Pingle Studio helps
to deliver a successful console release for
The Star Named EOS
business context
The Star Named EOS was initially developed for PC, and the client entrusted us with porting the game to consoles. Adapting this hidden object game for devices with gamepads was an exciting challenge for the Pingle team.
The original developers did not plan for the game to be ported to platforms other than PC, using approaches specific to PC development and incompatible with consoles. This required us to make significant architectural changes to the game.
project’s summary
Our task was to port The Star Named EOS to three platforms: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox, working in parallel with the client’s ongoing development. This project required quick decision-making and a high level of technical expertise.
The main focus was on ensuring stability and gameplay quality across all consoles, at least 60fps for PS5 and Xbox Series S/X and 30fps for Nintendo Switch.
Pingle Studio also took the initiative to implement Ukrainian localization. As a result, The Star Named EOS was successfully ported to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox, and the game passed certification for all three platforms on the first attempt.
game reviews
With camera in hand and a twinkle in your eye, The Star Named EOS guides you down memory lane in a simply sweet, but almost too-short narrative puzzle game. This is a decent voyage for casual puzzle enjoyers and those who don’t mind a shorter experience overall.
what do gamers say
challenge
Incompatibility of the Save System
The primary issue was the save system originally developed for Windows. Since the game was initially designed for PC, it utilized the standard C# System.IO library and Unity PlayerPrefs, which are incompatible with consoles. This necessitated significant changes to the system’s architecture.
To ensure the game’s quality on consoles, we had to manually fix memory issues. Additionally, extensive work was done to optimize the save system, as it was initially designed for PCs and used methods incompatible with consoles. Many functions in the main menu, such as loading, viewing, deleting, and scrolling through saves, were closely tied to this system. We had to completely redesign its logic to meet the requirements of the consoles.
One of the game’s features allows players to take photos at any moment. The limit for such photos is 80, and players can take them consecutively, one after another. All these photos are saved in the system, and each one interacts with the console’s save system, which causes some issues. Although it’s unlikely that a player would take 80 photos in a row, we also fixed everything and accounted for this scenario.
The save system was the cornerstone of the entire project. We completely reworked it, adapting it for consoles. This included changes to the core logic of saving data, ensuring compatibility with the main menu functionality, and loading, and viewing save files. This allowed us to provide stable operation of the game on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox.
Parallel Development with the Partner’s Team
The porting work was conducted in parallel with the ongoing development by the partner’s team. As they made changes during the development process, we had to constantly synchronize our actions to avoid performance issues on different platforms.
Continuous Synchronization and Close Communication
We implemented regular communication sessions with the client’s team, which allowed us to address any issues promptly and ensure synchronization of work processes. This enabled us to avoid delays and maintain stability across all platforms.
Adapting Controls for Consoles
One of the technical challenges was ensuring user-friendly and intuitive controls for console players. As a hidden object genre, the game required careful control adjustments to avoid giving players hints on where to find items while still keeping the controls comfortable for users.
Control Adjustments and Testing
We worked to ensure that the game was intuitive and user-friendly without losing its appeal. We carefully selected solutions that maintained a balance between difficulty and convenience, providing an engaging gameplay experience without spoilers. These solutions were thoroughly tested and adapted for each platform, allowing us to preserve the game’s uniqueness across all consoles.
Lack of Ukrainian Localization
The client did not initially plan for Ukrainian localization of the game.
We proposed and implemented Ukrainian localization, which expanded the game’s potential audience. There were issues with fonts on consoles, where certain symbols were consistently missing, requiring us to monitor this closely. After adding Ukrainian, we had to include additional symbols in the fonts. Implementing Ukrainian localization involved adapting fonts and verifying the display of symbols across all languages and platforms, ensuring a high level of localization quality.
Certification for three platforms
The game had to meet each platform’s requirements to successfully pass certification on the first attempt.
Our team prepared all the necessary fixes that could have caused issues during certification. Additionally, the client facilitated the process by providing all the required information. Our developers promptly addressed all identified bugs. After the contract was completed, we had additional time, which we used for further testing and fixes to ensure that all potential issues were resolved.