At Fontys ICT and GameLab, we encounter plenty of talent every year, but the journey of Catdrink Studios deserves particular attention. This student team, consisting of Ben, Petar and Aya, supported by fellow students, joined the internal incubator Dogfood Studios. Their aim? To develop the game CataMiner.
Now that the semester has ended, we look back on an intensive but highly successful journey supervised by GameLab coach Jeroen Derwort.
The concept: chaos and cats in a cave
CataMiner is best described as a 'co-op friendslop' game. The concept is as absurd as it is entertaining: players become cats who must descend deep into dangerous caves to rescue gremlins.
Built in Unity, the game has undergone an enormous transformation over the past year. What began as a rough prototype grew into a stable, polished experience with humour at its heart. The gameplay balances cooperation and total chaos, exactly what you want from a good co-op title.
"Coaching these students through GameLab was a wonderful experience. You see them grow as developers and as a team." — Jeroen Derwort, GameLab Coach
From the incubator to INDIGO
Catdrink Studios' real baptism of fire took place beyond the walls of the Fontys campus. The team was able to present its game at INDIGO, the Netherlands' leading showcase event for the games industry.
It proved a great success:
Audience reactions: The humour and accessible co-op gameplay immediately won visitors over.
Publisher interest: Their presence on the show floor attracted attention; the team generated serious interest from several publishers.
For a student team, this is a rare and valuable experience demonstrating that the step from classroom to professional market is smaller than often assumed.
The next step: Steam
Their hard work has now been rewarded. All three core members, Ben, Petar and Aya, passed with flying colours. During this project, they created a strong game and grew enormously as professionals in their roles.
Although this partly marks the end of their incubator journey at Dogfood Studios, we hope it is not the end of the road for CataMiner. The foundations are solid, industry interest is there, and the dream is clear: ultimately to release the game on Steam.
On behalf of everyone at GameLab: congratulations on earning your qualifications, and we will continue to follow your progress in the games industry closely!