It's been 3 months since Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate was released for the Nintendo Switch, and since then, a content roadmap has been revealed- highlighting several updates, fixes, new features, and story DLC in the works.
My Nintendo News reached out to the game's developer, Super Evil Megacorp, to gain some insight into the radical roguelike's creation and to also see if we could learn more about the aforementioned DLC that was teased in August.
Joining us is Daniel Stansens, Lead Gameplay Designer at Super Evil Megacorp. Having been in the gaming industry for over 8 years, Stansens now leads the team behind the game as the authority on its combat systems and core gameplay. You can view the full interview below:
To kick things off, why did you decide to make Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate a roguelike? Do you think it ended up being the right choice?
Stansens: Well for starters, there's a lot of Ninja Turtles fans on the team, so we led with passion for the characters and world: everyone was super excited to be involved. As we worked with Paramount Game Studios on development, we wanted to bring something different to the Ninja Turtles gaming universe and a roguelike felt like a fun, fast paced option which fit well into the existing world whilst also making use of Super Evil Megacorp's skills and custom game engine, the EVIL Engine. Our game engine enabled the development of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate to be fully cross platform supported on Day 1- not only available on the Apple store, but also fully controller supported for Apple TV and with a clear roadmap for extending to Nintendo Switch and beyond with efficiency. And, again, since there are four Ninja Turtles and they're known for working together, we chose to create a co-op roguelike that could be played couch co-op or online- which definitely felt right for this universe.
Which Ninja Turtle is your favorite?
Stansens: That's a difficult question, as each Turtle brings their own unique style and gameplay to the table. But in my childhood and even now, I'm a Donnie fan. His creativity, tech-savviness and intelligence always resonated with me, and he was always the reliable one- which I try my best to be too, especially now as a game developer. In Splintered Fate, I love to play as Donnie because of how satisfying his staff attacks are, but the game encourages players to try all the Turtles by offering up unique perks and gameplay styles for each of them.
What was your biggest challenge and greatest victory when making the game?
Stansens: Building a narrative within the structure of a roguelike is a challenging affair. To see and to ensure you've covered as many details, loose ends, easter eggs, and player choices as possible...a lot of work goes into tracking all of that! We're incredibly grateful that a victory in developing Splintered Fate is that the differences and strengths between the brothers fits perfectly in the world of a roguelike- which, through its structure and identity, focuses on player agency, unique build creation, and challenging boss encounters. It was also an honor to work with Tom Waltz, one of the story creators of the comic book, 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin.' to support us in staying loyal to the IP. Nailing the voice talent was also extremely important, as everyone knows the voices from the animated series and movies, so we wanted to stay familiar.
Is there anything you can tell us about the upcoming DLC for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate?
Stansens: It is top secret for now, but I am pleased to confirm that, yes, DLCs are in the works. and that these will see new playable characters, powers, bosses and areas being unlocked. Fans can look forward to having a new character to master, more story and even more replayability waiting for them in the future. If you want to know more about that, stay tuned to our social media channels and website as we hope to announce more early next year. In addition to DLC, we're also adding new features to the main game including crossplay, online matchmaking, challenges and leaderboards so watch out for that too!
Lastly, do you have a message you'd like to convey to fans of the game?
Stansens: I want to say a massive thank you to everyone who's already played the game, left it a review, tried the Steam Demo or told a friend about it. The support of fans means everything to us and we're delighted to continue to build more Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fun for all to enjoy. There's some really neat stuff in the plans to keep the Turtle fans engaged, so stay tuned for more.
