Dstroyd wins $175,000 in Activision’s Independent Games Competition

Last year, Bobby Kotick created the Activision Independent Games Competition, offering big money to small developers with big ideas. The $175,000 first prize and $75,000 second prize have been awarded — now it’s time to meet the winners and learn about their creations.

Peter on a sunny day

Sometimes making your own game is not a question of inspiration – for Peter Angstadt, whose work-in-progress Dstroyd won the $175,000 first prize in the Activision Independent Games Competition, it was a question of motivation. “I first started on the game when I was in college,” says the 24-year-old Oakland resident. “I worked on it on and off for a while, but when I heard about the competition I crunched to try and complete the gameplay, make it as fun as possible, and try and flesh out the setting and fiction, to really show what makes it unique.” 

What makes it unique, in Peter’s own words, is “tight real-time strategy married to a ballistics game.” If you’re familiar with 2D combat games like Worms and Scorched Earth, picture those will real-time elements woven in, and you’ll have an idea of what Dstroyd offers. “I was probably most inspired by Gunbound,” says Peter. “My friend Michael Peddicord and I had a lot of fun playing that back in college, and Michael helped out a bunch in the beginning of the project. We really liked Gunbound’s destructible terrain and how it has that ‘easy to learn, hard to master’ difficulty curve going for it. Plus, I’ve always been a fan of real-time strategy games.”

And therein lies the key innovation to Dstroyd: if you want to win these battles, you’ll need to do everything all at once. “First, it’s all real-time, so there’s no waiting for your turn,” says Peter. “Second, I’ve worked in real-time strategy elements — you build cannon towers, counter-batteries, barracks, and units to attack your opponent and defend yourself.  And it of course has fully destructible terrain like you’d expect, but I’m hoping to add some new environmental mechanics, like pockets of lava, water to pooling up in the craters to slow ground units, trees, and grass catching on fire.”

This prototype is the what the competition judges saw. It may not look like much now, but check back after some of that $175,000 is invested!

Dstroyd isn’t complete, but per the rules of the competition, it didn’t need to be – it was more about presenting the judges with a good idea and explaining the vision behind the game. Peter’s prototype for Dstroyd took a couple of months to finish, and his entry included a narrated video of the game in an early state. “I’m always on the look out for competitions to enter,” says Peter. “It’s a good way to set deadlines and work towards a real goal, which can be hard if you’re writing games as a hobby outside of your day job.” With $175,000 to show for his efforts, game development is now a realistic career path. “I wanted to enter because I really wanted the opportunity to become a full time independent developer,” he says. “I didn’t have the resources to go full time, but I felt if I could put my full effort into my games, I could make some really great stuff. “

Concept art for Dstroyd's weapons and units. From here, the apocalypse looks kinda cute.

Peter and his studio, Turtle Sandbox, retain the IP to Dstroyd, but as the competition sponsor, Activision gets the first opportunity to publish the game if and when that time comes. But that’s still a ways off – you can check up on the game’s development at http://dstroyd-game.tumblr.com and follow Peter on Twitter. Meanwhile, Peter’s got a nice chunk of change to keep him motivated – not to mention reassurance that he’s on the right path. “The hardest part for me was taking the plunge: quitting my job and turning game development from a hobby to a full-time job,” he admits. “There’s always doubt running in the back of your mind about the quality of your game, the concept, and about what happens if it doesn’t pan out.  But the important thing is that you keep trying and make it happen!”

Dstroyd wasn’t the only Independent Games Competition winner — check out Rigonauts: Broadside too!

The next stage of the Activision Independent Games Competition will offer another $250,000 in prizes to aspiring developers. The start date is to be determined, so watch for the official announcement here.