KnapNok on Affordable Space Adventures’ reception and sales, more DLC possible, could hit 3DS
KnapNok’s Anchel Labena has commented on a number of topics pertaining to Affordable Space Adventures as part of an interview with Nintendo Life.
Regarding the game’s reception, Labena said that the game has received “some pretty amazing reviews”, which came as a bit of a surprise given its “quirky nature”. Sales were strong out of the gate, though “things slowed down a bit during the months after.”
Labena’s comments in full:
“We’ve been getting some pretty amazing reviews, which we are obviously really happy about. It really caught us by surprise, since Affordable Space Adventures is such a quirky title that we didn’t know what the press would think about it. I guess that all the positive press really affected sales at launch, because we saw a sudden surge of interest from players, YouTube streamers and other media outlets who hadn’t heard about the game before its launch.
While sales kicked off to a great start, things slowed down a bit during the months after launch. We still keep selling units on a daily basis though. It doesn’t come as a surprise either. We are, after all, a digital-only release, and presence in the Wii U eShop is crucial for us. Every time our game shows up in the eShop front page (like a banner, a Nintendo Highlights video or being included in a list of indie games for example), we have a considerable spike in sales. The new update is surely going to get a new surge of interest in the title, so we hope to keep the momentum going with that. We also just launched in Japan, and that’s definitely a super interesting market to get into. You have to think different in how you approach the audience there. Luckily, there are also fans there. One of them posted a drawing on Miiverse and it took as a while to understand that her handwriting said “I’ve been waiting for a year for this game since Knytt Underground” (Knytt Underground being the previous game of Affordable Space Adventure’s Game Director, Nicklas Nygren). What I can tell you, however, is that the game has definitely been a success for us and we are quite happy about how it is performing.”
Next for Affordable Space Adventures could be more DLC and a 3DS version, both of which are in the table. Labena stated:
So, while we are currently working on other non-ASA related projects, the potential for future DLC is still there. But for the moment being, both KnapNok Games and Nifflas’ Games are working on their own, separate games (though we still work together in the same office – I even have Nicklas playing around with several of his prototypes next to me, and we all get to try them early on and give him our feedback). We still have a few ASA things coming though. Nicklas is giving the finishing touches to the official soundtrack of the game so we can make it available online!
Do we want to make a 3DS version of the game? Yes we do! As a matter of fact, we are working together with a developer to make this project a reality. You obviously can’t simply put a Wii U game and try to fit it into a 3DS, whether it’s the new 3DS or the original one. The Unity support for the New 3DS obviously helps a lot, but there would still be lots of adjustments to be made to the controls and the gameplay. Also, the 3DS’ technical prowess is quite different from the Wii U. However, all this doesn’t mean “3DS version confirmed!!!”. There are still quite a lot of things to go through before we can determine whether this can happen or not. But ASA on-the-go sounds like too sweet an opportunity to simply let it pass.
