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Tuesday, December 3, 2024
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The walls are alive with tiny people in Cyborn’s Mixed Reality game Wall Town Wonders

Belgian developer Cyborn has introduced a fresh perspective on mixed-reality gaming with the release of Wall Town Wonders, a game that transforms living spaces into bustling miniature towns built right on the wall. The game invites players to interact with tiny townsfolk, build unique structures and explore surprises, all while pioneering the possibilities of mixed-reality technology. 

The idea for Wall Town Wonders emerged quickly, as Cyborn CEO and Creative/Art Director Ives Agemans recalls: “I put on a Quest Pro, activated passthrough, and walked around my room, asking what I’d like to see happening around me. Miniature people came to mind almost instantly. Then I wondered, ‘Where would they build houses?’” At first, tables seemed an obvious choice but in reality the make up of a table surface is changing constantly. Agemans soon landed on the idea of open wall spaces as the perfect canvas for a miniature town. “Twenty minutes after I put on the Quest Pro for the first time I had the basic idea for Wall Town Wonders.” Within days, the concept was pitched to Meta and greenlit enthusiastically. “Eighteen months later, the game is here,” he says. 

A standout feature of Wall Town Wonders is its hand-tracking interaction, allowing players to control the game and engage with characters using just their hands. “The characters jumping into your hand is something I’m particularly proud of,” says Agemans. “Although at the moment it is technically very challenging to get it right and we want to improve it when the Mixed Reality software evolves. But I’m happy we put it in already.”

Elements of Steampunk

Another highlight is the airplane control mechanism. “We wanted the entire game playable with hand tracking,” Agemans explains. “So we needed a very easy and original way to control the plane.”  Players guide airplanes through the air to the airfield by gently waving their hand in the right direction. They can also help hot air balloons and blimps on their way, by nudging them along, again with a little wave of the hand. Agemans smiles, “I’m really happy with how it turned out.”

Wall Town Wonders features a distinctive aesthetic that blends realism with charming cartoony vibe, giving it a diorama-like appeal. Agemans describes the inspiration: “I wanted to mimic the look of real miniature worlds we all grew up with. The style is influenced by 18th and 19th-century buildings in cities like Paris, Vienna, and our hometown of Antwerp.” The game incorporates elements of steampunk design but avoids its darker tones, opting instead for a lively atmosphere.

Mixed Reality challenges

Developing a mixed-reality game came with its own set of challenges. “The hardest part was figuring out what worked and what was genuinely fun in mixed reality,” Agemans shares. Cyborn experimented extensively to refine the core gameplay mechanics, such as interactions with the town’s miniature citizens and designing activities that feel natural in mixed-reality settings. Performance optimization was another hurdle. “We aim to push the platform to its limits, often working at the very edge of what the device can handle,” he explains. Achieving smooth gameplay with high-quality visuals required meticulous fine-tuning. 

Agemans: “We’ve definitely considered adding voice acting, but with the sheer volume of text already in the game, it would significantly increase the scope of the project. That said, who knows what the future holds? We might explore the idea of bringing in voice actors to give life to some of our key characters down the line!”

The gameplay in Wall Town Wonders stays fresh through a variety of quests, mini-games, and seasonal updates. Agemans emphasizes the iterative nature of their creative process: “We brainstormed countless ideas but focused on what was practical and enjoyable in mixed reality. From there, we tested a variety of prototypes and selected the ones that were the most fun, engaging and fit naturally into the theme of our town.” The development team has more surprises in store, with new mini-games and features planned for future updates, including a holiday-themed expansion arriving this Christmas.

Iteration is key

Throughout the development process, the team at Cyborn learned the importance of adaptability. “Iteration is key. That’s not new to game development of course, but it was reinforced throughout this project,” Agemans says. “We also gained a deep understanding of what works -and what doesn’t- in mixed reality. Many ideas that seem great on paper don’t translate as well when you factor in hand tracking and the unique challenges of the medium. It’s been a constant process of learning and adapting to make everything work seamlessly.”

Agemans: “Aside from our game productions, we are finishing Terraformer, a short film set in the Hubris universe.”

Working on Wall Town Wonders has made the studio ‘incredibly enthusiastic’ about the potential of Mixed Reality. “Our main focus right now is on this game. We intend to support it with extra content and exciting seasonal updates we have planned for the coming months and year.” Beyond that, Agemans hints at exciting projects on the horizon. “There is already a great new game idea about. But,” he says, “It’s too early to tell.”

Wall Town Wonders is out now for Meta Quest 3 and 3S.

Eric Bartelson
Eric Bartelson
Editor-in-Chief of PreMortem.Games. Veteran game journalist for over 20 years. Started out in 1999 for game magazines (yes the ones made of paper) such as PC Zone Benelux, PlayNation and GameQuest, before co-founding Dutch industry paper Control Magazine.
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