Development Goat Simulator

game designer armin ibrisagic presents on goat simulator @ 2016 game developers conference

goat simulator started joke prototype internal one-month game jam held coffee stain studios in january 2014, after completing work game sanctum 2. game described lead developer armin ibrisagic old school skating game, except instead of being skater, re goat, , instead of doing tricks, wreck stuff . idea followed after pitching game variation of qwop, player control individual limbs of goat separately various keyboard keys; concept rejected in favor of more tony hawk s pro skater-type of gameplay final game presents. ibrisagic had focused on goats after jokingly trying convince coworkers goats achieve viral attention on internet in same way cats presently do.

the prototype used nvidia physx , apex physics engine ragdoll physics goat , human models within unreal engine 3, game engine familiar sanctum series. in-game assets purchased third-party vendors instead of developed in-house, such original goat model studio acquired use less $20. prototype meant parody of various other weirdly successful simulation games presently available, such euro truck simulator. ibrisagic had no intention of becoming full title, instead offering prototype him , other developers learn unreal engine alongside other developers developing prototypes in more earnest.

footage of game in alpha state posted youtube coffee stain, received more million views in 2 days , large response fans requesting full release of game in part due various glitches in prototype s engine. appeal of video picked agricultural magazine modern farmer. journalists suggested title developed full game knowing meant joking title; gamespot editor danny o dwyer supported full release of game arguing games should dumb once in while .

the large positive response alpha footage convinced studio develop goat simulator full title steam, putting more people on title. team, having no plans full release, debated on whether approach large publisher receive funding make title grand theft auto, decided stay small, inexpensive title truer teaser video. recognizing glitching part of game s appeal, ibrisagic sought fix software bugs might cause game crash, leaving in other glitches , bugs associated physics engine results these hilarious . limited short development time of 4 weeks without significant management oversight set urgent realistic goal bring game playable state. ibrisagic felt important game supported on steam, feared valve corporation not accept quirky title. instead found valve welcoming of title, including joking response company stated [valve s marketing manager dj powers] has started wearing goat costume work he’s excited game . part of release, coffee stain added support steam workshop let players modify game, aware players create levels , scenarios glitch , crash game humorous results. while physics engine allows spectacular rendering of destruction of game environment, main feature of game, coffee stain acknowledged downside of synchronise terribly in multiplayer . estimated adding multiplayer remove 90 percent of physics , many other features, , left game single player title @ launch. studio considered spent couple months complete windows version, , opted outsource versions os x , linux, ryan gordon handling porting.

release , promotion

coffee stain studios released goat simulator worldwide on 1 april 2014, aware tying date april fools day may raise doubts on validity of game. pre-ordered game through coffee stain s website received access title 3 days ahead of release. official release trailer goat simulator loose parody of highly praised teaser trailer released dead island, showing, among shots of game, reversed slow-motion footage of goat crashing through building after being launched exploding gas station.

the studio released free expansion , patch game on 3 june 2014, in addition fixing game-breaking issues, added new goat models, new map explore based on seaside town carnival, more game-breaking issues, , local multiplayer 4 players via split-screen. ibrisagic believes adding multiplayer support atop steam workshop support allow creative users develop new gameplay modes extend title s playability. patch adds in additional controls player can use make goat perform various freestyle tricks comparable in tony hawk s pro skater. studio released second free patch game on 20 november 2014 including elements parody massive multiplayer online games world of warcraft, though remains single player or local multiplayer experience.

a paid-content expansion titled goatz released on 7 may 2015 downloadable content game on personal computers , stand-alone application mobile devices. developed coffee stain s partner studio gone north games. expansion s content spoofs zombie-based survival games, such dayz, , includes new map , gameplay aspects such fighting off zombies , crafting. title plays off dayz play on internet meme goatse.cx. in cross-promotional goatbread update bossa studios bread offered in late 2015, free update goat simulator allow players select piece of bread avatar, while bread add in rampage mode based on goat simulator. add-on, super secret dlc package part of cross-promotion overkill software s payday 2; payday-inspired content goat simulator included additional playable characters including camel, flamingo, , dolphin in wheelchair, while goat simulator content added payday 2. these released in january 2016. goat simulator decorative content added rocket league in mid-2016 update. expansion, waste of space , again developed gone north games , released on 26 may 2016. expansion features new map based on space colony, , spoofs of recent science fiction media genre.

the aforementioned os x , linux ports released on 27 june 2014. following game s digital release, koch media agreed distribute game in uk , eu retail stores starting in may 2014. similarly, deep silver approached coffee stain studios work out deal publish title in north american retail markets starting in july 2014. @ microsoft s presentation @ 2014 gamescom convention in august, goat simulator announced 1 of several titles coming xbox 1 platform of double eleven studios, , later confirmed arriving xbox 360, both versions released on 17 april 2015. koch media distributed retail version of xbox 1 version, including additional downloadable content, across europe release on 4 march 2016. coffee stain studios released ports ios , android in september 2014. playstation 3 , playstation 4 versions, ported double eleven, released on 11 august 2015.