The story of Get Packed
Moonshine Studios discuss the development of this frantic co-op game
We get the lowdown on this Google Stadia launch exclusive
Get Packed is a multiplayer game that combines teamwork and slapstick physics-based humour. You play as a member of a spaghetti-armed removals company, packing up and shipping out the homes and businesses of various unusual clients around Ditchlington.
Over the course of development,
Get Packed has changed considerably from its initial concept – partly through experimenting with different mechanics, and partly through the collaboration and support from Coatsink. The original concept was more akin to a removalist-themed ‘Tetris-with-friends’. But as we tested and played around with the idea, we discovered stacking wasn’t the fun part, it was the goofy physics-based teamwork. Once we’d redesigned the gameplay and created a new prototype, we approached publishers. Coatsink quickly became our first choice as partner and collaborator, not least for their expertise in online multiplayer – something we insisted Get Packed featured at launch.
The partnership with Google Stadia actually came about thanks to our publisher. Coatsink’s CEO Tom Beardsmore was introduced to the Google Stadia team by a mutual friend, and what started as simple curiosity – just to see what Google had up their sleeves for the gaming market in 2019 and 2020 – became this exciting adventure. As discussions progressed and Coatsink showed off a couple of their upcoming titles, they instantly fell in love with Get Packed.
PHYSICS-BASED CARNAGE
Get Packed is all about slapstick multiplayer comedy. It’s a hybrid of familiar couch co-op games and physics-based sandbox explorers, blurring the line between co-operative and competitive gaming. While you may be working together to get a job done, you’re also individually scored, and the temptation to troll your co-workers for the sake of some points is a constant presence.
Get Packed is unique in that it shines brightest when things are going horribly wrong. Players will find the funniest moments happen by total accident – when a job goes wrong at a pivotal point and creates a domino effect of mayhem. And that’s the heart of Get Packed: creating carnage with companions. Watching playtests, we find people tend to work together at first, planning ahead and handling every item with care. But eventually they realise that just running in heedlessly like a bull in a china shop and hurling everything into the van as fast as possible is actually a more effective way to make cash.
DEVELOPING FOR STADIA
During development (pre-stadia) we encountered a number of challenges.
Get Packed is played from a birds-eye perspective and often you can see the entire map. This is a huge area to render, exacerbated by the sheer amount of physics objects that can be manipulated by the player. Knowing the specifications of the target hardware was incredibly useful, allowing us to pack each area to limit without affecting performance.
Accurate lighting was another challenge pre-stadia development. Baking the lighting would’ve been the ideal solution, and would have allowed for faster render times, but with all the moveable elements it became clear that real-time lighting was the only viable solution. Even then, it was tricky balancing the requirements of the shadow system with the destructible meshes and explosions. It looks great, but that level of chaos began to push the hardware.
Fortunately, these limitations pretty much evaporated when we focused on Stadia development. Thanks to the power of the Stadia servers, we could push the wacky physics and gorgeous lighting much further than we anticipated. Developing for Stadia also granted access to a number of unique tools and features, a few of which we are currently exploring and aim to implement post-launch – particularly the integrated social features like Crowd Play, which will give players a chance to join in with Youtube streamers live.
LEVELLING UP THE LEVEL DESIGN
The art evolved greatly throughout development. Early on, we employed a PBR pipeline to produce assets which created a pseudo-realistic, minimalised style but with exaggerated texture detail. Our aim was to create a distinctive look and feel – something a little grimy to complement the characters – but one that also allowed us to clearly distinguish the different items in each level, which was a separate visual challenge in itself due to the highangle perspective. Fortunately, Coatsink was on-hand to support us with character designs and additional 2D art for cinematic sequences, which allowed us to focus on the technical details and helped shape and polish the final package.
On the subject of packages, the physicsbased nature of the gameplay meant each item required careful consideration, particularly how they came apart when destroyed. Should each item break into neat chunks for packing convenience, or crumple into an awkward, unwieldy mess? Decisions like this were usually determined by a simple question: “How can we make this more ridiculous?” And this ended up informing everything from the level design, to the mechanics, to the narrative.
We aimed to maximise the potential for slapstick in every level. Every level also introduces at least one new physics mechanic, and the environments range from suburban homes to office blocks to a haunted house to a prison. We wanted to make sure every new area felt fresh, and players were being constantly rewarded.
“DECISIONS LIKE THIS WERE USUALLY DETERMINED BY A SIMPLE QUESTION: ‘HOW CAN WE MAKE THIS MORE RIDICULOUS?’”
As a finished product, we’re delighted with how much fun and silliness we were able to cram into Get Packed.
GET PACKED AND READY FOR LAUNCH
We have been astounded by the feedback and support from the gaming community so far. The Stadia community in particular have been extremely enthusiastic. Postlaunch, we’re planning to release additional content, bringing new life and new levels to Ditchlington! Both Coatsink and Google have been fantastic partners and there’s no question that everyone at Moonshine Studios would be thrilled to work with them again in the future.