

Dazza

32. Dazza United Kingdom 07 Jul 2009, 23:50 BST

Next weeks talking point is: Pop-Up Pirate VS PoP

FIGHT!

Ferret75

33. Ferret75 United States 07 Jul 2009, 23:51 BST

WiiBoy though, I do like the ideas for your games though (I actually liked Niki personally), and hope to see more games from you guys. =D

Sean Aaron

34. Sean Aaron United Kingdom 07 Jul 2009, 23:53 BST

I'd like to give props to both devs myself and I like Bit.Trip and Bit Boy. Perhaps one day we can have a maze game which is also a music rhythm game? Could this be the holy grail that unites all people?

TwilightV

35. TwilightV United States 07 Jul 2009, 23:59 BST

@Dazza: PoP wins. No contest. >:3

Popyman

36. Popyman United States 08 Jul 2009, 00:02 BST

That is kind of pathetic of them. Who cares how long it took? BIT.TRIP has style all over the place, and the developer's love shows. Can the same be said about BPlus and it's games? I don't know, I haven't played them, and them saying this doesn't really make me want to go out and throw some points their way.

y2josh

37. y2josh United States 08 Jul 2009, 00:49 BST

I was going to buy your new game Bplus, but since you are a bunch of crybabies I say up your nose with a water hose

Djungelurban

38. Djungelurban Sweden 08 Jul 2009, 00:57 BST

Bplus is looking more and more like the Uwe Boll of gaming...

WhoKnew

39. WhoKnew United States 08 Jul 2009, 00:58 BST

"It is the work of about 50 Bit.Trip games just in one!"

Thats why it got a 5/10, huh?

jbrodack

40. jbrodack United States 08 Jul 2009, 01:02 BST

I haven't played bit boy so I'll only comment on the art style here. It looks like they tried for too much simply. While the bit.trip games have a perfect blend of retro and modern bit boy does the retro decently but actually looks worse in the more recent generations. bit.trip games are only made by 3 people so its not likes its some huge studio either. bplus seems to need to focus more on each game instead of trying a bunch of ideas. vektor tank looks like it might be good so long at they don't rush it and put more focus on it.

mrmicawber

41. mrmicawber United States 08 Jul 2009, 02:18 BST

It is too bad so many people here want to take sides and paint everything with a pig poop brush. Just let it go, people, support games you want to play, and let us not make this a blood sport. These are just games, yes, but also peoples hard work and daily bread. Let's not incite flame wars over this!

Ferret75

42. Ferret75 United States 08 Jul 2009, 02:42 BST

To all of you saying all THREE of the BPlus games are bad, you are aware that NintendoLife gave Niki a 8/10, right?

gameking23

43. gameking23 United States 08 Jul 2009, 02:48 BST

I realize that Niki scored well but it has not sold as well as any of the Bit Trip games.

Metang

44. Metang United States 08 Jul 2009, 03:06 BST

Don't know what to think about this. I haven't played either Bit Boy or Bit.Trip.Beat but I might pick up both.

Swerd_Murd

45. Swerd_Murd United States 08 Jul 2009, 03:44 BST

the new Bit Trip game is un-flippin'-believable. Given how uninspiringly bleh Bit Boy looked, I think I made the right purchasing decision...actually might go back and get the original now.

Objection_Blaster

46. Objection_Blaster United States 08 Jul 2009, 04:25 BST

If it wasn't for Wiiboy's above comment, I'd say something along the lines of "Ooohh, they went there!"

Haze4peace

47. Haze4peace United States 08 Jul 2009, 04:47 BST

but...but... but wahhh! - Wiiboy

For what its worth, the art was the only redeeming quality of the game.

accc

48. accc United States 08 Jul 2009, 04:58 BST

@Ferret75 - have you even played Niki? It's a terrible, borderline broken game. I honestly don't know what the reviewer here was thinking..

KnucklesSonic8

49. KnucklesSonic8 Canada 08 Jul 2009, 05:32 BST

I'm a fan of BPlus and I didn't really like Niki. PLATTCHEN deserved the 8 Niki got.

Ricardo91

50. Ricardo91 United States 08 Jul 2009, 05:51 BST

And it was half as fun. Hmmm...

KDR_11k

51. KDR_11k Germany 08 Jul 2009, 09:13 BST

I wouldn't be surprised if the Bit Trip games actually took more work because they actually involved thoughtful level design instead of randomly slapping crap gtogether.

To all of you saying all THREE of the BPlus games are bad, you are aware that NintendoLife gave Niki a 8/10, right?

Yes and I lost a lot of trust for NL because of that (I bought Niki over that review and found it a flaming pile of arse).

Sean Aaron

52. Sean Aaron United Kingdom 08 Jul 2009, 10:14 BST

@jbrodack: After some time with the game I totally agree, the 3D parts are the weakest because the 2D ones are so charming. I definitely hope there will be future Bit Boy games (I know we have future Bit.Trip games to look forward to) and that Bplus will focus more on the positive aspects of all this feedback!

Zak

53. Zak Austria 08 Jul 2009, 11:08 BST

I never actually thought that people may take Geiblingers words serious about the Bit.Trip rant. But I guess bad publicity is better than no one at all, right Bernd?

MarkyVigoroth

54. MarkyVigoroth Puerto Rico 08 Jul 2009, 12:49 BST

So? I am buying you both!

LucBernard

55. LucBernard France 08 Jul 2009, 14:32 BST

I like pugs

Tony

56. Tony United States 08 Jul 2009, 14:56 BST

To piggyback on Ferret 75's comment, Bit Boy did not get get a poor review either. It scored a 5/10 which is fair to average, but not poor.

PeGe

57. PeGe Austria 08 Jul 2009, 17:58 BST

B+ is doing a great job of selling itself. :D

Aardvark Soup

58. Aardvark Soup Netherlands 08 Jul 2009, 18:17 BST

Since when does the amount of work it costs to make a game say anything about it's quality. An outright horrible game like Sonic 2006 probably also took 50 times more work than say the fantastic World of Goo.

Bensei

59. Bensei Austria 08 Jul 2009, 18:44 BST

I actually liked Sonic 06, it was just very glitched, especially in the beginning where it counts most :p

chunky_droid

60. chunky_droid Australia 08 Jul 2009, 21:59 BST

This is a talking point? Fact of the matter is, you can put tonnes of work into a game, but if you forget to put decent gameplay in it, there's no point.

B-Plus, youse are idiots!

Bit.Trip clearly concentrated on gameplay first and foremost, B-Plus didn't

briunj04

61. briunj04 United States 08 Jul 2009, 23:00 BST

i actually believe him. it sure didn't take 50 times the amount of work, but probably double or something. I dont have Bit Boy!!! yet, but it looks hard to program

theblackdragon

62. theblackdragon United States 08 Jul 2009, 23:38 BST

It is possible to do retro and be more original about it (as evidenced by the Bit.Trip series...), so complaining that more work was put into Bit Boy!! is pointless. it was B+'s choice to go that route, not anyone else's, and if the game falls flat with reviewers, then perhaps B+ should've focused more on the gameplay and not the shiny graphics styles and fun noises they apparently worked so hard on.

XCWarrior

63. XCWarrior United States 09 Jul 2009, 02:59 BST

Bit Boy looks like a lot of fun, has it even come out yet?

Qwikman

64. Qwikman United States 09 Jul 2009, 04:48 BST

Anywaays...
I like pie. Anyone got a problem with that?

Corbie

65. Corbie United States 09 Jul 2009, 05:41 BST

Bit Boy!! is currently only available in Europe. Hopefully it will be out in the US soon. I still want to try it out.

Leave A Comment

Please login to post a comment.