Developer Spotlight: Amora Bettany, Studio MiniBoss
Amora is the purple half of Brazilian indie developer Studio MiniBoss and has been since herself and Pedro began making games in their free time back in 2010.
As an artist, writer, and game designer, Amora has worked on puzzle-platformer Out There Somewhere, TowerFall, and is currently working on Skytorn.
What was it that drove you to game development?
I think it was the fact that it's where all kinds of arts meet; you have writing, music, animation, plus game design and programming that are also art forms in their own way. The notion that I can learn and do a little bit of everything is what made me fall in love with game development.
What has been your favourite project to work on; personal or professional?
Hmm, hard to choose. I think Skytorn has been my favorite so far because I'm doing what I love most, character design, and I have a lot of control over what I make. But Out There Somewhere and TowerFall developments were reeeally cool, too.
What hardware/software do you usually use?
Manga Studio for drawing, Photoshop for image adjustments and animation.
What misconceptions do people have about your job?
A lot of people tend to think I'm in it for the money. "Is the financial return worth it?", they ask, and "How much money did Out There Somewhere make so far?". And although money is important to pay our rent and buy food for our cats, that was never the main goal.
For a long time we didn't even know how much OTS had sold. When we need money we just take freelance jobs, our game development process is never going to be altered because of marketing/financial strategies.
What do you love most about your work?
Knowing that someone played it and genuinely had fun with it. It's the best feeling ever.
Do you have any advice for budding game developers?
If you're starting out, make something simple. If you have a simple idea for a game, it could probably still be more simple. Also, always check out Pixel Prospector.
If you enjoyed this interview, why not check out the previous entires in our Developer Spotlight series?