Seven Mages studio's platformer Penguin Panic is most easily described as "Mario with a penguin". The game is almost finished and was tested at GameLab.
Although running and jumping with a feathered hero is hardly an everyday activity for most students, they rose to the challenge. The game was thoroughly tested and a few remaining errors emerged that need fixing before the final release.
There was also plenty of feedback. First impressions are good, although some pointed out that the gameplay can be a little repetitive. This is because you have to play levels several times to unlock the next stage.
Useful tips for the developers to take forward.
Penguin Panic was developed by Seven Mages, a studio comprising Jeroen Derwort and Bowie Derwort. As the original developers of Avalon and Online Soccer Manager (OSM), they are experienced game developers. They also manage GameLab together.
Developing Penguin Panic is not a commercial venture for them, but serves several purposes. First, it is a learning project to deepen their understanding of the Unity game engine and gain active, hands-on experience of the same challenges faced by students and today's game developers. This enables them to provide better support.
Releasing the game is an important step in that process. This will happen on at least Steam, Android and iOS in April 2025.
The game was also made for their children, who played an active part in development. Finn (9) created a level, Ties (14) recorded voice audio, and Sam (11) and Louk (9) tested the game.
Curious about the game? Among other platforms, it is available to download on Steam.