Toribash has been in development for the WiiWare service for quite some time, and just a few weeks ago the game was finally released for 1,000 Wii Points. A PC version of the game is available to download for free, so the obvious question is, "Why would you want the WiiWare version?" Hampus Soderstrom of Nabi Studios, the developer of the game, is here to answer that question and many more.

Nintendo World Report (NWR): To begin with, would you mind introducing your team and how it came about?

Hampus Soderstrom (HS): The main developers for WiiWare were Archee who did the graphics engine, Tapio who did sound effects, Fully Illustrated who did the visual style and Gman who did the marketing materials. I've worked with all of them except Tapio before.

NWR: What was your inspiration for Toribash?

HS: I practice judo on my spare time; having a hobby can be good for coming up with game ideas. The physics and game play was inspired by Bridge Builder and Stair Dismount.

NWR: How long has Toribash been in development?

HS: The WiiWare version was in development for about 2 years. Toribash for PC has been in development since 2006.

NWR: Toribash was delayed several times. Would you mind explaining the reason behind these delays?

HS: Bugs combined with an excessive amount of polish. The day-to-day running of the Toribash PC community takes a bit of time, which makes development slower.

NWR: Did you encounter any problems while developing the game? If so, would you mind explaining them?

HS: In the beginning, we couldn't get the physics running fast enough. The PC version requires a 2Ghz CPU to run, and Wii is a  smaller machine. We eventually managed to get it running in 60 FPS, which I am very happy with. Towards the end of the development, we had more issues with compliance, making sure we showed the correct error messages and things like that.

NWR: What was the hardest part of developing your first WiiWare game?

HS: Everything was new for us except the physics part of the game. All that adds up when you have to learn a new API for everything you do.

NWR: Was there anything you would have liked to add to Toribash but couldn’t due to platform limitations?

HS: We had some really nice animated head textures that where too big to fit in memory. So I was stuck between lowering the quality of the textures or not animating them. We had a nice system for emailing replays to PC machines which we had to take out.

NWR: Toribash is available for the PC for free. Why did you decide to make a WiiWare version of the game and charge $10 for it?

HS: The PC version generates revenue using virtual items. For WiiWare, it is a just a one-time payment instead.

NWR: Do you think that Toribash can be a little too complex to understand at times?

HS: Yes, it is super hard core.

NWR: What are some of the advantages that the WiiWare version has over its PC counterpart?

HS: Better replay system, quicker matchmaking and ingame sharing of replays.

NWR: Why did you decide not to make use of the Wii Remote’s pointer?

HS: It didn't work very well on small TV screens to select joints using the Wii Remote.

NWR: How do you feel about the reception that Toribash has received?

HS: Great so far. I am really happy that the players like it.

NWR: Is there a possibility that you could take the game to other platforms with the upcoming releases of Microsoft's Kinect and Sony's Move?

HS: I think Toribash could work on some other platforms. I haven't tested Kinect yet and I am not sure if Toribash would be a good fit for it.

NWR: Do you have any other WiiWare games in the works? If so, when can we expect to see them?

HS: Nothing that we can announce now.

NWR: Are you pleased with Nintendo’s WiiWare service? Some developers have expressed frustration due to some of Nintendo's policies, and you mentioned some compliance issues.

HS: I am pleased with the service.

NWR: Have you considered developing games for the Nintendo DSiWare service?

HS: No, not yet.

NWR: What do you think of the Nintendo 3DS? Would you ever consider developing games for it?

HS: 3DS is the platform I am most keen on developing for at the moment.

NWR: Finally, is there anything else you would like to say to our readers?

HS: Check out Toribash, tons of fun and gore.

Thanks go out to the folks at Nabi Studios for making this interview possible!