Bob's Game
Encyclopedia
Bob's Game was the proposed console role-playing game to be developed by independent software developer Robert Pelloni. The project is most notable for Pelloni's attempts to develop the game using Nintendo
software development tools and the resulting altercations that followed.
console role-playing game developed solely by Pelloni. According to an interview done by the Orlando Sentinel
, Pelloni reportedly spent over five years and over 15,000 hours working on the game. The game was to feature over 200 characters and, according to the interview, "more gameplay than just about anything out there on the portable system". In August 2008, Pelloni posted a preview of the game on YouTube
, which garnered over 100,000 views as of September 15, 2008.
Development started as a result from a conversation Pelloni made with friends at a restaurant regarding video games. He discussed creating a video game that was based in the suburbs that had a Dungeons and Dragons mindset, similar to the Earthbound series
. Pelloni first got the idea of creating Bob's Game from watching his brother play Dragon Warrior
, whose story, he said, he found confusing. He also drew motivation from other titles such as Super Mario 64
, Super Metroid
, the Dance Dance Revolution
series, and a similar game developed by one person titled Cave Story. He started to brainstorm ideas for this game, scribbling notes on a napkin. According to the Sentinel interview, Pelloni was fascinated by other similar video game projects getting published after participating in online Internet forum
s. At the same time, he was also "disheartened" over how the video game industry conducted itself business-wise, saying that "it's a standard practice for some publishers to take a game engine and put in licensed assets to coincide with, say, a movie release for example". This motivated Pelloni to self-develop Bob's Game and, as a result, spent most of 2006 and 2007 in isolation while developing the game.
Pelloni said that the hardest part in developing the game was the background graphics, which he drew by himself, despite having no artistic experience. He said that he enjoyed writing the dialogue and designing the gameplay
elements the best. He didn't consider the game "100% complete" until he received the software development kit (SDK)
from Nintendo
, which would allow him to compile
the game according to Nintendo's specifications of coding. However, he stated in the Sentinel interview that "you can't get access to [the SDK] unless you've published a game before". Pelloni had received responses from some video game publisher
s but did not start talks with any of them as he wanted to retain creative rights over the game. As a replacement for the standard credits roll at the end of most video games, Pelloni described it as a summary making of the game, he would have said, "You just played it, now this is how it was made."
, Pelloni was directed by Nintendo to talk to the WarioWorld division, where they directed him to marketing; marketing directed him back to the WarioWorld division. Nintendo told him that they would inform him of their decision to grant him an SDK for the game between six and eight weeks. No response came from Nintendo. After 17 weeks of trying and failing to get Nintendo to provide Pelloni with the SDK, on December 11, 2008, he decided to publicly protest
to Nintendo by locking himself in his room for 100 days or until they provided him with the SDK, whichever came first. According to Owen Good from Kotaku
, he staged the protest in an effort to gain publicity by making Nintendo look like a corporate bully beating down on an indie game
developer. His room had no Internet (save for broadcasting a live feed of him in his room via a webcam
) or television and had only a mobile phone
in which he could make calls and send emails and the materials he needed to work on the game. Pelloni made the following comment when he decided to protest:
His protest garnered popularity on various Internet forums and websites. On the 21st day of his protest on December 31, 2008, Pelloni started to release addresses of Nintendo executives and to send Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime holiday greetings. He also threatened Nintendo by bundling the game as a killer app using a Nintendo DSi
homebrew device. He also said that he was currently translating the game into several languages, planning to release the game worldwide as part of an effort to "significantly cut into Nintendo's bottom line". According to Chris Greenhough from Joystiq
, he had contacted a Chinese firm for release of Bob's Game on a flash cartridge and that he was negotiating with Wal-Mart
to distribute his game. He also threatened to get the game released on other distribution platforms including Xbox Live Arcade
, Steam, the iPhone
, and the PlayStation Network. On January 6, he sent another message, declaring that he was better than Shigeru Miyamoto
, Hiroyuki Ito
, Hideo Kojima
, Adrian Carmack
, and Will Wright combined, slamming all of them and saying that he "bested them all by far". Though he apologized for his comment two days later, he made another threat, which, according to Andy Chalk in an Escapist article, he would "exact a horrific vengeance if the company continued to deny him the SDK". At this point, he started to complain about paranoia
and having persistent headache
s.
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
software development tools and the resulting altercations that followed.
Development
Bob's Game was to be a 2D2D computer graphics
2D computer graphics is the computer-based generation of digital images—mostly from two-dimensional models and by techniques specific to them...
console role-playing game developed solely by Pelloni. According to an interview done by the Orlando Sentinel
Orlando Sentinel
The Orlando Sentinel is the primary newspaper of the Orlando, Florida region. It was founded in 1876. The Sentinel is owned by Tribune Company and is overseen by the Chicago Tribune. As of 2005, the Sentinel’s president and publisher was Kathleen Waltz; she announced her resignation in February 2008...
, Pelloni reportedly spent over five years and over 15,000 hours working on the game. The game was to feature over 200 characters and, according to the interview, "more gameplay than just about anything out there on the portable system". In August 2008, Pelloni posted a preview of the game on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, which garnered over 100,000 views as of September 15, 2008.
Development started as a result from a conversation Pelloni made with friends at a restaurant regarding video games. He discussed creating a video game that was based in the suburbs that had a Dungeons and Dragons mindset, similar to the Earthbound series
EarthBound (series)
EarthBound, known in Japan as Mother, is a role-playing game series created by Shigesato Itoi for Nintendo. The series started in 1989 with the Japan-only release of Mother for the Famicom, and was then followed up by a sequel, released in North America as EarthBound for the Super NES in 1995, and...
. Pelloni first got the idea of creating Bob's Game from watching his brother play Dragon Warrior
Dragon Warrior
Dragon Warrior, known as in Japan, is the first role-playing video game in the Dragon Quest media franchise. It was developed by Chunsoft for the Nintendo Entertainment System and published by Enix in Japan in 1986...
, whose story, he said, he found confusing. He also drew motivation from other titles such as Super Mario 64
Super Mario 64
is a platform game, published by Nintendo and developed by its EAD division, for the Nintendo 64. Along with Pilotwings 64, it was one of the launch titles for the console. It was released in Japan on June 23, 1996, and later in North America, Europe, and Australia. Super Mario 64 has sold over...
, Super Metroid
Super Metroid
, also known as Metroid 3, is an action-adventure video game and the third game in the Metroid series. It was designed by Nintendo Research & Development 1, programmed by Intelligent Systems, and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console...
, the Dance Dance Revolution
Dance Dance Revolution
Dance Dance Revolution, abbreviated DDR, and previously known as Dancing Stage in Europe and Australasia, is a music video game series produced by Konami. Introduced in Japan in 1998 as part of the Bemani series, and released in North America and Europe in 1999, Dance Dance Revolution is the...
series, and a similar game developed by one person titled Cave Story. He started to brainstorm ideas for this game, scribbling notes on a napkin. According to the Sentinel interview, Pelloni was fascinated by other similar video game projects getting published after participating in online Internet forum
Internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
s. At the same time, he was also "disheartened" over how the video game industry conducted itself business-wise, saying that "it's a standard practice for some publishers to take a game engine and put in licensed assets to coincide with, say, a movie release for example". This motivated Pelloni to self-develop Bob's Game and, as a result, spent most of 2006 and 2007 in isolation while developing the game.
Pelloni said that the hardest part in developing the game was the background graphics, which he drew by himself, despite having no artistic experience. He said that he enjoyed writing the dialogue and designing the gameplay
Gameplay
Gameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and player's connection with it...
elements the best. He didn't consider the game "100% complete" until he received the software development kit (SDK)
Software development kit
A software development kit is typically a set of software development tools that allows for the creation of applications for a certain software package, software framework, hardware platform, computer system, video game console, operating system, or similar platform.It may be something as simple...
from Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
, which would allow him to compile
Compiler
A compiler is a computer program that transforms source code written in a programming language into another computer language...
the game according to Nintendo's specifications of coding. However, he stated in the Sentinel interview that "you can't get access to [the SDK] unless you've published a game before". Pelloni had received responses from some video game publisher
Video game publisher
A video game publisher is a company that publishes video games that they have either developed internally or have had developed by a video game developer....
s but did not start talks with any of them as he wanted to retain creative rights over the game. As a replacement for the standard credits roll at the end of most video games, Pelloni described it as a summary making of the game, he would have said, "You just played it, now this is how it was made."
Rejection and protest
According to an article from The EscapistThe Escapist (magazine)
The Escapist is an online magazine covering video games, gamers, the gaming industry, and gaming culture. Published by the Themis Group, it was edited by Julianne Greer up to June 30, 2009, then by Russ Pitts through September 2011, and is currently edited by Steve Butts. The Escapist was first...
, Pelloni was directed by Nintendo to talk to the WarioWorld division, where they directed him to marketing; marketing directed him back to the WarioWorld division. Nintendo told him that they would inform him of their decision to grant him an SDK for the game between six and eight weeks. No response came from Nintendo. After 17 weeks of trying and failing to get Nintendo to provide Pelloni with the SDK, on December 11, 2008, he decided to publicly protest
Sit-in
A sit-in or sit-down is a form of protest that involves occupying seats or sitting down on the floor of an establishment.-Process:In a sit-in, protesters remain until they are evicted, usually by force, or arrested, or until their requests have been met...
to Nintendo by locking himself in his room for 100 days or until they provided him with the SDK, whichever came first. According to Owen Good from Kotaku
Kotaku
Kotaku is a video games-focused blog. It is part of Gawker Media's "Gawker" network of sites, which also includes Gizmodo, Deadspin, Lifehacker, io9 and Jezebel. Named to CNET News' Blog 100, Kotaku is consistently listed in the top 40 of Technorati's Top 100...
, he staged the protest in an effort to gain publicity by making Nintendo look like a corporate bully beating down on an indie game
Indie game
Independent video game development is the process of creating video games without the financial support of a video game publisher. While large firms can create independent games, they are usually designed by an individual or a small team of as many as ten people, depending on the complexity of the...
developer. His room had no Internet (save for broadcasting a live feed of him in his room via a webcam
Webcam
A webcam is a video camera that feeds its images in real time to a computer or computer network, often via USB, ethernet, or Wi-Fi.Their most popular use is the establishment of video links, permitting computers to act as videophones or videoconference stations. This common use as a video camera...
) or television and had only a mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
in which he could make calls and send emails and the materials he needed to work on the game. Pelloni made the following comment when he decided to protest:
His protest garnered popularity on various Internet forums and websites. On the 21st day of his protest on December 31, 2008, Pelloni started to release addresses of Nintendo executives and to send Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime holiday greetings. He also threatened Nintendo by bundling the game as a killer app using a Nintendo DSi
Nintendo DSi
The is a handheld game system created by Nintendo and launched in 2008 and 2009 in Japan, North America, PAL territories, and other regions. It is the third iteration of the Nintendo DS, and its primary market rival is Sony's PlayStation Portable...
homebrew device. He also said that he was currently translating the game into several languages, planning to release the game worldwide as part of an effort to "significantly cut into Nintendo's bottom line". According to Chris Greenhough from Joystiq
Joystiq
Joystiq is a video gaming blog founded in June 2004 that has since become one of the most successful sites within the Weblogs, Inc. family of weblogs. It is the centerpiece of WIN's own network of video gaming blogs, which also includes a blog dealing specifically with the popular MMORPG World of...
, he had contacted a Chinese firm for release of Bob's Game on a flash cartridge and that he was negotiating with Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
to distribute his game. He also threatened to get the game released on other distribution platforms including Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
, Steam, the iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
, and the PlayStation Network. On January 6, he sent another message, declaring that he was better than Shigeru Miyamoto
Shigeru Miyamoto
is a Japanese video game designer and producer. Miyamoto was born and raised in Kyoto Prefecture; the natural surroundings of Kyoto inspired much of Miyamoto's later work....
, Hiroyuki Ito
Hiroyuki Ito
, also credited with the spelling Hiroyuki Itou, is a Japanese game producer, game director and game designer who has been working for Square Enix since 1987. He is famous for being the creator of Active Time Battle and Active Dimension Battle...
, Hideo Kojima
Hideo Kojima
is a Japanese game director originally employed at Konami. He is currently the director of Kojima Productions and was promoted to Vice President of Konami Digital Entertainment in early 2011...
, Adrian Carmack
Adrian Carmack
Adrian Carmack is one of the four founders of id Software, along with Tom Hall, John Romero, and John D. Carmack . He had worked there as an artist. He was a major stock owner of id Software until he left the company....
, and Will Wright combined, slamming all of them and saying that he "bested them all by far". Though he apologized for his comment two days later, he made another threat, which, according to Andy Chalk in an Escapist article, he would "exact a horrific vengeance if the company continued to deny him the SDK". At this point, he started to complain about paranoia
Paranoia
Paranoia [] is a thought process believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of irrationality and delusion. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself...
and having persistent headache
Headache
A headache or cephalalgia is pain anywhere in the region of the head or neck. It can be a symptom of a number of different conditions of the head and neck. The brain tissue itself is not sensitive to pain because it lacks pain receptors. Rather, the pain is caused by disturbance of the...
s.