We caught up with Lauri Hyvarinen, the CEO of Frozenbyte to get some background into the team behind Trine one of gems of the independent development scene.
"We founded Frozenbyte in 2001 - we probably should've waited a year or two to be honest! We were basically a group of gamers who wanted to make games and were really passionate about it so we basically learned the ropes as we went along. We're now 25 strong but even now only a couple of the guys in the team that have had any previous games industry experience.
Our ambition is to make great games but we are not focusing on any one genre, we'll do whatever feels good. We've got a whole lot of ideas just waiting to be put into production and in 2010 you can expect to see something totally different and something a little familiar. We're working on two projects right now, one we'll be announcing before the summer if things go to plan! Games development is hard work so it's better to love what you do and work on projects that get you excited!
For Frozenbyte the future is definitely digital as it simplifies the whole process of getting a game from the developer to the gamer and in the future we will be working on PC, consoles and handhelds and we'll see what comes of that and we can't wait to hear what people think about our upcoming games!
Going back to the development of Trine this came through our wish to capture a certain fairytale atmosphere - "once upon a time", that kind of stuff. This feeling was our greatest inspiration. Everyone in the team had their own version of that in mind so as a result there are hints of this and that in the game. The game design evolved as we went along and everyone in the team pitched in their ideas and suggestions. In the case of Trine I think this way of working as a team was a great advantage for us."
Thanks Lauri, and so to Trine! When it comes to promising indie games, a dash of originality is usually what gets people's attention - some memorable feature or twist that helps the game break away from the herd - but in the case of Trine, it's actually the warm feeling of familiarity. Certainly, anyone who's been gaming since the early nineties will find it delivers a tasty blend of beloved old flavours, served up in a tangy sauce of modern physics.
You're in control of three characters. The first we meet is Zoya, a thief. You guide her through a sacred temple, in a neat opening section that doubles as a simple tutorial, until she stumbles across the Trine - a magical artifact of unknown power. Next we meet Amadeus, a wizard, who investigates the disturbance in the temple and also finds himself bound to the Trine. Finally, there's Pontius, a gruff knight whose bullish determination to defend the realm makes him the third hapless soul to be caught up in the adventure about to unfold.
From this point on you can swap between each character at will, and use their unique abilities to explore each stage. Pontius has the most obvious default ability - he's a fighter, and his sword and shield offer essential protection against the various foes ranged against you. His strength also means he's ideal for smashing through weak obstacles or cutting ropes, and he can also lift heavy blocks and throw them. Zoya, on the other hand, excels in ranged combat. Her arrows can be charged up to shoot across the screen, while her grappling hook makes her the most nimble of the trio, able to swing and swoop to platforms and areas beyond the reach of her companions.
Amadeus is mostly useless in a scrap, but his magical powers prove central to many of the physics puzzles. Click the right mouse-button on an object and you can levitate it around the screen. The left button allows you to draw objects that will appear in the gameworld. To begin with, you're restricted to summoning a simple box, but as you progress through the game you'll collect XP vials that allow you to upgrade the powers available to you. The same is true of all the characters.
It's a testament to how well balanced the game is that while the abilities develop in lots of interesting ways, they never overwhelm the gameplay. The three characters always form a neat Venn diagram of overlapping skills, all of which are intuitive in their use. Levels are linear and traditional in their side-on 2D design, but what brings them to life is the often-wonderful animation, full of lovely little touches, and a robust physics model that is central to most of the key challenges. Combined with the carefully chosen abilities of each character, the heightened reality of the environment is liberating. Sometimes the solution to a problem is obvious, but there's rarely just one way of tackling a given situation and unlikely ideas often reward the player with hidden bonus items.
It's this flexibility that ultimately makes Trine more than just a pleasant trip down memory lane for puzzle-platforming fans. Between the balanced abilities and the engrossing gameworld, it's a game where the unspoken question, "I wonder if I can..." is almost always answered in the affirmative. As a result, progress always feels delightfully organic and logical, and while it's possible to get a fair distance into the game without too much lateral thinking.
Combat, too, is simple yet enjoyable. Pontius has a single-mouse-button melee that wouldn't be out of place in Diablo, but the animations are so lively and the sense of impact and momentum so tangible that mashing your way through a dozen Argonauts-style skeletons remains amusing long after it should have become tiresome. Zoya's archery is a little more fiddly, but once you've mastered its nuances - and the game gives you plenty of opportunities to fine-tune your bow skills - there's nothing more satisfying than sending an enemy toppling from a ledge into the grinding gears of a huge machine with one well-placed arrow.
Your range of movement may be narrow, and your inventory limited, but the game offers depth in other ways, notably in the "give it a go" approach to puzzle-solving and the enormously satisfying drop-in co-op play. If the game is good honest fun when played solo, it's a blast with two players and a sublime joy with three. Having all three characters active at the same time opens up the game even more, allowing even more intricate solutions to problems. Complex sequences of actions that would have been impossible when swapping from one to the other with one hand on the keyboard suddenly become feasible. The only downside is that targeting is trickier with a thumb-stick than with a mouse, putting two players at a minor disadvantage.
Trine is simply an unpretentious and effortlessly lovely adventure. Immediately likeable, hugely enjoyable and brimming with charming detail every step of the way, your enjoyment may depend on how many friends you can share the journey with, but few would regret time spent in the company of this trio.