Taking a break from the world of competitive games to make a silly, fun game with a ridiculous plot is the small team Racoon Games. These guys are creating Nerds Save the Babes, a game that lives up to its own name!
Trying to bring attention to the underdogs of society, these guys have put two programmers, Roscoe and Rupert, in a situation that makes them the only chance to save the babes they work with!
Bringing plenty of nostalgia through gimmicks and Easter Eggs throughout the game, this cartoon-style drawn adventure will have you laughing as you blast and fight your way through the obstacles and enemies that have broken out!
Story
Nerds save the Babes is a cartoonish game about Rupert and Roscoe, two coders working at the infamous game company Racoon Games.
While idling at work Rupert accidentally unleashes the server apocalypse. This mutates the building, in which the game company resides, into a mash up of various game environments. Countless game monsters appear out of nowhere andstart kidnapping the females in the company, while on the other end all males have disappeared for unknown reasons. All males but the coders, who find themselves alone in a building with thousands of game monsters and hundreds of beautiful women. So Rupert and Roscoe act as responsible citizens , search for weapons and make it their heroic task to protect and save the babes and find out who or what is responsible for this madness and how it can be stopped.
Q&A with Bilgin Sahin
What inspired you to make this game?
"There are so many dark and gritty games out there these days.
We wanted to make something that is funny. Something over-the-top cartoony for young (or more accurately: still young at heart) adult males like ourselves, who like screwball and horror comedies and love games. And what do all boys since the beginning of puberty like? Exactly! The idea came to us while fooling around and brainstorming stupid ideas with no holds barred: babes and monsters. That's what it needs.
Since we are media-junkies we also wanted to include a lot of reference to pop-culture, Hollywood blockbusters and games. That is how the idea of the server apocalypse developed that gives us the possibility to include practically any kind of reference and spoof that we can possibly think of and that is legally OK.
Combine that with the humor of screwball movies- colorful, loud and funny- and you will get a game that is fun to play on a mens evening when approaching the border of unconsciousness. Nothing intellectual, just plain stupid fun."
How long has it been in development?
"We have experimented with different kinds of prototypes for a year now almost every day. We tried first person and third person and finally decided on an isometric game style. We have some game elements planned that have yet to prove themselves, others are fixed now and ready. We are optimistic to be able to finish the game until the end of the year."
What was your main goal for creating this game?
"We want to create a game that is pure and unadulterated fun for a male audience and a mix between spoof, shooter and screwball comedy with lots of pop culture reference."
Will this be a Mario and Peach style story or will there be multiple girls to save?
"We have intensively thought about the Mario and Peach relationship and came to the conclusion that one woman is not enough for Rupert and Roscoe. They are not living in a steady relationship yet."
What type of enemies will players be facing?
"In Nerds the player will meet a variety of different opponents with very different abilities, strengths and weaknesses. The player must make effective choices of weapons and special items to succeed."
Why are all the men gone, except the coders?
"A good question!
Coders and other nerds are being underestimated. They are the unsung heroes of the present time. They have given us the internet and the abundance of phantastic programs and gadgets that we are taking for granted these days. And they are rarely pushing themselves into the foreground. Maybe they are more resistant then the average person due to their regular consumption of pizza.
Or maybe it is because only real men and women have been spared by the server apocalypse. That would also explain it."
Who is kidnapping the "Babes" to be saved in the first place?
"In our animated story introduction video you can see that the server is turning into something evil and sending out the monsters to kidnap the women--- but we think it might be possible that someone or something even more sinister and mighty could be behind all this. A power that can control the server and that might want to collect all the chicks and transmutate them into chicken. Maybe. You will be able to find it out when finishing the game when it is available."
Is this game story or gameplay focused?
"Definitely gameplay focused. But the funny and nonsensical story will not be left behind and will progress by means of cut scenes and dialogues. And hidden hints and spoof details are to be discovered in a lot of places."
What type of weapons will players be able to use?
"The choice of weapons will be important in the game. The player will be able to choose from a variety of crazy and funny weapons and helpful items that have different strength and weaknesses. We want to showcase the typical weapons from regular shooters as well as completely weird over-the-top type of weapons. Variety and choice are the keywords.
Take for example the plunger: it is an effective weapon for close combat and also very suitable for unclogging clogged toilets that may open the door into a hidden game universe.
Another example is the „Doom Boom“, a weapon inspired by the rocket launcher known from a popular classic first person shooter. It has a slow fire speed, but makes a big and lasting impression on game monsters.
Also there aresecondary weapons and special items that can help to off the opponents in an entertaining way. To pick one out: the distractor, a Jack in the box clone of Rupert that can irritate the monsters and attract them so that Rupert can get past them or eliminate them from behind while the zombies are watching this ingenious piece of technology.
It is important for us that the player enjoys trying out new stuff and how the enemies react to it."
Will there be bosses? If so, what are they?
"Boss fights are an integral part of finishing a level and we want to keep those interesting.
You will not be limited to shooting the Bosses HP into oblivion if your Weapons have enough ammo and power, but there will also be a possibility to defeat them by clever use of your surrounding and items.
Just like Gigantorc. He is one of the first bosses to encounter and can be defeated normally, by repetitive shooting and avoiding his punches. Or you can use a secondary weapon to distract him and then eliminate him while he is not paying attention.
The player should always be on the lookout for new fun things to try out.
We will take the input from the community of gamers very seriously.
If a certain number of players say that they would love to see Miley Cirus on a wrecking ball, there is a fat chance that in the game there will be a wrecking ball with a boss character on it. Prepare for She-Nerd. We are excited about any input and the ideas and wishes of the community are very important to us."
What experience can players expect while playing your game?
"Nerds save the babes - What you read in the title is what you get.
The players can expect an entertaining crazy shooter with lots of stuff to be discovered, a lot of stupid things to laugh about and naturally lots of beautiful babes saying thank you to their favorite nerd hero.
Or as a commentator on Steam Greenlight said it:
"I think I just lost IQ points after having watched your video."
For us that means: mission accomplished!"
