mikebithellgames
Latest
English rain inspired the Google Daydream game, 'EarthShape'
When Mike Bithell was a kid, sitting in the backseat of his parents' car as the cloudy English sky soaked the roads, he would draw lines in the window's condensation, attempting to "catch" raindrops as they slid down the pane outside. "I honestly don't know what the point was, but that little activity would keep kid-Mike occupied for hours," Bithell remembers. "When I was trying to think of accessible family game mechanics, I remembered that and imagined how much more fun my little game would be if the raindrops reacted to the lines." Fast-forward a few decades and Bithell is a successful independent developer building a launch game for Google's new mobile VR headset, Daydream. His past games include the award-winning platformer Thomas was Alone and Volume, a futuristic Robin Hood-inspired stealth title starring Andy Serkis, the actor who brought Smeagol to life in the Lord of the Rings movies. Volume: Coda just debuted on PlayStation VR -- stealth, Serkis and all.
Andy Serkis whispers about the devil in this live-action 'Volume' vid
Volume isn't a movie, though it does feature a major film star, a popular YouTube personality and a BAFTA award-winning voice actor. Not bad for the sequel to Thomas was Alone, an adorable video game about basic shapes and friendship. Volume stars Andy Serkis (Gollum in The Lord of the Rings), Danny Wallace (the narrator in Thomas was Alone), and Charlie McDonnell (a long-time YouTube star with 2.4 million subscribers). It's a Robin Hood-inspired stealth game set in a technologically advanced future -- and it's out today, August 18th, for PlayStation 4, PC and Mac. It was supposed to hit Vita today as well, but that version has been delayed, creator Mike Bithell announced on his blog.
The next game from 'Thomas Was Alone' developer due August 18th
The follow-up to indie darling Thomas Was Alone finally has a firm release date. Developer Mike Bithell's incredibly stylish stealth-puzzler that hinges on you being heard, Volume, hits PlayStation 4, PlayStation TV, PS Vita and Steam August 18th. Performance capture and voice-over extraordinaire Andy Serkis stars in the game as well, but it doesn't sound like he was ready to make an appearance for the spankin' new trailer below. Given what Bithell achieved with a handful of a handful of colored squares in his last effort, we're pretty excited to see what he can do with something a little more human this time out.
