Japanese indie developer Ojiro Fumoto is the mind behind two of the most critically-acclaimed mobile games in recent memory.
Vertical platform shooter Downwell launched through publisher Devolver on iOS and PC in October 2015, with other formats following soon after. It was a cult hit that earned Fumoto the chance to join the game design gods (his word) at Nintendo, where he later worked on Ring Fit Adventure and Donkey Kong Bananza.
But he soon realised working in teams wasn’t for him, and he left to go indie again – and made a game that wouldn’t look out of place within Nintendo’s catalogue. That game was Poinpy, a Netflix exclusive announced with some fanfare (and by Geoff Keighley himself) during the streaming firm’s 2022 Geeked Week event.
Recently, that Netflix deal expired and the game was removed from the service, amid shifting priorities for the streamer. But with the help of publisher Devolver, Poinpy was resurrected and rereleased for free last month. There’s no ads or monetisation in the game, but players can ‘tip’ Devolver and Fumoto if they want to through an IAP.
Fumoto is not one for the spotlight – he did not even want a headshot used in this article – but he did answer some questions about his career to date and what’s next over email recently. Here’s the Q&A in full:
How did the Netflix deal work? Did they approach you and ask you to make a game, or was Poinpy already in progress and they signed it exclusively?
Yeah the game was already well into development and they picked it up!
How did it end with Netflix and what were the reasons for Poinpy’s removal from the service?
Oh it was just the end of the exclusivity period after three years. It took some time to get it back out as I had some stuff going on in my life that I couldn’t work for a while.
How do you look back on your time working with Netflix, do you feel they gave you enough support? Would you have done anything differently?
I wouldn’t do anything differently. Netflix was great but it was still on Devolver and myself to help make some noise about the game. Netflix did a nice job making Poinpy a part of the spotlight and when there was such a positive reaction to the game’s announcement they doubled down on that excitement.
Did you talk to Apple about putting the game on Arcade or was it Netflix all the way?
We spoke with several partners and luckily Netflix came and said they wanted to make it part of their platforms launch! Can’t thank them enough really.
What did you work on at Nintendo and why did you leave?
I worked a tiny bit on Ring Fit Adventure and even tinier bit on Donkey Kong Bananza. I left because I realized working in teams wasn’t for me and wanted to get back to making my own games!
What did you learn from your time at Nintendo and how has that influenced your work since?
There were some level design Gods there and seeing them work was very inspiring. It was also super valuable for me to see how a big talented team operated. I definitely try to make games easier and more accessible now than when I made Downwell but I’m not sure if that’s an influence from having worked there or just me having gotten too old for hard edgy games myself.
Why release Poinpy as a free game rather than paid?
I felt Poinpy already made enough money from its initial release and didn’t need it to make much more. It’s not quite ‘quit work and go buy a yacht’ kind of money but it earned more than enough for the small game that it is. So I thought it’d be a nice thing to have this fun little game out there for free for anyone to enjoy.
The ‘tip’ idea is cool but I historically it makes very little money…what’s the thinking here? Do you care if this makes money or not?
Not really! Again I felt Poinpy has done well financially already. I intend to keep making games to sell so hopefully I can keep myself sustained that way.
What role did Devolver play? Whose idea was it to bring the game back?
I wanted to get the game back out because it’d be a waste not to right? Devolver helped me as they always have with all the stuff outside of the creative process. It’s super helpful for a small scale developer like myself.
So is this rerelease more for the sake of game preservation, really?
Yeah pretty much!
What’s next for you? Will you continue working in mobile or is it too tough out there to make the games you want to make?
Honestly I don’t know much about business, I just try to make a fun game and hope that it makes enough money to keep me going. I think my next game will be for PC consoles because its design only makes sense with traditional gamepads in mind. Still in early days though so we’ll see!
